I received a package today from my friend "Book Guy". I haven’t heard from him in a long time. Book Guy designs computer systems and chips and reads, although I hate to say indiscriminately, I can at least say widely. He has time on his hands, he builds both hardware and software systems, contracts out to whoever pays him the most money, and spends most of the time he is not designing chips, software, or sleeping reading. The ultimate computer nerd with a bookish bent. Since he makes far more money than his lifestyle requires, he buys books in quantity and then periodically he sends stacks of books to his friends. The only catch is that we have to pass them on when we are done, although passing them on to local libraries is also OK. The books are nothing esoteric usually, but popular fiction, with the occasional surprise. No surprises here:
Stephen King: Liseys’ Story
David Baldacci: The Collectors
Robert Ludlum: The Bancroft Strategy
John Grisham: The Innocent Man
James Patterson: Cross
They might not have been things I would have read on my own, but Stephen King’s "Lisey’s Story" was on my list either for the library or to wait for the mass market paperback. At the moment the wait list for "Lisey’s story is three times the length of the supply list for all the libraries in the 3 county system, so I was in no rush. They will be good gym reading, and perhaps good travel reading for the upcoming Thanksgiving trip to Kansas. I am not sure any of the bro’s will be interested so I might have to pass them on elsewhere. Although I probably wouldn’t have bought these, I will enjoy reading them (I admit to not always being a critical reader) and brother C, who I tend to think of as being smarter and having impeccable taste, is probably far above this kind of thing.
None of these books are in my local branch library although they are all represented in the local library system. I will check tomorrow if they are interested in a donation of current fiction. I have been turned down before, although if they would publish a list of books they wanted to buy, I would consider purchasing same, reading and donating to a good cause. In case the library isn’t interested, if you harbor a hidden penchant for popular fiction, please advise.