It's Friday and I am...on an airplane. I am headed to San Antonio for the National Council of Teachers of English conference. The flight is early enough that I think I will be able to get the egg/cheese biscuit sandwich. Actually I got bumped up to first class, which is lovely. Maybe they have some special version of the egg/cheese biscuit sandwich in store for me here. I am wearing my teal cowboy boots because, after all, it's Texas! I came pretty close to JUST packing the boots, but somehow ended up with three more pairs of shoes wedged into my bag, just in case. These boots are my version of ruby red slippers and one of the few reasons I do not mind that the weather turned cold this week. 
 
Last weekend's trip to Miami for the Miami Book Fair was wonderful. It was a nice mix of authors, friends and bookish adventures. I wrote a blog about it that you can read here. There was a special moment that did not make it into the blog that I will share with you here. Before Wally Lamb gave his talk, he spoke about a reader who lived in Florida who was a real fan of his, Mickey Warner, who corresponded with him over the years. She had looked forward to his new book, THE HOUR I FIRST BELIEVED, especially since it was his first novel in 10 years. Sadly Mickey passed away before the book came out, but Wally dedicated his reading that Sunday to her, which was a lovely tribute to a loyal fan. It once again reminded me of the very special relationships that many authors have with their readers. 
 
Also, Frank McCourt contributed a comment during his talk with Dave Barry that has stayed with me all week. As you know, he was a teacher in New York City. He spoke about how these days teachers spend too much time "teaching to the test" and how we are not teaching children how to think critically. I so agree. It feels like we are cranking out robotic learners, thus I am very interested to hear teachers and professors talking this weekend on how they are exciting students about reading.
 
I also wrote another blog post this week sharing my love of holiday-themed books. There is one special book that I received as a child that inspired the Author Holiday Blogs that we are bringing you today. I found it on a shelf, and a whole host of memories flooded back as I saw the inscription from the people who had given it to me. You can read more about it here. From now until Christmas we will be sharing stories of book gift giving and receiving from authors on the Bookreporter.com blog. We begin with a piece from Mary Higgins Clark, in which she talks about the gifts she loved in the past and what she would like this holiday season. May her story inspire you. Tomorrow we welcome Carol Higgins Clark, who talks about the book gift she received from her mom, the Queen of Suspense. By the way, Mary and Carol's new book, DASHING THROUGH THE SNOW, is a wonderful romp of a mystery that will get you in the mood for the holidays, and we have Amie Taylor's review of it this week. Other author blog posts that we will be sharing with you this week include Luanne Rice, Rita Mae Brown and Gregg Hurwitz.
 
This week our Holiday Basket of Cheer Contest has FOUR holiday-themed titles for you, and yes, these will be added to my collection as well. The books are SILVER BELLS by Fern Michaels, JoAnn Ross, Mary Burton and Judy Duarte; CANDY CANE MURDER by Joanne Fluke, Laura Levine and Leslie Meier; CHRISTMAS AT SEA PINES COTTAGE by Sally Smith O'Rourke; and A CHRISTMAS PASSAGE by David Saperstein and George Samerjan. As always you will win one copy of each book to give --- and one to keep for yourself. You can see details about this contest here. And for those of you getting ready to make a list and check it twice, be sure to look at our What to Give/What to Get feature for ideas. Need a reason to buy a book? Then click here!
 
While my schedule did not allow me to attend the National Book Awards this year, I followed the coverage on Twitter. I am not a Twitter member as somehow the tweeting on twitter makes me feel like I would be a bird with a twitch. But it was fun to watch the notes unfold as the ceremony unfolded the other night.

We received some really nice responses from our advance readers for four of the books we recently featured: THE MEMORIST by M.J. Rose, NIGHT KILLS by John Lutz, A SINGLE THREAD by Marie Bostwick and COLD PURSUIT by Carla Neggers. Click on the titles to read their comments. We are very pleased to share this great feedback with you.

Please note that our update next week will take place on Wednesday so our staff may enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday. I am cooking for my parents and some neighbors in what I am calling a "rewind" of last year's really fun Turkey Day. Luckily I have last year's menu saved in email. If Thanksgiving has a theme song, it would have a verse that says "Chop chop chop."
 
Trivia story of the week that attracted me because of my love of swimming. Check out this video where a woman is planning to swim across the Atlantic. She will swim in a shark-proof cage that will be towed by a catamaran. Okay. This makes my life in the pool seem fairly tame by comparison. And yes, I already have a pool lined up for swimming at the hotel this weekend...it's heated and it's outdoors. I will take the boots off to swim.
 
Sitting next to me on this flight is a man who enjoys reading, He and his wife count Nelson DeMille as their favorite author. He will be buying a copy of THE GATE HOUSE after this flight. Interestingly he did not know it was out. I guess he should sign up for the newsletter. Have a great weekend. Get a head start on the pie baking. As for me, I am going to be checking my grammar all weekend!
 
One more quick note...nice touch in the San Antonio Airport....rocking chairs on the walkway to baggage claim. And my taxi driver just gave me directions to the Alamo. Hmmmm...need to check that out.

Carol Fitzgerald (Carol@bookreporter.com)

The holiday season is upon us! At Bookreporter.com it's time for us to share the spirit of the season with our Holiday Basket of Cheer Contest. As you begin your holiday shopping, we want to remind you that books make affordable, personal and wonderful gifts for EVERYONE on your list --- and are a nice way to treat yourself as well!

From November 7th through January 5th we will spotlight a different title or collection of titles, and readers will have the chance to win one of five holiday baskets filled with winter-themed items as well as two copies of the featured book. Why two? One is to keep, of course, and one is for someone on your holiday gift list. We will also include festive wrapping paper to make the gift-giving hassle-free.

This week we’re spotlighting a collection of holiday tales from Kensington Books, including SILVER BELLS by Fern Michaels, JoAnn Ross, Mary Burton and Judy Duarte; CANDY CANE MURDER by Joanne Fluke, Laura Levine and Leslie Meier; CHRISTMAS AT SEA PINES COTTAGE by Sally Smith O'Rourke; and A CHRISTMAS PASSAGE by David Saperstein and George Samerjan. Our Holiday Basket of Cheer is a woven basket stocked with holiday-themed items. Inside, winners will find green-and-tan checkered wrapping paper, a cinnamon holly-scented Illuminations candle, Ghirardelli Hot Chocolate mix, gourmet hand-cut vanilla marshmallows, plush red socks from Crabtree & Evelyn, a holiday notebook, delicious Chewy Peps peppermint candies and a festive pie plate with a gingerbread man design, as well as two copies of SILVER BELLS, CANDY CANE MURDER, CHRISTMAS AT SEA PINES COTTAGE and A CHRISTMAS PASSAGE.

To enter, fill out this form and answer the following question by Thursday, December 4th at 11:59PM. You can find the answer by reading an excerpt from SILVER BELLS here. 

Where did Amy grow up?

SILVER BELLS by Fern Michaels, JoAnn Ross, Mary Burton and Judy Duarte (Romance)
In this holiday collection featuring New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Fern Michaels, the perfect holiday recipe includes two parts rekindled romance, one part danger and a pinch of renewal that yields renewed holiday spirit for all. Reviewed by Bronwyn Miller.

-Click here to read a review of SILVER BELLS.
-Read more about Fern Michaels, JoAnn Ross, Mary Burton, Judy Duarte and SILVER BELLS here.

CANDY CANE MURDER by Joanne Fluke, Laura Levine and Leslie Meier (Mystery)
Now Available in Paperback
The holidays can be murder. CANDY CANE MURDER, a festive collection of three mystery novellas by some of the top cozy writers, is as comforting as a steaming cup of hot chocolate on a bitter cold day. So pour yourself a cup, sit down by the fire and try to solve these holiday-themed whodunits. Reviewed by Bronwyn Miller.

-Click here to read a review of CANDY CANE MURDER.
-Read more about Joanne Fluke, Laura Levine, Leslie Meier and CANDY CANE MURDER here.

CHRISTMAS AT SEA PINES COTTAGE by Sally Smith O'Rourke (Fiction)
An introverted young man and his Golden Retriever puppy lead a solitary life in a small cottage on Cape Fear, North Carolina, until the day they rescue a young woman from the raging sea and their lives are forever changed. Reviewed by Bronwyn Miller.

-Click here to read a review of CHRISTMAS AT SEA PINES COTTAGE.
-Read more about Sally Smith O'Rourke and CHRISTMAS AT SEA PINES COTTAGE here.

A CHRISTMAS PASSAGE by David Saperstein and George Samerjan (Fiction)
After their Christmas Eve flight to Asheville, North Carolina is grounded due to snow, a group of strangers join together for an incredible and harrowing ride through the Great Smoky Mountains that will change their lives forever. Reviewed by Bronwyn Miller.

-Click here to read a review of A CHRISTMAS PASSAGE.
-Read more about David Saperstein, George Samerjan and A CHRISTMAS PASSAGE here.

DASHING THROUGH THE SNOW by Mary Higgins Clark and Carol Higgins Clark (Mystery)
In the picturesque village of Branscombe, New Hampshire, the townsfolk are all pitching in to prepare for the first (and many hope annual) Festival of Joy. Unfortunately, a lottery scam threatens to cheat several of its citizens out of their rightful money --- and three people of their very lives. Reviewed by Amie Taylor.

-Click here to read an excerpt from DASHING THROUGH THE SNOW.

THE BODIES LEFT BEHIND by Jeffery Deaver (Thriller)
When a night-time call to 911 from a secluded Wisconsin vacation house is cut short, off-duty deputy Brynn McKenzie drives up to Lake Mondac to investigate. Brynn stumbles onto a scene of true horror and narrowly escapes from two professional criminals. She and a terrified visitor to the weekend house flee into the woods in a race for their lives. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.

-Click here to read an excerpt from THE BODIES LEFT BEHIND.

Headed out to do some holiday shopping? Before you go, check out our What to Give/What to Get feature with ideas in 13 categories.

Chase away the winter blues with Teenreads.com's Third Annual Holiday Basket of Cheer feature and contest! From November 14th through December 10th, you can enter to win a "Basket of Holiday Reading and Fun."

Five winners each will receive a basket that includes 8 books --- AIRHEAD by Meg Cabot, KENDRA by Coe Booth, LOVE IS HELL by Melissa Marr, Scott Westerfeld, Justine Larbalestier, Gabrielle Zevin and Laurie Faria Stolarz, THE LUXE by Anna Godbersen, MELTING STONES by Tamora Pierce, ONE MILLION THINGS: A Visual Encyclopedia by DK Publishing, THE POSSIBILITES OF SAINTHOOD by Donna Freitas and RAPUNZEL’S REVENGE by Shannon and Dean Hale.

Along with the books, winners will find their basket stocked with the hottest holiday goodies --- a kit to make a mini gingerbread village, Ghirardelli Hot Chocolate mix, red and white fur-trimmed tall socks, a snowman mug, a snow globe that lights up and plays 11 songs, candy cane taffy, snowman tissues, cute red gloves, photo-frame gift cards and a cinnamon holly-scented Illuminations candle.

Poll:

Are you giving books this holiday season?

Yes
No
Not sure
 
Have you started shopping yet?

Yes, I am done.
Yes, I started.
I am thinking about it.
No, I start after Thanksgiving.
No, my idea of shopping starts Christmas Eve.
I am not sure.

-Click here to answer our poll.


Question:

What book did you love so much that you would want to give multiple copies of it this holiday season?

-Click here to answer our question.