See this cute little winding sidewalk? This leads directly to my book store, about half a mile down. I love walking along here in the evenings after dinner. Sometimes the kids come with me, and sometimes I go alone (during those “mommy-needs-to-get-the-hell-out-of-the-house moments). The book store is ripe for hours of browsing, and an extra oh-my-God-could-this-get-any-better bonus is that there’s an ice cream shop a few doors down. Egads. Dangerous.

First Recommendation
Anyway, I walked up there the other night and picked up Much Ado About You by Eloisa James. I’d never read an Eloisa James book before, but @JoannaDangelo passed along an interesting article on Twitter about James here from USA Today, and it made me very curious. Apparently, James is a Harvard/Oxford/Yale grad and the daughter of poet Robert Bly and short-story writer Carol Bly. That was enough to get me intrigued, and I put her on my TBR list.

Before I walked to the store, though, I asked on Twitter which James book I should start with. (Another awesome thing about Twitter — if you follow and are followed by a bunch of reader-types, they always have GREAT quick book recommendations!) Anyway, Twitter folk recommended “Much Ado,” since it launches the series about the Essex sisters (historical Regency England). I started the book as soon as I got home from the book store and was smitten! Can’t wait to get further into it!

Second Recommendation
Another great recommendation I got this week is from my friend Swiss Michelle who told me about DailyLit here. DailyLit offers quick reads that come directly to you on e-mail. You can download them for various fees, but this month the site is offering Pulitzer Prize-winner Jhumpa Lahiri’s Hell-Heaven for free! Yippee! I love Lahiri’s writing, and it’s been quite fun to read just a 5-minute segment per day. I’m only on my third segment in three days, and I’m already loving this story. If you love to read but feel you don’t have time, DailyLit might be just the thing for you — You can enjoy some beautiful prose before you even finish your morning coffee!

Wanted to share those great recommendations with you! Happy reading!