Rookie Mistakes: A Grown-Up's Field Guide for Getting Your Act Together

   ~ I received no compensation and opinions are 100% my own or my family. ~

Synopsis:  

In her highly anticipated nonfiction debut, comedian Kelly Bandas uses her trademark humor to recount stories of growing up and becoming a semifunctional adult in a dysfunctional world.

Raised in a devoutly Catholic home, Kelly Bandas spent her entire childhood trying hard not to tick off “the man” or the Lord. And for the most part, she crushed it. But as she got older and began to navigate what it looked like to truly live in a world where gender roles, race, and politics weren’t always so black and white, Kelly realized that her former worldview was beginning to feel like that pair of Forever 21 jeans that used to glide effortlessly over her hips but now required a lot of stretching and acrobatic maneuvering to shimmy into place. And she’s not alone. 

In Rookie Mistakes, Kelly shares stories of growing up in a church-centered, male-dominated society and how those experiences shaped and primed her for a new chapter of life. In this debut collection of essays, Kelly shares:

• Funny, fast-paced, and uplifting stories 
• Encouragement for women who are tired of feeling like they will never measure up—and kind of don’t want to anyway
• Inspiration to find your voice, your power, and your people

 

Kelly shares everything from laugh-out-loud accounts of Oregon Trail-themed first kisses to heartfelt insights gleaned from navigating life as a Christian feminist doing her best not to screw up being a parent of a child with a disability, in a trans-racial family.

Rookie Mistakes is the call-to-action millennial women everywhere have been waiting for. 

One (or more) Sentence Summary:  Rookie Mistakes has a lot of short stories that are very related and pretty funny.  The first part, The Kid Part (Dying of a Guilty Conscience and Other Totally Normal Childhood Fears) has a chapter Osh Kosh M'gosh which brought back all sorts of memories for me. Not only did I have a pair, but I lived in them too! My grandfather gave them to me and I loved them. 

Another section I really related to was part three, The Getting-Your-Act-Together Part (I'm Not a Regular Mom, I'm LIT (Really Going to Make Sure I Get This Parenting Stuff Right)). I have three kids 21 months apart, work full-time (which is more like 60 hours a week), teach a college class or two, travel for work and kids sports and NEVER feel I have the parenting stuff right. The Things We Carried chapter had me in stitches.  It also reminded me of the a magazine spread that features a celebrity "spilling their purse" and listing their favorite things.  I always loved that two page spread! What do the things we carry in our bag say about us? Mine shouts just how unorganized I really am! 

Rookie Mistakes will have you laughing out loud and thinking back to different parts of your own life in a nice reflection sort of way and realizing it is okay to laugh at the things we used to do (or may still do).  

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Monday, August 8th: Seaside Book Nook

Kelly Bandas is a writer and comedian best known for her popular Instagram and TikTok videos satirizing everything from millennial motherhood to social media culture. Her work can be found literally anywhere you have an internet signal (if your internet isn’t working, try turning off the wifi and then turning it back on again... or honestly, it could be your router.) Whether she’s hosting her not-at-all dorky Outlander support group or speaking up about things that really matter, Kelly’s mission is to always empower and lift up other women through community, inclusivity, and laughter.

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What Will They Think?

  ~ I received no compensation and opinions are 100% my own or my family. ~

Synopsis:  In this inspiring guide for young women, Grace Valentine shines a spotlight on nine courageous women in the Bible who lived their faith boldly. In a world that pressures you to seek validation from others, learn to focus on what truly matters.

“What will they think?” It’s a question that consumes many women and may even stop them from living the lives God has called them to live. Whether it’s don’t be too loud, don’t be too aggressive, or your role is to be a sidekick for men, women struggle to live a life that is about pleasing others—but Scripture describes women who actually did the opposite.

In this third release from popular blogger and podcaster Grace Valentine, What Will They Think? features the stories of nine incredible women in the Bible, including Esther, Deborah, Sarah, Mary Magdalene, and Tabitha. These women did not bend to peer pressure or seek to people-please but instead turned their focus on God.

What Will They Think? contains:

• Inspiring and motivating stories of strong women who lived courageously in their faith
• Practical steps on how to stop caring what others think and focus on what truly matters
• Personal stories from Grace’s life and her own struggle to stop focusing on the opinions of others

For inspiration found in the lives of these biblical heroes, What Will They Think? provides steps to finding freedom to live life boldly and to stop caring about what others might think.

One (or more) Sentence Summary: The first thing I love about this book is that it is written for young women.  The second thing is that it talks about strong women in the Bible. The third this is it is broken down in sections and you can read whatever section is pulling you in.  My favorite was the "What will they think if I'm a leader?" section. 

At the end of each chapter the next section is 5 things to take away, but relating to the women in the Bible that was being discussed in previous chapter.  My favorite was "Five Things Mary Wasn't Worried About". The 5 things are spot on.....if only I could have been told this in college/right after college.  

This is a great book for a graduation gift (high school or college) or any young women. 

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Monday, July 11th: @nurse_bookie

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Tuesday, July 12th: @jenniaahava

Thursday, July 14th: @lovemybooks2020

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Saturday, July 16th: @suzylew_bookreview

TBD: Wednesday, July 13th: @what.ems.reading

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Monday, July 11th: @theocbookgirl

Wednesday, July 13th: @thecalicobooks

Thursday, July 14th: @bookshelfmomma

Friday, July 15th: @kristens.reading.nook

Saturday, July 16th: @literannie

Tuesday, July 19th: @parksidereads

Wednesday, July 20th: @travelerswife4life

Thursday, July 21st: @classicallykait

Friday, July 22nd: @webreakforbooks

Sunday, July 24th: @subakka.bookstuff

Monday, July 25th: The Bookish Dilettante

Monday, July 25th: @reading.is.your.destiny

Tuesday, July 26th: @mama.chels.reads

Wednesday, July 27th: @mommaleighellensbooknook

Thursday, July 28th: Seaside Book Nook

Friday, July 29th: Diary of a Stay at Home Mom

Sunday, July 31st: @bookish801

TBD: Tuesday, July 12th: @baytownbookie

TBD: Monday, July 18th: @wellreadtraveler

Grace Valentine is an author, blogger, podcast host, and speaker. Her readers love the fact that she is young, ordinary, and relatable; they say her fresh voice helps them navigate their own faith and life. Grace’s mission is to show others that Christianity is not lame–it is an adventure worth living.

Grace grew up near New Orleans, Louisiana, in a suburban town called Mandeville. She graduated from Baylor University in 2018 with a degree in journalism. She currently resides in Orlando, Florida, where she enjoys going on runs and eating lots of sushi. 

You can find Grace on Instagram @thegracevalentine; her podcast, I’m Tired; Twitter @GraceV96; or her website, GraceValentine.org. Grace loves connecting with her readers, so send her a message!11

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The Grace Year

~ I received no compensation and opinions are 100% my own or my family. ~

Synopsis (from Amazon):  Survive the year.

No one speaks of the grace year. It’s forbidden. 

In Garner County, girls are told they have the power to lure grown men from their beds, to drive women mad with jealousy. They believe their very skin emits a powerful aphrodisiac, the potent essence of youth, of a girl on the edge of womanhood. That’s why they’re banished for their sixteenth year, to release their magic into the wild so they can return purified and ready for marriage. But not all of them will make it home alive. 

Sixteen-year-old Tierney James dreams of a better life—a society that doesn’t pit friend against friend or woman against woman, but as her own grace year draws near, she quickly realizes that it’s not just the brutal elements they must fear. It’s not even the poachers in the woods, men who are waiting for a chance to grab one of the girls in order to make a fortune on the black market. Their greatest threat may very well be each other. 

With sharp prose and gritty realism, The Grace Year examines the complex and sometimes twisted relationships between girls, the women they eventually become, and the difficult decisions they make in-between.

One (or more) Sentence Summary: The Handmaids Tale + The Hunger Games = The Grace Year.  Good read for sure!

At sixteen, KIM LIGGETT left her rural midwestern town for New York City to pursue a career in music. Along with lending her voice to hundreds of studio recordings, she was a backup singer for some of the biggest rock bands in the 80's. Kim spends her free time studying the tarot and scouring Manhattan for vials of rare perfume and the perfect egg white cocktail. She is the author of The Grace Year, Blood and Salt, and The Last Harvest.

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The Stepsisters Review

 ~ I received no compensation and opinions are 100% my own or my family. ~

Synopsis: 

#1 New York Times bestselling author Susan Mallery pens a love story of a different sort…a heartfelt tale of friendship between two women who used to be sisters.

Once upon a time, when her dad married Sage’s mom, Daisy was thrilled to get a bright and shiny new sister. But Sage was beautiful and popular, everything Daisy was not, and she made sure Daisy knew it.

Sage didn’t have Daisy’s smarts—she had to go back a grade to enroll in the fancy rich-kid school. So she used her popularity as a weapon, putting Daisy down to elevate herself. After the divorce, the stepsisters’ rivalry continued until the final, improbable straw: Daisy married Sage’s first love, and Sage fled California.

Eighteen years, two kids and one troubled marriage later, Daisy never expects—or wants—to see Sage again. But when the little sister they have in common needs them both, they put aside their differences to care for Cassidy. As long-buried truths are revealed, no one is more surprised than they when friendship blossoms.

Their fragile truce is threatened by one careless act that could have devastating consequences. They could turn their backs on each other again…or they could learn to forgive once and for all and finally become true sisters of the heart.

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One (or more) Sentence Summary:  The Stepsisters is a good read.  Three women who never got along come together when each of them going through their own troubled times.  Sage and Cassidy are half sisters.  Daisy and Cassidy are half sisters. Sage and Daisy are (were) step sisters.  All three end up back in their home town.  Daisy who didn't move away from their hometown but lives in her families mansion has hit a rocky patch in marriage.  Her husband, who has a history with all three women walks out and let's her know through text.  She is left to manage their two kids, the home, her job and now her sisters.

Sage is back home and broke.  Moving into her mother's cramped house she goes to work as in upscale dress shop she is forced to look back over her life.  A few failed marriages, college and career she wants, mistakes with Daisy's husband and her neighbor Adam cause her to do some soul searching.

Cassidy who seemed to be closer to Sage, due to their mother, falls off the side of a mountain and needs a place to heal.  She is sent to Daisy's house where there is plenty of room and people to take care of her. All three realize that they are not the sisters they thought each one to be, but much more.  By resolving issues in the past, they become stronger together….as sisters.

Photo credit: Annie Brady

#1 NYT bestselling author Susan Mallery writes heartwarming, humorous novels about the relationships that define our lives―family, friendship, romance. She's known for putting nuanced characters in emotional situations that surprise readers to laughter. Beloved by millions, her books have been translated into 28 languages. Susan lives in Washington with her husband, two cats, and a small poodle with delusions of grandeur. Visit her at SusanMallery.com.

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Aunt Ivy's Cottage

 ~ I received no compensation and opinions are 100% my own or my family. ~

Synopsis:  Up in the attic, with views across the sparkling bay, she opens the lid of the carved trunk. Carefully moving aside the delicate linen wedding dress once worn by her great-aunt, she unpacks all the smaller boxes inside until she finds the leather-bound diary. She knows this will change everything…

All Zoey’s happiest childhood memories are of her great-aunt Ivy’s rickety cottage on Dune Island, being spoiled with cranberry ice cream and watching the tides change from the rooftop. Now, heartbroken from a recent breakup, Zoey can see her elderly aunt’s spark is fading, and decides to move to the island so they can care for each other.

When she arrives to find her cousin, Mark, sitting at the solid oak kitchen table, she knows why Aunt Ivy hasn’t been herself. Because Mark—next in line to inherit the house—is pushing Ivy to move into a nursing home.

With the cousins clashing over what’s best for Ivy, Zoey is surprised when the local carpenter who’s working on Ivy’s cottage takes her side. As he offers Zoey comfort, the two grow close. Together, they make a discovery in the attic that links the family to the mysterious and reclusive local lighthouse keeper, and throws doubt on Mark’s claim…

Now Zoey has a heartbreaking choice to make. The discovery could keep Ivy in the house she’s loved her whole life… but can Zoey trust that the carpenter really has Ivy’s best interests at heart? And will dredging up an old secret destroy the peace and happiness of Ivy’s final years—and tear this family apart for good?

One (or more) Sentence Summary:  Aunt Ivy's Cottage is a book with lots of secrets that all come out in the end.  Zoey returns to her Aunt Ivy's cottage to help due to two aunts due to their failing health but also because she has lost her job.  Her niece joins her to finish out the school year due to problems at home.  Both end up finding their way to happiness on Dune Island.  

I wish Zoey could have been stronger right from the start.  She really lets her cousin Mark bully her.  She does find her voice at the end.  Mark really is not a nice person, but he too comes around by the end.  We probably all have family members who aren't and we tend to tread lighting as not to "poke the bear"!  I know I do.

The house begins to slow show some hidden secrets.  As Zoey unravels them and the truth comes out, you will be in for a surprise.  The turn Aunt Ivy's Cottage takes at the end was one I did not see coming.  A very enjoyable book and loved the journey to Dune Island.

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Mr. Right - Swipe

~ I received no compensation and opinions are 100% my own or my family. ~

Synopsis (from Amazon): Rae Wallace would rather drown in a vat of pinot greezh and be eaten by her own beagle than make another trip down the aisle--even if it is her best friend's wedding. She's too busy molding the minds of first graders and polishing that ol' novel in the drawer to waste time on any man.

But when her best friends stage an intervention, Rae is forced to give in. After all, they've hatched a plan to help her find love the 21st century way: online. She's skeptical of this electronic chlamydia catcher, but she's out to prove she hasn't been too picky with men.

However, when a familiar fella's profile pops up--the dangerously hot substitute teacher from work--Rae swipes herself right into a new problem...

Sarcastic, irreverent, and uproariously funny--the painfully-true, so-insightful-it-hurts kind of funny--Ricki Schultz's wry debut will speak to fans of Bridesmaids or Trainwreck, and to anyone who's ever been on a bad date.

One (or more) Sentence Summary:  Funny read about online dating.  Relatable characters, current trend in dating (thank goodness I am married) and easy read

Ricki Cardenas is the author of two humorous women’s fiction novels, MR. RIGHT-SWIPE (2017) and Georgia Author of the Year finalist SWITCH AND BAIT (2018), both published by Grand Central (Hachette) under the name Ricki Schultz. 

Among other publications, she has contributed to Writer’s Digest Books, and she is also a freelance editor. She earned a B.A. in English and an M.Ed. in Secondary Education from John Carroll University in Cleveland, Ohio, and she’s taught English for most of her adult life. She lives in Atlanta now with her husband and geriatric beagle, and her writing is represented by Barbara Poelle of Irene Goodman Literary Agency. 

If you feel so inclined, give her Facebook author page a "like" (http://www.facebook.com/rickicardibooks), follow her on Twitter (@RickiCardi), or take a gander at her on the Instagrams (rickicardibooks). She would love to discuss taking on your editing project, so check out her Web site (www.rickicardenas.com) or shoot her an e-mail (rickicardibooks@gmail.com).

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Inheriting Edith

~ I received no compensation and opinions are 100% my own or my family. ~

Synopsis (from Amazon):  For years, Maggie Sheets has been an invisible hand in the glittering homes of wealthy New York City clients, scrubbing, dusting, mopping, and doing all she can to keep her head above water as a single mother. Everything changes when a former employer dies leaving Maggie a staggering inheritance. A house in Sag Harbor. The catch? It comes with an inhabitant: The deceased’s eighty-two-year old mother Edith.

Edith has Alzheimer’s—or so the doctors tell her—but she remembers exactly how her daughter Liza could light up a room, or bring dark clouds in her wake. And now Liza’s gone, by her own hand, and Edith has been left—like a chaise or strand of pearls—to a poorly dressed young woman with a toddler in tow. 

Maggie and Edith are both certain this arrangement will be an utter disaster. But as summer days wane, a tenuous bond forms, and Edith, who feels the urgency of her diagnosis, shares a secret that she’s held close for five decades, launching Maggie on a mission that might just lead them each to what they are looking for.

One (or more) Sentence Summary:  A very interesting story that was well written and drew me in right away.  Loved the characters and their story.  

Zoe Fishman is the critically acclaimed author of the bestselling Inheriting Edith, (Morrow, October ’16), Driving Lessons (Morrow, April ’14), Saving Ruth (Morrow, May ’12) and Balancing Acts (Harper, March ’10). 

Her books have been translated into Hebrew, German, Italian, Dutch and Polish and are also available in Audio and Large Print editions. She’s the recipient of myriad awards, including an IndieNext Pick,Target’s Breakout and Emerging Author Picks, a NY Post Pick, a Mom’s Choice Award and a Barnes & Noble Hot Read. Interviews and profiles of her have been featured on NBC’s “Atlanta & Co.” and FGTV, as well as in Publisher’s Weekly, Mobile Bay Magazine, The Atlanta Jewish Times and The Huffington Post. Her articles have been published in The Atlanta Journal Constitution, Time Out and on FoxNews.com, among others. 

Zoe worked in the New York publishing industry for thirteen years in the editorial department of Random House, the rights department of Simon & Schuster and later, as an agent for two boutique literary firms before moving to Atlanta in August of 2011 with her family.

She is the Executive Director of The Decatur Writers Studio as well as an instructor. She is also an instructor in the Emory Continuing Education program. In the Spring of 2017, she was the Visiting Writer at SCAD Atlanta. Her next novel, Invisible As Air, will be published by Morrow in September 2019.

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