2012 February

Why I Love Wednesday

February 29, 2012 by Mocha Girl Alysia 3 Comments

Why I Love Wednesdays…Book Jewelry

Mocha Girl Alexis from Reflections of a Bookaholic started a Wednesday Meme called Why I Love Wednesday. What is a Meme you ask? According to wikipedia…The term “Internet meme” refers to a catchphrase or concept that spreads rapidly from person to person via the Internet, largely through Internet-based email, blogs, forums, Imageboards, social networking sites and instant messaging. Basically, a topic from the meme host (Alexis) is posted on participating blogs with blog authors answering it on their site (here).

The topic this Wednesday is…Book Jewelry

Hello

Welcome to my shop, where you can find unusual gifts for everyone! I love creating unusual things that make my friends SMILE I’m an architect, But I found myself in handmade.
The biggest joy for me is too see smiles on the faces of my clients
—————————————
Best wishes, Olena Mysnyk
http://www.etsy.com/shop/MyBOOKmark

Filed Under: Home, Why I Love... Tagged With: Books, jewerly, meme, Why I Love Wednesday

Review: The Darkest Child

February 28, 2012 by Mocha Girl Alysia 10 Comments

Author: Delores Phillips

Genre: Historical Fiction

Publisher: Soho Press

Release Date: January 1, 2005

Paperback: 462 pages

Buy the Book: Amazon

Book Description

Rozelle Quinn is so fair-skinned that she can pass for white. Her ten children are mostly light, too. They constitute the only world she rules and controls. Her power over them is all she has in an otherwise cruel and uncaring universe.

Rozelle favors her light-skinned kids, but Tangy Mae, 13, her darkest-complected child, is the brightest. She desperately wants to continue with her education. Her mother, however, has other plans. Rozelle wants her daughter to work cleaning houses for whites, like she does, and accompany her to the “Farmhouse,” where Rozelle earns extra money bedding men. Tangy Mae, she’s decided, is of age.

Reviews by Mocha Girl Book Bloggers

Lena Sledge’s Blog

My Little Pocketbooks

Mocha Girls Tigg’s Review: I rarely give 5 stars in my reviews, but this book was definitely deserving of that and so much more!! Ms. Phillips spun a tragically beautiful story had me captivated from the first page, I was so angry when I had to put it down to go to work. It reminded me of my grandmother, she was from New Orleans and once told me that she ran away from home because her mother tried to sell her off at the age of 13 to an older man for a cow. It’s deplorable how young black women and girls were undervalued and treated back then. I never wanted it to end. I don’t want to give too much away, but read this book.

Mocha Girls Tahmeka’s Review: I wanted to love this book but it never really came together for me. The characters had potential to be great but they weren’t fleshed out. I think there were too many. Mattie, Harvey, the white lady that Tan worked for (I can’t think of her name), Skeeter, Jeff,… the list goes on. So many people who weren’t relevant to the story.
I think that the secondary plot, the county in the beginning phases of integration, was too much. The main plot was intense enough.
This book could have been perfection had the author spent more time with the characters. I don’t feel like there was enough.

Mocha Girl Pearl’s Review: I am giving this five stars because it was well written, although this was the most painful and emotional novel I have read in a long time, she described the events and characters with such detail and definition. I was so hoping for a happy ending and it almost was one, but the only happiness is that one day Tangy Mae will look by and be happy the she and Laura made it out of Pakersfield. I am still to emotional to even write a review.

Did you read The Darkest Child? What did you think of the book? Leave your review in the comments.

Please use the 1 click Review as well. Pick one of the following selections for your overall feeling of this months book.

Filed Under: Home, Reviews Tagged With: book of the month, book review, Books

Congratulations Octavia!

February 27, 2012 by Mocha Girl Alysia 3 Comments

Congratulations Mocha Girl Octavia Spencer

on your win at the 2012 Oscar’s last night for Best Supporting Actress in the movie “THE HELP.”

Filed Under: Home Tagged With: best supporting actress, Oscars, the help, winners

Black History Month: The Best of Black …

February 27, 2012 by Mocha Girl Alysia 3 Comments

Welcome to the first annual Black History Month Hop hosted by Reflections of a Bookaholic and Mocha Girls Read a month long blogging event which focuses on giving black authors, books, and those who support them a month in the spotlight.

For the last week of the hop we have a few things planned for you. What’s a hop you ask? At the bottom of each post you will find a list of other sites participating in the hop. This way you can easily hop from one blog to another.

Weekly Topics for the Black History Month Hop
~~1st – 7th Black History Month Giveaway Hop~~
~~2nd – 4th Around Town~~
    ~~5th – 11th The Business of Black Books~~
   ~~12th – 18th Black Love~~
    ~~19th – 25th Black Books~~
26th – 29th The Best of…

We have a lot of giveaways going on right now from great Black authors. All winners will be announced on 2/29/2012.

Stephanie Norris’ “Trouble in Paradise” (End 2/28)

Earnessa T Carter’s “32 Candles” (Ends 2/28)

This is the week we will talk about the best of books by Black authors or with Black character.

The Best of Black Children Books

(a little something for our little Mocha Girls)

2012 Coretta Scott King Book Award Recipients

Author Award Winner

Kadir Nelson, author and illustrator of “Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans” (Balzer + Bray, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers). “Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans” is an extensive volume focusing on American history as it intertwines with the lives of African Americans. The story is told from the viewpoint of an elderly woman who shares her life story while highlighting pivotal historical events including abolition, the Great Migration, World War II, and the Civil Rights movement.

Illustrator Award Winner

Shane W. Evans, illustrator of “Underground: Finding the Light to Freedom” (A Neal Porter Book, published by Roaring Brook Press, a division of Holtzbrinck Publishing Holdings Limited Partnership). Effective interplay of dark and light—dark blues and greens that represent fear and oppression; bright golds that signal the joy of freedom—characterizes this portrayal of a band of slaves’ nighttime escape. They run, rest, get help from others, and finally celebrate their hard-won liberation.

Author Honor

Eloise Greenfield, “The Great Migration: Journey to the North,” illustrated by Jan Spivey Gilchrist and published by Amistad, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

Patricia C. McKissack, “Never Forgotten,” illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon and published by Schwartz & Wade Books, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, a division of Random House, Inc.

Illustrator Honor

Kadir Nelson, author and illustrator of “Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans,” published by Balzer + Bray, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

Coretta Scott King – Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement

Ashley Bryan, storyteller, artist, author, poet, and musician whose numerous awards include the Coretta Scott King Book Award for “Let it Shine” and “Beautiful Blackbird.” Bryan was born in Harlem and raised in the Bronx. His father worked as a printer of greeting cards. He loved birds. Bryan once counted a hundred caged birds in his childhood home.Bryan grew up with six brothers and sisters and three cousins. Bryan recalled his childhood in New York the 1930s as an idyllic time, full of art and music.He excelled in school, graduating from high school at the age sixteen.

Bryan attended the Cooper Union Art School, one of the few African-American students at that time to be awarded a scholarship. He had applied to other schools who had rejected him on the basis of race,but Cooper Union administered its scholarships in a blind test: “You put your work in a tray, sculpture, drawing, painting, and it was judged. They never saw you. If you met the requirements, tuition was free, and it still is to this day,” explained Bryan.

At the age of nineteen, World War II interrupted his studies. He was drafted and assigned to serve as a porter in Europe.He was so ill-suited to this work that his fellow soldiers often encouraged him to step aside and draw.He always kept a sketch pad in his gas mask.

When he returned to New York, he exhibited the drawings he’d made as a soldier.He then went on to Columbia University to study philosophy. He wanted to understand war.After the war, Bryan received a Fulbright Scholarship to study in Europe.

Bryan taught art at Queen’s College, Lafayette College, and Dartmouth College. He retired as emeritus professor of art at Dartmouth in the 1980s.

He was not published until he was forty years old. In 1962, he was the first African American to publish a children’s book as an author and illustrator.“I never gave up. Many were more gifted than I but they gave up. They dropped out. What they faced out there in the world–they gave up.”

Honors

His books have won several awards in children’s literature, including the Coretta Scott King Award, the Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award from the Pennsylvania State University, and the Lupine Award from the Maine Library Association. Bryan himself also received the Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal for achievement in children’s literature and the University of Southern Mississippi Medallion from the Fay B. Kaigler Children’s Book Festival.

1981 Coretta Scott King Award Winner for outstanding illustration in Beat the Story Drum, Pum-Pum
1983 Coretta Scott King Award Honor for outstanding illustration in I’m Going to Sing: Black American Spirituals
1987 Coretta Scott King Award Honor for outstanding author in Lion and the Ostrich Chicks and Other African Folk Tales
1987 Coretta Scott King Award Honor for outstanding illustration in Lion and the Ostrich Chicks and Other African Folk Tales
1988 Coretta Scott King Award Honor for outstanding illustration in What a Morning! The Christmas Story in Black Spirituals
1992 Coretta Scott King Award Honor for outstanding illustration in All Night, All Day: A Child’s First Book of African American Spirituals
1998 Coretta Scott King Award Honor for outstanding illustration in Ashley Bryan’s ABC of African American Poetry
2004Coretta Scott King Award Winner for outstanding illustration in Beautiful Blackbird
2005 The Atlanta literary festival was named for him.
2008 Coretta Scott King Award Winner for outstanding illustration in Let it Shine: Three Favorite Spirituals
2009 Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal for substantial and lasting contributions to children’s literature
2010 Golden Kite Award for nonfiction for Ashley Bryan: Words to My Life’s Song
2012 Coretta Scott King–Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement presented to an African American author, illustrator or author/illustrator for a body of his or her published books for children and/or young adults, and who has made a significant and lasting literary contribution.

Congratulations to all of this years winners! All the information on this blog post came from Wikipedia. If you would like to read more about the Coretta Scott King Book Award go to the site here.

CORETTA SCOTT KING BOOK AWARD OFFICIAL WEBSITE

Check out the other blogs and the books they are talking about. Bloggers add your link to the linky as well. One lucky blogger will win a great prize for joining this week.

Filed Under: Books, Giveaways, Home Tagged With: black authors, Black History Month, children's books, illustrators

Black History Month: Black Books #8

February 26, 2012 by Mocha Girl Alysia Leave a Comment

For the fourth week of the hop we have a few things planned for you. What’s a hop you ask? At the bottom of each post you will find a list of other sites participating in the hop. This way you can easily hop from one blog to another.

Weekly Topics for the Black History Month Hop
~~1st – 7th Black History Month Giveaway Hop~~
~~2nd – 4th Around Town~~
    ~~5th – 11th The Business of Black Books~~
   ~~12th – 18th Black Love~~
    19th – 25th Black Books
26th – 29th The Best of…

We have a lot of giveaways going on right now from great Black authors. All winners will be announced on 2/29/2012.

Stephanie Norris’ “Trouble in Paradise” (Ends 2/28)

Earnessa T. Carter’s “32 Candles” (Ends 2/28)

This is the week we introduce you to books by Black authors or with Black character.

Rewrite Your Story: An Autobiography

MGR: Welcome to Mocha Girls Read Shivawn. Thanks so much for taking time to chit chat with us. Can you tell us about your book?

SM: Rewrite Your Story is based upon my life experiences. I’m very transparent with my life failures, heartbreaks and repeated poor choices. I cover loving someone more than yourself, trying to keep up with the Joneses’, loneliness, redefining who you are and defining your purpose. Its like you have the privilege of sitting in on my counseling session with me and you learn by my journey. In the book I am very vulnerable in revealing my hurt but I also shine light on how to rewrite your story. It’s my open journal to get women to stop hiding and masking there issues but instead to deal with them head on and to keep getting up everyday to live the best life possible.

MGR: That is very brave of you. What was the inspiration for this book?

SM: Other women that I encountered that were going through the same things I had been through. I really got tired of seeing women pretending that everything was okay but deep down inside they were hurting and didn’t know how they could recover to have the life they desired. I couldn’t see myself learning from my mistakes and not sharing it with other women. I wanted to be that support they needed without feeling ashamed to ask for help. I wanted to show women that you mess could turn into your message.

MGR: What were some of the obstacles you encountered with this book?

SM: Whew! I had a lot of learning experience with this book since my book is through my own company “Signature Publishing”. However, the biggest obstacle came recently when one of my family members finally finished reading my book. The family member wasn’t that pleased with the book. They felt like I shared too much of my “business” and was worried about how people would perceive me. I’ve always been pretty confident in my decisions but after hearing that it was a blow to my momentum. It’s a hard pill to swallow when someone you care about isn’t “feeling” what you are doing. But, I know my book is needed so I decided to keep it moving and remember everyone won’t understand what my purpose is!

MGR: What are you working on now? Can we get a sneak peak?

SM: I’m in the process of working on publishing another book for one our new authors. Hopefully her book will be out by the end of 2012! No sneak peak…sorry!!! In addition I am working on my second book which will deal solely with relationships.

MGR: What are you reading now?

SM: The Five Love Languages (single edition) Gary Chapman; Marriage Talk Kim W. Brown; The Pocket Stylist Kendall Farr; The 4-Hour Workweek Timothy Ferriss

MGR: Who are some of your favorite authors?

SM: E. Lynn Harris; Robert Kiyosaki; Sister Soulijah; KiKi Swinson; John C. Maxwell

MGR: As February comes to a close, what does Black History Month Mean to you?

SM: Its means that I get to live the dreams I desire because of what people did before me. They lived their purpose so we could have freedom today. Black History Month is more than February it is the legacy that I will leave behind for my family, friends and associates to be motivated by. Black History Month allows me to be reminded that we have so much to be thankful for but so much more that we could be doing everyday.

MGR: Amen! What do I do for fun?

SM: I am a social butterfly. So I love meeting new people and going to different places. I’m also a foodie and enjoy trying new restaurants. Of course shopping is a must!!!

MGR: You and I are so on the same way length. LOL!! What is your guilty pleasure?

SM: Krispy Kreme doughnuts are my best friend!!

MGR: Ohhhhh!! and when they are hot!! ok ok ok ….When you were a kid, what did you want to be?

SM: A model during the summer and a teacher during the fall. I had a plan (smiles).

MGR: You were a girl on a mission. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

SM: I plan on having multiple authors who are published by my company Signature Publishing and to have written at least two more books myself. To have opened at least two more boutiques with my business partner (The Beauty Boudoir). In addition to have more women that I am working with at my company L.O.V.E. Inc. (living out visions eternally). Finally to be married with children.

MGR: Wow!! I love it. What is your favorite holiday and why?

SM: Valentines Day. I am a hopeful romantic! I love to give love and to receive it as well. It’s the ultimate day to go all out in addition to what you should already be doing for your significant loved one.

MGR: What are 2 things on your bucket list, Shivawn?

SM: To go to Australia and to sky dive!

MGR: Thank you so much for hanging out with us. Would you like to give a Shout Out?

SM: To everyone who has a dream and is too afraid to take the next step. Just do it! Step in fear….don’t allow yourself to stop you from living your dreams LOUD!

MGR: I usually like to give authors the last word but that deserves an.. AMEN!!

Author Shivawn Mitchell’s Bio

Shivawn Mitchell is a Counselor, Author, Purpose Motivator, Speaker and Entrepreneur. Born and raised in Chesterfield County, VA, Shivawn’s parents always pushed her to pursue owning a business and taught her to make a difference while doing so. This is something she took to heart and quickly applied to her life.

Shivawn fell in love with the written word as a child when she received her first journal, and she’s been writing ever since.

After high school, Shivawn attended Norfolk State University and graduated with a degree in counseling and a minor in sociology. Though she began the Master’s program at Liberty University, after a semester and a half, she discovered her heart wasn’t in it, and she decided to move on.

She soon realized she wanted to provide woman with support on how to pursue their purpose and passion, and in December 2010, Shivawn launched L.O.V.E., an organization focused on empowering women’s total life and developing change agents for the world. As a result L.O.V.E. Academy has become L.O.V.E.’s first extension. L.O.V.E. Academy is specifically designed to help women take that next step in starting a business, redefining their personal life or pursuing their purpose.

Shivawn then struck interest in publishing upon realizing its influence on people and discovering that words can affect change or create chaos. As a result, Shivawn established Signature Publishing & Media (a division of L.O.V.E. Inc) in March 2011. She decided to pursue her first love even further and self-publish her first book, “Rewrite Your Story” with additional titles on the way.

In addition, Shivawn is the part owner of The Beauty Boudoir. The Boudoir’s charge is to inspire and encourage every woman, everywhere to build confidence in her distinct uniqueness, knowing that she is fearfully and wonderfully made by God. Our goal at the Boudoir is to ignite inner and outer beauty in all women.

Shivawn’s sole desire is to empower women to live the life they dream of while also inspiring young ladies along the way to do the same. She recognizes that every time she is given a chance to speak it is her way of living her visions eternally and paying it forward. She believes that its time for women to step up and create a higher standard for the lives they are living.

“Don’t Just Have a Vision But Live it Loud”

Author’s Links

www.we-r-love.com

www.twitter.com/ladyshiv

www.facebook.com/#!LOVEWEARE

Check out the other blogs and the books they are talking about. Bloggers add your link to the linky as well. One lucky blogger will win a great prize for joining this week.