Skipping Christmas

As I have said before, reading is essential for good writing. Reading helps a writer develop their skills and helps in developing an individual style. Other writers can also inspire new ideas or approaches to old ideas.

It's a win-win situation. Plus, even if you are not a writer, reading is just fun and enjoyable.

There are a number of writers I particularly like. One I discovered just this year is Janet Evanovich. My daughters have been reading her Stephanie Plum series for years but I only discovered them this past spring when we listened to one of the audio tapes while in the car driving to Pennsylvania. Since then, I have read or listened to five or six of Evanovich's novels and also read a non-fiction book she wrote on writing.

But probably my favorite author is John Grisham. I generally listen to a book on tape and it I like it, I buy the hardback and read it. Two I really like -- and read often -- are "The Testament" and "The Broker." Both have good stories and are told well.

Yet there is another one I read once a year. It is "Skipping Christmas." The book is not a crime or legal thriller. It's about a man who plans to completely skip celebrating Christmas one year and take a cruise. Given how chaotic the season often is, who wouldn't want to do that.

Well, the book is delightful. I love reading it at Christmastime each year, not the least because I also remember the friend who gave me the book. But it is such a wonderful book to read, fun and easy. The descriptions are perfect. The setting and characters are perfect. The dialogue is perfect. Just about everything about the book is perfect.

I just read it this week and enjoyed it as much today as when I read it for the first time in 2001. And I suggest it to you at Christmastime.

Thanks for reading. Don't forget to keep reading and don't give up on writing.