Poetry Friday: More “Flashlight” news and reviews!

In less than a week, little ol’ Flashlight Night will be making its debut at its national book launch in Boston (well, technically, Cambridge), Mass. – and with that in mind, I thought I should probably share with you all the exciting events lined up!

Official Book Launch Parties:  

Although Flashlight doesn’t ‘officially’ arrive in the world until Sept. 19, there are not one, but TWO special release parties planned in advance – where folks will have the opportunity to purchase the book before it’s released! How cool is that??

The first party is at Porter Square Books in Cambridge, Mass. on Thursday night, Sept. 7 at 7pm. I’ll be there for a dual book launch with Carol Gordon Ekster, whose latest picture book, You Know What? (Clavis, 2017) will be sharing the spotlight. More details can be found HERE.

Then, that following Sunday, Sept. 10, I will be at MainStreet BookEnds in Warner, NH for the local release party, starting at 2pm. (Whew, what a week!) Details on this event can be found HERE.

“Flashlight Night” is having its own blog tour!

Starting the Friday before it’s released, there will be a week-and-a-half long tour of kidlit blogs where you can learn more about the book, the inspiration behind it, and the guy who write it…and a brand-new cookie recipe. (You’ll figure out how that ties in to everything else in due time!)

Here’s the schedule:

Friday 9/15                  Jama’s Alphabet Soup
Monday 9/18               KitLit Exchange/The Loud Library Lady
Tuesday 9/19               Penny Klostermann Book Blog
Wednesday 9/20        Unleashing Readers
Thursday 9/21             KidLit Frenzy
Friday 9/22                  Mrs. Knott’s Book Nook
Monday 9/25               Librarian in Cute Shoes
Tuesday 9/26               Nerdy Book Club

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* * * (News about the GOODREADS GIVEAWAY follows, below!) * * *

Click to enlarge images (©2017 Boyds Mills Press, all rights reserved)

 

Goodreads Giveaway:

That’s right! My publisher, Boyds Mills Press, has teamed up with Goodreads to give away TWENTY COPIES of Flashlight Night! The contest will begin at midnight, 12:00am PT on Tue., Sept. 19 (release day!) and finish at 11:59pm PT on Tue., Sept. 26. So make a note to remind yourself to enter, and good luck!

Book signings/readings/appearances:

In addition to the two book launches I mentioned above, I will also be visiting a number of bookstores in the New Hampshire area. Here’s the list, so far – and keep in mind that of of the times might change:

Sept. 23, 6pm:  Innisfree Bookshop, Meredith, NH
Sept. 30, 6pm:  Barnes & Noble, Manchester, NH
Oct. 11, 6pm:  Barnes & Noble, Manchester, NH
Oct. 14, 2pm:  Books-A-Million, Concord, NH
Oct. 27, 6pm:  Barnes & Noble, Manchester, NH

More dates will be added as we go along, and I’ll be sure to let you know when and where I’ll be as soon as I know where I’ll be!

Illustrator Fred Koehler makes his KidLit TV debut!

A few weeks ago,the folks at KidLit TV interviewed Fred about his work on Flashlight Night (as well as his amazing talent in general), and as soon as it is posted on their website, I’ll be sharing the post here and on Facebook and Twitter. From what I’ve heard, everyone had a lot of fun doing it, so I’m very eager to see how it turned out.

AND…the latest review!!

I’ve been looking forward to seeing what the School Library Journal thinks of Fred and my efforts, and was so pleased to read an incredible review! A little of what they have to say:

The verse is incantatory, summoning jungle beasts, Egyptian tombs, pirate ships, and the like. Koehler’s digitally colored pencil drawings cleverly depict what’s really in the kids’ surroundings while also showing what they are imagining…This is a simple idea that’s engagingly executed.

So whaddaya know…I wrote “incantatory verse!” Love, love, love this! (You can read  more once the SLJ’s Sept. issue is published.) Thank you to Fred, Rebbeca Davis my editor, Kerry McManus who is handling  promotions at Boyds Mills Pres, and everyone involved!

And thank YOU again for following along with me on this journey – I appreciate your support. Simply taking the time to read my blog posts means a lot to me. For all of today’s Poetry Friday links and fun, you can find the complete roundup at Kathryn Apel’s blog, where she is celebrating child’s play!

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“The verse is incantatory…a simple idea that’s engagingly executed” – School Library Journal

“Delicious language…ingenious metamorphoses” – Kirkus Reviews

“[Esenwine and Koehler] don’t just lobby for children to read—they show how readers play” – Publisher’s Weekly

“Readers will be inspired to…create their own journey” – Alyson Beecher, Kidlit Frenzy

“Imaginative…fantastical” – ALA Booklist

“An old fashioned, rip-roaring imaginary adventure” – The Horn Book

“Beautiful words and amazing illustrations” – Michelle Knott, Mrs. Knott’s Book Nook/Goodreads

Flashlight Night (Boyd’s Mills Press) hits bookshelves Sept. 19, 2017! Pre-orders are available now through Barnes & Noble, Amazon, or Books-a-Million, or by clicking the image of the cover to the right. Of course, if you prefer, you can always wait til Sept. 19 and purchase it at your favorite local independent bookstore.

Thank you for your support!

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