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Books and CSN Bookshelves

May 7, 2010 by

After a bunch of book bloggers reviewed bookshelves from CSN, I purchased a couple of bedside tables with shelves — Winsome Espresso Storage Shelf.  I really love how I have books accessible to me when I’m lying in bed and that they are very sturdy, but I also love that they have a surface area on top big enough for a lamp and my alarm clock.

When CSN contacted me about reviewing another shelf and I could choose what I wanted, I deferred this selection to my husband.  He selected the Nexxt Leena Angled Bookshelf; I’ve included an image of the wall-mounted shelf for everyone to check out.  We just ordered it and cannot wait to get it up and the books off the floor because as you know, book bloggers are always in need of more shelves.

What I found most interesting on the CSN site is that they have over 200 stores to choose products from, including recessed lighting and cookware.  You can be sure I’ll be exploring these sites more thoroughly while I wait for our new shelves.

Filed Under: announcements Tagged With:

My Scene of the Blog

March 31, 2010 by

Have you ever been over to Kittling: Books?  Well, now’s your chance to not only check out a new blog, but also see where I blog!

Yes, I’m featured in today’s (March 31) Scene of the Blog feature, which takes readers on a journey through a new blogging space each week.

You’ll get to see where I read, where I post, and more.  I hope you’ll pop over and check it out.  I’ll be monitoring the comments all day and chatting with everyone who stops by!

FTC Disclosure: Clicking on title and image links will lead you to my Amazon Affiliate page; No purchase necessary, though appreciated.

© 2010, Serena Agusto-Cox of Savvy Verse & Wit. All Rights Reserved. If you’re reading this on a site other than Savvy Verse & Wit or Serena’s Feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

Copyright of Serena M. Agusto-Cox at Savvy Verse & Wit 2007-2010. This is not original content, this content is owned and copyrighted by Serena M. Agusto-Cox
Filed Under: announcements

Dewey’s 24-Hour Read-a-Thon is Back!

March 29, 2010 by

April 10, 2010, at 8 AM EST is the start of Dewey’s 24-hour read-a-thon!

I’m not sure how much of the 24-hour period I will be reading, but I did sign up to Cheer this year for at least an hour.  I figure that would give me a much needed break from reading.  It could end up being more than that, but I only wanted to commit to 1 hour since I’ve never done it before.

What books do I plan to read?

Poetry….lots of poetry!  Why?  Because it’s National Poetry Month!

1.  Stroke by Sidney Wade
2.  The Wrong Miracle by Liz Gallagher
3.  Your Ten Favorite Words by Reb Livingston
4.  The Guilt Gene by Diana Raab
5.  The Niagara River by Kay Ryan
6.  Questions of Fire by Gregg Mosson

And maybe these books:

1.  Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers
2.  The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien
3.  Even the Dogs by Jon McGregor

I hope you will enjoy the inaugural National Poetry Month Blog Tour this year in the midst of your read-a-thoning!

What do you plan on reading?  Will you be cheering?  How do you breakdown your time?

FTC Disclosure: Clicking on title and image links will lead you to my Amazon Affiliate page; No purchase necessary, though appreciated.

© 2010, Serena Agusto-Cox of Savvy Verse & Wit. All Rights Reserved. If you’re reading this on a site other than Savvy Verse & Wit or Serena’s Feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

Copyright of Serena M. Agusto-Cox at Savvy Verse & Wit 2007-2010. This is not original content, this content is owned and copyrighted by Serena M. Agusto-Cox
Filed Under: 24-hour Read-a-Thon, announcements, Events

Call for Bloggers to Celebrate National Poetry Month in April

March 28, 2010 by

****Sticky Post****

Anyone who reads my blog knows that I pull out all the poetry stops in April, and this year is no different.

April is National Poetry Month and to celebrate this year, I’m calling on my fellow bloggers to participate. I need at least 28 of you to sign up this year and celebrate the genre.

I want to assign a different day to each blogger who signs up. On your day, I would like you to either review a poetry book, host a guest post from a poet, profile a poet, interview a poet, or any other post that highlights poetry, poems, and poets. If you want ideas, I have plenty…just ask!

It would be great if you have a topic in mind ahead of time so there aren’t any duplicates. I want this project to be as diverse as possible.

What you need to do is fill out the google form below (I added a Weblink to the form for those who can’t see the embedded form), and I will contact you with your date assignment for April, and all that I ask is that your post is up at least before Noon. Signups close on March 27. I will assign dates as I go along, so they will be doled out on a first-come-first serve basis.

Copyright of Serena M. Agusto-Cox at Savvy Verse & Wit 2007-2010. This is not original content, this content is owned and copyrighted by Serena M. Agusto-Cox
Filed Under: announcements, national poetry month

Tim O’Brien Returns to Washington, D.C., Tonight

March 24, 2010 by

Vietnam War literature has become more prominent on the blogs thanks to the War Through the Generations Vietnam War Reading Challenge this year, and in conjunction with that, I’m hopeful that anyone in the D.C. area will drop down to Politics and Prose this evening to see Tim O’Brien, an acclaimed writer in the genre.

Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried turns 20 years old, and to celebrate, O’Brien will be in Washington, D.C., at Politics and Prose to give a reading and celebrate the book’s place in publishing history.  The reading will begin at 7 p.m. on March 24.

O’Brien also is slated to talk about the 20th anniversary edition of his short story collection on NPR’s Talk of the Nation on March 24 as well.

FTC Disclosure: Clicking on title and image links will lead you to my Amazon Affiliate page; No purchase necessary, though appreciated.

© 2010, Serena Agusto-Cox of Savvy Verse & Wit. All Rights Reserved. If you’re reading this on a site other than Savvy Verse & Wit or Serena’s Feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

Copyright of Serena M. Agusto-Cox at Savvy Verse & Wit 2007-2010. This is not original content, this content is owned and copyrighted by Serena M. Agusto-Cox
Filed Under: announcements, Events Tagged With:

Sneak Peek of Fireworks Over Toccoa & Giveaway

March 23, 2010 by

I recently received Fireworks Over Toccoa for review and just started reading it.  But I wanted to alert you to a sneak peek of the book and a giveaway.

Here are the details:

Before March 30, visitors to the book’s Web site can enter to win one of 300 copies of the book or the grand prize romantic picnic basket with caviar, crackers, cheese, cookies, chocolate, and more.

On the site, readers will find an audio excerpt of the book, an online written excerpt from the book, and a letter from the author Jeffrey Stepakoff.

 FTC Disclosure: Clicking on title and image links will lead you to my Amazon Affiliate page; No purchase necessary, though appreciated.

© 2010, Serena Agusto-Cox of Savvy Verse & Wit. All Rights Reserved. If you’re reading this on a site other than Savvy Verse & Wit or Serena’s Feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

Copyright of Serena M. Agusto-Cox at Savvy Verse & Wit 2007-2010. This is not original content, this content is owned and copyrighted by Serena M. Agusto-Cox
Filed Under: announcements

Looking for Sponsors

March 7, 2010 by

As you all know, I work on a per article basis as the D.C. Literature Examiner.  Not only do they have a referral program (Thanks, Marie, for signing up), but they now have a sponsorship program for local examiners. 

Anyone interested in sponsoring me?  If you are, just visit the site and follow the instructions.  Once you sign up, you get a 300 X 250 ad space on my site.  What could you use the space for?  Advertising products, services, your blog, your blog events, and more.  Prices start at $29 and you can upload your own JPG or Gif advertisement or create one from the templates available in a wide variety of categories.

I’m sure you want to know what I get out of the deal.  My pay rate increases for sponsored articles about local events, authors, and books, which will make it easier for me to get to more local events and provide even more content for subscribers and all of you.

***

Thanks for reading this blog post, though traditionally I don’t talk business and advertising here.  I hope you’ve been enjoying the recent content at the blog and D.C. Literature Examiner.  I’m sure Anna would love a sponsor too for her Baltimore Literature Examiner page as well, but she’s too shy to ask.

Copyright of Serena M. Agusto-Cox at Savvy Verse & Wit 2007-2010. This is not original content, this content is owned and copyrighted by Serena M. Agusto-Cox
Filed Under: announcements, examiner.com

Name Your Favorite Detectives and Win

March 3, 2010 by

Jen at Jen’s Book Thoughts is hosting Detectives Around the World between April 11 and April 17 (mark your calendars), and as part of the fun, she’s holding the World’s Favorite Detective Tournament.

First, I wanted to let you know that I am excited to be one of the many participating bloggers in this event and that I am psyched about my detective — Dr. Alex Cross, a Washington D.C. cop, psychologist, and FBI agent created by James Patterson.

These are the other participants:

Skrishna’s Books – Vish Puri (India)
Booking Mama – Flavia de Luce (England)
Beth Fish Reads – Cork O’Connor (Minnesota)
Hey Lady! Whatcha Readin’? – Kelly Jones (New England)
Jenn’s Book Shelves – Archie Sheridan (Oregon)
My Friend Amy – Shunsuke Honma (Japan)
Word Lily – Armand Gamache (Canada)
Literate House Wife – Grijpstra/Gier (Amsterdam)
Lesa’s Book Critiques – Gastner (New Mexico)
The Drowning Machine – Thomas Black (Washington)
A Few More Pages – William Monk (England)
Stumbling the Walk – James Crumley (Montana)
L.J. Sellers Blog – Kristin Van Dijk (Texas)
SuziQ Oregon –  Simon Serrailler (England)
Bermudaonion’s Weblog – Kinsey Milhone (So. California)
Char’s Book Reviews – Wade Jackson (Oregon)
Books Are Like Candy Corn – Kimo  Kanapa’aka (Hawaii)
Book Chase – Omar Yussef (Gaza)

Each of us will be reviewing one book featuring our chosen detective and providing one post on setting.  Guest posts and other fun activities, including a scavenger hunt, are being planned as well.  

There is still time to participate, Jen is accepting other blogger participants through March 28.  All you have to do is email her your top three detective picks (who have to be cops, FBI, licensed PIs — not amateur detectives and sleuths) and she will give you your top pick so long as no one has it already.

Voting in the World’s Favorite Detective Tournament begins March 5 and will continue each week thereafter until the top detective is selected.  Check out the list of 64 nominated detectives, but don’t worry Jen will provide you with links to information about them so you can choose wisely.  And yes, there will be prizes.

I hope you will join us in one form or another.

***
As an aside, I’ve been scarce on the blogs since my cousin came to visit, but I’ll be making the rounds soon.

Copyright of Serena M. Agusto-Cox at Savvy Verse & Wit 2007-2010. This is not original content, this content is owned and copyrighted by Serena M. Agusto-Cox
Filed Under: announcements, Detectives Around the World 2010

AWOL; I Have Visitors…

February 24, 2010 by

I’m going to be a bit AWOL while I have my cousin visiting with her girls.

Don’t miss me too much!

But. . .

You can help break the tie!

A Novel Menagerie’s Beautiful Baby Contest has gone to a tiebreak, and Charlee is up against some stiff competition.

He’s tied with Milou from Bermudaonion for Best Dog!

I urge you to vote for this cute pup, who is not quite a pup anymore. 

VOTE NOW!

Copyright of Serena M. Agusto-Cox at Savvy Verse & Wit 2007-2010. This is not original content, this content is owned and copyrighted by Serena M. Agusto-Cox
Filed Under: announcements

You Can Break the Tie! Vote Charlee

February 23, 2010 by
A Novel Menagerie’s Beautiful Baby Contest has gone to a tiebreak, and Charlee is up against some stiff competition.
He’s tied with Milou from Bermudaonion for Best Dog!
I urge you to vote for this cute pup, who is not quite a pup anymore.
VOTE NOW!
Copyright of Serena M. Agusto-Cox at Savvy Verse & Wit 2007-2010. This is not original content, this content is owned and copyrighted by Serena M. Agusto-Cox
Filed Under: announcements

2010 Split This Rock Poetry Festival in D.C.

February 18, 2010 by

MARCH 10-13, Washington, D.C. will host the Split This Rock Poetry Festival, which brings together poets and activists to speak out on the latest issues facing our nation.  This year, there’s a lot to discuss with two wars, an economic crisis, and more.

The festival features readings, workshops, panel discussions, and other activities and it is a mix of performance, poetry, and film.  I’ve never been to this event, but this year I received a scholarship to cover the registration cost of $75, which is the early bird price through Feb. 20, 2010.  So if you’d like to go, register TODAY!

For information about the scholarships, go here.

Check out the schedule, which is being updated regularly.

I’m really looking forward to these panels:

1. The Public Role of Poetry: How to Build a Poetry Reading
2. The Care and Feeding of the Rural/Small Town Poet-Activist
3. Women & War/Women & Peace: International Voices
4. Warriors Writing: Teaching Creative Writing to War Veterans
5. The Peace Shelves: Essential Books and Poems for the 21st Century (which features my Suffolk University Advisor Fred Marchant; He now directs the Poetry Center, which emerged after I graduated from undergrad)
6. Cross-Discipline Collaboration: How Writers and Artists are Working Together to Push Boundaries and Engage the Public
7. Giving Voice to the Silence/d
8. What Makes Effective Political Poetry? – Editors’ Perspectives
9. Split This Rock Panel
10. The Poet as Historian in the 21st Century: A Rare Opportunity in Difficult Times
11. Fatty Girls, Imaginary Cocks, and Vaginas Built Like Bookstores: A Workshop on Writing the Activist Body

I probably won’t get to all of these panels since some of the times overlap, but you can bet I’ll be blogging about the festival and showing you some great photos.

Did I forget to mention that Bruce Weigel will be reading.  There are individual reading tickets available for $8 as well, so even if you want to just attend a reading, you can!

This also marks the first time I will be visiting the U Street Neighborhood and its cool venues.  One of those venues is Busboys and Poets, which I’ve been dying to get to!  Thankfully, there is a great list of venues and directions on the festival Website.

OK, I’ve left out the best part of the festival — besides the panels and the readings — THE BOOK FAIR!  Not that I need more books, but it will be good to check out new-to-me poets and their books, and maybe break that book-buying ban!

Now, I don’t consider myself an activist poet, but I’ve always admired their work and would love to take this opportunity to learn more about them.  I hope some of you in the D.C. area will join me.  It’s bound to be a lot of fun, and there is an end-of-festival party!

What panels would you like from the list?  Which ones do you think I should attend?

Copyright of Serena M. Agusto-Cox at Savvy Verse & Wit 2007-2010. This is not original content, this content is owned and copyrighted by Serena M. Agusto-Cox
Filed Under: announcements, Split This Rock Poetry Festival Tagged With:

Guest Review of Going After Cacciato

February 15, 2010 by

Today on War Through the Generations for the 2010 Vietnam War Reading Challenge, Mary Simonsen, author of Searching for Pemberley (click for my review), is guest reviewing Going After Cacciato by Tim O’Brien.

It’s an opportunity for everyone to check out a great book and review.

I hope you will all stop by.

FTC Disclosure:  Clicking on title links will bring you to my Amazon Affiliate page, no purchase necessary.

Copyright of Serena M. Agusto-Cox at Savvy Verse & Wit 2007-2010. This is not original content, this content is owned and copyrighted by Serena M. Agusto-Cox
Filed Under: announcements