Hello you all!
Today I have the honor to have author E. Katherine Kottaras and her fantastic books here on the blog! And not only that... since I love myths and legends, I had the chance to ask her what her favorite myth was. And guess what? It's a great one.
Please check it out below, and if you still haven't read any of her books, what are you waiting for?
The Author
E. Katherine Kottaras is originally from Chicago, but now she writes and teaches in the Los Angeles area. She holds an M.A. in English from the University of California, Irvine and teaches writing and literature at Pasadena City College.
She is the author of the YA contemporary novel, HOW TO BE BRAVE (2015) and the forthcoming THE BEST POSSIBLE ANSWER (2016), both from St. Martin’s Press/Griffin Teen.
Katherine's Favorite Myth
My father was an ancient Greek. At least that’s what I told Mrs. Schlagger, my first-grade teacher. I told her that he a hero who was thousands of years old and descended from Zeus and Artemis and Demeter. She laughed when I said it, but I didn’t understand why.
It was all true, every word. I knew it was true because every night he read to me from D’Aulaires Book of Greek Myths and told me that these were our stories. I curled into his shoulder as he read about my history, our history.
The truth was that he was near sixty with wrinkled skin and gray hair. When we were out, strangers asked him how old his granddaughter was. He had to explain that I was his daughter, and they always gave him a funny look.
The truth was also that we were descended from the ancients. I had visited my father’s village in Greece. It was nestled in the Artemisian Mountains and held an original Temple to Demeter underneath its church. The tale of Demeter and Persephone was my favorite. I didn’t know what a pomegranate looked like, but I knew, firsthand, where these goddesses lived. They were my ancestors.
The truth was also that my father was a hero.
He had fought the Nazis in World War II.
He had emigrated to the U.S. without knowing a word of English.
Later in his life, when I was four years old, he had fought cancer and won.
Then later, a violent and random mugging, subsequent heart issues, a struggling business, and more.
He taught me to be proud and brave and strong, to keep moving forward, no matter the foe.
An emotional contemporary YA novel about love, loss, and having the courage to chase the life you truly want.Reeling from her mother's death, Georgia has a choice: become lost in her own pain, or enjoy life right now, while she still can. She decides to start really living for the first time and makes a list of fifteen ways to be brave - all the things she's wanted to do but never had the courage to try. As she begins doing the things she's always been afraid to do - including pursuing her secret crush, she discovers that life doesn't always go according to plan. Sometimes friendships fall apart and love breaks your heart. But once in a while, the right person shows up just when you need them most - and you learn that you're stronger and braver than you ever imagined.
AP Exams – checkSAT test – check
College Application – check
Date the wrong guy and ruin everything you’ve spent your whole life working for– check
Ultra-high-achiever
Viviana Rabinovich-Lowe has always had a plan—and no room to be
anything less than perfect. But her quest for perfection comes toa
screeching halt when her boyfriend leaks racy pictures of her to the
entire school. Making matters worse, her parents are getting divorced
and now her perfect family is falling apart. For the first time, Viv
feels like a complete and utter failure.
Then she gets a job working at the community pool, where she meets a new group of friends who know nothing about her past. That includes Evan, a gorgeous guy who makes her want to do something she never thought she’d do again: trust. For the first time in her life, Viv realizes she can finally be whoever she wants. But who is that? While she tries to figure it out, she learns something they never covered in her AP courses: that it’s okay to be less than perfect, because it’s our imperfections that make us who we are.
Then she gets a job working at the community pool, where she meets a new group of friends who know nothing about her past. That includes Evan, a gorgeous guy who makes her want to do something she never thought she’d do again: trust. For the first time in her life, Viv realizes she can finally be whoever she wants. But who is that? While she tries to figure it out, she learns something they never covered in her AP courses: that it’s okay to be less than perfect, because it’s our imperfections that make us who we are.
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