And I don't mean Condoleezza!

I came across this fun, yet charitable, web site for testing one's vocabulary. http://www.freerice.com/index.php Check it out! You can play for hours and hours all the while providing rice to needy people. And according to Snopes, http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/charity/freerice.asp it's true! My levels were 39/41. I don't think that's so good. So go on, waste a little time- it's the season of giving, after all. You can build your vocabulary and provide food for the hungry at the same time. Now what's wrong with that?
JS

If you're reading this, then you're in the minority, at least according to a report just released by the National Endowment for the Arts which states that Americans are reading less. Most Americans -- and this is the shocker -don't even read one book a year.

Which makes one wonder what venerable bookseller Amazon.com was thinking when they announced the introduction of "Kindle," a digital reading device that can store more than 200 titles on a paperback-book-sized gizmo. Think iPod, but with words.

The "Kindle" will cost $399, which is a lot to pay for something that, presumably, no one will buy anyway.

A friend who knows I go on vacation with one suitcase full of clothes and another full of books suggested the "Kindle" and its ilk (Sony makes a portable book reader, too) would be an ideal way for me to travel lighter and still get my reading done. But I'm not buying it. Literally. Nothing will ever take the place of holding a book -- one with covers and pages and dustjackets and everything -- the anticipation of turning those pages to see what happens next, the satisfaction of closing the final chapter and reflecting on the experience I've just enjoyed.

Still...if such techno-glitz gets even one more person to embrace the joy of reading, I'm all for it. Maybe next year the NEA will report dramatic new statistics, an upturn attributable to the joy and wonder of downloads. And if enough techno-geeks embrace the digital reading revolution, maybe the price will come down for me to ask Santa for one next Christmas. Nah. I'd rather have a book.
CH

Each month the Readers Services Staff meets and discusses among other things, books read over the previous month. Choices reflect a wide range of tastes both fiction and nonfiction. Here are the titles mentioned at the November meeting. Please feel free to send in your thoughts. We'd love to hear from you.

Water for Elephants Sara Gruen
(Enjoyable ~ Depression-era circus love story)
Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia Elizabeth Gibbon
910.4 GIL
(Mixed reviews, from wonderful to whiney)
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian Sherman Alexie
(Poignant story of the author's attempts to escape his native roots)
The Samurai's Garden Gail Tsukiyama
(Spare, beautiful story of East versus West in the nineteen-thirties ~ Not to be missed)
The Other Boleyn Girl Philippa Gregory
(Fascinating period detail becomes a bit tiring...for some. The audio version is enjoyable too.)
Lost and Found Carolyn Parkhurst
(Satire on reality television shows plus some engaging side plots)
The Solace of Leaving Early Haven Kimmel
(Kimmel's debut novel is slower paced than her nonfiction but still a worthwhile story of compassion and humor in a small town).
The Kindness of Strangers Katrina Kittle
(Story of childhood sexual abuse that aims for redemption and healing)
Mister Pip Lloyd Jones
(Extreme violence at story's end seems unnecessary in this otherwise lovely coming of age tale revealing the power of literature)
Painting Chinese: A Lifelong Teacher Gains the Wisdom of Youth Herbert R. Kohl
371.10092 KOH
(Dedicated, older teacher enrolls in Chinese painting school for young students and reflects on his life and future ~ thoughtful memoir with lovely insights)
Foreign Babes in Beijing: Behind the Scenes of a New China Rachel DeWoskin
915.058 DEW
(Realistic study of China's culture clashes over the last thirty years)
Travels with Herodotus Ryszard Kapuscinski
930 KAP
(Polish journalist's reflective memoir on his extensive world travels and the impact of Herodotus's histories ~ Many thoughtful parallels to today's world)
Miles from Nowhere: A Round-the-World Bicycle Adventure Barbara Savage
910.41 SAV
(Barbara and Larry Savage's unbelievable experiences during their two year journey ~ Compelling and hard to put down)

MC

The Arnaldur Indriðason mysteries are set in Reykjavik, the capital of Iceland. The main character is Inspector Erlender Sveinsson, a complex and reflective police detective. He and colleagues Sigurdur Óli and Elínborg form an effective investigative team and share a warm friendship. While they have reasonably normal lives, Erlender is estranged from his family.

In Voices, the third of the series to be translated into English, it is nearly Christmas when Erlender and his team are called to a busy Reykjavik hotel. Gudlaugur, the lonely hotel doorman and sometime Santa, was murdered at the hotel, in the basement room he called home. Erlender soon learns that Gudlauger was once a child star, a gifted choirboy whose recordings are now collector's items, and missing.

You will find the mysteries by Arnaldur Indriðason shelved under FIC ARNALDUR. The Icelandic do not use surnames, but rather continue the Norse tradition of patronymics. For more information on Icelandic names, you might start with the Iceland Tourist Board's Iceland 101 web page.

JHL

We're all familiar with the saying about not choosing a book based on its cover, but really - don't you find there are some you just can't resist? Sometimes they are simply so entertaining or inviting or intriguing that you feel you have to try them.

The actual story behind that cover will live up to the promise on the outside, right?

On the other hand, sometimes covers aren't necessarily that special, but they instantly convey enough information to know you want to check it out further. I've been on a historical fiction kick lately (begun by finally reading - or actually listening to - The Other Boleyn Girl) and it's almost comical how many book covers have the same brocade-draped young woman, half turned away or in profile.

I admit that I've been using covers like these as one way to find other interesting historical novels!

Conversely, I've resisted reading books when I didn't like their covers. Last year I had noted a review for a fantasy series by Sharon Shinn that sounded good, but for some reason the cover for the first book, Mystic and Rider, just didn't do it for me. When I finally made myself try reading it, however, I found a character-driven story that I've happily followed now through two more books.

So, I might as well admit that while I'll try to apply the "don't judge a book" philosophy, I know I'm probably still going to be lured into trying titles based simply on what meets the eye. If you have a nominee for a book cover that has enticed you to take it home, I'd love to hear from you!

marlise

In James Lee Burke's most recent Dave Robicheaux novel, The Tin Roof Blowdown, it is late summer, 2005. Hurricane Katrina has left New Orleans underwater and besieged by death, decay, and lawlessness. New Iberia's police force is called in to help. While in New Orleans, Dave Robicheaux gets involved with the search for missing friend Jude LeBlanc and the investigation of a looter's murder. One of those most devastated by the loss of New Orleans is Dave's friend, Clete Purcel, who affectionately refers to New Orleans as the "Big Sleazy."

In this tense novel, James Lee Burke examines the failings of humans under terrible pressure and brings to life the drama and horror of Katrina. Katrina was, in Burke's words "...a storm with greater impact than the bomb blast that struck Hiroshima" and it "... peeled the face off southern Louisiana."

Burke's Dave Robicheaux series is marked by a believable juxtaposition of tenderness and cruelty. This novel, the 16th in the series, is no exception.

JHL

Here are the rest of the nominees for "favorite author" shared by Library staff at a recent discussion:

For those who enjoy police procedurals and or stories involving the legal profession, John Lescroart's Dismas Hardy/Abe Glitsky series is an excellent choice. Hardy is a San Francisco lawyer and Gliltsky is a homicide chief. Lescroart takes care in describing his characters and creating an intriguing story. Later titles are more violent that the earlier ones.

Post World War I is the setting for Charles Todd's thoughtful, well written series about Police Inspector Ian Rutledge.The latter feels responsible for the death of a comrade;so pervasive is the dead soldier's presence that Rutledge feels him at his shoulder, always advising, instructing. For a somewhat gentler series set in the same time period, try Jacqueline Winspear's Maisie Dobbs series.

No one writes quite like James Lee Burke whose later novels aer dark and violent. If you are able to move beyond these elements, you will discover some believable, complicated and pretty decent human beings. His latest The Tin Roof Blowdown finds Detective Dave Robicheaux uncovering horrific events during the days of Katrina.

Peter Robinson's Alan Banks is the British counterpart to Michael Connelly's Harry Bosch. The former series is carefully plotted and contains finely drawn characters.

And last but not least......we remember a few classic favorites, namely, Charles Dickens and Thomas Hardy. Their works are cherished for many reasons: beloved, memorable characters,realistic sense of place, portrayal of a specific time and its social conditions, complicated story lines and beautful descriptions. Some may find these authors "difficult" because of the language and their lengthy descriptions; however, some feel they are worth the effort............

We could go on and on and on...........but the Readers Services Staff would love to hear from you.
So, who's your favorite author(s)? Please let us know.

MC