Free Kindle Book--Perfect for reading aloud during the holiday season!

CATTYWAMPUS CHRISTMAS, Christmas comedy novella, is free for the Kindle for a week starting Wednesday, December 7. Like a lot of my short mystery fiction, it's also set in the tiny Texas town of "Nameless," although with some new characters.

http://amzn.to/2hgMXLF

When Dorothy Norton (Dot) returns to her parent's home for the holidays and gets bonked on the head by a Volkswagen-wielding neighbor, all sorts of strange things are set in motion. From a traditional Christmas turned upside down to an errant computer to a Santa Claus that is not your typical ho-ho-ho jolly old elf, this hilarious tale will make you laugh out loud and maybe even lose a bit of your eggnog. This "clean read" is perfect for reading aloud during the holiday season.

The book is based on one of my prize-winning young adult plays. Think the Wizard of Oz meets Lost in Space meets Monty Python. With no murders. :-)

The Story of this Novella

This story was based on a play I wrote for a competition a few years ago. I wanted to pay homage to the Wizard of Oz, the legend of Santa Claus, and my love for old toys—not to mention play around with a few really bad puns and some pop-cultural references I hope my readers will enjoy. It finally came together in an award-winning play titled "Dot and the (Amazing Technicolor) Quest for the Real Santa Claus." Ever since then, I've wanted to turn it into a novella. While I was editing the manuscript, the characters got busy and expanded the story a bit.

I hope you enjoy the heart-warming trip to the North Pole as Dot takes a journey of the imagination with Cattywampus Horatio Bonaparte, the black cat, Bo Raggley, the stuffed rag doll, Robot and the Christmas Fairy.

By the way, as a young woman, I did make a stuffed doll named "Bo Raggley" for one of my nieces. As far as I know, that doll never talked. But she was always interested in fashion. ;-)

Thanks for looking, and happy holidays!

bobbi c.
http://bobbichukran.com

CATTYWAMPUS CHRISTMAS now available in paperback!

 

Yes, the paperback has snowflakes! Now available in trade paperback. Order today in plenty of time for Christmas!

https://www.createspace.com/5116715

A Poem about Thanksgiving. . .and Christmas

Dear Reader-Friends,

A few years back, I wrote a Thanksgiving poem. It's recently been unearthed here in the Cave du Chukran and I thought I'd post it here. Ironically, one of the themes of my new Christmas novella, CATTYWAMPUS CHRISTMAS, is all about WANTING stuff. I thought I'd share the poem with you. Feel free to share, but please give credit to the author, me. :-)

Thankful for ALL my readers!

Thanksgiving Cancelled for Lack of Interest

Christmas wreaths on Credit Union wall

decked with colors never seen in nature.

First week of November, plastic needles

wilting in the hot Texas sun.

Halloween décor still hangs

from trees two blocks away.

Children rush to their parents,

chatter with glee and clamor about

what they WANT for Christmas.

Parents smile and take out

scraps of paper or phones and

take it all down, nodding,

with promises of e-mailing it to Santa.

Straight from sugar shock

to shopping excess

with no pause in between

for gratitude or thankfulness.

Has Thanksgiving

been cancelled,

due to lack of interest?

Copyright © 2014 by Bobbi A. Chukran

Planning Ahead. . .Christmas Novella Cover Reveal!

New Christmas novella, in edits now...cover reveal!

CATTYWAMPUS CHRISTMAS--A Fantasy Adventure, is based on one of my award-winning plays for young people, Dot & the (Amazing Technicolor) Quest for the Real Santa Clause.

It's all about a crazy Texas family, a runaway inflatable Santa Clause, a little accident that leads to an adventure, toys that come to life and what happens when Santa has to outsource to Mars. (Mars? Really? Yep.)

Oh, and it's all about family, and holiday traditions.  Hope you like it.

Publication Date: November 10.