• Author: Stan and Jan Berenstain
• ISBN: 978-0-8124-2972-5

There is nothing I enjoy more than story-time with my daughter at bedtime. I love curling up the floor with her on my lap reading the stories I grew up with to her. She never gets tired of “Little Red Riding Hood”and “Goldilocks and the Three Bears”. My favorite lately is “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie.” I love the whole series of books by Laura Joffe Numeroff. I can’t wait to start reading older books to her like Ramona Quimby, the Boxcar Children, “A Tree Grows in Brooklyn”, Little House on the Prairie, “Pollyanna”, and “Rebecca of SunnyBrook Farms”. All of my childhood memories. I’m hoping she will be a reader like me.

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• Author: Katie Couric
• ISBN: 9780812982589
• Publisher: Random House Trade paperbacks
• Release Date: April 2012, April 2012

In a few hours the new year begins. I am hoping to make 2013 a year of of growth and change. In need of
some inspiration, I’m reading a book by Katie Couric, “The Best Advice I Ever Got: Lessons from Extraordinary Lives.”  The book offers words of wisdom from Well-known and successful people. They talk about what happened when they hit a road block or faced a crossroad in their life. I’m very interested in what kept them going or got them moving again. With some of them, I find it difficult to see past who they have become. But I can easily relate to all of them on a human level in living through moments of fear, perceived failure, uncertainty. Not giving up helped them to achieve their goals. With some luck, maybe I’ll find some advice that will just keep me in motion.

For your reading pleasure I have compiled a list of author blogs that I have come across in 2012. Not only do they inform you of their latest releases and list book information, but they also give writing tips and advice.

Author Blogs

• Alison Kent blog by Alison Kent
• Between the Lines by David Allen
• Beyond the Beyond by Bruce Sterling
• Blatherings by Debbie Ridpath Ohi
• Book Tour Virgin by Will Clarke
• Buzz, Balls and Hype by M.J. Rose
• Cabbages and Kings by PJ Parrish
• Carolyn’s Blog by Carolyn Jewel
• C.J. Barry’s Blog by C.J. Barry
• Contrary Brin by David Brin
• Craphound by Cory Doctorow
• Dave Barry’s Blog by Dave Barry
• Diary of a Mad Romance Author by Kathleen O’Reilly
• The Dilbert Blog by Scott Adams
• Dispatches from Tanganyika by Poppy Z. Brite
• Freakonomics by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner
• Greek Tragedy by Stephanie Klein
• GreggHurwitzWeblog by Gregg Hurwitz
• Gus Openshaw’s Whale-Killing Journal by Keith Thomson
• J-Walk Blog by John Walkenbach
• Krentz Quick & Castle Blog by Jayne Ann Krentz
• Lessig Blog by Lawrence Lessig
• LKH Blog by Laurell K. Hamilton
• Meg’s Diary by Meg Cabot
• Monica Jackson’s blog by Monica Jackson
• Neil Gaiman’s Journal by Neil Gaiman
• No rules. Just write by Brenda Coulter
• Novelesque: House of Sand and Blog by Douglas Clegg
• Paperback Writer by Lynn Viehl
• Patti O’Shea’s blog by Patti O’Shea
• PeterDavid.net by Peter David
• Pocket Full of Words by Holly Lisle
• Pop Culture Magazine by Bill Crider
• Searchblog by John Battelle
• Seth’s Blog by Seth Godin
• Slay Your Demons by Julie Kenner
• SnarkSpot by Jennifer Weiner
• Tess Gerritsen Blog by Tess Gerritsen
• Web Petals by Marjorie M. Liu
• Wil Wheaton Dot Net by Wil Wheaton
• Words For My Enjoyment by Paul Davidson
• A Writer’s Life by Lee Goldberg
• Writing Fiction by Crawford Kilian

After the devastation and destruction of Hurricane Sandy I learned that local libraries provide more than just books and reading material. During the storm they were  a hospitality center, a place of hope and a safe haven.

Residents in various NJ and NY towns visited their local libraries looking for dry shelter, a place to charge cell phones and laptops, WIFI connections to the outside world, and a place to find community warmth and strength.

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• Author: Jennifer Weiner
• Publisher: Simon and Schuster Audio
• Release Date: May 2011
• ISBN: 978-1-4423-3817-3, 978-1-4423-3817-3

I listened to this novel on my daily commute to work and it made the ride very enjoyable. It’s a funny story about childhood friendship, small town life and secrets, a road trip and a hit-and-run. This book had a little of something for everyone.

It starts off with a hit-and-run after a high school reunion. You may be thinking this is serious, but the man walks away with minor injuries. The woman driver, however, is shaken and doesn’t know if she killed the man. Out of desperation she turns to her childhood best friend whom she hasn’t spoken to in 15 years.  This is how we meet Addie Downs and Valerie Adler.

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• ISBN: 978-0-375-72560-9
• Author: Erik Larson

In 1893 the architect Daniel Burnham willed a pure vision of a modern city into existence with all that could be good, clean and inspiring in the creation of the Chicago World’s Fair while simultaneously H. H. Holmes was realizing the inverse with an impure vision of evil, deceit and murder. Erik Larson weaves their stories and more together in a remarkable tapestry that illustrates the explosive growth of Chicago from a literal backwater to the Second City of the United States that remained a dark place that allowed Holmes murderous rampage to go undetected.  The World’s Columbian Exposition was ostensibly created to celebrate the 400th Anniversary of Columbus’ discovery of the New World, but in reality it was meant to be America’s response the enormous success of the 1889 Paris Universal Exposition. Chicago was the surprise winner selected by Congress to build and host the fair and for Daniel Burnham and the city’s other leading citizens it was paramount that it be both a critical and a financial success.  At the same time H. H Holmes was using charm and deceit to seduce women and business associates.  Larson illuminates Burnham’s struggles and ultimate success in rallying his associates in the creation of an artistic vision that became know as “The White City” while Holmes simultaneously creates his castle-like “hotel” that became a dungeon of death for countless young women. Other stories and characters woven into the book include Frederick Law Olmstead, creator of Central Park and George Ferris, who responded to Burnham’s call to out do the Eiffel Tower with an invention of his own as well as the detective who finally catches on to the monster Holmes really is.  Larson uses novelistic details and pacing to blend history and true crime to create a book that reads like a thriller from the beginning to the gruesome end.

• Author: Louise Brooks
• ISBN: 978-0-8166-3731-7

In a remarkable turn of events Louise Brooks went from being not quite a star of 1920s films to a non-entity to an icon of silent cinema for her immortal performance in G.W. Pabst’s “Pandora’s Box”. One can begin to understand and follow this remarkable career by reading “Lulu in Hollywood” an expanded edition of a collection of essays by and about the life and times of silent film star Louise Brooks. The book opens with an introduction by film critic Kenneth Tynan and closes with an appreciation by contemporary and film historian Lotte Eisner. In between are eight candid essays written in language that is as sharp and direct as Louise Brooks own observations and remembrances. The pages between the essays in this over-sized softcover edition are filled with startling photos that go beyond the traditional promotional shots to true candid images of Louise Brooks and contemporaries such as W.C. Fields and Humphrey Bogart. Brooks is able to straddle the gap between remembering these men as she knew them being Bill and Humphrey while being insightful of the process that made them stars known universally as W. C. and Bogie.  Brooks brings the same

combination of remembrance and examination to herself as she discusses not appreciating her iconic film “Pandora’s Box” until seeing it for the first time 30 years later! Incredibly for a star whose career in Hollywood was wrecked because she would not play the game and was therefore blacklisted during the transition to sound her fame is alive and growing in the 21st century as deluxe DVDs are released of her films for Pabst “Pandora’s Box” and “Diary of a Lost Girl” while a new novel hits the bestseller lists with “The Chaperone” by Laura Moriarty published in 2012 by Riverhead Books a fictional account of her first trip from Kansas to New York City to study dance in 1922. The novel has received enthusiastic reviews in bringing Louise Brooks to life for a new generation of fans.

• Author(s): Tatiana de Rosnay
• ISBN: 9780312593308
• Publisher: St Martin's Press
• Release Date: 02/2012

I have always loved reading about different time periods in history. This particular book takes place in Paris in the 1860s when Emperor Napoleon decided to modernize the city. I have always dreamed of visiting Paris and the author transports you right there. You can hear the conversations of the shopkeepers opening their doors on the cobblestone roads. You can smell the fresh bread from the bakery and the flowers from the florist. You can see the elegant fashions of the time period and be a part of the daily domestic rituals of the main character.

It was a delight reading the events of the time period through Rose Bazelet’s letters. I felt as if I was right there feeling her pain and frustration first with her husband’s illness and then the news of the emperor’s plan of modernizing the city.

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• Author(s): Alice Hoffman
• ISBN: 9780545204118
• Publisher: Scholastic paperbacks
• Release Date: February 2010

I Wanted a short easy read for vacation. Searching my bookcase, I found “Green Angel,” a young adult novel by Alice Hoffman. It touches on life changes, letting go of the past, and accepting yourself and other people as they are. The book was a welcome change from my usual nonfiction reading. Green is a shy, quiet, plain-looking fifteen year old girl. Her parents are farmers who sell what they harvest at the farmers market in the city. Her younger sister, Aurora, is magical, pretty, loves to dance and sing, and is loved by all. One day her parents and Aurora go into town. There is a disaster in the city. They never return home. Her life has suddenly changed forever. She crawls under the big dining room table and curls herself up along with her sister’s little dog, Onion. She waits for days, then eventually crawls out. Her new life begins. Alone, frightened and unable to face reality, the personality of Green starts to fade away. She gradually changes her exterior…gives herself a tough as nails appearance. She changes her name to Ash. Making herself look scarey and untouchable helps her to feel stronger. The few survivors that cross her path stay away. Her sister comes to her in dreams. But the more Green changes into Ash, the harder it is for her sister Aurora to see her. Eventually she meets people that she allows into her life. She reaches out to them. They help her to change, grow and
gradually accept her true self. Her sad coming of age, transitions into a hopeful future.

• Author: Vanessa Diffenbaugh
• ISBN: 9780345525543
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release Date: August 2011

The language of flowers was a Victorian-era means of communication in which various flowers were used to send coded messages, conveying romantic feelings and expressions. Sadly the language has mostly been forgotten. That is until Vanessa Diffenbaugh wrote her novel, “The Language of Flowers”.

I started reading this novel with an open mind and with no expectations. It has become one of my favorite books and has found a permanent place on my bookshelf and in my heart. I even rented the audio so that I could listen to it on my commute home from work. I found myself sitting in my car in my driveway not wanting to stop listening to the story.

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