The Map Shop

  Update 9/28/18: I am now an affiliate with Z Publishing House. I do get a small commission from any purchases through this link ( http://www.zpublishinghouse.com?rfsn=1831564.e6264) if anyone is interested in some anthologies of emerging writers. Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer is the first in a juvenile fiction series about a twelve-year old boy genius who expands his family's crime ring to include kidnapping and stealing from the People, a society of various fairies who live underground to avoid humans.   I originally listened to this on audio book while in middle school. For some reason I never actually picked up the book or continued the series, though upon reading this, there were some scenes that I think I remember that diddn't happen in the book, so I must have at least glanced at another book.  Going back to this after so long, I remember how exciting it was. Colfer creates a believable-- and often hilarious-- world, believable characters wi...

Update 9/28/18: I am now an affiliate with Z Publishing House. I do get a small commission from any purchases through this link ( http://www.zpublishinghouse.com?rfsn=1831564.e6264) if anyone is interested in some anthologies of emerging writers. I'm cheating a little by starting with a story that has been around since around 1099 AD (approximately). Not a lot of people will read this book outside of a literature class and I honestly can't blame them. The reason why I bought this book was because of a song I found on Youtube. "The Song of Roland" is a ballad about a knight who is tricked into fighting the Sarasans. He is inevitably betrayed by another knight who convinces the king the horn he hears is just Roland hunting. Roland and his army are slaughtered and later is considered a tragic hero. This is a a good summary of what happens in the book, though not exactly. A quick summary: (Spoilers alert) French King Charles, also known as Charlemagne, is convin...

Greetings to the story lovers out there. Tell Me A Story began as a thought not too long ago. I'd recently found myself speed reading through three books in three days and felt the sudden anguish of not having anyone to discuss them with. No friends or siblings or co-workers who had picked up the same random assortment of YA fiction, Narrative nonfiction, and children's classics who would be willing to sit and talk about them for two or three hours straight. I know everyone has experienced something similar. Whether you've read a book, watched some obscure movie that no one has heard of, or you recently discovered a gem in the most recent video game sale, you want to share it with others, and there is nothing more frustrating than when you can't do that. My first solution to this was to keep a reading journal; taking notes as a read so I can express my thoughts about the characters and situations. But I realized, while that helps me understand what works for me in ...