I would like to tell you how important books were to me while I was growing up. I was a very shy child and teenager-I would rather read than be around most people. I also lived in a very small rural town in the Mississppi delta, so even if I had wanted to do things with people, there was nothing to do! Well, no matter the reason, I read! And I loved it! In books, I could be anyone I wanted to be...perhaps that's not completely healthy, but for some of us it's the best way to keep our sanity. And, I also believe it helps us feel strong and able to accomplish anything. And I do believe that if you can dream it, you can do it in some fashion!

I guess I have always been a dreamer. My favorite type of books are Sci Fi, Fantasy, Mystery and Horror. I like to be taken outside of myself, transported to a diferent reality. We all read in my family...we spend a fortune in bookstores at Christmas! I prefer to own the books that I love, because I read them over and over. I read "Gone With The Wind" 6 times!!! I own all of the books that an author writes, if I really like them. Then, when I get in the mood for a certain author, I will read all of their books! I guess that's pretty weird, huh?

Some of my favorite authors are:Stephen King;Dean Koontz;George Chesbro;Patricia Cornwell;Alan Dean Foster;Piers Anthony;Sue Grafton;Elizabeth Peters;Dorothy Gilman;Mike Resnick;S.P.Sumtow;Ed McBain;Lawrence Block;John Sandford;William Shatner;Judith Krantz;Marcia Muller;Dick Francis;Mary Wilis Walker;Mary Higgins Clark...

I have a lot of favorite authors, and you may not have heard of some of them...so I guess I'll tell you about them. I also have put links to pages about some of them on my links page.Check it out! One of my favorites is George Chesbro...his main character is Mongo the Magnificent, a P.I. who is also a dwarf. He and his brother fight evil (of course!) and help the helpless! Mongo, as a former circus acroobat, is well-versed in the martial arts. He is also a PHD. As you can probably tell, they are a bit fantastic, but that is what makes them so great!

I also really enjoy Dick Francis...he is a former jockey, who writes mysteries that revolve around the races. They are usually set in England...his dry wit and way of writing may take some getting used to, but is well worth it!

Elizabeth Peters writes about a variety of characters, but my favorites are Amelia Peabody, her husband Emerson, their son Ramses and the assorted characters they become entangled with. These stories are set in Egypt. The Emersons are archeologists (something I always wanted to be),and the time period is the early 1900's. They are delightfully amusing!

At this moment I am rereading Piers Anthony's Incarnations series. I have read On A Pale Horse (about Death) and Bearing An Hourglass (about Time) and am about to begin With A Tangled Skein (about Fate). These are wonderful, thought-provoking books about the things that guide our lives being actual entities. It has been qute a while since I read these books and I had forgotten just how excellent they are!

Another of my favorites is the Apprentice Adept series. I read the first 3 books when they were first printed and then became interested in something else, so did not even know until recently that there were 4 more books in the series! I bought the final book the last time I was in a book store, and read it without the intervening novels, and was somewhat confused...so much happened between the third and last installment! But, again, I was intrigued and caught up in the Anthony magic, and have since read the fourth novel. Two more to go! I heartily recomend anything written by Piers Anthony!

I also recently discovered the writings of Neil Gaiman...the author of the Sandman comic books...he is a great author! Neverwhere is the first book of his that I read, and it actually took me out of myself in the way that books did when I was much younger. That doesn't happen very often any more...unfortunately. I have read so many books that there is not much that seems truly new and intriguing. I suppose that's why I reread my favorites so often.

That said, I will tell you about another series...The Dark Tower by Steven King...that really kept me enthralled. The first book, The Gunslinger, came out in the '70's. I tried to read it then, but must not have been in the mood...for whatever reason, it sat on the shelf for many, many years...unread. About 2 years ago I decided to try it again...wow! I loved it! I have since read the 3 sequels, and can hardly wait for the next! It is an excellent series...King's best, in my opinion.