Books At Work (1)

I thought I would try something a little out of the ordinary, which is giving you the reader another glimpse into the world of wonder that is me.

This particular section of the world of wonder that is me won't be about music. Instead, it will be about books, generally what I like to read and specifically, what I actually own. Today's post kicks off a five part series devoted to my eclectic collection of books that I have stored at work.

As you may or may not know, I do not purchase a lot of books. As a matter of fact, except for three large book series I purchased from Time Life back in my early 30's, I purchased a total of less than four dozen books in my lifetime, and about a third of that amount being purchased since 2008.

There are two reasons as to why I don't purchase a lot of books:

1}Public libraries. I prefer to browse the new book sections at my public library and read new books that way, as opposed to purchasing them outright.

2}Economics. My credit cards have taken such a beating over the years that the only time the major cards come out are for either special occasions, renewing important subscriptions (i.e. Norton) or car repairs.

So basically the only real way I will purchase new books is one, they are discounted up to 50% off or two, the writers themselves offer it for sale. Which means that for the most part, I use either that funny green paper or that funny rectangular piece of paper that says "pay to the order of."

However, to be upfront with everyone, there are exactly 3 books on this list in which I pay for them by credit card. The other twenty-three were paid with cash or check or given as a gift.

So, without further ado, we begin at the beginning.

1} WCW: The Final Roster by Eric Chmiell. I am a big fan of pro wrestling and up until the tail end of February 2011, I'd watched or read about it for about thirty-three years. This book was written, self published and offered by Eric through his now defunct wrestling newsletter back in 2001, and basically the book chronicles the wrestlers that were involved with the WCW from the time Ted Turner purchased it through its purchase and closure by Vince McMahon.

2} The Politically Incorrect Guides to American History and the Constitution. I found these books very entertaining, very informative and somewhat disturbing. By disturbing I mean that it's incredible the way American history is being taught and the way the Constitution is being twisted to do things the writers never intended for it to do. The series itself is highly recommended and please check for further titles at Regnery Publishing Inc.

3} The Beekeeper's Apprentice, A Monstrous Atrocity of Women, The Moor, all by Laurie King. I first got into this particular writer when I found the last book listed at one of my library's semi annual book sales. The one thing that attracted me to the book in the first place was that it featured Sherlock Holmes in it. In this particular book series he had a companion called Mary Russell and he was semi retired from sleuthing. The writer did a pretty good job of moving him up from the Victorian age to the time period just after World War I.If you're looking for a good mystery series featuring a familiar character with a new twist, this one is for you.

 4} Death by Committee, Deadmistress, all by Carole Shmurack. I picked up the first book for the simple reason that it was autographed. I also found out after reading the first book that the author is a local well-known mystery writer who happens to teach at one of the universities. I was so impressed with the first land that I picked up the second a month later. If you like murder mysteries with a local flavor, which in this case is Connecticut, then this book series is for you. One other interesting note is that I actually found these titles at Border's.

5} Final Exits by Michael Largo.This was one of my more freakier acquisitions. I enjoy reading nonfiction that is skewered towards the offbeat or the macabre, and this book is definitely a combination of the two. If you like reading or learning about the various ways that people have died throughout the centuries, then this book is for you.

The one really weird thing that I noticed while I was gathering up the necessary information to compose this particular series was that while the bulk of the selections were purchased at Border's, the remaining came from such diverse places as: a contest, a couple of discount stores, other bookstores, online and the writer themselves. Sometimes you can often find the best reading material in the most unlikliest of places.