Saturday, September 2, 2017

Big News at Our House - Treats for Everyone!

Abby lab here - Mom is still bouncing off the walls this morning so I will have to post. Some of you know that in 2015 The Book of Barkley won the Reader's Favorite International Book Award Silver Medal for Non-Fiction. That's a HUGE award, supported by Publishers clearing house and one that has thousands and thousands of entrants each year, including many from the huge publishing houses like Random House, HarperCollins, and Simon & Schuster. Previous winners include J.A. Jance, James Rollins and New York Times best selling author Daniel Silva. The finalists get their awards at the Miami International Book fair and there are all kinds of prizes.

Her second book she forgot to enter cuz she was busy taking care of her Dad through some surgery, but she entered her third book, figuring lightning never strikes twice but it was worth the try. So yesterday when she was notified Small Town Roads won GOLD in Fiction (Religious Theme) for the 2017 Awards she Squeed like I'd never heard her, then called Dad, then praised Jesus, then Squeed some more.

Here is the publisher's description of the book:

Let go of the life you wanted to get the one that you were meant for. 

With a recent college degree in Criminal Justice and big future dreams, rookie Law Enforcement Officer Rachel Raines is looking for a temporary place to hide a heart full of loss and a quieter police patrol than Chicago. The bequest of her late aunt's house out in rural Illinois seems like the perfect opportunity for both if she can survive the gigantic spiders, creaky plumbing, and inevitable challenges of being the rookie on a small town force.  It's a place unlike any she has lived in - a tiny town with no coffee baristas, no night life, and one single restaurant that has a giant cow perched on the roof. It was not the life she had expected.

 Sometimes God has other plans for us.

Down the street, her aunt's best friend, Evelyn Ahlgren, marks the passing of seasons and neighbors, long mired in her loneliness as a widow. When the young woman with scars of her own befriends her, they strike up an unlikely friendship across generations that just might help them both heal with a little help from heaven above. 

Written in both third person (Evelyn's view of life) and first person (Rachel keeping an online journal to track the events of each new day), words both humorous and breathtakingly lyrical, as these two vastly different generations bond, Small Town Roads is a beautifully told, heartwarming story.  It is not just a story of life in rural America, it is finding the best in people, including ourselves, in the most unlikely of places.
I think several glasses of wine were drunk to celebrate and there was a lot of laughing last night but she and Dad are both smiling this morning.

It couldn't be a "Mom" book without a dog in the storyline, this one a rescue lab mix named Clyde. - I definitely approve.  Abby Lab

16 comments:

  1. Congrats to your mom on receiving this great award.

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  2. Hari OM
    Oh that is super-exciting indeed Abby... and I am sure that you got some extra cuddles and surely it means extra treatz for your inspiriation presence.. doesn't it??? Hugs and wags, YAM-aunty xxx

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  3. WAHOO!! Congrats to your very talented Mama!!!
    xoxo,
    Jakey & Arty

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  4. Abby OMCs OMCs...we are squealing with glee and stomping our feets/paws while giving your sweet mom a standing ovation. We can surely see why there was celebrating.
    Hugs and kitty kisses
    Mom and Madi

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  5. We are so very happy for your Mom and proud of her for her work!!! WOO HOO and big congratulations.

    Woos - Lightning and Misty

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  6. ¸¸.•*¨*•*´¨)
    ¸.•´¸.•*´¨) ¸.•*¨)
    (¸.•´ (¸.•` ¤ CONGRATULATIONS!! How exciting for your Mom! I've other friends who have also had books published, and I know the hard work that goes into them, so having this award truly deserves lots of celebrating!!

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  7. Thank you everyone for your kindness. When I wrote this one everyone said "don't write an introspective faith based Fiction novel, do dogs or action or adventure, IT WON'T SELL!"

    So the award means a lot to me, and the message has resonated with a lot of people that reached out to me to see how it helped them through grief or loss (the main character loses her parents and her only sibling while a teen). I even got a personal note from the wife of the "Piano Guys" musician who lost their teen daughter in a hiking accident this last year and the book's message was appreciated. Such things are worth more than huge sales.
    Again, bless you everyone for your support and kindness. Blogville is great. Lin

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  8. Congratulations! A wonderful award for a wonderful book!

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  9. WooooHooooo! This is AMAZIN' NEWS!!!! CONGRATS!!! That is so cool! I am doin' some happy zoomies for your MOms! and I hopes she gives you an extra biscuit or two in celebration...☺
    Kisses,
    Ruby ♥

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    Replies
    1. We're so happy about this. God is indeed good.

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  10. Congratulations for the award and recognition.

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  11. OMD, that's pawesome!! Congrrats to your momma!

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  12. Sometimes good things really do happen to good people!! Wonderful news, and much deserved.

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  13. Congratulations...........................

    A well deserved award.
    Your writing has touched so many in different ways, bless you.

    xo Astro and Linda

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