If the enormously popular young adult vampire series by Stephenie Meyer dosn’t quite suit you, please try the 30 year old books by Anne Rice. Her first two books ” Interview with the Vampire ” written in 1976, and ” The Vampire Lestat” written in 1985, offer all the drama, violence, and sex that Meyer leaves out. These are great reads, and after you’ve finished them, you don’t have to continue on with Anne Rice at all! What a wonderful revelation, to consider the ” downside” of immortality: outliving everyone you ever learn to love, and having to leave all the communities you start your life in ( over and over ) because sooner or later everyone notices you haven’t aged…good stuff. Sort of makes up for all those lingering glances in the high school cafeteria in Meyer’s books.

Or, try” The Radleys”, by Matt Haig. This is a simple, suburban story of upwordly mobile vampires who have kept the dark secret from their two children, in a feeble attempt to fit in. Yeah, that’s goi9ng to work…..

try these three older titles….

Nowle’s Passing by Edith Forbes….a great mystery, beautifully written

Stones from the River by Ursula Hegi….a simply told tale of why a German village turned to the Nazis

Corelli’s Mandolin by Louis De Bernieres…..a wonderful book that has withstood the horrible Nicholas Cage movie

Are you having knee surgery? Having a hip replaced? If you know you’re going to be off you feet for a while, here are a few titles that might be worth reading.

The Name of the Rose  by Umberto Eco.  If you’ve never read this novel from 1983, give it a try.

Wolf Hall   by Hilary Mantel.  This beautifully written story is about Thomas Cromell and Henry the VIII.

Precious Bane by Mary Webb.  This story of rural Shropshire in the early 1800s is told using some country dialect, but it’s not too hard to read. It was written in 1927.

These books should help you get through the holidays when it’s so hard to concentrate! If you’re only able to read magazine articles because of the stress, try these.

Power of the Dog     Thomas Savage

Deep End of the Ocean ( really old. Oprah’s first pick!)  Jacquelyn Mitchard

I Capture the Castle   Dodie Smith

Breaking Smith’s Quarter Horse   Paul St. Pierre

Ellen Foster    Kaye Gibbons

State of Wonder   Ann Patchett

Black and White   Dani Shapiro

Don’t Let’s Go to the Dogs Tonight   Alexandra Fuller

The Kitchen Boy   Robert Alexander

How to Sell   Clancy Martin

Far North   Marcel Theroux

Tinkers   Paul Harding

 

 

 

Armchair travel is one way of leaving home without actually having to pack. It also allows you to travel without ever seeing the inside of an airport, unless you choose to read one of the following books while on vacation.

Some writers, like Paul Theroux and Michael Palin, have the gift of writing well about exotic locations without including the mundane that deadens most travel writing.   Michael Palin’s books also offer photographs…Peter Mayle delivers the tastes and smells and romance of Europe with just the right tone.

The Worst Journey in the World, by Apsley Cherry-Garrard, is one of my favorite classics. Although technically a book about polar exploration, what happened to the Scott expedition, and to the little ” side trip” to find Emperor penguin eggs that Cherry-Garrard took, is seriously good reading. After reading this riviting story of life and death decisions, take a detour and read P.J. O’Rourke’s ” Holidays in Hell”, a politically incorrect tour around the world as only O’Rourke can offer. He has followed it this year with ” Holidays in    Heck”, which is bound to be just as hilarious. P. J. O’Rourke is also responsible for ” Parliment of Whores ( a lone humorist attempts to explain the entire US government) and “ Don’t Vote: It Just Encourages the Bastards”. Both worth reading on vacation.

” Travels with Charley” by John Steinbeck, is a wonderful story of his travels through America with his poodle.  He was a good writer of non fiction, along with his better known novels, and this book includes some pretty edgy observations about America.

Two books of photographs should be included in this list. ” To Walk in Wilderness ” A Rocky mountain Journal by John Fiedler and T.A. Barron is a beautiful collection of Fiedler’s mountain photos with excellent text, and
“ America from Space” is just that: stunning satellite images of cities and plains.  And no, you can’t see your house from there….

If you are a fan of horror, and really long to be creeped out, here is a list of authors who will give you the willies. Please accept Edgar Allan Poe as the CEO of horror, and we’ll move on the the rest.

Ambrose Pierce. Paul Wilson. John Saul. Ramsey Campbell. Joe R Lansdale. Peter Straub. Dean Koontz. Clive Barker. H.P. Lovecraft. Dan Simmons.

Stepen Kings early works are pretty good reading.” The Shining” ( my favorite of his books ),” Carrie”, and” Salems Lot” are all reasonably sized novels which are fun to read.

One of the best classic horror/ghost stories is The Haunting of Hill House, by Shirley Jackson. Audrey Niffenegger has written a great modern ghost story called ” Her Fearful Symmetry “  ” A Discovery of Witches ” by Deborah Harkness is a fun, more modern take on the subject of witches. For a more classic run-down- English- manor- haunted- house type novel with great moodiness, try anything by Norah Lofts. ” Gads Hall” and ” The Haunting of Gad’s Hall ” will fill your dark and stormy nights quite well!

 

Let’s face it. Dog books never end well. Pick up any of the current favorite titles and you know what’s going to happen in the end. ( James Thurber is the only author who will leave you laughing as he moves from dog to dog, often with illustrations. ) If you insist on reading about dogs, here are a few titles to check out. ” My Dog Skip ” by Willie Morris ( a REAL weeper )  ” The Art of Racing in the Rain” by Garth Stein. James Herriot’s ” Dog Stories” and ” More Dog Stories . ” The Story of Edgar Sawtelle ” by David Wroblewski.

But—-if you love dogs, love nature writing, and are a fan of nonfiction, please read ” Winterdance” by Gary Paulsen. The story of Paulsen’s first attempt to run the Iditarod, from the beginning trial runs on dry land, to the acqusition of his first team, and the hilarious trip to Alaska in the broken down truck, is laugh out loud funny through the entire book.  This is one incredible outdoor adventure read, and I strongly reccomend it for all readers. Gary Paulsen is a national treasure….

No matter what your reading tastes, this week you could be enjoying a book with a main character named Atticus.

Of course the highly original and wonderfully readable book ” To Kill a Mockingbird “, by Harper Lee, is on almost everyone’s list of all time favorite books.  Winner of the Pulitzer Prize in 1960, this is one to pick up for the second time, or certainly read for the first time if you hadn’t been assigned to read it in high school.  I’d be interested to know if there were any schools in America that didn’t include this on the high school reading list. Atticus Finch was voted the ” greatest hero in American film ” by the American Film Institute in 2003. Played by Gregory Peck in the movie, this Atticus is certainly one of our super heroes, both on film and in the book.

Greg Rucka has written a series of books about Atticus Kodiak, bodyguard. For the suspense fan, this is a very good modern series with plenty of action and enough violence to satisfy just about anyone. ” Keeper ” is the first in the series. You will enjoy the sense of being on the ” inside ” in the high stakes, sometimes glamorous job of being a bodyguard.

One of my favorite books is ” Atticus ” by Ron Hansen. Colorado rancher Atticus Cody goes to Mexico to get the body of his youngest son Scott.  Although he was a drunk and a disappointment to his father, Atticus’ love for Scott propels Atticus through a story which is part mystery and part commentary on the expatriate life so many live in exotic places. Put this on your list to read!

There are a few books that defy description. If you want to read something different, that is highly inventive, read ” Observatory Mansions ” by Edward Carey. This story is quite simple, but the main character is really out there. This turns out to be another highly enjoyable, very original book.
Another great original story is ” Geek Love” by Katherin Dunn. Not for the faint of heart, it’s the story of a carnival family, and their decision to genetically engineer their own children to supply their own carnival ” freak show “. The plot sucks you right into a very believable story line.
I repeat—it’s not for the faint of heart.
So Robert Bazell, NBC New’s Chief Science and Health Correspondent, has a son,  Josh , who has written a crazy, lurid, totally ridiculous book that I couldn’t put down. It’s called ” Beat the Reaper “. Saying it’s not for the faint of heart really doesn’t do this book justice. If your tastes run to Agatha Christie and other stories that only hint at violence, this isn’t your cup of tea. Otherwise, read it—it’s wild fun.

Two of the most memorable books I’ve read recently have one thing in common. They are told in the first person by little boys. ” Room ” by Emma Donoghue, is a narative by Jack, who lives in a small room with his mother, a kidnapping victim. Obviously, with the discovery of  Jaycee Dugard, and her recently released autobiography, this is not a real stretch. ” Room ” is cleverly written and hard to put down.

” Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close ” by Jonathan Safron Foer is just sensational.  It dosn’t hurt  that the movie ( with Tom Hanks ) will be released in January 2012. This book is full of humor and some very inventive  writing. Spoiler: this story is about a little boy whose father was killed in the Twin Towers, so there are some pretty powerful images. Don’t miss it.