Summer reading

Ever since I was a child, I developed a love for reading. My memory of a time before I even knew what a television was, and what it was for, is still (almost) as vivid as it could be. In the years of my very early youth, I remember studies, and play, and reading as occupying much of what might be termed as 'free time'.

The passion I discovered so long ago continues even today.

At times, I even begin making lists of books I've read, carefully noting the dates when I read them, completed them, and perhaps a few notes about what I tought of them. Of late, there have been quite a few, and most of these have crossed my reading chair in just the past couple of months' time:

• The Art of Racing in the Rain, by Garth Stein is a wonderful story filled with wisdom which can be found in the most curious and unexpected places;
• The Last Lecture, by Randy Pausch is a riviting tale of childhood dreams come true, and some that didn't;
• JERK California, by Jonathan Friesen is an interesting look at growing up with the challenge of Tourette's and dealing with the normal perils of teenaged anxt;
• The Age of Turbulence, by Alan Greenspan is a chronicle of turbulent times in the economic world and how life's lessons, learned at a very early age, help to give us perspectives that can help to weather any storm; and
• Marley and Me, by John Grogan is a story for dog lovers of all ages.

Other books on the horizon, some of which I've only just begun and others of which I'm well into include:

• Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austin, the classic which is always worth revisiting;
• Oliver Twist, by Charles Dickens, the classic tale of the orphan boy and his friends who lived in the realm of urchins in Victorian England;
• The Rosetta Key, by William Dietrich which promises to be an adventure involving an ancient 'magical' Egyptian scroll that is lost in the Holy Land; and
• The Girl who Played with Fire, by Steig Laarson, the sequel to The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo

Considering that this summer seems to be flying by even as most are still wondering where the warm weather has disappeared to, there should be lots of time for catching up with these adventures, and perhaps for creating some of our own.

Happy reading .....