July 1, 2008
· Filed under LL's Lists · Tagged bunspace, classmates.com, flickr, goodreads, Joe Schallen, John Richmond, publib, social networking sites
Flickr is my favorite—it’s an easy, inexpensive way to share photos with friends and family. I wish that my brothers would start flickr pages too (hint, hint!)
Publib may be my second favorite—it’s actually a listserv but it feels like a community because there are so many regular contributors—and I’ve always received helpful responses when I’ve asked a question. I’m no longer in management so I don’t ask as many questions as I did before–but I feel like this listserv keeps me current with issues in public libraries. The humorous posts by Joe Schallen and John Richmond are a bonus—I wish they would write a script for a Librarian television series–Australia already has one but I bet Schallen and Richmond could top it!
Since I have a pet rabbit, BunSpace is a helpful resource. The forums range from serious health issues to pure silliness, so there’s something for every rabbit owner aka ‘bunny slave’ . . .
I’ve recently joined GoodReads—I like it because 1) it has a clean, uncluttered look 2) it’s an easy way to keep track of what I want to read as well as what I’ve already read and 3) it has fun features like book trivia. What puzzles me about GoodReads are some of the friends requests that I receive–I’ve decided that some people just like to have lots of ‘friends’, whether or not common interests are shared. Nothing wrong with that!
Classmates is my most recent favorite—it’s a great way to reconnect with old friends!
March 25, 2008
· Filed under Just Read, LL's Lists · Tagged books, reading, Stephanie Plum, Plum Lucky, mysteries, mystery series, Anasazi, Monkeewrench, Amelia Peabody, Three Investigators, Visitant, Crocodile on the Sandbank, Secret of Terror Castle
The Anasazi mysteries by Kathleen O’Neal Gear and W. Michael Gear expertly weave together two suspenseful, haunting storylines: one from A.D. 1200 and one from present day. The Visitant is the first title in the series and it takes us to the desert of present-day New Mexico. Archaeologists excavating a Chaco Anasazi site uncover mass graves containing the bodies of young women, all with their skulls smashed. The story alternates between past and present with characters in each time period trying to solve the crime. If you enjoy historical mysteries with a touch of the mystical, you’ll want to give this series a try! (The Visitant, The Summoning God, Bonewalker) For more on the series, please visit http://www.gear-gear.com/
The Monkeewrench series by P.J. Tracy is an excellent choice if you like an unpredictable plot, quirky characters and snappy dialogue. Monkeewrench is a Minneapolis software company run by eclectic misfits. In the first title, Monkeewrench , the company has created a computer game where the killer is always caught and the good guys always win–but the game becomes a nightmare when someone begins copying the fictional murders in real life. Two police departments as well as the Monkeewrench team strive to piece the clues together and end the killing spree–and in the process, one of the detectives will discover that Monkeewrench itself has a mysterious past . . . . (Monkeewrench, Live Bait, Dead Run, Snow Blind) . For more information on the series, please visit http://www.pjtracy.net/books/monkeewrench.asp
The Amelia Peabody series by Elizabeth Peters is set in the late 1800s–the series features spunky heroines and employs a perfect combination of romance, archaeology and mystery. Crocodile on the Sandbank is the first title in the series; it introduces us to Amelia Peabody, a self-proclaimed spinster at age 32. She’s a strong-willed, no-nonsense woman–and she has an inheritance which enables her to pursue her passion of Egyptology. As she undertakes her first archaeological dig she is faced with a mysterious mummy–and a dashing, opinionated archaeologist named Radcliffe Emerson . . . . For a complete list of books in the series, please visit http://www.ameliapeabody.com/bookshelf.htm
The Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich is a fun mystery series that’s actually light on mystery–its hallmarks are quirky characters, snappy dialogue and lots of humor. For more about this series, please check out my post on Plum Lucky.
Finally I have to mention the Three Investigators series by Robert Arthur–I was hooked on this series when I was in elementary school and I still think it’s a fun read. Jupiter Jones, Pete Crenshaw and Bob Andrews are the investigators–in the original series they are probably in their early teens as none of them are old enough to drive. Their headquarters is a trailor cleverly hidden among the junk in the Jones Salvage Yard–they’ve created several secret entrances–the attention given to their headquarter’s secrecy is half of the fun! The first title in the series is the Secret of Terror Castle–in this book, the Three Investigators investigate a house rumored to be haunted. Wikipedia actually has a very good entry on this series http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Investigators .
And that concludes my list of my all-time favorite mystery series! If there’s a series you think should become part of my list, please share it–I’m always looking for a new series to try!
