Join the Circus!

6:00 AM Elizabeth Seckman 36 Comments

When I was a little girl, I hated school to the point of hanging onto door jams and car doors to stop people from making me go. I couldn't read, and I was so shy, talking to strangers honestly made me want to vomit. In kindergarten (my second year of it- I failed the first year and had to do a repeat), my teacher suggested I bring a comfort item from home. I brought my stuffed pink cat. She stayed with my coat, but I knew she was there, and it helped. But when I brought her to the first grade, she was spotted in my tote bag and quickly became grist for the bully grinder.

I was back to hating loathing school.

I became a pro at faking ill. I can only imagine how much it cost my poor parents in medical expenses. Belly aches. Head aches. Fevers induced by the thermometer being held against the heater...I had them all.

There was only one thing that reconciled school and me. I needed to go there to learn to read. And visit the library where there were racks and racks of books with gorgeous covers. School became a means to an end- the proverbial necessary evil.

By the fourth grade, I was one of the best readers in my class. One success begets another, and pretty soon I was getting sent to the corner for talking too much. My mother never minded. She'd smile when I brought notes home that said "Elizabeth talks too much in class". I suppose that beat, "Elizabeth hid in the coat room. Took teachers hours to find her."

I beat the fears.  All because beautiful covers enticed me.

Just like this one from the talented, and seriously wonderful, Stephanie Faris! She has a new book coming that young Elizabeth would have gone gaga over!!





Cover illustration by Lucy Fleming.

Blurb:

When Piper Morgan has to move to a new town, she is sad to leave behind her friends, but excited for a new adventure. She is determined to have fun, be brave and find new friends.
And after learning her mom’s new job will be with the Big Top Circus, Piper can’t wait to learn all about life under the big top, see all the cool animals, and meet the Little Explorers, the other kids who travel with the show. She’s even more excited to learn that she gets to be a part of the Little Explorers and help them end each show with a routine to get the audience on their feet and dancing along!

But during Piper’s grand debut, her high kicks and pointed toes don't go quite as planned. After causing a dance disaster, she has to prove to everyone--especially queen of the Little Explorers, Lexie--that she belongs in the spotlight.

Stephanie Faris:




Bio:

Stephanie Faris knew she wanted to be an author from a very young age. In fact, her mother often told her to stop reading so much and go outside and play with the other kids. After graduating from Middle Tennessee State University with a Bachelor of Science in broadcast journalism, she somehow found herself working in information technology. But she never stopped writing.


Stephanie is the Simon & Schuster author of 30 Days of No Gossip and 25 Roses, as well as the upcoming Piper Morgan series. When she isn’t crafting fiction, she writes for a variety of online websites on the topics of business, technology, and her favorite subject of all—fashion. She lives in Nashville with her husband, a sales executive.

Links:

Website
Blog
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It's Friday, and I am long overdue in my celebration of my small things!
Thanks to our hosts in this weekly check in: Lexa, L.G, and Katie!

 I messed up my pretty blog and Carrie Butler came to my rescue and is fixing it. That's my good thing to the third power.

No matter how whiny, moody, and tinkeringly destructive I am...I have the best peeps.