Do you? Life is too damn short! I need to move on to the next book, then the next, and on and on. To go back and reread something is almost against my religion, or life force. Unfortunately, since creating my Best Mysteries of All Time list, I’ve had to re-read bits and pieces, and … Read more
One advantage of managing an independent bookstore, you meet many writers. Some established like Sara Paretsky, some real old timers like Dick Francis, some mid-list like Rhys Bowen, some best sellers, like James Patterson, and some brand spanking new faces on the scene. It was the new writers that at the time most occupied our … Read more
I’m asking, because I need new creative places to take them! I have long ago left behind the notion that I could keep all the books I’d read. As a teenager, it didn’t seem so difficult–stack them in a corner of the room, and let them be. By college, I didn’t want to lug them … Read more
I don’t believe this adage holds true in this day and time. More and more retailers are responding to obnoxious customers with being obnoxious in return. That’s if you can find some one working the floor in a Walmart or other giant warehouse type place. As a bookseller in an independent store, how does one … Read more
Last Seen Wearing Hillary Waugh–1952–Doubleday Crime Club-used This book is on practically every best mystery list I’ve seen. So, naturally, I didn’t really want it on mine, lol. But, sometimes good is good is good, and can’t be denied. Last Seen Wearing is a police procedural that out does all other police procedurals. Taking place in … Read more
The Almost Moon–Alice Sebold–2007-Little Brown-IP One may have assumed that if I were to choose something from this author to be on my best list, it would be her major seller, The Lovely Bones. Made into a film, and heralded by one and all, it would seem to be a natural fit. And the book … Read more
Mr. Smith’s Hat––Helen Reilly-1940-Doubleday Crime Club–used I kept struggling with which title of Helen Reilly’s I wanted on the list, then if I wondered if she should be on the list at all, then if she should be lower on the list or higher on the list, until I just said, enough already, and … Read more
From time to time I reflect on the number of famous, not so famous, and fantastic writers I’ve been privileged to meet over the years. Some I met when they promoted their first book, and have either dropped from publishing sight, or become bestsellers, or the between–the midlist author who continues to be published and … Read more
