I'm afraid books may be an endangered species.

One of my dear friends, Dale Graumann, is a published author and has been sharing her latest novel in serial form on her blog. Today's post began the last chapter of Winter Wheat. I'm devastated. (Although she has promised a sequel, it isn't written yet so there will be a bit of a wait to see what comes of the characters I've come to love.) If you'd like to read Winter Wheat, you can find it on her blog at Erndales N More. You can purchase Dale's first novel, A Stroke of Love, on Amazon.
I love to read and when I find an author that does multiple stories featuring the same characters, I become obsessed in my efforts to read all of the tales. Actually, I read anything and everything. When nothing else is around, I'll read the label on the mustard jar or whatever else may be sitting on the table in front of me.

When we travel, I can't wait to pick up a local paper in some strange town, no matter how big or small, and I then peruse it from cover-to-cover. My husband, on the other hand, reads when necessary to glean information he needs. I think in our 25 years together, he's read less than 10 fictional books. He has probably read more news stories online than in the newspapers in the last decade although I wouldn't say he does so regularly.

I'm as happy in a book store (especially a used bookstore with low, low prices) as a child at a Disney amusement park. (Okay, maybe not quite that ecstatic - more like a kid at a carnival.) I LOVE Half Price Books and a visit there is often a high priority when we visit our family in the Midwest. (We don't have one of their stores nearby.)

So, I was shocked and dismayed when I heard that Western Iowa Community College is proudly presenting their new digital library this year. Everything in the library is digital. There are NO actual books or papers on the shelves. I just can't imagine a library without books!!

I understand the college is very proud of the fact that all materials are now accessible to all students online, from anywhere, and that nothing will ever be unavailable as someone else has "checked it out". The physical building actually features a number of computer stations as well as tables where students may simply plug in their laptops and work. Shouldn't there be a better name for this than a "library"?

While I was still digesting this bit of news, I saw anew book featured on Live with Regis and Kelly. Lane Smith has written a children's book called "It's A Book" (available on Amazon). The gist of the story is one character is reading an actual book to the amazement of his little friends who just simply cannot fathom what a book is. They ask questions like: "Do you need a password?" "Does it beep?" "Can you Tweet on it?" and so forth. The answer from the reader continues to be, "No. It's a book." They are fascinated by this oddity.

I love the concept and may buy a copy on general principles. Besides, I may need to read it to the younger generation in a few years when I tell tales of reading back in the day. (By the way, there's a shocking last line guaranteed to make you grin!)

I feel the need for a fix. I've got to go and read now.

Janet and Me

I'm a voracious reader. I chain-read (like chain-smoking), finishing one book and starting another the same day. Sometimes, I have more than one book going at a time. I like mysteries best but read almost anything except vampire and werewolf tales. (I KNOW they're the "In" thing these days but I just don't like them.)

Janet Evanovich is one of my favorite authors, particularly her Stephanie Plum series. So, I was really excited to score big on Evanovich on my last visit to Half Price Books. She was featured on the dollar rack that week. I bought everything they had of hers that I hadn't read yet. Who knew she was so prolific! I rounded out my collection of the Plum series and loaded up on a bunch of her other stuff.

Since we don't have a Half Price Books store here, I stock pile when I visit. I have a bookcase where I keep all my "books in waiting." This way, I've always got a new book handy. When the big snows hit this month, I was all set.

First up was Evanovich's Full House (the first in another of Janet's "series"). This one definitely falls into the category of romance with just a touch of mystery. Touting only Janet's name on the cover, this book, in her words, is a joint effort with Charlotte Hughes. Set in Virginia horse county, the hero literally rides in on a horse to rescue the damsel in distress. Amid a few explosions (of the home-made bomb type), love grows (quickly) and all do live happily ever after.The plot's a little simplistic for me and doesn't seem to have the same action punch I'm used to from Janet. I'm a little disappointed in the "strong male rides in to save the little woman" theme but it's a light read for a snowy day.

Next in the series is Full Bloom. This one does list Charlotte Hughes as a co-author with Evanovich. The style is quite similar to Full house and there is some character overlap giving a sense of continuity. (They're starting to grow on me.) There is a little mystery and a resident ghost which adds an interesting touch, and, yes, once again the mysterious dark male hero rides in to save the distressed little lady. He does ride in on a mighty fine Harley, though! I do plan to search out the other books in this series. I want to know what else happens to these fine folks.

Last up in this batch was The Grand Finale, not part of the "Full" series. This one is something Janet produced prior to giving birth to Stephanie Plum. (The "Full" series, with Charlotte, have come about mid-Plum, so to speak.) She did 12 romance novels back then and 9 were published between '88 and '99 only to very quickly go out of print. These have now been reissued with a little editing by Janet to give them a little more pizazz. This is one of those early stories.

In The Grand Finale, again the hero swoops in to save the day. This was absolutely the quickest read of them all but cute and very light and bouncy. Oh, yeah, it involves pizza. So I figured it had to be fairly good. (Maybe you should be sure to have one on hand while reading it as it may make your mouth water a little.)

Overall, they all make for a quick, pleasant read. They've all got some Evanovich trademarks like tall, dark and handsome leading men. (Stephanie does have both Joe and Ranger.) The leading ladies all have wild hair that needs to be tamed. Each tale includes a pet of some sort. (Yes, Stephanie has Rex.) Little old ladies attached to our heroines is also a recurrent theme (Stephanie has Grandma Mazur.) although the quirky"old" lady role is replaced with just a young really ditzy relative in Full House. The character serves the same purpose, though, to kind of round out our leading lady's character and to help move the plot along in a little different way. Janet also seems to believe in love afirst sight in these romance novels. Surprisingly, it usually seems to be the guy who melts first!

So, while I do still prefer the Plum tales, I will continue to read all of the Janet Evanovich items I can get my hands on. I'm working on Metro Girl now and just finished Hot Stuff.

Here's hoping y'all have a good read handy!

Readings …

I’ve had a weakness lately for what I refer to as “murder mysteries lite.” A genre which includes such authors as Janet Evanovich and Joanne Fluke. They all involve murders but are written in a lighter easy-read style. They provide quick reads. Usually they feature some humor and, in Fluke’s case, include recipes! Both of these authors have written series featuring the same lead character and I’ve come to know and love those characters. I can discuss Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum’s life and history the same as those of some of my friends.

As a subset of these “lite murder mysteries,” I’ve also discovered a whole series of books featuring food in some way associated with those murders.

Joanne Fluke’s stories feature Hannah Swenson, the owner of a cookie bakery in a small lake-front Minnesota town. All of the murders involve her baked goods in one way or another and she, of course, plays a role in figuring the mystery out. (NO! They aren’t choking to death or being poisoned by the cookies!!) The best part, she features a cookbook at the end of each book!

In my opinion, the best, so far, is The Sugar Cookie Murder. In that one, she is launching a community cookbook and the story line features a big community holiday meal where all the recipes are featured. Various characters comment on the foods and then, as an appendix, the entire cookbook is there! There’s a crock-pot German potato salad that I’m dying to try. (No pun intended since we’re discussing murder mysteries!) Other titles include Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder, Strawberry Shortcake Murder, Peach Cobbler Murder and more

Somewhere along the line, I picked up a book by JoAnna Carl called “The Chocolate Puppy Puzzle“ featuring the amateur sleuthing of Lee McKinney, business manager of TenHuis Chocolade (a candy shop in a small lake-front town in Michigan). Now that was a quick and easy read - only about one day! This is one of the “Chocolate Mysteries.” This series features chocolate trivia throughout the book! I haven’t been able to find the rest of that series, “The Chocolate Cat Caper“, “The Chocolate Bear Burglary” and “The Chocolate Frog Frame-Up”

I'm really looking forward to shopping at Half Price Books while we're out West. (We don't have that chain of stores here.) I can usually find some of these harder to locate tomes there!

Back from "The Good Life in Nebraska"

You've heard of jet lag - well, I think I've had "road lag." We spent 24 hours on the highway between Wednesday and Thursday and then, another 6 on Saturday. Thank goodness for a comfy vehicle!



Our trip to Omaha was relatively uneventful. We spent lots of time with family "just hanging out." The Big Guy and I stayed with his Mom while his sister and brother-in-law got away for a few days. As the 24/7 caretakers, they need an occasional break so we encourage them to get away when we're around. It also gives us some one-on-one time with Mom.



We did get her out a bit to lunches, a couple of community concerts and even a few trips to the casino! She seemed tired but happy with her outings.



I dragged The Big Guy along to Half Price Books for a shopping spree. He hit the CD aisles while I gathered books. I was in my element!! (Love those dollar racks!) We don't have one of these stores near us so I stock pile when I get there. They're all around the country so if you see one, be sure to check it out.

There were family card games, dinners and chats with all the kids. All in all, we had a great time.






We did see something we had never seen there before - CORN in Iowa and Nebraska !!! (Imagine that!!!) Past visits have always been in early Spring or late Fall after the harvest. Now it's obvious why the Big Red are called Cornhuskers! It's EVERYWHERE !!

We came home to a big hole in the front yard. Those who were holding the fort down thought it'd be a nice surprise if they dug out a stump in the front yard. The stump got the last laugh and it's an ongoing project as of today! (Forty year old trees have had lots of time to grow DEEP roots!) We were definitely surprised!! No worries though, that work crew won't rest until they win the battle.

I found my scheduled blog posts had run but not necessarily in the format I'd planned. They did not date correctly and therefore didn't display correctly. Hopefully, you found them all and had a good read each day as I had some great Guest Bloggers help out. I have since gone back and corrected the formatting and dating issues. If you missed them, please duck back and have a good read.

"Onesiegate" struck over at Etsy while I was away! I only had one targeted listing suspended and, ironically, it is an actual Gerber-made product. The trademarked baby's head was clearly visible but the correct wording wasn't there. I have also addressed this issue since arriving home. (More on this later in the week!)

All in all, it was a relatively smooth homecoming. This is the first-time we've left someone here at home while we were gone and it did make a difference. I am, however, still having trouble getting back in the groove. I'm blaming the fact that we again hit the road on Saturday to attend Musikfest in Bethlehem, PA. I'll tell you about that great event tomorrow. It continues through next Sunday if you are in the area.

Now it's Monday and I still haven't unpacked!! Better get on that right now.

You KNEW I had to throw in an Iowa sunrise didn't you?

Pics from top to bottom: Crossing the Nebraska state line, Mom and me at a concert, b-i-l & "the learner's permit kid" entertaining themselves while waiting for lunch at a classy restaurant, our littlest Nebraskan, The Big Guy with his sister with that "soon-to-be" driver;