Wednesday, September 27, 2017

Featured at Delight Music Fest Booksigning: Travelers in Painted Wagons on Cohay Creek


Travelers in Painted Wagons on Cohay Creek is a novel about Jeremy, a young boy in Mississippi a little more than a hundred years ago. His mother was dying of cancer, and his father was harsh. Jeremy survived by clinging to his friends, but he didn't get to see them often. At a low point in his existence, a Romani (Gypsy) showed up and offered to help the boy's father in the blacksmith shop in payment for moving his clan onto Cohay Creek for a season.

The young boy learned from his friend Walthere, the Traveler, how to assist in the blacksmith shop, how to laugh, and most importantly how to forgive. A lover of books from the school library and a  naturally curious student, the boy learned about the history of the Gypsies.

Meanwhile the adults all around him lived, loved, and fought without restraint.

Mary Lou Cheatham and Sarah Walker Gorrell collaborated to write this unique novel. Mary will be signing it at the Delight Music Fest Super Signing, September 30, 2017, in Delight, Arkansas.

Monday, September 25, 2017

Delight Music Fest with its Super Book Signing, September 30, 2017




The Dream Bucket, the Most Popular Book
In the Covington Chronicles
Mary Lou Cheatham
Delight 

It would be fun to see you this weekend at the Delight, Arkansas, festival. I'm planning to show up with all the books of the Covington Chronicles. Delight is a little over two hours north of Shreveport, far enough north for a cool fall breeze and some warm colors in the leaves. We hope it doesn't rain, but if it does, it's okay. There will be canopies over the book signers' tables.

Eleven authors have plans to attend the festival. To find my books, look for the posters. The Dream Bucket is my most popular book, and House of Seven is the newest in the series.

House of Seven, the Newest Book
In the Covington Chronicles
 Mary Lou Cheatham
For Judy Christie's article in the Shreveport Times about the super signing at Delight, Arkansas, please click on the link below:



Monday, September 18, 2017

Bubba, the Firedog

Bubba, the Firedog, is a new book for children. My daughter, Christie Marie Underwood, collaborated with me to write it.


 Bubba, a happy dog, lives in a friendly village in Texas. His humans give him affection, treats, and love. They take him on walks. He becomes a firedog, who helps his owner, a volunteer fireman, by guarding the tools and by being a friend to the other men in the fire department.

Sometimes he is frightened, but he relies on his human mommy and daddy to make everything work out right. Sometimes he gets into mischief, but most of the time he is well behaved. He likes to play with his toys.
We believe this story will appeal to children two years old or younger if their moms or dads read it to them at bedtime. Children as old as eight may enjoy reading the book Most of the words are simple. We repeated words and used them in logical ways with matching pictures.

Texas Tech Man: Brandt
LSU/LTU Woman; Christie
I like to write inspirational historical fiction. I also have fun constructing rhyming stories for children. Often I discover humor in ordinary life events.

Christie loves animals and people. She enjoys taking long walks in the community with Bubba and visiting neighbors along their way. Drawing is one of her hobbies, and her style is drawing through the eyes of a child. Her signature style in life is vibrant colors, well-suited to her personality.

We are dedicating our story to Christie's husband, my dear son-in-law, Brandt, who is a volunteer fireman. We're also dedicating Bubba's story to the fire department where Brandt serves.

Pup Bubba
When Christie first rescued Bubba (a black lab mix) as a puppy, we realized his potential for entertaining us, and he's been an interesting dog. He's docile, obedient, and protective of his family. 

While taking him for a walk, we came up with the idea that he might want to be a firedog. We asked, "What if Bubba wanted to follow his 'daddy' Bramdt to the fire house. Could he become a firedog?

Christie contributed the dog and her husband to this project. Also she helped with the writing. All the pictures are her drawings and paintings. She put her heart into the project.

I wrote the text with, as I said, her help. Then I formatted the pictures and the cover.  John, my amazing husband, contributed editorial comments, as well as  patience. 
Mary walking Bubba

We want to entertain our young readers by sharing Bubba with them. As I've already said, we have made an effort to help children develop reading skills. Whatever we write for boys and girls contains ways to develop skills for living

We're already planning a sequel. 










Friday, September 15, 2017

The Courtship of Miss Loretta Larson at Delight Book Signing

The Courtship of Miss Loretta Larson  will be one of the books Mary Lou Cheatham plans to sign at Delight, Arkansas, on September 30. This festival is going to be so much fun!

It is 1908. Loretta Larson has enjoyed many blessings in her life. Attractive and accomplished, she has so much money she barely notices her salary she earns from teaching. In her thirties, she is living in the village of Taylorsburg, a south Mississippi railroad town. She suffers in a damaging relationship with cruel and dishonest banker.

Will she ever find the love she longs to know? An unusual woman for her time, she is an independent, strong-minded person, who has a cloud over her past, a quirky style in the present, and boundless hope for a joyful future. With compassion for the down and out, she shows little regard for what others think of her. To live her life requires courage and ingenuity. She relies on the Lord to help her through her problems. Sometimes the help comes in unusual ways. For example, her cat Pinkie saves her from disaster  The story contains fun-filled pranks, the joy of being alive, and outrage over social injustice.




Taking The Dream Bucket to the Delight, Arkansas, Super Book Signing

Growing up in the backwoods between Hot Coffee and Taylorsville, Mississippi, and riding watermelons for life preservers in Cohay Creek...eating the watermelon on the cliff that overlooked the sandbar down at the creek...I exchanged stories with my brother predictions about all the great things we hoped to do when we finished growing up.

Unlike my brother, who had plans to succeed in business someday in the big cities, I wanted, among other things, to be a writer. From my earliest years I hoped to write novels that readers would enjoy. Mama instilled the idea into us that we could do what we wanted if we tried hard enough. My brother did, but I wasn't sure whether I could ever write anything that people would want to read.

And yet I did. My novel, The Dream Bucket, about a young girl and her mother overcoming grief and managing to survive in the worst of times, has been on Amazon's best seller list quite a number of times.

The statistics on this picture represent a sales report in 2016.
I feel as though I've really arrived. All the way from Hot Coffee--and some other places along the way such as Shreveport, where I now live--I'm traveling to Delight, Arkansas, to sign The Dream Bucket at the Delight Music Fest Super Signing on September 30, 2017. Arkansas, here I come.




Thursday, September 14, 2017

Books Mary Lou Cheatham will sign at the Delight Book Signing September 30, 2017

At the Delight Music Fest Super Signing author Mary Lou Cheatham will sign the books of the Covington Chronicles.  

Each inspirational historical novel contains at least one romance without fitting into the romance genre. The books are family stories. This six-book series takes place in Mississippi in the beginning of the twentieth century. Each book stands alone. Here are the books listed in order:


  • Secret Promise. (Chosen by Westbow to be featured on the Thomas Nelson Lighthouse site.) Depiction of domestic abuse and racial injustice. 
  • The Courtship of Miss Loretta Larson. Romance interwoven with exposure of social injustice. 
  • The Dream Bucket (Qualified Independent Publisher ranking earned by sales of The Dream Bucket) A story of coming of age and a mother struggling without her husband.
  • Manuela Blayne. The story of a young African American girl who received abuse from all sides.
  • Travelers in Painted Wagons on Cohay Creek (co-authored with Sarah Walker Gorrell) A depiction of Romani people (Gypsies) interacting with local residents of Mississippi. \
  • House of Seven. A romantic comedy.

 About the Delight Music Fest Super Signing

Exciting news.
What? Delight Music Fest 
When? Saturday, September 30, 2017
Where? Delight, Arkansas. The book signing is at the park.
Why? Annual event. This year the festival is honoring Glen Campbell, who was born at Billstown, an unincorporated community just outside Delight.  
How? There will be bands all afternoon, with the Campbells last.
The Glen Campbell 5K Ramble starts at 8:00A.M. and goes through the main street, right past the library.
A vintage car show starts at 11:00 A.M. 
There are food and craft vendors and great crowds, as well as four bands to entertain you. 

Super Signing at Delight


The third annual Super Signing, sponsored by the Delight Branch Library, will be held during the Delight Music Fest on September 30 at the Delight, AR city park. Authors from three states will be in attendance:
  1. Children's picture book author Linda Black from Arkansas
  2. Cozy mystery writer LaRee Bryant with her "Poppy Green" books
  3. Louisiana author Mary Lou Cheatham, historical inspirational novels, including the six books of her "Covington Chronicles" series  
  4. Prescott writer Georgia Estes, with her first inspirational non-fiction based on her time spent in Africa 
  5. Louisiana's Robin House with her first Christian non-fiction  for children and adults
  6. Prescott author, Charity Lowdermilk, offering a thrilling  middle grade time travel/adventure;
  7. Texas author, Caryl McAdoo, who will have several historical, inspirational romance  titles available
  8. Minister Terrell Polite with non-fiction books to help in your Christian walk 
  9. Delight author Penny Richards with the first two installments of her award winning "Lilly Long" mystery series
  10. Sandy Steen, also from Texas, with her "Parker Doyle Mysteries," a very different twist on paranormal 
  11. From  Nashville Arkansas, Jerlyn Stone with her contemporary "Tara" police mystery series 

 The Super Signing will follow the Glen Campbell 5K Ramble in honor of Delight's very own, recently deceased Glen Campbell, with portions of the proceeds going to the Alzheimers Foundation. Music will start at noon, including Glen's family, Billstown Boys and several bands will be participating into the evening. There will be food, jewelry, crafts and games for kids.

Wednesday, September 13, 2017

Taylorsville's Local Artist Who Uses Gourds as a Medium


Nicky is participating in a lovely gourd display at Evon A. Ford Memorial Library, 208 Spring Street, Taylorsville, MS 39168-0430. She's featuring her concept of The Dream Bucket. As the author of The Dream Bucket, a family inspirational novel staged near my imaginary town of Taylorsburg, MS, I am so happy about this display I could explode, or bust wide open, as I used to say back when we were kids in Taylorsville.
Nicky has written a poem about The Dream Bucket
and featured it on the gourd. It can be found on
https://collardpatch.blogspot.com/2017/08/nicky-blakeney-gourd-artist-4_27.html

The Dream Bucket is only one shelf of the library's interesting display. I'm grateful to Nicky Blakeney, amazing local artist; Joyce McKinley, the librarian; and the Friends of the Library, including the town's mayor, Rosalyn Glenn.

I feel sure Taylorsville, Mississippi, has many other talented artists besides Nicky Blakeney. For example, Sarah Walker Gorrell is an amazing local author. Please drop me a note on my Facebook message page (Mary Cooke) about other artists and creatives in my hometown.

Nicky became interested in the concept of The Dream Bucket when  she read the novel. She wrote in a review on Amazon: "If you like good 'clean' reading, with a good story line that moves along smoothly this is it. Set in the deep south at the turn of the century, she brings her characters to life and you feel as if you may know them."

The Dream Bucket at Amazon







Nicky Blakeney, Mississippi Gourd Festival 


Eighth Annual Mississippi Gourd Festival

FRIDAY AND SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 15 AND 16, 2017
SMITH COUNTY AG COMPLEX, RALEIGH, MS
Classes on both days, plus early-bird
classes on Thursday afternoon, September 14



Wednesday, September 13, 2017, Nicky McAlpiin Blakeney  announced, "The Gourd Festival! It Starts(for Me) tomorrow! Set up day! Hope to see you Friday or Saturday."
Her beautiful, patriotic artwork is already getting quite a bit of attention on Facebook. 
The handles add interest to these striking creations.


Tuesday, September 05, 2017

#1 Devotional Book: Do you know how God loves you?

In 2010 I wrote a daily devotional book for my daughter, who gave the book its title.  Last night I offered it for free as a kindle book. Today so many people downloaded it that it is ranked as NUMBER ONE in free books in three categories: Meditations, Personal Growth, and Inspirational.

I'd love for you to get your copy.


Today's ranking of 
Do You Know How God Loves You?

Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,215 Free in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Free in Kindle Store)