Tag: Books In Handbag

OK Boomer: Meet Jean and Laura

I discovered OK Boomer

During lockdown, I missed coffee shops and the luxury of eavesdropping on conversations as I searched for characters. Fortunately, I discovered the OK Boomer podcast. I now listen to Jean and Laura chat about US life while I sip my coffee in Wales. Perfect! I learn so much about Millennials and the US way of life, but I enjoy the connections between our cultures. Anyway, these blogs cheer me up, so I wanted to share them with you. I invited Jean and Laura to tell us more about their podcast.

Jean: Jessie, thank you so much for inviting The Real Jean and Laura to your lovely blog. And thank you for listening to our podcast, OK Boomer. We want everyone to be happily OK. My little sister wanted to start a podcast and we developed OK Boomer. ‘OK Boomer” has become a dismissive act of ignoring a comment a Boomer says. Instead of feeling upset or put off by eye rolls, we are here to gently remind Millennials and Boomers we are all OK! Let’s laugh and lean in together. So here we are! Let’s get to know each other.

Meet Jean

Meet Jean, a writer, blogger, book reviewer, bon vivant and encourager

I have lived my entire life in Tropical Ohio. My goal is to make friends with everyone in the world. I enjoyed careers in Speech Therapy and Law, but my favorite job titles are Wife and Mom. I also answer to “Can You Help me find My…”

I am currently a writer, blogger, book reviewer, bon vivant and encourager. I wrote a fiction series, The Golden Age of Charli that showcases the problems and praises of family life and retirement, mixed with a few surprises. As writers say, I am a work in progress.

I am now in the penultimate stage of my life and I’m exploring the world of retirement. My husband and I are still searching for those matching soaker tubs.

Meet Laura

Meet Laura. ‘I have no intentions of retiring or slowing down ever. Our motto is retire and do what?’

I don’t always feel the Tropical but have also lived my entire life in Grey Skies, nothing but Grey Skies Ohio (thankfully grey is a popular color these days). I do truly love my Beautiful Ohio which does have sunny days and can’t imagine moving, mostly because I have too much clutter to ever sell my house.

My various jobs have included human resources, substitute teacher, website/app creator for Wear This One and realtor, but my life and loves always revolve around my faith, family, now five children, friends, neighbors and a very patient husband. This world indeed is very good.

Life is short and why not try various hobbies and careers while I can still move and function, somewhat! I never learned a good golf swing, can’t hit a tennis ball, crafts are nonexistent and not a big reader, but alas I can talk, travel and eat!

I have no intentions of retiring or slowing down ever. Our motto is retire and do what? My goals are to keep moving, set foot in all fifty states, learn to bake a perfect coconut cake and find humor along the way.

Jessie:  I think the OK Boomer sisters are funny, hopeful and positive. I love the jolly title sequence music at and the way you introduce yourselves. Tell the readers what you chat about

I think the OK Boomer sisters are funny, hopeful and positive.

Jean: Great, thanks. Here’s the start of one of our podcasts- to give you an idea!

Hello Hello! I’m Jean…

And I’m Laura and we are here to encourage all you Boomers, Millennials and everyone in between to be happily OK together!

Hi Jean, How are you?

I’m feeling ok, but right away I have to start off with a question for you. Ready? We had a great reason for naming our podcast OK Boomer. What was it exactly? Do you remember?

Well, luckily I’m on my fourth cup of coffee. Oh Jean that seems so long ago. I think it was our kids were using the expression “OK Boomer” and we thought they were just being nice, fun and positive, like “Hey Ok you are a Boomer!” So we thought that would be a fun name for our podcast.

Like a pat on the back! Ok Boomer! Wham!

Yes, a positive affirmation. I’m Ok. You’re Ok!

But we decided to look up “Ok Boomer” on the Google machine and we were a little horrified to realize it was actually a derisive term. Like it’s “an eye-rolling, silly old person, you know nothing” comment.

(Jean says “OK Boomer” in a contemptuous way.)

It’s all in the expression and the eye-rolling.

But, that is not what we mean- our way is to be positive and encouraging.

Yes we want to be happily ok together, with ourselves and with our Millennials.

So we should get the Nobel Prize?

I never thought of that! Maybe we could. For bringing Millennials and Boomers together!

Drop in and listen to a podcast here:

Episode 15: Willy Nilly we’re still OK, and Boomer be Careful of what you Say!

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ok-boomer-podcast/id1495424567?i=1000476749247

We’d love for you to listen to us. Keep the comments coming! You can find our podcast episodes at OKBoomerPod.com or on any of your favorite podcast apps. We are also on

Twitter and Instagram at @OK_BoomerPod

Jessie – your readers might also like Episode 14: Awful Waffles and Playful Porcupines. We discuss our American view of British cream teas.

 

Please see all my guests’ posts at Mail from the Creative Community and my website and blog at JessieCahalin.com.

A copy of my novel is available here.

Cheers! Golden Chapter Reviews with Jena C. Henry

Selecting books is a voyage of discovery for intrepid readers.  My love of books has connected me with readers around the world. A letter from an American blogger and author has opened another door on my blog.  Jena will hop on her boat to visit the latest editions to the Handbag Gallery.  Peek at the letter received from Jena C. Henry and find out how she hopes to discover new books and connect with readers.

Jena will hop on her boat to visit the latest editions to the Handbag Gallery.

Dear Books in My Handbag,

Your site is an elegant showroom of books and handbags. Even more, it is a curated collection of possibilities, opportunities and dreams. So much to explore!

The Readers Recommends page invites readers to share a composed photo of their favorite book and handbag, along with a short testimonial. My Guests presents biographies of authors.

And then there are the rollicking Handbag Adventures and My Reading reviews and the Bloggers Café pages- a potpourri of enticements for readers and writers.

The best page is the Handbag Gallery, with its beguiling photos of books and handbags. Each author has taken care to display the book to its best advantage. Over 260 captivating titles are presented, each linked to a retail site.

Am I in book lovers’ heaven? Yes! I want to read and review every book and get to know each author.  So many tempting titles, so little time- what can I do?

How about this- I will encourage other readers to join with me! Here’s what I’m thinking- I will read the first chapter of a book and post a short review, which will include questions. If you’ve read the book, please comment and share a link to your review, and/or answer my questions (without too many spoilers)! If my review encourages you to read the book, let us all know about that, too!

As Carol Drinkwater said, “I love your book blog and am honoured to be there amongst such class”.

And as our favorite author said, “You Can’t Go it Alone”.  I’m looking forward to some delightful conversations about books. The Handbag Gallery is gorgeous to view. It’s Golden! Let’s open the book covers, ruffle the pages and sing these stories.

Your book friend, Jena C. Henry

I have built a new doorway into my world of books and handbags for Jena.

Jena is right, I can’t go it alone with my Handbag Gallery.  We do need to delve into the books and find out more about what is in there.  I have built a new doorway into my world of books and handbags for Jena. In return, Jena has provided an empty golden handbag.  Apparently, the handbag belonged to her character Charli from the Gold Age of Charli series.  Jena will look at any new books in the gallery and place opening chapters in the golden handbag.  Each month Jena will feature her Golden Chapter.  Will you be the lucky author?  Jena will prioritise authors who interact with us via our blogs and social media.

Good luck! I wonder who will be placed in Jena’s golden handbag.

We invite our bookish friends to place a new book release in the Handbag Gallery and she will peek at the opening chapters. 

Good luck!  I wonder who will be placed in Jena’s golden handbag.

Let me introduce you to Jena. Jena is an author, beta reader, book blogger and reviewer.  Check out her YouTube channel where she presents a book in a minute. Here she is wearing the scarf sent to her by my character Sophie.

Let me introduce you to Jena. Here she is wearing the scarf sent to her by my character, Sophie.

Jena C. Henry is an active, optimistic gal who is a wife, mother, non-profit volunteer and bon vivant. She created the book series, The Golden Age of Charli, to encourage, entertain and share her joy of living and laughing.

Jena presents writing workshops to help creatives achieve their dreams of writing and publishing. She is a blogger, book reviewer and beta reader.

Jena C. Henry holds a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Akron School of Law. Now retired, she and her husband live in tropical Ohio where they enjoy their two adult children and extended family, friends and darling dog.

When she is finished tidying her house, Jena likes to relax on her front porch and read and write. She enjoys fine dining, traveling to visit family, and lounging by lovely bodies…of water. 

Contact Jena

Amazon Universal  author.to/JenaBooks

Website: http://www.jenabooks.com/book/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/jenabooks

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jena.c.henry/

Google Plus https://plus.google.com/110683677816270622079

YouTube channel  Jena C. Henry https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKHLicS_dElaiY2qhhafiLQ?view_as=subscriber

Links to my book trailers. One is 30 seconds, one is 60 second

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZLp93LwXuQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRdgxX9ZPbE

 

 

Please see my website and blog at JessieCahalin.com.

Endless Skies with Jane Cable

Jena C. Henry, boomer blogger, podcaster and author, convinced me to end my blogging drought, grab a golden handbag and share an exciting new release with you. With an exclusive peek at opening chapter of Jane Cable’s ‘Endless Skies’, Jena could not wait to share her views. Without further ado, I will hand my blog over to the lady with the golden handbag crammed with reviews of opening chapters.

Jena C. Henry, boomer blogger, podcaster and author.

Like many of you, I have spent most of my days sheltering at home, reading books for hours. Thanks to the Handbag Gallery, I was able to safely browse and find good reads to keep me company. Thank you Author Friends for writing so many “take me away” books.

And now, a Golden Chapter opportunity has appeared, like the sun from behind the clouds. Endless Skies by Jane Cable, published by Sapere Books, will be released on July 27, 2020.

“Endless Skies” evokes a word picture for me. I gaze up, then turn my face even higher to the arc above, endless and infinite.

The sky has its own blue color, not an ordinary blue jean blue. The height and expanse for this blueness makes me feel small, but at the same time, full and boundless. The curve of sky is a structure solid and strong, yet it must also be soft and sheer, able to be pierced by a weightless beam of sun. Is heaven on the other side? All things are possible and eternal on a radiant day.

But too often in this blue arc, dark clouds pile up, lightning flashes, the wind blows away the peace. An enemy aircraft roars over the horizon, a black mark on the perfect sky. Bombs drop. Where is heaven now?

This is not a story one skims, rather it is a leisurely walk through a beautiful garden with lovely word pictures and emotions.

Having pondered the title, “Endless Skies”, let’s look at the Prologue and First Chapter. Jane Cable’s romance begins with a Prologue that introduces a pilot in his aircraft nearing his base, returning from enemy lands. The fighting is over for him, at least for this night. The skies do seem endless and he has a woman and a promise the size of the sky waiting for him. But trouble seems to be close to him, too.

The First Chapter introduces us to Rachel, in the present day, who tells her story in the first person. Rachel has been forced to uproot her life and move to a new university teaching position. She is an intelligent young woman and a woman who appreciates antiques and fine objects and accessories. She carefully unpacks her beloved Gran’s Royal Albert Festival tea service in her new, stark apartment. Her setting is important to her and this place does not suit her or comfort her.

At this point in the book, there are no boundless, optimistic, endless skies for Rachel. She has had to end yet another awkward romance, and a memory of a sad event when she was only eighteen is never far away, always ready to hurt and shake her. A few things do interest her in her new surroundings, including an old RAF base and a houseboat.

Author Cable writes dense, lyrical prose. This is not a story one skims, rather it is a leisurely walk through a beautiful garden with lovely word pictures and emotions. The timelessness of the writing, the setting and the introduction to Rachel, all with the hint of an airman from years ago, and the promise of endless skies, makes for an inviting opening to the rest of the story. I plan to keep on reading when the book is released.

Ms. Cable says, “I write romance with a twist, that extra something to keep readers guessing right to the end. While my books are character driven my inspiration is always a British setting.”

And now, a Golden Chapter opportunity has appeared, like the sun from behind the clouds. Endless Skies by Jane Cable, published by Sapere Books, will be released on July 27, 2020.

This is Jane Cable’s fourth book. Are you looking forward to reading it? I’m sure you are! Care to have a chin-wag about this book? I adore discussing books I have read. Here are some questions to get us started.

Do you like World War II stories?
Will Rachel find happiness?
What twist is coming?

“I write romance with a twist, that extra something to keep readers guessing right to the end. While my books are character driven my inspiration is always a British setting.” Jane Cable

Jane Cable says, “The past is never dead.” Do you agree?

A big thank you to Jena for this sensitive review of the opening chapter. ‘Endless Skies’ sounds like a fascinating insight into World War Two.

Contact http://www.janecable.com/

 

Please see all the Golden Chapters and also my website and blog at JessieCahalin.com.

A copy of my novel is available here.