Mother Knows Best

Every librarian has heard it--"it must be nice to have a job where you can read all day". And my reply is, "yes, it must--do you know where I can find that job?" Because I certainly can't keep up with the reading this job needs. So I must rely on others to keep me informed of books & at the top of my list is my mother. I regularly lug books to her & expect her to give me reviews of them if she wants more books delivered. And yes, she lets me know when she's not pleased with a selection. Like the time she tentatively asked, "have you read this?" Of course I hadn't so she went on: "well, there's a lot of four letter words in it..."--and she didn't mean ones like "this", "that" or "cute". OK, so she didn't like the book about the lobstermen & their filthy mouths--but here is a list of some of her favorites that I often pass on as suggestions to patrons (and they aren't in a significant order, other than being alphabetized by last name. Hey, it's a library):

Jade del Cameron series by Suzanne Arruda
Wish You Well by David Baldacci
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
Where Are You Now by Mary Higgins Clark
Persian Pickle Club & Tallgrass by Sandra Dallas
It Ain't All About the Cooking by Paula Deen (& any cookbook by her!)
My Last Days as Roy Rogers by Pat Devoto
Can't Wait to Get to Heaven by Fannie Flagg
Lumby series by Gail Fraser
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Harmony series by Philip Gulley
White Cascade by Gary Krist
Ride of Our Lives by Mike Leonard
Covington series by Joan Medlicott
Rest of Her Life by Laura Moriarty
Place Called Wiregrass by Michael Morris
First Lady by Susan Phillips
Virgin of Small Plains by Nancy Pickard
Last Known Victim by Erica Spindler
All the Way Home by Ann Tatlock

As you can see, the woman's reading tastes are all over the board--and truth be told, she's probably not as picky as I am. But she's also very good at keeping a reading log & usually reads 3 to 4 books a week, so this is a very select few from the past twelve months. If you're looking for a good read, this list is a good place to start.