Some of you may know that I sell the charm bracelet from my book CIRCLE OF SECRETS on my website. Here are a couple of pictures:
This is a replica of the mysterious charm bracelet that Shelby Jayne, my main character, finds hidden behind an antique wardrobe when she's forced to go live with her mamma in the bayou.
Before the book came out, I thought how fun it would be to create the actual bracelet from the story. It was a challenge finding charms that matched the charms I "made up" for the story, but it was a lot of fun to see it come to life. Now I get orders from kids and Moms and Grandmas and Aunts - and even a couple of Dads have bought bracelets for their daughters - GO DAD!
This last week I put together a bracelet for a woman's daughter (many buy them as b-day gifts or as a surprise) and I received a beautiful, poignant letter that overwhelmed me. I can't stop thinking about it, and about the power of books in *my* life, and the power that writing is, too. I've changed the names in the letter for privacy.
Dear Mrs. Little:
Jessica would like the purple stone (good choice I told her! ;-)) for the locket.
I have to thank you for writing your book. My daughter Anna has dyslexia and has never taken interest in any book before. She was so excited while reading your book. While reading, she would run tell me what was happening. Now she is rereading the book to me out loud. Again, thanks so much.
Leslie B.
When I wrote her back, I found it difficult to find the right words to express how much it honored and humbled me - a well as made me cry. What a gift - given on both ends. I'm so proud and thrilled to have been a part of Jessica's and her mother's life.
A thousand thank you's to all my readers. A thousand thank you's to all the Mom's and Dad's out there. Keep up the good work!
Happy Weekend!
xo,
Kimberley
Kenny Willson wants nothing more than to get out of Comfort, Texas, away from his alcoholic, ex-convict father and his controlling mother. In order to promote her husband as a country and western star and keep him out of bars, Kenny's mother opens the Comfort Cafe where her husband can sing without risk of violating his parole. The problem is that Kenny's father has no desire to be a country and western star and his wife hates cooking. Kenny's mother serves a variety of frozen, processed, and ready-made foods such as frozen pizza, corn dogs, honey buns, and frito pie and forces her son to quit football and band to work night and day in the cafe. Kenny finds his voice through mentorship of his journalism teacher and a pretty senior girl who encourages him to get involved in poetry competitions. Unfortunatley, she has a muscle-head boyfriend she can't seem to get rid of. This novel explores the idea that the things we find "comfortable" are often the things that keep us stuck.
Eleven-year-old Livie is terrified when her father insists that they bring her comatose mother home from the hospital. How can she look at, much less touch and care for, Mamma when she alone knows that she caused her illness? As Mamma continues to languish in bed, Livie grows more and more estranged from her family, a chasm that begins to close only after she gathers her courage to visit the local traiteur, who gives her the formula for a healing spell. As Livie collects the spell's necessary ingredients, she begins to open up to the knowledge that she is loved and cherished by her family. Little explores the extremes of childhood guilt and its consequences in this harsh yet well-crafted story about fully drawn people. The bayou, with its rich culture, is an atmospheric character that overlays the story with mystery and dread. A special offering for readers seeking a challenge of the heart as well as the mind. Grades 5-8. --Frances Bradburn 
rolee 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 
Acts of Haiku." 
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 
