Tag Archives: book promotion

Book Review & Author Interview at Magnolia Blossom’s Blog

Wow! I think this is the most detailed book review “Why Kimba Saved The World” has gotten so far. Reviewer Bud Scott broke it down into several categories and commented on each section. I thought it was funny that he assumed the book would be about a giant cat saving the world based on the cover. That’s the first time I’ve gotten that feedback! Click here to visit Magnolia Blossom’s blog and read the whole review and detailed interview with me.

In concluding the review and interview, the web site says:

“The Bestowing of the Blossoms…

It certainly looks like Meg Dendler’s book ‘Why Kimba Saved the World’ was the cat’s meow for reviewer Bud Scott as it earned a total of 88 out of 100 points giving it a very strong 4.85 (and a wee little bit more) blossom rating. That’s an exceptional thing to say about a book that, because it wasn’t actually written for the ‘older’ set so to say, kept the attention of the reviewer well enough that he not only has said he’ll recommend it to others and that he was able to see the personalities of the cats shine through. We are so pleased that Meg asked The MBR to review her book, Why Kimba Saved the World and hope that you, Kind Reader, will check it out for yourself – especially if you know of a child who might enjoy it. What’s more – perhaps you could get a copy and donate it to your local school’s library! Wouldn’t that be a wonderful way to not only spread the love for reading to our youth but also to shine a bright light on a terrific writer for an age group that is in sore need of some quality, high interest books!”

Be sure to click on the link and give their blog some traffic and read the whole book review, as well as other book reviews at the site. I’m always so grateful for the book lovers who agree to review independent and self-published books!

Author Interview with Arkansas Authors Web Site

As a part of my blog tour and my wonderful relationship with the Arkansas Authors web site, a two-part interview with me is currently being featured at their site. Click here to read the whole thing. You can also find “Why Kimba Saved The World” in their Book Spotlight section and available for sale. They are even featuring my book on the home page today!

This site is a fantastic resource for authors from Arkansas, but also for readers who just want to find great books. The site will be offering a holiday buying guide as well. Stop by, read the interview, and check out their other authors and books as well.

Here’s one of the interview questions, but be sure to go to www.arkansasauthors.com for the full interview.

What drove your decision to self-publish?

I did send the manuscript for “Kimba” out to a few publishing houses and agents over a couple of years. Sometimes you have to wait months, and they want it to be exclusive. It’s an arduous process. Many big publishing houses are closed, and agents are hesitant to take on an unknown writer. You never hear back from most of them. They want you to get your platform set and have a fan base first. It’s rather like needing to be in the union to get a job, but you can’t get a job unless you are in the union. The nature of self-publishing has changed so much in the last few years that I started to explore that. As I met some agents/publishers through conferences and got real feedback, they all liked the story but didn’t feel it was right for them. I just wanted to go forward and get the book out there. It is a ton of work to be your own publisher, but it gets the job done instead of just sitting on manuscripts and waiting for answers.

Next Blog Tour Book Review of “Why Kimba Saved The World”

Today’s blog tour stop is with the Heart of a Philanthropist web site for a book review and giveaway for “Why Kimba Saved The World.” Click here to visit her site and read the full review. Also take a moment to look through her information about the Village of Hope orphanage in the Philippines that is struggling to recover from a devastating earthquake in the region. I’m joining Kim in her letter writing campaign to offer support and prayers as they work to rebuild. Good work is going on around the world! Thanks, Kim, for taking time to review and share my book.

Cover 2 Cover Book Review of “Kimba” Today

Just a quick shout-out to blog tour host Cover 2 Cover today for her great book review of “Why Kimba Saved The World.” She is also running a free copy giveaway, so be sure to share her link with your friends so they can enter for a free copy. Thanks, Stephanie!! Click here for the full feature and review, but here’s my favorite part:

“As I was reading this book, I was laughing and thinking about my cat, and how he too is a found stray and how many of his first places and movements were similar to Kimba and Hiro’s. I think Cooper (my cat) may too be communicating with and accomplishing his missions with the strange things he does and things he gets into…”

Yes, Stephanie, watch out if Cooper pays too much attention to YOUR computer. You never know!

There’s another blog tour stop tomorrow, so stay tuned!

New “Kid” Book Review of “Kimba”

I love it when a child has a chance to do a book review for “Why Kimba Saved The World.” That who it is written for! Adults sometimes come at reviews with a lot of literary baggage, but kids just want to enjoy the story. I’m so glad that Rhiannon did! I shipped a copy of “Kimba” all the way to Australia for her (much to the dismay of our small town post office who had no idea how to accomplish this task), and it was worth it. Click here for the link to her review, but here’s my favorite part:

“This is one of my favourite books and anyone who likes cats will think that this one is a winner!”

Thanks Kidz Review Krew!

Moonbeam Children’s Book Award for “Why Kimba Saved The World”!!!

I am thrilled to announce that “Why Kimba Saved The World” has been honored with a Moonbeam Children’s Book Award as “Best First Book — Chapter Book,” Bronze Medal. I’m not a competitive person by nature, and especially when it comes to writing. This award is not about being better than another writer or book, it is about being good enough to win, and I am humbled beyond words to have earned that honor. Not only does this forever make “Kimba” an award-winning book, it also serves as a seal of approval in a sea of self-published books on the market.

Bronze Moonbeam Award Seal

“Presented by Jenkins Group and Independent Publisher Magazine, the Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards are designed to bring increased recognition to exemplary children’s books and their creators, and to support childhood literacy and life-long reading. Awards are given in 41 print book and nine e-book categories covering the full range of subjects, styles and age groups that children’s books are written and published in today. As our society has gotten more complex and growing up has become more complicated, children’s book authors and publishers have risen to the occasion, creating books that not only celebrate the joys of childhood, but also help kids and families deal with its challenges. The Moonbeam Awards will recognize and reward the best of these books and bring them to the attention of booksellers, librarians, parents and children.” (from their web site)

There were 165 medalists from the 1,200 entries, including 35 US States, 5 Canadian provinces, and 7 countries overseas. Only books from small, independent publishing houses and self-published books are eligible.

“Creating books that inspire our children to read, to learn, and to dream is an extremely important task, and these awards were conceived to reward those efforts. Each year’s entries are judged by expert panels of youth educators, librarians, booksellers, and book reviewers of all ages. Award recipients receive gold, silver and bronze medals and stickers depicting a mother and child reading and silhouetted by a full moon.” (from web site)

If you already have a paperback copy and would like an award sticker, please just email me at [email protected], and I will send you one.

And watch for the sequel, “Vacation Hiro,” available in early November.

Book Review–Big Honey Dog Mysteries: Curse of the Scarab

Holy Liver Snaps, this is a cute book! Doing a formal book review is a rare for me, but I wanted to do more than make a quick note about this one. The Big Honey Dog Mysteries: Curse of the Scarab is just adorable.

H.Y. Hanna and I bumped into each other on Goodreads and agreed to a read & review book swap. It was logical since our topics and genre looked to be very similar. I must admit, after I agreed to this I got a bit spooked. What if her book is terrible? But there was no need for any worry. The moment my husband opened it up on his kindle (no, I don’t have my own) he said, “This looks cute. It sounds like your writing style.” I’ll take that as a compliment because Hanna’s writing is delightful.

This first book in the Big Honey Dog Mysteries follows Great Dane Honey as she tries to find a lost puppy friend who has been stolen, along with dozens of other puppies in town. With the help of her canine friends, Honey discovers a very creepy mystery that involves nasty scarab bugs and Egyptian curses. I should probably give a warning that young readers who are very sensitive may not be ready for some of the drama that unfolds. There is life-threatening peril along the way for everyone involved. Of course, if you like exciting drama, this book is right up your alley.

I’m very big on stories for young readers that have a moral or point of some kind, and Curse of the Scarab didn’t let me down. There are deep-seated prejudices to be overcome. The traditional hatred between cats and dogs comes into play. Cats, who are referred to early in the book as a “bunch o’ sneaky, sardine-breathed sand poopers,” are going to have to become allies if the puppies are to be saved. And the stereotype of pit bulls as dangerous, killer dogs is faced head-on. Again, without the help of Max, a rescued fighting dog, their mission won’t succeed.

Despite the overwhelming charms of Honey, I felt most in touch with the Beagle, Biscuit. I have had two Beagles in my life, and they both ate everything they could, just like Biscuit (though I kept a better eye on them than Biscuit’s owner). Heidi, my childhood Beagle, once ate an entire batch of oatmeal cookies that had been laid out on the table to cool. Three cups of oatmeal were in there. She was an unhappy dog. Eevee, my adult-age Beagle, once ate a two-pound box of chocolate creams that was a Christmas gift. Given fifteen unsupervised minutes, she went upstairs (where she NEVER went), found the box hidden behind a bookcase, unwrapped it, pulled off the plastic, and ate every chocolate (and probably some of the wrappers). We were grateful it was mostly cream and gel inside! She had an unhappy night, but the next day I caught her pulling the wrappers from the garbage. Too strong a nose is a dangerous thing. Every time Biscuit got caught eating something in the story, it just made me smile. I bet dog-lovers will find the same kind of attachment to one of Honey’s friends in the story.

Big Honey Dog Mysteries: Curse of the Scarab, is a wonderful book. The writing is light and funny, as well as serious and heart-wrenching. I highly recommend this for middle grade readers–and frankly for dog lovers of any age.

A sequel to this book is already underway, and I’m excited to see what H.Y. Hanna has planned for Honey and her friends at the dog show.

You can find out more about the real Honey Dog and upcoming books at H.Y.’s fantastic web page www.bighoneydogmysteries.com.

HY and Honey discuss manuscript for Book 2

Book Review from Arkansasbookreviewer.com

Thrilled to share a new connection and a new book review from Arkansas Book Reviewer’s web site. Click here to read to full review at her site, but here’s just a sample:

“Meg Dendler’s debut novel, Why Kimba Saved the World, her first in the Cats in the Mirror series, is a charming fantasy book appropriate for middle grade youth, cat lovers, or any animal lover in general. A chapter book, perfect for school rooms and personal libraries, comes complete with added photos to personalize the experience.”

She gave “Why Kimba Saved The World” 5 stars at amazon.com and at goodreads.com. Yay!

I have actually been diligently working on some technical revisions to this book for a few grammar changes. Earth should be capitalized the way we are using it (thank you www.askjanis.com for catching that in the next book). Some changes are just for continuity between “Kimba” and “Vacation Hiro.” There will also be a link at the end of the new version of the “Kimba” ebook to click and buy the next book right away and more live links for my web site, twitter, and Facebook pages. I’m learning how it all works as I go and am grateful for the freedom self-publishing offers to make whatever changes I want and keep my books up-to-date!

We are still waiting for the cover art for “Vacation Hiro.” Lesley already had some other projects lined up (of course she did, she’s fantastic), and we are waiting just as patiently as we possibly can. Once that’s all set, the book will be available quickly. Very excited!

Great New Review for “Kimba”

I’m so grateful for this great new review of “Why Kimba Saved The World” at the blog Found Between The Covers. Click on the link to read it on her site. Blogs like this are nothing short of a lifeline for indie authors. It costs thousands of dollars to get a review from any major publications and even most indie web sites (don’t kid yourself that they review those books just because they like them), so those blogs who are willing to read and share the self-published books they love mean everything. I’d rather have you read the whole review at her link and give Sherrey the internet traffic, but here’s part of what she had to say:

“Well thought out plot and characterizations, and the personifications of Kimba, Hilo, Slinky, and the other animals were delightfully creative. And there’s a lesson to be learned in the end. Kimba has a surprise waiting for all of you soon-to-be readers.”

Thank you, Sherrey, for sharing the love!!

“Vacation Hiro” goes into production on Tuesday, so there’s even more alien cat fun on the horizon.

Read Aloud Video Series Now Available for “Why Kimba Saved The World”

I’m so thrilled to be able to share this first parent/teacher resource with you! Over several weeks, I recorded videos of me reading aloud “Why Kimba Saved The World” a chapter or two at a time, and the whole series is now complete at available at my youtube channel. Click here to check it out!

Apologies are probably in order for the “homemade” nature of these videos, but until some publisher wants to pay Morgan Freeman to read it for you in a professional studio this is what works on my budget. The series is designed to feel just like read aloud time would have in my classroom back when I was teaching elementary school. My classes rarely missed a day with a chapter book read aloud time (one year, we did the WHOLE “Little House on the Prairie” series), and I love being able to share “Kimba” in this same way with kids I will never have the chance to meet in person.

Please share the link with your teacher friends, parents who home school, or children you know who just might enjoy it!