Seven Days, Seven Books


Books I read
Originally uploaded by silvermari
While on vacation I managed to read seven books. I would have read more, but there was limited access to NEW material. This was the only time I've wished for a Nook or Kindle or similar. Mostly I wished I'd packed more books. Anyway, highlights of what I read:

Little Altars Everywhere, by Rebecca Wells
This is set in Louisiana and is about a family named Walker. So of course I bought it! It's the book that comes before Divine Secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood, which I'm sure I read when it was making it big, but I intend to re-read or at least re-watch the movie. Any recommendations for LA-themed movies or books would be welcomed. This one mentioned three books, and I'll look into procuring those when I'm down south.

No Lifeguard on Duty, by Janice Dickinson
I know of "the world's first supermodel" because of her judging on America's Next Top Model. This was about her life well before that, in that ANTM isn't even mentioned (I think it got a book of its own later). This was OK, but mostly felt sorry for her.

The Summons, by John Grisham
I think I read this in a day. Nothing special about this legal drama except there was very little involving a court case and in fact there wasn't even a scene that took place during a trial.

How I Write, Janet Evanovich, et al
Big text made this a really fast read, also it was in Q&A format. It has some good practical tips ... and HILARIOUS excerpts from Stephanie Plum books (honestly I should re-read the entire series). I don't know that I have any better idea of how to put together a story, but good reference and maybe once I have a story to tell I can apply those tips.

Dearly Devoted Dexter, by Jeff Lindsay
This was the lone book of interest in the stack of about 20 that were for sale in the ship's gift shop. Lucky me, it was the next I needed to read in the series. I love Dexter, and although I enjoy the direction that the Showtime series has taken the characters more than the original books, I do like the books and they're tense and fun reads.

The Turing Option
This was one of Shawn's books. It came to that. He thought I wouldn't like this one, but I was desperate. It wasn't too bad, but just sci fi stuff from the 80s (?) that had funny projections about the future (120 MB would be more than enough memory to run a human brain, etc.!). It left a lot of things unanswered and wasn't well written or tight from that aspect, but better than twiddling my thumbs.

Neuromancer
Uh ... this was the one I didn't understand AT ALL. I finished it in New York, the day after we got back. It was another sci fi novel. It apparently was revolutionary because of its imagery. I just didn't get it, but again, better than twiddling my thumbs.

No TV allowed me lots of time to read before bed, plus there was plenty of waiting time in lines, before shows, etc. And of course I was able to read on deck, on the beach and so forth.

2 comments:

Heather said...

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is real Louisiana classic - full of voodoo and such. I loved the Ya-Ya books again when I read them this fall, and if you've never read Interview with a Vampire or other Ann Rice, they are LA born and bred novels.

Mari said...

These are really good, Heather. Thanks. I think I may have read Midnight ... but definitely will check it out once I set up my library card -- one of the first things on my to-do list!

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