Time for #EBookGifts 2025

November is a time of year when people start thinking ahead to the holiday season and planning for gifts. Ebooks are very practical gifts! There's no wrapping paper to wrap properly or recycle afterwards. With ebooks on my phone and tablet and computer, there's always something good to read right at hand.

There are ebooks on every topic and to suit every reader's taste. The downloads happen right away, so there's no waiting for delivery. There are many online vendors and even Bookshop.org which will let you buy books and ebooks online with that purchase going through a local bookstore that you choose.

 

Author Paula Johanson and Doublejoy Books are making plans for a small press book event with other authors and publishers. On Saturday, November 22 we'll all be promoting our ebooks on social media with the hashtag #EBookGifts. It's a good time to talk about the books you are reading, and the ones you are giving as presents.

Look on social media for the hashtag #EBookGifts, for the ebooks you need for affordable gifts this year.

Books with both SCIENCE and FUN

 It's a delight to share the news that during the sale on Smashwords in July, my book Science Critters from Doublejoy Books was Smashwords #1 most downloaded book on BIOLOGY.

It's a book of patterns to knit and crochet toys. And for those weeks, it was more popular than formal textbooks on biology, or books of popular science.

 It was pretty popular among books on crochet and knitting, too. But just as there are scientists happy with their crocheted spiders and knitted squids, the book was popular from a science perspective as well as craft-making. How fun is that?

As well, during that sale on Smashwords, my picture books for children were popular in the Zoology and Animals categories. Both Bat Poop Sparkles and Otters Hold Hands were leading in downloads of ebooks in categories of books for children. It's a great thought that people will have those ebooks on their phones or tablets, to read with children and talk about the pictures.

 

 

#EBookGifts -- a small press book event

 Author Paula Johanson and Doublejoy Books are making plans for a small press book event with other authors and publishers. On Saturday, November 30 we'll all be promoting our ebooks on social media with the hashtag #EBookGifts.

This is a time of year when people are looking for gifts -- and ebooks make terrific gifts! The downloads happen right away. There's no wrapping paper to wrap properly or dispose of afterwards. Ebooks fit on a dedicated reading device or a smartphone or tablet, and especially on a computer's big screen. Look on social media for the hashtag #EBookGifts, for the ebooks you need for affordable gifts this year.

Short books here!

 Looking for something short to read? And nonfiction, not a short story? Try these two books from Doublejoy Books -- biographies of active men who were Canadian prime ministers.

Pierre Trudeau was famous (and still is, now that his grown son has also become prime minister). There are over two dozen biographies of this controversial man -- but you'll find that our book Pierre Elliott Trudeau: Child of Nature is the only one that focuses this much on his interests in canoeing and national parks. It's a safe bet that in his life, he paddled more miles than all the other members of Parliament put together.

By contrast, Charles Tupper is no longer a household name. But when Canada was forming its Confederation, Tupper was a mover and shaker who got things done. He served as a cabinet minister for many years, and as prime minister for only a few weeks. This biography Charles Tupper: Warhorse doesn't shy away from rumours that followed him for years, or the policies he put in place that were disastrous for First Nations people. 

Catch up on Canadian history with these quick reads!

Summer Reading!

 Time to get your summer reading ready!

If you're looking for affordable ebooks, there's always Paula's books at books2read.com/paulaj -- click on any book's cover image to read more about the book and "get it now" to get a copy from any of over a dozen vendors.

All titles from Doublejoy Books are available as free ebooks from Smashwords till the end of August!

Woolgathering

 It's wonderful to be able to announce that there is a new cover for the book based on my master's essay. Woolgathering: Awareness of the Foreign in Published Works About Cowichan Woodworking is a slim monograph with references, but still of interest for knitters and fibre artists who are not academics. Both the ebook and paperback editions are now available from Doublejoy Books with the new cover art, shown below. Click on this link to learn more about this book and where to find it.

2020 Giftmas Blog Tour

 On the 2020 Giftmas Blog Tour, this website is one of several websites supporting a fundraiser collecting donations for the Edmonton Food Bank. You can click here to find out more about the 2020 Giftmas fundraiser, and make a donation. It's really a good idea to click so you can read what organizer Rhonda Parrish has written about how food banks and food hampers can make a difference for families and individuals. Because of the Edmonton Food Bank's purchasing power, each dollar donated here is enough to provide three meals.

The 2020 Giftmas Blog Tour is happening during the coronavirus pandemic, so "emergency" has pretty much become "ordinary" over the course of this year. Here in this fundraiser is one way to cope with one part of the ongoing emergency: contribute at this link to a program supporting those of us who are vulnerable.

As someone who lived near Edmonton for 15 years, who has family and friends there, I can confirm that when vulnerable in Edmonton, any help and support are needed and appreciated. Rhonda Parrish has set up a fundraiser with achievable goals, that supports a needed service. You can read more about Rhonda at her website at this link.

In the history of the Giftmas fundraisers, there's been a steady climb in the amounts raised by donations for the Edmonton Food Bank.

2016 -- $521 raised out of a $500 goal

2017 -- $1,094 raised out of a $522 goal

2018 -- $1,127 raised out of a $750 goal

2019 -- $1,355 raised out of a $1000 goal

2020 -- with two days to go, we've already passed the $1000 goal. That's 3,000 meals!

Click on this link to donate today. Thank you!