Cat Who Dropped a Bombshell, The
by Lillian Jackson Braun

Chronicles of Narnia, The
Book 1-The Magicians Nephew
by C.S. Lewis

Well, after reading The Cat Who Brought Down the House I decided I would give this series another try as the earlier books were quite good.  Now I think Miss Braun is just a babbling old lady writing about some cat lovers fantasy world.  This series used to be a fun series.  The cats were important to the stories as what they did or discovered would lead to clues on the 'whodunit'.  Now the mysteries are just a passing thought in the stories.  This time around the mystery was solved by a letter someone had wrote.  I think the murder and the mystery being solved may have been about 4 or 5 pages in the books.  If you are going to read any books in this series make sure you read the older ones.

I've listened to and read most of the "Spenser for Hire" series by Robert B Parker.  First off the books are a hundred times better than that old T.V. Show.

Anyhow this book was a different genre for Parker as well as a venture away from my normal style of reading.  

This book is actually a western story.  I don't know if I've ever read a western before but this was a really good story and kept my attention from beginning to end.

The story is about two lawmen in the old west who barely skirt on the legal system they create but manage to stay within it.  The book has the typical show downs of the old west but they aren't the corny kind where the good guys never get hurt.  I would definitely recommend this book even if you are like me and have never read a western.

I had recently saw a preview for an upcoming movie titled "The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe" (book 2 in the Chronicles of Narnia series) and heard it is like a cross between Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings.  My wife has the book series and I figured I would give it a read before the movie as I find I usually enjoy a movie based on a book better if I have read the book first.   The Narnia series is kind of a children's book in the same sense that the Harry Potter series is a children's book.  The first book was a quick and easy and very enjoyable read.  The first book basically sets the scene on how Narnia came into being.  This book was hard to put down once I started and I finished it pretty quickly.  I'm looking forward to starting the 2nd book in the seven book series as soon as I finish reading a different "Cat Who" book I'm reading currently.

My recommendation: As it appears this is going to be the big Christmas movie for 2005 I suggest you read the books first.  The books have been around for over 50 years so they have stood the test of time.  A quick easy read for adults and children alike.

I believe this was the 26th book in the series.  The best way to sum this book up is I think the author ran out of stories at 25.  Even though I consider these 'old lady' books I have enjoyed them up until this issue.  The books are normally murder mystery books.  This one seemed to be an old lady spending about 200 pages telling her of a fantasy world she wish she lived in and then in about literally the last two or three pages the killer kind of comes out and gives a confession as an afterthought.  Usually in a murder mystery someone has to 'solve' the mystery.  

My recommendation:  The other books have been pretty good in this series.  This one you can skip over, if you read this one first you won't bother picking up any of the others.

I reread this book recently since the movie was coming out.  I originally read this book probably about 10-15 years ago and still had it.

The book is a quick and easy read.  I think I enjoyed the book better than the movie and now I realize I'm going to have to reread all four books in the trilogy.  (It's another one of those British humor things, a four book trilogy)

There are a lot of elements in the book that aren't in the movie.  One of my favorites is how the main character, Arthur Dent, doesn't really seemed to effected by the Earth being blown up until he realizes he will never again be able to have a "Big Mac"

The book also doesn't have the 'fluffy' happy ending like in the movie.  

My recommendation: If you just want a quick silly read and don't want to come away feeling that you've been enlightened or learned anything (and if you are a nerd) then you will enjoy this book.