"Blogging For Dummies" by Susannah Gardner, Shane Birley

Blogging For Dummies by Susannah Gardner, Shane Birley  is a very helpful book for anyone who is beginning to blog and even for a person like me who has started to blog for about eight months but is still learning along the way.  The authors give many websites where the reader can go to see exactly what the text is referring to.  I finally learned the HTML code for doing lists in posts from this book.  It also covers suggestions for getting traffic to your blog and how to get and handle comments.  I highly recommend it for any blogger, especially beginners.

Visit my other blogs at http://www.zemeks.blogspot.com (Karen & Gerard Zemek) and http://www.karezemek.blogspot.com (My Funny Dad, Harry) and Zemeks' Updates at http://karen.pnn.com where our pets blog.

Have you read this one? What did you think of it?

"Where Are You Now?" by Mary Higgins Clark

Where Are You Now by Mary Higgins Clark is a novel that takes place in New York City about Carolyn, a lawyer, trying to find her older brother who has been missing for ten years but calls once a year on Mother’s Day.  He was a student at Columbia University and just disappeared one day.  As she digs into the past, she starts finding some circumstantial evidence that makes the detectives think her brother, Mac, may be a serial killer and that’s why he chose to disappear.  Carolyn thinks he must be in trouble and just wants to find him to help.  I don’t want to say too much about the plot because I don’t want to spoil it for you, but this book has suspense, romance and mystery.

I liked this book because it led me to believe one thing but ended up being something completely different than I expected.  I enjoy books that have surprise endings that I don’t figure out right from the start and this is certainly one of them! If you like mysteries, I highly recommend Where Are You Now?.   

Have you read this one? What did you think of it?  Share what you thought of it and link up your  post to Busy Mom's Who Love To Read's Book Club.

Where Do You Like To Read?

According to our little poll we had on here last week, bed was the number one answer which surprised me.  We never read in bed.  I do not even like reading lying down because to me it is just uncomfortable to lay on my stomach to read like Gerard does or to hold the book up in the air while lying on my back.  My arms get tired after awhile.  Perhaps people reading while sitting up in bed, but to me that is not comfortable either.  Gerard usually reads in a chair which was the second highest answer in our poll.

 

My favorite place to read is in the library garden on a chair in downtown Cleveland on a nice warm day.  The downside of this is that I have to wear a hat because lots of birds like sitting in those trees and once, a bird's doo doo plopped right on the library book I was reading, Adventures With Ari.  I usually spend my half my lunch hour reading there but most of my reading is done on the bus going to and from work.  This is why I like using public transportation, because I can just sit back and relax with a book. 

 

Related Post:  Interview With Kathryn Miles, author of Adventures With Ari

Our Best Reads For May, 2009:  Sophie's Heart and Adventures With Ari

Thanks to all who participated in our poll last week.  It's right at the top of our blog for your convenience.  We had 21 voters last week.  So where do you like to read? 

"Freedom" by Daniel Suarez

What was this?  I was excited to read Freedom by Daniel Suarez because it was the sequel to Daemon which was one of the best books I read last year.  Freedom started out really good but then it went south.  I couldn't follow the plot or the characters.  I didn't think this book was good at all so just 2 stars on this one.  My advice is to skip this and spend your time reading something else.  I was sad and disappointed in Freedom because Daemon was so good!  This was not!!  Here is a link to the quote from it for Tuesday Teaser (notice the page number--it's at the beginning).
(Gerard's Review) 

Have you read this one? What did you think of it?

Why Do I Blog? Good Question! (Writer's Workshop/Back2Blogging Day 5)

I ask myself this question a lot lately because I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed by Linky deadlines and the feeling that I should visit all the other links but just don't have the time and if I did, why would I want to spend all day and evening on the computer?  I guess I'm just addicted to blogging now but do get pleasure out of posting things people find funny or interesting, but this SITS Back2Blogging Challenge has really put the pressure on and tuckered me out—talk about time-consuming! 

So, why do I blog? 

• We learn a lot through blogging—tips, places, needs of others and new things like blogging pets! 
• I enjoy writing over talking.
• It’s fun to read about thoughts, views, lifestyles and experiences of others, including the cats and dogs.
• Sharing with others is just something I like to do.
• We have made some new friends through blogging through exchanging comments.
• I find blogging challenging and I like a challenge.

What if we all stopped?  I know I would miss blogging now that I’ve been bitten by the blogging bug.  We would have so much more time though to do other things such as:  Watch TV, clean, get to know our neighbors, go places, read more books, visit people face-to-face, exercise, play more with my pets and talk more with my husband.  What would you do if you didn’t blog.  I think I would get bored after awhile.

Here’s my blogging challenge:  Let’s everyone stop blogging completely for two weeks—no posting, no scheduling posts, no commenting or reading others blogs.  If everyone stopped at the same time, we wouldn’t be missing anything.  I think it is a great idea!  Everyone may come back refreshed with lots of ideas and anxious to do it some more.  On the other hand, we may find that we really don’t miss it and could get on with other things in our life.  Now, which two weeks should the blogosphere take a vacation?  I’m thinking maybe November.  We have to plan it far enough ahead to get the word out.  Who’s with me on this?  Leave your suggestions in the comments.  What do you think?

This post is in response to Day 5 of SITS Back2Blogging  and Mama Kat's Writer’s Workshop prompt:  Why do you blog? What purpose does it serve you and how have you benefited from sharing a piece of yourself online this way?  Here are links to my other posts I wrote for this challenge--Whew!



Day 1--The First Blog Post I Ever Wrote
Day 2--Lenore, The Love of His Life
Day 3--A Title I Am Proud Of:  Why Wash Your Car
Day 4--Inspired By Marva Collins

Over at SITS there is a giveaway going on in connection with "Back To Blogging." The giveaway is a washer and dryer from sponsors, Standards of Excellence, Westar Kitchen and Bath, and Florida Builder Appliances.

This is part of Saturday Samplings at Half Past Kissin' Time.