I've Got the New Oprah Book Club Pick to Give Away On the Final Day of BBAW!

Today marks the final day of Book Blogger Appreciation Week and I want to extend a huge thank you to Amy at My Friend Amy -- she pulled together this stellar event that introduced so many of us bloggers to each other and to all you readers -- it's been so much fun!! Everyone should immediately add My Friend Amy to their blogroll, RSS feed and the like, it's a must read!

And for anyone who's saddened that the week has come to a close, you can rejoice that today Oprah announced her new Book Club Pick and it's the acclaimed and wonderful novel The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski which I first talked about here and I have copies to give away!

Here are some resources to accompany your reading of the novel along with Oprah:
A Special Message from Wroblewski to Oprah Readers
Browse Inside the Book
Visit David Wroblewski's Website
Reading Group Guide
Oprah's Official Book Club Site Dedicated to Edgar Sawtelle

I have ten copies of The Story of Edgar Sawtelle to give away along with ten Book Club Girl mousepads. Post a comment about what your favorite pet means, or meant, to you and you'll be entered to win. This giveaway will be open until noon EST on Sunday.

I'll announce all the winners from this week of giveaways as well as the winner of the Book Club Girl Book Club Hostess Survival Kit next week so tune in on Monday for that!

And don't forget our chat with Ann Patchett about Run next Wednesday night -- hey, maybe next week is going to be just as exciting as this one! :)

Comments

[Ruby]

My favorite pet is my ball python, Angel. He means the world to me becuase he has been with me for almost eleven years and he was purchased before I became a mom and a wife. It is that one last tie to the person I was before I became responsible for lives other than my own.

[Johnna]

My husband and I currently have 2 puppies and I cannot chose which is my favorite. They are both a great extension to our small family. Someday we will have children, but until then, we have Maddox and Lily to practice on. :)

[Ruth]

It's hard to choose a favorite because I've had so many pets. I think if I had to choose, it would be my first pet, my cat Timmy.

He was my mother's cat before I was born, and he was putting up with me while I was still in the womb. He always slept beside her at night, and when she was pregnant with me, I would kick him if he slept by her tummy.

When I was older, he would play Barbies with me. I had "Barbie's Island Fun Hut" and Timmy made the perfect "monster" to attack Barbie and Ken during their vacation. (I blame my mom's love of B movies for this. Either that, or I was a really warped kid...) Timmy was always game for dragging my dolls around by the hair, which amused me to no end.

He lived to the age of 18, passing away when I was 13 years old. I still miss him. He was a wonderful cat.

[annie]

We have two adorable dogs who are the sweetest and best companions I could ever wish for. Guido, the Maltese is a love and Bogie, the small mix is gentle, loving and plays with every toy imaginable. These sweethearts keep my days brighter and give me great pleasure and joy.

[Lisa C]

Fuji, my cat of 17 years, was my constant companion doing all the changes in my life. I picked her up from the Phoenix, AZ, pound when she was a kitten, and I was all alone in a new city. She's been with me through marriages(s), all three births of my children, and separations too, when she was lost for awhile and I was gone for a year also. She's so dear to me, that I couldn't let her go, even when she was very sick, I tried to keep her well to see if she'd get better. She never did and I let her go in a peaceful way. She's still close by though, in the backyard under the oak tree.

[Julie P.]

My favorite pet was my cocker spaniel, Buffy (named after Buffy on Family Affair!) My parents let me pick out Buffy when I was six years old because we were going to move after only living in Texas for a year. I picked the puniest dog, she was actually the runt of the litter; and she was one of my best friends for the next 13 years. She was a constant in my life when it seemed like all we ever did was move for my dad's job. I still think about her everytime I see a blonde cocker spaniel!

[softdrink]

We've never been much for pets, but I did have a little budgie when I was a kid. My grandfather called me Blondie, so my parents named the budgie Dagwood. Unfortunately, he died early one Thanksgiving morning. I like to think it was in protest of the upcoming meal.

[Dawn]

We had a tri-color collie when I was a kid. My parents got the dog when I was 6 weeks old, we grew up together. My mom says that she knew if I was at my friend's house or down at the school playground because the dog (Laddee) would wait in the corner of our yard with his nose pointed in the direction I had walked, and wait for me until I got home!

Now my husband and two sons have allergies to cats and dogs, so our "pet" is an anole (picture the Gekko lizard) that my son got in school as part of a science project!

[Gwendolyn]

I've had several cats over the years, and each was my favorite while they lived with me. Rosie came to me from a vet's where she had been dropped off in a really pathetic state. After a couple of months, when she was well enough, she was given to me and lived with me for 10 years. Then one day she disappeared, never to be seen again. I always think that she came out of nowhere and then went back to nowhere! Very mysterious. But we were good friends during her long stay with me! I'd love to read EDGAR SAWTELLE. I've heard nothing but good things about it. Thank you, Jen, for the chance, and thank you as well for all the hard work you put into this week (and every week!). I've learned a lot and had a bunch of fun to boot.
geebee.reads AT gmail DOT com

[Pam]

I've only had my dog, Pete, for a little over a year, but he's really the best! A little quirky and completely spoiled. He enjoys the spoiling as much as I do! He waits for me to get up in the morning to go outside and then likes to snuggle. A lot. He's by me all the time, I really like that.

[Sandra]

I have an English bull terrier named Frodo. He's all white with one perfect black eye patch and he's eleven years old now. I've had him since he was 3 months old.
He wants to touch you all the time, he sleeps touching your feet, or sharing my blanket when I'm sitting in a chair. He's been my companion since I've been disabled by poor health and he learned to be very gentle around me. Strangers think he might be fierce but he'd show a burglar where the good stuff is kept if you gave him a biscuit. lol
I've just reviewed this book on my blog but it was from the library. I really need to own a copy so I can read it again. Please enter me. Thank you.

[Kelly]

My favorite pet was my Gordon Setter, Mandy. She was really suppose to be my sisters, but she lost interest. I took care of her on my own and she was very protective of me. I miss her a lOT!

[Lauren]

My favorite pet is Pumpkin the cat, who lived with us for two years, but had to be shipped off to my mom's house because we just had a baby. Pumpkin was very adventurous and always kept us on our toes, like the couple of times she caught live mice and brought them into our house to chase around : )

[Julie E.]

I've had four cats over the past nine years; two of them got very ill and had to be put to sleep--very sad. But I have two others now, and they not only provide a certain amount of companionship, they're also hilarious. Any cat lover will tell you cats have very distinctive personalities, and the way they react to different circumstances can be very amusing to watch. So in addition to providing love, cuddling, and companionship, my cats have also given me many laughs over the years, at times when I really needed it.

[Jenne]

My favorite pet was my parent's dog, Scampi. He was a little dog with a big attitude. My father and the dog had been ill for about 6 months with the same symptoms. They would both go to their various doctors and specialists and come home and not get better. Finally about two months ago, Scampi had to be put down. My father was continuing to see specialist after specialist and they mentioned that the dog had died (he was very old at the time) and that my dad had much of the same symptoms. My parents then went home and as they came in the door, the doctors office called to say to get to the emergency room FAST. My father was then admitted into the hospital and they ran all the tests again and added a few more and found out that he was sicker than anyone thought and had a spleen infection. He is out of the hospital now and expects to be fully recovered by the holidays. Now the family has a catch phrase to say now if we think someone needs to take us seriously "But the dog is DEAD!"

[Meghan]

Well, I have only ever had one pet that was my own, a brown rabbit named Chocolate. He's 9 years old now and I chose him when I saw him standing up in the pet store when all the rabbits were sleeping, like he specifically wanted my attention. Even though he's my only little furry creature, he is certainly my favorite and I love him very much. I'm sad to see him fading as he's gotten on in years, but I'm trying to make his time left the best possible.

[melanie]

My favorite pet was my tabby, Marlo. She was not the brightest cat I ever had - the Siamese was - but she was the sweetest and most loving, and she saw me through a very difficult time in my life -

[Yasmin]

I want to WIN...lol. Okay since I've been married to hubby with kids...we've had a cat, two dogs, too many goldfish to count and hermit crabs. Hermit crabs were by far the easiest to care for...but my favorite pet is our dog Apooo (yep we named him after my book club/Web site...hehe). He's a shelty poodle (see how the name fits now) that we rescued from a girlfriend who was single with a weird work schedule. Her then boyfriend gave her a dog for Valentine's Day. Hmmm...you do not give someone a dog who doesn't stay home long enough to pay attention to the poor creature. When we got Apooo he was six months old, not housebroken and a little afraid of his shadow. But, I guess he knew that the home he was in previously was an 'abandoned, broken' one because he took to us immediately! That was 7 years ago and he is now so much apart of the family that when I'm travelling I call home and ask about everyone...including...you guessed it...Apooo. LOL. He has his own personality but loves to be cuddled and given attention. And he's also my little shadow...whereever I am in the house there he is with me. Including in bed with me when I'm reading books...or whenever my husband is not in it. Although there have been times when he didn't want to get off the bed for my husband. LOL. He's probably the most precious animal you will ever meet...and while he pretends to be a ferocious guard dog, everyone, in our 200 family development, knows him and loves him. Because he's a herding dog and loves to run with the kids, oftentime kids will stop by and ask if Apooo can come out and play. It's so funny and cute. Of course, we have a big yard, so we tell them to have it as they all scamper off to play.
Okay since I really want to win a copy of this book can I send a picture of Apooo to cap off this posting. Once you see him it will be hard to turn me down...lol. J/kidding...but I did have fun talking about him.

[Liz]

My favorite pet was my cat, Kitty Girl. She was a cranky cat with everyone but me. She would snuggle up on my lap for hours while I would work at my computer and purr. She died a month short of 19 about three years ago. She and I were the only girls in my house of two sons, a husband, a boy cat and a boy dog and I miss her very much.

[Anne]

My favorite pet was my dachshund, Friedrich - we called him Freedy for short. And he was very short! And always cold, so he would snuggle all the time. He was mischievous, and loved to give you an impish look before he did something he knew was naughty. He loved to run away, but would come racing back if I stood at the door and unscrewed a jar of peanut butter. I loved Freedy so much, and still dream about him cuddling with me. Having a pet that you know will precede you in death takes a great deal of courage!