Summer Reading

My sister kickstarted my summer reading by recommending a young adult fiction series called Percy Jackson and the Twelve Olympians. I read the first one, The Lightening Thief, in about 24 hours and my niece recently loaned me the second. It's like Harry Potter meets the Greek gods. So far they don't seem to have the depth of HP, but nonetheless they are enjoyable, likable, and fun to brush up on Greek mythology. Highly recommended for a beach read.

On the plane to Florida this past weekend I was on a row with two other women, who did not know each other, who immediately began discussing the Sookie Stackhouse books as soon as they sat down. I eased my way into the conversation, pulled out Book 1 from my purse, and said, "Are you guys talking about the True Blood books?" The woman sitting next to me had a fit and grabbed her bag. She hands over Book 2 and says, "Here, you'll need this. I'll save you a 1am trip to Wal-Mart." I was slightly skeptical, but Charlaine Harris has created a nifty little vampire tale in her novels. They are part mystery, part romance, part supernatural. Some of it seems played out since Twilight, but I think Ms. Harris' books came out first (someone want to correct me on that?), and they are far, far, far more well-written. I've been dying to watch the series, but I think I'll read a few more books first. Almost done with Dead Until Dark and can't wait to jump into the second. Another awesome beach read. (In fact, my friend Rachel read all 9 during a 7-day stay at the beach. Impressive.)

For those that want something a little more substantial, my next read (after Sookie Stackhouse Book 2) is going to be Ishmael. I read this book just as I was graduating college, and it is one of the few books to have a profound effect on me. It's sort of a book on a philosophy of life and living, but it's a novel told through the story of a gorilla and a man. I know, sounds preposterous and awful, but I remember not being able to put it down. Now it's eight years later, and I want to read it again, see if still holds true to me, read it with a more critical mind. Also, I've recommended it to several people recently, and in case they read it, I want to be able to speak intelligently about this book that supposedly changed my life.