Blog Tour: The Boots My Mother Gave Me With Giveaway

Brooklyn James is an author/singer/songwriter inspired by life in the Live Music Capital of Austin, Texas. This year marks the Three Year Anniversary of her first novel, The Boots My Mother Gave Me. In celebration, her camp has re-released the Anniversary Edition with a new cover (as chosen by a fan) and a new epilogue, setting up the anticipated sequel.  

  You can grab yourself a copy via Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk.      

‘Have you ever wondered what it would be like to walk through life in someone else's shoes? Strong-willed tomboy Harley LeBeau puts you in the boots her mother gave her, as she takes you along her journey of escape from an abusive childhood and the desire to find herself as she comes of age. Made to feel a burden to her father simply by her gender, Harley is determined to prove her worth and independence, leaving the small town she grew up in and the one boy who gave her a soft place to fall, Jeremiah Johnson. Torn between saving herself and abandoning her mother and younger sister, Harley chooses her own life in hopes they will choose theirs, too. A mature, candid read for everyone. A must for women. The Boots My Mother Gave Me explores the dynamics of abuse and dysfunction, the courage to overcome, the strength in sisterhood, and the ongoing conflict and unconditional love between mothers and daughters. Climb into Charlene the Chevelle for a fast-paced story about a girl who is tough enough to survive and tender enough to learn to trust in love.’  


My Review:

Even though I have been only blogging for less than a year, I have been writing reviews for much longer than that. And I have to say that this it he hardest review that I have ever had to write. Not that this book was not amazingly written and completely and utterly enjoyable, but because that this is one of the most heartfelt, emotional, tear jerking stories I have ever read. I started this book two evenings ago and finished it at 4am the same evening I started reading it. And even though it is well over 24 hours since I have finished this book, I am still stilling here trying to absorb and  make sense of all the feelings I experienced reading this book. This book effected me so much, that I was thinking about it while I was stuck behind a traffic signal during rush hour in Los Angeles. I was day dreaming about the story line and did not notice the light turning green. Which if anyone has driven the streets of LA this is not a smart mistake. Let's just say that there were several of  honks and middle fingers thrown my way. OPPS....In my opinion this book should be made required reading in high school English classes. If I ever have a teenage daughter this is a book that I will sit down and read with her.

An emotional journey about a girl trying to discover her self worth after being verbally abused by a father who was disappointed that he did not have any sons. Seeing Harley trying to develop a positive self-image and trying to discover her destiny, while overcoming the negative feelings that have been instilled in her entire life was extremely powerful and heart wrenching. And let me just say that Jerimiah, Harley's love interest in this book, is more mature as a teenager than most men are in their entire life. He stands up for Harley and her abusive father and gives her a safe haven when she needs it. He gives her strength to stand, but gives her room to fly so she can discover herself.

I feel that in no way am I doing this book justice. Last night in order to see if other fans of this book went through the same emotions that I did, I spend hours searching through reviews on Goodreads and Amazon, and I was happy to see so many readers had. So if you want a more thorough review and one that does not just rumble on I suggest you read this amazing review that sums of this story as it deserves  The Boots My Mother Gave Me.

OH and by the way a definite 5 out of 5!

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  The Boots My Mother Gave Me was chosen as a Quarter Finalist in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Awards, and has ranked in Kindle's Top 100 Coming of Age and Women's Fiction. Accolades for the book include a host of radio and television appearances, book signings, live music events, televised public readings and a music video release of the title track 'Can't Get It Right' from the original music soundtrack to the novel, viewable on YouTube. "Brooklyn James' soundtrack to her novel The Boots My Mother Gave Me does more than give a clever feminist twist to the title. Her songs serve as chapters themselves, underlining James' deft ability as a storyteller and songwriter." - Margaret Moser, The Austin Chronicle.  

Like what you hear?

Brooklyn’s new album Jolie Blonde is out now and is set to accompany her upcoming novel of the same name, due for release mid-October.

  Click here to listen to a sample and pre-order.

Her music can be found on Amazon, iTunes, CDBaby, Pandora and Jango online Radio. She enjoys airplay from American Independent radio stations as well as in Australia, South of France, Netherlands and the UK. Her song 'Can't Get It Right' was chosen for MEOW's (Musicians for Equal Opportunity for Women) 2012 Discoveries Jukebox, naming Brooklyn among the top 15 female singer/songwriters on the rise. Jango Radio named track two, 'Moving On,' off the same album to their Top 10 Songs of Summer. All songs from the soundtracks are written/co-written and performed by the author, and are produced and recorded at Wonderland Studios, Austin, Texas. Listen free on Brooklyn's Website or Facebook.

***Giveaways***

Win 1 of 3 Anniversary eCopies!

Entry via Rafflecopter. Giveaway closes October 8 2013.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Win 1 of 2 The Boots My Mother Gave Me Soundtracks 

Entry via Rafflecopter. 

Giveaway close October 8 2013. a Rafflecopter giveaway

Author Bio: Brooklyn holds an M.A. in Communication, and a B.S. in both Nursing and Animal Science. Her nursing career has seen specialties in the areas of Intensive Care and Labor & Delivery/Postpartum, which she's hoping will come in handy as she and her handsome hubby (the inspiration behind Jeremiah Johnson from The Boots My Mother Gave Me) are expecting their first child this Christmas. You can read about such experiences on Brooklyn's Blog, if you fancy. A self-professed Jack-of-all-trades, she has enjoyed careers in massage therapy, personal training, teaching, day labor at a cattle company (doing everything on horseback, the old-fashioned 'cowboy' way), radio DJ, TV news writer and reporter, waitress, bartender, even amateur actor. To date, her most fun experiences in front of the camera have been starring in a Weezer video, being a 'stand-in' for Mira Sorvino on the set of TNT's Trooper, and as background in When Angels Sing with Harry Connick Jr. Brooklyn says he couldn't have been more of a gentleman and oh so swoon-worthy! She takes great pleasure in performing as part of an acoustic duo in the local live music scene in Austin. Got a little video here from a set at Austin Bergstrom International Airport. Her hobbies include, spending time with family and friends, dancing until her feet are sore, weight lifting, running, paddleboarding (anything outdoors really), reading, watching The Big Bang Theory and anything on The History Channel, partaking of a good cup of Joe and trying out new and local food fare. Brooklyn also serves as a guest speaker from time to time with a focus on awareness and prevention of domestic violence and suicide, a cause near and dear to her heart. Thank you so much for being so kind to take the time to check out my blog hop! Light & Love – Brooklyn James.  

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