Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Famous author of Sell the Pig, Tottie Limejuice

Some authors have to wait for years after their demise to get this sort of recognition, but I just had to share what my friends David and Tiger have been up to ;)


Thursday, July 5, 2012

Another review of Sell the Pig from Goodreads

When it comes to all things t'internet, I'm a bit slow on the uptake, as you'll have gathered if you've either read Sell the Pig or followed any of my witterings on either Twitter or Facebook. Which is why I've only just discovered that there are some more reviews for Sell the Pig on the Goodreads site, including one which I hadn't yet seen myself.

So for anyone who doesn't have access for that site and who might be interested, I'll post it here. It's a kind 3-star review from Clair whom I don't know, I don't think, but who, like me, made the move from Lincolnshire to France. Clair says:

This is the story of a lady who makes the move from rural Lincolnshire - like myself - to rural France - like myself. Though the similarities between us end there. 
Whereas I came over here as a fresh-faced 22 year-old dragging a couple of suitcases along on a Eurolines coach, Tottie makes the move much later on in life, together with her 90-year old mother, who suffers from vascular dementia, and her brother and his depressed dipsomania. Oh, and we mustn't forget Meic, her epileptic dog. All of them, with a nurse and carer accompanying them for the trip, in a motorhome and an old van.
It's a very touching read that takes us back to Tottie's childhood and around the UK and France, as we learn about her family and her later quest for a new home, somewhere to live her dream and let her mother enjoy one final adventure. Tottie's style is open and honest, raising a smile here and touching a nerve there. 
I have to admit I was a little bit disappointed not to learn more about their actual life in France - this book is really about the search for their new home and how they make their move, but I guess that means that the adventures they experienced once settled in the Auvergne are all to come. Now I've followed them this far on their journey, I do hope that their is a future episode and we get to find out how it all worked out for them.



Thanks for the review, Clair, really appreciate you taking the time to write it, as one Yellowbelly to another, albeit adoptive, one.

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Book reviews - have your say about Sell the Pig

I know it can be a real grunt writing reviews on Amazon. I've had some really lovely kind ones for Sell the Pig there myself and I'd really love to reply to them there but incredibly, although I've bought things from the site under my pen name, it won't let me post replies.

It's probably because I haven't bought Sell the Pig from there. I gladly would buy my own book, just so I could personally thank everyone who's taken the time and trouble. But although I have an account (several, in fact) and have downloaded a Kindle app, I somehow can't get Amazon to see the right Kindle for the right account. It's almost certainly my fault because I'm a muppet, but I still haven't found out how to overcome the problem.

So I thought it might be a nice idea to reproduce the reviews here on the blog and invite people to add their comments. It's a much friendlier forum here so if you're a bit shy, this is a great place to have your say. And don't forget, I really need your feedback so I can start working on the first of the sequels or prequels or whatever they turn out to be.

I did mention in Sell the Pig that I had a working title of Biff the Useless Mention, which is still a possibility, although at the moment I'm leaning towards Is That Billinge Lump?

So come on, all you kind and lovely people, what are your thoughts? What would you like to know more about? Which bits did you enjoy most and what were the bits you didn't like? One reviewer thought it was a bit boring in places. Did you? If so, which places? I need you to work with me if I'm going to do better next time!

Meanwhile, here's the first of the promised reviews. I'll reproduce them in the order they appeared on Amazon, and this is from the very lovely @BubblyNatz with whom I chat often on Twitter. It's a 5-star review posted on  20 Feb 2012 and entitled Sell The Pig - bugger!!!:


If you are an avid reader and an avid reader of true stories then you will love Sell the Pig! It is both lighthearted and heartfelt! The author regales you with her tales of her mother and brother, beloved dog and touches on earlier and later parts of her life too! Which all in all leaves you wanting more.Please do give this book a go you won't regret it and like me will be urging the author to write more!


Thanks so much, Natz. So, everyone else, do you agree? Please leave your comments below. Thanks.