books, authors and re reads.

Books are a major part of my life as you my readers know or have guessed by now. I borrow books from the library, read on my kindle, and read books as they have for eons. If I had access to scrolls, I would read them and one of my daughters said I would read toilet paper if it had print. Oddly she might just be right.

At the moment I have several favorite series. Louise Penny's Inspector Gamanche series draws my attention by the older man's wisdom contrasted with his younger counterpart. Stuart MacBride" sometimes a bit gory series keeps me reading as Inspector Steele a rough cut female lead irritates her DCI. The medieval tales of Brother Cadfael offer a gentle sense of peace as crimes are solve. CraIg Johnson,C.J.Box and Dana Stabenow create believable characters who live in places that sing with reality.Agatha Christe is my favorite traditional( especial Marple) though P.D James intriques me also as do the Hamish Macbeth stories by M.C. Beaton Rhys Bowen series set in London between the wars. Yes I love mysteries with a high tendency to pick a cozy over a gore filled tome.

But mysteries are not al I read. Romance holds a spot in my heart also. Eloisa James, Mary Balogh, Anya Seton will be in my reading moments quite often as will Nora Roberts, Cathy Maxwell,Juliet Quinn among others. However I never cared for the Brontes except for Jane Eyre. Austin is a favorite though Northanger Abby and Emma are low on the list.I confess I try to read an Austin once a year because of her wry wit and forward thinking about a woman" ability to actually think.

Fantasy is also a a genre to my liking. Anne McCaffrey, Patricia McKillip, J K Rowling are among the authors I can dive into. Jim Butcher's Dresden files takes me away to a fascinating view of Chicago. Tolkien is a must read and One my thrills in life was drinking at the "bird and the Babe" in Oxford where he and C.S, Lewis sat, talked and created their works. Another though not fantasy was eating a meal at the pub Thomas Hardy ate at. That brings me classics. Dickens never wrote a bad book though some are more readable than other. Oliver Twist's Fagin still is a major character that fascinates me. Moby Dick leaves me cold and I prefer Hawthorne over Poe.

The test of a good book for me is a re-read. If I knowing the outcome can still enjoy the act of reading the book after some time has passed it is a good book. Re -reading reveals new aspects that were overlooked in the first read; it adds depth to the enjoyment of the book. Some books are well worth a re-read others not so much.The Stabenow , Johnson. Beaton and Butcher are among those. At the moment I am reading for a second time after the passage of several decades Kathleen Eagle's THE NGHT REMEMBERS and savoring every delicious word. Several of her backlist are on order so I can once again join the lives of her characters. good writing will survive rereading and the reader emerges with a richer knowledge of the world the author has built.