R is for Reading

This post is part of the A-to-Z Challenge.

Every night I read before going to bed. And on weekends, I often just sit around and also read, especially if there is a good book at hand.

Murder mysteries and biographies are my favorite genres. I used to read nothing but murder and true crime books. After jumping at any little sound, I decided I was getting too involved in true crime. Now I temper my fanaticism with little doses of comedy and non-crime books, especially biographies.

Robert B Parker is the author of the Spencer series, the Jesse Stone series, and the less known Sunny Randall series.

A few years ago, I and a friend went on a Spenser readfest where we read every Spenser book- 38 of them – in order! And then went into the Jesse Stone series.

Be still my heart – Tom Selleck plays Jesse in the made-for-TV movies. And the latest one will premier on May 20th!

As for biographies, David McCullough is a favorite for his Truman and John Adams biographies. I also quite enjoyed Mornings on Horseback (about Theodore Roosevelt’s early years).

Recently I read Broken by Lauren Hilldebrand. An incredible book; read it if you can. Currently I am reading The Horse Boy by Rupert Isaacson. True story of a boy with autism and his family’s quest to connect with him.

For lighter laugh-a-minute reading, I highly recommend Janet Evanovich, Diane Mott Davidson, or David Sedaris.

Peter Hessler has written several books about his experiences in China; they are priceless.

I could go on and on, but will stop so you can provide your recommendations.

The Final Drive to Clean

Severe case of TB (tired butt) brought on by 6.5 hours behind the wheel. Dropped Daughter off at college for her summer school stint.  It will be about six weeks before she comes back home.  But I left her with fresh strawberries and whip cream so she’ll survive berry well (bad pun).

Now I’m back home and creating this weekend’s chore list. I have a friend coming on Sunday to visit for a few days so need to finish the declutter process and clean, clean, clean.

Daughter did a pretty good job on her room. But now I have tons of yard sale stuff to temporarily pack away until August. I’m so excited to get that done and then vacuum everything. I’ll show before/after pictures soon.

Here’s the list for this weekend.

• Pack the yard sale stuff.
• Finish boxing up Daughter’s future housewares stuff.
• Wash downstairs bedroom bedding.
• Clean downstairs bathroom.
• Vacuum everywhere!
• Take a nap mid-day (my personal fav).
• Make angel food cake (perfect for strawberries and whip cream).

I am very excited to be getting this close to having a cleaner house. And I think the TV commercial breaks for short tasks seem to work well for me.

Wish me luck on my Saturday chores!

DISCLAIMER: Last night I started Janet Evanovich’s latest book, Smokin’ Seventeen. So I may end up reading late into the night and get a late start. That’s OK with me, because Stephanie, Joe, and Ranger (be still my heart) need my immediate attention.

Favorite Book Challenge

This Favorite Book Challenge is being organised by A Writer’s Journey.

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to:

1. Pick your top five favorite books.
2. Between June 20 and 22, write one line of what each book is about and then write one line of why you liked it. Think of it like a twitter pitch for other people’s work. Semi-colons are cheating, but you can use them anyway.
3. Go to other blogs and discuss the books.
4. If you do not keep a blog, put your challenge in the comments on the day of the event.

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Here are my favs:

One for the Money by Janet Evanovich

• Stephanie Plum works (sort of) as a bail bond enforcer, but with a good heart, wacky friends, and hot men, she always gets in and out of trouble faster than you can flip the pages in the book.
• This is the first of a series of 17 chuckle out loud books, with a can do attitude that I wish I had.

I Know This Much is True by Wally Lamb

• A riveting story of twin brothers and how their lives affect each other; one is schizophrenic and the other one works hard to deal with it, past, present, and future.
• I loved the details about the brotherly relationship and how the illness of one forces the other brother to grow and learn about himself.

Eleanor and Franklin by Joseph Lash

• A suberb telling of the background, marriage, and strength of Eleanor Roosevelt, and how she inspired a nation and women across the world.
• I loved reading about Eleanor growing up and how her life shaped her to be a strong role model for all women.

Lord of the Rings trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien

• A journey of good vs. evil in the land of Middle Earth, where some things/people are familiar, but others are beyond your wildest thoughts of fantasy.
• For over 25 years, the trilogy was at the top of my summer reading list; a chance to live in another world and cheer for good to triumph again.

The Stranger Beside Me by Ann Rule

• The true story of Ted Bundy, his evil life, and how he fooled the world; told though the eyes of a perceptive woman who tries to understand the makings of evil.
• The first true crime book I ever read, which started me on a deep love/hate for the genre.