Criminal Minds

 

 

Do you try to read the books that are nominated for major awards? Do you second-guess the nominations, or do you usually find you agree?

The short answer is, no, I do not. I’ve never watched a movie based on an Oscar nod either. As a writer, I’m what is called a pantser. The same goes for my reading. Now, I know plenty of readers who pick their book choices with an eye to the list, but a lot of these readers, will also DNF (do not finish) a book with the ruthlessness of a literary agent reading a query letter. I am not that reader. If I start a book, I’m pretty much in. So, it behooves me to make good choices from the outset. How can I trust the recommendation of a rando who has no idea what I like? I mean, I heard Stephen King said he didn’t like his book, Insomnia. It’s still one of my favorites. Absolutely hated the Dome, though, ugh.

That’s not to say I don’t love a great recommendation. Finding a new author to love is like Christmas, and your birthday wrapped together, especially if they have a backlist long enough for you to get lost in. I found Kellye Garrett through the recommendation of a friend, and it opened a whole new world of incredible writers that I knew nothing about. I’ll be forever grateful for that. So, for me a book recommendation is special. When I share my love of a book with someone, it’s because I think there’s something in there that I think will bring you joy. A list can’t do that.

The first book I remember reading was a Harlequin romance by Penny Jordan. I was ten years old. I stole the book from my sister who was four years older than me. I thought that everything she did was cool. Her reading choice at the time, confirmed that opinion for me. That one stolen book was a gateway that introduced me to a world that was only limited by my ability to search through the stacks at my local library.

 Forty-six years later, my favorite place to be is in between the pages of a book. In books I am an explorer of worlds. And though, I may never visit the fantastic world of Xanth, or a little town named Derry, Maine, thank goodness, I’m privileged to know them as intimately as my own bedroom, thanks to the writers who made them real through the beauty of their words and their boundless imaginations. It’s pretty darn magical if you think about it.   

As a child, I spent every waking moment not sucked away by school or chores with my nose in a book. If you asked anyone who knew me then, that’s probably the first thing they would say. I read when I was supposed to be studying at school, by putting a book under or between my schoolbooks. I read when I was supposed to be sleeping, with the old flashlight under the covers trick. I read while walking to school, may have bumped into a few trees, or mailboxes.

There was never enough time to read. I graduated from romances to Greek mythology, to the classics, to fantasy, to science fiction, and then to Stephen King, where I discovered that even better than a good story, was a good story with great characters. Oh, how I wanted to be part of the gang, hanging around the Barrens, fighting an evil clown, and the local bullies.

As a grownup on a bullet train to old age, all-night binges have been replaced with long lines at the grocery store, airport lounges, and waiting rooms. I’ll will run out of time before I come near to running out of books. If I chose to, I could select books to read strictly from my author friend circle and never run out of great reads. In fact, sometimes, I go on a tangent and do exactly that.

Then there are my long-time favorites, Stephen King, Walter Mosely, Harlen Coben, Kevin Obrien, and Danielle Steele, yes, I said Danielle Steele. I miss these authors after not reading them for a while. And finally, there are the list.

Every year around this time, I think you could safely call it the award season for books. List of books nominated for the best of are released. You can always count on the greats making an appearance on these lists. But I’m going to keep on ignoring them for books that speak directly to my bookworm’s heart.

Current read, in case you’re wondering, is a new author for me, that I’m happy to add to my favorite’s list. Magic City Blues, by Bobby Mathew. I can recommend this to you, if you enjoy a fast-paced, page turner, with the throwback feel of a classic PI novel.