Tag: LibroFm

Audiobooks · Book Reviews · BOTMs, · Fiction · Giveaway · LiteraryFiction · OwnVoices

Giveaway time! Win a copy of new release and NY Times bestseller, ‘Black Buck’!

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GIVEAWAY TIME!
Folks, it’s early in the year, but I’m predicting ‘Black Buck’ by Mateo Askaripour to be one of my Top 5 favorite books of 2021 & I guarantee it’ll be for many of you as well!

‘Black Buck‘ is the author’s debut novel that released on 1/5 & I was fortunate enough to receive early copies of it, ultimately choosing to listen to the audiobook version. The narrator did such a fantastic job! It’s already #15 on the NY Times bestseller list this week, a Book of the Month add-on, & the Jan ’21 ‘Reading w/ Jenna‘ pick.

I loved Mateo’s dedication page at the very beginning of the book: “To all of those who have ever been made to feel less than, I see you”. Followed by that are a few pages of Author’s Notes, one of which encourages white readers to consider themselves an honorary black person as you read the book, which I totally get, to better understand the POV from which the situations & scenarios in the book are coming from.

The book is a dram-edy (funny, yet drama filled) & meant to be satirical, meaning some parts are over the top & exaggerated, but the messages in the story are perfectly clear. The description of the book says ‘for fans of ‘Sorry to Bother You’ & ‘The Wolf of Wall Street”, & since I have never seen the 1st movie I don’t get that comparison; however, having seen the 2nd, I do understand that & agree, but it’s only in some ways similar.

You may want a writing instrument handy while reading this book to annotate & underline meaningful quotes & passages. You will love some of the characters like Brian, Wally Cat, Mr. Rawlings & Darren’s mom, & you’ll hate some of them like Clyde (who is total pond scum). You may also catch yourself saying some of the ‘Black Buck’ catch phrases in everyday life like I have been since reading this, such as ‘Every day is deals day’ & ‘Ring ring’. I also cannot help but to think of Darren & Brian every time I go to Starbucks, which is far too often.

I can definitely see this book made into a feature film or 10-episode limited series & I 100% think Jordan Peele should write the script, produce & direct it. I also totally pictured the handsome author as the protagonist, Darren, as I listened to the book. I highly recommend ‘Black Buck‘ in any version (see below for links to get an audiobook deal at Libro.fm or to join Book of the Month & add ‘Black Buck’ to your first months box as an add-on), & I’d like to send an arc to 2 of my followers.

(Please be advised, the following entry info is for information sakes, only. You must enter on Instagram & can do so by clicking HERE to be directed to the giveaway.)
To enter giveaway:
1-LIKE this post.
2-Must be following @mom_loves_reading
3-Tag a couple bookish pals (unlimited entries, 2 tags per com).
Bonus entries (5 ea)
4-SHARE to your stories & tag me (can do daily)
5-Subscribe to my blog (Hey, you’re already here, so why not sign up to get email notifications when a new post is up, & if you ARE subscribed, why Thank You very much!😉
6-LIKE my Facebook page & this post there. (Click HERE to go there now.)
7-Follow me on Twitter & REtweet post. (Click HERE to go there now.)

Giveaway is US only due to shipping, begins 1/16 & ends 1/19/21, & is not affiliated w/ Instagram. Please don’t UNfollow afterwards because it’s rude & you get added to my ‘excluded from all future MLR giveaways’ list. Plus, you’ll miss out on a TON of really great giveaways coming up, some of which will be International.

Click HERE to use my referral code MOMLOVESREADING at Libro.fm & get a BOGO-free audiobook offer.
Click HERE to use my referral link & start a Book of the Month membership. (If you scroll a few posts back you will see more detailed info on all of the great benefits of becoming a BOTM member, & there are no obligations.)

Click HERE to add ‘Black Buck’ to your Goodreads lists.
Click HERE to look for ‘Black Buck’ at a local independent bookstore using BookStoreLink.com.
Click HERE to go to MomLovesReading on Instagram.

MATEO ASKARIPOUR was a 2018 Rhode Island Writers Colony writer-in-residence, and his writing has appeared in Entrepreneur, Lit Hub, Catapult, The Rumpus, Medium, and elsewhere. He lives in Brooklyn, and his favorite pastimes include bingeing music videos and movie trailers, drinking yerba mate, and dancing in his apartment. BLACK BUCK is his debut novel. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram at @AskMateo. You can also subscribe to his monthly newsletter here. 

Audiobooks · Book Reviews · Comedy · LibroFm · Memoirs · Nonfiction

Audiobook Love and book review of ‘Sh*t, Actually: The Definitive, 100% Objective Guide to Modern Cinema’ by Lindy West

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Are you a fan of audiobooks? I am! I listen to almost a book a day most weeks! Did you know you can get them online & support your local bookstore, too? If you haven’t tried one yet, start w/ a memoir or an essay collection read by the author, such as this one!

Thank you @librofm & @hachetteaudio for my gift audio copy of ‘Sh*t, Actually: The Definitive, 100% Objective Guide to Modern Cinema‘ by the awesome Lindy West! (pub date 10/20) Click HERE to give my Instagram post a LIKE!

NYTimes opinion writer & bestselling author Lindy West was once the in-house movie critic for Seattle’s alternative newsweekly The Stranger, where she covered film w/ brutal honesty & giddy irreverence. In ‘Sh*t, Actually’, Lindy West returns to those roots, re-examining beloved & iconic movies from the past 40 yrs w/ an eye toward the big questions of our time: Is ‘Twilight’ the horniest movie in history? Why do the zebras in ‘The Lion King’ trust Mufasa–who is a lion–to look out for their best interests? Why did anyone bother making any more movies after ‘The Fugitive’ achieved perfection? And, my God, why don’t any of the women in ‘Love, Actually’ ever freaking talk?!

From ‘Forrest Gump’, ‘Honey I Shrunk the Kids’, & ‘Bad Boys II’, to ‘Face/Off’, ‘Top Gun’, & ‘The Notebook’, West combines her razor-sharp wit & trademark humor w/ a genuine adoration for nostalgic trash to shed new critical light on some of our defining cultural touchstones–the stories we’ve long been telling ourselves about who we are.

At once outrageously funny and piercingly incisive, ‘Sh*t, Actually’ reminds us to pause & ask, “How does this movie hold up?”, all while teaching us how to laugh at the things we love w/o ever letting them or ourselves off the hook. It’s is a love letter & a break-up note all in one: to the films that shaped us & the ones that ruined us. More often than not, West finds, they’re one & the same.

I laughed so hard listening to this book & completely agreed w/ most of Lindy’s cinematic observations. (Lindy, please write a book dissecting TV shows now! I will be more than happy to provide some shows to rip on, like ‘Friends’ & ‘King of Queens’.) I have never seen ‘Love, Actually’, but I have seen all of the other movies referenced in this book & had many of the same observations. In my home, breaking down movies & their plot holes is one of our favorite things to do as a family! I seriously loved this book & I think it is definitely one of those best enjoyed on audiobook where you can listen to Lindy & all of her beautiful snarkiness.

Libro.fm is pretty much just like “the other” audiobook app/subscription service out there, but there’s one HUGE difference: Libro.fm supports indie bookstores from our purchases. No lining the pockets of a bajillionaire. Bookstores have been struggling to survive for some time due to the convenience of the internet & right now, many are in serious danger of flatlining in 2021 (or sooner) due to the pandemic. I can’t imagine my community not having access to physical bookstores in the future. I LOVE spending an hour or two picking out books, holding them, smelling them, buying them, & taking them home w/ me right then. And if it means spending a couple extra $$’s to keep them there so I CAN do that, it is 100% worth it!

Readers, please support your local bookstores this holiday season & always by buying books, gift cards and/or Libro.fm memberships for your friends/family/self! Many of the indie stores even have online store fronts, too! Go to the Libro.fm website to learn more & use my code MOMLOVESREADING for a BOGOF.

Click HERE to go to Libro.fm & ‘Sh*t, Actually’.
Click HERE to give my Instagram post some LIKE love, (actually).😉
Click HERE to add ‘Sh*t, Actually’ to your Goodreads lists.

Lindy West is a Seattle-based writer, editor, & performer whose work focuses on pop culture, social justice, humor, & body image. She’s currently a culture writer for GQ magazine & GQ.com & a weekly columnist at The Guardian, as well as the founder & editor of I Believe You/It’s Not Your Fault, an advice blog for teens. In 2015 she wrote & recorded a story for This American Life about confronting an Internet troll who impersonated her dead father. She also was listed as “Internet’s Most Fascinating of 2015” by Cosmopolitan.com, & helped launch the viral #ShoutYourAbortion hashtag in defense of women’s reproductive rights.

Audiobooks · Book Reviews · BOTMs, · Fiction · Giveaway · HistoricalFiction · LibroFm · OwnVoices · WomensFiction

Happy Independent Book Store Day and a GIVEAWAY!

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Click HERE to go to IG post! (Enter, LIKE, & Share!)

Happy Independent Book Store Day!! & INTERNATIONAL GIVEAWAY time! (Giveaway is on Instagram only, click HERE for post.) Thank you to @librofm for sponsoring it! Click here for more information on the TODAY ONLY specials Libro.fm has for Indie Book Store Day! They are some great deals!)

3 lucky winners will each receive an audiobook copy of ‘The Vanishing Half‘ by Brit Bennett, which is currently the #1 ranked audiobook on Libro.fm & the NYT, & #3 on the NYTimes hardback best seller list!

I absolutely LOVED Bennett’s novel, ‘The Mothers’ & I was so excited for the 6/2/20 release of ‘The Vanishing Half‘. Adding to my excitement, the book was a June pick for Book of the Month members, so I picked it! My anticipation got the better of me & I ended up listening to the audio book on my Libro.fm app! It is FANTASTIC! (Both books are still available on BOTM, too! Click HERE to join BOTM & get a great deal on your first month! BOTM is U.S. only at this time unfortunately)

A slow-burning, endearingly poignant piece of literary/historical fiction, this book will give you all the feels! You will love most people in the book, too, even though, like everyone on the planet, they have all made their share of mistakes, poor choices, & live w/ some sort of regret. Bennett’s story telling ability is exceptional & not surprisingly, there was a bidding war on the film rights, w/ HBO coming out on top & Bennett earning a 7-figure payday!

Those of you that are fans of audiobooks can concur w/ me when I say:

1- They 100% count when it comes to books you have ‘read’, having enjoyed them w/ your ears instead of your eyes, but the same part of your brain.

2- You can do SO much more while listening to an audiobook vs. a physical book. (IE: chores, shopping, driving, showering, exercising, etc.)

3- Audiobook narrators really bring a cinematic & lifelike feel to a book.

Libro.fm audiobooks are yours 4ever! You download the book you are listening to on your device, so no need to use wifi or precious data when out & about, then delete the file from device when done, but it stays in your Libro.fm acct forevs! Libro.fm supports indie bookstores w/ our audiobook purchases/subscription (unlike that ‘other’ audio company owned by a bajillionaire). The Libro.fm app is FREE, so you don’t pay a dime to enter this giveaway or be a winner! You can also use my code MOMLOVESREADING to get a 2-for-1 deal! (goto Libro.fm for more info).

(**The following is for FYI purpose only. Giveaway is on Instagram only & you must enter there. Click HERE to go to that post.)
To enter to win an audiobook copy of ‘The Vanishing Half‘, do the following:

1- LIKE this post. (like some others while your here just to be nice!)

2- Must be following @mom_loves_reading & @librofm

3- Tag some bookish pals. (unlimited, only 3 per com)

Bonus-5 entries
4- Share post to your IG stories or feed & tag @mom_loves_reading (can do daily).

Giveaway is open internationally, begins 8/29 & ends 8/31/20 11:59pm EST. Giveaway not affiliated w/ Instagram. Unfollowing MomLovesReading after will get you banned from future MLR giveaways & there are a LOT.

TODAY ONLY…

Pre-order in print, get an audiobook for free! Click HERE for details!

When you pre-order these print books from your chosen Indie Book Store today, you’ll either receive the audiobook version or a bestselling audiobook from the author, courtesy of Libro.fm! Just email hello@libro.fm with your receipt from 8/29 (a picture of your physical receipt or the email purchase confirmation), and we’ll send you an email with a link to your free audiobook, which you can keep for yourself or gift to a friend!

Get another of the author’s bestselling audiobooks for free:

Receipts must include a purchase date of August 29th, 2020. There is no limit on the number of print books purchased and free audiobooks collected. You will receive the link to your free audiobook within 24 hours of emailing hello@libro.fm. Please note that upcoming audiobook releases (The Last Story of Mina Lee, His Only Wife, and The Awkward Black Man) will not appear in your library until the listed pub date.

The deadline to submit your receipt is Monday, August 31st, 2020.

Audiobooks · Book Reviews · LibroFm

Audio Book Review: “The Voting Booth” by Brandy Colbert

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Thank you @dreamscape_media @disneyhyperiondesign & @librofm for my gifted audio copy of ‘The Voting Booth’ by Brandy Colbert! (pub 7/7)

From Stonewall Award-winning author Brandy Colbert comes an all-in-one-day love story perfect for fans of The Sun is Also A Star.

Marva Sheridan was born ready for this day. She’s always been driven to make a difference in the world, & what better way than to vote in her first election?Duke Crenshaw is so done with this election. He just wants to get voting over with so he can prepare for his band’s first paying gig tonight. Only problem? Duke can’t vote.
When Marva sees Duke turned away from their polling place, she takes it upon herself to make sure his vote is counted. She hasn’t spent months doorbelling & registering voters just to see someone denied their right. And that’s how their whirlwind day begins, rushing from precinct to precinct, cutting school, waiting in endless lines, turned away time & again, trying to do one simple thing: vote.
They may have started out as strangers, but as Duke and Marva team up to beat a rigged system (& find Marva’s missing cat), it’s clear that there’s more to their connection than a shared mission for democracy.
Romantic & triumphant, ‘The Voting Booth’ is proof that you can’t sit around waiting for the world to change & some things are just meant to be.

I listened to this book in one afternoon. When it started I thought it would be a light read basically talking about the importance of voting starting as soon as you are legally allowed to. But it became so much more than that!

‘The Voting Booth’ touches on so many important subjects, not just for teens, but especially for teens of color, all POC…ALL people in general. It’s a YA romance meets voter activism & the harsh realities of voter suppression. Some subjects included: the importance of voting, knowing if & where you are registered, loss of a loved one to gang violence, interracial relationships, the pressure teens put on themselves to be perfect & get into the best college, anxiety, standing up for what you believe in w/ peaceful protests & the challenges/obstacles POC of color face in this world, including a sort of intense scene towards the end involving being pulled over by the police.

No sex scenes in it, but some language. Basically your typical teen talk when parents aren’t around. There’s also some fun stuff like “Eartha Kitty” (aka: Selma) the cat, who has a huge following on Instagram. (see pic above) The story takes place in a single day, we meet several side characters along the way & as for politics, there is bias & no mention of names or parties. Overall, the book pleasantly surprised me & I really liked it.

To get a 2-for-1 audiobook deal from Librofm, use my code MOMLOVESREADING. They support indie bookstores w/ our audiobook sales. You choose the indie bookstore to support from their list of affiliated stores, too. I love using Libro.fm! When a new release comes out, it may be 3-6 mos before it is available to borrow using my library audiobook app, so luckily, I have my Libro.fm subscription. No holds, no waiting, & the audiobook stays in your Libro.fm. You only need to download the book you are listening to on your phone or device, so you won’t even have to use data when you listen to it because you aren’t streaming.

Be sure to check out Brandy Colbert’s other recent new release for middle schoolers, ‘The Only Black Girls in Town’. Click HERE to read more about it on Goodreads.
Click HERE to add ‘The Voting Booth’ to your Goodreads TBR.
Click HERE to goto my Instagram page.

Book Reviews · LibroFm

Book Review: “The Jane Austen Society” by Natalie Jenner

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Thank you @stmartinspress @librofm & @macmillan.audio for my gifted physical & audio copies of “The Jane Austen Society” by Natalie Jenner! (pub date 5/26)

Just after the Second World War, in the small English village of Chawton, an unusual but like-minded group of people band together to attempt something remarkable..One hundred & fifty years ago, Chawton was the final home of Jane Austen, one of England’s finest novelists. Now it’s home to a few distant relatives & their diminishing estate. With the last bit of Austen’s legacy threatened, a group of disparate individuals come together to preserve both Jane Austen’s home & her legacy.

These people—a laborer, a young widow, the local doctor, & a movie star, among others—could not be more different & yet they are united in their love for the works & words of Austen. As each of them endures their own quiet struggle with loss & trauma, some from the recent war, others from more distant tragedies, they rally together to create the Jane Austen Society.

A powerful & moving novel that explores the tragedies & triumphs of life, both large & small, & the universal humanity in us all, Natalie Jenner’s “The Jane Austen Society“ is destined to resonate with readers for years to come.

Initially I started reading the physical copy of this book, & although it is well-written & quite interesting, historical fiction isn’t quite in my wheelhouse. But I am trying to branch out. (Baby steps!) Plus, I am super busy and on the go, so I need a book that can be on the go with me. Thankfully I am a fan of audiobooks, & I found that I was more able to connect with the characters & the storyline by listening to it. The narrator did a fantastic job of bringing all of the very charming characters to life. It did take me a a bit to keep track of everyone, but once I got hold of who was who, the story really took off for me.

“The Jane Austen Society” is a tip of the literary hat to Miss Austen & her iconic novels & Jenner has sprinkled quotes from those novels throughout this book. This book got me wanting to re-read some of Austen’s novels I read way back when. This was such a lovely, heartfelt, nuanced, uplifting story that many people have said gives them “Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie Society” vibes. This story touches on family, love, loss, second chances, friendship, the importance of literature & so much more. A very impressive debut novel! Highly recommend!

To buy it on audiobook, I encourage you to use Libro.fm. They support independent bookstores with their audiobook sales, unlike other audiobook apps. Independent bookstores need our sales now more than ever, whether it be with physical books or audiobook sales. Click HERE or use use my referral code MOMLOVESREADING to get a 3-for-1 audiobook deal when you start a Libro.fm account & subscription. You can cancel anytime, so there is no long term commitment.

Those of you that entered my big thriller giveaway on Instagram (the post is HERE), stay tuned for the winner announcement in the next 24 hrs or so. I have to go through all the entries still & everyone’s bonus entries & of course make sure all the entry criteria was met. Another giveaway will be coming soon! Hope everyone has had a wonderful week so far! They seem to be going by so quickly for me these days…