Odds n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
bullet The Surprisingly Big Business of Library E-books—This feels like a problem…
bullet 30 cool indie bookstores across the country that you’ll want to check out—You know those people who tour the US to visit every MLB Ballpark or something? Lists like this make me want to try my version of that. If only I had the time, means, and willingness to leave my house that much…
bullet Mystery in the Mountains: 10 Novels Set in the High Country of the American West—On the other hand, I have almost zero desire to visit any of the locations mentioned here outside the pages of a novel (which is a shame, because it’d be pretty easy for me).
bullet I really wasn’t trying to turn these posts into Tori Eldridge-fests, but she’s clearly doing what she can to get her name–and the name of her new book out there–and doing so with interesting articles, so…
bullet Stories Behind Our Names
bullet Binge-Worthy Characters in Books and on the Screen
bullet Robert Crais shared a pic of the first draft of his next book—fans will be happy to see this, people interested in writers’ process should check it out to see his revision notes, etc.
bullet 10 Memorable Roald Dahl Quotes to Live By—Dahl’s 103 birthday was this week, Bookstr noted the day with this fun collection
bullet What makes a good book?—HiuGregg shares some musings
bullet 5 SFF Books Featuring Middle-Aged or Elderly Heroines Who Still Kick Ass
bullet One Key Reason to Read the Book Before the Movie—Yes. (also, some good reasons to watch first…but they pale in comparison)

This Week's New Releases That I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
bullet When Sorrows Come by Seanan McGuire—The 15th (!) Toby Daye novel sees her get married, find a coup, and thinking about her future more than we’re used to. I will post something gushy about it soon. Loved it.
bullet True Dead by Faith Hunter—Jane goes back to New Orleans for reasons personal and regal in her 14th (!) novel. I talked more about it not that long ago
bullet The Ninja Betrayed by Tori Eldridge—Lily visits Hong Kong, where I expect things will get a little hairy.
bullet Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law by Mary Roach—Roach’s books always look interesting, but I haven’t gotten around to trying one. This one could change that.
bullet The Fellowship of the Ring / The Two Towers / The Return of the Kingby J.R.R. Tolkien, Andy Serkis (Narrator)—New audiobook editions of The Trilogy were released this week with Serkis narrating. I’ve been kicking myself for a couple of years for not carving out time to re-read these books. I’m going to spend some Libro.fm credits to fix that.

Lastly I’d like to say hi and extend a warm welcome to Tarahaddasa and Inspired who followed the blog this week. Don’t be a stranger, and use that comment box, would you?