July Reads

I'm an audio book girl. It's tricky, but not, I assure you, impossible, to read paper books while doing laundry, hanging clothes on the line, washing dishes, or vacuuming. So I usually try to load my MP3 player with at least 1 classic book, 1 nonfiction book, and 1 "guy" book. By guy book, I mean, one which is plot dominant, may have violence or an unhappy ending, and has either an unconvincing love interest or no romance at all. The other seven books or so books are whatever I want. In other words, romances.

Nora Roberts and her alter ego J.D. Robb is my standard, my banner. I want to be her when I grow up. In the meantime, I read nearly everything of hers I can get my hands on. I've read quite a few of the Death books, but decided to go back and re-read them in order, so I can follow the progression of the characters' relationships. I just finished re-reading Witness in Death, so next will be Judgment. I did just read River's End, which was fine. Not brilliant, and kind of predictable, but entertaining. She has very few that I really don't enjoy, and considering how many she's written, that's impressive.

I recently finished Water For Elephants by Sara Gruen. The writing was wonderful, and the descriptions of aging -- poignant! It was sort of ruined for me after I finished it when I read an Amazon review and discovered the inaccuracies, but, you know what? It was still a worthwhile read. That one will probably be imprinted on my brain permanently.

My first classic for July was The Great Gatsby, which, believe it or not, I have never read. I always have a reluctance to start reading my classic book. After all, who doesn't prefer the candy of romances rather than the beef of classics that might take some chewing and digesting? There's obviously nothing I can say about this book that hasn't already been said, but I'm so glad I read it. It's one of those that challenges me to deepen my own writing.

My second classic, currently looming on my playlist like a wart that needs to be removed, is Rebecca, by Daphne Du Maurier. I'll read it. I will. I have to at least get through the first track (about an hour) of a classic before I bail. Otherwise, I don't get to download any new books until I do. That's the rule.

My guy book right now is Dead I Well May Be by Adriane McKinty, and I really did almost bail on this book after the description of the "Belfast Six Pack." Did I really want to spend 11 Tracks with this Michael Forsythe, however charming his Irish lilt? I decided to give it one more go, and it is tremendous. Troubling, but tremendous. Odd moments of humor and troubling characterizations. Probably deeper than my writing will ever go. But I do recommend it!

I just read my first Sandra Brown, a re-released category romance which was actually pretty cute. I've also downloaded a Claire Cook and Heather Graham, two new authors for me. And I have books by two of my favorites: Susan Elizabeth Phillips and Jayne Ann Krentz. I've exhausted all of the audio Karen Robards, so I'll have to look for paper books by her when I'm at the library. My current non-fiction isn't exactly studious -- it's How I Write by Evanovich. But

I excuse myself because I just received my order from Amazon. I read Hearts West: True Stories of Mail-Order Brides on the Frontier, mostly read Pioneer Women: The Lives of Women on the Frontier (a lot of pictures, which helps with the writing), and am gradually reading The Invisible Bond: How to Break Free from Your Sexual Past.

The point of this last is to make sure that my romances have authentic intimacy. I write category romances, but so many that I read don't satisfy me. One Harlequin American I read recently spent the first five chapters on a single day -- the day the couple met -- and the remaining chapters on the couple of weeks that followed. The couple spent those weeks alternating between being shallow jerks and have flaming hot sex in unlikely places. I want to read the second book in the series -- the one where they divorce and write tell-all bestsellers about each other.

Well, it's nearly 11:00 p.m. We've come back from a fun but exhausting camping trip in Nowhere, Ohio, and I'm beat. I know I won't sleep for a while yet, though -- I'm nearing the end of Dead I Well May Be.

Happy reading, friends.
Naomi