Usborne books and More is an international company that sells children's books. Once upon a time, when they were simply known as Usborne Books, I thought they were extremely overpriced for the product I had seen. I was not impressed. When my mom’s friend Sara approached me about becoming a consultant, I cringed. Not only do I not do sales; I couldn’t sell a crust of bread to a starving man, there is no way I could bring myself to push a product I didn’t care for. Sara, who could sell the proverbial ice water to Eskimos, said in the past, she would have agreed with me, but things have changed. Now called Usborne Books and More, the prices have gone down and the quality has gone up. She said she would even pay for the starter kit for me if I would just take a look. Well…ok. After all, it is books.
When the box, which included several books, arrived, I couldn’t help myself; I dug in. The books ranged from touchy feeling books for babies, to a new thriller series for tweens. They were all well made, quality books, and best of all, the prices were competitive with anything one might find at a quality retail bookstore, only you probably wouldn’t find these books there. My personal favorite, called “Everyone Poops” by Taro Gomi, talks about all kinds of different creatures, including people, how and where they poop. Anyone who has ever tried to potty train a child will appreciate this book.
Katherine grabbed the book called “Sharks” and went off to read. She then went through the catalog and made a wish list of about fifty books, mostly about dinosaurs. My friend Mary, who is a published author, came by shortly after I received the books. In addition to looking over the selection I received, she also inspected how the books were made and was duly impressed by their quality.
The “and more” part of the new Usborne books includes kits and activity books. My kit included one called “Sticker Dolly Dressing Pop stars”. With over 400 stickers, and heavy pages, little girls, or whoever else might want to, could spend hours dressing three pop stars as they go through their day. Stops include a beauty shop, photo shoot, and on stage. “And more” also includes Kane/Miller books, recently purchased by Usborne, which produces children’s literature from around the world. From what I understand, school libraries are often anxious to access Kane/Miller materials. Both the previously mentioned thriller series, which is called “Conspiracy 365’ by Gabrielle Lord, and “Everyone Poops” are Kane/Miller Books.
Additionally, many of the books, like “Sharks”, are internet linked, which means that a tool has been created that will allow the child access to kid friendly sites to gain more information about the subject of the book.
Ok, I was impressed. There is still one problem. I don’t do sales. I definitely don’t do home parties, and the thought of asking someone to buy something turns my stomach.. Sara had told me she was doing a booth at a local fair in August. Well, I was going to be there anyway, so I told her I would help. I can fill out order forms, as long as I don’t’ have to talk much. Sara talks enough for both of us anyway. Then I though I should at least read the consultants material to learn more about it. That’s when I found out I didn’t have to do home parties. I could do what Sara was doing, working town fairs, I could do book fairs and preschool and daycare centers. I could even work with the local school libraries. Still all that would require that I talk to people. Then I saw it. Usborne Books and More sets each of its new consultants up with a free website for the first six months. Here was my niche. Maybe I could do this. So, I went online and found my site, all ready for me. It just needed a little tweaking. Now, Connie’s Usborne.com is up and running and I invite all of my readers to drop by and take a look. You can even host and eShow, or enter a drawing for a chance at fifty dollars worth of free books. Check it out.
Friday, August 6, 2010
Friday, July 30, 2010
Upheaval: Moving the Books
The last few months have been crazy on many fronts. First the house I have rented for the last eleven years was sold , and we have a very short time in which to find a new place and move. Thanks to a lot of prayer, and some good friends, we were able to do both. We moved into a much smaller home, which meant we had to downsize.
As one might imagine, after eleven years, I had a significant amount of “stuff”. I was willing to part with any and everything except for…you guessed it…my books. Although the sizes did vary somewhat, most of the boxes in which we moved the books were about one square foot. We moved sixty-three of them. Of course, we had to move shelves too, although, I was particular about which ones went. Most of the cheap particleboard shelves were left behind.
The new house has a long hallway down one side. It was perfectly designed to be lined with bookshelves, which is exactly what we have done. We lined up the shelves we had, and Ed built a few more. We also have four short selves in the living room, but two of those contain hymnals, music books, and sheet music (yes, its still technically books).
We have been moved about two months now, but the books are not settled yet. Many of them, although on the shelves, are stacked vertically instead of horizontally. Our goal is to have them all displayed horizontally, as they are easier to reach. Then I plan to use my limited IT education to create a database, so they are easier to keep track of.
Due to many extenuating circumstances, I haven’t been able to read as much as I had hoped. What little reading I have done, however, has been a delight. Although I have never read “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” by Dr. Maya Angelou, (I plan to now), I was able to pick up copies of “Gather in My Name”, and “Wouldn’t Take Nothing For My Journey Now”. What wonderful, wonderful books! The first is another installment of her autobiography, and covers a short period in her late teens and early twenties. The second is a series of short observations and opinions.
Another book that I should have read long before now is “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee. A moving story of racism, justice, and doing the right thing, because it’s the right thing, during the great depression in the south, told from the viewpoint of a young white child. Sometimes children see much more clearly than we give them credit for. Great book!
As one might imagine, after eleven years, I had a significant amount of “stuff”. I was willing to part with any and everything except for…you guessed it…my books. Although the sizes did vary somewhat, most of the boxes in which we moved the books were about one square foot. We moved sixty-three of them. Of course, we had to move shelves too, although, I was particular about which ones went. Most of the cheap particleboard shelves were left behind.
The new house has a long hallway down one side. It was perfectly designed to be lined with bookshelves, which is exactly what we have done. We lined up the shelves we had, and Ed built a few more. We also have four short selves in the living room, but two of those contain hymnals, music books, and sheet music (yes, its still technically books).
We have been moved about two months now, but the books are not settled yet. Many of them, although on the shelves, are stacked vertically instead of horizontally. Our goal is to have them all displayed horizontally, as they are easier to reach. Then I plan to use my limited IT education to create a database, so they are easier to keep track of.
Due to many extenuating circumstances, I haven’t been able to read as much as I had hoped. What little reading I have done, however, has been a delight. Although I have never read “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” by Dr. Maya Angelou, (I plan to now), I was able to pick up copies of “Gather in My Name”, and “Wouldn’t Take Nothing For My Journey Now”. What wonderful, wonderful books! The first is another installment of her autobiography, and covers a short period in her late teens and early twenties. The second is a series of short observations and opinions.
Another book that I should have read long before now is “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee. A moving story of racism, justice, and doing the right thing, because it’s the right thing, during the great depression in the south, told from the viewpoint of a young white child. Sometimes children see much more clearly than we give them credit for. Great book!
Monday, February 22, 2010
Ed's First Review
First of all, I apologize for the lapse in posting. Things got a little crazy for awhile. However, I did finally get Ed to do a book rewiew. I tried to get him to post it himself, but he said he couldn't remember his password, blah, blah, blah.
Anyway, I am delighted to post it for him.
Book Review by Ed Hall
Zeke and Ned by Larry McMurtry
First a confession; I am a McMurtry nut an absolute fan. If he publishes his grocery list, sign me up I’ll read it. Zeke and Ned is one of his many historical fictions. It is based on the lives of the last two great Cherokee warriors Ned Christy and Zeke Proctor.
There are three things McMurtry seems very interested in; the history of the frontier, the plight of the Native American in that history and the random events that toss all our plans and good intentions into the nearest cocked hat.
The real stories of Ned Christy and Zeke Proctor incorporate all three of those things so this subject is real grist for the McMurtry mill. But being Larry McMurtry he does not let the facts limit him. I imagine he figures that is why they call it historical fiction.
I am an amateur follower of frontier history; my grasp of the facts of the old west is more extensive than the average person. Normally, my response to historical inaccuracies in historical fiction range from mild irritation to tossing the book in the garbage. McMurtry, however, has the gift of weaving his stories so well that while you might know his historical figures did not do anything he is saying you are so enthralled in the story you either don’t care or think they should have.
This applies to the book Ned and Zeke because if you know anything about the stories of the two men they were not contemporaries, were not related by marriage and did not fight together in any way. Their two separate battles with the Federal Government never entwined as they do in the book.
As I said before, Mr. McMurtry is so gifted at his craft that by the end of the first Chapter he had thoroughly suspended my disbelief. To his credit, McMurtry does have all the incidences and traditions in there. The massacre at the Going Snake Courthouse, the Cherokee Nations constant problems with the Federal Marshals out of Ft. Smith and Judge Isaac Parker, the oddities of Cherokee custom and tradition, all of these things are woven into a fine story set in the later period of the Indian Nation.
Larry McMurtry is one of my favorite authors. Any of his historical fictions are worth the read. Baring a touch of the Cherokee in me the stories of Zeke Proctor’s and Ned Christie’s battles with the Federal Government are two of my favorite tales. How could I not like this book?
Anyway, I am delighted to post it for him.
Book Review by Ed Hall
Zeke and Ned by Larry McMurtry
First a confession; I am a McMurtry nut an absolute fan. If he publishes his grocery list, sign me up I’ll read it. Zeke and Ned is one of his many historical fictions. It is based on the lives of the last two great Cherokee warriors Ned Christy and Zeke Proctor.
There are three things McMurtry seems very interested in; the history of the frontier, the plight of the Native American in that history and the random events that toss all our plans and good intentions into the nearest cocked hat.
The real stories of Ned Christy and Zeke Proctor incorporate all three of those things so this subject is real grist for the McMurtry mill. But being Larry McMurtry he does not let the facts limit him. I imagine he figures that is why they call it historical fiction.
I am an amateur follower of frontier history; my grasp of the facts of the old west is more extensive than the average person. Normally, my response to historical inaccuracies in historical fiction range from mild irritation to tossing the book in the garbage. McMurtry, however, has the gift of weaving his stories so well that while you might know his historical figures did not do anything he is saying you are so enthralled in the story you either don’t care or think they should have.
This applies to the book Ned and Zeke because if you know anything about the stories of the two men they were not contemporaries, were not related by marriage and did not fight together in any way. Their two separate battles with the Federal Government never entwined as they do in the book.
As I said before, Mr. McMurtry is so gifted at his craft that by the end of the first Chapter he had thoroughly suspended my disbelief. To his credit, McMurtry does have all the incidences and traditions in there. The massacre at the Going Snake Courthouse, the Cherokee Nations constant problems with the Federal Marshals out of Ft. Smith and Judge Isaac Parker, the oddities of Cherokee custom and tradition, all of these things are woven into a fine story set in the later period of the Indian Nation.
Larry McMurtry is one of my favorite authors. Any of his historical fictions are worth the read. Baring a touch of the Cherokee in me the stories of Zeke Proctor’s and Ned Christie’s battles with the Federal Government are two of my favorite tales. How could I not like this book?
Monday, January 18, 2010
The Wolves are Still Running…and I’m Still Trying to Catch Up
Monday is normally our running day. Ed doesn’t have to work and the kids are in school.
Last week we went to Parkside Books in Blue Springs. Ed decided he wanted to read the Bourne books by Robert Ludlum, and found one there. I found a copy of
The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit by Sloan Wilson and another book that I had to have simply because of the title: Pissing in the snow & Other Ozark Folktales by Vance Randolph. After grabbing some lunch, we headed over to the Brass Armadillo to check on our booth (still losing money) and do another book hunt. We found a decent hardback copy of a different Bourne book for $2.00.
As for my own reading, I am diligently plodding through Women Who Run with the Wolves. I was hoping to have it finished before I posted this time, but too many other things got in the way.
Ed however, has finished the Bourne Identity and is working on the next book (not sure which one it is). He has never seen the movies, but knows Matt Damon plays Bourne. He commented the other day that as much as the guy gets beat up, they should have got Bruce Willis to play him.
Last week we went to Parkside Books in Blue Springs. Ed decided he wanted to read the Bourne books by Robert Ludlum, and found one there. I found a copy of
The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit by Sloan Wilson and another book that I had to have simply because of the title: Pissing in the snow & Other Ozark Folktales by Vance Randolph. After grabbing some lunch, we headed over to the Brass Armadillo to check on our booth (still losing money) and do another book hunt. We found a decent hardback copy of a different Bourne book for $2.00.
As for my own reading, I am diligently plodding through Women Who Run with the Wolves. I was hoping to have it finished before I posted this time, but too many other things got in the way.
Ed however, has finished the Bourne Identity and is working on the next book (not sure which one it is). He has never seen the movies, but knows Matt Damon plays Bourne. He commented the other day that as much as the guy gets beat up, they should have got Bruce Willis to play him.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Bitter Cold and Country Quilts
This week was almost a bust. I say almost because I actually finished a book!
I finished Reba’s Comfort from a Country Quilt. I really enjoyed it. Like a patchwork quilt the chapters are short; some just two or three pages, and are in no particular order. They are just short little anecdotes about different times in Reba’s life. I could almost hear her voice as she described the joy of being a mother, horror of losing her band, and the love for what she does. I laughed and cried right along with her. It’s a great find.
Because we have been hit with severe winter weather the last few weeks, Ed and I have traveled only when we had to, so we didn’t do any real book hunting. We’re supposed to get better temperatures this week, so hopefully we’ll get out on his days off. He was borrowing from my waiting list tonight before he went to work
I also set him up so he can write on this blog as well. I hope to get him contributing soon. He asked if there is a word processing program on the spare computer, so I know he’s thinking about writing something.
I’m trying to get my nine year old daughter Katherine interested in reading some of the books I did when I was her age, but I kind of have to be sneaky about it. She loves horses and I think I read everything Walter Farley and Margueritte Henry wrote. I’ve managed to replace a few of the ones I had before, and hope to get her started soon. I’ll let you know how it goes.
Connie
I finished Reba’s Comfort from a Country Quilt. I really enjoyed it. Like a patchwork quilt the chapters are short; some just two or three pages, and are in no particular order. They are just short little anecdotes about different times in Reba’s life. I could almost hear her voice as she described the joy of being a mother, horror of losing her band, and the love for what she does. I laughed and cried right along with her. It’s a great find.
Because we have been hit with severe winter weather the last few weeks, Ed and I have traveled only when we had to, so we didn’t do any real book hunting. We’re supposed to get better temperatures this week, so hopefully we’ll get out on his days off. He was borrowing from my waiting list tonight before he went to work
I also set him up so he can write on this blog as well. I hope to get him contributing soon. He asked if there is a word processing program on the spare computer, so I know he’s thinking about writing something.
I’m trying to get my nine year old daughter Katherine interested in reading some of the books I did when I was her age, but I kind of have to be sneaky about it. She loves horses and I think I read everything Walter Farley and Margueritte Henry wrote. I’ve managed to replace a few of the ones I had before, and hope to get her started soon. I’ll let you know how it goes.
Connie
Saturday, January 2, 2010
I Am So Far Behind
Have you ever heard the saying “We were put on this earth to accomplish a certain number of things…At this point I am so far behind, I will never die!” That’s how I feel about my books right now.
Most of the reading I’ve done this week pertained to an essay I was writing about supermarkets. It was academic reading as opposed to pleasure reading which is what I really want to do. However, the academic reading helps pay the bills.
As for my pleasure reading, I read two chapters in Reba’s book and a section in Women who Run with the Wolves. That one borders on academic reading though, and I had had enough of that for the week. In the current chapter she’s analyzing “The Red Shoes”. As for Reba’s book, I have enjoyed it and hoped to have it finished this week. Ok, well, maybe next week.
Ed, on the other hand, is going through books faster than we can bring them in. He got two for Christmas, one of which was a copy of The Education of Little Tree, which I gave him to replace the copy he left in North Carolina. Then, I bought him an Orson Scott Card in a bargain book bin yesterday. Right now, he is re-reading The Last Juror. I think he started to tell me that I should read that one, but the look on my face must have stopped him. My thinking was, Honey, I can’t finish what I’m reading now, and I have three more on my “waiting list”. Please don’t tell me about something else I need to read!
He has an advantage though; if things are slow at work, he can sit and read. Since I work from home, my “slow” times are filled with such past times as dishes and laundry. To be fair though, I have to say that he helps with all that too and still finds time to read.
Maybe my New Year’s resolution should be to catch up all my reading…well at least it can be this week’s goal. I imagine Ed and I will be bargain book hunting this week. I’ll let you know what we find.
Happy New Year and Happy Reading
Connie
Most of the reading I’ve done this week pertained to an essay I was writing about supermarkets. It was academic reading as opposed to pleasure reading which is what I really want to do. However, the academic reading helps pay the bills.
As for my pleasure reading, I read two chapters in Reba’s book and a section in Women who Run with the Wolves. That one borders on academic reading though, and I had had enough of that for the week. In the current chapter she’s analyzing “The Red Shoes”. As for Reba’s book, I have enjoyed it and hoped to have it finished this week. Ok, well, maybe next week.
Ed, on the other hand, is going through books faster than we can bring them in. He got two for Christmas, one of which was a copy of The Education of Little Tree, which I gave him to replace the copy he left in North Carolina. Then, I bought him an Orson Scott Card in a bargain book bin yesterday. Right now, he is re-reading The Last Juror. I think he started to tell me that I should read that one, but the look on my face must have stopped him. My thinking was, Honey, I can’t finish what I’m reading now, and I have three more on my “waiting list”. Please don’t tell me about something else I need to read!
He has an advantage though; if things are slow at work, he can sit and read. Since I work from home, my “slow” times are filled with such past times as dishes and laundry. To be fair though, I have to say that he helps with all that too and still finds time to read.
Maybe my New Year’s resolution should be to catch up all my reading…well at least it can be this week’s goal. I imagine Ed and I will be bargain book hunting this week. I’ll let you know what we find.
Happy New Year and Happy Reading
Connie
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