Cover for Welcome to Shadow Creek

The First Ten Focus Group Feedback for Welcome to Shadow Creek

Because Welcome to Shadow Creek was Book of the Day, some of our most trusted members have carefully looked over the cover, the description, and other aspects of this book as a part of purchase-intent focus group. We then asked each participant in the focus group if they planned to buy and read the book, and why they planned to buy and read the book or not. Their answer to that question and reasons are displayed below. We call this awesome feature The First Ten Focus Group.

Keep in mind, the responses from the members are not reviews. This is purchase-intent focus group which means the participants are people who have NOT yet bought or read your book. A purchase-intent focus group is an important and extremely useful marketing tool for any product, not just books. For other products, you might walk on the street and show people an item in a package and poll them about whether they would buy if or $X or not. These kind of focus groups are one of the ways big marketing companies find the ideal price points for products and test the effectiveness of different packaging. The focus group can help you identify your market so you how to target ads of your book, and it can (but may not) provide you new useful info about your "packaging" (e.g. your book cover, your book synopsis on Amazon, etc.). The point of the focus group comments is to give you information from people who have not bought or read your book about why they plan to buy your book which will help you in marketing the book. These are not reviews or critiques of your book because they are not from people have read the book. This is a marketing tool, not reviews. The trick of book marketing and book advertising is that you have to convince people who have not read your book yet that your book is worth buying and reading. For marketing, it doesn't matter much if people love your book after reading it if you cannot convince potential buyers before they read it that they will love it.

IMPORTANT: Any score over 10% is considered very good. And any score above 0% is acceptable. This is because we only poll about 20 or so readers, and all readers have to say "no" to almost all books. Over a million books are published each year. Even a very active reader cannot come close to even reading 1% of books out there.

This is also why publishing books is such a tough industry.

Alice Heritage

173569
I would not have sampled this book without the programme as I'm not in the market for Young Adult fiction. I also won't buy and read it today as I found it overly long-winded. The OBC review was helpful in confirming this. I was surprised that the reviewer said there were 12 errors in the entire book as I found 5 in the sample. These included: "the van's aging tires" versus "the ageing sign" (inconsistent spelling); "the shops windows" which should read "the shops' windows" or "the shop windows"; "any of the boy's interest" which should read "any of the boys' interest" and "peak out" which should read "peek out". I liked the retro rhyming twin names Foy and Coy; the other names were also comical, like Burr and Burl, and Kneebone. The narrative could be improved by tightening up some of the descriptions - - for example, the comparison of a fence with a sweetcorn kernel seems overly detailed as well as a bit of a stretch; it doesn't seem to reflect the way a teenager would think.

First Ten review added on October 26, 2019, at 4:42 am by Alice Heritage.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

va2016

119030
The cover and the title are indicative of the theme of the book. There are only 4 Amazon customer ratings. The Amazon summary is very short, and does not indicate the plot of the story. Since the story seems to be about an outdoor expedition and since it sounds mysterious, I would have sampled the book even if not for the First Ten program. As I sampled through the book, I found the narration describing Lib's travel in the van with his family. As I liked the writing style, I am going to read the book in full. I found the sample professionally edited. I didn't find any grammatical or mechanical errors. What I liked most about the book is the suspense it builds about what's going to happen at Shadow Creek. I could not find anything that could be improved with the book. Although I found one OBC review of the book, my decision to read the book in full is based on my own sampling.

First Ten review added on October 26, 2019, at 4:38 am by va2016.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!

Vickie Noel

249577
I wouldn't have read this book outside the program based on the blurb, title or book cover. I'm not a big fan of plots on male bonding without any exciting adventures with the female folk. The cover looked nice enough, but without any stimulating action, I would have walked past. Reading the sample hasn't changed my mind. The endless narration lost my interest although I saw the author's descriptive prowess and use of figures of speech like personification in the sentence, "A book's...faded pages are open, gazing upward at the freckle-faced reader, inviting him to continue his journey with Termite and Spud as they float their raft down the Sacramento River." The book is professionally edited; I saw no errors. I suggest that the author punctuate his narrations with succinct dialogues every once in a while to take the space of the description in order to retain the interest of readers like me. The OBC review I read did not stimulate my interest, and neither did the sample pages.

First Ten review added on October 26, 2019, at 2:56 am by Vickie Noel.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

Gravy

60847
This one wouldn't have hit on my radar, mainly due to its genre. The sample did not change my mind about that.
I didn't notice any errors. I found some of it interesting, most especially the use of 'butterfly memories.' I am unfamiliar with this as a saying (if it is one), but find the idea fascinating.
Unfortunately, I'm not a fan of the POV, so I probably wouldn't read this, regardless of the genre.
I'm also not fond of the older boys. They're behaviour left a lot to be desired.
There was a review for this book, but my opinion would be the same had there not been a review.
I won't be reading it due to its genre and POV.

First Ten review added on October 26, 2019, at 2:21 am by Gravy.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

Fu Zaila

878840
The cover is pretty. The blurb and reviews appealed to me. The book is edited professionally, as evidenced by the crystal clear sentences. I liked Lib. I love that he's the only one of his brothers who doesn't like baseball. I liked that he's thinking of his book and scrapbook while on the way to a camping trip. It seemed odd that the siblings didn't talk to each other or bicker back and forth, as is common when going for a trip. Mr. Rinke seemed to me like a strict dad, with his burly tone and gruff exterior. But that is proven to be wrong. I didn't like the constant mention of the bad breath and tongues that the author kept using to describe Lib's brother. It was gross. I am still interested to learn more about Lib's camping adventure so I would like to read the book.

First Ten review added on October 26, 2019, at 12:58 am by Fu Zaila.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!

Annelore Trujillo

97769
I would not have sampled this book based on the genre, blurb, OBC review, cover, and title. After reading the first ten pages, I won’t be finishing this book. It had a slow start with the description of the cab ride and everyone listening to the baseball game on the radio. It was written in the present tense, which I actually wasn’t a fan of. I thought it would have flowed better if it were written in the past tense. I did like the descriptions of the scenery along the drive. The book did seem to be professionally edited.

First Ten review added on October 26, 2019, at 12:38 am by Annelore Trujillo.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

Scerakor

45879
From the cover, blurb, and review of this book, I wouldn’t have read it. As interesting as camping is, there doesn't seem to be much action in this book. After reading the first ten pages I didn’t change my mind and therefore will not be buying and reading the rest of this book. I liked and enjoyed the descriptive writing that the author used early on. From described old storefronts as having been through "battles with the burden placed on them by time and the elements" we are able to look forward to more descriptive writing. That being said, I'm just not interested enough in family dramas or coming of age style novels - and although it may not be characterised as such - I get this sort of impression with this one. I didn’t see anything specific that I would have wanted to change within the sample that I read, but it did seem well written and edited. The official review did not affect my decision at all.

First Ten review added on October 25, 2019, at 10:34 pm by Scerakor.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

gen_g

697597
I have come across a positive review of the book, and it has piqued my interest. However, there are a few errors. At 5% in the sample, there is a missing comma before the conjunction separating independent clauses: "...past four years(,) as the computer...". I like that there are descriptions of the various kinds of people (as well as scenery) to start off the book, since it helps with immersion; for example, Coy likes baseball but Lib doesn't. Both of them are currently travelling with their father to a ranch, to Shadow Creek for a fishing experience. I would suggest that the author run the book through another round of editing to remove all the errors. However, I will not be buying the book today, as the third-person omniscient narration is not a style that I enjoy reading.

First Ten review added on October 25, 2019, at 7:28 pm by gen_g.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

unamilagra

1197956
Before sampling this book, I probably would not have picked it up. I've never been into camping, and the OBC review mentioned that descriptions of the camping trips were a bit too lengthy and detailed. I have to admit I didn't really enjoy the first ten pages. I don't tend to like present-tense narratives, and it felt like the author was spending far too much time on flowery descriptions, rather than getting to the point of the plot. I don't plan to continue reading the book. I didn't notice any errors in the section I read.

First Ten review added on October 25, 2019, at 5:53 pm by unamilagra.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

ritah

236447
Based on the genre and cover, I would have sampled the book out of curiosity. I read the official review and sampled Welcome to Shadow Creek. I liked the vivid descriptions of Lib's journey to his first camping and fishing expedition: the scenery and the grunts of the boys watching the baseball game at the back of the van. I did not spot any errors in the pages I read nor did I see anything that needed to be improved. However, I won't be reading the rest of the book because the narrative didn't capture my interest.

First Ten review added on October 25, 2019, at 4:24 pm by ritah.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

evraealtana

1255476
The front cover is beautiful, but seems somewhat vague; I have no idea, looking at it, what the book is going to be about. It also doesn't seem to fit with the tone of the story as it develops within the first ten pages. The writing style was unique and enjoyable, but the story didn't have much in it to hold my interest. I found that I didn't really want to follow the boys, particularly since I didn't actually like any of them. Actually, what I wanted to know about most was the origin of Lib's name; even by modern standards, "Libra" would be an odd name for a young man, let alone in 1961. Although I could not point to anything distinctly "wrong" with it, I probably will not continue with this book. The official OBC review mentioned that the action was spelled out too minutely, so perhaps that's what I was sensing. I found no errors in the first 10 pages.

First Ten review added on October 25, 2019, at 3:56 pm by evraealtana.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

Kaitlyn Canedy

1401101
I read the sample because I thought that the title of Welcome to Shadow Creek was interesting. What I really like about the book is it is great for boys that are coming of age and can relate to the confusion and struggle of Lib, the shy and reserved protagonist. Because I do not feel that the book relates to me as much as it would for someone else, I will not be finishing the rest of it. I did not see any obvious grammar errors in the sample that I read, and I do not think that anything needs to be improved in it. The Official OnlineBookClub review did not impact my decision to finish reading the rest of the book.

First Ten review added on October 25, 2019, at 2:29 pm by Kaitlyn Canedy.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

desantismt_17

604219
This book’s title made me curious. The description didn’t hook me. This isn’t my kind of coming-of-age story. Before sampling, I wasn’t thinking about reading. After sampling, I’ll pass. The book appears professionally edited. I noticed no errors. Lib sounds like my kind of kid—the kind who’d rather read a book than do stuff in the great outdoors. While Lib was relatable in that way, the story and writing just didn’t pull me in. Some of the sentences felt long and a bit confusing. I had to reread a few to make sure I got their meanings, even though they were grammatically correct. The opening scene with all the kids in one car felt familiar and realistic. Cramming kids in for a long car ride is never a calm experience. I have no improvements to suggest. I didn’t see an OnlineBookClub.org review, but one likely wouldn’t have changed my mind. This one’s not for me.

First Ten review added on October 25, 2019, at 1:03 pm by desantismt_17.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

KendraRobinson

1312645
Upon first glance of the cover and title, I may have considered reading this book. They bring up memories of being in nature, which I love. The OBC review I had read, described the book as a coming-of-age novel about a boy who goes on a three day camping trip with his dad, brother, and two of his brothers friends. The review was well written, but had me changing my mind as to whether or not I would want to read this one.

After reading the first ten pages, I will likely not finish this one. The book begins with the main character, Lib, riding in the car on the way to a camping trip. He isn't very interested in camping and would rather sit and read. I liked the author's use of descriptive words; they really helped to tell the story. I did not like the use of present tense in the writing. For some reason, it was hard to get into as most books I read are not written in present tense. I also think the author could improve the appearance of the cover by choosing a different font, because the "c" in creek looks more like a "g". I will not be finishing this book, since I have little interest in reading a novel about a teenage boy finding himself in the wild.

First Ten review added on October 25, 2019, at 8:50 am by KendraRobinson.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

MarisaRose

106960
The book blurb for "Welcome to Shadow Creek" is very short and rather vague. After reading it, I didn't feel that I had enough information to determine if I wanted to read this book. That being said, an OBC review may have swayed my opinion about this book because I find OBC reviews tend to have well-developed plot summaries. Based on the short blurb and the information I was able to glean from the blurb (mostly that the protagonist is a YA male), this isn't a book I would choose to purchase blindly. After reading the first ten pages, I decided this wasn't a book I wanted to read. The writing is tediously descriptive, and many of the descriptions were difficult to follow, so I had to reread sentences to fully understand their meaning. For example, in the beginning, the author describes a "concrete river." Although some might find this type of description poetic, I find it took me out of the story as I had to figure out what was actually being described (in this case, a road). This continued throughout the sample, making it difficult to read. Another example, "Lib's magic carpet of dreams." I wasn't sure what this one was supposed to mean. However, I didn't notice any grammatical errors in the text, and the initial set up of the boys in the van heading on some adventure seemed interesting. Unfortunately, the writing style was very off-putting to me, so I will not be reading any more of this one.

First Ten review added on October 25, 2019, at 6:58 am by MarisaRose.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

Aubrey Lewis

197111
The overall appearance of the book is neat and simple, but it isn't very eye-catching. When I read through the official OBC review, I had a feeling that I wouldn't be able to appreciate the story since the genres aren't my cup of tea and the storyline itself isn't that interesting for me. When I finished sampling the first ten pages, I decided not to read the rest of the book. The author's writing style was very descriptive, but it became excessive when I read further. The descriptions were supposed to be vivid, but I could only process a jumble of words instead and the flow was interrupted. I even spotted an error in the contents: ["It's apparent to Lib the shops windows are filled with contents that do not capture any of the boy's interest as the van moves in front of the stores."] The author also seems to favor using semicolons (not that it's grammatically wrong, but it seems overused to me). Lib so far seemed like a quiet boy amongst a group of outspoken guys. The plotline so far didn't catch my interest, and coming-of-age novels aren't my thing, so it's a matter of personal preference in my case.

First Ten review added on October 25, 2019, at 6:24 am by Aubrey Lewis.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

Fazzier

1170785
If I had not read the first ten pages of this book as part of this program, still I would have read it based on the OnlineBoookClub.org's official review. According to the review, Lib, one of the characters, manages to transform from a shy to a self-confident boy through camping. This is a very wonderful premise for a book and I, therefore, wanted to read the whole of it. Reading the sample has further piqued my interest to read the rest of the novel. What I liked the most is the author's vivid descriptions that not only enabled me to visualize the road Lib and his father was driving on but also to know how Lib was feeling about the trip. I can't find anything to recommend to the author since I liked everything in the sample. The book also seems to have been professionally edited since I found no errors. I'm, therefore, going to buy the book and read the rest of it.

First Ten review added on October 25, 2019, at 4:58 am by Fazzier.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!

Mbrooks2518

1121144
I have never been camping and have absolutely no interest in it, so I would not have read the sample without The First Ten. The official review and the first ten pages did not make me any more interested, so I am not going to buy the book.

I did like the descriptive style of writing, which really showed Lib's feelings about the camping trip. I did not find any editing errors, and there is nothing to be improved.

First Ten review added on October 25, 2019, at 4:55 am by Mbrooks2518.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

Mai Tran

1025684
The book sounds well-written with distinguished characters judging by the official review, but I still wouldn’t have read it because I’m not a fan of young adult novels. I also can’t identify with Lib’s disdain for camping because I’ve never been on a camping trip myself. The book is very descriptive, especially when it comes to the Tumbledown Ranch, but I find the story boring so far. On the bright side, it seems professionally edited except for a seemingly error in August Rinke’s speech where “this here place” is used instead of “this place here” (Kindle Location 161 of 331). I won’t continue to read this book due to a lack of interest.

First Ten review added on October 25, 2019, at 3:47 am by Mai Tran.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

Cristina Chifane

418146
A coming-of-age story with a great cover, inviting title and positive customer reviews would have certainly drawn my attention even without the first ten program. The sample won me over with the author's excellent portrayal of the scene in the van with Lib half-asleep and his brother, his father, and the twins enjoying a baseball game on the radio. I'm curious to read more about the boys' fishing expedition and the way in which it will transform Lib. I didn't notice any editing errors although the OBC reviewer mentions that he spotted a few in the book. Due to the topic and the author's descriptive skills, I'm willing to give this story a try.

First Ten review added on October 25, 2019, at 2:10 am by Cristina Chifane.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!

Lorraine De Vos

140922
I would have chosen to sample this book based on the cover and title. The waterfall looks stunning and calming, and the title gave me the sense that I was going on a weekend camping trip too. After reading the first ten pages I will definitely be adding this book to my reading list. The author describes everything with an almost poetic quality which I felt slowed down the pace to a comforting experience. I truly felt like I was leaving the rat-race behind and going camping with the boys. Based on the sample pages, I don’t think there is anything that requires improvement. I believe the book was professionally, as I did not notice any errors. The official OnlineBookClub review was excellent and pointed out that they felt the pace of the book was too slow, but personally I enjoyed the experience through the eyes of young Lib.

First Ten review added on October 25, 2019, at 1:23 am by Lorraine De Vos.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!

Verna Coy

1064106
Had I not sampled this book through the First Tem program, I probably would not have picked it up because it is the story of a boy going on a camping trip when he really would rather be reading. For this reason, I don’t intend to buy and read the whole book. Reading the first ten pages did not change my first impressions. It was clear that the main character did not find any enjoyment in the trip. Based on what I read, the book seems professionally edited, although I did see a missing comma at location 42% of sample, “The front windows are cracked and have a dull yellow glaze; to Lib[,] it is as if the houses are wearing sunglasses, as well as wearing a toupee; they have a fairy-tale look about them.” What I liked most about what I read were the vivid descriptions of every detail of the trip. I know that readers who enjoy camping trips with young boys will enjoy this book. As far as improvements, it could perhaps use another round of light proofreading. I did see the Official Online Book Club review and found it informative.

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 11:26 pm by Verna Coy.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

AA1495

104697
Had I not sampled the book, I would not have read it. I usually read pure romance books and am not too interested in camping. Further, the cover seemed rather plain with an image of a waterfall. However, the book had a positive 3/4 OBC review, which gave me a good impression. Having read the sample, one of the first things that caught my attention was the table of contents, which included just the first chapter and "About the author". The remaining chapters were not mentioned. Further, the first chapter began without a heading. These issues made me feel like the book should have been edited better. However, the author introduced Lib's character well. In terms of language, the book is easy to follow. However, I do not read the genre usually and hence, I will not be buying the book today.

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 11:20 pm by AA1495.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

Juliet+1

1385689
The title and the cover alone suggested that this book might be about nature. But the Amazon blurb and the OBC review clarified that this is a story about a teenage boy's outdoor experience, not a book I would ever read. I don't generally care for YA books and have no interest in a story about a teenage boy.

Reading the first 10 pages did not change my mind. The writing and editing are very well done, but this is very much a "guy" book. Perhaps it would attract a wider audience if the protagonist had a sister in addition to the multiple brothers.

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 11:17 pm by Juliet+1.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

OliviaLouise

1275066
After reading the review, I did not feel like this book would be something I would enjoy because I don’t read much YA literature. After reading the sample, I felt that the author did a great job of scene building by developing the atmosphere of tension. The imagery was also very strong, such as the “grunts and squeals” of the boys and the “mustard living at the corner of his mouth.” I did not find the plot very interesting, however, so I will likely not read the rest of this book. I did not find any editing errors, either.

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 11:10 pm by OliviaLouise.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

Kelyn

741624
If I had not been a member of this program, it is unlikely that the title, cover, genre, or author would have attracted my attention to this book. The author is unknown to me, so that would not have been a factor. My preferred genres are sci-fi and fantasy, even in YA novels. The cover and title do not portray anything near these areas. The blurb and customer reviews reveal the book to be a coming-of-age novel involving teen boys and camping. Neither of these subjects is particularly of interest to me, so they would have actively steered me away from trying out the book. Reading the sample brought little more in the way of interest. Although I loved that the author's descriptions were so vivid, and his portrayal of teen boys dead-on accurate, the subject matter of the sample simply did not engage my interest. Given this, I made the decision not to continue reading the book. The book seemed well-edited. I found no errors in the sample.

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 10:38 pm by Kelyn.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

LV2R

708077
The book cover and title were both OK, but I did not know if I wanted to read the book or not. The Amazon blurb summarized that Lib Rinke, a 15-year-old boy, went to Shadow Creek and the Tumbledown Ranch with his dad, brother, and the Burr twins (Coy and Foy) for an outdoor adventure. Lib bonds with his father and gains self-confidence. I wanted to read the sample to find out more. I enjoyed reading the sample because Lib described things that he was seeing in a very funny and descriptive way. I best liked how Lib described Coy’s lips with “wet mustard living on the corners of his mouth; his breath steams out the smell of onions…” He continues describing Coy’s tongue as “reminding Lib of a touring lizard attacking a hill of red ants.” Lib prefers reading books but is in a van with his dad, brother, and twins going to Lib’s first camping and fishing adventure. The book seems to be edited well, as I did not notice any errors. (Though the OBC review mentioned that there were 12 errors found.) The OBC review re-enforced that I wanted to read the book because the author’s descriptive style of writing and Lib’s imagination make for a pleasant and light read. I want to know what happens on the camping trip and how Lib gains self-confidence.

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 9:16 pm by LV2R.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!

Brenda Creech

1236408
I love this book cover. I wanted to sample the book based on the cover and the title. However, after reading the first ten pages, and the review, I am not interested enough in the storyline to continue reading it. I'm sure it is a feel-good story about a dad and his son being drawn closer together during their fishing trip, but it just wasn't resonating with me as I was reading. I did not find any errors in the portion I read. The author has a talent for description and I enjoyed the details of the surroundings as the characters arrived at their destination. I can only think of one thing that would need improving and that is the descriptions of the surroundings, and of the boys. I felt the details went on for too long. I don't intend to continue reading the book.

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 9:11 pm by Brenda Creech.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

Mary WhiteFace

649293
Without the first ten program, I would not have wanted to read a coming-of-age tale of a boy spending time with his father and brother on an outdoor adventure.

The first ten pages were well-written and seemed to be professionally edited. I have no suggestions for improvements. I liked the imaginative way the author described things. For instance; "The body of the house had been clothed with a crusty yellow paint, which long ago had faded, cracked, and peeled away", and the car was called a "metal people carrier" (pg.10). I found that humorous.

Younger readers would probably enjoy this book, but neither the sample nor the OnlineBookClub review inspired me to want to read the whole thing.

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 7:29 pm by Mary WhiteFace.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

lavellan

403587
I probably would have not read Welcome to Shadow Creek if it had not been a part of the First Ten program. While the Book of the Day review was positive, I'm not interested in camping. The book seemed like it was professionally edited, and I did not notice any errors while reading. I enjoyed the juxtaposition of the baseball game and Lib's experience in the car. I didn't like the narration style; it felt awkward to narrate in the third-person present. As a result of this and my lack of interest in the subject matter, I will not buy the book today.

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 7:19 pm by lavellan.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

Kajori Sheryl Paul

997537
'Welcome To Shadow Creek' is a book written by Don Williams. The title, blurb, and cover did a good job at convincing me to give this book a try.
The first ten pages leads me to believe that it is about a camping trip undertaken by Lib, his older brother, their father, Mr. Rinke, and the Burr twins in Shadow Creek. I like the evocative writing style of the author. I found some errors. For example, the sentence construction is faulty in “What look like bullet holes have entered the old wood at many places..” I do not think that it is professionally edited. I will give this book a try as I like reading books of this genre.

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 5:57 pm by Kajori Sheryl Paul.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!

Juliana_Isabella

1210914
I wouldn't have chosen this book because I usually prefer to read sci-fi and fantasy, but I did notice the positive review. I didn't find any grammatical errors in the first ten pages, and I enjoyed the detailed descriptions the author gave of Lib waking up. However, there was no action or real character development in the first ten pages, and I didn't like that the author used the present tense. After reading the sample, I think this book might appeal to children around Lib's age, but I don't plan to finish it.

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 4:50 pm by Juliana_Isabella.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

Emy Katherine

94929
I am not interested in young adult novels, so I would not have read the book based on the genre. I did not change my mind after reading the sample and the OBC review. This story follows the adventure journey of Lib, a 15-year-old boy who learns to build up his self-confidence and self-esteem during a family camping trip. The Amazon blurb was informative, and I also liked the cover. Unfortunately, I found the writing style too descriptive, which made it difficult for me to stay engaged throughout the story. Also, I am not sure the book was professionally edited; I found a misplaced apostrophe and some missing commas throughout the sample. For example, there should be a comma after "Lib" in the following sentence: "To Lib it seems as if they are attempting to run their fingers over the passing intruders." (location 70 of 331 • 21%)

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 4:44 pm by Emy Katherine.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

HRichards

741384
I normally wouldn't have picked this book up since the summary didn't really appeal to me. Having read the sample I won't be continuing on with the book since I didn't find it that interesting. The sample deals with Lib, who is going camping with his family. They stop at a store that doesn't meet the needs of supplies they want for the trip. The writing is good and seems professionally edited. I didn't notice any grammar errors. Those who like YA fiction might like this book. I wasn't really interested in the slow pace of the beginning of the book. I read the OBC review of this book and it didn't really convince me any more than I already thought that I would enjoy the book.

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 3:48 pm by HRichards.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

Chelsy Scherba

75151
I really enjoy the author’s writing style. Although I’m not a boy and never will be one, I can read this book and almost feel vicariously what it might be like if I were. The realism is well-done and I like the description of Lib, his brother, and the twins and their older male guardians. I don’t know much about camping, but the reviewer said this book is about as true to life as it gets. In this way, I think I’ll have fun experiencing my “first” camping trip. This would be a great summer read, so for that reason, I think I’ll wait to read it until then. I love the cover image and the premise and I didn’t see any errors in this well-edited book

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 3:22 pm by Chelsy Scherba.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!

cpru68

517613
Lib is on his way to participate in a fishing trip that he would rather not be involved in. With his brother and two other boys in the back seat, his nap is interrupted by loud yelling over a Giants baseball game. Inwardly, he thinks about how he doesn’t like the game. A book he has been reading is laying open on his lap along with a partially eaten burger. They enter a town that is near the place where they will be staying. None of the boys in the back are really impressed with the town and its offerings, but Lib’s dad reminds them that they might have to buy food from the store if they don’t catch any fish.

I saw that the setting was 1961, and I think even in the opening pages, the author captured that time period well. I won’t be finishing this book because I don’t read a lot of YA, and while the review made it sound well done, it just is not of interest to me. I feel it would appeal most to those who like tales of the past and relating to the great out doors. I read mostly non-fiction, so I am passing on this one.

I didn’t find any errors in grammar, punctuation or spelling, so this seems to have been professionally edited. I appreciate the opportunity to have read the sample pages of this one and will send it out on my social media for others to look into. Without the online book club, I probably wouldn’t have found this on my own search.

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 2:55 pm by cpru68.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

Washboard

1305922
The cover art is beautiful and the title fitting, but this is not a genre I would often pick up. The official review made the book sound appealing. I did not notice any errors in my reading, other than a debatable run-on sentence or two. The sample illustrates the author's uncanny ability for descriptive writing that makes the scene appear in your mind, down to the details about lingering mustard globs at the corners of a kid's mouth. However, the descriptions seemed overdone in some places. I am going to pass on this one, as I think I would get tired of reading a book with such a slow pace due to the descriptions.

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 2:30 pm by Washboard.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

MsH2k

1404847
The cover of this book is inviting and serene. I found myself saying “aww” as I read the blurb - Lib captured my heart right away. The author’s descriptive style is intensely detailed. It was nice for the sample, but I wonder if it will become a bit much over the course of the book. The official OnlineBookClub review was positive overall but cautioned about some distractions in the writing. I consider myself forewarned and will finish reading this book anyway. I would have sampled this book even if I had not been part of this program. I did not notice any grammatical errors in the sample pages.

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 2:30 pm by MsH2k.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!

Sarah_Khan

89585
At first glance, I would not have picked up this book because I am not a fan of outdoor adventure novels. I feel like the cover is okay but the font does not match well. The title is average. The first ten pages seem professionally edited. Personally, I am not a fan of books that start off with too many descriptions and the book is written in third-person which creates a disconnect between the reader and the characters. Overall, the plot is not that intriguing to me. I think the author needs to find some special element that will set this book apart from others in this genre. I did not read any OBC review.

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 2:17 pm by Sarah_Khan.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

Aditi Sapate

1296030
I wouldn't have chosen to read this book based on the cover and title. While the cover is beautiful, it could have been made more suited to the book. The title too doesn't give an exact idea of what the book is about. After sampling the book, I immensely enjoyed the author's poetic style of writing. Even Lib's reading a book while eating a hamburger is put forth in beautiful prose. I am going to continue reading this book. The book does have some grammatical errors. One example would be, at location 54, 'The loud barkings from the radio’s sports broadcaster declares the Giants have produced three outs' should be, 'The loud barkings from the radio’s sports broadcaster declare the Giants have produced three outs'. If the book could do away with the errors, it would be a great improvement. The book also had an official OnlineBookClub review from which I found out that the book is primarily about camping.

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 2:06 pm by Aditi Sapate.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!

Laura Ungureanu

620179
I've never been camping but I wish I had, so I was interested when I read in the review that this book is just about that. The cover is also a nice asset to the book. In the first pages, Lib is on the road to Shadow Creek. He's going to his first camping and fishing trip with the Burr brothers, Burl, and Mr. Rinke. The writing style wasn't for me. It confused me with many details that I didn't care for. The subject is interesting, but because I didn't enjoy the writing style I'm not going to keep reading. The book has grammar errors, but I didn't find any in the pages I read.

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 1:52 pm by Laura Ungureanu.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

Erin Dydek

1322609
From a first glance at the cover, I thought this would be a book I was interested in. I enjoy nature and books that involve outdoor adventures so this one definitely looked like something I would read. The OBC review changed my mind pretty quickly, however, when it described a camping trip centered on four teenage boys. I don’t read a lot of YA unless it’s fantasy or dystopian. Within the first pages, I realized that the writing is very descriptive and pulls you into the trip with vivid details. I enjoyed the scenery and the shops and sights the van drove past but the description of roasted pepper and onion breath streaming out of a mouth with mustard on the edges and a runny nose were a bit too much for me. I think the writing style of this book would appeal to me if the subject matter was interesting to me, but a coming of age story about four boys is not for me. The book does seem well edited but I will not finish reading it.

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 1:34 pm by Erin Dydek.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

Theresa Moffitt

857578
I really like the cover and the title of this book. I would have picked this book up based on the cover alone. I haven’t read a review of this book yet. The first ten pages tell the story of a young boy going on a fishing trip with his father, another man and two other young boys. He describes riding in the car and stopping in a town before going on to their destination. I didn’t see any errors in the first ten pages, so I believe the book was professionally edited. The first ten pages didn’t raise my interest in the story, so I will not finish reading this book. However, I will read a review of this book and may change my mind based on that review.

First Ten review added on October 24, 2019, at 12:27 pm by Theresa Moffitt.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No

Total ~ 23%

Welcome to Shadow Creek earned a score of 23%.

In other words, out of the top-level reviewers who read at least the first 10 pages of this book, 23% plan to read the whole book.

IMPORTANT: Any score over 10% is considered very good. And any score above 0% is acceptable.

Over a million books are published each year. Any given person could not even read .0001% of the books out there. This means readers have to be very selective. Even taking the time to look over reviews and blurbs, let alone read samples, is more time than most readers can afford for most books. The First Ten is a powerful focus group that addresses those issues. It creates a helpful tool for authors, publishers, and other readers.

Go to main Bookshelves page for Welcome to Shadow Creek