Monday, November 22, 2021

Book Blast and Giveaway: Spell Sweeper by Lee Edward Födi

Welcome to my stop on the book blast for Spell Sweeper by Lee Edward Födi. This book blast was organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. On my stop, I have an excerpt from the book. There's also the blast wide giveaway for a chance to win a Spell Sweeper prize pack. Be sure to visit the other stops on the book blast for more content. Enjoy!
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Title: Spell Sweeper
Author: Lee Edward Födi
Publisher: HarperCollins
Publication Date: November 30th 2021
Print Length: 368 pages
Genre: Middle Grade Fantasy
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There's nothing magical about wizard school

. . . at least, not for Cara Moone.

Most wizard kids spend their days practicing spells and wielding wands, but Cara? She’s on the fast track to becoming a MOP (a.k.a. Magical Occurrence Purger). You see, when a real wizard casts a spell, it leaves behind a residue called spell dust—which, if not disposed of properly, can cause absolute chaos in the nonmagical world. It’s a MOP’s job to clean up the mess.

And no one makes more of a mess than Harlee Wu. Believed to be the Chosen One, destined to save the magical world, Harlee makes magic look easy. Which makes her Cara’s sworn nemesis. Or she would be, if she even knew Cara existed.

Then one of Harlee’s spells leaves something downright dangerous behind it: a rift in the fabric of magic itself. And when more rifts start to appear around the school, all in places Harlee has recently used magic, Cara is pretty sure the so-called “Chosen One” isn’t going to save the world. She’s going to destroy it.

It will take more than magic to clean up a mess this big. Fortunately, messes are kind of Cara’s thing.

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BOOK TRAILER:
Watch the book trailer by clicking here or by watching below.
 
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EXCERPT:
* * *
How magic works
(and why we have to clean it up)

* * *


In books and movies, wizards stroll around, flicking their wands, turning people into toads or zapping recalcitrant dragons into submission. In reality, it’s not that simple.

Magic is messy.

It’s like when you squeeze toothpaste onto your toothbrush—there’s always a bit that ends up on your brush handle, the counter, or dripping down your chin. Magic works the same way.

The first thing you learn in wizard school is that there is a Field of Magical Matter. When wizards want to perform a spell (or, if you want to get all official about it, a Magical Occurrence), they have to access the Field. Basically, they have to squeeze a giant magical toothpaste tube. And, like I said, it’s messy, always leaving something behind. We usually refer to it as spell dust, but it’s essentially leftover enchanted residue. How much depends on the Magical Occurrence. A wizard utters a simple spell? You just circle your broom around her feet and go for lunch. Someone magically relocates, let’s say for the sake of argument, a giant statue of the school’s founder? You better strap on your full spell sweeper kit because it’s going to be a loooong day.

But you do need to strap on the kit, because spell dust is definitely not the sort of thing you want to leave sitting around for very long. It causes ALL sorts of problems.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Lee Edward Födi is an author, illustrator, and specialized arts educator—or, as he likes to think of himself, a daydreaming expert. He is the author of several books for children, including The Secret of Zoone and the Kendra Kandlestar series. He is a co-founder of the Creative Writing for Children Society (CWC), a not-for-profit program that helps kids write their own books. He has the joy of leading workshops for kids in Canada, the US, Korea, China, Thailand, and other places here and there. Lee lives in Vancouver, where he shares a creative life with his wife Marcie and son Hiro.

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GIVEAWAY:
Lee Edward Födi will be awarding a Spell Sweeper prize pack: Hand-made miniature broom, hand-made magical creature egg, spell bottle, and bookmarks to a randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter. Good luck!
(US only.)

(All the Ups and Downs is not responsible for this giveaway, its entries, or the prizes. Goddess Fish Promotions assumes all responsibility for this giveaway.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

33 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. I was going for a Ghostbusters goes to wizard school vibe (including a main character who is pretty dysfunctional).

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  2. Replies
    1. Me, too! The artwork is done by the incredible Maike Plenzke. She perfectly captured my spell sweeping crew.

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  3. Replies
    1. I hope you enjoy my sassy and dysfunctional spell sweeping crew.

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  4. Thank you for hosting! I posted some pics of the gift pack (Spell Sweeper swag!) on my Instagram feed.

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  5. Replies
    1. I agree! It's illustrated by Maike Plenzke, who did an AMAZING job of bringing my characters to life.

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  6. Thank you so much for hosting! Do you have any advice for new writers?

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    1. Well, for kids, I alway say to be patient and just to work on improving your craft. This means exploring different styles of writing, trying out different points of view and perspectives . . . basically doing a lot of fun and creative activities to broaden the skill set.

      But if you're interested in getting published specifically, I always advise to get clear about what you want from publishing. Some people want to get published to be rich and famous. Others want to simply share their work. There are a lot of publishing options out there, so knowing what YOU want can really help you pick the right path.

      I also recommend finding organizations to join where you can meet with and work with other writers. The moral support is worth more than I can quantify, but you can also learn a lot of things related to craft.

      I hope that helps!

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  7. My daughter wants to read this book. Love the cover!

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    Replies
    1. I hope your daughter enjoys it! It will be available as an audio book, too. And I agree, the cover is amazing--it's by Maike Plenzke.

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  8. This book looks very interesting. Thanks for the great giveaway!

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  9. This book sounds amazing and I love the cover

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    Replies
    1. Thank you! The cover art is done by Maike Plenzke; she perfectly captured my crew of spell sweepers.

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  10. Replies
    1. I live in Canada, so we have our Thanksgiving in October! So, sadly, not a holiday week for us!

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  11. I would like to give this book to my grandson for christmas-he saw this and he thinks he just might like this book-way to go !

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    Replies
    1. I hope he enjoys it! And I think the Spell Sweeper prize pack would make a great accompanying gift; good luck with the draw!

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  12. What is your favourite dish for Thanksgiving?

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    Replies
    1. Well, if we're not counting turkey, it's Brussels sprouts. There actually isn't a vegetable on Planet Earth that I don't like!

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  13. Replies
    1. I'm more of a coffee drinker, but I love a good licorice tea.

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  14. sounds like a fun one

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  15. Did you have a good Thanksgiving?

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