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Magdalena Ball

Magdalena Ball

About

Magdalena Ball runs TheCompulsive Reader. She is the author of the poetry books RepulsionThrust and Quark Soup,the novels Black Cow and Sleep Before Evening, a nonfiction book The Art ofAssessment, and, in collaboration with Carolyn Howard-Johnson, Deeper Intothe Pond, Blooming Red,Cherished Pulse, She WoreEmerald Then, and Imagining theFuture. She also runs a radio show, The Compulsive Reader Talks. Find out moreabout Magdalena at http://www.magdalenaball.com

The Sons of Godwine: Part Two of The Last Great Saxon Earls

The Sons of Godwine: Part Two of The Last Great Saxon Earls

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<p>Emerging from the long shadow cast by his formidable father, Harold Godwineson showed himself to be a worthy successor to the Earldom of Wessex. In the following twelve years, he became the King's most trusted advisor, practically taking the reins of government into his own hands. And on Edward the Confessor's death, Harold Godwineson mounted the throne—the first king of England not of royal blood. Yet Harold was only a man, and his rise in fortune was not blameless. Like any person aspiring to power, he made choices he wasn't particularly proud of. Unfortunately, those closest to him sometimes paid the price of his fame.<br /><br />This is a story of Godwine's family as told from the viewpoint of Harold and his younger brothers. Queen Editha, known for her Vita Ædwardi Regis, originally commissioned a work to memorialize the deeds of her family, but after the Conquest historians tell us she abandoned this project and concentrated on her husband, the less dangerous subject. In THE SONS OF GODWINE and FATAL RIVALRY, I am telling the story as it might have survived had she collected and passed on the memoirs of her tragic brothers.<br /><br />This book is part two of The Last Great Saxon Earls series. Book one, GODWINE KINGMAKER, depicted the rise and fall of the first Earl of Wessex who came to power under Canute and rose to preeminence at the beginning of Edward the Confessor's reign. Unfortunately, Godwine's misguided efforts to champion his eldest son Swegn recoiled on the whole family, contributing to their outlawry and Queen Editha's disgrace. Their exile only lasted one year and they returned victorious to London, though it was obvious that Harold's career was just beginning as his father's journey was coming to an end.<br /><br />Harold's siblings were all overshadowed by their famous brother; in their memoirs we see remarks tinged sometimes with admiration, sometimes with skepticism, and in Tostig's case, with jealousy. We see a Harold who is ambitious, self-assured, sometimes egocentric, imperfect, yet heroic. His own story is all about Harold, but his brothers see things a little differently. Throughout, their observations are purely subjective, and witnessing events through their eyes gives us an insider’s perspective.<br /><br />Harold was his mother's favorite, confident enough to rise above petty sibling rivalry but Tostig, next in line, was not so lucky. Harold would have been surprised by Tostig's vindictiveness, if he had ever given his brother a second thought. And that was the problem. Tostig's love/hate relationship with Harold would eventually destroy everything they worked for, leaving the country open to foreign conquest. This subplot comes to a crisis in book three of the series, FATAL RIVALRY.</p>

Story Behind The Book

Welcome to the world of consumerism. There are a lot of things to buy. Advertisers want your money. Authors want you to read their books. Film-makers want you to see their films. Music publishers want you to buy their CDs. The consumer needs reviews to help them choose where to spend their hard earned money. The advertiser need reviews to help the consumer choose their products. Everything for sale is open to review, and reviews are in hot demand. The combination of free review material, and the opportunity to get paid for your opinions has made reviewing a very sought after career option. However it isn't as easy to write a good review as it looks. The Art of Assessment: How to Review Anything addresses this market niche, and provides an immediately available, and easy to read guide available in .pdf form directly from this site. If you love to read, listen to music, attend concerts, go to restaurants, or have children, and can write, you can become a reviewer, and earn money while getting lots of free review material. If you've always wanted to be a reviewer, but didn't know where to start, The Art of Assessment is the best, and only guide you need. If you are already a reviewer, The Art of Assessment will help you hone your craft, discover new niches for your work, and venues for expanding your profession.

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Reviews

<strong><strong><font size="2" color="#000080"><font face="Verdana">&quot;All in all, The Art of Assessment was very comprehensive and is definitely worth purchasing if you have any interest in combining obtaining free material (perhaps even pay!) with sharing your considered opinion. It would also be a great resource for any institute of higher learning that has Journalism or Non-Fiction as part of its coursework.&quot; </font></font><font size="2" color="#000080"><font face="Verdana"> Renée Barber, <a href="http://justlocal-book.blogspot.com/"> http://justlocal-book.blogspot.com/</a><br /><br /></font></font></strong></strong><strong><strong><font size="4"><font size="3"><font size="5"><font size="2"><font color="#000080" face="Verdana">&quot;The Art of Assessment is one book that every beginning or even seasoned reviewer should have the chance to read...This is not a straight-line how-to book. It is so much more. Ms. Ball goes into great detail and lists many resources the reviewer can use on daily basis. She also lets us know that there is a need for reviewers in just about everything; book, products, secret shoppers, music, etc. I have been doing book reviews for over a year now and thought I knew exactly what needed to be done for a good review. The Art of Assessment has proved to me I still have a lot to learn. If you are serious about wanting to be a good reviewer this is one book you will be happy to read. <em>Kim Draper, Book Review Club<br /></em></font></font></font></font></font></strong></strong><strong><strong><font size="4"><font size="3"><font size="5"><font size="2"><font color="#000080" face="Verdana"><font color="#000080" face="Verdana"><br />Your book was my major influence that led me to my position with Romantic Times Book Club magazine! What I like best about your book is that it is user friendly. It will be a major help to my up-and-coming reviewers! <em>Katherine J. Turcotte, Reviewer, Romantic Times Book Club Magazine, Road to Romance Reviews, Teacher: How to Become a Published Book Reviewer</em></font></font></font></font></font></font></strong></strong><br /><br /><strong><strong><font size="4"><font size="3"><font size="5"><font size="2"><font color="#000080" face="Verdana"><font color="#000080" face="Verdana"><font color="#000080" face="Verdana">&quot;If I was a new reviewer, this would be a great self guide book that would help me along the way, and I highly recommend this book to help writers. <em>Danielle Naibert, The Book Reviewer Site</em> <br /><br /></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></strong></strong><strong><strong><font size="4"><font size="3"><font size="5"><font size="2"><font color="#000080" face="Verdana"><font color="#000080" face="Verdana"><font color="#000080" face="Verdana">&quot;The Art of Assessment doesn't just tell how to become a reviewer; it teaches basic writing skills such as the revision process. Ball offers a wide variety of review resources and organizes her material very well...The Art of Assessment's aim is to teach how to review anything, and it does that. Ball's ideas are very developed in that she covers what to review, how to review, and where to review. She has covered all the areas which makes for a useful book...No potential book reviewer should be without this book.&quot; <em>Niki Taylor, Write Book Reviews</em> </font></font></font></font></font></font></font></strong></strong><br /><br /><strong><strong><font size="4"><font size="3"><font size="5"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><font color="#000080" face="Verdana">&quot;If you dream of reviewing, you couldn't do better.&quot; <em><br /> Carolyn Howard-Johnson, Reviewer and award winning author<br /><br /></em></font></span></span></font></font></font></font></strong></strong><strong><strong><font size="4"><font size="3"><font size="5"><font size="2"><font color="#000080" face="Verdana"><font color="#000080" face="Verdana"><font color="#000080" face="Verdana">&quot;Who better to teach the art of objective opinion than someone actively working in the industry? Back away from your keyboards for the moment as there is a great deal to learn before you're likely to receive a cheque...if you are a consumer and you can write and would like to make a difference then &quot;The Art of Assessment&quot; is a fantastic starting point.&quot; <em><br />Claudia Wieland, www.writelink.co.uk</em></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></strong></strong><br /><br />&quot;Maggie Ball gives straightforward help to those that would want the dread, thankless, assignment of being a book reviewer. There is enough information in this book to give just about anyone that can read a better-than-average good start. <p>Like a magician giving away trade secrets Maggie Ball walks a thin line of teaching, how-to and the secret wizardry behind providing the talented reader an income. Overall the E-book The Art of Assessment: How to Review Anything by Magdalena Ball is a must for anyone wanting to get into the hermit-style life of being a reviewer&quot; http://bookwired.com </p><br /><strong><strong><font size="4"><font size="3"><font size="5"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><em><br /></em></span></font></font></font></font></strong></strong>