Happy Halloween!!

October 31, 2011 Special Spellbinder Book Launch! HAVE A SPOOKY HALLOWEEN!!!  ~and~  SPECIAL BOOK LAUNCH for one of your SPELLBINDERS! This month we have a special haunted treat for you. Carolee and Caroline will interview Kimberley about her new ghost story. Read the reviews below, then scroll down for the Q&A.    SCHOLASTIC PRESS ISBN: 978-0-545-16561-7 Hardcover: $17.99 Kindle: $9.99 Fall & Spring Book Fairs Available through Follett and Mackin, Amazon, B&N, any bookstore  "The summer I turned eleven,   I found out that ghosts were real . . ." Critically acclaimed author Kimberley Griffiths Little weaves a haunting story of friendship and family and the power of faith, once again set against the lush backdrop of the Louisiana bayou. Goodreads Review: Hauntingly beautiful. Terrifying, yet compelling. One of the best Middle Grade novels I've read in years. Kimberley Griffiths Little is a master at bringing readers the perfect story with the exotic flavor of the Bayou mixed in.    Kirkus Reviews: A steamy Louisiana bayou is the atmospheric backdrop to a tale about a daughter's estrangement from her mom, the mother's long-held guilty secret and a restless ghost's long-sought closure . . . A very dramatic climax leads to a sweet, satisfying ending with some surprising twists. For readers who like their ghost stories more friendly than terrifying. (Suspense. 9 -12)    Q&A    Spellbinders: Circle of Secrets takes place in the same town in the bayous of Louisiana as your first book, The Healing Spell, but it's not a sequel. What is the difference between a sequel and a companion book?       Kimberley: A sequel is a new book in a trilogy or series about the same characters featured in a previous book. Think of Harry Potter and Twilight where the characters of Harry and Bella continue their story with new adventures and problems. A "companion" book is a story set in the same world, but with completely new characters and a new plot.    Spellbinders: Do any of the characters reappear? Kimberley: Only one character appears in both my books: Miz Mirage Allemand, the traiteur (treater) woman.She was introduced in The Healing Spell and in Circle of Secrets we learn more about her mysterious lifestyle as told through the eyes of her 11 year-old daughter, Shelby.   Spellbinders: Oh, good. She was a delightfully creepy character. Kimberley: Circle of Secrets also has a mysterious charm bracelet, an antique doll, secrets notes in a bottle tree--and a ghost!    Spellbinders: Is it helpful to read the first book before reading the second? Kimberley: The two books can be independently read, but I had a lot of fun putting in a few links and ties between the two book that enriches the experience of both stories.   The setting is the same small town of Bayou Bridge--but that changes a bit, too. I compared/contrasted  the setting between Livie and Shelby. The Healing Spell is from the point of view of a girl who grew up in the heart of the bayou and goes fishing and frogging with her Daddy. Circle of Secrets is about a girl from town who suddenly relocates to the swamp and finds it very primitive and spooky and weird.    Spellbinders: Why did you decide to write a ghost story?     Kimberley: About 15 years ago I wrote a manuscript called Ghost Girl--based on the legend of La Llorona, a New Mexico story about a woman who haunts the ditch banks at night weeping and crying for her drowned children.       Spellbinders: La Llorona is a wonderful New Mexico ghost story.     Kimberley: Ghost Girl was one of my early attempts at writing and not ready for publication, but I always loved the ghost girl and the secrets she's hiding. I took her out of that old document, brushed her off, and gave her connections to Miz Mirage and Shelby and the swamp--as well as mysterious connections to the charm bracelet, the graveyard, an old porcelain doll, and a deserted island.     Spellbinders: You've been having some jewelry making parties at some of your book signings. Tell us about the charm bracelets.  Kimberley: I love charm bracelets and still have mine from childhood. Charms are a way of telling the story of someone's life, and in Circle of Secrets, Shelby finds out how each charm is tied to her mother as well as the ghost! Charm bracelets are like a piece of history and imbued with meaning and symbolism.    If YOU had - or have - a special charm bracelet as a kid or an adult, tell us about it in the comments on the blog here: Spellbinders Book News Blogspot      A picture of the charm bracelet from Circle of Secrets!      Email me at kglittle@msn.com if you'd like to order a bracelet   from the book for a gift! Only $13.99 which includes shipping!  TEACHER'S GUIDE for Circle of Secrets   BOOK CLUB GUIDE for Circle of Secrets     Book Trailer for Circle of Secrets Click the You Tube Link               Kimberley Griffiths Little has been taking lots of recovery bubble baths since sending off her new manuscript to Scholastic for publication in January, 2013 called When the Butterflies Came.     Join Our Mailing List! Meet the Spellbinders Kimberley Griffiths Little is the recipient of the Southwest Book Award, The Whitney Award for Best Youth Novel of 2010, and the author of the highly acclaimed, The Healing Spell and Circle of Secrets, published by Scholastic Press. Look for her books at the Scholastic Book Fairs, as well as two more forthcoming novels in 2012 and 2013. She lives on a dirt road in a small town by the Rio Grande with her husband, a robotics engineer and their three sons. Kimberley is a favorite speaker at schools around the country, presenting "The Creative Diary", a highly successful writing workshop and has been a speaker at many conferences. Please visit her website to download free Teacher's Guides and Book Club Guides.      Carolee Dean has made numerous appearances as a guest poet/author at schools, libraries, poetry events, and teacher/library conferences. She holds a bachelor's degree in music therapy and a master's degree in communicative disorders, and she has spent over a decade working in the public schools as a speech-language pathologist. Her first novel, Comfort,was nominated as a Best Book for Young Adults, was named the Best YA Novel of 2002 by the Texas Institute of Letters, and was on the TAYSHAS (Texas Library Association) reading list. She conducts teacher trainings on inspiring reluctant writers including "The Secret Language of Stories" and "Random Acts of Haiku." To find teacher's guides, writing activities, and information about author visits, go to www.caroleedean.com.       Caroline Starr Rose spent her childhood in the deserts of Saudi Arabia and New Mexico, camping at the Red Sea in one and eating red chile in the other. She's taught English and social studies to upper elementary and middle-school students in New Mexico, Florida, Virginia, and Louisiana. Back in New Mexico, Caroline now writes middle-grade novels and picture books full time. Website  Blog                           UPCOMING AUTHOR EVENTS       Saturday, October 29th time TBA Carolee Dean Workshop "Random Acts of Writing" NCTE Conference National Hispanic Cultural Center Albuquerque, NM    Saturday, November 5th 2:00 p.m.    Kimberley Griffiths Little Presentation & Reading for Circle of Secrets  Plus make the charm bracelet from the book! Alamosa Books Paseo del Norte/Barstow Albuquerque, NM (505) 797-7101

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