Serious Sas and Messy Magda are being well loved by new readers around the world! Meet two of them here. Apparently the little lovely in the pink top shouted at Magda to stop feeding the lions! She’s got her head screwed on 🙂

The girls love Sas and Magda!

Sas and Magda’s newest, littlest fan!

Marianne attends the launch of M.J. Steven’s young adult novel, Bound.

Book launches – like weddings – are always happy affairs and M.J. Steven’s BOUND launch was no exception.

Following a lovely introduction by the author’s long term friend, Ruth Cohen, M.J. (Melanie) Stevens talked about how she’d taken the self-publishing journey because of her deep love for telling stories.

After that, she read the first chapter of BOUND keeping the audience enthralled and keen to find out what happened next.

From GoodReads:

‘No good deed ever goes unpunished, Mellea…’

Mellea Wendorn hasn’t exactly had a normal life. Misfortune seems to follow her, and her family, wherever she goes. 
However, when Mellea stops to assist a mysterious young man suddenly her prior hardships seem trivial.

His name is Leo. He is a Successor, a child of the Guardians of Selestia. 

He is royalty. 
He is handsome. 
And he wants Mellea completely to himself. 

Unable to escape the Guardian’s laws, Mellea must learn the ways of the royals. She is convinced her life can’t get much worse. But when a timeworn Guardian enemy arises from the shadows, Mellea must make a choice that will change her destiny forever.

After that, we all got to mingle and eat and drink and I spoke to the author’s very proud mother, and some of her teachers.

Below are a selection of photos from the launch. We’ll have a review of the book up soon and in the meantime you can check it out on GoodReads. 

You can purchase BOUND from this link.

M.J Stevens and friend Ruth

M J Stevens

And here is the book trailer:

I took time out last night to go and find out just what all the fuss is about when it comes to the movie Saving Mr Banks.

The trailers on TV are a pretty good indicator as to the main storyline; P.L.Travers, the author of Mary Poppins, going through the rigmarole of converting her characters into a big screen worthy entity. The beautiful thing is, this isn’t the only thing happening.

We spend a good portion of the film heading back into the very early 1900’s to when Helen Lyndon Goff (P L Travers) was a young girl and the family issues that helped fuel her creativity to write Mary Poppins.  

I found it a little surreal watching Emma Thompson playing Mrs Travers, since she was also Nanny McPhee, a movie so similar to Mary Poppins it was ridiculous.

 Tom Hanks playing Walt Disney was delightful, and I must admit I had a craving to watch A League of their Own, this morning when I woke up. I love it when he’s given a role where both the female characters and his character have a chance to butt heads and come out with everyone respected and honoured.

Ruth Wilson and Rachel Griffiths were superb choices for the Aussie women of the era.

I must admit I was a little annoyed at myself for not being armed with a packet of tissues, because they were much needed and I ended up leaving before the credits had finished rolling (red, blotchy, snotty face), despite the completely awe inspiring collection of photographs that were being shown of the people the film was about.

There were so many funny moments, and times when you’re just glad you didn’t have Mrs Travers’ sniper like temper aimed at you, that you really do not notice the time go by.

John Lee Hancock you have done a brilliant job with this cast, this crew, this script and ultimately this film.

A solid 5 out of 5 from me. Take your tissues!

Book buying with heart… even if you’re on a budget.

It’s that time of the year again, when us bibliophiles gather in the masses to pick up a bargain, fill our book shelves and do it with a clear conscience because what we spend goes to help many, many people in need.

 Information (just in case you have never been to a Lifeline Bookfest)

 It will be held in 2014 from Saturday January 18 to Monday January 27 at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre.

 Opening Hours

Opening weekend Jan 18-19: 8:30am – 8:00pm
Monday – Friday Jan 20-24: 8:30am – 6:00pm
Closing weekend Jan 25-26: 8:30am – 8:00pm
Australia Day (Sale Day): 8:30am – 4:00pm

When you get inside

 The space has been split up into 3 sections…

High Quality – prices will be as marked

$2.50 section – as the name suggests… everything in this bit is $2.50

And the $1 section… pretty self explanatory.

 To make life a little more sensible within each section there are categories such as Science Fiction, Hardback Fiction, paperback fiction, Children’s etc. 20 categories in total.

 So take you’re granny trolley, remember to pay for the books in your hand, and have them bagged, before switching sections and keep an eye out for an absolute bargain.

 **If you are on a tight, tight budget, my tip is to take public transport, and only allow yourself to buy what you can carry.**

I’ve been a fan of Mary Janice’s Undead series for over a decade, so when Better World Books had a sale on their preloved books, I was stoked to see something from her I hadn’t read yet, and was even more pleased that it’s for a middle grade/young adult market.

 Thanks to Goodreads for the description…

“She knew that growing up would mean changing. But Jennifer wasn’t prepared for the blue scales or the claws, since no one had told her that she came from a bloodline of weredragons. Her greatest challenge? Protecting herself from her family’s ancient enemies and preparing herself for fierce battles. And that’s a lot to expect of a girl just coming into her own.”

The twists in the tail tale are beautifully crafted. Foreshadowing is forgivable and the ending has you chomping for book two, Jennifer Scales and the Messenger of Light.

This husband and wife team have a refreshing view of friendships between guys and girls, and make you wish the guys in their early teens, in real life, were as level headed as their characters are.

These books first came out in 2005, so they may be a little challenging to find.

 If you’re in the mood for something light, sassy adventurous, sweet and quick to get through, see if you can track down a copy.

 Mass Market Paperback, 224 pages

Published January 30th 2007 by Ace (first published August 2nd 2005)

original title

Jennifer Scales and the Ancient Furnace

ISBN

0441014747 (ISBN13: 9780441014743)