I'm popping my head in today for a special occasion. (I'm officially dark this month, so it is only for Wiley that I would do such a thing!)
The amazing "A Land More Kind Than Home" by Wiley Cash is now available in paperback. So if you haven't yet read this book (and I must ask...what are you waiting for???), then this is the perfect excuse to get out there and grab a copy.
I first met Wiley at the 2011 SIBA conference. You will never meet a nicer guy...he was sincere, funny, and humble. For that reason alone I would have read his book.
But here is the kicker. The book is incredible. I rated it a 5 out of 5, and included it on my favorites of 2012. I've also been told, just FYI, that the audio is amazing as well. You probably find it strange that I didn't listen to the audio myself, but I had in my hot little hands the ARC (a collector's edition by now, I am sure!) and was committed to it.
So there you go. If you didn't listen to my urgings last April, or when I published by "best of" list at the end of the year, then I'm giving you another chance. Read it now.
Hey y'all! It's been awhile, so I thought I'd touch base, let you know that I am alive and all is well. I've been throwing all the caution to the wind, ignoring technology, eating and drinking like a fiend, and trying to reclaim my mojo.
My husband and I packed up the kids and flew to Indiana for Christmas. My sister joined us there for a few days, we watched movies, ate all my mom's great food, and lavished each other with cool gifts. The PLAN was that on the 27th, hubby and I would leave the kids with the grandparents and fly out of Indianapolis to California for a week of anniversary celebrating. However on Christmas evening, we saw that a huge winter storm was coming up from the south and would most likely prevent this from happening. So we changed plans, and at 4:30am on the 26th my dad drove us to Chicago and we escaped from there. Spent an extra night in San Francisco. Which didn't suck.
From there we spent three nights at the Ritz in Half Moon Bay. We golfed, soaked in the gorgeous scenery, visited wineries, got massages, drank and ate our way through the area. Despite horrible forecasts of rain and cold, the weather cooperated and we had sunny (albeit chilly) skies. One highlight was the Club Lounge at the Ritz, which came with our package. All the food and wine you want, 24/7. We could have eaten every meal there if we had wanted, and we certainly did take advantage for breakfast and lunch.
From there we meandered down the coast, checked out that famous 17 mile drive near Monterrey, then arrived at the Carmel Valley Ranch. More golfing, eating and drinking ensued. More gorgeous weather.
Now it is back to reality. Kids go back to school tomorrow, and the calorie counting and exercising resumes. Damage was done, but I'm not the least bit sorry.
I have been doing some great reading. A cross-country flight will do that for you. I read Emma Donoghue's "Slammerkin" for book club (my only comment is WTF), "Indiscretion" by Charles Dubow (read it in less than 24 hours...rocked my world), and "The Art Forger" by B.A. Shapiro (loved it). This is all in print! When I recently have been reading one or two a month! Hence the dark blog.
On audio I stalled out on "Invisible Murder" by Lene Kaaberbol. It just wasn't working for me, but I may go back and finish it at some point. I got to disc 5, so it would be crazy not to try. I was inspired by Fizzy Jill's suggestion of a readalong for "The Shining" in February, so dammit, I uploaded it from the library and listened to it. I read that book in high school and have watched the movie no less than like 15 or 20 times, so I just had to. Man that was a fun listen! I just started "Dare Me" by Megan Abbott.
So now I just have to WRITE REVIEWS for all these books! I'm not planning on turning the blog back on again until February so I should be able to get a few things done before then. But I'm not sweating it. I honestly don't even know how many books I read in 2012! Guess I should look at some point.
I've been hopping on and off the blogs, trying to catch up with you. If I haven't caught up with you yet, I'll get there! Hope you all had a wonderful holiday season. I have missed you!
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