Tag Archive for James Preller Blood Mountain

Happy News Comes in the Mail: Two Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Awards!

November 9, 2022 / / One comment

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It’s a pretty terrific day when an author opens the mail to receive not one but *two* Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Awards. In this case, for BLOOD MOUNTAIN and UPSTANDER. Check out ’em out if you get the chance. Thank you, my gifted-kind-patient-and-insightful editor Liz Szabla at Feiwel & Friends/Macmillan. I’m lucky to have you on my side.

 

       

 

These books are both available only in hardcover, and I don’t think they’ve found their audience yet, but I hope they do.

I guess that’s up to you. 

And it is all — all of it — thanks to you, the readers, the lovers of the arts, the people who believe and the folks who support.

Thanks. 

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Category: Blood Mountain, Upstander / Tags: , , , ,

Awesome Review for BLOOD MOUNTAIN

September 4, 2019 / / No comments
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“Preller combines brave characters
with vivid descriptions of the perilous mountain,
grasping readers’ emotions in the same way
as Gary Paulsen’s Hatchet series.” 

 

The good folks at Booklist have long been sympathetic to my work. It seems I can always count on them for a fair and thoughtful reading. This review came across my desk yesterday. As you know, I’m very proud of this book, can’t wait to get it out into the world. Here’s the full review . . .

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Combine a strenuous hike in an unfamiliar wilderness park, lost kids, a dangerous hermit, a rogue mountain lion, a faithful dog, and a savvy female ranger and you have the gist of Preller’s exciting thriller. Grace, 14, and Carter, 11, have agreed to a day hike up Blood Mountain with their father, though their dog, Sitka, is the only one who seems excited at the prospect. The siblings soon leave their slow, out-of-shape father behind, zipping up to the breathtaking outlook. What they don’t realize is that their father has had a heart attack and collapsed, and a PTSD-plagued Marine, who resides on the mountain, is stalking them. Lost, hungry, and alone, Grace and Carter encounter dangers from the wilderness and the Marine. Sectioned into six parts of a day each, this tale of survival is relayed in short chapters that cycle through the various characters’ perspectives. Preller combines brave characters with vivid descriptions of the perilous mountain, grasping readers’ emotions in the same way as Gary Paulsen’s Hatchet series. 

 

BLOOD MOUNTAIN IS A 2019 JUNIOR LIBRARY GUILD SELECTION!

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Category: Blood Mountain / Tags: , ,

“Reading Junky” Blog Reviews BLOOD MOUNTAIN

May 3, 2019 / / No comments

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“A fast-paced,
action-packed story
that is filled with intense moments
and well-researched outdoor information
. . . Preller nails it.”

— The Reading Junky

 

 

My thanks go out to Sally Kruger, i.e. The Reading Junky, for giving such a thoughtful review to my upcoming book, BLOOD MOUNTAIN. It’s a terrific, well-written blog, so please check it out. Now back to that review I was telling you about . . . 
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Grace, Carter, and their father set out to hike Blood Mountain, but their plans quickly change. Dad just isn’t going as quickly as the kids would like so they take off ahead with the family dog, Sitka. When their father begins feeling chest pains and other scary heart attack related symptoms, the kids are too far away to give him the help he needs. 
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Excited by the sights and sounds, Grace and Carter keep hiking on. Their difficulties begin when Grace slips and slides down a cliff. When she lands, she has an ugly gash on one leg, a possibly broken ankle on the other, and most likely several broken ribs. Leaving the dog to guard Grace, Carter heads back to find their father and get help.
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What follows is a breathless adventure involving a dangerous mud bog, an escaped mountain lion, and a mountain man intent on keeping his whereabouts unknown. A local ranger becomes involved in the rescue. When she learns two kids are missing on the mountain, she is determined they won’t be lost on her watch.
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In BLOOD MOUNTAIN author James Preller tells a fast-paced, action-packed story that is filled with intense moments and well-researched outdoor information. From the detailed description of the father’s heart attack symptoms to facts about mountain terrain/wildlife, and knowledge of traumatized veterans, Preller nails it. Readers will be pulled from start to finish hoping for a satisfying conclusion.
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Category: Blood Mountain / Tags: , , , , ,

Brutally Honest 93-Year-Old Critic Raves About BLOOD MOUNTAIN: “I’m Sure It’s Wonderful.”

April 28, 2019 / / No comments

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Thanks, Mom!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Category: Blood Mountain, Family / Tags: , , ,

One Step Closer to . . . BLOOD MOUNTAIN

April 1, 2019 / / No comments

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It’s always exciting when a package arrives from my editor, Liz. A padded envelope filled with 6-7 ARCs. Advance Reader’s Copies. And so we move in fits and bursts toward that seemingly impossible day . . . a real book. October, 2019. 

It’s going to happen. And on this day, holding an ARC in my hands, it feels more real than ever.

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Here’s the briefest of samples from page 30, at the end of DAY ONE:

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They lie down, huddle close, sharing the small emergency blanket. Head to head, toe to toe. The ground is, amazingly, not terrible. Sitka moves off to a nearby spot, curls up. After a few minutes, at Grace’s invitation, the tired dog presses into them for warmth.

A crack of thunder makes the earth shake. The rain comes down harder, but at least they are somewhat protected. A few giants of the woods fall in the night, great branches crashing to the ground. Grace reaches out of hold Carter’s hand.

“I’m glad we have the knife,” she whispers. “Try to sleep.”

Carter is too exhausted to answer. He gives a soft moan. In his heart, he feels that it’s going to be bad. Something awful, something terrible, is going to happen. And there’s nothing he can do about it. He lies awake, staring into the darkness. He senses a twitch in Grace’s leg. His sister has fallen asleep. 

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Category: Blood Mountain / Tags: , ,
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