A Most Clever Girl Blog Tour: Review + Giveaway

 

 

 

A Most Clever Girl: How Jane Austen Found Her Voice
Written by Jasmine A. Stirling
Illustrated by Vesper Stamper
Release Date: March 30, 2021
Publisher: Bloomsbury Children’s Books

Ages 4-12
48 Pages

Description:
 

Witty and mischievous Jane Austen grew up in a house overflowing with words. As a young girl, she delighted in making her family laugh with tales that poked fun at the popular novels of her time, stories that featured fragile ladies and ridiculous plots. Before long, Jane was writing her own stories-uproariously funny ones, using all the details of her life in a country village as inspiration.

In times of joy, Jane’s words burst from her pen. But after facing sorrow and loss, she wondered if she’d ever write again. Jane realized her writing would not be truly her own until she found her unique voice. She didn’t know it then, but that voice would go on to capture readers’ hearts and minds for generations to come.

Purchase Links:
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2O2scVx
Bookshop: https://bookshop.org/a/2078/9781547601103

A Most Clever Girl is a wonderful introduction to the famous author Jane Austen for young children. I went into this believing it was going to be just that - cute pictures with a short cute story. I was completely wrong. I learned so much about Jane from this book. There were a lot of life details that I had known nothing about. I found myself fully engaged in this story meant for young children - and I'm an adult. I loved that the story was so real. It wasn't a cute little story with rhymes. It was full of actual facts and was told in an informative way while still being entertaining. I really loved the information that the author and illustrator added at the end of the story. Quotes from Austen's books, a short biography about her, a note from both the author and the illustrator, bibliographies and extra resources. Not many other children's books provide this sort of information and I thought it was a wonderfully brilliant idea. The illustrations were large and bright and followed the story perfectly. This is a fantastic book for younger kids who are being read to - they'll love the pictures - and for older children who are learning to read themselves or who are a bit more advanced and are learning about important people in history. 

Jasmine A. Stirling is the debut author of A Most Clever Girl: How Jane Austen Discovered Her Voice, a picture book biography of Jane Austen about persistence and creative mastery. Jasmine lives on a cheerful street in San Francisco with her husband, two daughters, and their dog. From a young age, she loved to write poems and stories and worked her way through nearly every children’s book (and quite a few for grownups, too) in her local library. When she’s not writing, Jasmine can be found hiking in the fog, singing songs from old musicals, and fiddling with her camera.

Jasmine first fell in love with Jane Austen as a student at Oxford, where she read her favorite of Jane’s six masterful novels, Persuasion. A Most Clever Girl is her dream project, done with her dream team—award-winning illustrator Vesper Stamper and Bloomsbury Children’s Publishing. Jasmine also has a YA/New Adult history of the women's suffrage movement out soon, titled We Demand An Equal Voice.

Visit www.jasmineastirling.com to get a free Jane Austen paper doll kit with the purchase of A Most Clever Girl. While you're there, enter to win a Regency tea party gift basket! 

 

Follow Jasmine on Instagram and Facebook @jasmine.a.stirling.author where she posts about kidlit and life with two young girls.

Enter for a chance to win a glorious Jane Austen-themed picnic basket, including a hardcover copy of A Most Clever Girl autographed by Jasmine A. Stirling!

 

One (1) grand prize winner receives:

• A picnic basket filled with:

• A copy of A Most Clever Girl: How Jane Austen Discovered Her Voice, signed by author Jasmine A. Stirling

• A vintage teacup

• 1 oz of tea From Adagio Teas

• Truffles from Moonstruck Chocolates

• Gardenia hand cream

• A set of Jane Austen playing cards

• A $15 gift certificate to Jasmine A. Stirling’s Austenite Etsy Shop, Box Hill Goods

Two (2) winners receive:

• A copy of A Most Clever Girl: How Jane Austen Discovered Her Voice, signed by author Jasmine A. Stirling

 

The giveaway begins March 16, 2021, at 12:01 A.M. MT, and ends April 16, 2021, at 11:59 P.M. MT.

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Review: The Good, the Bad, and the Grace of God by Jep & Jessica Robertson

The Good, the Bad, and the Grace of God: What Honesty and Pain Taught Us About Faith, Family, and Forgiveness

Authors: Jep Robertson and Jessica Robertson with Susy Flory 
Genre: Nonfiction/Biography/Memoir/Christianity
Release Date: June 23, 2015
Publisher: Thomas Nelson

Description:

A Moving Story of Redemption and Second Chances
 
Jep Robertson, the youngest son of Duck Commander Phil Robertson, and his wife, Jessica, open up about their personal trials, their early years together, and the challenges that might have destroyed them both had the grace of God not intervened. Jep describes being molested as a child and his reluctance to tell anyone until only a few years ago, his downward spiral into drug and alcohol abuse, and the eventual intervention of his family. 

Jessica shares about the difficult failure of her first marriage while still a teenager and the hurt that came along with it, much of it from the church. Her insecurities spun out of control as she wondered whether she would ever be good enough or pretty enough. This book is their love story but, more importantly, their love story for God.
 
"We are desperate to let people know that no matter what you've done; no matter what you've lived through, you can come out of it. You can be washed clean. You are redeemed."  

The Good, the Bad, and the Grace of God is a very personal look inside the lives of TV celebrities Jep and Jessica Robertson, who are known from Duck Dynasty. If you've ever seen the show or read any of the other books that other members of the Robertson clan have written, you know that they aren't shy about their Christian faith. In this memoir, the youngest of the Robertson brothers - Jep - and his wife - Jessica - speak about some of the hard life lessons they've had to learn throughout the years and how even these tough situations brought them closer to their family and to God.

The book is told in a very natural, laid-back manner - which allows the reader to easily identify with Jep and Jessica from early on. It also reminds us that these 'larger than life' celebrities are just normal people like us, who have struggled with several common issues and who are still learning and growing as they go through life. Being a woman, I found it easier to identify with Jessica's stories - especially the ones dealing with her insecurities. Jep's stories were intriguing and showed me a side of his life I never would have guessed about. Hearing about the horrific events he had to go through - like being molested as a child and keeping it inside for so many years - as well as his drug and alcohol issues - made my heart break a little bit. I haven't been through these situations myself, but having Jep tell his story made me realize how lucky I am and how much worse other people's lives are without you even knowing it. Overall, this was an engaging memoir on Jep and Jessica's trials and suffering, along with their faith in each other and in God. As a fan of the show, I like knowing more about them and now I'll remember what they've gone through and overcome. I definitely recommend this to fans of Christianity nonfiction, biographies, and memoirs, along with fans of the Duck Dynasty franchise.

 *I received a copy of the book from the BookLook Bloggers Program in exchange for an honest review.*

 

Review: Ghost Boy: The Miraculous Escape of a Misdiagnosed Boy Trapped Inside His Own Body by Martin Pistorius

Ghost Boy: The Miraculous Escape of a Misdiagnosed Boy Trapped Inside His Own Body
Author: Martin Pistorius
Genre: Memoir/Biography
Release Date: November 12, 2013
Publisher: Thomas Nelson Publishers

Description:

They all thought he was gone. But he was alive and trapped inside his own body for ten years.

In January 1988 Martin Pistorius, aged twelve, fell inexplicably sick. First he lost his voice and stopped eating. Then he slept constantly and shunned human contact. Doctors were mystified. Within eighteen months he was mute and wheelchair-bound. Martin's parents were told an unknown degenerative disease left him with the mind of a baby and less than two years to live.

Martin was moved to care centers for severely disabled children. The stress and heartache shook his parents marriage and their family to the core. Their boy was gone. Or so they thought.

Ghost Boy is the heart-wrenching story of one boy's return to life through the power of love and faith. In these pages, readers see a parent's resilience, the consequences of misdiagnosis, abuse at the hands of cruel caretakers, and the unthinkable duration of Martin's mental alertness betrayed by his lifeless body.

We also see a life reclaimed, a business created, a new love kindled all from a wheelchair. Martin's emergence from his own darkness invites us to celebrate our own lives and fight for a better life for others. 

Ghost Boy is the raw and emotional memoir of Martin Pistorius, who was misdiagnosed when he fell ill as a preteen and had to endure the next ten years of his life trapped inside his own body and not knowing if things would ever change for him. It's an emotional roller coaster of a book - heartbreaking and tragic, but at the same time full of hope and faith.

I had seen this book around lately and thought that the description sounded incredibly fascinating. I like to read memoirs once in awhile - and this one had a pull to it that I can't explain. It felt like it was just begging me to read it. I'm so happy that I decided to give it a shot! What started out as curiosity and mild intrigue ended up being a truly moving biography that had me hooked from the beginning paragraphs. From the description itself, it's easy to gather the premise of the book - the author fell sick as a child and ended up spending the next ten years of his life mentally aware but unable to communicate due to his shell of a body. There's so much more to the story than that - it was an incredibly emotional book that had my heart breaking for Martin in one section, and then I'd be smiling because of the kindness shown to him from various staff he's encountered and his family's unconditional love and support. It was terrible to read about the time the author was stuck inside his body - he was fully alert and aware of everything going on around him, yet he couldn't let anyone know that he had come back from the darkness because his body was basically useless. It really made me stop and think about what I would do if I was in his situation - the idea seriously horrified me. I don't know how he made it through - not just a small amount of time, but an entire decade! I can only imagine how scary it must have been at first - which then led to frustration, anger, and the realization that this may be the way he has to spend the rest of his life. Alert, aware, alive - but so alone.

This story isn't meant to be one of despair, but one of hope and resilience. The parts in the book where Martin speaks of his time alert but unable to let anyone know - literally trapped inside his body - gave way to several emotions for me; mostly the horror of having to face such a thing, along with admiration for the author and his perseverance, the hope that he never lets die out, and the wonderful support of those who loved and cared about him. I found it interesting that the author claimed that he felt God with him during this experience - even though he had never been a religious person. That's another part of the book that made me stop and think for awhile.  

It's unbelievable what the author had to endure - and continues to go through on a daily basis. Yet he never gave up and continues his life today with that same kind of positive outlook and hope for the future. This is a memoir that everyone should read - it's one of universal truths and topics, so readers of all kinds will be able to relate to both the author and his story. It will definitely make you stop and think, and to be grateful for the life that you've been given - it puts a lot of things in perspective (at least it did for me). I very highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys biographies and memoirs along with anyone who wants a remarkable story full of raw emotion and undying hope.

* I received a copy of the book from the BookLook Bloggers Program in exchange for an honest review. *

 

Spotlight: I Regret Nothing by Jen Lancaster

Hey everybody! I'm so excited to be spotlighting the newest release by Jen Lancaster - I Regret Nothing: A Memoir! I can't wait to read this one, so keep an eye out for my review! Read on for more info on the book and the author - and don't forget to add it to your TBR!

I Regret Nothing: A Memoir

Author: Jen Lancaster

Genre: Biography/Memoir 

Release Date: May 5, 2015

Publisher: NAL

Description:

New York Times bestselling author Jen Lancaster has lived a life based on re-invention and self-improvement. From Bitter Is the New Black to The Tao of Martha, she’s managed to document her (and her generation’s) attempts to shape up, grow up, and have it all—sometimes with disastrous results…

Sure Jen has made mistakes. She spent all her money from a high-paying job on shoes, clothes, and spa treatments. She then carried a Prada bag to the unemployment office. She wrote a whole memoir about dieting…but didn’t lose weight. She embarked on a quest for cultural enlightenment that only cemented her love for John Hughes movies and Kraft American Singles. She tried to embrace everything Martha Stewart, while living with a menagerie of rescue cats and dogs. (Glitter…everywhere.)

Mistakes are one thing; regrets are another.

After a girls’ weekend in Savannah makes her realize that she is—yikes!—middle-aged (binge watching is so the new binge drinking), Jen decides to make a bucket list and seize the day, even if that means having her tattoo removed at one hundred times the cost of putting it on.

From attempting a juice cleanse to studying Italian, from learning to ride a bike to starting a new business, and from sampling pasta in Rome to training for a 5K, Jen is turning a mid-life crisis into a mid-life opportunity, sharing her sometimes bumpy—but always hilarious—attempts to better her life…again.  

Jen Lancaster is the author of her own memoirs including: as Bitter is the New Black, Bright Lights, Big Ass, Such A Pretty Fat, Pretty in Plaid, My Fair Lazy, and the newest: Jeneration X.

She has also dabbled with fiction in her first book, If You Were Here. (Author info and photo taken from Goodreads.)

Author Links:

http://www.jenlancaster.com 

http://www.jenlancaster.com/#!blog1/c5fz 

http://www.facebook.com/authorjenlancaster 

http://www.twitter.com/altgeldshrugged 

http://instagram.com/jennsylvania 

http://www.youtube.com/altgeldshrugged 

http://vimeo.com/jennsylvania 

Special Father's Day Book Spotlight + Giveaway: JAMES MADISON: A Life Reconsidered by Lynne Cheney

Hey everyone! I'm so excited to be featuring this fascinating new book with you! Read on for more details and then enter the exclusive giveaway going on in celebration of Father's Day!

James Madison: A Life Reconsidered

Author: Lynne Cheney

Genre: Biography/History

Release Date: May 6, 2014

Publisher: Viking Adult

Description:

A major new biography of the fourth president of the United States by New York Times bestselling author Lynne Cheney

This majestic new biography of James Madison explores the astonishing story of a man of vaunted modesty who audaciously changed the world. Among the Founding Fathers, Madison was a true genius of the early republic.

Outwardly reserved, Madison was the intellectual driving force behind the Constitution and crucial to its ratification. His visionary political philosophy and rationale for the union of states—so eloquently presented in The Federalist papers—helped shape the country Americans live in today.

Along with Thomas Jefferson, Madison would found the first political party in the country’s history—the Democratic Republicans. As Jefferson’s secretary of state, he managed the Louisiana Purchase, doubling the size of the United States. As president, Madison led the country in its first war under the Constitution, the War of 1812. Without precedent to guide him, he would demonstrate that a republic could defend its honor and independence—and remain a republic still. 

Praise:

“Lucidly written… this is probably the best single volume bio of Madison that we now have.”

—Gordon Wood, New York Times Book Review

“The book is a lovingly researched tribute to an often-underestimated man. It does not explicitly refer to modern controversies. But present-day politics intrudes.”

—The Economist

“Cheney might have written a book that made Madison a prop in today’s political battles. She did not, which is greatly to her credit and true to the life of the man.”

—Washington Post

“Meticulously researched, richly detailed look at the life and times of Madison, former Second Lady Cheney fleshes out the achievements and struggles of this American founding father…authoritative, conversational, certainly confident in its analysis.” 

—Publishers Weekly

 

“A proficiently argued account for Madison’s greatness.”

—Kirkus Reviews

"With this compelling, elegant, original biography, Lynne Cheney brings the great, elusive James Madison back to life, reminding us of how powerfully this brilliant Founder’s political and intellectual leadership has shaped the course of American history.  In this era in which Madison is too often eclipsed by more histrionic Founders, Cheney shows us his crucial, fascinating relationships with Dolley, Thomas Jefferson and an all-star cast, and lets us witness the growth of a world-changing political philosopher. Her book demonstrates why Madison deserves to stand near the center of our early American firmament.”  

—Michael Beschloss, author of The Conquerors and Presidential Courage

“James Madison did as much to put his stamp on the nation as any of the founders, yet too rarely is he given his due in the pantheon of America’s statesman. In this stunning, brilliant work, Lynne Cheney rectifies this glaring oversight, and brings Madison to life as never before. Written with subtlety and grace, the book is as groundbreaking as it is fresh, as enthralling as it is compulsively readable. It is nothing short of a masterpiece that deserves to be in the bookshelf of every history buff!”

—Jay Winik, author of April 1865 and The Great Upheaval

"After more than 25 years working on the Madison Papers, it's not often that I read something about him that is fresh and engaging, and discovers new aspects of his life and character.  Cheney's exploration of Madison's health issues, not only as a young man, but throughout his career, is imaginative and groundbreaking. Her writing is both fluid and polished; the tone is measured and judicious; there isn't a strident note in the whole book. And, an added plus, her treatment of Madison as a political actor is informed by a sophisticated knowledge of politics, without in any way being presentist.” 

—David B. Mattern, Research Professor and Senior Associate Editor, Papers of James Madison, University of Virginia

Extra Info:

WHO:  Lynne Cheney, wife of former Vice President Dick Cheney, is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. She is the author or co-author of twelve books, includes six bestsellers about American history for children and their families.  Cheney’s most recent book is We the People: The Story of Our Constitution (2008). 

 

WHAT: Cheney, who holds a Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin, has been studying Madison since 1987, when she was a member of the Commission on the Bicentennial of the Constitution.  She has spent the last five years immersed in Madison archival materials, and the result is a lively, intimate, and compelling narrative that takes the reader through the history-altering events in which Madison played key roles.  He was not only the Father of the Constitution, but the leader of the first Congress and President Washington’s most influential advisor.  He used both positions and a political savvy unmatched since to secure passage of the Bill of Rights. In 1812, he became the first president to lead the nation in war under the Constitution, and he was not only as steady a commander-in-chief as the nation has ever known, he was a friend of liberty, refusing to silence those opposed to war, although many pressed him to do so.

WHY: Father of the Constitution, principle author of the Bill of Rights, founder of the first opposition party, secretary of state, and fourth president, Madison was both a far-seeing theorist and a masterful politician, who despite all he accomplished has been overshadowed by other Founders.  Mrs. Cheney covers the sweep of Madison’s significant life, exploring his deeds, his mind, and his character to reveal the brilliance and determination that enabled this seemingly modest man to change the world.  Debunking the myths that have burdened his reputation, she shows us the Madison lauded by his famous contemporaries—Washington, Adams, Jefferson—and loved by his glamorous wife, Dolley. 

Thanks to the awesome people at Viking, I have (1) finished copy of the book for a lucky winner! Open to US only!

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Book Review: Shakespeare's Restless World by Neil MacGregor

Shakespeare's Restless World

Author: Neil MacGregor
Genre: Nonfiction/History
Release Date: October 1, 2013
Publisher: Viking
Source: Hardcover from Publisher

Description:

The New York Times bestselling author of A History of the World in 100 Objects brings the world of Shakespeare and the Tudor era of Elizabeth I into focus

We feel we know Shakespeare’s characters. Think of Hamlet, trapped in indecision, or Macbeth’s merciless and ultimately self-destructive ambition, or the Machiavellian rise and short reign of Richard III. They are so vital, so alive and real that we can see aspects of ourselves in them. But their world was at once familiar and nothing like our own.

In this brilliant work of historical reconstruction Neil MacGregor and his team at the British Museum, working together in a landmark collaboration with the Royal Shakespeare Company and the BBC, bring us twenty objects that capture the essence of Shakespeare’s universe. A perfect complement to A History of the World in 100 Objects, MacGregor’s landmark New York Times bestseller, Shakespeare’s Restless World highlights a turning point in human history.

This magnificent book, illustrated throughout with more than one hundred vibrant color photographs, invites you to travel back in history and to touch, smell, and feel what life was like at that pivotal moment, when humankind leaped into the modern age. This was an exhilarating time when discoveries in science and technology altered the parameters of the known world. Sir Francis Drake’s circumnavigation map allows us to imagine the age of exploration from the point of view of one of its most ambitious navigators. A bishop’s cup captures the most sacred and divisive act in Christendom.

With A History of the World in 100 Objects, MacGregor pioneered a new way of telling history through artifacts. Now he trains his eye closer to home, on a subject that has mesmerized him since childhood, and lets us see Shakespeare and his world in a whole new light.  

As a graduate student in English, I've had a lot of exposure to Shakespeare throughout my college and graduate career. I have always been a huge fan of the Bard and his works and the time period when he lived always intrigued me as well. This book was a perfect blend of history and biography as the author takes us into the life and times of Shakespeare. The book tells of various objects that helped to define the period of time that Shakespeare and his contemporaries lived in. Although this is a nonfiction book, it's told in a very conversational tone which makes all the information accessible and fascinating - not bored and dry. Aiding the narrative and historical facts are fantastic illustrations, maps, and copies to show the views, beliefs, ideals, and general lifestyle of Shakespeare's time. The various media included in the book really added to the text and made it more exciting and easier to picture for the reader. The writing was well done - informative and full of great facts and history, but - like I mentioned above - it wasn't dry or boring to read. I enjoyed learning all about the different facets of life during that time period and this book does a wonderful job of explaining, highlighting, and illustrating some really fascinating aspects not everyone knows about. Highly recommended for fans of history nonfiction and Shakespeare buffs alike.

*A big thanks to Viking for sending me a copy of the book for review!*