Calling all 10 year-olds who love to read...

For those of you with kids (especially boys) who love series:

Nate Rocks is at it again!

The highly anticipated third installment of the Nate Rocks series is here! 

According to Nathan Rockledge, fifth grade has plenty of perks. Oh sure, there is more work and that know-it-all, Lisa Crane, is still around but, there is a lot to look forward to as well: a laser tag birthday party, baseball at recess, and even a cool Halloween dance. Of course, all of that means nothing without the biggest perk of all . . . the class trip to New York City in the spring. If Nathanís class can raise enough money to go, that is.

Give Nathan paper and a pencil and watch as his imagination turns him into Nate Rocks, hero and fifth grade super star. With adventures abound, Nate saves the day time and again. But will Nate be able to save the fifth grade trip?

Join Nathan, his hilarious family, and his friends, as he rocks the school in another fun Nate Rocks adventure.

Pick up your copy at Amazon and B&N!

Chat with Karen Pokras Toz today at 10:30 am  EST and then follow the Nate Rocks the School Tour for appearances by the author and characters, reviews, and swag pack giveaways!

 
 
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A GWR Publicity Event. Sponsored by Karen Pokras Toz.

Favorite Book of Favorite Series - Day 4

Yesterday I picked out my favorite series, trad pub and Indie. They were, respectively, Harry Potter and the Darkness Rising books.

Today I'm choosing my favorite books in the series. Easy!

For Harry, the Order of the Phoenix was, without a doubt, my favorite. It was the longest book, and for a reason - Harry entered adolescence and became a bit of a pill, in a completely natural way. After all, he had a rough start, so it would have been unbelievable if he was all sweetness and light. No cut-out Victorian heroes for JK!

I loved the secret Defense Against the Dark Arts classes, the ongoing arguments between Hermione and Ron who were already acting like an old married couple, and the Order of the Phoenix itself. But the crowning achievement was Umbridge. She was so nasty and horrible she was nearly unbelievable - except I've worked with her, in my former life as a teacher. Yes, I was an a faculty with Umbridge, and very annoying it was, too.

As for the Darkness Rising series, Book Two: Quest was my favorite. Kitson really seemed to hit his stride with his characters and writing. There was one scene that blew me away, as death and horror fills a town, the villagers sing a long song about a Silver Lady. It is reminiscent of Tolkien at his best.

(By the way, Kitson just received a glowing review for the series at the British Fantasy Society, here.)

Now, what is your favorite series? And the favorite book in it?

30 Days of Books - My Favorite Series

The Frabjous wonder of a good series - of reading a book, knowing that more will follow with the same characters and fantastic writing. 

Of course Harry Potter comes to mind instantly, as well as Moomins, Tolkien - starting with The Hobbit of course - and the Dido Twite books. In each series, an adventure happens and ends rather satisfactorily at the end. JK Rowling and Tolkien went one step further and introduced a common thread, a continuing siege or adventure that kept readers returning for more. 

Kill Voldemort! 

Destroy the Ring! 

Still, each volume of the series is, of itself, a good read with a beginning, middle, and an end.

Trust me, as an author of a series, this is a very hard thing to accomplish. You want the readers to be able to pick up any book and begin to read, but usually you really have to start at the beginning.

Of the above, for sheer genius in creating compelling story arcs and likable, living characters, I must go with JK. When I started The Deathly Hallows, I thought there was no WAY she could resolve every issue, especially with all those Horcruxes to be destroyed. Yet, resolve them she did. The woman is a goddess.

On the Indie front, my favorite series is Darkness Rising by Ross Kitson. Emelia is the main character, and she begins as a lowly servant in a castle. Soon she is propelled into a series of adventures, and she discovers hidden resources of strength and bravery.

It's all very epic and fantastic. Kitson makes Emelia spring to life right from the start. He has done a lot of world building; like JK Rowling, his universe (Nurolia) has been imagined with maps, languages, and characters. Kitson, a doctor in the UK, painstakingly illustrates them all, so the book is a journey through an imaginary country. 

And - joy! Kitson has just started another series, called Infinity Bridge. This one is a steampunk read, with loads of urban fantasy. I devoured the first book and can't wait for the next. 

And then there are those books that SHOULD be a series but are not .... cough ... Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell ... we are still waiting...