BOOK & BLOG |
|
|
November 21, 2011 Books of the Week:
Georgette Heyer wrote a skedillion books, roughly speaking, including the best Regency romances ever. I am not a big romance reader, but I like just about everything she ever produced, and The Grand Sophy is simply fun. Sophia, a cousin, comes to stay in the Ombersley household when her father, a prominent government worker, has to park her somewhere while he sails to Brazil. Sophy has never found a situation she won’t attempt to correct, and this includes the love lives of her cousins. Delightful, light-hearted, and skillfully written. G.M. Malliet is rapidly becoming a favorite of mine. After enjoying Wicked Autumn (on the recommendation of the staff at Houston’s Murder by the Book), I was so interested I ordered Death of a Cozy Writer, Malliet’s first St. Just mystery. I was equally pleased with that one. Malliet writes traditional mysteries without gimmicks. The result is wonderful. These books are highly recommended. I am well on my way to having read everything Sedaris has written. His mixture of amusement and bitterness is like drinking something sweet but astringent. Holidays on Ice is his stab at a seasonal book, and it contains some pieces that have already been published and some new ones. If you want to give a non-traditional holiday book, this is the way to go. You’ll want to read Sedaris’s memory of the Christmas he work as an elf at Macy’s, and about the time his mother locked all her children out of the house . . . in the snow . . . because she couldn’t bear them any longer. Blog Since the Thanksgiving season is being totally ignored in favor of the more lucrative Christmas season now, and Halloween is merely a preparation for the retail extravaganza, I’ve decided to skip straight to New Year’s Resolutions. Why go through the hustle and bustle of the holiday season? So here are the things I’ve already put on my list. 1. No more reporters at my house. Now, I know this may be a concept few of you have to entertain, and I never thought it would be on my list, either. But there you have it. From now on, I’ll meet reporters at restaurants, parks, on the Interstate . . . but not in my home. None of them has ever been less than professional, let me hasten to add. But it seems prudent to keep my home to my family. 2. No more dogs. That is, additional dogs. I love the dogs we have, even though two of ours are actually Daughter’s leftovers. We devote an inordinate amount of time to Oscar, Rocky, Scrunch, and Colt (in order of acquisition). But by golly, four is too many. One jumps the fence, one digs under. One has a sneaky habit of wandering into the back of the house to use the bathroom where he shouldn’t. One has epilepsy. Enough. 3. No more putting things in the freezer without labeling them. As God is my witness, I shall never do this again. Some things should be mysterious, but not food items. I’m sure I’ll think of more resolutions to add to my list, but those will do to start with. And I see that I’ve put them all in the negative. Let me rephrase them in the positive: I will only meet reporters in public places. I will not adopt any more dogs. I will label everything I put into my freezer. That does sound better. 4. I will be positive. Charlaine Harris. |
Current Entry
Past Entries2011
|
© 2011 Charlaine Harris
|
|