It’s Halloween time in the land of Harmony, and the Bobos Babes are ready for some fun!
Welcome to the October 22nd stop on the blog tour for A Magical Halloween by Karen M. Bobos with iRead Book Tours (schedule linked.) Be sure to follow the rest of the tour for spotlights, reviews, author guest posts, and a giveaway! More on that at the end of this post.
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Author Guest Post
Taking a Leap from My Comfort Zone
I would definitely consider myself to be an outgoing extrovert, however, I too am been pushed to go out of my comfort zone as a writer. I think anything new in life requires us to step out of our comfort zone. Goodness, we all just experienced and still are experiencing a world-wide pandemic – talk about a life- changing event that requires a whole new comfort zone.
Yes, like most writers, I have been writing since I was a child. My bachelor’s degree is in English, and my master’s degree is in exercise physiology (long story). I have written many fitness-related published articles and research-study articles. I haven written zillions of blog posts. However, it has only been ten months since I became a self-published children’s book series author. There certainly has been a fear of “what if I fail?” Like anything worth having in life, you must take the leap to even have a chance of succeeding. There will be many falls, but each time you get up is an opportunity to succeed again.
I have been using my own three children as my personal focus group since I started writing the Bobos Babes Adventures series in the summer of 2020. My youngest recently turned four-years-old, and my oldest daughter just turned eight-years-old, so I have the full age spectrum for feedback. Even so, that comfort level is challenged.
I must say that I am most out of my comfort zone during read alouds. When I read at schools or park events, I literally cannot sleep the night before. I’m not just reading any book. These are books that I have written. What if these little honest people don’t laugh when I hope they will laugh?
I recently started my YouTube read alouds where I am in character as the Queen of Harmony. Gulp. Are they cute? Will people laugh at me? I’m supposed to send out my read aloud of A Magical Halloween this week to schools and parent Facebook groups. Thankfully, I can just close my eyes and press send.
Oh, the joy of being behind a computer.
Cheers to all of us who take the leap out of our comfort zone in hopes of a chance toward success. May we all have the courage to keep getting up when we fall!
About the Book
A Magical Halloween
A Bobos Babes Adventure
by Karen M. Bobos
Illustrated by Jazinel Libranda
Published 14 September 2021
Bobos Babes Ltd
Genre: Children’s Fiction
Page Count: 29
Add it to your Goodreads TBR!
It’s Halloween time in the land of Harmony, and the Bobos Babes are ready for some fun!
When Angel Scarlett, Fairy Cora, and Princess Daphne visit Lily the Ladybug’s Boutique to look for Halloween costumes, they find Lily has left aside three special masks for them. The ladybug informs the sisters that they must wait until noon on Halloween to try on the mysterious masks but assures them they will have the best costumes in all of the land of Harmony.
The sisters can hardly wait, counting down the minutes on Halloween until they can don their curious masks. When the time comes, they learn their secret masks are enchanted, and the girls are magically transformed into the costumes of their dreams.
After a fun outing Trick-or-Treating, the little monster, witch, and ghost — or sisters — agree that this was the best Halloween of all.
Amazon US | Amazon CA | Amazon UK | B&N | Bobos Babes
My Review
My Rating: 4 Stars
Consider liking my review on Goodreads.
I was sent a complimentary copy of A Magical Halloween as part of my participation in a blog tour for this title with iRead Book Tours. Thank you to all involved in affording me this opportunity (and for ultimately providing my 4-year-old with another great storybook!) My thoughts are my own and my review is honest.
A Magical Halloween is the story of a trio of sisters who receive magical costume gifts from fairies, to be worn no earlier than noon on Halloween day. The magical plot point is Cinderella-esque, but without the drama of a missed curfew, and the girls get to have a very magical Halloween indeed. (I’m hoping it was a weekend Halloween, though, because 6 pm sure is early to be done if your parents work until 5!)
The illustrations are vibrant and adorable, and definitely held my 4-year-old’s attention longer than the text. I think this is probably better for kids in the 6-8 year old range, since each illustration is paired with as many as eight 4-line stanzas, and that’s a lot of ask of a preschooler.
The story itself is cute, written in an A-B-C-B rhyme scheme, but the former AP English nerd in me was a little frustrated with how it flowed. We’ve got a strict rhyme scheme but the metre is all over the place? It make it difficult to read out loud without stumbling over words that shouldn’t be a problem, and the target demographic is either listening to storytime or doing guided reading.
About the Author
Karen M. Bobos began writing poetry and stories at the early age of ten. She is a life-long Chicagoan who now raises her family in the downtown area. During the 2020 Coronavirus Pandemic, Chicago also became a city of unrest. Trying to keep her three young daughters in a world of magic during such scary times, the Bobos Babes Adventures were born. Her goal was to create a world of Harmony for her family and hopefully for others to escape, even if only for a moment.
The first book of the series, The Case of the Giggles, was published in December 2020. The Missing Egg launched in March 2021. The Lion’s Secret was published in June 2021, a tribute to her mother and late father’s incredible love story. The Lovey That Came to Life and The Bobcat Birthday Party will be releasing in the upcoming months.
Website | Facebook | Instagram | Amazon | Goodreads
Giveaway Alert!
Enter to win a signed copy of Karen Bobos’ BOBOS BABES ADVENTURES: MAGICAL HALLOWEEN! (one winner/USA only) (ends oct 29)
BOBOS BABES ADVENTURES: MAGICAL HALLOWEEN by Karen Bobos Book Tour GiveawayDisclaimer: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Sounds cute!
That’s a cute book! It looks like a great read as well!
~Michelle
https://michellescrazybusylife.net