Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Read Any Good Books Lately?
There may be some redemption for me after all. With some reflection, it seems that I don't spend all of my free time watching TV or doing Sudoku puzzles. That's not so say that I don't live a big chunk of my time living outside of reality. In addition to my other mindless pursuits, I actually read quite a bit. Of course, what I read isn't really making me smarter...
My reading seems to parallel my love of television. I enjoy fiction over reality and I enjoy ongoing story lines. My favorite authors are the ones that create memorable characters and invite you to view their characters over a long time, like a TV series that has been on for years.
My current favorites are:
The Dresden Files - by Jim Butcher
A series of books about a professional Wizard for Hire out of Chicago that uses real magic to deal with the things that go bump in the night.
Spenser - by Robert Parker
The original material that spawned the Spenser for Hire TV show years ago, this is a 20+ year series about a tough guy PI who defines honor, quotes poets and is very hard to kill. The character development alone makes me want to pick up the next book in the series.
The Alex Delaware series - by Jonathan Kellerman
Alex is a former child psychiatrist who now consults for the the LAPD on grisly cases with a need for a psychological perspective. This series covers more than 15 years in the lives of Alex and the people around him.
The John Rain series - by Barry Eisler
This is perhaps the youngest of the series profiled here. I think that they may be up to 5 or 6 books in the series so far, but they are captivating. The protaganist is a mercenary assassin who speicalizes in making his assignments look like natural deaths. The author makes you root for the assassin... The writing is crisp and very visual.
If you are a fiction fan, any of these series is well worth the read and will provide even the most avid readers with many many hours of entertainment.
My reading seems to parallel my love of television. I enjoy fiction over reality and I enjoy ongoing story lines. My favorite authors are the ones that create memorable characters and invite you to view their characters over a long time, like a TV series that has been on for years.
My current favorites are:
The Dresden Files - by Jim Butcher
A series of books about a professional Wizard for Hire out of Chicago that uses real magic to deal with the things that go bump in the night.
Spenser - by Robert Parker
The original material that spawned the Spenser for Hire TV show years ago, this is a 20+ year series about a tough guy PI who defines honor, quotes poets and is very hard to kill. The character development alone makes me want to pick up the next book in the series.
The Alex Delaware series - by Jonathan Kellerman
Alex is a former child psychiatrist who now consults for the the LAPD on grisly cases with a need for a psychological perspective. This series covers more than 15 years in the lives of Alex and the people around him.
The John Rain series - by Barry Eisler
This is perhaps the youngest of the series profiled here. I think that they may be up to 5 or 6 books in the series so far, but they are captivating. The protaganist is a mercenary assassin who speicalizes in making his assignments look like natural deaths. The author makes you root for the assassin... The writing is crisp and very visual.
If you are a fiction fan, any of these series is well worth the read and will provide even the most avid readers with many many hours of entertainment.
