Tuesday, September 3, 2013

When I Take a Break from Revisions or Any Other Task, I Read...

No matter how hard I'm working on blogs or manuscript revisions or gardening or laundry or whatever else needs to be done, I always make time to read. Here's what I'm working on this week:

The Highly Sensitive Person by Elaine N. Aron, PhD. This book was recommended to me by a friend, and after a few pages I was convinced the author was writing about me. Especially the part that says an HSP can be quickly overwhelmed by too much activity and stimulation and want to run away to a cave and hide for a while.

The Last Whisper in the Dark by Tom Piccirilli, which is a sequel to his outstanding novel, The Last Kind Words. Tom is an amazing talent who wrote horror novels for years but lately has shifted to crime fiction. The novels are dark, with excellent plots and outstanding characters. I'm a big fan of this Northern Colorado author.

Reading has always been one of the greatest pleasures of my life. I remember sprawling across my bed after finishing the morning chores during hot Illinois summers, the light breeze rustling my curtains, and devouring Nancy Drew, Trixie Belden, and Cherry Ames mysteries or dipping into my mother's Erle Stanley Gardner novels.

These days I prefer my favorite chair for reading. I need to stay upright to stay awake.

How about you? What are you reading? 

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Pat - Sounds like you're reading some interesting books!!! I've been reading mostly crime fiction lately, myself. When I find myself doing that, I try to 'branch out' a little and read either non-fiction or another genre, just to stretch myself. So I think coming up next for me is a new biography of Washington.

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

I was given a review copy of Kym and Mark's The Magicke Outhouse and I'm really enjoying it. Also reading The Crown Tower.

Unknown said...

Pat, both of those books sound really good. I must be a HSP too. I definitely get overwhelmed and over-stimulated too easily and must make sure I'm working in plenty of quiet, restorative time.

I don't read a lot of genre fiction, but one of my favorite is crime, so I'll check this local author out. Thanks.

I'm working through a book my Joan Anderson (have you read her? Oh love her work) called "The Second Journey", a follow-up to her first book, "A Year By The Sea". I'm also working through a couple writing craft books. I need to tackle a good fiction story next.

Patricia Stoltey said...

And this is how I make my TBR list grow longer and longer and longer. :D


Kenneth W Harmon said...

I tend to read books that challenge me. I just finished The End of the Affair and am looking for something new. At the moment, most of my reading is research...I'm currently on the chapter about, The Toxicity and Biological Effects of Dioxins...exciting stuff.

Patricia Stoltey said...

Thanks, Ken, but I don't think I'll put the Dioxin book on my list.

Prashant C. Trikannad said...

I got a couple of non-fiction war books lined up next but I'll have to decide which one to read first — WWII or Israel's six-day war. In fiction, I'm reading two early westerns.

Cindy Keen Reynders said...

I'm actually reading a young adult novel about a young girl kidnapped by American Indians in Massachussets in 1705. Very intriguing and easy to read. Refreshing, but it makes you realize how early America was very dangerous. Settlers were definitely brave folks.