Speed Demon
by Fred Bowen

Tim Beeman is an excellent athlete with incredible speed, but he is unsure whether he belongs on the football team or the track team. Although he knows that his mother, who died three years ago, didn’t approve of football, he can’t deny the fact his father would love to see his son out on the field. Plus, Tim is eager to fit in at his new school, and he knows the football team can help him quickly find new friends. Between attempting to please himself, his father, and his peers, Tim can’t figure out where he will feel most comfortable and be able to put his fast running skills to best use.

Tim struggles with his decision since he knows he could be a valuable addition to both the track and football teams. When Tim finally chooses a sport, he continues to wonder if he has made the right choice. Which team will put his talents to the best use and at the same time satisfy his own needs?

This new addition to author Fred Bowen’s Sports Story Series is filled with play-by-play action that’s sure to keep readers on the edge of their seats!

Check out the discussion guide, and find Speed Demon at your local library, indie bookstore, or Barnes & Noble this September!

Be on the lookout for the rest of our new Fall 2019 titles and those coming to Peachtree in paperback.

Madeline Finn does NOT like to read. Not books. Not magazines. Not even the menu on the ice cream truck. Fortunately, Madeline Finn meets Bonnie, a library dog. Reading out loud to Bonnie isn’t so bad. When Madeline Finn gets stuck, Bonnie doesn’t mind. Madeline Finn can pet her until she figures the word out.

We can’t wait to get this book into the hands of readers who are not so keen on being readers. Read more about Madeline Finn in our latest New Book Wednesday post, and enter to win your free galley today!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Madeline Finn and the Library Dog

by Lisa Papp

Giveaway ends September 30, 2016.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter Giveaway

“So adorable readers may attempt to hug the page.” ―Kirkus Reviews

“It’s a warm, encouraging story that suggests that perfection isn’t necessary in order to achieve one’s goals, and that help can be found in unexpected corners.” ―Publishers Weekly

Matt Bumpers here with a Public Service Announcement.

Dorkychickenitis Patient Zero: Charles Bumpers

Me, Matthew Bumpers, demonstrating Tip #1

Can you think of anything else?  Comment below if I missed any good tips.

It may seem like spinning a spooky yarn ought to be easy as pumpkin pie, but, like tight rope walking, writing a children’s book (Am I right, guys?), and drinking black coffee, telling a scary story is a skill that must be honed with years of careful study.

But, since Halloween is just a few days away, consider this Scary Story Bootcamp.

(via duplexproductionblog.com)

Props: 

The only true necessity is a flashlight. Shine it under your face in the dark and give your audience a ghoulish grin. Works every time.

Other props might be things like a scary mask, a storyteller’s costume (cape? tophat? pipe?), maybe some fake snakes or bugs, or spooky music to play in the background.

Setting: 

You might think the setting in which you tell your creepy tale story isn’t important. Wrong. Atmosphere is vital. Here are some tips on working your audience into maximum fright before you even open your mouth.

• Indoors:
  • Make a blanket or pillow-fort. First off, they’re awesome. Second, they’ll hide all the light from outside the fort, leaving your flashlight as the only source of light. And third, forts are awesome.
• Outdoors:
  • Do you have an outdoor fire pit? The eerie light will flicker; the fire will crackle; and creatures of the night will skulk and slither in the shadows just out of sight…

(via stellarfour.com)

(via nypost.com)

• Tommy Knockers
• You Can’t Get Out

Moderately Scary:

• Bloody Mary
• The Headless Horseman
• Yellow Ribbon

(via marydoodles.deviantart.com)

Super Scary/Proceed with Caution:

• Girl in White
• Hairy Toe
• No Trespassing

The Best Original Scary Story Ever:

• The Long Fingered Man

Okay, that last one might be biased, but it is a great spooky story and you can read it (or hear it!) yourself in Bill Harley’s third Charlie Bumpers book, Charlie Bumpers vs. the Squeaking Skull!

Did we miss any of your favorite stories? Have you made up an awesome one that you’d like to share? Do you have any more tips on how to tell them? Leave a comment below!

 

Meet Charlie’s spookiest nemesis yet in CHARLIE BUMPERS VS. THE SQUEAKING SKULL, the third laugh-out-loud audiobook in the Charlie Bumpers series, read by Grammy award-winning storyteller, Bill Harley.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

1. Professional football was first played on November 12, 1892 between Allegheny Athletic Association and Pittsburgh Athletic Club ending in a 6-6 tie! Look! We even found the “birth certificate” of pro-football! 
   
   

   The payment of player W. Heffelfinger made it official!
2. Football came about from a combination of soccer and rugby.
3. The first college game was played on November 6, 1869 between Rutgers and Princeton, but the sport didn’t become popular until the 1880s.
4. Before college games, competitions between Athletic Clubs were fierce and exciting!
5. The oldest man to ever play the game professionally was George Blanda, aged 48, who played for the Oakland Raiders in 1927. He is also the person who has played the most seasons (26). 
6. Here’s a link to a very extensive time-line of the game including when touchdowns were altered from five points to six (1912) and the first televised game (1939). Pretty Nifty! 
7. The longest field goal was 64 yards made from Matt Prater of the Denver Broncos on December 8, 2013!  (You’ll meet an unexpected kicker in Double Reverse!)
8. There’s an awesome online exhibit called Football and America which details stories of professional football players who served in various wars and the sacrifices they made. Perfect fodder for Fourth of July picnicking conversation!
9. The title of “The Greatest Game Ever Played” is attributed to the 1958 Championship game between the Baltimore Colts and the New York Giants. This game led to football becoming America’s favorite sport to watch in the 1960s! Read the full story here. 
10. The highest scoring game is between the Redskins and New York Giants with the final score of 72-41 with the Redskins taking the win! It was on November 27, 1966.
11. Fran Tarkenton was inducted into the Hall of Fame on August 2, 1986. This player is a huge inspiration for this Bowen novel, so take a look at his impressive history! He retired as the all-time leader in attempts (6,467), completions (3,686), passing yardage (47,003), and touchdown passes (342).  Read more here! 

Visit Fred Bowen at fredbowen.com and sportsstoryseries.com. And look for Double Reverse in your local library or bookstore!

Paul Worrilow | Linebacker STANLEY THE BUILDER

Every summer, Peachtree teams up with the Atlanta Falcons for a weekly online story time called Read with a Falcon.

Community-minded Falcons players and cheerleaders take the time to share a picture book with young sports fans. We are very proud of this partnership, and we’re so glad that the Falcons are doing their part to promote literacy and a love of reading.

I got to tag along to watch the filming for a few of the segments! Too cool, right?

This summer’s videos aren’t live yet, but I thought I’d share a few behind-the-scenes pictures here. Enjoy! And make sure to check back for the full-length story times!

Here we are with Paul as he reads STANLEY THE BUILDER. We taped the segments on the indoor practice field.

Matt Bryant, Place Kicker, read from PIG AND SMALL!

 

Joe Hawley, Center, read from LOST FOR WORDS! was excellent.  The voices he did for Giraffe, Hippo, and Flamingo were excellent–so cute!

Make sure you watch for these new story times, and check the Read with a Falcon website to see your favorite book and Falcons player! Which player/book would you like matched up next?

Gordon was just sitting down at his desk at school when his teacher asked him to write a story for her. He said, “Oh, I don’t have anything to write.  This is going to be so hard.  I’ll just sit here and try to think of something.”  He puts his head on his desk.  All of a sudden the bell rings.  He jumps on his bike and rides it toward home and then things start to get weird.  Rocks start shooting out of trees.  He sees fireworks blasting (p.s. it is not the Fourth of July).  He goes straight home.

Weird things are happening there too!  His Mom has elephants on her head.  His Dad is throwing the chair, his sister is throwing sandwiches at him, and a giant chicken is attacking him.  They finally let him sit down and read a book.  Then things start getting weird again.  The characters from Gordon’s books start to jump out at him.   Some of his books have dragons in them and instead of shooting fire they shoot spikes.  He runs for his life.  He gets on his bike and drives off but as he drives away the bike changes into a rocket ship and by the time he stops it he is at Mars.

An Alien starts to chase him.  He gets into a space suit he found on a hook next to the door and goes out the back door.  The Alien starts chasing him again.  The Alien chases him for an hour and then the Alien is out of breath.  It walks to its home and Gordon walks back to the rocket ship and flies home.  When he lands he sees there is a tiny bomb in this rocket ship.  He has one second and then he suddenly wakes up.

He is at school where he can write his story very quickly.

He has a story to write!  Hurray!

The End

Any kind of reader will LOVE Fred Bowen‘s action-packed sports stories and parents and teachers love the real-life character education and history lesson weaved in, too! 

This fall, be sure to check out Quarterback Season and Touchdown Trouble for the pigskin fanatic in your family! 

Happy Reading everyone!