Not Odd Thomas...Mma Ramotswe

I decided I shouldn't read Koontz back to back, so switched over to Alexander McCall Smith and The Good Husband of Zebra Drive. This is the 8th book in the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series, and probably the second longest series I've read (pretty sure Janet Evanovich and Stephanie Plum take first place).

This will probably be the last book for January, so that makes the count what? Five, or six books in a month?

Frankenstein: City of Night

I used to read a lot of Dean Koontz books, then he just got...weird. And totally unbelievable. And quite predictable. So I quit reading him. I figured there were plenty of other authors I hadn't "met" yet, and proceeded on my merry way.

Twenty years later my mother-in-law, of all people, queried me as to whether I'd read any of the Odd Thomas books by Dean Koontz. She described the main character in a way that made him sound like someone I could spend 300 pages with, but I couldn't let her know because we don't get along so my best bet was to just roll my eyes at her and tell her I'd moved past the Dean Koontz stage of my life. Of course she piqued my interest, so I secretly set out to spend the day in my favorite Books-A-Million with my BFF Jodi.

There may have been an Odd Thomas book, but not the first in the series so I had to put a temporary halt on that train of thought but I found Frankenstein instead. City of Night is the second in the Frankenstein series, which is set in New Orleans in present time. It's a new twist on an old tale, and yes, I have to admit I DID read the first in the series also. It's not quite Odd Thomas, but Odd will just have to have a post of his own. Probably my next post...

Cormac McCarthy

OK, I admit it...Oprah has pretty good taste in books. I had never heard of Cormac McCarthy until Oprah's book club read The Road. I must not have been paying attention, because everyone has heard of All the Pretty Horses, right? And I've seen the movie No Country for Old Men, but had no clue of the book. (LOVED the movie! Coen brothers and Tommy Lee Jones together...how could you go wrong?!)

Anyway, I'm a little over 100 pages into The Road. It's very dark, very depressing, and I'm struggling with it even though I appreciate Mr. McCarthy's writing style. If I can make it through this book, I will probably go back and read the border trilogy but at this point I have to ask does Cormac McCarthy write anything happy?

Insomnia

It's what allows me to breeze through my stack of library books at breakneck speed. Yes, I finished Blue Shoes and Happiness and moved on to Knit Two by Kate Jacobs, and stayed up most of the night catching up with characters I first met in The Friday Night Knitting Club . Normally I have to be in the mood for chic lit, but the first book is still fresh enough in my mind...it was just easier to continue with this series to the end rather than going in search of the knitting mysteries I was originally searching for. Trust me...I'll get to them this year, too.

So to recap: it's the 3rd day of the new year, and I'm on my 2nd book.

First up for 2010

Blue Shoes and Happiness by Alexander McCall Smith. This is book 7 in the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. The first 6 books were consumed in chronological order during the previous year, which was a major feat for me since I have a bad habit of reading whatever I fancy regardless of where it might fall in a series. Alas, I'm getting older now and have a much harder time putting things in proper order in my mind if they weren't put in my mind in proper order to begin with.

Mission

Hi there! My name is Carol, and I love to read. In fact, I've been doing it since before I ever started school, a verifiable gozillion years ago. I'm not picky, I'll read most anything you stick in front of my face with the one exception of historical romance. You know...the ones with Fabio-type hunks on the cover who are all about deflowering virgins? Don't get me wrong, I have resorted to those in the past, but they no longer hold any interest for me.

Anyway...my son has a friend who is constantly amazed that every time he comes to visit I'm reading something new. What is it with kids these days? My son loves to read, but I doubt he would actually admit that to anyone besides me. His friend? I doubt he's ever read a book that wasn't forced on him by a teacher or professor. He once asked me how many books I read in a year, and I couldn't honestly answer him so that's what this blog is about. Not a review, simply a chronicle with commentary.