We will definitely be making the MOOSE out of life in this new year!

Out with the old, in with the new...

here's our 2014 wish for you!

Looking forward to a new year with great new possibilities!

Hats off to Sacred Heart School for their superb performance of The Moose at the Manger!

 

 Usually, the moose take turns writing the blog posts here, but they were happy to let me, Lisa,  say a few words today.

 I must give a HUGE shout out to Sacred Heart School for their beautiful rendition of The Moose at the Manger.  Everyone  - teachers and students alike - put in hours of practice to put on a flawless Christmas program for their school community and families.  I was honored to be asked to read my story while the students sang fitting Christmas songs throughout the book.  It was very touching to see the students recreate the manger scene and when they had Muse join in and stand next to the donkey looking at baby Jesus with respect and reverence, love certainly surrounded all those who were there.  The pageant was performed in church which certainly brought home the true meaning of Christmas.

Thank you for bringing The Moose at the Manger to life!

I saw many people with cameras...if anyone could share their photos/video,  I would be very proud to showcase them here!

Merry ChristMoose!

From all of us - to all of you

Merry ChristMOOSE!

While we always have lots of fun, we really do know the reason for the season!

May you all have a Blessed Christmas!

What a nice surprise!

I received a message the other day from newspaper columnist Kevin Bradley telling me to keep an eye out in The Shopper because he wrote a PART 2 about my books.  I was pleasantly surprised.  As Bradley writes, " Giving a child the gift of a book can help them develop a lifelong interest in literature, expanding their imagination and stimulating their mind."  I couldn't have said it better myself.  Thanks Kevin!

Original Article in The Shopper written by Kevin Bradley - 
http://www.shoppersource.com/articles/2013/12/10/columnists/bradley/120413-bradley.txt

"Chicago School Teacher, Lisa Tortorello first ventured into the world of writing with a memoir (My Hero, My Ding) detailing the special relationship she had with her grandfather growing up. Her subsequent inspirations have developed into a children’s book series with two installments published and a third in the thought process.

Lisa has long loved the moose. She and her husband, Charlie, share their home with dozens of the creatures in stuffed animal form, providing plenty of ‘moosespiration’ (inspiration derived from moose) for her storybooks. Mark the Missing Moose and The Moose at the Manger are written for children in kindergarten to grade four or five, although Lisa says, “Sometimes my sixth graders also like the books and their message.”

The Moose at the Manger is a Christmas story, published in June of 2012, featuring a moose lost in the forest who follows a Christmas star and sees Jesus. Mark the Missing Moose is inspired by real life events, but toned down to children’s level. It is a story to help kids understand dealing with a loss. These titles are available at www.amazon.com, or by purchasing signed copies direct from the author, available at her moose blog, musethemoose.blogspot.com.

After Lisa has completed a story and self-edited; she then submits it to her publisher, Tate Publishing, who edits the story for grammar or content issues, returning the manuscript to Lisa for revisions. Following the editing and revision process, Lisa is paired with one of Tate’s illustrators, who, Lisa says, “Have done a wonderful job of bringing my stories to life.”

Lisa also has a marketing representative, assigned by Tate, who helps find local events for her to do book signings and helps her market her books on the internet; but the reality is: In today’s world of decreased marketing budgets among publishers, the bulk of this duty lies with the author. This is why Lisa ranks marketing highest on her current priority list as an author. She sells more paperbacks than electronic editions, and mostly during face to face events.

Giving a child the gift of a book can help them develop a lifelong interest in literature, expanding their imagination and stimulating their mind. A signed book can make the gift a little extra special. Helping kids develop good habits and find inspiration is a lasting and positive influence. Questions or comments may be sent to kevinbradley@columnist.com. Good luck, K.B."

There is just one slight addition to this article - as my regular readers know, the amount of moose we have is well over a dozen dozen- 

This is where my "moosepiration"' comes from!

If you missed Part 1, you can read it on The Shopper website by clicking this link -

http://www.shoppersource.com/articles/2013/12/10/columnists/bradley/111313-bradley.txt

One week left...

Since this is the season of giving, I thought I'd continue with a BOGO Sale from now until December 17th!

Buy one copy of The Moose at the Manger children's book and get a coloring book FREE!

Buy this one...

Get this one FREE...
(Cute li'l moose not included.)

The BOGO sale is over, but you could still purchase all my books for only $1.00 shipping.  Click on link below for all other deals!  

Lisa Tortorello Christmas Book Deals - Click HERE!

From our family to yours...

We really appreciate your support and interest in everything moose!

We wish you the most blessed and happy Thanksgiving!

We love the way this bird thinks...

Enjoy your day!

Our Moo is in the News!

Gene Cittadino and his granddaughter, Lisa Tortorello, were two peas in a pod, best friends, soul mates, and partners in pranks. Although their ages set them apart, their minds seemed as one. In fact their relationship was so beautifully spectacular that Lisa awoke from a dream knowing he was passing, although they were several hundred miles apart at the time. Their minds were melded as one, thus cascading a clairvoyant message, momentarily, across the country.

Gene was a WWII veteran and local businessman. For thirty years (from about 1961 to his passing in 1991) he owned and operated Deno’s Jewelry at 18053 Torrence Avenue in Lansing, Illinois. Lisa grew up in Chicago, but she and her sister spent much time at Grandfather’s store, her first job, where customers might come in to find them playing pranks on each other. Customers also noticed they would affectionately jokingly call each other “Ding”, short for ding-a-ling. That was part of their fun. Lisa learned many valuable lessons from her grandfather, such as: Always make time to have fun; even mundane tasks can be made fun; and memories are a precious gift.

After Grandfather passed away, Lisa began taking notes, writing down in notebooks chronicling all the silly, fun times they had together. She continued this for several years, but not until 2008 did her ‘eureka moment’ hit, when she said, “I think I really have something here.” She then developed her notes into a manuscript. In 2009, she researched Tate Publishing on the internet and with the Better Business Bureau.

Click link to read the rest of the article-
http://www.shoppersource.com/articles/2013/11/19/columnists/bradley/111313-bradley.txt

Thanks Kevin for such a fine article! It definitely gets our seal of approval!

Two Local Events...Mark your calendar today!

Love to shop?

Then the Vendor Days at the Southeast Sportsmen's Club 

on November 24, 2013 is for you!

Love Music?  

Love Christmas?

  Then Musichorale's 67th Noel Concert 

December 8, 2013 

 'Twas the Night Before Christmas is a must-see show!

For more information about the concert or to purchase tickets on-line click the link below -

Musichorale Information and Tickets

And don't forget to...

Everyday should be...

Veteran's Day!  

All of us moose want to send out a great big American THANK YOU to all of our veterans.  Our Moo tells her students every year that she is grateful to our military men and women. We get to enjoy our freedom everyday here at home because men and women of the United States are around the world protecting us at all times. 

From the earliest days of our history to the present day, we SALUTE all of you who have served and do serve our country.

You definitely get our...

(Young Reviewers (Part 3 in the series)

Who better than children to write reviews for a new children's book. I appreciate the time that all these young reviewers made to read Mark the Missing Moose and then write a review.  

Here is what some of our reviewers have to say...

'This was a wonderful read that had a great lesson everyone of all ages could learn from. '

Brenna

'I like the book. It was touching and I learned it's ok to talk about being sad.'

JD

Mark the Missing Moose was good.  It reminded me of how I lost my dog.  I was sad and mad.  But I learned something from this book.  I learned it's okay to miss my dog.  Sometimes we tell stories and laugh about all the stuff she did.  That makes me smile.  My mom is helping me feel better and she said someday we'll get another dog. 

Jeremiah Mawhinney

Book Reviewer Jeremiah

Young Reviewers (Part 2 in the series)

Who better than children to write reviews for a new children's book. I appreciate the time that all these young reviewers made to read Mark the Missing Moose and then write a review.  

Here is what some of our reviewers have to say...

I thought the message in the book was an exceptionally good one for reminding people that it is important to talk about your feelings.  Mark the Missing Moose is a great story for helping children (or even adults) who need help during hard times.  It teaches them to talk about their feelings because talking about how you feel really helps remind you that others are there for you and eventually things will start to look and feel better. While the missing moose is only a stuffed animal, the book can be used to address the feelings associated with any type of loss.

Sydney Potpora (age 12)

Book Reviewer Sydney

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Well, to start off, this was an amazing book!  In this story, Joe was Jimmy's friend and cheered him up.  Joe said that when he lost his hamster, Buddy, he was angry and sad just like Jimmy.  But Joe's mom told her son that it was okay to be sad or mad.  In this case, I too agree with Joe's mom.  Many kids are sad because a friend moved away or because they lose something.  I was once one of those kids.  So by reading this book, it did not only make me realize that it's okay to be sad, but that everybody goes through this.  Thanks to Mrs. Tortorello, children can now open up and let out emotions, some that they were afraid to let out before.

Cecilia Solis (age 13)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mark the Missing Moose made me think of how I would feel if something happened to my favorite stuffed bunny named  Donut.   It made me sad and angry that Mark the Moose was eaten by the dog, but I was happy that Jimmy found a new friend at the end of the book.  I think Mark the Missing Moose would be a good story to share with children who feel sad because they lost something or someone they love.

Allison Potpora (age 9)

Book Reviewer Allison

Release of Mark the Missing Moose means extra deals for you!

I am excited to announce the release of  Mark the Missing Moose! With the book's release,  the moose and I decided that YOU deserve some extra perks.  From now through October 31st, anyone who purchases a copy of Mark the Missing Moose directly from me, will also get a FREE Moose at the Manger coloring book (which is great for Christmas)! That's right...two books for the price of one!  

For every purchase of Mark the Missing Moose -

Name on autograph

You will get one Moose at the Manger coloring book FREE- 

Remember, the offer is good through October 31, 2013!  

Just place the order using the PayPal link above (or the one on the side panel of this blog).

Young Reviewers (Part 1)

Who better than children to write reviews for a new children's book. I appreciate the time that all these young reviewers made to read Mark the Missing Moose and then write a review.  

Here is what some of our reviewers have to say...

I liked how much happiness Jimmy got from Mark.
Brianna, age 6

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I thought the story was a little sad. But I liked how you made a point that even if you lose something you should always be happy that you had time with it.

Mikayla, age 10

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This book is awesome, pretty good, sad and happy.  I love, not liked, loved the pictures. My favorite one was of Jimmy holding Moose in his lap and showing him off to his friends. Oh, and I hated the mean dog.
Devin, age 6

Book Reviewer - Devin

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mark the Missing Moose is a good book. It's very sad, but entertaining. It teaches you a lesson that it's a good idea to talk to someone if you're sad.  I would recommend this book to all my friends.

Denny, age 11

Book Reviewer - Denny

Enter to win a FREE copy of Mark the Missing Moose (October 1-18)!

I am so excited to announce the first GIVEAWAY for my newest children's book

Mark the Missing Moose

 The official release of my book is October 22nd, but why wait when you can enter to win a FREE copy now!

This is a Goodreads Giveaway and it  runs from midnight October 1st through midnight October 18th.

Just click on the Goodreads link where it says

 ENTER TO WIN!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Mark the Missing Moose

by Lisa A. Tortorello

Giveaway ends October 18, 2013.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Please feel free to share this with others.  The more the merrier!

Thanks!

Celebrate the first day of fall!

People have mixed feelings when the seasons change, but we always look at the change of seasons as the start of something new and fun!

 Fall brings us new and beautiful colors!

 Fall brings us cool weather (and new fur).

 Fall brings us fun times as we get to play in the leaves.

Fall brings us crisp mornings and bright sunshine...and that special "fall smell".

And it's always important to fall into a good book!

Stay tuned for a fun Fall Giveaway for Mark the Missing Moose to celebrate its upcoming release!

Happy Fall Y'all!

Did you know moose like to read?

As domesticated moose, we like to do a lot of things that people like to do. We love to watch TV.  One of our favorite shows is Mountain Men.  It's amazing!  Real live human being choosing to live off the land in weather that can be brutal - hunting and foraging just to survive.

Even their disclaimer at the beginning of the show is -

"Man is not at the top of the food chain in the mountains.  To survive, he must do what is necessary."

What is necessary is to go inside (where he is at the top of the food chain) and get a pizza delivered!  

But we digress...

Besides watching TV, we love to read books.  Our Moo's books are our favorite,of course, but we do love to read books by other authors too. Recently we finished a book titled HEART OF A HERO.  We knew it was about a dog, but it was also told from the dog's point of view which is totally cool. (We thought only moose knew how to talk to one another.)

We all discussed what we liked about the book - which took a really long time since there are 266 of us, and then Priscilla typed it up on the computer.

We'd like to share it with you now.  

What a nice story.  Heart of a Hero by Billy Tiner was a heart-warming story that gives an insight into WWII and the pain and difficulties some of the soldiers had to endure, while sharing the story of Lady, the Irish Setter.  There was enough information given to help children understand about the war without getting so detailed that it would be difficult for them

We don't know why, but we didn't expect the story to be told from the dog's perspective, but we were quite impressed.  We also liked that the character of Lady was based on a real dog that served as a messenger dog in WWII.  We think people who love animals, have an interest in history, or those who just enjoy a good story will certainly enjoy this one!

This book definitely has our seal of approval!