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I’m pleased to partner with BeachBoundBooks in coordinating a Book Blast for Lisa & Michael Cohn's newest children's book, Bash and Lucy: Fetch Team Vera and the Dream Beasts. Their book speaks to me as a former special educator as the authors address challenges faced by kids for whom certain sights and sounds send them into sensory overload.
I've worked with many children and parents to address this unique style, so I'm over the moon to see more authors tackle the issue. tbh, I only had time to skim the book as I'm consumed with RIGHTsizing, but I loved my first glimpse. With its kid-friendly layout and font (no visual distractions here!) and bright pictures providing context clues for each chapter, it's perfect for beginning readers or reading aloud. Plus, Bash and Lucy offer tons of discussion possibilities about inclusion and bullying. Please read on to:
The Book Blast runs May 21 - May 23, 2018. Giveaway ends 4 June. Happy tales and good luck! 
About the Book Title: Bash and Lucy Fetch Team Vera and the Dream Beasts Authors: Lisa and Michael Cohn Genre: Children's Book Number of Pages: 86 Publisher: Canines and Kids Publishing Publication Date: May 15, 2018 Summary: Sensitive Bash gets grumpy and disruptive when his life is too bright, too loud, too smelly, or too busy. He counts on his dog, Lucy, to help keep him calm. But Paula, Bash's girl-power cousin, is causing all sorts of trouble. Paula says her soccer team has the right to take Lucy away from Bash because girls deserve the very best canine coaches. And superstar Lucy is the most successful coach around! How can Bash show he respects the girls' rights while keeping dear Lucy by his side? Award-winning mom-son authors Lisa and Michael Cohn have appeared on the Today Show, AM Northwest, and SiriusXM Radio, and in Disney's Babble, as well as other media.
About the Author Award-winning mom-son authors Lisa and Michael Cohn have appeared on the Today Show, SiriusXM Radio, AM Northwest, and in Disney's Babble, the Oregonian, and other media outlets. They are founders of the Roving Reader Leaders. Michael and Lisa have "traveled" 540,000 miles and visited students in 15 countries around the world via Skype in the classroom to discuss their books.
Bash and Lucy Website | Roving Reader Leaders Website | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ Goodreads | Bash and Lucy YouTube | Roving Readers Leaders YouTube Book Blast GiveawayPrize: One winner will receive a $25 Amazon gift card or $25 PayPal cash prize, winner's choice Giveaway ends: June 4, 11:59 pm, 2018 Open to: Internationally How to enter: Please enter using the Rafflecopter widget below. Terms and Conditions: NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. A winner will be randomly drawn through the Rafflecopter widget and will be contacted by email within 48 hours after the giveaway ends. The winner will then have 72 hours to respond. If the winner does not respond within 72 hours, a new draw will take place for a new winner. Odds of winning will vary depending on the number of eligible entries received. This contest is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook. This giveaway is sponsored by the author, Lisa Cohn and is hosted and managed by Stacie from BeachBoundBooks. If you have any additional questions feel free to send an email to [email protected].
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Have you lost socks doing laundry and wondered where they went?
Author Michael Sullivan solves this mystery (Hint: time travel!) in his delightful picture book series, The SockKids. His books and merch also support the non-profit Friends of Kids with Cancer. Meet Michael and his gang of hose, PLUS enter for your chance to win a $50 Amazon gift card or Pay Pal cash OR a pair of SockKids socks. Offer ends on 14 May, 2018. Good luck!
I’m pleased to partner with BeachBoundBooks in coordinating a Book Blast for Author Michael John Sullivan and the SockKids. The SockKids are partners with Friends of Kids With Cancer, a non-profit organization that helps kids be kids during their cancer treatments. We are honored to help out with YOUR help too. The blast will run from April 30 - May 14, 2018.
The Socks
The Socks are available for purchase at http://thesockkids.storenvy.com/.
Sale of the Socks will benefit Friends of Kids with Cancer.
About the Book
The SockKids – Solving The Mystery Of Your Missing Socks! Where do our missing socks go? Readers find out in our children’s series, The SOCKKIDS. We follow the Socker family through many adventures; from encountering the slobbery mouth of the family dog to meeting Santa as he comes down the chimney on Christmas Eve to helping a fireman save a baby to the most shy Socker going to the school dance for the first time. Thanks to the time-travel opportunities afforded by the spin cycle of the washer, they learn about some of the most important humans in the world. Children two and up and their parents will be drawn to the diversity of the family and the universal and timeless lessons they teach: don’t be afraid of new experiences, treat others as you would like to be treated, and of course, beware of the spin cycle!
Where Do Our Missing Socks Go? We tell you! Readers find out in our children’s series -- The SOCKKIDS. We follow the Socker family through many adventures, from encountering the slobbery mouth of the family dog to meeting Santa as he comes down the chimney to helping a fireman save a baby to the most sky sock going to the school dance for the first time. Thanks to the time-travel opportunities afforded by the spin cycle of the washer, the Sockers learn about some of the most important humans in the world. Children two and up and their parents will be drawn to the journeys of the family and the universal and timeless lessons they teach: don’t be afraid of new experiences, treat others as you would like to be treated, and of course beware of the spin cycle! In this book’s story, we read about Sudsy landing on the foot of inventor Ben Franklin. Sudsy, the bug-playing boy sock, discovers with Ben Franklin the wonders and dangers of electricity. The book includes safety rules and discussion questions put together by an experienced classroom teacher in helping parents and children respect the power of electricity.
Do you know where your socks go when they go missing in the washing machine? Well, the SockKids know! The SockKids are a mismatched family of socks that sometimes time travel through the spin cycle, teaching universal lessons of love and kindness, and focusing on creating a greater awareness of the many social issues that children are faced with today. The SockKids help to educate and encourage children from 2 to 92 to find solutions in helping to make this a better world. In this story, Sudsy and Wooly discover their human is being bullied at school and team up against bullies with Ethan’s newest friend, Olivia. They discover bullying hurts everyone and staying silent is not an option. More Inside! Children’s counselor and licensed therapist, Jamie Ross, gives adults and children guidelines on how to handle bullies.
Book available at http://thesockkids.storenvy.com
About the Author
Michael eventually returned to his subway notes in 2007 and began writing Necessary Heartbreak: A Novel of Faith and Forgiveness (Simon & Schuster, Gallery Books imprint). Library Journal named Necessary Heartbreakone of the year’s best in 2010. His second novel, Everybody’s Daughter (Fiction Studio Books, 2012) was named one of the best books of 2012 by TheExaminer.com. He completed the trilogy by having The Greatest Gift published by The Story Plant in 2015. Michael has written articles about the plight of homelessness for CNN.com, The Washington Post.com, Beliefnet.com, the Huffington Post, and America Online’s Patch.com service. He is a former board member of the Long Island Coalition For the Homeless. About the Illustrators
She loves that children and their parents are drawn to the diversity of the SockKids family and the universal and timeless lessons they teach: don’t be afraid of new experiences; treat others as you would like to be treated, and of course, beware of the spin cycle! In addition, she is dedicated to finding the right soap for Sudsy. Shelley is also a passionate child advocate, working with a variety of cause-driven organizations such as Destination Imagination, Up & At It!, Child Abuse Prevention Council, 3 Strands, the International Bullying Prevention Center, and Big Brothers, Big Sisters Youth Organization. Shelley has developed a keen sense of awareness of what children experience today in dealing with such important issues including bullying and recognizes the importance of putting into place the type of value-added programs that will effectively strike a nerve in preventing our youth from losing their way to a safe and productive future. In her spare time, she is an event planner and resides in California. 
Alexandra /SugarSnail dreamed of becoming an illustrator since childhood, even though she didn’t know the profession actually existed. She later graduated from college with an MFA in graphic design. She never gave up on her dream, so she decided to do what she loved best – become a children’s illustrator. SugarSnail’s beautiful artwork can be seen in many children’s books. To reach Alexandra Gold/SugarSnail, follow her on Facebook. Book Blast GiveawaysPrize: One winner will receive a $50 Amazon gift card or $50 PayPal cash prize, winner's choice and a second winner will receive One pair of SockKids SocksGiveaway ends: May 14, 11:59 pm, 2018 Open to: Internationally How to enter: Please enter using the Rafflecopter widget below. Terms and Conditions: NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. A winner will be randomly drawn through the Rafflecopter widget and will be contacted by email within 48 hours after the giveaway ends. The winner will then have 72 hours to respond. If the winner does not respond within 72 hours, a new draw will take place for a new winner. Odds of winning will vary depending on the number of eligible entries received. This contest is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook. This giveaway is sponsored by the author, Michael John Sullivan and is hosted and managed by Stacie from BeachBoundBooks. If you have any additional questions feel free to send an email to [email protected].
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Cannon atop Fort Macon still point protectively toward Bogue Sound. Grassy knolls covering this five-sided garrison stretch to tidal marshes, a strange mash-up of military and maritime. During the Civil War, Fort Macon guarded the Confederacy’s deep-water port access until Union troops pummeled its 4.5-feet thick walls 560 times in 1862 with new rifled cannon. After the war, the fort was occupied by the US Army and served as a military prison until 1877. Today, the site is the second most-visited state park in North Carolina. 
Winds rip off the Atlantic and scream across Bogue Banks.
Grains of sand attack my eyes like shards of glass, destroying my peaceful beach stroll. I escape by trekking inland over the dunes to the old fort. Locals warned me not to go there, but I must find shelter. 
Reaching the deserted stronghold, I hurry inside.
Despite sitting vacant for decades, it stands solid and imposing. 
Descending through the old stone entry, it’s easy to imagine soldiers once garrisoned here. Were they fearful of battles to come? ...
Suffering under harsh sea winds? ... Unrelenting heat? ... Loneliness? 
Families and children also lived at the fort throughout its 100-year history.
And surely the good citizens from nearby Beaufort and Moorehead City crossed the sound to visit or sell their wares. 
A deafening Crack! slashes the quiet,
like a lightning strike coming too close on a summer evening. I peer out a window to the ditch and moat. That green lawn atop the fortress is bathed in brightest sunshine. Not a storm cloud to be seen. Bah! Must be wind knocking something that jangles my nerves. Wait! Here it comes again. And louder! CRACK! CRACK! 
Curiosity overcomes my trepidations.
Scurrying outside to find the source of the noise, I rub my eyes and stare. Summer’s sun must be spinning my noggin because ... --- Can it be!?! --- ... Union soldiers steadily advance toward the entry gate I passed through seconds ago. 
At the other end of the long field,
Confederate soldiers return fire. Rifle blasts are daggers to my ears. Smoke curling from muzzles presses against my face like a wet cloth. I watch war’s true horror play out before me. Soldiers on both sides fall mortally wounded. This is not the stuff of video games or toy play figures. 
Get a grip, I steel myself.
This cannot be. CanNOT be! I blink again, and when I open my eyes….. Nothing. Soldiers disappear. Rifles gone. Only silence and stretches of wind-whipped grass. I laugh it off. Just shore breezes and sun playing tricks. Time to head back to the beach and make my way home. What's that?!? The persistent beat of a drum wafts up from the corridors below. Daaaaa dum-de-dum-dee-dum An old-timey fife lightly pipes a wistful melody. Tweee-deet Da-dee-tweee I hear you warning me: Noooooo, don't go! Nothing good ever comes of investigating weird, inky places alone. But the music is a siren's call, luring me to twisty passageways once again.
When the concert ends, I can't help myself.
I applaud the performers. They nod and beckon me to join their eternal music series. That’s it! Last night’s feast of fried bay scallops and biscuits, with a side or two of local brew, obviously are taking a toll on my senses! I sprint from the fort. Stumble across the dunes, running hard and out of breath. Collapse in the safety of the beach, where shore winds are strangely quiet. Whew! My imagination must be working overtime. Nobody roams the old fort, I assure myself. A whisper carries on a gentle breeze and tickles my ears …. Are you SURE? 
The End
Your Turn
What old or historic places have you visited? Could you imagine what is was like for the people who lived there? Please share your experience in the comments section.
Credits
Title Photo: Kevinbercaw, CC BY-SA 3.0 Story and Photos: Cat Michaels Grateful to my writerly/photographer pal, Auden Johnson, for showing me how photo tales can be creative and fun. Thanks to Fort Macon State Park, Atlantic Beach, NC, and local history re-enactors for my images and inspiration. Learn more @ https://www.ncparks.gov/fort-macon-state-park Thanks for stopping by. Like what you see? Don’t miss a post! Send this blog to your RSS feed or email.
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 Cat MichaelsBlogging about books, writing, family life, travel and more good stuff. Meet Cat
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