I wish I could get into fiction again...it's been years since I really enjoyed a good novel. I'm writing some, got four in the pipeline and I hope to publish one in the next year. Actually, I just hope to finish one in the next year.

Anyway, I'm currently reading Tom Venuto's "The Body-Fat Solution". I actually just started it, so I can't recommend it based on that, but I've been a member of his body building support group for over two years and have learned a lot about exercise and healthy/balanced weight loss practices.

Georgia

Just started The Last Year of Being Single by Sarah Tucker. I like it enough so far.

I'm reading the sixth Sookie Stackhouse book, Definitely Dead. I finished The Other Queen -- Allison, I didn't like it much either. It feels like I wasted my time reading it! Everything kind of happened "offstage," if you know what I mean. Blah.

Lisa~my sentiments exactly! I mean, we know what was going to happen, and it took so long, and then, in the end, did she die? I can't even remember now. It was a waste.

I just finished Bram Stoker's Dracula. I was rather disappointed. My FIL said that when he read it as a kid, he was so engrossed with it that he stayed up until 4 AM to finish it. I basically couldn't wait until it was over. I don't know what it was, maybe too much commentary from the characters that really didn't have enough to do with the plot. Anyway, it is done and now I'm reading Willa Cather's My Antonia. So far I think I'll like it.

I'm reading The Princess Diaries, lol. I know its a teen book..but I started reading the series when I was a teen..and then I stopped because it took forever for them to come out. I then heard that the last book finally came out, so I wanna re-read them all again. It's a quick read and I enjoy it. Plus, I have nothing else to read, lol. After this, I'll probably read Twilight for the zillionth time, lol.

Predator by Patricia Cornwell.

I just finished "Twilight", am going to get the second one - waited forever to get into the series... I also just started the Connor Grey detective series - just finished the first one "Unshapely Things", started the second one... "Unsightly Things" I think?

To whomever mentioned the Amber novels... I love those books, they do start out a little slow though... I just finished "Chapterhouse Dune" and those ran slow to start to me as well...

My MIL has a Kindle and I think I want one... I currently read on my phone with Motricity EReader - the same app used to run on my iPaq and my Palm Pilot, used to be called Peanut Press. I have 200 books on a memory card in my phone (Blackjack II) - convenient, but small screen... Kindle is bigger. :)

Originally Posted by Shannon in ATL:
My MIL has a Kindle and I think I want one... I currently read on my phone with Motricity EReader - the same app used to run on my iPaq and my Palm Pilot, used to be called Peanut Press. I have 200 books on a memory card in my phone (Blackjack II) - convenient, but small screen... Kindle is bigger. :)

Shannon~I LOVE my Kindle! I'm currently on my 3rd book on it.

For those of you with e-readers and download the freebie books at places like Feedbooks or Mobile Reads: do you find a lot (and I mean a lot) of typos? Sometimes, I swear they've even typed in the wrong word as the word that is in the sentence doesn't make sense. I can see normal typos as not too much of a problem (mis-spaced words seems to be most common). I don't want to complain too much because let's face it, these are FREE books, but while reading Dracula I had a hard time and often thought the person who typed it all up was having a hard day at times.

Allison -I find a lot of typos in the free books even from Motricity, yes. Sometimes they read like they were translated from another language who didn't have a full grasp of English. :) I just saw the ad for the Kindle 2 - don't know if it is different enough to justify the higher price right now, might make the Kindle price come down a little! I might still have to have it, though...

Shannon~Unless you get a used one, you can't get the Kindle 1 any more. Amazon ran out of them last year and anyone ordering one was put on the waiting list for the Kindle 2 (which is what I have).

Allison - thanks! Good info to have! :)

The big difference between reading on a Kindle or a Sony reader is the quality of the display. It's not an LCD, it's eInk - just like paper (literally, it's kinda freaky). So, all the advantages of paper (no glare, won't make your eyes tired) and the disadvantages of paper (can't read in the dark). eInk is currently black and white only - so both the Reader and the Kindle display in grayscale only.

Didn't think about the B&W aspect. My EReader app for my phone & iPaq is color with adjustable font sizes, color and pattern choices, etc. Hmm...

Allison - do you ever have a hard time with the black and white screen on the Kindle?

Shannon~no, I don't have a problem with the Kindle screen. You can adjust the font size to about 8 different sizes (so I can go without my readers!!). I get a little glare depending on where I'm reading--but I believe you can get anti-glare screen protectors. You can also adjust the space between the lines which is nice.

Just finished Hunger by Allen Zadoff - a weight loss memoir. He was a 360 lb compulsive overeater who changed his life. Pretty powerful stuff.

I just finished Extremely Loud & Incredibly close by Jonathan Safran Foer (it was a m a z i n g. Sad, but amazing) and I'm starting on Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami ^^

Originally Posted by Shannon in ATL:
Didn't think about the B&W aspect. My EReader app for my phone & iPaq is color with adjustable font sizes, color and pattern choices, etc. Hmm...

Allison - do you ever have a hard time with the black and white screen on the Kindle?

Heh - why would she have problems with it? It's literally - just like paper. It's like asking if you have problem with a black and white page in a book. I'm mostly asking because I spent last week working the booth at Sony Open House for the Reader and I was surprised by how many people didn't like the fact that eInk isn't backlit. Books aren't backlit.

The Reader and the Kindle share the same technology - and the screen looks like a book page (the PRS-505 has 3 font sizes, the PRS-700 has 5 font sizes). It's not like I take a new paperback book home from Borders and look at it and say "wow, it's black and white and I can't read it in the dark, whatever shall I do??" It's a book, ya know.

(and I really couldn't ask semi-snarky questions last week due to the circumstances, so please forgive me, I was dying to ask all week)

I was actually surprised when I ordered my Kindle that one of the accessories was a booklight! I couldn't figure out why I'd need one, but now I see that if I wanted to read in the dark, I'd need a booklight just as if I were reading a book. I guess most people equate the ebook as the same thing as a cell phone or computer which both are lit.

Anyway, I'm about 1/3 of the way through Willa Cather's My Antonia and I really like it.

I read My Antonia in high school and loved it :)

Just started "What Einstein Told His Cook", which is a non-fic food science book. Yes, in case you weren't sure, I am a nerd.

Originally Posted by PearFreak:
Just started The Shopoholic series. So far so good... a light funny read. I've got her whole series. They came in all at once from the library.

I enjoyed these books too! Made me laugh out loud!

i just finished a really good book- it was a collection of stories called "Minding the body" by patricia foster. It has stories from 20 different female writers of all different walks of life- about their bodies. some of them dealt with body image, eating disorders, cancer, being pregnant... so many different views and topics all related to living life within a female body. It was amazing.

I'm currently reading "Eat, Pray, Love" by Elizabeth Gilbert and I'm going to start reading "Twilight" by Stephanie Meyer - not really into going to see it at a movie theatre.

Originally Posted by Buttercup:
I enjoyed these books too! Made me laugh out loud!

Yay another Shopoholic reader/fan. Have you any luck in finding other light reads such as hers? I am sad to have finished all of Sophie Kinsella's books. I want her to have another one out... like yesterday.

Just ordered the First book of the Sue Grafton's Kinsey Millhone series "A is for Alibi" Hopefully I can get to it this month after these two books because right now I am procrastinating. =/

I'm a scifi/fantasy fanatic. Just finished Confessor by Terry Goodkind, also reading 4 Day Diet that has helped get my emotional eating under control and read a book of meditation by Eckart Tolle before bed.

I just finished Twilight. My students have been pressuring me to read so I did. I found it totally entertaining, and it made me feel young.

Now I am reading The Shack and I don't like it, but I am plugging along.

Originally Posted by SilentBlue:
Just ordered the First book of the Sue Grafton's Kinsey Millhone series "A is for Alibi" Hopefully I can get to it this month after these two books because right now I am procrastinating. =/

I like the Kinsy Millhone series too! I have read alot of them just not in order!

Originally Posted by rileyozzy:
I just finished Twilight. My students have been pressuring me to read so I did. I found it totally entertaining, and it made me feel young.

Now I am reading The Shack and I don't like it, but I am plugging along.

There is a new book out by the Twilight author called "The Host" and I thought it was really good! It is a pretty thick book but it seemed like it was a quick read!

Originally Posted by PearFreak:
Yay another Shopoholic reader/fan. Have you any luck in finding other light reads such as hers? I am sad to have finished all of Sophie Kinsella's books. I want her to have another one out... like yesterday.

Have you read "Good in Bed" by Jennifer Weiner? It is really good and she wrote a sequel called "In her Shoes". I think you would like these if you love the Shopoholic series. Another series I liked was "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants". They are great! Very much chic lit!!!:sunny:

I'll have to add those to my list. I haven't read any of those.

Are there only two in the series for the JW books?

Currently reading "Bookends" by Jane Greene

On a nonfiction kick:

Just finished

- "Ultimate Fitness: The Quest for the Truth About Exercise and Health" by Gina Kolata

- "Losing It: America's Obsession With Weight and the Industry That Feeds on It" by Laura Fraser

And nearly done with:

- "Beauty Junkies: Inside Our $15 Billion Obsession With Cosmetic Surgery" by Alex Zuczynski, cousin of a friend of mine

I'm about ready for some fiction soon.

I just finished reading "American Gods" by Neil Gaiman -- interesting and engaging! I recommend it.

I am currently reading "Wicked" by Gregory Maguire. I like it, but I'm having a hard time getting into it.

I'm reading [I]March[I] by Geraldine Brooks, and I just finished a book I really enjoyed called The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. I like them both but I loved [I]The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society[I] and I recommend it to anyone who really loves books, and especially anyone who loves (and misses having more opportunities to) write letters.

Originally Posted by icandoallthings6613:
I'm reading [I]March[I] by Geraldine Brooks, and I just finished a book I really enjoyed called The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. I like them both but I loved [I]The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society[I] and I recommend it to anyone who really loves books, and especially anyone who loves (and misses having more opportunities to) write letters.

I just got "The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Socicety" will start it once I finish "Letters to the World" which is a women's poetry anthology.

Originally Posted by Buttercup:
Have you read "Good in Bed" by Jennifer Weiner? It is really good and she wrote a sequel called "In her Shoes". I think you would like these if you love the Shopoholic series. Another series I liked was "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants". They are great! Very much chic lit!!!:sunny:

She has two other books that I know of. They are "Little Earthquakes" and "Goodnight Nobody". I hope you like them!!!

I loved loved loved Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society!!!

Just starting Almost Moon by Alice Seabold