The American Patriot's Almanac: Daily Readings on America

The American Patriot's Almanac: Daily Readings on America by William J. Bennett and John Cribb, is on sale for $9.99 again this weekend (to commemorate the anniversary of 9/11, I suppose). Amazon had this same book on sale last July 4th, but I skipped it then due to the price. I think I'll pick it up this weekend, as I have some gift certificate money burning a hole in my pocket and it looks like a very interesting read - a devotional/reader that has a different US history lesson for each day.

This is a Thomas Nelson publication, the religious publisher out of Nashville, TN, but the general sense I get from the reviews is that although matters of faith (and how they relate to the founding of the country) are mentioned, it does not have an overtly Christian slant (one or two even seemed disappointed it did not have a heavier religious slant). I suspect many of the reviewers were part of the TN book review program (I am, but missed this one), but still there is only one review that gives it less than four stars (that one complained about the book cover having blank inside flaps). Several of the books that I know were on this program did not do so favorably, even if the reviewers did get the books at no cost.

The Hardcover is selling for $21.77 and the info there says it is 608 pages. It would no doubt make a great gift for any history buff (or homeschooler) that doesn't have a Kindle (an even nicer gift would be a Kindle or Kindle DX with this book preloaded, but that might be a bit extravagant for most gift-givers).

Book Description
365 reasons to love America!

The fife and drum of history mark the time of each passing day. And within their cadence, personalities, conflicts, discoveries, ideas, and nations peal and fade. American history is no different. From the starving time of Jamestown during the Winter of 1609, through the bloody argument of the Civil War, and to today, the United States is a tale best told one day at a time.

Best-selling author and educator Dr. William J. Bennett is a master of the story that is the United States. And in The American Patriot's Almanac, Bennett distills the American drama into three hundred sixty-five entries-one for each day of the year. Fascinating in its detail and singular in its grasp of the big themes, Bennett's Almanac will make anyone a fan of history, assembling even some of the most obscure details. Even better, it will make of everyone a patriot.

About the Author
Dr. William J. Bennett is a best-selling author, educator, and speaker. Host of the top-ten nationally syndicated radio show Bill Bennett's Morning in America, he is also the Washington Fellow of the Claremont Institute. Serving as secretary of education and chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities under President Reagan and director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy under President Bush, today Bennett is a regular contributor to CNN and has contributed to America's leading newspapers, magazines, and television shows. He is the author and editor of seventeen books, including The Book of Virtues, The Death of Outrage, and the New York Times bestseller, America: The Last Best Hope (Volume I). John Cribb is president of the Palmetto Creative Group, a Communications firm. His previous work includes co-authoring The Educated Child (with William J. Bennett and Chester E. Finn), co-editing The Human Odyssey, and developing on-line history courses. During the Reagan administration, he served at the Dept. of Justice and the Dept. of Education.

Free Harlequin Romance - Montana Royalty

Montana Royalty ($3.60 Kindle), by B.J. Daniels, is available in PDF form as a free download courtesy of Peek Freans (a Canadian, Kraft owned company that makes cookies). I know one thing ... if they'd used the cowboy from the website on the cover, they'd probably have to put the book in a plain brown wrapper on the shelves in parts of the US.

Book Description
It was cold, they were trapped...and Rory Buchanan had made love to a perfect stranger and enjoyed it way more than she should have. But how was a regular girl from Whitehorse supposed to know the royal protocol for dealing with a fantasy one-night stand?

It soon became clear that Devlin Barrow would slay any dragon for local girl Rory a court full of nobles had even descended on the small Montana community. But this relationship was no fairy tale. Because someone was willing to kill to keep Devlin's secret past from toppling the royal hierarchy. And with Rory pregnant with his surprise heir, her life was at stake as well.

Click HERE to pick up your free copy. Get the PDF to read on your Kindle DX or convert to read on your Kindle. If, for some odd reason, you want to read at work while pretending to view a powerpoint presentation (and have PowerPoint on your PC), there is also a "work friendly" version in that format (who doesn't think this is just a bad idea?).

There is also a contest to win a romantic getaway, but it's only open to Canadian residents (a fact not shown on the signup pages, but buried in the online rules).

Free Audiobook - The Case of the Missing Will

The AudioFile Magazine, BBC Audiobooks America and Audible.com are celebrating Agatha Christie Week and part of that includes a free download of The Case of the Missing Will, read by David Suchet. This is a short story, 21 minutes in length, so easy to listen to in on session, whether on a commute or working out.

Poirot receives an unusual request for help from a Miss Violet Marsh, who was orphaned as a child and went to live with her peculiar Uncle Andrew. He died a month ago, leaving a will with a strange clause. Marsh has given instructions that his "clever" niece is allowed to live in his house for one month and in that time she has to "prove her wits" and find his second will. If at the end of that time she hasn't, all his worldly goods go to charitable institutions and she will be left with nothing. Can Poirot help her?

Click HERE to sign up for the download. You'll get a link via email that will take you to Audible.com to get the free story (the signup page says it is limited to US residents, which means you'll need a US based Audible account; you can create an account then, if you don't have one). When you get ready to download, it looks like you can choose the traditional Audible format or a new enhanced format. The Kindle2 and KindleDX are amongst the supported devices (as are newer Ipods and the Sansa Fuze; the Sansa Clip Plus isn't on the list, but it technically isn't available yet, even if I have had mine for two weeks, now!

While you are there, you might want to pick up President Obama's 9/09/09 Health Care Address to Congress, if you missed it when it aired live (or you just wanted to listen again for yourself, rather than be told what he said by the media). It's also a free download.

Tumor - Chapters 2 and 3

Tumor Chapter 2, by Joshua Hale Fialkov and Noel Tuazon, is out and priced at 99 cents. You can still pick up Chapter 1 as a free download, if you missed it when it was released. You might want to check out my first blog post, HERE, for my impressions reading it on the DX.

Warning: The language used in quite adult and there is graphic violence (albeit, in black and white). Nothing that a typical adolescent boy isn't already reading (and in color), but it may not be suitable for the very young.

Book Description
Frank Armstrong has an inoperable brain tumor that’s killing him. In his final days, with his body, senses, and mind failing him, he’s going to do the one thing that he’s never been able to do before… save the girl.

The Chapter 3 appears to have been submitted to Amazon's DTP system, but with the new screening they are doing, it has been stuck in the "not yet available" status for about a week. There is no price indicated yet, but I'd expect it to be the same 99 cents as Chapter 2.

Update: Chapter 3 is now available and is the same 99 cents as Chapter 2. We'll have to wait until next month to get the next part of the story.

In the meantime, Fialkov's short story Belly Button Reset ($0.99) was submitted two days later (according to the publication dates), but is already available. They must be checking the graphic novels by hand and have a more automated system to check text based books.

Update: You can now get this and another a short story written by Fialkov, Half a Person, for free from Feedbooks. Just follow the links and select the Mobipocket/Kindle version.

Three Books for Three Cents

Skeeter: A Cat Tale, by Anne L. Watson, is the second book she has released on the Kindle platform that is selling for a penny.

Book Description
When a stray kitten romps into Lynne's life, she has no idea what she's getting into. As Lynne describes in letters to her friend Angie, Skeeter is all cat -- high-spirited, contrary, and inventive. He's so goofy that he reminds Lynne of her own nuttiest escapades; so irrepressible that even Lynne's neighbor, Mark, gets wound around his paw. And when Angie visits to see Skeeter for herself . . . . Well, no one who meets Skeeter will ever be quite the same again.

Pacific Avenue, by Anne L. Watson, the first book she has released on the Kindle, back in January. Some of you may have missed it when I wrote about it in March, so I'm including it again; it's still selling for a single penny.

Book Description
Where do you go from the end of the line? This is the question facing Kathy Woodbridge as she steps off the bus in the port city of San Pedro, California. Nineteen years old, from Louisiana, she is running away from her past. There's a lot to run away from.

What do you do when there's no one to do for? That's what Lacey Greer wants to know, with her only child off at college. When Kathy gets a job at the office where Lacey works, she can tell that Kathy's in trouble. Lacey's husband advises her to stay out of it -- but what's she supposed to do, buy a rocking chair?

Set in San Pedro, Baton Rouge, and New Orleans in the early seventies, Pacific Avenue explores themes of love, belonging, helpfulness, hope, forgiveness, reconciliation, interracial marriage, and healing from the trauma of war. At the end of the line, will Kathy find a way to return home?

Timothy Tolliver and the Bully Basher, by Aaron Shepard, is a childrens book (and fairly short), an update on a Jewish legend (and does contain a few expressions with Jewish holidays, which may need explaining to children not yet exposed to Hanukkah or Passover).

Book Description
Timothy Tolliver and his friend Arnie Rosenberg have a problem -- a gang of older bullies called the Stinks. But besides being a fourth-grader, Timothy is also a world-class inventor. He and Arnie get the bright idea of defending themselves with Timothy's science-project robot.

When their first try fails, Timothy finds a way to update the mystical formulae that gave life to the Jewish clay monster, the Golem. The robot comes alive, and it looks like their worries are over -- till the robot stops following orders and takes matters into its own hands.

Can Timothy bring his creation back under control? Find out, as the Golem legend replays in a modern American elementary school.

Thanks to Xia for the tip on these.