The Family Story of Bonnie and Clyde-Phillip W. Steele and Marie Barrow Scoma

This is the supposed true story of Bonnie and Clyde, Co-written by Clyde Barrow's youngest sister, Marie. I'm a huge fan of Bonnie and Clyde, So I pretty much think anything written about them is good. It was pretty informative, with inside information from the sister. A pretty good read if you're into the subject.

Stephen King Goes to the Movies-Stephen King

This is a collection of Novellas by Stephen King. Confession: I didn't read it all. I bought it because The Shawshank Redemption is my favorite movie of all time. So, I've allways wanted to read Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption. I'm a big believer in the idea that the book is always better then the movie. Not so in this case. The movie is 1000 times better. But the novella is ok. I wouldn't waste my $10 on it again when I can just watch the best movie ever made.

I'm back with two more

After not really reading anything for a few months, I jumped back into it with two books in one week. Here they are.

Deadly Diversion-Eleanor Sullivan.

This medical mystery is written by a nurse from St. Louis. So, being in the medical field myself, and from St. Louis, I figured I'd check it out. Patients in the ICU at St. Teresa's Hospital (if you're from St. Louis, read this as St. Alexius) Are mysteriously dieing. Head nurse Monika Everhardt is trying to figure out why. I found this book to be extremely slow, so slow in fact that the reader doesn't find out what is going on until the last few pages. (also, the use of "Ed Crewe's ice cream instead of Ted Drew's really pissed me off.) That being said, I actually kind of enjoyed this book. I'd give it 3 1/2 stars out of 5.

I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell-Tucker Max.

Tucker Max is my hero. Ok not really. Tucker Max is a womanizing ass hole. But, this collection of amusing anecdotes from his life of debauchery is really funny if, like my, you find drunken idiots funny. Some random story tittles from the book: The Blowjob Follies, Tucker fucks a fat girl; hilarity ensues, Floss, Tucker tries buttsex; hilarity does not ensue, and The absinthe Donuts Story. Warning: This book is not for those with weak stomachs.

Stay tuned for more...

sometimes I read...slowly

One more that took me way to long to read.

Wasteland-Francesca Lia Block

I liked this book, and I hated it at the same time. Without giving away too much. It's about a brother and sister who fall in love, then the brother Lex, kills himself. The rest is about the sisters grief and recovery.

What I didn't like is that the book is mostly written in the first person from the sisters point of view and it's written as if the read is the dead brother. It's a little off puting.

More Random Acts of book reading violence

For some reason a few titles got deleted from my first post. So here they are:

Cold Hit-Stephen J. Cannell
Another good Shane Scully novel.

White Sister-Stephen J. Cannell
Yep, Shane is at it again.

Three Shirt Deal-Stephen J. Cannell
The last Scully book I read. Just finished it a few days ago.

I'm about half way through my next book, So I'll report on it when I'm done.

Sometimes I read

So here is my first post. This is the list of everything I could remember up to this point. Click on the title if you want to read about the book.

The Tin Collectors-Stephen J. Cannell
The First of the Shane Scully novels. LAPD Sergeant Shane Scully shoots his partner dead during a domestic dispute with his wife. Now the "tin collectors", or LAPD Internal Affairs division is after Sgt. Scully. Shane sets out to clear his name, while at the same time he finds love from a most unlikely source. A great read.

The Viking Funeral-Stephen J. Cannell
LAPD Detective Shane Scully is back in another action packed novel. Scully swears he saw his childhood friend while driving down the freeway, even though he supposedly died two years ago. Now Shane is committed to finding the truth. This is the best book in the series.

Hollywood Tough-Stephen J. Cannell
The Mafia and unions go together like peas and carrots. Detective Scully is back. This time he stumbles into a conspiracy by the mob to infiltrate the Hollywood Unions. Now Shane must figure out how high this conspiracy goes in this action packed thriller. This is probably my least favorite of the series, but it was still so good I couldn't put it down.

Vertical Coffin-Stephen J. Cannell
In the fourth book of the series, Shane is caught in the middle of a deadly standoff between a lone gunman and two rival SWAT teams. After the house the gunman is barricaded in burns down Waco style, a fight ensues over who is to blame. Now, to top it off, cops are getting sniped off left and right. And again it's up to Scully to sort it all out. Another great book by Cannell.



(If) I Did It: Confessions of a Killer-O.J. Simpson
Absolutely Horrible! This book is a "fictional" account of "how" O.J. killed Nicole Brown and Ron Goldman. The problem is this: A) O.J. Killed them. B) O.J. accounts everything up to the point of the murders, then he blacks out. So it's not even what it promises. The only reason I even bought this is because a judge awarded the copyright to the Goldman family, so O.J. got nothing.

You Can Run, But You Can't Hide-Duane "Dog" Chapman
A memoir from Dog the Bounty Hunter. I Liked it. I think he's a good role model.

The Pursuit of Happyness-Chris Gardner
If you've seen the Will Smith movie then you know what this is about. Chris Gardner goes from broken down and homeless to a high powered stock broker. It's Uplifting and motivational. I think the movie was slightly better, but it's still a 4 1/2 star book.

A Little Demonstration of Affection-Elizabeth Winthrop
I'm not really sure what I think about this book. It's a short young adult novel about a brother and sister, who never really speak to each other. Until one summer, they bond while spending the entire summer digging a really big hole (????). They grow a little too close during that summer. Do they commit they ultimate taboo? Read it to find out. A decent enough one or two day read.

Where the Heart Is-Billie Letts
This is actually the first book I ever read because I wanted to. I took me one night to read because I couldn't put it down. It's also one of the few that I have reread more then once. It's a great story about home being where you make it and finding an extended "family" in the most unlikely people.

The Honk and Holler; Opening Soon-Bille Letts
This is probably my favorite book of all time. Caney is a paralyzed war vet who owns a small diner in Oklahoma. He leads a boring and repetitious life until a mysterious woman shows up and he reluctantly gives her a job. His life is in for a big change as they fall in love. Billie Letts is an amazing story teller.

The Texas Seven-Gary C. King
The true story of seven inmates that escaped from a Texas prison in the early 2000s. Blah, poorly written. I bought this in the airport on my way to Omaha, because they really didn't have anything else. Don't waste your time.

Bleachers-John Grisham
A short novel about the impending death of the long time former football coach of a small Texas town. As former players gather from around the country, they reminisce about good and bad memories of the coach. This is decent at best, I wouldn't waste my money on it again. Check it out at the library.

Hit Man-Lawrence Block
It's about just what the title says, a hit man. Lawrence Block somehow manages to make you like this professional contract killer, and you find yourself rooting for him.

Plain Truth-Jodi Picoult
Jodi Picoult has got to be one of the greatest authors of our time. In Plain Truth she weaves an intriguing story of a birth "out of wedlock" and possibly murder in a small Amish community. A simply awesome book from a great author.

Salem Falls-Jodi Picoult
Another masterpiece from Picoult. Jack, a former school teacher, is released from prison after being wrongly convicted of statutory rape. He moves to the sleepy town of Salem Falls, and gets a job a a small diner. Much to His horror, a 17 year old girl takes an interest in him. When she is attacked in the woods, Jack is the most obvious suspect. He again finds himself in a fight to clear his name.

Nineteen Minutes-Jodi Picoult
The first of Picoult's novels i read. Again, I bought this in the airport while waiting for a flight. This time I was pleasantly surprised. Nineteen Minutes is about the aftermath of a school shooting in which 10 people are shot in nineteen minutes. The shooter, a 17 year old boy, has literally been bullied since his first day of kindergarten. Could punishing the bullies before it got out of hand stopped the tragedy?

My Sister's Keeper-Jodi Picoult
I'm not really sure what to say about this one except that every once in a while, even great authors have a dud. A young girl has a rare form of leukemia. So, her parents have another child simply to be a donor match. What doesn't make sense is why they would love the sick child so much, but not care about the older brother or younger sister at all. It's just not very good.

24 Declassified: Operation Hell Gate-Marc Cerasini
I'm not even going to waste my time. I'm a huge fan of the television series 24. I had high hopes when they started releasing these books. It sucked so bad I never bothered with the rest.

Alone with the Dead-Robert J. Randisi
NYPD Detective Joe Keough is on the case of a serial killer dubbed "The Lover" when a copy cat killer pops up. When the two killers start competing for supremacy, It's up to Joe to sort it out. On a scale of 1-10 it's a solid 7. I've read better, but it was still enjoyable.

In the Shadow of the ArchRobert J. Randisi
Boy was I in for a surprise in the second of the Joe Keough series. After being forced to resign from the NYPD, Joe moves to...St. Louis. He gets a job as a detective with the Richmond Heights Police Department (coincidentally the neighboring town to where I grew up.) On his first day on the job, a little boy walks into the police station with blood stained pajamas. The mystery ensues. Not only are Randisi's descriptions of the St. Louis area spot on, it's also a well written story.

Blood on the Arch-Robert J. Randisi
A local politician is beaten to death in one of the trams that bring visitors to the top of the St. Louis Arch. Joe Keough must untangle a web of political motivations, women, and lies to solve the crime. Coincidentally, some people from my high school killed somebody in one of the same trams, but it was not intentional. Anyway, the characters in the 3rd Keough book are not as well written. But, I'm a fan of anything that has to do with "The Lou", so I liked it.

East of the Arch-Robert J. Randisi
Murder in East St. Louis? No way. (Sarcasm) OK, so the plot is a little predictable, but we have the reintroduction of the little boy from Joe's first St. Louis adventure. I enjoyed it.

Arch Angels-Robert J. Randisi
Joe Keough is now a member of the federal serial killers task force based in D.C. He and his partner are dispatched to St. Louis and Chicago respectively to investigate eerily similar murders with one big difference. In St. Louis the victims are female, while in Chicago, the victims are male. Could it be one killer playing a deadly game. Randisi at his finest.

1st to Die-James Patterson
The first book in the Women's Murder Club series. a female San Fransisco homicide detective is on the case of a serial killer who is killing newly weds. Just barely decent.

2nd Chance-James Patterson
Totally sucked. There's a reason the television series didn't last. I didn't waste my time with the rest of them.

Into The Wild-Jon Krakauer
The true story of Chris McCandless, who gave away everything he had and choose to live life as a vagabond. From his time in "Slab City" in Southern California, to his death in an abandoned bus in the Alaskan wild. It's gripping. Make sure you have plenty of time to read, because you won't be able to put it down.