Wednesday, January 29, 2014

New Year, New Books Day 28: Bethany Crandell + Summer on the Short Bus


Welcome to Day 28 of New Year, New Books! Today I'm featuring...

Bethany Crandell
-author of Summer on the Short Bus (April 1st, 2014)


I'm so stoked to feature Bethany!! Her books, Summer on the Short Bus looks and sounds ABSOLUTELY AMAZING. Something about that cover just absolutely makes my grabby hands ACHE.

Title: Summer on the Short Bus
Author: Bethany Crandell
Shelves: Young Adult, Contemporary, Realistic Fiction
Publication Date: April 1st, 2014
Publisher: Running Press Kids

Goodreads|Amazon|B&N

Summary from Goodreads: Spoiled, Versace-clad Cricket Montgomery has seventeen years of pampering under her belt. So when her father decides to ship her off to a summer camp for disabled teens to help her learn some accountability, Cricket resigns herself to three weeks of handicapped hell. 

Her sentence takes a bearable turn as she discovers the humor and likeability of the campers and grows close to fellow counselors. Now, if she can just convince a certain Zac Efron look-alike with amazing blue eyes that she finally realizes there's life after Gucci, this summer could turn out to be the best she's ever had.

Summer on the Short Bus is a very non-P.C., contemporary YA with a lot of attitude, tons of laughs, and a little life lesson along the way.

Extremes with Bethany Crandell
Bethany's website|Goodreads author page

1) What would you do if Hogwarts sent you an acceptance -but you couldn't attend because your horrible aunt and uncle won't let you? ;)

Despite what the internet says, I’m quite certain this exact situation that prompted the invention of duct tape back in 1942--not to aid in WWII militaristic efforts.

2) What would you do if Steven Spielberg called you and told you he wanted to make your book into a movie?

Once the syringeful of Valium kicked in, I’d probably remind him that I don’t have any characters in my book that Tom Hanks would be a good fit for. Beyond that, I’d be telling anyone with ears how awesome I am--er…whoops! How awesome Steven Spielberg is. (Sorry, all this hypothetical awesomeness must be fogging my brain.

3) What would you do if J.K. Rowling asked you for writing advice?

I’d tell her exactly what my critique partner tells me:  “Trust your gut” and “just keep writing”. Even with her enormous success, I have no doubt that Ms. Rowling suffers from the same disease every writer I know is crippled by on occasion: self-doubt.  Every time we show up at the page, a little part of us wonders if what we’re writing even makes sense, or if anyone outside of our family would even want to read this piece of crap we’ve been wasting our time on. In the end, you never know, so you just have to buckle down and stick with it until it’s done.

4) What would you do if all the books in the world were terribly written?

Watch TV.  Probably not the literary-loving answer you were hoping for, but it’s the truth. I love a good story, but I don’t subscribe to the theory that good stories only unfold between the front and back covers of a book. Whether it’s a movie, TV show, book, or watching someone fall down in the crosswalk (they get back up, obviously), I just want to be entertained.

5) What would you do if you found out you could have one super power to have for the rest of your life?

Clearly it would depend on the super power. If I was invisible, I’d waste no time eating my body weight in chips & guacamole. If I can’t be seen then neither can my expanding waistline. But if I became clairvoyant I’d probably give myself a lobotomy. In theory, knowing what people are thinking sounds like a lot of fun, but the reality of that would be tough—just ask Sookie Stackhouse. 





***GIVEAWAY***
Bethany is giving away some really awesome prizes! We have:

1) A SUMMER SURVIVAL KIT! 
2) A Summer on the Short Bus swag pack!
3) ANOTHER Summer on the Short Bus swag pack!! 
Each of these prizes contain some really awesome goodies, guys! 

Rules of entry:
1) US ONLY
2) No cheating with the entries, I always check!
3) The prizes will be sent out at the publisher's discretion.
4) Take the time to read this post with Bethany, not just enter the giveaway. All the authors featured in New Year, New Books are crazy busy, and deserve as much love and attention as any giveaway you enter.
5) GOOD LUCK!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

***Grand Prize Giveaway***
2 Surprise 2014 ARCs + swag
Yep, these will be from my own shelf. Yep, this giveaway is open INTERNATIONALLY. Yep, it is a surprise and I am not telling you what the ARCs will be but here's an idea of what MIGHT be in it:



Any of these books are fair game! But in the end, the winner will only get 2. And I promise that the surprise ARCs will be good:)

Here are the rules of entry:
1) OPEN INTERNATIONALLY
2) The winner has 48 hours to respond to my email. If not, I will have to pick a new winner. 
3) The prize will be sent out at my discretion, so I might take me a little longer than a week to get it to you.
4) In order to earn the maximum amount of entries, you can comment on EVERY SINGLE DAY of New Year, New Books!
5) GOOD LUCK!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

23 comments:

  1. I would really like to read this book! "Like a Camp Rock" with a twist of "High School Musical"!

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    1. HA! I love this comparison. HSM definitely has a presence in this book (it's subtle, folks. Don't worry) but the Camp Rock angle I hadn't considered. I like it! (and Joe Jonas is so stinking cute--double like!)

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  2. I think Tom Hanks could work in probably any movie....... he would adjust for the character.
    Dede

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    1. Funny, after I answered that question I thought, "that's not true. We could totally come up with a legit way for Hanks to be in this movie."

      I have a conf. call scheduled w/Spielberg later today, so you can bet I'll let him know about my recent epiphany. :)

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  3. This book looks really interesting.

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    1. If you like to laugh and 'feel' stuff when you read--this is your book.

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  4. I think I might add "Summer on the Short Bus" on my "to read in the summer holiday" list:-)

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    1. Yay!! It's a perfect beach read. 3.5 hours and you're done and smiling.

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  5. Christina R. in the rafflecopter

    This is a hilarious interview, I hope her book is just as funny and irreverent :)

    Love the comment about Rowling:)

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    1. JK just sent me an email and told me I was full of sh*t. Apparently she's never insecure about her writing. In fact, she doesn't even have a delete key on her keyboard.

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  6. Omg, Bethany Crandell always has a way of making me spit out my coffee all over my keyboard *shakes fist*

    Hilarious. Summer on the Short Bus is one of my most anticipated for 2014.

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    1. I take no ownership of this crime. I keep telling you to stop drinking coffee--this is why.

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  7. I love reading summer books!!! There are always tons of great summer stories to go around :D

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    1. Summer books FTW! Also, I'm loving the new shorter, summer TV seasons. There's some good stuff on from June-August. CAMP is a perfect example. Gotta watch that show!

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  8. How cute this sounds. And humility is a trait that is much needed in the world today, so that makes this book something even more special. I think this could be a really good book for teens and adults alike! Thanks for showcasing this author and her funniness! Duct tape!

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    1. Agreed. Humility is a lost quality in too many people.
      Luckily for them, I'm here to shove it back down their throats :)

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  9. I'm pretty sure I would hate everyone (even myself) if I was clairvoyant. Can you imagine hearing everyone's random thoughts all day? My brain never shuts up--EVER--unless I'm asleep.

    I love these funny questions, Jayne! Very creative. Fun interview :)

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    1. Jayne definitely rocks the questions. And...yeah, hearing the voices in my head all day is bad enough but strangers' thoughts?! Ew...There are some freaks in San Diego. I don't need any part of that!

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  10. I've never heard of this one! I love contemporary YA, especially realistic fiction, so I may like it. :)

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    1. I hope you'll give it a shot, Kaitlin. It definitely offers a lot of 'feels'. And if that doesn't get you, the fact that there's a Zac Efron lookalike might do the trick. #hubbahubba

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  11. This sounds like a pretty interesting book. It'll be nice to see a spoiled girl get a piece of humble pie. O:

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  12. Yeah, I sort of shove it down her throat. A few times. :)

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