Hidden Truths by Brenda Youngerman--Book Review and Giveaway!

Hidden Truths by Brenda Youngerman

ISBN  978-1-60693-125-7

One word I can say about this book is WOW!   It's one of those that you want to keep reading to see what is going to happen.

Set in 4 parts, with 38 chapters, we read about 4 children.  Billy is a 6 yr old whose mother is killed in a car accident, one stormy night.  His father blames him for her death and the boy disappears.
Gwen is a 16 yr old who had been left behind by her father....left to live with a drug addict, alcoholic, prostitute mother, who never wanted her to begin with.

As I said, you will want to keep reading and keep those pages turning as you not only read about Billy and Gwen, but also about their siblings.  Wayne is Billy's older brother, who is left to live with their father and his alcoholism.  Grace is Gwen's older sister, who is taken with their father when he leaves.

Heartfelt stories that will touch your heart, and bring you to tears.  Lives intertwined as you won't believe.  This book would be awesome made into a movie.

After reading Hidden Truths, I am in hopes to get a chance to read all of Brenda's other books!


Buy your copy on Amazon:  Hidden Truths

Now for the giveaway!  I am giving away the copy that was sent to me to review.  I want to give someone else the opportunity to read this wonderful book.

Giveaway will end October 21, 2010 at 9 pm EST.  A winner will be chosen using random.org.  Winner will have 48 hours to contact me once I contact them, or another winner will be chosen.



How to enter: (make sure at least one of your comments has an email for me to contact you if you win)

Mandatory entry:

Visit http://www.brendayoungerman.com/Titles.html  and comment on what other title by Brenda Youngerman you would like to read.  Click New releases on that page to see her newest book.

Extra entries:  (please leave a separate comment for each entry)

1.  Follow Brenda Youngerman on twitter:  Brenda Youngerman 

2.  Visit Brenda's Blog and follow her with google friend connect.



3.  Follow me on twitter:  marsha32

4.  Follow my blog with google friend connect

5.  Subscribe to my blog by email.

6.  Join my blogfrog community.

7.  Follow me on networked blogs.

8.  Share this giveaway on twitter, facebook, your own blog, in a post on another website etc.  Come back here and leave the link to where you shared it.  This can be done once per day per place you share it throughout the giveaway, so lots of entries possible!!!


Disclosure:  I was not paid to do this review.  I was sent the book to review.  The copy that I am giving away is the copy that was sent to me to review.

Have fun and good luck!!

WIP Wednesday

Welcome to WIP (work in progress) Wednesday! 


I hope you will follow along with Everyday Crochet and the WIP Wednesdays.   Just click the button at the bottom on my post to head on over.

Your WIP doesn't have to be crafts, it can be the home improvement project you are working on, the novel you are writing, etc.

 It was a busy week last week getting ready for a yard sale.  I worked hard to get the strip quilt completed.  I also sewed the tops of the strip quilt pillow.  I experimented with the top of a t-shirt, making it into a pillow as well.
You can right click and open a new tab or window and see the photos on gather if you would like.  (I know some wanted to see the strip quilt completed)
http://www.gather.com/viewImage.action?fileId=3096224746545582
http://www.gather.com/viewImage.action?fileId=3096224746545583
http://www.gather.com/viewImage.action?fileId=3096224746545585
http://www.gather.com/viewImage.action?fileId=3096224746545584
I can see that my rug isn't going to be big enough with the colors I had out.  I got out 2 more colors to add once I am done with the maroon.

 Not much more progress on the prayer shawl.

I finished reading Hidden Truths.  Be sure to check in tomorrow for my book review and giveaway!  One lucky reader will receive the book to read for themselves.

Until next week...keep on working.

Giveaways Linky Tuesday

Time for the weekly giveaway linky.

Please post your giveaways here weekly.

List the name of the prize, and the end date.  Link directly to the giveaway post, not to your home page.

The linky is available to post on until the following week when the new linky is put up.

Most of all, have fun and good luck!

Watch for my new giveaway this coming Thursday.

Mailbox Monday Blog Hop!

It's time for Mailbox Monday, hosted by afrugalfriend.net.  Please click the button at the end of my post to hop over and add your mailbox Monday post, or to check out the other submissions.

I have to say last week was super slow...and sad for me.  I'm not even bothering with a photo!

I rec'd my usual 4 magazines from hausernet: People, Time, Entertainment Weekly and Sports Illustrated.

I rec'd a Wisk laundry soap sample.

We did get a Kroger's coupon book that came in the previous home owners name.  No free coupons like there usually are though.  Not sure how long I have to have my card before I start getting the coupons here in my own name.

Last week I did forget to include the $5 amazon I got in from swagbucks.

I am sure hoping for a better week this week...it's already a bit better with my prizes coming in today from mycoolcontest.

Until next week!

WIP Wednesday

Happy WIP Wednesday to all!

Please click the button at the bottom of my post to be taken to Everyday Crochet and post your own WIP post....or look through and see what others are up to.  It's a lot of fun.

Remember, your WIP (work in progress) doesn't have to be crafting.  It can be a novel you are writing, gardening, home make-overs etc as well.

I think the 3rd time might be a charm on actually completing a toothbrush rug.  I figured out, I think, that I was making my stitcehs too tight, and that was causing the bowing.  I ended up trying to starch the last one down.  I left it small and it's out for the granddaughters to use to play dolls with.  I plan on finishing the color I am on on this current one, adding 2 other colors that I have out and going from there on the size.  Realistically to make it more of a real rug size I think I will end up having to find at least 2 other colors in my t-shirt stash.

Hey...look at me....at least I've started putting on the second color on the prayer shawl.

Another WIP for me, that is not craft related, is reading a book.  I've rec'd Hidden Truths from Brenda Youngerman to read and review.  I will also be doing a giveaway of it on my blog along with my review.  It's certainly a good book so far!

Until next week, have a good one, and keep on working.

Giveaways Linky Tuesday

Time for the weekly giveaway linky.

Please post your giveaways here weekly.

List the name of the prize, and the end date.  Link directly to the giveaway post, not to your home page.

The linky is available to post to until the following week when I new linky is put up.

Most of all, have fun and good luck!

Mailbox Monday Blog Hop!

IIt's Monday and time for Mailbox Monday in conjunction with afrugalfriend.net

Click the button at the end of my blog to come and share your freebies in the mail this past week, or to hop around and see what others got in the mail free this week.

Nice week this past week!  No money, but lots of goodies.

Monday started with getting my Elmer's and X-Acto bzz campaign.  You can see my post about it here:
Project With the Elmer's CraftBond and X-Acto Crafting Products (Bzzagent review and photo essay)

From hausernet, I got the usual weekly magazines:  People, Entertainment Weekly, Time, and Sports Illustrated.

Book light ----I used some of my homescan points to redeem for it.

Traditional Home magazine

Family Fun magazine

Sample of Nature's Made chewable vitamin D

Coupons from Kraft First Taste for free Triscuit Thin Crisps, and Wheat Thin Stix, and other coupons.

Spain postcard for Jasmine's collection

Hidden Truths book--by Brenda Youngerman--can't wait to start reading it and get a review written on it.  Thanks so much Brenda!

Gift type card from Office Max for $25 off $75 or more purchase.

 

Elmer's CraftBond and X-Acto Designer Series Review (for bzzagent)

It's so exciting to get a bzz campaign from bzzagent.com anytime.  This campaign I am particularly excited about as a crafter.   Along with my own crafts, I have a crafty teenager that I homeschool, and she loves doing projects.

(I've done a gather post review with photos as Jasmine works on a project using the Elmer's CraftBond and X-Acto Designer Series products.  I hope you will click over and check it out:  )

Project With the Elmer's CraftBond and X-Acto Crafting Products (Bzzagent review and photo essay)

Below is a photo of all the products I rec'd in my bzz kit:
Elmer's CraftBond All Purpose Glue Stick, Permanent Tape Runner, Clear Glue Pen and assortment of sticky spots.  I also received 2 pairs of X-Acto Designer Series Scissors; Zig Zag decorative edge and Scalloped decorative edge, as well as a Corner Rounder Punch.



Now, let's review them!

Jasmine liked the Permanent Tape Runner the best over all the sticking stuff.  She even found she could round it and make a circle while gluing things down.  It's sure a neat product.  I can see using it for making gift wrapping super easy too.

I like the Designer Series Scissors.  I have a set of scissors such as this already, but they are small.  The larger ones like those in my kit were much easier to use since they could do a longer cut.


The Elmer's CraftBond glue stick is just like any other glue stick that you buy for school supplies.  However, I found that it has a tougher hold.  We are putting together trivia cards where we are gluing pieces together, then laminating them, and the papers held together much better with the glue stick provided in my kit.

The Double Sided Glue Pen is really nice.  One side as a wider flat strip of glue.  The other side makes a thin line of glue.   The downfall we found with it is that it leaves bumps on thin paper where the glue is.
 
 The Corner Rounder Punch is really nice!  It rounds the corners very nicely.  Jasmine messed with is on lots of papers.  She discovered that if she folded the paper in half and used it, it then opened up very nicely.  She made grandma a birthday card on cardstock using the tool.   I wish I had gotten a photo of it.  We did find that the Corner Rounder Punch does not work on super thin paper, like magazine pages.

 The Sticky Spots are very useful!  We are collecting postcards from all the states and putting them on cardstock in page protectors, inside of a lapbook.  It was so much easier using the thin sticky dots, just one on the back of a postcard to put it into the book.
We also found that the thicker sticky dots in the package work great for hanging up posters.  We live in a basement.  As homeschoolers, we have a lot of educational posters, but have not been able to hang them up on the concrete walls.  The thicker sticky spots worked wonderful, as you can see from the photo below:

 
 I hope you have enjoyed my review  :)




 

WIP Wednesday

Welcome to WIP Wednesday, hosted by Everyday Crochet.   Please click the button at the bottom on my post to post your own to her linky, or to click over and see what others have as WIP's.(work in progress)

Your WIP doesn't have to be craft related, it can be a book you are writing, landscaping you are doing, re-modeling, or anything.  Jump in and join the fun.  The linky stays up for a full week.

My first attempt at the toothbrush rug is bowing up.  I looked up how to online and found that I was putting my 2 extra stitches in the wrong places.  I will finish the one below and it will become a cushion for my chair.

I started on another toothbrush rug, this time made with t-shirts I had cut when I went through my t-shirt purse stage.  The strips are a little thin, so next time I will make them wider.  It is also bowing some, but not too bad.  I have a thought....do you think that making doll or Barbie rugs would be marketable?  I could make them about the same size, or a little smaller than what I have completed so far in the photo below.

I've done a little more work on the prayer shawl, still not even ready to switch to my 2nd color.  It will be a WIP for some time.

I didn't get anything more done on my strip quilt, but truly in hopes of getting the back on it this week.  I am on the lookout for zippers to finish up the strip quilt pillows I pictured a few weeks ago.

Giveaways Linky Tuesday

Please link up your current giveaway(s) below.

Please put in the prize, and the end date.  Also, link directly to the giveaway post.

If you don't host giveaways, feel free to list a giveaway that you know of.

Thanks!  Have fun and good luck.