Posts Tagged ‘Amanda Travels’
- In: Books | guest posts | Writing
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I am pleased to be featured on fellow Canadian author, Diane Tibert´s blog as a guest. Check out what inspired me to write Amanda in Holland.
Introducing children’s author Darlene Foster. She has several books in the Amanda series: Amanda in New Mexico, Amanda in Danube, Amanda in Alberta, Amanda in England, Amanda in Spain and Amanda in Arabia. Her Most recent book, Amanda in Holland – Missing in Acton, was released in September 2019. In this interview, she shares a little about it.
1) What is the title of your recent book? Is it a series, what genre is it and is it suitable for all ages?
My most recent book is Amanda in Holland: Missing in Action, book number seven in the Amanda Travels series featuring a young girl who has an exciting adventure wherever she travels. Although this a series, each book can be read as a stand-alone and does not have to be read in any order. The books are written for children between the ages of 7 to…
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My Summer of Books by a Teacher
Posted on: September 4, 2020
- In: Books | reviews | Writing
- 55 Comments
I enjoy following Jennie Fitzkee, a preschool teacher in New England. I have featured her here on my blog. She believes in the power of reading out loud to children of all ages, including reading chapter books to preschoolers. Jennie recently posted about the books she read this summer, which included great picture books as well as some chapter books. And guess what, she included Amanda in Alberta: The Writing on the Stone! I was delighted that she enjoyed the story and wrote a good review. I’m included with some pretty awesome authors too.
This is part of what she wrote:
Amanda and Leah see the Calgary Stampede (a rodeo), go on a cattle drive, visit Buffalo Jump, and the dinosaur museum. These adventures are intertwined with a mystery- Amanda finds a stone, which people seem to want, one cowboy in particular. Amanda is curious about the markings on the stone and is determined to learn more. She is the modern day Nancy Drew, and her sleuthing proves to be both dangerous and exciting at times.
Please read the rest of her post.
- In: Books | guest posts | Inspiration | Writing
- 20 Comments
I´m pleased to be a guest on Wanda Luthman´s blog where I talk about Why I Wrote Amanda in Holland: Missing in Action. Check it out.
Hello, everyone!
Welcome to Wanda Luthman’s Children’s Book Blog.
Today, I want to introduce to you one of my favorite children’s authors. I’ve known her virtually for several years now. Her name is Darlene Foster and she’s written a series of books on a girl named Amanda in the Amanda Travels series.
Darlene, please tell us about you and your inspiration for this book as well as the series…
Why I Wrote Amanda in Holland: Missing in Action
My interest in the country of Holland began when a teacher read us a book called, Hans Brinker or the Silver Skates, by Mary Mapes Dodge, which I loved. The book, written in 1865, by an author who had never been to Holland herself but heard stories about it from her Dutch neighbours.
Over the years I read other books that took place in Holland, many of them…
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Smorgasbord Children’s Cafe and Bookstore – Author Reviews – #YAAdventure Darlene Foster, #Children’s #Kindness Dawn Doig – #Horses Deanie Humphrys-Dunne
Posted on: August 9, 2020
- In: Books | guest posts | reviews | Spain
- 31 Comments
Amanda in Spain: The Girl in the Painting is getting some international attention recently. The book is being featured on Sally Cronin’s (from Ireland) Smorgasbord Children’s Cafe and Bookstore today with a superb review by Balroop Singh from the USA. Read the article and review here
A Spanish participant in an English speaking program I recently volunteered for, (more on that later) ordered a copy to help him with his English reading skills. He was delighted to receive it from amazon.es in two days.
I am delighted to see that this book is still very popular. I wrote it before I moved to Spain!
- In: Books | reviews | Writing
- 31 Comments
Attention authors of children´s books! A great place to showcase your work and get the word out. Many thanks to Sally Cronin for putting this together.
Welcome to the new Children’s Cafe and Bookstore where authors with books suitable for ages up to 12 can share their work and reviews.
It is very difficult to market and books at the current time without physical launches, particularly for children’s books with many in print versions only.
The authors with books suitable up to 12 years old will have separate entries for their children’s books in this new Cafe but will still retain their entries in the main bookstore with a selection of all books they may have.
Getting into the bookstore
If you are already an author in the bookstore then I will automatically share your children’s books in this directory.
If you are not already in the Cafe and Bookstore please email me with the following to sally.cronin@moyhill.com
- Link to Amazon for the book( and even if you have one book please set up an…
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Smorgasbord Cafe and Bookstore – Share an Extract from your Latest Book – #Children’s – Amanda in Holland: Missing in Action by Darlene Foster
Posted on: June 16, 2020
- In: Books | guest posts | reviews | Writing
- 15 Comments
Once again, the amazing Sally Cronin has been busy promoting other authors. She recently featured an extract and a great review for Amanda in Holland: Missing in Action on her blog. If you haven´t seen it, check it out. Thanks, Sally!!
Welcome to the series where authors in the Cafe and Bookstore an extract from their most recent book. If you are in the Cafe, and would like to participate you can find all the details here:Share an Extract
Today’s author is Darlene Foster sharing an extract from her most recent book in the Amanda travel series – Amanda in Holland: Missing in Action.
About Amanda in Holland
Amanda is in Holland to see the tulips with her best friend, Leah; as well as travelling the canals of Amsterdam, visiting Anne Frank House, checking out windmills and a wooden shoe factory, and taking pictures of the flowers of Keukenhof Gardens. She is keen to find out what happened to her great uncle who never returned from WWII and was declared missing in action. What she doesn’t expect to find and fall in love with is Joey, an abandoned puppy…
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- In: Books | guest posts | Writing
- 23 Comments
I am so pleased to be a guest on Book Club Mom’s blog where I am asked some great questions. If you haven’t already, pop on over and see what I have to say about writing in a cafe and other things.
Author name: Darlene Foster
Genre: Middle-Grade Travel/Adventure/Mystery
Books: Amanda in Arabia: The Perfume Flask; Amanda in Spain: The Girl in the Painting; Amanda in England: The Missing Novel; Amanda in Alberta: The Writing on the Stone; Amanda on The Danube: The Sounds of Music; Amanda in New Mexico: Ghosts in the Wind; Amanda in Holland: Missing in Action; Amanda in Malta: The Sleeping Lady to be released Spring 2021
What’s your story and how did you become a writer? I am a Canadian author who has written the Amanda Travels series featuring a spunky twelve-year-old who loves travelling to unique places where she encounters mystery and adventure. Readers of all ages enjoy following Amanda as she unravels one mystery after another. I’ve won prizes for my short stories and have been published in various anthologies. I have also written a bi-lingual book for English/Spanish readers.
I grew up…
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Homeschooling With Amanda Travels
Posted on: May 7, 2020
- In: Books | Writing
- 63 Comments
One of my goals, when I started writing the Amanda Travels series, was to educate as well as entertain readers. So I am always delighted when I learn that parents are using my books for homeschooling. One parent even sent me her child’s work and reports. I was impressed with the lesson plans and projects, as well as the student’s answers.
Kegan, an eleven-year-old young man, admits he is not a keen reader but enjoys Amanda and her adventures. His mom told me she loved seeing his interest and attention to almost every detail which she hadn’t seen with any other books he’d read. Looking at his reports, I can see that he understood the idea of the story. I love it when kids get it!
Here are some of the worksheets and projects from his Language Arts class
For his first report he chose to read Amanda in Alberta: The Writing on the Stone because he is from Alberta and familiar with some of the sights in the story. He also plans to visit some of the other places mentioned.
He got 81% for his final mark. Which is excellent.
One of the projects was to write a letter to the author. This is what he wrote to me:
Dear Darlene,
I am doing a book report on your book, titled “Amanda in Alberta.” I liked it! My favourite part is the horse ride. I have been to many of these places, mostly with my dad in the semi-truck. Did you visit all of the places in your books? Can you make a book of ” Amanda in Iceland”? I think that would be awesome!
Thank you for writing these amazing books!
Sincerely,
Kegan
For his next book, he chose Amanda in Spain: The Girl in the Painting and got 83% as his final mark!
I always include a few more challenging words in the story to help increase the reader’s vocabulary. The words Kegan added to his vocabulary from this book were – monastery, boleros, distressed, dubious, spittoon, trance, alcove, apprehended. The teacher wrote, “It looks like this story was at the right reading level for you.”
I like how he described the characters.
Amanda – happy, determined, she does not listen to Leah, kind-hearted. An explorer.
Leah – helpful, loud scream, acting, kind-hearted. The tall one.
Dona – determined, kind, helpful, big heart. Loves her horse, Pedro.
He was required to summarize each chapter, which he did quite well, as well as predict what might happen at the end of each chapter. His predictions were 50% correct and 50% incorrect. The teacher wrote, “If your predictions were wrong, that means the writer was successful in her writing in order to keep you interested and surprised.”
I just heard from his mom that during lockdown, he has been reading Amanda in Holland for his current Language Arts class.
It makes me very happy to know that my books are being used in classrooms and for homeschooling. My goal has been accomplished.
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Smorgasbord Cafe and Bookstore – Share an Extract – #Childrens Amanda on the Danube by Darlene Foster
Posted on: May 3, 2020
- In: Books | guest posts | reviews | Travel | Writing
- 24 Comments
Grateful to Sally Cronin for featuring an excerpt from Amanda on the Danube: The Sounds of Music as well as a fabulous review. I wrote this book in the middle of a move to another country. Writing the story kept me grounded and sane as we settled in and learned to live within a new culture. You can see why this book has a special place in my heart. Enjoy.
Welcome to the new Cafe and Bookstore New Series 2020 – Share an Extract with an opportunity to show one of your earlier books some love and attention by sharing an extract.. Check out the above link for all the details.
Author Darlene Foster shares an extract from the adventure for Amanda on the Danube: The Sounds of Music. Amanda finds herself on the Danube helping a homeless young musician.
About Amanda on the Danube – The Sounds of Music
Twelve-year-old Amanda Ross finds herself on an elegant riverboat with her bestie, Leah, cruising down the beautiful Danube, passing medieval castles, luscious green valleys and charming villages. When she is entrusted with a valuable violin by a young, homeless musician during a stop in Nuremburg, another boy immediately tries to take it from her. Amanda tries to keep the precious violin safe for the poor prodigy, and along…
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A Decade of Book Launches
Posted on: April 19, 2020
- In: Books | Dreams | Events
- 91 Comments
My publisher reminded me that it has been ten years since we published my first book, Amanda in Arabia: The Perfume Flask. Ten years!!
It made me think back to my first book launch at Albany Books in Tsawwassen, BC. I was so excited and so scared. What if no one came? What if no one bought my book? What if no one liked it? How many times had I gone to a book launch or book signing and dreamt of one day having my own? Thanks to Central Avenue Publishing my life-long dream came true.
I was over the moon with happiness. I had to pinch myself, to make sure I wasn’t dreaming.
And the following year I had another book launch for Amanda in Spain: The Girl in the Painting.
Even more people came, the bookstore was packed and I sold more books.
So I wrote another book, Amanda in England: The Missing Novel, and launched it at Albany Books. No one could even tell I had a broken ankle.
I launched the next book, Amanda in Alberta: The Writing on the Stone, wearing the appropriate hat.
Then I moved to Spain and wrote Amanda on the Danube: The Sounds of Music, but returned to Albany Books for the launch.
Amanda in New Mexico: Ghosts in the Wind followed with another fun launch.
And then there was my recent launch of Amanda in Holland: Missing in Action. Well attended in spite of a rainy Vancouver day.
Thank you to everyone who has attended my book launches over the past ten years, for buying my books and for spreading the word about them.
Thank you to Albany Books for hosting my book launches. Even though in lockdown, they are open for phone-in and online orders, with local curbside delivery and mail delivery otherwise. Please support your local bookstores at this time. https://www.albanybooks.com/
Thank you to Michelle Halket of Central Avenue Publishing for believing in me and my Amanda Travels series.
And thank you for coming along with me down memory lane. I wonder what the next ten years will bring. Stay strong, stay safe and stay home!
