I am so excited to be a part of this amazing blog tour!
I had the honor of asking Kimball what he loves about the holiday season.
Here is what he said:
1- The smell of pine, nutmeg, and wassail
2- Christmas carols!
3- Setting up my out-of-control, Dickens village lighted-houses mountain
scene (with 200+ houses, operational waterfalls, a smoking chimney,
clippy-cloppy horse hooves and children singing sound effects, swirling
ice-skaters, mountain sledders, a flying Santa, a parade encircling the town
church, and two whistling electric trains)
4- Seeing the tree my sweetheart decorates with ornaments from different
countries we've visited together
5- Reading the Christmas story from Luke with our friends on Christmas Eve
(part of the inspiration for the book!)
6- Staying in our pajamas all day on Christmas
7- Reenie's yam and apple casserole. My mouth is watering as I write
this.
8- Observing our tradition of marching downstairs to open presents on
Christmas morning to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir rendition of "Oh Come All Ye
Faithful"
9- The Christmas church service
10- Working for days to build my annual present for my wife (another
tradition) without giving away the surprise. And then seeing her open it as the
last present.
Finding the Baby Jesus by Kimball Fisher
After being forced to wear lederhosen for the annual holiday card picture, twelve-year-old Chris thinks that the least his parents can do is get him the Tony Hawk skateboard he wants for Christmas. But when he recovers the hand-carved Baby Jesus that everyone thought had been destroyed in a fire the year his Grandma died, Chris realizes that some gifts are even more important than skateboards.
When the author had to discontinue a cherished tradition of reading Christmas stories out loud with his family and holiday guests each week in December, he wrote Finding the Baby Jesus. He had been unable to locate enough meaningful stories that could be read in a single sitting with wiggly children.
Praise for Finding the Baby Jesus:
“Tender and true, this warm Christmas tale brought tears to my eyes.”
–Heather Vogel Frederick, author of the much-beloved Mother-Daughter Book Club series and Oregon Book Award winner for The Voyage of Patience Goodspeed
“A touching story that speaks to the importance of family, giving, and the true spirit of Christmas.”
–Matthew Kirby, author of Icefall, winner of the Edgar Allen Poe and the Pen Center USA Literary Awards for Children’s Literature
“Deeply moving. Poignant.”
–Deborah Halverson, former editor at Harcourt Children’s Books and author of Honk If You Hate Me, a Gayle McCandliss Literary Award Winner
"The perfect little book to tuck away with your Christmas things and bring out year after year to read with family. As mother to three boys, I can't imagine a better protagonist than Chris. His typical teenage attitude followed by the softening of his heart towards a friend teaches a poignant and very relatable lesson on the true meaning of Christmas."
–Amazon review
"After I read this short story I felt like I had read a novel--every sentence is packed with action and imagery. I was emotionally connected to the characters, and the story is touching. I didn't see the plot twist at the end coming! A great story to read every Christmas."
–Amazon review
Purchase
Author Kimball Fisher
Kimball Fisher writes novels for young readers. He is also a best-selling business author, professional speaker, and management consultant. Some of his past jobs include: sailboat builder, ghost writer (not as scary as it sounds), illustrator, and factory manager (more scary than it sounds). For fun he builds furniture, stained-glass windows, and writing pens.
He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Humanities (with minors in English, Asian Studies, and Japanese), and a Master of Organizational Behavior degree from Brigham Young University. He and his amazing wife Reenie live in Portland, Oregon, where they have seen pheasants, coyotes, and a bobcat in their own backyard.
Links
Book Blast
Tour Giveaway:
$25 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash
Ends 12/26/12
Open to anyone who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent's permission. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.
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Tour Schedule:
http://iamareadernotawriter.blogspot.com/2012/10/finding-baby-jesus-blog-tour.html
