I Don't Know How It Happened...

A year or so ago I picked up two interesting looking books that I found in a used book store. They were by Jasper Fforde. I meant to read them, but they went into the 'stack of books to read' and I forgot about them. Then, the other day, I packed up the first one and thought it would make a good 'car reading book'. It was The Eyre Affair. I LOVED IT! I quickly tore through the next book in the series and then when I was about 25 pages from the end of that one I drove to two book stores to find the next three books in the series. If you like books (and reading about books), if you like funny books (like Douglas Adams kind of stuff), if you have read a lot of books, particularly classics and you would enjoy reading about a universe where the Complete Works of Shakespeare is legally mandatory in all hotel rooms (right next to the Gideon's Bible, the Koran, and various other religious books), then you would like this series. I am halfway through the 3rd book (Well of Lost Plots) and very much enjoying it!

Change in Plans...

Okay, so I put Odalisque down and picked up Bones to Ashes by Kathy Reichs and whipped that off in two days. I needed a break from Stephenson because the writing is so dense. I have picked up Kim Edwards' The Memory Keeper's Daughter and hope that will move along as well. I will get back to Odalisque later.

Sleepy... few pages read...

I finished The Vagabond King last night. It was hanging on for a few days there because I would only get one or two pages read before I found myself asleep. I have picked up Odalisque, which is the next in the Baroque Cycle (Neal Stephenson). I think I would be going through these faster if it weren't Spring Break. I don't have the 1/2 hour in the car waiting for Oliver after school, so that's a lot of my reading time gone right there.

I forgot to mention I read Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. My sister lent it to me. It is the same author who wrote Remains of the Day but is nothing like that one (I am assuming based on my recollection of the movie). It was very interesting and sad in a way. I wanted an uprising and that was lacking. I do recommend the read. The concept was brilliant and the writing is really good.

Getting Through a Bit...

I whipped through the rest of the Artemis Fowl series. Don't know why I wanted to re-visit them, but I was glad I did. They are good. For anyone out there who likes a bit of kid-lit these are pretty good (think Narnia, Harry Potter, and that kind of reading level). I am now onto the 2nd book of Neal Stephenson's Baroque Cycle 1 series (the book is in the car so I can't currently check the title). I think it is called King of the Vagabonds or something like that. It is totally independent of the first book. I think the only thing it has in common is the time period and world. Perhaps characters will cross over but I don't know yet. So far so good. I also read something else in there, but I can't remember what it was... silly me.

On to the next...

I am reading Lee Child's Echo Burning. I hope to be done in a couple of days. Shouldn't be a problem.

Travel is good for reading...

On my trip to Toronto I finished Water Like a Stone and on the way back I read and finished J.A. Jance's Hand of Evil. Both we fine for the series they come from. I am now reading Lee Child's Persuader. It was given to me by my sister in an attempt to get some of her already read paperbacks out of her house and into mine. Cool. I like reading books I didn't necessarily have to buy, especially since I know I will read it and then never pick it up again.

Lightweight for travel...

I finished Not in the Flesh. Typical Rendell, except I figured it all out way before Wexford so I started to wonder how smart he really is... Hmmmm....

I know have to sort through my stuff to decide what to take on my TRIP TO TORONTO! Woot! Woot! I want it to be light enough to carry well, but I also want it to be a good read and I don't want to run out of words on my travels. I picked up the Deborah Crombie book, Water Like a Stone. Mom lent me it and it is a paperback. I also have Wicked (yeah, yeah, I know I am late on picking that up) and it is a paperback as well. I can always put extras in my suitcase for the trip home and shuffle. I just read so quickly when I have uninterrupted time. I pray that I do not have chatty seat companions! I am not good at anti-social so if they talk to me I will talk to them and I will be wishing I were reading!