Association Of Catholic Bloggers

In early January of this year, I had the privilege of speaking to four different classrooms of students (5th through 8th grade), at two different schools, about my two Catholic YA novels , Finding Grace and Erin's Ring.  I traveled down to Tampa to be a Confirmation sponsor for two of my nieces, and while there, my sister-in-law arranged for me to visit the Catholic school that her 8th grade triplets attend and also the one where she is a 5th grade teacher. This was the second time I've been given the opportunity to speak to students in a classroom setting.  In May of 2015, I visited my niece's 4th grade class in Chicago, to talk to her students about Erin's Ring after they'd read the book together.  (I blogged about the experience here and here , if you'd like to read those posts.) This guy--my best inspiration and my biggest fan--was there to cheer me on, as always. I can't believe I'm about to say this (gulp!)...but if you...

The 2015 winners for the Catholic Press Awards were announced last week in Buffalo, NY. Congratulations to Bezalel Books author Laura Pearl for two wins for her charming YA novel  Erin's Ring! Erin's Ring  won 2nd place in Books for Teens and Young Adults  Erin's Ring  also won 3rd place in Catholic Novels Laura is also the author of  Finding Grace  and blogs at  String of Pearls .

Young adult books are big sellers…for the over 18 crowd. This, according to a recent Nielson poll and reported by CBS news. I’m not surprised by this "new" poll—and you shouldn’t be either. And I would hazard a guess that the numbers are mostly women—or are even higher if only women were polled. After all, we want more than pornography and vampires. We want to be transported to that place of hope and kindness despite odds. Speak to us about the realities of our lives and remind us of all the great potential we have! Long ago (okay, about 3 years ago), I reviewed Nancy Carabio Belanger’s “Olivia”books. What I couldn’t get over—and tried to get across in my posted reviews—was how much I enjoyed the books that were written for tweens and teens. Me, a slightly older than middle-aged woman truly loved them. I likened them to Anne of Green Gables: a timeless book that can be read by anyone of any age. Nancy’s books are that good. They take you back to a place filled with ...