Books

Looking for a little inspiration before planning your next adventure? The best travel books for retirees offer a mix of humor, wisdom, and wanderlust – perfect for anyone who finally has the time to explore the world. Are you planning a trip across the country or dreaming of faraway…

In Part One, I highlighted three long books. Here, there is only one, but an important book, Eve: How the Female Body Drove 200 Million Years of Human Evolution. If you have a serious reader friend, take up this book together and discuss the sections…

There are three longish books in this first installment of my winter book comments. I finally got my hands on Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver. It did not disappoint. The wait list at the library is short because it came out in 2022. Then I saw a new book by Hampton Sides…

This December I had some surgery and was laid up for a while. Because I knew my “taking it easy” wasn’t for an indefinite amount of time, curling up on the couch every day with my blanket, tea, and book was glorious. I read and read and read. And I started thinking…

I have never wanted to join a book club. Oh, I know there are many excellent groups out there, whose members cherish their time together, but there are just as many dysfunctional book clubs that could turn any warm book-lover’s heart stone cold. So how do you find a good book club?

I can’t and don’t intend to tell anyone how to write a book. Every writer goes about their task in a different way, and while rules do exist – readability is key, for a start – they are also there to be broken. I had never written a book before…

I love it when a friend or family member gifts me a book. With so many choices in bookshops and online stores, it’s a fun way to discover new authors or subject matter that might not otherwise appear on my radar. Here are a few favorites I’ve read recently…

Where did October and November go? Disappeared into 11 books, most of them worth considering for your book stack. Enjoy and Happy Holidays!

Whenever I counsel fiction authors about getting started in self-publishing, and they ask what they should concentrate on to become a success, I always advise them to be great storytellers. If you can’t tell a great story, no amount of marketing will make…

It’s raining and warm, yes warm, in Chicago this first week of November. Does this mean that the coming winter will be as warm as last year? I never wore my sub-zero coat. Regardless of the weather, books keep us venturing into other worlds. The following books…