[it wasn't always easy but i sure had fun]
Dear Red Sox fans:
Thanks for not burning Boston down, yo.
Love,
Min
P.S. I heard some outrageous rumor that your team beat the Yankees to win the AL pennant; way to go! *grin*
In other news, there is no other news, but there is a Top 5 topic. Top 5 Authors You Think Everyone Should Read. We've done Top 5 Books You Think Everyone Should Read, but this is for authors. The funny ones, the brilliant ones, the ones your life wouldn't be complete without. And tell us what we should read first, second, and last.
My list:1. Christopher Moore. Start with Lamb, move on to Bloodsucking Fiends, and then from there, you're on your own to decide which of his laugh-out-loud funny novels you want to read. (I liked Practical Demonkeeping particularly.)
2. Reynolds Price. One of the most underrated of the so-called American Southern writers. He has a way with language that I've never seen rivaled, and his stories are incredibly powerful. Start with Kate Vaiden; after that, you can make your own decisions, but they should usually include The Great Circle trilogy (start with The Surface of Earth) and The Laws of Ice.
3. Diana Wynne Jones. Because she's been writing clever, funny, empathic young adult novels about magic and wizards and the supernatural since the 70's, and she's been doing it better than JKR for that long, to boot. Start with the four Chrestomanci books; Dogsbody, Fire and Hemlock and The Merlin Conspiracy are all excellent after that.
4. Sarah Bunting, aka Sars of Tomato Nation and Television Without Pity. Note to self: don't read Tomato Nation at work. It only leads to hysterical choking giggles and failed attempts to hide your ridiculous grin. Start with The Cape Cod League, move on to Nine Reasons To Give Baseball Another Chance, Book Smarts, and For Thou Art With Us, her column on 9/11, which managed to make me laugh and cry 'til I was choking. Then hit the archives. It's all brilliant.
5. Lewis Grizzard. I shout down your protests that he was racist, sexist and xenophobic by agreeing that yes, he was, and he was also the damn funniest man I've ever had the pleasure of reading, and if you like the South, football or newspaper, you should read Grizzard. Start with If I Ever Get Back To Georgia, I'm Gonna Nail My Feet To The Ground, which is the story of his newspaper career, complete with loathing for Chicago in no uncertain terms; move on to Kathy Sue Luodermilk, I Love You, his best collection of columns, and then see where your library shelf takes you. His collections of columns are better than his straight books, excepting Georgia, but it's all funny and he's sorely missed, now that he's gone.
What about you?
Folks, there's no rule that says you can't repeat someone who's already been mentioned. Happens all the time when we do music top fives, after all. If you think they should be in your five, say so!
Thanks for not burning Boston down, yo.
Love,
Min
P.S. I heard some outrageous rumor that your team beat the Yankees to win the AL pennant; way to go! *grin*
In other news, there is no other news, but there is a Top 5 topic. Top 5 Authors You Think Everyone Should Read. We've done Top 5 Books You Think Everyone Should Read, but this is for authors. The funny ones, the brilliant ones, the ones your life wouldn't be complete without. And tell us what we should read first, second, and last.
My list:1. Christopher Moore. Start with Lamb, move on to Bloodsucking Fiends, and then from there, you're on your own to decide which of his laugh-out-loud funny novels you want to read. (I liked Practical Demonkeeping particularly.)
2. Reynolds Price. One of the most underrated of the so-called American Southern writers. He has a way with language that I've never seen rivaled, and his stories are incredibly powerful. Start with Kate Vaiden; after that, you can make your own decisions, but they should usually include The Great Circle trilogy (start with The Surface of Earth) and The Laws of Ice.
3. Diana Wynne Jones. Because she's been writing clever, funny, empathic young adult novels about magic and wizards and the supernatural since the 70's, and she's been doing it better than JKR for that long, to boot. Start with the four Chrestomanci books; Dogsbody, Fire and Hemlock and The Merlin Conspiracy are all excellent after that.
4. Sarah Bunting, aka Sars of Tomato Nation and Television Without Pity. Note to self: don't read Tomato Nation at work. It only leads to hysterical choking giggles and failed attempts to hide your ridiculous grin. Start with The Cape Cod League, move on to Nine Reasons To Give Baseball Another Chance, Book Smarts, and For Thou Art With Us, her column on 9/11, which managed to make me laugh and cry 'til I was choking. Then hit the archives. It's all brilliant.
5. Lewis Grizzard. I shout down your protests that he was racist, sexist and xenophobic by agreeing that yes, he was, and he was also the damn funniest man I've ever had the pleasure of reading, and if you like the South, football or newspaper, you should read Grizzard. Start with If I Ever Get Back To Georgia, I'm Gonna Nail My Feet To The Ground, which is the story of his newspaper career, complete with loathing for Chicago in no uncertain terms; move on to Kathy Sue Luodermilk, I Love You, his best collection of columns, and then see where your library shelf takes you. His collections of columns are better than his straight books, excepting Georgia, but it's all funny and he's sorely missed, now that he's gone.
What about you?
Folks, there's no rule that says you can't repeat someone who's already been mentioned. Happens all the time when we do music top fives, after all. If you think they should be in your five, say so!