The Joy of Books [Video]

Books have always been extraordinary and magical to me. When I start reading a new book, I see it as an invitation to experience someone else’s life while letting any stress in my life fade away, even for just a little while. We are allowed into the heads of characters in books; we have the opportunity to learn what makes them tick and what their weaknesses are. We get to see life through their eyes and then take the wisdom they leave us with and apply it to our own realities. It’s really astounding.

Sean Ohlenkamp’s absolutely remarkable video The Joy of Books shows just how magical books can be, in a more physical sense, by crafting some amazing stop motion animation and seamless editing.

Book Giveaway: Win a Signed Copy of “All About Vee” by C. Leigh Purtill [Closed]

I first read All About Vee by C. Leigh Purtill back in 2008. It arrived just before the beginning of summer and I picked it up expecting a light, girly read I would breeze through in just a few, short days, and then promptly forget most of the details within right after writing the review. My first impression of this book, the brightly-colored cover and teenagers holding hands with huge smiles plastered on their faces, pointed to precisely this series of events. When you have read and reviewed as many young adult books as I have over the years, you learn that you can indeed judge most books by their covers and know what to expect from them. The key word here is ‘most.’ But this particular book turned out to be so …

“Who does that fat girl think she is?”

This post originally appeared on C. Leigh Purtill’s personal blog. Republished with permission.

That’s the strange comment I’ve read on some reviews of my novel, All About Vee. Perhaps not quite as harsh but certainly I’ve read comments that express that sentiment.

Why? I always wonder. Why would a reader be upset that my mc, Veronica May, a plus-size actress struggling in Hollywood, has confidence in herself? Plenty of other characters in other books know they are good at something, whether it’s acting or painting or sports. So what’s the difference between them and Veronica?

Her size.

There’s an attitude among a lot of people that overweight women shouldn’t be happy with themselves. They should want to look thinner. They should not like who they are. They should feel inferior to …

7 Steps to a Happy Marriage, a Guest Post by Jenna McCarthy

I am all about books that talk about people and relationships realistically. I think most everyone who is in a long-term relationship appreciates the refreshing, true-to-life, and therefore often hilarious outlook that these books bring, where you’re reading and suddenly you’re nodding your head or find yourself laughing hysterically because you can relate to the perspectives on life and love and on frustration and housework so much. So much. In fact, when this happens, I take the opportunity to read some choice segments to my partner, followed closely by “See? That’s what you do! You do that!”

Well, Jenna McCarthy’s soon-to-be-released book, If it Was Easy They’d Call the Whole Damn Thing a Honeymoon: Living with and Loving the TV-Addicted, Sex-Obsessed, Not-So-Handy Man You Married, seems to be THAT. BOOK. I haven’t read it yet (although I will be soon and I’ll be posting a review, so be sure to check back for that!) but the book trailer alone was so, incredibly relateable. Here, take a look:

Book Review: Here, Home, Hope by Kaira Rouda

Restlessness is a human condition. As human beings, we strive. We strive to do more, to be better, to feed our souls, to attain happiness, to do what truly fulfills us, and to meet the standards we set in place for ourselves. Restlessness knows no gender, age group, or class. It’s universal. However, if you happen to be approaching a milestone age, like age forty, when you grow restless and bored and develop an urge to do something more with your life, many are quick to attach the midlife crisis condition to you.

The midlife crisis as a jumping off point to a story has become redundant and trivial to me; as if someone needs to be reduced to their hormones and intimate mental processes in order to have the audacity to expect or to …

“Home-Ec 101: Skills for Everyday Living” Chapter Review, “Meal Planning: Not Just for the Control Freaks”

When it comes to housekeeping and generally knowing my way around the kitchen, I am not nearly as knowledgeable as I probably should be; especially when you consider that I have been out in the real world for quite some time now. I’m not saying that I don’t know how to keep a place clean and well-kept, because I definitely do, but that is pretty much where my talents come to a full-stop. Yes, my grandmother is not impressed. Not at all.

Recently, I have been attempting to learn more about this whole cooking for myself business. It has been more successful than I had initially thought it would be, but that could also be because my partner, who has grown very much accustomed to preparing all of our meals throughout the …