Holiday Read: Skipping Christmas

Spending most of the afternoon catching up with a couple of bloghops. Some of my responses were a tad late. About to end the year with a huge a roadtrip to see relatives and my daughter had a big production that ended last weekend.

I did finish the Christmas book I was reading, "Skipping Christmas" written by the popular author John Grisham.


I have seen many of his novels turned into movies but I have never read any of his works before. This book also has been turned into a movie "Christmas with the Kranks" which I have not seen. I enjoyed the book it was easy to get into. It had a huge plot twist two-thirds into the novel which gave it  an interesting end.

Well I hope everyone is enjoying the Holidays. I have 11 months or so to figure out what my next Christmas read will be.

Books: Mario Puzo Omerta

 Published after his death Omerta is a Mafia novel by Mario Puzo the author of The Godfather.  I just finished reading this novel tonight.

Apparently this book had some mixed reviews. Maybe it wasn't as good as some of his other works. I enjoyed it.

The book was filled with twists. Several of the characters were developed in depth. The good guys weren't so good and the bad guys weren't as bad. Of course the book contained the expected of Gangster ruthlessness.

Have you read any of his works? have you read this book, if so what did you think? What is your favorite Mafia/Gangster book?

Casino Royale: Reading what I blog

Just a few days ago I blogged about Sean Connery. Mr. Connery is famous for portraying James Bond in he movies. When I wrote that post I had no idea I would be reading Casino Royale by Ian Fleming.


Opening credits from the 1967 film..

It was all by chance. Lately I have fallen into my bad reading habits of starting a book and then completely misplacing it. I think I have Gremlins that purposely hide them. Anyway on Friday I was picking my daughter up from dance. The way her schedule and my schedule works out I end up with an hour to kill. I stopped by a local Goodwill store and found a copy of Casino Royale in great condition and decided it would be my companion. Second hand stores are  where I pick up most of my books unless it is something specific then it is searching the world wide web.

Anyway Saturday, I worked and got off work just in time to go shopping with my girls. Time and money ended up vanishing from me on that day.

Today, Sunday was different. My daughter needed to read for school, so I told her I would read with her. That way she got to snuggle with me ad get her work done. Then the day became a rainy day and I ended up finishing the book.

The book was good enough to spurn two movies. The 1967 original and then the 2006 version.

The book was originally published in 1953. I hadn't watched the films in a while so i was able to read the novel with a fresh mind. I enjoyed the read. It had the James Bond action, the exotic car, and a bit of romance to it. It showed a different side of Bond. The book's end also had an interesting twist.

The book knocks off another category in one reading challenge I am doing from another blogger.
Book number 17 for the year. 

A to Z Challenge: Q

Today is the letter Q in the A to Z: Challenge so I decided to select Q from the James Bond movie and novel franchise.

Here are some quick clips from Q in the movies..

A new Q is introduced in the movie Skyfall...

A bit of trivia for all the book lovers out there. The character Q never appears in Ian Fleming's novels. However a Q Branch is mentioned.

Below James Bond meets Q in From Russia with Love..

Are you a fan of the James Bond novels or movie? What is your favorite Q moment from one of the films?

Thanks for visiting! I will be back tomorrow with another A to Z post! 

On Reading in The Technical Age

This week I downloaded the Kindle application for my smart phone. I did it to support an author I know who released his first novel on the electronic media. The novel hasn't been released in a physical form. It is a drastic change for me since the last novel I read was a Japanese Nobel Prize winning book that dates back to the 50s or 60s.  A book that has aged, developed dog-ears and creases, and even yellowed with age.

Purchasing the new book was easy and downloading the app was a breeze. The kindle app is really ease to use with my touch screen phone. It even saves my place. However, if I drop my phone I risk an expensive deductible. I need my phone and gadgets so I can't afford to misplace it and my electronic book for months on end.

In short it is not a book. It does have it advantages and I could grow to like it. However, I am am old fashioned reader. I like the feel of a book in my hand as I read it. I even embrace technology to hunt down a book I want to read. I like searching through thrift stores, flea markets, and those great used book stores.

I fear technology. Book stores could vanish like record stores. Yes, I called them record stores when I purchased cassettes and compact discs as well. Libraries are shrinking will this technology make them landmarks of the past.

Am I wrong to hold on to the outdated books? Do outdated books turn into classics? Will classics still be made when you flick screens instead of turning pages?