Literary Junkies: July 2015

Affiliate Links
 

After seeing all the fun that my wife was having doing the Literary Junkies link-up every month, I decided I would try my hand at it! If you’ve ever read anything on my blog you know I love talking about books. Before I get to this month’s questions, I just want to thank Taylor at Pink Heels Pink Truck and Christine at Life with a Side of Coffee for hosting this awesome link party. Now, here is what the Literary Junkies want to know for July 2015…

What are you reading right now? Tell us about it.

I’m currently reading The Bone Collector by Jeffery Deaver. I enjoyed the movie starring Denzel Washington and Angelina Jolie (despite the lukewarm critic reviews) and thought I would give the book a shot. I’m glad I did since (as usual) there were so many arbitrary changes made when page was converted to screen.

The Bone Collector tells the story of Lincoln Rhymes (Denzel in the film adaptation), a world renowned forensic scientist in New York City that was rendered a quadriplegic after an accident at a crime scene. Having given up on life, Rhymes is just days away from assisted suicide when a former partner drops a strange kidnapping/murder case into his lap. Now, with a renewed purpose and the help of a patrolwoman named Amelia Sachs, Rhymes will not let go of his existence until he stops this mad-but-intelligent killer once and for all.

The book has been rather good thus far and way better than the movie, although that isn’t really surprising.

What book reminds you of summertime as a kid?

Admittedly, I wasn’t as much of a reader as I should have been as a kid. I would much rather play video games than pick up a novel. However, the Goosebumps series by R.L. Stine was an exception. I don’t know why the series clicked with me but it did. During my summer vacation, I couldn’t wait for our weekly trip to the grocery store and Wal-Mart because I knew I would be getting a new entry in the series. I would go home and promptly read it in a day’s time, leaving myself to wait another 6 days before I could read another one.

I picked the ninth book (by the old numbering, the twenty-ninth by the new) in the series, The Ghost Next Door, because it was the first one I ever read. I still remember my mother giving it to me one random day after school was over.

What book did you have on your summer reading list that truly nailed it as a summer reading favorite?

I’m a huge Star Wars fan and just as big of a fan of Christie Golden’s writing. That’s why I jumped at the chance to review her first entry into the new Star Wars canon, Dark Disciple. It did not let me down at all. Based off of unproduced episodes of The Clone Wars, the book focused on characters other than Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, and Yoda for once. Equal parts romance and action, Dark Disciple is easily (in my opinion) the best of the new crop of Star Wars books.

Who is your favorite author and why? Give us your top recommendation by them.

I have several authors that I really, really like, but if I had to pick just one as my favorite, it would probably be Stephen King. I can’t say that I find all of King’s books fantastic (I had a few problems with Mr. Mercedes, for example), but more often than not I know I’m in for a amazing ride every time I crack the cover on one of his books. While most associate King with supernatural horror (Carrie, Firestarter, The Shining, etc.), I feel his best work revolves around much more “realistic” evil and situations.

If I had to recommend one book by King, I would suggest Different Seasons. It is a collection of four novellas: Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption, Apt Pupil, The Body, and The Breathing Method. Only one (Breathing Method) dips into the supernatural, while the others focus on hope, the evil lurking in our neighborhoods, and the loss of innocence in the “real world.” Different Seasons should be particularly easy for movie fans to jump into as three of the four novellas have been converted into films (The Shawshank Redemption, Apt Pupil, and Stand By Me). Give it a read!

Fall Book Reading lists are starting to make their appearances. What are you excited to read that’s being released this fall?

I’ve been busy reading the books of the A Song of Ice and Fire series by George R. R. Martin, the basis for the Game of Thrones TV series on HBO. While it isn’t the sixth book in the series (that’s The Winds of Winter), I’m excited to read A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. While in truth a collection of stories that have already been released, this release brings together three tales about a knight and his not-so-usual squire set about 100 years before the events of the main series. I’m a sucker for prequel stories and relish the idea of learning more about the history of Westeros. You can be sure I’ll be reading this one come October.

So that wraps up my first ever round of Literary Junkies Q&A. Be sure to come back to Page & Screen during August to see more book talk, along with television and movies. You can also follow along with me on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram (mostly about books on that one), and Pinetrest.