Where would you go if you could travel in time? Would you choose the future or the past? Would you want to be able to just have a snippet of time in your destination or stay there and live out the rest of your days?
For myself, I’d rather travel back in time. I’d return to age seventeen, March 1993. The next three months were the happiest, yet they were filled with grief, struggles, and hardships. Despite those pains, the worst would be yet to come, and I’d love to remember the joy I felt from March to September. It is a very specific window for me, and unless you’ve had a traumatic event such as I’ve experienced, you may not understand that attention to detail of time. I’d love to return to that time knowing what I know now. But, even if that were not the case, I’d go back without hesitation, whether for a moment or to begin again from that point. What about you? Does the idea of time travel excite you?
*Remember, the price of the books listed may change and some may no longer be free by the time you go to grab them. I do not control the price of the books and/or the ability to offer them for free.*
The season of Christmas songs and overspending is in full swing, and for some, it is undoubtedly a time to withdraw and find solace in a good book. Cozy Christmas Mysteries may just be what you need to escape the times ahead that can quickly snowball into stress and sadness. Hold steady, friend, for a new season is always just around the bend. Happy reading!
Don’t forget the free downloadable book links at the bottom! You can lend them to anyone you wish!
*Remember, the price of the books listed may change and some may no longer be free by the time you go to grab them. I do not control the price of the books and/or the ability to offer them for free.*
Books for Purchase
Free Books (at time of posting)
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Sign up to become a Bushnell Unscripted Insider, and you will be the first to know when I am having a sale in my shop! You will receive special promotional offers that won’t be available to anyone who isn’t an Insider!
Starting April 1st, all Bushnell Unscripted Insiders will receive 25% off of an order placed at my online shop. Want this deal? You have to sign up! Feel free to let your friends know, but they won’t see the discount in their cart unless they become an Insider, too.
Sale Dates: April 1, 2016 – April 20, 2016
Below are just a few of the items available in the shop!
Are you in need of the perfect gift for your favorite bibliophile?
What about your best friend who devours big books?
Maybe you just want to say that you love them?
Gifts are wonderful to give, but don’t leave yourself out!
Whatever the occasion, my Cozy to Go! cup wraps are the perfect accessory. Each Cozy to Go! cup wrap is cut and sewn by hand. Made of three layers: one outer embroidered cotton print or solid fabric, one cotton lining solid or print fabric, and a polyester insulating liner. You’ll be fashionable while protecting your fingers from the cold or hot drink in your hand.
The wrap should fit most disposable hot and cold to-go cups, however, it may not fit all large cups. Send us a note regarding specific cups, and we may be able to help you.
I’m continually adding new designs to the shop, so please stay tuned. Also, if you sign-up for my newsletter, you will automatically become a member of the super club who receives special coupons and purchase opportunities that are not made available to the general public. Don’t worry, I don’t flood your inbox with junk mailings or alert you to my every move.
Banned Books Week – September 27, 2015 – October 3, 2015
I love reading banned books. It encourages the tiny rebel that lives in a dark corner of my psyche. Who are YOU to tell ME what to read?
I don’t know about you, but when I look at the titles on the banned book list, I see books that have made a profound impact on my life. The books are deep, thought-provoking literary guideposts that reflect our culture and experience on this planet. What one person labels “dirty” or “inappropriate” shouldn’t be the deciding factor on whether or not another person has the opportunity to read a book. Parents who protest a book’s inclusion into the school library because it speaks about slavery or homosexuality should be allowed to have their child excluded from reading the book, but they shouldn’t be allowed to speak for every parent and child.
There are those who defend the censorship, but when you show them the banned books list, they are dumbfounded when they realize one of their favorite books is included on the list. Well, some people will have this reaction and others will continue to blindly defend the censorship.
Watch this clip from Bill Moyers on September 25 2012The Bane of Banned Books“On the 30th anniversary of Banned Books Week, Bill explains why censorship is the biggest enemy of truth.”
Celebrate your freedom to read what you want and check out these other pages about banned books and censorship!
[typography font=”Cherry Cream Soda” size=”21″ size_format=”px”][typography font=”Cherry Cream Soda” size=”20″ size_format=”px”]Mountaintop State University Students: [/typography]
[typography font=”Cherry Cream Soda” size=”20″ size_format=”px”]It’s Time to Come Back to Class![/typography]
Sage Brant and Kirby Chapman are students at Mountaintop State University in Asheville, North Carolina. Their story begins at the start of the fall semester. The entire book spans the semester term.
Starting September 1, 2014, I’ll begin posting new snippets from the book. I hope you enjoy this fresh look into the story of Sage and Kirby. See you on campus at MSU!
This is my college reader copy of The Romance of the Forest by Ann Radcliffe. This was her third novel, and it was first published in 1791.
Those who love a mystery with elements of the supernatural and impending threats of horror and terror should reach for a Gothic novel. Radcliffe is a wonderful place to start, as she was the best-selling author of the genre. While she may not be very well known today, she was enormously popular in her day.
Many readers seek out this book because it is referenced in Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey. Interestingly enough, those same readers don’t often enjoy Radcliffe.
Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume should be required reading for every adolescent. Ms. Blume is one of my idols, and I appreciate her ability to write books for children and young adults that are honest and humorous. I bow to Ms. Blume.
Watch Ms. Blume perform the breast-enhancing exercise from the book. Adorable, thy name is Blume.
The Birdman of Alcatraz is a haunting read. Once you’ve been told the story of this man’s life, it will never leave you. Robert Stroud served 54 years in prison, and 43 of them were in solitary confinement.
After you read the book, watch the 1962 movie of the same name; it is also very good.
The Bell Jar by American poet Sylvia Plath celebrates its 51st year in print. The semi-autobiographical book was published in 1963 in the United Kingdom a month prior to her suicide. She was thirty years old. The first edition was published under Plath’s pseudonym, “Victoria Lucas.” It wouldn’t be published in the United States until 1971. My edition is from 1971.
Her only novel, The Bell Jar is “the heartbreaking story of a talented young woman who descends into madness.”
Listen to Ms. Plath read “Tulips” during her 1961 appearance on the BBC radio series, The Poet’s Voice.
The Little Locomotive by Ib Spang Olsen, 1976 edition. This little book was/is so dear to me. I loved the personification of the train. I don’t know how I came by this book, but I’m thankful it was always a staple in my room. I’m surprised I was allowed this book, as I’m certain my mother would have viewed it as something more appropriate for a boy. I’d love to know the story behind my coming to own this book.
Watch Ib Spang Olsen, Danish writer and illustrator, draw and paint in this video.
It’s time to take another peek at the items on my bookshelf! I’m having so much fun with this series, and I hope you are enjoying it. Has it encouraged you to go to your bookshelves and rediscover the books you own?
My husband purchased this hardback copy of Behind a Mask: The Unknown Thrillers of Louisa May Alcott, edited by Madeleine Stern with stories by Louisa May Alcott. This beautiful Christmas gift thrilled me, as I had never heard of the four stories.
Some of the stories in the book were published anonymously or under the name A.M. Barnard. The stories included are: “Pauline’s Passion and Punishment,” “The Mysterious Key,” “The Abbot’s Ghost,” and “Behind a Mask.”
Six years before she wrote Little Women, Louisa May Alcott was in financial straits. She entered “Pauline’s Passion and Punishment,” a novelette, in a newspaper contest. She published it anonymously, and it won the $100 prize. The subsequent “blood and thunder” tales she published would provide her livelihood for years.
I’ve been enamored with Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Less Masters since high school. A teacher read parts of the book to my class, and I found it to be a unique method of telling a story. The stories unfold in a series of epitaphs.
I’ve since purchased the audiobook, and I love to play it in the car for friends who’ve never read it. They are instantly drawn into the tragic and scandalous tales of the people buried in little Spoon River.
Sea of Shadows by Kelley Armstrong is a new addition to my bookshelf. If you haven’t done it yet, you should scoot over and give a listen to my podcast. I review this book and share news about the second book in the new trilogy.
Whenever my eyes fall upon Joint Mission by D. Gary Berube, I smile and instantly remember the author. He was my high school janitor. I was a reporter for the high school newspaper, and a teacher thought Mr. Berube’s story would make an interesting article.
Mr. Berube didn’t look like other janitors. His long hair fell just below his shirt collar, and he wore jeans and short-sleeved plaid shirts. I always thought he looked as though he were headed out to a concert. He was easy-going and kind. I remember how tickled he was when I interviewed him for the paper.
He autographed this copy he gave me, and I’ve always cherished it. The cover and internal illustrations are his work, too.
While in the U.S. Navy, my husband collected a lot of music. He can’t seem to part with the discs.
In the past, I’ve researched database templates that would allow me to catalog and create a library of my books, games, and music. I never liked the results that I found, and the project never moved forward. Since I started My Bookshelf project on Instagram, I revisited my search, and I’m happy to report that I have fallen in love with Libib.com.
I wanted a program that would allow me to easily catalog my books, video games, movies, and music. The program needed to offer me the opportunity to enter my own notes and photos. I really wanted a portable method of viewing the list, too. Libib.com offers all those things and more! No, I’m not a paid spokesperson; I’m just an excited user.
Adding an item is a breeze. Items that don’t have a UPC or ISBN number require a general search. I use this feature when looking up my games. I don’t have many boxes for these items. The search feature returns a list of potential matches. If there are multiple matches, just scroll down the list and find your match, and click “Add Game.” The item will be added to your library.
The program alerts you if you’ve added a duplicate item.
You can then go to the item in your library and click the up arrow button to indicate that you have another copy of the item.
The Android app is easy to use, and it even has a scanner built into the program. Tip: Don’t be discouraged if you try to manually enter a UPC and the item isn’t found. Try the name of the album or band in the general search, and if you still can’t find it, try the app. I tried entering the UPC from a music CD and it said no results were found. I scanned it with the app, and it found the perfect match.
If you discover the item isn’t listed, you can manually enter the item, and add your own photo!
You can add tags, groups, notes, and reviews to an item. If you need to delete an item, you can do that. There is also a purchase button listed that takes you to the appropriate listing on Amazon.com.
Libib also has a social aspect to it. You can keep your libraries private or publish them for others to view. I’ve just published my libraries to share with you. I’ve just begun! Check back soon and watch my collection grow.
I’ve already heard of people using their libraries in so many ways. Someone started a book library to help keep track of the books in their classroom. The students make comments on the books, and they leave notes for checkout purposes.
If you already have a list of your stuff, you can import a .csv file! You can also export the .csv file of the libraries you create! Why would you want to do that? One, you can have that file for insurance purposes should something happen to your stuff, and two, you can use the list to help alphabetize your shelves.
Some of the listings come with additional comments from people who are selling their games. You can edit these posts, but you can’t delete the statements and leave the space blank. When I delete the statements and save it, hoping for a blank box, the statements are back as though I had never deleted them. I get around this by writing a note and saving it. The other notes are gone once I do this.
However, the note that was entered with the E.T. game is perfect, so I won’t be deleting that one.
Also, the number of items doesn’t go up when you add a second copy of something. This would be nice to have as an option. I know some people may not want that, but a little toggle for that feature would be cool.
Room for improvement:
I’d love to see board games added to the mix of items I can catalog. I have a serious board game addiction.
I love this program. End the clutter on your bookshelf and start cataloging your home library!
Let me know if you’ve tried it!
My books are waiting to be organized on the bookshelves.
