Rosebloom

by Christine Keleny

Overview

Book I of the Rose Series.
~ IPPY AWARD WINNER ~
Midwest Book Review referred to it as“...an excellent blend and deftly written look at 1930s America in between the Great Depression and the second Great War – highly recommended for fans of coming of age fiction...”

Library Journal review of the audio books give it a "Recommended" status:"Keleny details her [the main character's] journey and the myriad of characters she encounters in an enjoyable and entertaining way." They also

Rose is thrown into the lives of the varied people and towns of the Mississippi while working on river boats, going to a prep school in St. Louis where she lives with a black family in the Ville, and working in a bordello in New Orleans (not as a call girl, of course. She is a Catholic girl from the Midwest after all). What she doesn’t anticipate are the close relationships that develop with many of the women she encounters. She also discovers the harshness of the world far away from the security of home.
Ultimately, Rose realizes what is most important in her life: her family and her friends.

Rosebloom takes place at a time in history that buffets Rose between the great depression and the coming wave of World War II. She gets herself into situations through her naiveté and also just by chance that test her resolve and teach her not only about herself but about the world of others which she would have never know if she hadn’t left her small farm in Southwest Wisconsin.

Rosebloom is Christine’s debut novel and has won a 2008 Independent Publishers Book Award (IPPY) for historic fiction.
Some of the judges of this award called Rosebloom “A wonderful portrait of life on the river....” “Rose is a female Huckleberry Finn.” Of the author; “(Christine is) A soulful and lively writer.”

Christine Keleny spent over four years and traveled over 3500 miles to seven river towns in five states to write a story of her own, this one fictional. She calls it Rosebloom.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940011233234
Publisher:	Christine Keleny
Publication date:	03/11/2011
Series:	Rose Books
Sold by:	Smashwords
Format:	eBook
File size:	581 KB

About the Author

Christine is an award-winning author, reader, editor, book designer and publisher. She loves writing and helping others publish the book of their dreams through her publishing company: CKBooks Publishing. Christine also teaches workshops at local libraries for both youth and adults and at a youth writing and publishing summer school class. You can find all of her books at christinekelenybooks.com. That is also where you can sign up for her Readers’ Group.

Editorial Reviews

Library Journal "Recommended" Rosebloom saying: "Keleny details her journey and the myriad of character...in an entertaining and enjoyable way."

Judges from the 2008 IPPY award called Rosebloom "A wonderful portrait of life on the river...." "Rose is a female Huckleberry Finn." Of the author; "(Christine is) A soulful and lively writer."

Midwest Book Review referred to it as"...an excellent blend and deftly written look at 1930s America in between the Great Depression and the second Great War - highly recommended for fans of coming of age fiction...."

Independent Book Publishers Award Judges:
"A soulful and lively writer. Rose is a female Huckleberry Finn."

"A well-told and entertaining mutli-racial tale and coming-of-age story."

A wonderful portrait of life on the river. The author develops her characters well and makes the reader care about them and their fates."

"Dear Christine, I began reading Rosebloom right away and have been engrossed in the story since. You captured my interest early in the book at the time of the near rape of the innocent Rose...The history within your novel is amazing...You clearly did a lot of research and spent many weeks getting things just right. Very interesting!...Thanks again for sending me the book." - J.L., Stoughton, WI

"Dear Christine, On behalf of the P.D.C Women's Civic Club I would like to thank you for your delightful program at our recent meeting. Telling us how your recent novel, "Rosebloom" came into being was fascinating. I have started to read "Rosebloom" and am enjoying Rose and her adventures immensely." - C.K., Prairie du Chien Women's Club

"Dear Christine - I so enjoyed your book, Rosebloom, and was happy Mr. Mallat had suggested it for "a good read."...just read for the pure enjoyment of the beautiful story of Rose's journey. Wouldn't it make a lovely film?" - J.H., Madison, WI

From the Publisher

In 1936, 16-year-old Rose runs away from her hometown of Crawford County, WI, to see some of the world before entering high school. Her journey via riverboat from Wisconsin to Missouri to Louisiana, from all-black sections of segregated towns to a house of ill repute, takes Rose through her first love and her eventual arrival at womanhood. Considering the setting, Rose is much more naïve about race relations than she perhaps should be, but debut novelist Keleny details her journey and the myriad characters she encounters in an entertaining and enjoyable way. Narrator Adam Seeger uses his abundant vocal techniques to highlight the style of the times between the Great Depression and World War II. Recommended. [The self-published pb won a 2008 Independent Publisher Book Award and is only now available on audio; more at rosebloombook.com.—Ed.]—Terry Ann Lawler, Phoenix P.L.

Library Journal