Announcing the LUCKY Winner of PRETTY OMENS by Alexandria LaFaye

Dear Readers,

What a week! We were thrilled that so many of you stopped by and left such thoughtful comments for Alexandria (and me!). Thanking my stars this morning that I don't have to pick the winner, because Random.org has done it for me. Whew!

The LUCKY WINNER of PRETTY OMENS is announced at the end of the post, but please take a moment to read about two other titles in the series by Alexandria LaFaye:

The Year of the Sawdust Man:

Nissa’s life has never been perfect. Living with her free-spirited mama in the small town of Harper, Louisiana, has led to lots of gossipy small talk and mean rumors. But now Mama is gone, and all the townsfolk can talk about is who she might have run off with.

Nissa’s memories of the Sundays her mama would come home smelling of sawdust lead her to suspect that some of the rumors are true. Did her mama run away with the Sawdust Man? And is she ever coming back?

Reviews:

"Prepare yourself for feisty eleven-year-old Nissa Bergen because she and her wayward mother, abandoned father, and the gossipy denizens of small-town Louisiana are about to invade your heart in a first novel that is entirely engaging, touching, and unfailingly entertaining. Alexandria LaFaye is a writer to welcome—and cherish."

—Robert Cormier, author of The Chocolate War

"I read The Year of the Sawdust Man with the same sense of joy and wonder I felt many years ago when I finished a review copy of a first novel by an unknown author: To Kill a Mockingbirdby Harper Lee."

—Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey, author of A Woman of Independent Means

"A bittersweet, moving debut. . . . Beautifully written."

—Publishers Weekly, (starred)

Link to the book:

http://milkweed.org/shop/product/126/the-year-of-the-sawdust-man/

The Sequel:

Nissa’s Place

Ever since her father remarried, Nissa feels like a stranger in her own home. Her new stepmother rearranges the house and removes all signs that Nissa’s free-spirited mother ever lived there. And her best friend wants to trade her time with Nissa for the opportunity to impress boys. Hoping to find traces of how life used to be, Nissa accepts an invitation from her mother and moves to Chicago.

But life in Chicago is overwhelming to Nissa, and she misses her home and father. She’s thrilled to help her mother sew costumes and plant a rooftop flower garden, but how can she fit in when people talk so fast and don’t even care to wish her a good day? After a revelation in the Chicago library, the willful Nissa discovers a way to stake her independence and find her place in her family and life in Louisiana.

Told with the lyricism that marked The Year of the Sawdust Man, Nissa’s Place is a beautiful continuation of Nissa’s story and a remarkable book on its own. Once vou meet Nissa Bergen, you’ll never forget her.

Reviews:

“LaFaye surpasses the lyricism and emotional depth of her sparkling debut, The Year of the Sawdust Man, in this sequel. Readers will be moved as Nissa comes to view Heirah Rae’s flight as an act of courage and a spur for Nissa to make her own dream of a library in Harper come true.”

—Publishers Weekly

“LaFaye works lyrically with folk expressions and wisdom, conveying them in a delightful way. She also succeeds in picturing the racial attitudes of the era and allows the rural characters to be true to themselves in the city environment.”

—School Library Journal

“In the honeyed and colorful language of the deep South, Nissa sorts through her feelings for her mama, her steady dad, the pregnant Lara, and her racially divided town. Inspired to turn Lara’s old home into a local library, Nissa wrestles with segregation, and hope. A fine, upstanding sequel to The Year of the Sawdust Man.”

—Booklist

Link:

http://milkweed.org/shop/product/54/nissas-place/

And now, the lucky winner of PRETTY OMENS is:   
 
 ***********JANET SMART***********

 **************CONGRATULATIONS, JANET!!!!************
JANET,  please send your mailing address to a@alafaye.com  Let her know if you'd like PRETTY OMENS personalized to you or to someone else.

Thank you, Alexandria, for the fantastic post on the art of writing and for donating an autographed copy of PRETTY OMENS. Thank you, dear Readers, for showing up! Come back next week for something entirely different!