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!!

Piper Morgan Joins the Circus

Stephanie Faris



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
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram

It's Friday, and I am long overdue in my celebration of my small things!
Thanks to our hosts in this weekly check in: LexaL.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.

36 comments:

  1. Yay for Stephanie! Love that cover. And yay for great friends who help us with our blog. :) Have a good weekend!

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    1. Thanks Christine. I couldn't make it in this life without friends!

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  2. An awesome cover indeed. haha reading sure turned you around, good you stopped hiding in the coat rack.

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    1. You know, I still remember hiding there. I could here them calling me, felt a little guilt, but not enough to drag me out.

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  4. Love the cover of Stephanie's book. And I love the name Piper Morgan :)

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  5. Congrats to Stephanie. Glad you and school reconnected, Elizabeth :-)

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  6. I LOVE the intro! I was like you at that age--reading was my favorite thing. Looks like all that reading made for great preparation for our future careers.

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    1. Glad you liked it! Reading has been more than my entertainment, escape, and carrot- it was also a great way to stop people from talking to me! Now, I hardly ever shut up.

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  7. Reading was definitely one of the best things about school.

    Good luck to Stephanie.

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  8. Sorry Liz, I don't remember that far back.I don't remember not reading either, but no idea what age that was. My mother read a lot so it was probably pretty young. It was during the war years and I went to several different schools because my father was posted all over the country and we went along.

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    1. Sadly, I remember because I was way older than I should have been! So, you were one of those "military brats"? No wonder you have so much fire!

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  9. Writer friends always come to the rescue. I love Stephanie's cover.

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  10. Amazing how you changed and grew, Elizabeth!
    Congratulations to Stephanie.

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    1. I am very different. Now, I hardly ever shut up- though I do have times when I prefer the shell.

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  11. That is such an inspiring story! I loved to read when I was young, too. I read voraciously to the point where relatives I was staying with for the summer were usually unable to pry me off the couch, where I'd be curled up reading, and get me to play with the other kids. Congrats to Stephanie on her new release! Yay for having great peeps in your life! Have a wonderful weekend!

    FYI - Katie stepped down as co-host, and Tonja Drecker generously took over. Her blog addy is: http://tonjadrecker.blogspot.com/

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    1. I am so out of the loop. Thanks for the FYI. Tonja is all sorts of amazing. I shall correct that this Friday.

      Funny how people either worry that you read too much or too little. To be honest, even my "play" was heavily plot based. I'd get so mad when playing pretend and people stepped out of character.

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  12. Readers always turn out to be such great people! Some go on to write books. Imagine. Congrats to Stephanie on this book. I know it will bring a lot of joy to young readers.

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    1. I was thinking that at a book conference. Let's face it, readers plunge themselves into different lives and point of views, how could they not become compassionate, interesting people?

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  13. Such a bright and eye-catching cover! I am sure it will have kids grabbing for it. :)

    Elizabeth- so interesting to learn that you used to hide in the closet and reading was a game changer. Look at all the good that came from reading. :)
    ~Jess

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    1. Yep. It was like finding the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

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  14. WOW and now look at you? You're a super star... all because of books. Wonderful!
    Suzy x
    www.suzyturner.com

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    1. Well, I don 't know about superstar- but I am much happier :)

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  15. I was pretty quiet and shy in school, but I never minded going back to school every fall. I might have wanted it to be over again after a couple of weeks, but I always enjoyed going back at the beginning.

    My daughter is absolutely dreading going back to school. Too much bullying sucked the joy right out of her. We're hoping this year is better.

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    1. That stings. I swear, bullies can spot the sensitive sort. I was teased and felt out of place for years. You really do learn to dread the situation. Hopefully your daughter gets a wise teacher. Looking back on it, my third grade teacher was excellent at moving me to tables where I had friends and putting me in situations I was comfortable in. At the time, I thought it was luck- looking back on it- it was a wise, thoughtful teacher.

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  16. I love this cover, too! It's amazing. And I really enjoyed your story too, and could really relate. I hated school as a kid, but reading definitely made a difference!

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