The Flyleaf Review, the book that almost didn't happen, jaw to the floor

Many moons and books ago, someone sent me a link to The Flyleaf Review. Read this, the linker said. Words about Small Damages. Words about Spain. Words by this exquisite reader/writer.

Oh. My.

Sometimes, when I was writing Going Over, I would think about this Heather of Flyleaf. Wonder what she would think of this Berlin story. Wonder if I would disappoint her. Wonder. Publishing a book is, in the end, such a personal thing. It is only, ever, reader by reader.

Weeks ago, Heather surprised me with a Twitter link. She'd read Going Over. She'd found this most amazing Wall-Love photo. She'd had thoughts. She'd shared them. She had taken so much time and care in assembling those thoughts, and she had so deeply moved me, and then she said, But wait. Come April, there will be more.

How do these bloggers—all of these incredibly generous bloggers—find or make the time to be so thoughtful about books, to share so many ideas, to join the writer in the process of going back in time, or deep into a story?

I do not know. But today Heather teaches me many things about Berlin, showcases new images of the Wall, posts the fabulous Chronicle links, offers a giveaway, and shares a small piece of writing that I did about the book that nearly wasn't.

It's all here. And I'm in awe.

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Junior Library Guild and The Flyleaf Review: A banner GOING OVER day

Oh, I said, earlier today, in the shivery cold. Look! A package from Chronicle Books.

What is it? my husband asked.

Don't know, I said. And then, within minutes, I did—a beautiful note, indeed a gold-seal note, from Junior Library Guild, noting the selection of Going Over for this great honor.

I had no idea there was a gift beyond the gift of being selected. I was truly stunned.

And then, over at Twitterland, that gorgeous Heather R. of The Flyleaf Review started sending me sly little winks. What is that girl talking about, I wondered (while I was supposed to be doing my day job)? I clicked and took a look — and — well — wow.

What a review of Going Over that gracious woman wrote. What a review, and, Heather says, this is just a tease, in advance of the Going Over blog tour. A tease that includes one of the most incredible photographs I've ever seen of lovers at the Berlin Wall.

There's your Ada and your Stefan, Heather said. And yeah. Absolutely. That's them.

(Tears, actual tears, fell.)

Please go on over and check out the link. I don't want to summarize, I don't want to give you any excuse not to experience The Flyleaf Review—and those lovers—for yourself.

I'm so lucky out here.

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Flyleaf and the gift of a glorious Small Damages review

I joined Twitter just a short while ago—an experiment, really, an act of curiosity.  It has taken me some time to find my rhythms there, to locate the heart of the community.  The hearts, I should say, of the many communities.

But it is because of Twitter that I now know a certain Heather, who loved the same books I loved as a teen (To Kill a Mockingbird and The Great Gatsby) and who now has a beautiful virtual book world called The Flyleaf Review: The Thoughts of a Devoted Reader. 

It is there that I find my book today, Small Damages, which Heather apparently gained in an Arc swap with her friend, Jen. I was a new name to Heather.  She wasn't sure about the storyline, but she gave Small Damages a try.  She has written a most exquisite, thoughtful, lengthy review, and I hope that you will look for the whole of it here. 

It would be impossible to choose a favorite few lines from the review, for I have many.  I am honored, for one thing, by Heather's comparison of my work to the work of Gayle Forman.  I was equally taken back (in a very good way) by this comparison, below: 

You guys, I am big fan of romance in books. All kinds. I like the big, in-your-face romance of some books, but I also can appreciate the soft, quiet, less obtrusive romance like the one written in Small Damages. It is a completely different kind of animal, but no less breathtaking, heart pounding or effective. In many ways I was reminded of the love story between Puck and Sean in Maggie Stiefvater's The Scorpio Races. And if you have my review of that book, you know that I LOVE the romance between those two.

 
So many thanks, Heather!

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