Today's Top Ten Tuesday, hosted at The Broke and the Bookish, is about books from our childhoods/teen years that we loved and would like to revisit. This is a list of books/series I remember loving. Some I've re-read since, some I haven't, and some I know would lose a lot if I re-read them now. It's funny, though, overall the genres I leaned toward then are the same ones I enjoy now. I tried to arrange my list in time-line order, more or less.
1. The Berenstain Bears and the Spooky Old Tree by Stan Berenstain - All of the Berenstain Bear books were good, but this was a favorite.
2. Favorite Tales of Monsters and Trolls by George Jonsen - I still pull this one out on occasion for Thursday's Tales.
3. The Gammage Cup by Carol Kendall - Adventure, magic and "rebels" who save the day.
4. Nancy Drew mysteries by Carolyn Keene - Who didn't want to be Nancy?
5. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine...
Today we're talking about new-to-you (and me) authors! A Month of Favorites is hosted by Girlxoxo, Traveling with T and Estella’s Revenge. Today we're linking up with The Broke and the Bookish for Top Ten Tuesday!
I've read several new-to-me authors this year, some of whom wrote books I absolutely adored.
1. Brian McClellan - I listened to the first two in his Powder Mage Trilogy, Promise of Blood and The Crimson Campaign and loved them. I'm looking forward to next year's The Autumn Repbulic.
2. Jo Nesbø - He writes great mysteries. I'm not sure why I hadn't read him before this year.
3. J. D. Horn - I read The Line back in January and gave it 5 stars. I think it helped get me back into reading some fantasy/paranormal books.
4. Jenn Bennett - I listened to the first two of her Roaring Twenties paranormal romances and really enjoyed them, even though they're not perfect.
5. Nicole Michaels - I've only read one Christmas romance so far...
Today's Top Ten Tuesday is about book covers - what we like, what we don't. Honestly, since I've moved to mostly e-books and audios, I don't tend to notice covers as much. I think, too, I usually know what books I want to read, I don't browse coves in a bookstore/library like I used to. But. here are some things I like in book covers and some I don't.
I don't like seeing half of people's heads.
I don't like it when a cover looks summery, or wintery, and the book just isn't. Like the book that has the main character in a floaty summer dress when most of the story takes place in a snow storm.
I don't like when the cover just has the title and author in an interesting typeface. I want pictures of some kind.
I don't like those almost cartoony cozy mystery covers. I know they match the cutesy titles, but I'm not a fan.
I don't...
We watched National Treasure again last night. I really enjoy that movie, it's not good, but it's fun and it has a lot of the things that draw me to movies. It's clue driven, even if not a mystery. There's a bit of romance, but it doesn't overwhelm the plot. It's got action, a clear good guy versus bad guy, and the geeky computer nerd.
Books are similar, there are things that make me want to pick up a book. Mysteries, especially historical, draw my attention. Steampunk, a touch of paranormal, the art world, pretty covers.
There are also some words and topics that make me want to avoid a book at all costs. Now, granted there are some good books that would fall into this list, but I'm talking in generalities here.
Top Ten Words/Phrases That Make Me NOT Pick Up a Book
Zombies
Coming of Age
Stephen King
Chick Lit
New Adult
Love triangle
Horror
Time Travel
World War 2
Emotional Family Drama
What would be on your list?
Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by...
Today's Top Ten is about Authors who deserve more recognition. My problem is I don't tend to read little-known authors. Sad, I know. The only one I could think of was Brian M. Wiprud, who I love but don't see around much.
So instead, how about the beginning of the book I'm currently reading, The Red Queen Dies by Frankie Y. Bailey.
DATE: Thursday, 24 October 2019
TIME: 0700 hours
WEATHER TODAY: Mid 90s. Air quality poor. Evening storms
DISPLAY ON WALL: Wake-up News
"Good morning, everyone. I'm Suzanne Price.
"First, the news from the nation. The federal government says, 'No hoax, no conspiracy, but still no definitive answers.
"The administration denies suppressing portions of the commission report on the November 2012 close encounter between NORAD fighter jets and the black boomerang-shaped UFO that appeared over the Mojave Desert, creating worldwide awe and panic before disappearing in a blinding flash of light.
"In Las Vegas, preparations are under way for the now-annual spectacular celebration of that close encounter.
"However,...
Top Ten Books I Liked More/Less than Expected
When I open a book or start reading it, I usually have some expectations, based on reviews, recommendations, even the cover. Some live up to my expectation, some surpass them, and some just don't cut it.
Five Books I Enjoyed More than I Expected
Yesterday's Tomorrow by Catherine West - It's a Christian romance by an author I had never heard of set in Vietnam during/after the war. I don't tend to read Christian romances, not because I have anything against them, I just tend to thin they'll be cheesy, and I never read war books. This one though was excellent. At the time, I wrote, "It has a richly developed setting and characters who I truly cared about, who I felt like I knew. I was laughing and sobbing, hoping and worrying along with them."
The Glamour of Grammar: A Guide to the Magic and Mystery of Practical English by Roy Peter Clark - It's...
