WORD up!

It is time to play a Wild Card ! Every now and then, a book that I have chosen to read is going to pop up as a FIRST Wild Card Tour . Get dealt into the game! (Just click the button!) Wild Card Tours feature an author and his/her book's FIRST chapter! You never know when I might play a wild card on you! Today's Wild Card author is: Megan DiMaria and his/her book: Searching for Spice Tyndale House Publishers (March 5, 2008) ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Megan DiMaria has fond memories of childhood trips to the public library where, amid the mural of Gulliver’s Travels and stacks of books, she began a lifelong love of the written word. Searching for Spice is her debut novel. It was written as a response to a running joke she had with some girlfriends because despite being happily married, women still want romance in their lives. Her second novel, Out of Her Hands, will release in October 2008. Megan is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers, HIS Writers, and is assistant director

We used to talk about the weather. That may not sound like anything special until you understand the context. What began as lessons in cloud formations and reading a barometer became the building block of relationship between me and my Grandfather. I grew up knowing that my Granddaddy was meticulous. Everything had its own place. Certain tasks were performed in certain ways. You accomplished what you needed to do before attempting what you wanted to do. My Granddaddy was also a quiet man. He rarely engaged in meaningless conversation. He would say, “Hello,” and “Good night,” but not much else. I remember him whistling – he was the best whistler I’ve ever heard. I remember him scolding me for running through the house, and breaking my habit of constantly saying, “Oh, my God.” It was during the 1977-1978 school year when my sixth grade class studied weather that a door opened at my Grandparents’ house and in mine and my Grandfather’s hearts that has helped to make me into the person I am

It is time to play a Wild Card ! Every now and then, a book that I have chosen to read is going to pop up as a FIRST Wild Card Tour . Get dealt into the game! (Just click the button!) Wild Card Tours feature an author and his/her book's FIRST chapter! You never know when I might play a wild card on you! Today's Wild Card author is: CAMY TANG and his/her book: Sushi for One? Zondervan (September 1, 2007) ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Camy Tang is a member of FIRST and is a loud Asian chick who writes loud Asian chick-lit. She grew up in Hawaii, but now lives in San Jose, California, with her engineer husband and rambunctious poi-dog. In a previous life she was a biologist researcher, but these days she is surgically attached to her computer, writing full-time. In her spare time, she is a staff worker for her church youth group, and she leads one of the worship teams for Sunday service. Sushi for One? (Sushi Series, Book One) was her first novel. Her second, Only Uni (Sushi Series, Book

It is time to play a Wild Card ! Every now and then, a book that I have chosen to read is going to pop up as a FIRST Wild Card Tour . Get dealt into the game! (Just click the button!) Wild Card Tours feature an author and his/her book's FIRST chapter! You never know when I might play a wild card on you! Today's Wild Card author is: Richard B. Couser and his/her book: The Deuteronomy Project Winepress Publishing (April 16, 2008) ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Richard B. Couser received the Book of the Year award from Your Church magazine for his earlier book, Ministry and the American Legal System, praised as “the best church and law text in print.” He has also written a number of book chapters, monographs, religious news columns, and educational materials for both the Christian and legal community, and spoken to numerous church and legal groups. He has served as president of the Christian Legal Society, a national organization of Christian attorneys, and as a leader of other Christian o

This weekend, we are having a fabulous contest and previewing three timely books by T. Suzanne Eller. The Contest 1. During this blog tour, any reader who responds to Twila Belk at http://us.mc561.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=iamstraightway@aol.com with the name of a church or organization that is interested in having Suzie in as a guest speaker, will receive all three of Suzie's books (up to 10 sets will be given away on a first come first serve basis). 2. If any of your readers contact Twila regarding a Bible study group or book club wanting to use Suzie's materials, their groups will receive conference calls from Suzie to kick off or conclude their studies. 3. All readers who post a comment regarding Suzie's books will be placed in a grand prize drawing on August 2, 2008, for a delightful gift basket (see description below). Gift Basket Giveaway Real Issues, Real Teens: What Every Parent Needs to KnowThe Mom I Want to Be: Rising Above Your Past to Give Your Kids a Gre