Coming up to Valentine's Day

How quickly we become involved in the yearly schedule.  Especially young Mums who have had to prepare their kids for school - some for the very first time.   With the on again-off again heat wave we've been experiencing, it's time to take a little "time out" and relax with a favourite book or two, or three!  It doesn't matter what age we are - there are still books that will enthral, entertain, educate and just be plain fun to read.

Valentine's Day is almost here.   A special time too to think of special loved ones - a husband, a wife, a partner, a friend, a family member.   So many things to choose from - and sometimes we lose sight of the fact that gifts at Valentine's Day (as with other special dates throughout the year) can be small, intimate gifts.   They don't always have to cost the earth!  

Books are always welcome.   And there are so many to choose from.   Take take to visit Rainy Day Books and browse through the bookshop.   You'll always find nice surprises.   Great selections for men, for women, for kids.  Special interest books - lovely coffee table books.   Mystery, adventure, crime, light fiction, you name it.

And if you don't think anyone will send you a Valentine's gift - why not pamper yourself and buy yourself a special book - one that has taken your eye.  As the old saying goes - you deserve the best! 

Happy New Year everyone!

Summer holidays are with us, and just the time to catch up on some reading.   Even though some days the temperatures are a little lower than expected, there's still the opportunity to buy some of your favourite books and to discover some new exciting writers.   There are so many to choose from.

Even the children's corner is busy.   Tiny tots are bringing their parents in to "have a look" and quite often those same parents go out the door not only with a nice selection for the kids but a nice selection for them, too!

So whether you plan to go down the beach;  up into the hills for a snack/Devonshire tea/picnic; or even just to sit out in the front garden enjoying the season, there's no excuse not to have a book (or two, or three handy at your fingertips).

SUMMER HOLIDAY READING

There is nothing nicer than long lazy days 

when you can start a new series of books 

and hopefully reach the end before your holidays finish.

Most people read a little at night when they are tired and sleepy but holidays are a different matter. You can start the day slowly with a good book, read over lunch, laze away the afternoon in a hammock with a book and a box of chocs and then because there is nothing worth watching on tv most nights you can finish the day with a good read.

The Elm Creek series by Jennifer Chiaverini are a heartwarming, friendly 13 book series set around a quilting school and the friends who run it. Lots of historical quilting information is sewn into tales of close female friendships.

Another of the same warm, friendly type is the Ladybug farm series by Donna Ball. Four retired women friends buy and renovate a lovely old house then launch a catering business.

A good time to start the Diana Gabaldon Outlander series. 7 books (so far) of a long family historical saga that starts in Scotland and moves to America.

I really enjoy a good murder mystery and the best way to get to know the main characters is to read the books in sequence. The development or degeneration of the detective is clearly seen in this way. Henning Mankel with his Wallander set, Kate Ellis with Wesley Petersen and the archaeology series, Simon Beckett’s great forensic anthropologist quartet, all show the development of the police main character.

Happy summer reading.