As you head back-to-school or fill your fall calendar with events and to-do lists, don’t forget to add the dates of upcoming book releases! It only takes a few minutes, but pre-ordering a few books now can help provide some much needed stress-relief during your moments of downtime this fall. Here are some of the […]

by Kiera Cass Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Mythology, Romance, Fairy-Tale Retelling Publisher: HarperTeen Length: 267 pages Published: July 1, 2009 Purchase Links: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Audible Note: Kiera Cass is the bestselling author of the young adult romance series, The Selection. My Goodreads Rating: 2.5 or 3 out of 5 stars Official Book Summary: […]

I recently attended the 19th Annual Plum Creek Children’s Literacy Festival hosted by Concordia University in Seward, Nebraska. Each year the two-day festival hosts school children, school teachers, librarians, college students, scholars, and fans of children’s literature. The festival begins with one day of events for the school children followed by a one day conference […]

I am happy to share that I was recently selected as a recipient of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Women’s and Gender Studies Graduate Student Travel Award. These travel funds are based upon an application process and then reviewed and awarded by the Women’s and Gender Studies Advisory Board. Up to three students can receive the […]

I recently returned from the 2014 Dickens Universe conference held at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Dickens Universe is the annual conference put on by the Dickens Project, an organization that also hosts institutes, publications, and gatherings for the study of Victorian literature at secondary and post-secondary levels. The Dickens Project consortium consists of […]

I am happy to announce that I recently had a journal article accepted for publication. My essay, “George MacDonald’s Frightening Female: Menopause and Makemnoit in The Light Princess,” will appear in a forthcoming volume of North Wind: A Journal of George MacDonald Studies. The North Wind journal is edited by John Pennington and Fernando Soto […]

It’s October, Halloween is upon us, the weather is turning cold, and it’s the perfect time of year to pick up a Gothic or mystery novel. I love it when it’s dark and windy outside, you can hear the cold rain hitting against the window panes, and you’re wrapped up in your favorite blanket lost […]

I would be entirely remiss if as a teacher, reader, and writer, I didn’t take a post to give a shout-out to the American Library Association’s Banned Books Week. During September 25th – October 1st, 2016 this annual event fights for and celebrates reading freedom. Someone once tried to make me feel bad about reading […]

by Anne Tyler “From time to time Kate entertained the notion of looking for work elsewhere, but it never came to anything. She didn’t interview well, to be honest. And anyhow, she couldn’t think what she might be qualified to do instead. In her coed dorm back in college she had once been drawn into […]

It’s October, Halloween is upon us, the weather is turning cold, and it’s the perfect time of year to pick up a Gothic or mystery novel. I love it when it’s dark and windy outside, you can hear the cold rain hitting against the window panes, and you’re wrapped up in your favorite blanket lost […]

by Caroline Tung Richmond Genre: Young Adult Historical Fiction Publisher: Scholastic Press Publication Date: July 26, 2016 Length: 304 pages in hardcover Tagline: “Dressed to kill.” This is my friend, Caroline Tung Richmond. We met years ago when we were both undergraduates and had mutual friends who enjoyed mid-week breaks from homework to watch reality […]

by Anne Tyler “From time to time Kate entertained the notion of looking for work elsewhere, but it never came to anything. She didn’t interview well, to be honest. And anyhow, she couldn’t think what she might be qualified to do instead. In her coed dorm back in college she had once been drawn into […]

Last year I read 175 books, approximately 50,000 pages! Though many of the titles I read will be featured in more in-depth upcoming book reviews, I thought I’d break-down the list of everything I read this year in a series of posts over the course of January. Today’s post will highlight all 30 of the […]

Book mail! I’ve been missing in action because life has been crazy busy lately, but today I received book mail (the best kind of mail, except for cash mail if that exists) thanks to both St. Martin’s Press and Candlewick Press. Both are advanced copies I won through Goodreads giveaways. Below are details on each. […]