Tag Archives: books about cats

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas From Kimba

Just a quick note to say Merry Christmas from all of us here at Serenity Mountain Publishing. This has been an incredible year with seeing both “Why Kimba Saved The World” and “Vacation Hiro” heading out into the world. 2014 is ready and waiting, and “Miss Fatty Cat’s Revenge” is up next, but I could not do any of it without my family and all of my new friends cheering me on. Thank you for being a part of this journey!

Merry Christmas and a Happy and Blessed New Year to each and every one of you!

Merry Christmas From Hiro

Celebrate Shelter Pets Day Is Here!

Check them out on Facebook!

Today is Celebrate Shelter Pets Day, and we here at the Dendler house are certainly grateful for our family of rescued pets. Kimba and Hiro were found in a box when they were only a day or two old, so they never got as far as a shelter, but they were rescued all the same. Samantha and Tabitha (aka Miss Fatty Cat and Slinky) were rescued through Noah’s Ark no-kill shelter in Cypress, TX, when they were a few months old. Max (aka The Big Black Beast) was also rescued from a no-kill shelter that I don’t even remember the name of now when he was a year old. Even Buddy came to us out of the woods behind a house in Livonia, MI, and was with us for many years.

Adopting or buying a new pet is always a risk. You never quite know what you are going to get, so why not take that chance on a shelter pet who desperately needs to be given a home. Send your money and your love to a shelter near you today!

Follow Shelter Pets Day at Facebook or at #celebrateshelterpets on twitter. Shelter pets rule!

New Book Review and Wrap Up of Blog Tour

The last official stop on my fall blog tour is a book review for “Why Kimba Saved The World” at the blog of Erik The Great: This Kid Reviews Books. Follow this link to his nice review of “Kimba.” I love it when a review comes from a reader who is closer to the actual intended target audience of my middle grade books. Adult reviewers sometimes over-think the process. Kids will just tell you whether or not they liked it. In the end, that’s what it’s all about.

Erik’s blog is full of delightful reviews and commentaries on the books he has enjoyed. He has very mature taste for an 11 year old, so I’m glad he could still enjoy the simplicity of my book. I’m happy to be including him in my blogroll so visitors to my site can find his as well.

Erik says of “Kimba”: “The story is written very well and is appropriate for all ages. Ms. Dendler does a great job of getting the reader into the cat’s minds.”

I sometimes worry about how much time I spend trying to figure out Kimba’s thoughts, but at least it paid off for my books. She is sitting outside my office door right now, and I have no idea what she is plotting. A good bath and a nap are probably all she has on the agenda, but you never can tell with cats.

I hope you will visit the sites of all of the bloggers who were kind enough to do interviews and book reviews of either “Why Kimba Saved The World” or “Vacation Hiro” (or both!) as part of this Fall Blog Tour. There will be a few more reviews along the way with others who have not set firm dates, and I will keep sharing them!

Kimba, plotting something

New Book Review of “Why Kimba Saved The World” From Say What Savannah Mae

The blog tour continues today with a book review of “Why Kimba Saved The World” at Say What Savannah Mae’s blog. Click here to see the whole review.

Here’s a quick portion of the review, but go to Savannah’s blog to read the whole thing:

“In this charming tale, it is a cat’s perspective of life and loyalty. Peeking into the thoughts of why cats do what they do. Some of the things that Kimba was instructed to do for her missions made me giggle and look at my own kitty and imagine that yes, this indeed could make sense.”

Two New Book Reviews For “Vacation Hiro”

The official book launch is only a few hours away!! As part of the blog tour, two new book reviews for “Vacation Hiro” posted today.

The first review is from Found Between The Covers, and I’m thrilled that Sherrey enjoyed Book 2 even more than Book 1. Click here to see the whole review at her blog, but here’s my favorite part:

“When I finished reading and reviewing Why Kimba Saved the World, I couldn’t imagine Meg Dendler surpassing that story or the personification of the animals in her first book in the Cats in the Mirror Series. I. Was. Wrong!”

Thanks, Sherrey!

The second review is from The Styling Librarian, who also thoroughly enjoyed it and recommends the series to her readers. Yay! Thanks, Debbie! Click here to see the whole review all the way from Hong Kong.

Be sure to visit both of their sites and follow them on twitter and Facebook. I’ve loved following them myself.

“Vacation Hiro” hits the world Friday morning!! Watch out world!

Book 2 in the Cats in the Mirror Series

First Book Review for “Vacation Hiro” From Arkansas Book Reviewer

What a great beginning for an exciting week!! The very first book review for “Vacation Hiro” was posted today by the Arkansas Book Reviewer, and she gave it 5 stars. That’s a great way to get things going! Please click here to read the whole review at her site, and be sure to click on the social media share links at the bottom and leave a comment for her. I loved the way she ended it: “Best of all, Vacation Hiro ends with a cliffhanger that’ll have you clawing for the next book!” Love it! Nothing like a 5 star review to start of a book launch week with a bang!

Official launch day is Friday, November 15. Getting all of my ducks and links in a row and ready to share with you.

Book 2 in the Cats in the Mirror Series

Jenn’s Book Review of “Why Kimba Saved The World”

Newest stop on the Fall Blog Tour is Jenn’s Book Review Blog and her thoughts on “Why Kimba Saved The World.” I love that her son was in on the reviewing process. It can be hard for adults to judge a book designed for kids. I’ve gotten some really odd reviews from some who have. So I always get extra excited when the reviewer is a teacher used to reading kid lit or an actual child — and super-duper excited when they enjoy it. Yay! Here’s the link to Jenn’s review, but my favorite part of the review was this:

“The characters of Kimba and Hiro were adorable and we fell in love with them quickly. We give Kimba a 5/5!”

It doesn’t get much better than that!

Unless someone I’m not expecting jumps into the schedule, and that may well happen, the next stop on the blog tour will be the very first review of “Vacation Hiro” from the Arkansas Book Reviewer. On pins and needles!

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.