Mundie Moms

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Who I Kissed by Janet Gurtler; Blog Tour: Guest Post / Giveaway

I'm thrilled to have Who I Kissed author Janet Gurtler on the blog today! She's here to talk about her newest YA release, and the inspiration for the book, and that of her character development of Samantha and how she learned to forgive herself for a tragic mistake. 



Coming up for Air:  Gurtler explores her inspiration for the book and her character development of a girl who has to learn to forgive herself for a tragic mistake that upends so many lives.

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I haven’t made a secret of the fact that this book was inspired by my son, Max, a cool dude who happens to have a severe peanut allergy.  This book takes my worst fears and puts them it into action. I used to joke with Max that before he kisses a girl, he has to ask her what she had for lunch. Or dinner.  He doesn’t find it funny anymore. 

We did have a talk when I decided to write this book. I told him that though it was fiction, it was partly to raise awareness of the dangers that kids with allergies face. And I told him of course, that it was something I never ever wanted to him to deal with. So no kissing girls.  Ever. Ha ha. Not really the last part. He didn’t find that funny either.


Long before the character of Sam came to life for me, I remember hearing a story in the news, similar to the storyline in WHO I KISSED, about a child dying from a ‘peanut butter kiss’. It stuck with me as a parent of a peanut allergy kid. How horrifying it would be for everyone. Including the child who accidentally caused a death. I also remember hearing a story about a kid at a birthday party who died when the knife used to cut the cake (peanut free cake) was tainted with peanut butter.  I don’t know if that story was true, but when you have a child with allergies those types of things make an impression.


As a parent of a kid with severe food allergies, you get used to people who don’t understand the severity of the allergy. People who complain about not being able to take a peanut butter sandwich to a peanut free school when it is “all their child will eat.”  On one level, I totally get that. Confession. I LOVE peanut butter. But on the other hand, something innocent has the potential to cause my child harm, or even cause death and I don’t want to let that happen. I’ve had to shake off my loathing to make people uncomfortable. I have to speak up. I understand that most people don’t mean harm when they send a peanut butter sandwich to school or open a bag of peanuts beside me in the airport. But I have to ask them to put away peanuts or nuts when my son is around. Or to ask their kids to wash their hands after eating something with nuts before playing with my son. 


My strongest argument for why other people should care is -- how would YOU feel if your child (or you) caused the death of my son. I know I would feel pretty darn awful (to put it mildly), but what would it do to your child and/or you? How could a child possibly deal with something like that? How could a parent possibly deal with their role in something like that?  And the thing is, it’s possible.   


It’s about taking ownership of that possibility, but also dealing with the consequences of a very honest mistake.  WHO I KISSED looks at how an innocent girl, who unwillingly and unknowingly is involved in the death of a boy who dies. A boy who is allergic to peanuts.  It’s about thinking how that would affect you? How would you cope? What would you do?


Ultimately, like most of the books I write, I think there’s also hope in this book. And some lighter moments too. I created two characters, Aunt Allie and Fredrick to help Samantha deal and also to help the reader deal with the emotional intensity of the book.  Plus there’s hot boys. I like them too.


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Thank you Janet for stopping by Mundie Moms today!

Follow Janet via her: Website | Blogon Facebook | on Twitter


Published by: SourceBooks Fire
Released on: October 1st, 2012
ISBN: 9-781-4022-7054-3
Trade Paper/$9.99
Ages 13+
Purchased from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

She Never Thought A Kiss Could Kill. . .

Samantha is new at school and just recently joined the swim team.  She’s been flirting with one of her teammates, Zee, who invites her to a party and just as quickly dumps her for another girl.  Hurt, but pretending not to care, she turns to his best friend, Alex, and gives him a kiss.  And he dies—right in her arms.  Alex was allergic to peanuts, and Samantha had eaten a peanut butter sandwich right before the party.  She didn’t know.  Overnight, Samantha turns into the school pariah and a media sensation explodes.  Consumed with guilt, abandoned by her friends, and in jeopardy of losing her swimming scholarship, she will have to find the inner-strength to forgive herself for the tragedy.  Critics are already applauding the author’s insight and her ability to make her “character breathe with life” (Kirkus Reviews). Skillfully capturing the raw, honest emotions of her teen protagonists, Janet paints them into a searing portrait of a tragedy that uproots the lives of everyone it touches.

Look for my review to go up later today! This is one contemporary I really enjoyed.

The Giveaway: Thank you to SourceBooks Fire I have one copy of Who I Kissed to giveaway! To enter, please fill out the form below. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway


15 comments:

  1. I think this is a novel I will really enjoy. I haven't read anything like this and can't wait to get a copy.

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    1. I hadn't read anything like it before either, and I really enjoyed it. I hope you do too! :)

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  2. I actually just read about this on another blog two minutes ago and have already ordered in my copy. It looks like a wonderful book, very thoughtful and well-written.

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    1. YAY! I hope you enjoy it! I really liked it. The writing is fabulous!

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  3. This looks like a great book! I don't know that anyone has done a book like it and it is such an important theme!

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    1. I agree, I've not read another book like this one before. It's one I enjoyed it. I hope you like it as well. :)

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  4. I have a peanut allergy, so this book totally interests me.

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  5. This sounds like an interesting contemporary with a real problem that not many people think about

    Thank you:)

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  6. Who I Kissed seems like an amazing story. Thanks for sharing!

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  7. Sounds really good!! Thanks for the chance to win!

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  8. That situation would be so terrible in real life but sounds like a great read!

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  9. This sounds like a great story about something different than what I've been reading. Thanks for the giveaway : )

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  10. What a terrible situation! I'm really interested to see how the author handles Samantha's journey to acceptance.

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  11. This sounds interesting. Thanks for the giveaway.

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  12. Sounds great and a different storyline than what I have been reading. Can't wait to read it

    Jolene A

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