I’ve been reading quite a bit lately and am blowing through books like you wouldn’t believe.  You can find my brief reviews on Amazon.com. For the chick reads, at least! 

Maeve Binchy is one of my favorite authors.  I’ve enjoyed all of her books with the exception of an older one.  I’ve just completed the following two and can’t praise them highly enough:

*Nights of Rain and Stars (takes place in Greece. Very good summer read) and Whitethorn Woods (Anytime good read).

I also highly recommend:

*Cocktails for Three (Madeleine Wickham)

*My Lurid Past (Lauren Henderson)

*The Perfect Elizabeth: A Tale of Two Sisters (Libby Schmais ): Not funny like the others, but enjoyable.

*Children of God Go Bowling by Shannon Olson is quite entertaining, but make sure you read it after the first book Welcome to My Planet : Where English Is Sometimes Spoken also by Shannon Olson.

*Man and Boy: A Novel by Tony Parsons

 If you’re looking for something rather spiritual, try:

*A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose (Eckhart Tolle)

Or to make yourself more organized, try Anthony’s recommendation,

*Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-free Productivity (David Allen)

Other favorite summer reads include Summer Sisters by Judy Blume, The Beach House by Mary Alice Monroe and the sequel, Swimming Lessons  also by Mary Alice Monroe.  There are a few others I also try to read every summer, but will have to think a minute…. 

I absolutely hated and couldn’t get into Amy Tan’s newish book “Saving Fish From Drowning”.  I read the entire thing and didn’t enjoy it at any point.  It was hard to keep the characters straight and the storyline was lacking.  Normally I like her writing style, find the cultural storylines quite interesting and insightful, but this one just didn’t do it for me.

Let me know if you want to borrow any or if you have any reading suggestions…esp good summer and/or funny chick reads!