INMATES ON THE LOOSE in the blog

We, the subset of the TLC backbloggers called Help Me Out Here (HMOH) email group --dedicated to making less of ourselves -- do more than talk about healthier eating and more exercising, we talk gardens, nature, travel, books, books and books. We READ!

  Kerry

When I quit my full-time job, I knew I'd have more time to read.  What I didn't expect was the extent to which my new situation would encourage me to expand the borders of my biblioverse (I made that up.  Cool, huh?). And with some of my extra time, I read book reviews and am accumulating a huge TBR list.  Here are some books I never would have tried when my reading time was so limited that I didn't want to waste it on anything but my tried-and-true favorites:
INTUITION by Allegra Goodman; THE SENATOR'S WIFE by Sue Miller; and HOUSE RULES by Jodi Picoult.  In non-fiction, I've read BORN ON A BLUE DAY by Daniel Tammet, a synaesthetic man with Asberger's syndrome; THREE CUPS OF TEA, about Greg Mortensen's work building schools in rural Pakistan and Afghanistan; and BRIGHT-SIDED, by Barbara Ehrenreich.

Do you push your own reading boundaries?

 

Jodi (who is at present lolling around the South of France)

The books I've read so far since I left home.   Sara Paretsky's HARDBALL; David Baldacci's DIVINE JUSTICE;  Dick Francis' LONGSHOT; Julie Hyzy's STATE OF THE ONION; and in the process of reading Dick Francis' STRAIGHT.  Bob bought a bunch of Dick Francis books from the used book section at Murder by the Book in Houston cuz he became enthralled with Dick Francis' work.  I discovered I really hadn't read all of them, so am catching up.  Then, of course, I have my Nook with me which has on it:  Lee Goldberg's MR. MONK IN TROUBLE and MR. MONK IS CLEANED OUT; Janet Evanovich's SIZZLING SIXTEEN; Julie Hyzy's EGGSECUTIVE ORDERS; Victoria Thompson's MURDER ON LEXINGTON AVENUE; Avery Ames' THE LONG QUICHE GOODBYE; Carolyn Haines' BONE APPETIT; and Carolyn Hart's LAUGHED TIL HE DIED.

 

Storyteller Mary

I have eclectic reading tastes, open to suggestions from many sources . . . Saturday night a doctor at a party suggested  THE ART OF RACING IN THE RAIN and MAKING THE GHOST DANCE.  My nieces pointed me toward Janet Evanovich, THE HUNGER GAMES, and TWILIGHT.  From my sister, the “Cat Who” series, and Dana Stabenow’s Kate Shugak.  Book clubs (three different ones) and my storytell email community add more, Mrs. Pollifax and (eclectic indeed) the Elm Creek Quilters.  In the car I’m listening to Sharyn McCrumb’s THE DEVIL AMONGST THE LAWYERS.

Elaine brought me to TLC, and now I’ll never lack for good reading, with Bubbles, Blackbirds, Josie, Helen, Maisie, and presently Judy Larsen’s ALL THE NUMBERS,*  the fun just keeps on coming.

  

Paulina

This Sunday I started AMERICAN PASTORAL of Philip Roth (while taking my breakfast in bed – my week-end péché mignon). I remember the day I discovered the author. It was in November 2002, the day we first left our one-month daughter with the baby-sitter and went out for dinner given by an American lawyer. We spoke literature with a guy sitting next to us (American as well) and he turned out to be very fond of Philip Roth, an author we didn’t know at the time being. The next day my husband and I started devouring his novels.

The book that is waiting for me is LES BRAISES (EMBERS) by a Hungarian writer Sándor Márai. The first translation of this book was made in France and after it appeared in other foreign languages but strangely under its French title, not the original one.

Laraine

I’ve just read the charming faux mystery novel HEAT WAVE by Rick Castle (of the great Castle TV show).  The inside back liner says his "first novel . . . received the Nom DePlume Society's prestigious Tom Straw Award for Mystery Literature.”  Nikki Heat’s oh-so-tough-and-smart NYC detective work with her funny, endearing, romantic ride-along writer is just great fun.

 

 

 

Judy Merrill Larsen

I’m reading THE HELP and loving it.  Two other books that stand out for me from this summer are Anna Quindlen’s EVERY LAST ONE (I adore her.  I want to be her when I grow up.) and Lynne Griffin’s beautiful SEA ESCAPE.  On the top pf my TBR pile is Franzen’s FREEDOM (I know . . . people have said I should snub this but I’ve heard it’s amazing—and not just from Oprah).  When the weather gets crisp and I’m hankering to make chili, stew and meatloaf, I gravitate toward weightier books.  In the summer, I want lighter (although given the books listed above who knows).  Does anyone else find that their reading changes with the seasons?

Laura in PA

During our vacation, I read THE HELP, which was awesome, and Nancy’s entertaining OUR LADY OF IMMACULATE DECEPTION, which helped assuage the disappointment in my forced inactivity due to a leg ailment.

I read mostly mysteries, with some fiction and romance thrown in. On the mystery front, I was excited to hear about NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEED, by E.J. Copperman (AKA Jeff Cohen). I love his Movie Theater mysteries, and he didn’t disappoint with this new series.  Others include our own Jackie’s Maisie Dobbs (Loved! Looking for more); G. M. Malliet’s DEATH OF A LIT CHICK, second in her excellent series; and Alan Bradley’s THE WEED THAT STRINGS THE HANGMAN'S BAG, the second of his wonderful Flavia de Luce books.

I MUST read series in order. Am I alone in this? Also, when you finish a book, do you just pick up the next one on the pile, or do you have to peruse and figure out what you’re in the mood for?

 

Alan S.

I finished Elaine Viets' HALF PRICE HOMICIDE; Laurie King's A GRAVE TALENT, THE MOOR, and A DARKER PLACE; and Robert Parker 's CHANCES and SMALL VICES. Elaine puts Helen in an outrageous situation in a totally believable manner. King and Parker have me rereading paragraphs, not to untangle syntax but to savor what I just read. Do you find six books a week excessive?

 

hollygee

I avidly read Jennifer Crusie’s new MAYBE THIS TIME and I’m devouring Jill Mansell’s backlist. I’ve finished all the current Mansell’s from Borders and library, acquiring one from Paperback Swap and now will do Amazon for the rest.

 

Becky Hutchison

I prefer fairly Lighthearted Cozies:

DIVA LAS VEGAS by Eileen Davidson

THE COLD LIGHT OF MOURNING by Elizabeth Duncan

 

particularly if they involve -

 

Ghosts:

DEAD AND KICKING by Wendy Roberts

TOMB WITH A VIEW by Casey Daniels

 

Good witches:

A WITCH IN TIME by Madelyn Alt

A CAST-OFF COVEN by Juliet Blackwell

 

Fairies:

THE FAIRE FOLK TRILOGY by Gillian Summers

 

Angels:

AVENGING ANGELS by Mary Stanton

 

and Psychic Ability:

A GLIMPSE OF EVIL by Victoria Laurie

 

Sometimes I have two or three books going simultaneously depending on time of day:

 

Daylight:

BOOK OF SHADOWS by Alex Sokoloff

THE BONE ISLAND TRILOGY by Heather Graham)

Bedtime:

CROSSING THE LION by Cynthia Baxter

 

- Or -

 

Room (i.e., my kitchen):

HOLLYWOOD THEN AND NOW by Rosemary Lord 

 

Does anyone else read more than one book at a time?

Karen in OH

In the last two weeks, I've read: DRIVEN TO INK, by Karen E. Olson; four titles in the Cleo Coyle Coffeehouse series; BUZZ OFF, by Hannah Reed (I went to her signing in Waukesha); FOOL'S PUZZLE and MARINER'S COMPASS, by Earlene Fowler; two flowershop mysteries by Kate Collins; THE VIRGIN OF THE SMALL PLAINS, by Nancy Pickard; HER ROYAL SPYNESS, by Rhys Bowen; THE GUN SELLER, by Hugh Laurie; and Robert Parker's ROUGH WEATHER.

I read a lot. I like reading all the books in a series, and often collect series. Summer is a time for light, frothy reading; winter is my time for lengthier novels and classics. Whatever did we do for fun before TLC?  So many good books to read, and such fun writers and readers!

Comments

[storyteller Mary]

Well done, Holly!! (and just in time to be bedtime reading ;-)

I'll add one question. Do you listen to books on CD? Where?

I listen in the car, and it takes a long time to finish with only local driving. I've found it has to be completely different from the book I'm reading, or I get mixed up . . . details of two mysteries get me confused.
Right now, _Driven to Ink_ is for real reading and Sharyn McCrumb in the car. Today I heard a reference to one of my favorite stories, the Japanese story of Urashima Toro. No wonder I like her books!
I'm also very fussy about the reader of a CD -- I love the reader of _Devil amongst the Lawyers_ but couldn't listen to the Mrs. Pollifax novels. Jim Dale is the master of the art. My nephew proclaimed, "The man is a genius!"
. . . and so good-night to all -- or good morning . . .

[Mary Eman]

I've said it before, I say it again: This is why I love this group! Books, books, books, readers, readers, readers.......

So glad I'm not the only one who likes to read a series in order and has two or three books going at a time.

I love Mrs. Pollifax, ditto Mrs. Mallory, a big fan of Mary Wesley's books. And Patrick Dennis just because I like to laugh.

It was lovely putting faces to names.

[Pam aka SisterZip]

The only books on cd I have listened to are the Harry Potters. Jim Dale is the best! Long trips picking up the daughter from college (5.5 hour trip one way) makes for great listening.

My favorite book of the spring/summer, though, has been Pat Conroy's South of Broad. Way out of my normal reading comfort zone, but I lent it to 7 people and everyone loved it. The Help was another favorite.

Mostly, though, I read cozies.I do like to read series in order. If I find one that looks interesting, I get the first in the series and go from there. I keep an Excel spreadsheet of all the series I follow and future books to get so I don't get confused or forget. :-)

[Laraine]

Yeah, Holly! Thanks for putting our words together into a lovely quilt/post.
It amazes me that my HMOH pals find time not only for work, for family and travel, for lots of exercise and thoughtful eating and sharing tips on healthy weight management, but also read and read and read! I actually had to go on a 'reading fast' for some weeks to get a LITTLE caught up on work projects. Castle's book was my 'break-fast' book.

Next: I'm so grateful for Roxy, Nancy (Martin). I hurt my foot yesterday, so am on a forced rest program for a day or two . . . and Our Lady of Immaculate Deception has been a terrific boon.

[Laraine]

Oops, forgot to say: I so prefer to read things in order that I will postpone beginning to read a new author's work until I can start with her/his first work, rather than plunge in in the middle.

[judy merrill larsen]

How fun to be guest posting here! Thanks for having us! I like to read in order . . . and I pretty much read only one book at a time. I want to try listening to books on CD (or iPod) again)--the last time I tried (probably 15 years ago!) was on a long car trip and I'd get so distracted listening while driving I was afraid of becoming a road hazard!

[Nancy Pickard]

I love this! Getting to see and hear from you guys is a huge treat. Thank you! I'll come back and talk books later, for now I just wanted to hip hip hooray before I head off to Tulsa for a book festival--during which I will see at least one of those authors on your lists (Carolyn Hart).

[Ramona]

So that's what you all look like! Great book recs--thanks!

[JodiL]

Hey, thanks, Ramona. That's me, 2nd palm tree on the right! This has been fun and I keep in touch with all my HMOH pals and current with TLC as often as I can while still enjoying the beauty of the Mediterrean Sea...and between chapters/books.

[Cornelia Read]

This is SO great, you guys! What a pleasure to see what you're all reading. I'm having to give up reading for the next few days because I'm on massive deadline, but I just reread all of Charlaine Harris's Sookie books. LOVE her stuff.

[Karen in Ohio]

Well, we still don't know what International Woman of Mystery, JodiL, looks like, do we? I'm thinking there's a reason for that!

Right now I'm about 1/3 of the way through Brunonia's The Lace Reader. It's not at all what I expected, and I'm thoroughly enjoying the ride. Can't wait to see what's around the corner, and I suspect this will be one of those books to be savored again and again over the years. So different.

[JanetLynn13]

Love meeting you all - pictures and what you are reading! What a great post!

I don't like to read more than one book at a time, but I do like to listen to one in the car, and read the other. They can't be too similar, and it's best if I start them at different times, or the characters get mixed up in my head. Even on my short commute, I love having one on cd. I feel bereft when I'm between books on cd, I just wish they were a less expensive.

Oh, and I almost always read series books in order, but I just started The Summoning God by the Gears at someone's suggestion, and it's bothering me that I started a series in the middle....

[Margaret Maron]

I love, love, LOVE being able to put faces to names now. And learning what everyone's reading. Such an eclectic group. I may have to finish Stegner's Angle of Repose after all, just to keep up.

[Becky Hutchison]

Thanks, Holly, for putting all this together. I've also been reading for my first ever trip to England: Tony Blair's A JOURNEY: MY POLITICAL LIFE, plus England travel books by Frommers, Rick Steves, The Lonely Planet and others I can't remember this early in the morning.

Pam, I forgot you did spreadsheets for your books. That's a really good idea. I don't know how many times I've bought an extra copy of a book I already owned. I just did a spreadsheet the other night to decide if it was worthwhile to buy certain passes in England. I decided YES to the Yorkshire Pass because it allows entry to at least 18 of the places I want to go in York and NO to the London Pass, Great British Heritage Pass and the Heritage Overseas Travel Card because I want to see only a few places those cover (and some are already covered under the Yorkshire Pass). Bath doesn't offer a travel pass. Since I only want to visit just a couple of places in London that charge a fee, it's cheaper to purchase those tickets separately. So doing the spreadsheet probably helped me save about $200!

[Al_S]

I really prefer reading series books in order but I can't always find them. Once I've decided I like an author I try to read everything they've written and will read little else until I'm finished. I'm currently working on Laurie R. King and Robert Parker. A little obsessive I guess. But lots of fun. Rest assured that I'm always working in one of the Tart's books, another obsession of mine.

[Alan P.]

What a great way to start the day. I needed to add a few books to my shopping list on LibraryThing and now I can.

http://www.librarything.com/catalog/aportman

There are a few others I need to add sitting at home. I used to have two or three books going at once, now it is just one or two. I just finished "Hendrix: Setting the Record Straight". It was not the best rock biography, but I did learn some things.

I like to read a series in order too. Good writers can make each book stand on it's own, but I find I like reading the full story (like the Helen/Phil romance) from the beginning. I learned from bitter experience to not read a series one right after another. DW was upset when she suggested I read the JD Robb books and after reading four in a row outlined number five after reading 20 pages.

Since I tend to read a lot of non-fiction, I like to switch between fiction and non-fiction. The book after the Hendrix bio is "The girl with the dragon tattoo". I am just getting into it.

The plan is to read "An Uplifting Murder" and "Wandering Stars: An Anthology of Jewish Fantasy and Science Fiction" in November.

[Sarah]

LAURA! Where did you get that photo? Oh, god. Burn it now!
South of France. Lying in bed. These photos are awesome. Now that I know what you guys look like, it'll make it so much easier to hunt you down.
Thanks for the great reading recommendations.

[Laura (in PA)]

It's so fun to be part of the guest blog today! I'm glad I'm not the only one that is (just slightly) anal about reading a series in order. I agree that while each book can usually stand on its own, you get a better sense of character growth and context if you read them as they're written. I, too, have a spreadsheet which lists all the series I like in order, and which books I already have.

I don't usually read more than one book at a time, but lately I seem to be getting into a few at once. I'm listening to the audiobook of C. J. Box's "Blue Heaven" in the car, and it's very good. It has been a big help against the traffic frustrations during the commute lately.

[Karen in Ohio]

LOL, Sarah. We had a bit of a debate as to whether you'd be down with using that photo or not. (Hint: blame Holly)

On forgetting which books you already have: At the library book sale a couple months ago I noticed several people walking around pointing their smart phones at UPC codes, presumably checking against some kind of list. They had some sort of device attached, as near as I could tell without sticking my inquisitive nose right in their faces. Does anyone know what this might be?

We also had a discussion about what makes a cozy. Here's what I sent our group, but I'd like to hear if there is anything to add or subtract from my assumptions about this.

"Cozies have no more than two dead bodies, no descriptions of the actual gore, no sex scenes, and are usually written with a light touch. They also star amateur detectives who keep sticking their noses into police business, and often have something going on with the detective or some other cop. Rarely, with a reporter, instead. Usually, the amateur is a woman, but not always. Okay, almost always. And they're cute and perky, more often than not."

[Laura (in PA)]

Lol. Thought you'd like that, Sarah.

[Holly Gault]

Jeeze, thanks guys, for putting me in the hot seat. But Sarah, that's not YOU, that's Bubbles.

[Paulina]

Great job Holly,thank you for putting us together.
I don’t usually read more than one book at the same time except if the book I’m reading in some particular moment is heavy and I have to take a metro. So in this case I take a different book to read while riding.

[Marcia in OK]

There's a book festival in Tulsa and I didn't hear! And, I have to supervise a troop of Girl Scouts for a campout for the WHOLE weekend.

I thought there was a fine print rule in the reader's rules about series being read in order. Sometimes if I read a blurb I like for the beginning of a series, I'll wait until there are at least 3 books out so I can mini-glom them.

Love the reading lists and pictures!

[Karen in Ohio]

Holly, what are friends for? lol

[Hank Phillippi Ryan]

What an absolutely delightful heart-warming wonderful treat! It's so lovely to see you all!

[storyteller Mary]

I just realized, we never see a photo of Jodi . . . or on of Me, Margie . . .
Let the rumors begin!
Once, sitting in the Toyota service waiting room, I heard three people in a row say, "If I'd known I'd be waiting this long, I'd have brought a book." I shared that with my students as a life lesson. I can't even imagine leaving home without a book (even easier now with 20 classics for 99 cents app. on the iPod).
One trick for CDs in the car. I usually check out the book at the same time, so if I miss a plot point or want to refresh my mind between car trips, I can skim over the written version.
Jim Dale also narrated the Peter and the Starcatchers series, very well done, though Wendy confused me by sounding like Hermione. . .

[storyteller Mary]

JanetLynn, my library has many books on CD. . . free!
I second Karen's recommendation of _Lace Reader_, a most memorable book, fascinating, with characters I could care about. _All the Numbers_ has characters I love also, almost too much . . . hard to walk away from. That's a good thing, of course, we should care, but sometimes it also hurts.
I use the KDL What's Next site to get the book titles in order, and feel very disoriented when I accidentally mix them up.

[storyteller Mary]

Alan, who is the author/editor for the Wandering Stars anthology? . . . must find it!

On books in the car, a friend said it was her antidote to "all war all the time." Right now, it would also help avoid political mud-slinging.

[Debby]

I am so with Laura (in PA) regarding reading series' in order. And I also maintain the massive spreadsheet to keep it under control. Hey, did I take that picture????

Having just recently torn down part of Mount To-Be-Read while on a dangerous search for a missing-in-action book, I took the opportunity to sort of reorganize. More of a case of lumping each authors books together in hopes that it would help.

No worries, dear TLC authors...none of you are currently residing there. The Mount is more of the new-to-me authors, or those authors whose books I have to get back into. LOL!!!

And I had an awesome summer of reading this year. I just checked my spreadsheet...and I read 30 books. Which is good for me due to my driving commute, all of the volunteering that I do, and munckin time.

For entertainment value, my favorite summer read seems to be STAY by Allie Larkin. Yeah, thank you, Sarah for that recommendation. I abso-freakin loved it.

Because there was a critter involved, I read and loved MAKING ROUNDS WITH OSCAR: THE EXTRAORDINARY GIFT OF AN ORDINARY CAT by David Dosa, MD. Read it for the fluffy-tale, and loved it for the knowledge that he presented in not just how this cat helps in the altzheimers wing, but also that he gives his own thoughts on those who are caretakers for loved-ones.

I also did a lot of reading from Elaine's, Hank's and Mariah Stewart's lists, to play catch-up.

I still haven't gotten in to listening to books on audio. If I am in the car for a lengthy period of time, I want straight music...and I have enough options to keep me happy across the country and back. A few times. LOL!

[JanetLynn13]

Mary, I have listened to all the books that interest me (and some that didn't) in our local library, and even went downtown to the main library in hopes of a larger variety of books on cd. Turns out the local had as many as the main library!

I too keep a spreadsheet list of books I've read! My family makes fun, but who can remember all those titles? Glad I'm not the only one.

As I read this blog, it seems that avid readers DO read series in order. I find the lack of sequence numbers on books to be very annoying. Anyone else? I'm guessing some publishers probably don't put them there as they may discourage new readers from picking the current book. But it looks like series numbers are important to us, and the casual reader (from what I hear) doesn't care. So is it possible that our authors here could start a trend by putting the number ON the cover somewhere to make it easier? (Hide it, just give us the secret code!) The lists on the insides of books don't help as they can be in order, in reverse order or alphabetically. So I usually use copyright dates, but sometimes that doesn't work (HANK!) and honestly, it delays me from starting a new series because it's difficult to figure out!

[Tracy]

Dear Tarts and Tart Friends,
This lurker is coming clean after reading this fantastic blog for 2 years. Thanks to everyone for the thought-provoking and fun entertainment!

I am currently reading Laura Lippman's "I'd Know You Anywhere", Jeff Lindsay's "Dexter Is Delicious" and Steve Toltz's "A Fraction of the Whole."

And most importantly, I arrived at this blog through reading! Here's how:
1. Looking for something new to read, I discovered Harley Jane Kozak's wacky and wonderful Wollie series. I checked her website to see when I could expect a new Wollie adventure and found this blog!
2. After reading the blog I then began reading Elaine Viets. The Dead-End Job series is my favorite. Sadly, Elaine was only 30 miles from me at the Jamestown, NC Library this summer but due to this dreadful thing called "work," I was unable to meet her and have my books signed.
3. I also began reading Sarah Strohmeyer due to this blog and have all the other Book Tarts on my reading list as well.
4. Being a native North Carolinian I faithfully read Margaret Maron and was thrilled to see her join this blog! (I look forward to the day she writes a Deborah Knott mystery revolving around the North Carolina barbecue argument-- eastern style vs. western style!)
5. I was also thrilled to discover Louise Penny has joined this blog. I will be first in line to get "Bury Your Dead" on Monday!

Thanks all! Keep reading!
From your North Carolina friend,
Tracy

[Becky Hutchison]

Welcome as a backblogger on TLC, Tracy. My father came from North Carolina, around the Goldsboro and Samson County area, so I have a fondness for North Carolina too. So how do you like Laura Lippman's new book?

[Becky Hutchison]

Oops! Make that the Sampson County area.

[marie]

What a wonderful treat to see you all on the blog..great pictures.
I have a big TBR pile including Linda Howard and Sandra Brown.
I just finished Jennifer Crusie's MAYBE THIS TIME.
I downloaded a vintage Janet Evanovich romance LOVE OVERBOARD and loved it.
Janet Evanovich's rascally character Diesel is at it again in WICKED APPETITE and I am loving it also.
My nook is having great competition with my print books but it is all good.
BTW Sandra Hill's new guilty pleasure is fun.

And I am reading Carla Negger's The Mist which is out of series order and now I must seek out preceding titles so that I can get the rhythm flowing.

[Karen in Ohio]

Hi, Tracy! Love it when lurkers de-lurk.

Your 1 through 3 is my story, exactly. How funny that we took the same path without knowing it.

It's a darned good thing I'm not watching TV until after the elections are over, because the TBR stack is threatening to topple and overcome me, thanks to the new Tarts and all the bajillions of intriguing recommendations here!

[Diane Chamberlain]

I love this post! great to meet you all and hear about some new to me books to add to my TBR list. My recent favorites: Chevy Stevens' Still Missing, Geraldine Brooks' People of the Book, Anna Quindlen's Every Last One and Rebecca Skloot's (sp?) The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks.

[Margaret Maron]

Tracy and Becky -- two more Tar Heels! And T, I have already taken a stand on the Great Barbecue Debate in my books -- eastern NC's vinegar sauce all the way.

[Elaine Viets]

Good to see you all -- and now I do see you. Karen, I like the photo of us. Could you send me a copy? Thanks for the reading recommendations. I enjoyed THE LACE READER. If you liked THE VIRGIN OF SMALL PLAINS, you'll also enjoy Nancy P's THE SCENT OF RAIN AND LIGHTNING.
And Jodi L, in the south of France. Sigh.
Must go back and finish the next Helen book. It's due next week.

[marie]

BTW by divine inspiration I found an outlet for my overflowing pile of paperback books.
A friend will take these books and coordinate a package to send to our troops in various parts of the world. Soldiers love to read in their downtime.
Now, I must organize my treasures and wish some of them a fond goodbye. Some I cannot give up and my Tart's collection is in my library to stay.

[Karen in Ohio]

Elaine, done. If they don't come through, maybe Alan can send his copies, since I'm almost positive they came from him. (Or Mary, can't remember.)

[lil Gluckstern]

So neat to "meet" you all. I try to read all series in order for the development of characters, and relationships, etc. This makes for a lot of reading when I discover another one of you. Currently, I am exploring Elaine Viets' Shopping books, and beginning Vermillion Drift by William Kent Krueger. I like all kinds of mysteries so I am very lucky. There's always something for me to read. As I've said, before, I love this blog.

[Tracy]

Thanks for the welcome y'all!

Becky -- I'm halfway through Lippman's book and so far it is very intriguing! I'm from Winston-Salem, home to the HQ of Krispy Kreme doughnuts,RJR cigarettes, Hanes underwear and hosiery, and truly, Texas Pete Hot Sauce. I'll vouch for the goodness of the doughnuts, underwear and hot sauce. After teen years of working in tobacco fields, I was cured (LOL) of any desire for tobacco.

Karen -- that is absolutely hilarious we both arrived here in the same fashion!

Margaret -- I realize you have taken the eastern BBQ stand, was just hoping for a BBQ murder! And yes, I prefer Lexington-style. Speaking of food, your book, SAND SHARKS, had me starving and running for the nearest seafood restaurant!

Have a fantastic weekend all!
Tracy

[gaylin in vancouver]

Wow, you all have given me more book ideas to get and read! I also try to read series in order but will go back and re-read certain books in series if they were a favourite.
I often read 5 or 6 books a week, alas, I can't afford to buy that many books so thankfully I live equidistant between 2 library branches.
This summer I have been reading James Patterson, Ridley Pearson, Cornelia Read, John Ringo, Greg Rucka, Dana Stabanow, Rachel Caine, Lee Child, Jennifer Estep, Charlaine Harris and lots more.
I have had lots of downtime this summer to read and that has been lovely.

Welcome Tracy, I know I came across TLC through a book as well, I think it was one of the Bubbles books!

[storyteller Mary]

Elaine, photos are on their way. iPhoto makes it so easy . . .
You know, I found TLC when looking for updates on your health -- pity it took such an extreme event for me to catch on. I try to spread the word of your books and TLC, so you don't have to go to such lengths again.

[Harley]

This is such a treat! I love seeing your faces. Paulina, I thought I was the only one with a dining room that doubles as a library. My God, you're exactly as I pictured you -- and this whole blog and the comments has made my TBR pile grow exponentially.

[storyteller Mary]

JanetLynn maybe you can make friends with the person in charge of new materials. The woman who orders audio for our libraries also organized our Readers and Stitchers group, and accepts suggested titles gratefully. We also have reciprocal memeberships with the St. Louis libraries. Too bad media won't travel by intra-library loan . . .
I use http://ww2.kdl.org/libcat/WhatsNextNEW.asp to get the order for a series, and someone recently suggested http://www.stopyourekillingme.com/
I keep the lists of series and copy/paste the lists of books I've checked out from the library. . . far less elegant than your data base lists, but with the "find" feature, it serves to help me organize a bit . . .
Isn't it lovely that we have so many glorious options for reading?

** and I taught study skills classes for several months in Fayetteville, N.C. Pretty country!

[Jill Mansell]

Thanks so much to Hollygee for nice comments - lovely to know you're enjoying my books! If you're ordering backlist titles, I can really recommend www.bookdepository.co.uk which ships books worldwide postage and packaging free.
Great blog you have here - I shall be back!
Best
Jill Mansell xx

[Marie-Reine]

This is fun! I'm so glad you did this!

Put me down for reading a series in order, although that's almost impossible with Talking Books, because - although I am VERY GRATEFUL to get them - you pretty much get what they send you. I have a screen reader, so if a book can be downloaded, I can read it for awhile and read by listening the rest of the time. I am soooooo happy when authors have their books available on e-readers, but I am soooo disappointed that the e-readers like Nook and Kindle have had to disable the electronic voice function. I am hoping that someone will come up with something that will allow people who qualify for Talking Book, for example, to be able to use the electronic reader. I'll try to get off my soapbox now, but it's really frustrating to not be able to access the books you want to read, because they don't get recorded or you never make it to the top of the Talking Book list. I do buy CDs, but they are very expensive, and not all books are available on CD. Sorry... I'll stop. Well... it may come up again. I just love your books, Authors!

I always have a few books going at once: I have Tony Hillerman's Skinwalker on my Talking Book cassette player; I have Harley Jane Kozak's Dating Dead Men on a library CD; I have Cornelia Read's The Crazy School on my iPhone; I have Robert B. Parker's (miss you, old neighbor) Early Autumn on my Talking Books digital cartridge player; waiting for a Talking Book interlibrary loan of Pari Noskin Taichert's The Clovis Incident: A Mystery; and a hardbound copy of Louise Penny's The Brutal Telling-- that I can't finish reading, because I can no longer negotiate the book holder... grrrr.

My favorite readers are: Stephen Fry, who did the UK recardings of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series; Ralph Cosham, who has been the reader for Louise Penny's Books; and Deanna Hurst, who reads a lot of the books I've read- currently listening to her read Harley's Dating Dead Men.

A word about readers: While poor readers can ruin a book, fantastic readers are sometimes so good they sometimes get in the way. I'd be interested on any feedback on that phenomenon.

[Holly Gault]

SQEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

[Karen in Ohio]

Marie-Reine, I loved Skinwalker. Hillerman was a genius, may he rest in peace. Can't believe we lost both Hillerman and Parker in one year.

We made a 5,000-mile round trip drive earlier this summer, and listened to a couple different recorded books. The one we simply could not finish was Larry McMurtry's "Colonel and Little Missy", even though we were at that very time driving through the American West where the events took place. The narrator was abysmally bad, very dry, hardly any inflection, and with such an even tone to his voice we both wanted to fall asleep. Not a good idea when you're driving.

On the other hand, the guy who read
"Three Junes" was superb. He had a different Scottish/English/American accent for each individual in the story, and he nailed them all perfectly. In fact, the story itself dragged in spots, but I was so enthralled with the voice that I hung in with it until it got better.

I can't tell you who either of these guys were, though, because I always pass on my CD's to others who are traveling.

[Cassie]

How wonderful to see all the photos! I am thrilled to realize how many of you I have met in person. (But-------who could guess Alan would be so distinguished??) You are all incredibly well read--and so diverse in your tastes. I love that. I am babysitting my grandson this weekend. Just put him to bed, and now I am crawling onto the sofa with the new Laura Lippman-----aaahhhhh.

[Karen in Ohio]

Nancy, are you masquerading as Cassie tonight? Good disguise, but you blew it with that grandson comment.

Too fun, playing with Bobby all weekend!

[mary lynn]

Well, I've gotten sucked into the never-ending alternate histor series by Eric Flint, et. al. 1632, along with 1633 and 1634 in 3 volumes plus the 40+ Grantville Gazettes that are edited by Flint and primarily written by the fans. I also have Louise Ure's _Forcing Amaryllis_, and Cornelia Read's _Invisible Boy_ as soon as Tom finishes.

I always have some non-fic going along for the ride. In this case it's Barbara Ehernreich's _Bright Sided_ and Christopher Lowell's _7 Layers of Organization_ (not that we need organizing, we need purging)

Yes, I know, I have too much time on my hands (and butt)

[Marie-Reine]

Karen, yes - Tony Hillerman. Mmm. He rescued me from dissertationitis. I hadn't read a book for fun since ninth grade, when I heard him interviewed on NPR in Boston. My Diné, and other indigenous, classmates were rallying for other Native writers, rather than "writers of stories with a Native setting, as was I... but I needed to read something non-academic and non-culture-bound yet something that fit somewhere within my own set of complicated cultural mmm... stuff. So I started reading his books on the shuttle between Boston and Cambridge while writing my dissertation. It was so much fun that I just could not believe what I had been missing-- reading for fun.

By the way, Tony Hillerman's daughter, Anne Hillerman, will be presenting a slide show of "Tony Hillerman's Landscape." There'll be an informal memorial with the Left Coast Crime (LCC) writers and fan community. Read about it here on Pari Noskin Taichert's LCC blog: http://leftcoastcrime.org/2011/program.html

A few months after discovering Tony Hillerman's books, I saw a extraordinarily interesting looking man walking through the yard at school. A friend told me he was the writer, Robert B. Parker. I'd never heard of him, but I was so intrigued by his looks and manner that I bought one of his books. It turned out that he lived very close by, and I'd actually walked past his house almost every day of my grad student career.

[gaylin in vancouver]

Mary Lynn! I am so glad to know someone else here has read 1632 et al. I love those books. What a great premise. I found it first at the Baen Free Library online, with lots of books to choose from.

[Karen in Ohio]

That must have been quite an experience!

I've been meaning to visit friends in Santa Fe. What a good reason to go. Thank you for the link, M-R!

[Holly Gault]

Gaylin & Mary Lynn,
Steve read 1633 and 1634 earlier this year!

[Marie-Reine]

Karen, Harvard is an odd place to live and work. It's a place where you're just as likely to have a catered breakfast in your neuroscience class as to have coffee at Starbucks with a nobel laureate. After awhile, you kind of expect it... really. It gets hard to leave, and many stay on after commencement to work in jobs they would never even think of doing anywhere else-- just to stay at Harvard.

[Laraine]

What fun to read all the comments today! I want to give a big shout-out again to Holly, who did a great job of bringing our diverse HMOH group into coherence, and added the pictures (if I'd even tried to post something with pictures, you would be waiting for weeks, I tell you, weeks!).
Karen and Tracy, same path: reading Harley led me to her site, hearing from Laurie R. King of Elaine's health concerns back then made me curious about Elaine's wellbeing and her books, so when Harley's site offered a link to TLC, over I came, to discover such a cool group of human beings!

Note to William, Harley, et al: I hear big rumors of a 3rd Blond Bond for 2011, 2012 at the latest for the big anniversary of the series. Can't get enough of Blond Bond . . . and yes, Ramona, I'm moving out of the way fast . . . not standing between you and him for love nor money.

[storyteller Mary]

'Night all, and thanks for a fun day/week/month/years . . . .