Wednesday, December 02, 2009

300th Post and School Library Journal Review

This is my 300th blog post!

*blows horn and throws confetti*

Please have a slice of cake.

I started this blog in September 2006 with these words: "Have you ever had a dream come true? Welcome to mine. I'm Sarah Beth Durst, and I'm about to be published."

Now it's 3 books and 300 posts later, and I want to thank all of you for continuing to join me on this journey!

It seems that the universe knew this would be my 300-blogiversary because this week I got a wonderful present: a lovely review of ICE from School Library Journal. This makes me very, very, very happy. Here's the review, from the December 2009 issue of School Library Journal:

"Novels with a fairy tale at their center are ubiquitous, but even in this crowded market, Ice, based on "East of the Sun, West of the Moon," is a standout. Cassie is the daughter of an Arctic scientist and lives in a research station on the ice. Her mother is dead, according to her father, but Cassie remembers a story her grandmother used to tell her about how her mother was the daughter of the North Wind and was stolen away by the trolls. As the story opens, the teen is pursuing a polar bear when it steps into the ice and disappears. Drawn by her feeling that there is something special about the animal, Cassie ventures out after it. The bear is a munaqsri, a keeper of souls for the polar bears. Cassie agrees to be his wife if he will rescue her mother. Although initially fearful, she develops a relationship with Bear based on real love and companionship. All is well until she ignores the prohibition against looking at his face while he is in human form at night. Bear becomes a prisoner of the trolls, and Cassie, now pregnant, begins her quest to travel east of the sun and west of the moon to rescue her beloved. This is a unique and cleverly spun romance for an older readership than Edith Pattou's East (Harcourt, 2003), with a splendidly courageous and smart heroine. Durst flawlessly weaves together romance, adventure, and a modern sensibility to create a highly inventive and suspenseful story of a girl on the cusp of adulthood. Readers will take Cassie and Bear to their hearts." -- Sue Giffard, Ethical Culture Fieldston School, New York City

As I started saying 300 blog posts ago... Snoopy Dance of Joy!

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15 Comments:

At 12:03 AM, Blogger Jay Asher said...

Great review!!!

And happy 300!

 
At 12:31 AM, Anonymous All one piece episodes said...

O really this is very Aggravate review. I am pleasure with u.

 
At 9:24 AM, Blogger TerryLynnJohnson said...

What a review! And well deserved. Over at my blog, I posted a mini-review and checking out the comments, seems lots of others have ICE on their list of NEED TO READ. Well done Sarah.

 
At 6:04 PM, Anonymous Danielle said...

Congrats on 3 books, 300 posts!

 
At 7:12 PM, Blogger Priya said...

Happy 300th-post day and congratulations on the great review! I finished Ice about a month ago and it was awesome!

 
At 8:27 PM, Blogger Kirthi said...

Congratulations! Those first words are warming, now look where you are! A very successful and published author :D

 
At 11:11 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Wow! This indeed calls for the Snoopy Dance!

 
At 10:53 PM, Blogger Phebe H.L. said...

Great Review! And yay, 300th blog post! :D

P.S. I read your first post before I commented, and I fell of my seat, laughing, when you talked about flying in a sitting position in the sky! >.<

 
At 9:41 AM, Blogger Sarah Beth Durst said...

Thank you, everyone! You guys are AWESOME.

 
At 12:34 PM, Blogger So Many Books, So Little Time said...

Congrats on a great review and 300 posts!

 
At 5:36 PM, Blogger holly cupala said...

Super! I love the ICE cake. Icing on the cake, literally!

 
At 6:17 PM, Blogger The Rejection Queen said...

Nice to meet you. I am a writer too.

 
At 2:30 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Oooo... I just love the "Next Blog" button. It brought me to your page, and made me aware of Ice, and now I can't wait to read it. I simply adore fairy tales and good retellings of fairy tales.

I write historical fiction for grown ups, but am currently editing my first children's novel (history, magic, and adventure all rolled into one). I guess some of us never outgrow our favorite childhood stories - and I'm so grateful for that. : )

 
At 10:01 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

thanks !! very helpful post!

 
At 6:40 AM, Blogger Unknown said...

Brilliant.

 

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