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10/15/08
The Booklist

I’m so glad to know that I’m not the only one who book binges. I knew you guys were awesome! My coworkers know that I read roughly 6 books a week (usually one a night when they’re less than 300 pages), but when I told them that I went through 3000 pages in two days and a half days without pause, they thought I was a little nuts. (To be honest, Tony thought so too, but he’s been through my book binges before. He tries to distract me, but it never works). This binge was a little rougher than most because the Twilight series have such emotionally complex characters. (Which sounds stupid to say about books that are technically geared towards young adults, but there you are). And I seemed to be stuck in there with them, feeling everything that they did, jammed into a 48 hour period. I probably could have ended the binge after those four, but I needed Daughter of York (Anne Easter Smith, 2008) to “rebalance my humors”, as they said in her time.

Pam asked for book suggestions, and while I’ve thought about keeping a “what I’m currently reading” on the sidebar, I didn’t think it would work because 1) it would change daily, and 2) my interests are so scattered that I’m sure that they wouldn’t appeal to anyone else. I never go into the library looking for anything specific; I wander the aisles, randomly picking whatever catches my eye. Sometimes that backfires, but most of the time I enjoy the different styles and voices (of the authors…not the ones in my head). Regardless, and just for Pam, here’s what I’ve been reading (other than the Twilight series and Daughter of York, since I’ve already mentioned them):

Beating the babushka by Tim Maleeny is your good old fashioned PI mystery, but he has a quick wit and interesting plot twists.
Stealing the Dragon, by Tim Maleeny. This is the continuation to Beating the babushka, where he gets further into his character’s back stories. His one-liners and interesting observations will keep you chuckling.
Punching In: The Unauthorized Adventures of a Front Line Employee by Alex Frankel. This is actually non-fiction, and it was REALLY good. Alex goes undercover at companies like UPS, Starbucks, The Gap, and Enterprise Rent-a-car to examine their company culture and discover what its like being “on the front line”. Made me look at companies (including my own) in a new light.
The James Boys: a novel account of four desperate brothers by Richard Liebmann-Smith- this was really well written also. Very fast paced and lots of fun.
Whatever Makes You Happy by William Sutcliffe- This one threw me for a second because it’s the story of four mothers who are trying to reconnect with their adult sons, which is a position that I rarely think about. But it was good. I enjoyed it, and the different perspective was interesting.
How to Murder a Millionaire by Nancy Martin- this is the first in a series about the Blackbird sisters, which is another series of fun whodunits that read quickly and don’t make you think too much. I call them bathtub books since they are short enough to read in the bathtub/hot tub. I find the titles a little cheesy, but she has crazy characters, so they’re fun if you just need an easy read. The others in the series are Murder Melts in your Mouth, A crazy little thing called death, Have your cake and kill him too, Cross your heart and hope to die, Some like it Lethal, and Dead girls don’t wear diamonds. Again, cheesy titles, but cute stories.

So there you have it. I only read of enjoyment, so you'll rarely find a self-help or educational book in that list (although I did check out some gardening books last spring). They're most just some light reading, some mystery, a (slightly) historical fiction, a mother-son relationship story, and the views on current workplace culture. All currently residing in my library, waiting for the next person to wander along and find them.

But now I’m curious…What are you reading?

5 comments:

AnneK said...

The Shack, Water for Elephants

Pam B said...

Thanks for the suggestions! I'll look into them the next time I'm at the library.

Sometimes I go through phases where I'll read a string of the same genre: P.I. novels, romance, presidential bios, legal who-done-its, classics, sci-fi/fantasy, etc.

Lately I've been alternating genres with each book, but I've mostly been sticking to the lighter fare because my brain's tired.

Still on the Twilight series. Probably will be for another week or two because Hubby actually demands *some* of my time. The nerve! LOL

Pam

Anonymous said...

Oooh, I LOVED the Twilight series. That was my last book binge. I totally read one a day. When I came off it I had to take a break from reading because I was so into the characters that I couldn't bear to pollute my brain with new ones! Now I'm going to start reading "The Choice" by Nicholas Sparks. I heard it was a good for a cry : )

AZ Dog Mom said...

What is is with the Twilight series? I too was sucked in (no pun intended). I read the first two in two days. I had to make myself take a break before I hit the third (mostly because I was out of weekend, and knew I'd be up into the wee hours of the morning if I picked up the next book). The whole week, I was like an addict. I needed that Edward and Bella fix!! Crazy. ;D I want to start the next one, but I know I'll get sucked in and the weekend will be shot so I'm holding off. But man it hurts. Daughters of York is on my shelf right now. Just received it in a book swap. Sounds like an interesting read. I'm on the light chick-lit type books for a few weeks, let my brain clear up too.

Anonymous said...

I'm reading The Girls by Lori Lansens,and The Birth House by Ami McKay. And Hubby and I like to read together as well... We're currently reading: The Remains of the Day Kazuo Ishiguro, and rereading Sense and Sensibility Jane Austen, A Christmas Carol Dickens and The Inimitable Jeeves PG Wodehouse.

All good books.

I keep seeing mentions of the Twilight series everywhere. I'll have to check them out. I also really like the sound of Punching In. You might really like Googlewack Adventure by Dave Gorman and A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson and One Red Paperclip by Kyle McDonald - all fun non-fiction adventures.