Tuesday, January 24, 2012

a whole new world of books

 My sweet hubby gave me one of these, for Christmas.

And a month later, I have kind of fallen in love with it.

I am not a big techy person, I have a $10 flip phone (since I rarely use my phone, who needs all those bells and whistles?)  I am on my laptop a big part of my workday, but since I mostly use it for work I try to stay away from it, unless I am loading goodies into my Etsy shop, or attempting a blog post, during the evening and weekends.  Because when I am messing with an electronic device I am not getting anything hand crafted, and that is what my fingers would rather be doing.

A Field of DarknessBut the Kindle Fire makes me really happy.  The first thing I did after I opened it was to download a book: "Red Mist" by Patricia Cornwall.  It completely violated my own rule about never paying more than $3 for a book (I love Half Price Books bargain basement and avid readers who have yard sales), but hey, it was Christmas Day, so I deserved to splurge!  And there is nothing better than catching up with Kay Scarpetta, this one did not disappoint.


A day does not go by that I am not reading on my Kindle, mostly at night before bed, or in the middle of the night when I can't sleep.  "Red Mist" was a fast read, and it was followed by "A Field of Darkness" by Cornelia Read (a mystery with Madeline Dare, written in a really fresh, delightful way).   I can't wait to read other Madeline Dare mysteries.







It was followed by "The St. Paul Conspiracy" McRyan Mystery Series #1 by Roger Stelljes-a book that takes place in St. Paul.  It is so fun to read books where you are familiar with all of the places depicted throughout the story-much like the Lucas Davenport mysteries.    I borrowed it through the Kindle Owner's Lending Library, a neat feature where Prime Members get to borrow a book a month.


Next, I downloaded "Maids of Misfortune" - A Victorian San Francisco Mystery by Louisa M. Locke.  (Clearly I have been on a mystery kick lately...)  It was very enjoyable, and part of it even took place near the Cliff House restaurant, where Mike and I ate the last time we were in California. I plan to find more of these mysteries to read-San Francisco has always really fascinated me, and the author's website piqued my interest.


Amazon offers a Kindle Deal of the Day, book downloads are free or very inexpensive.  It's a great way to try new authors.  I almost feel like I have a library day, every day!

The Architecture of the Arkansas Ozarks (A Novel)I have this one in my Kindle, just waiting to be read,  "The Architecture of the Arkansas Ozarks" by Donald Harington.  I love knowing I have fresh books just waiting for me.




The Holocaust DiariesAnother Deal of the Day was this title  "The Secret Holocaust Diaries" by Nonna Bannister - I am waiting to be in the right frame of mind to delve into it.   Perhaps once I get off my mystery kick!



I am currently in the middle of  "The Highest Tide" by Jim Lynch, about a fourteen year old boy who discovers a giant squid during his nocturnal low tide adventures.  It is delightful.

I have also downloaded a few free games to play, I use Sudoku every day to keep my brain in shape (in theory...)  I have also downloaded some books on organization and cookbooks.  It is so versatile!

The Kindle Fire also lets me browse the web, so I can check my Gmail, Facebook, and Etsy shop along with my favorite blogs.  And I can have Pandora playing my favorite music in the background at the same time.  I haven't watched a movie on it yet, but since I am a Prime member I can watch thousands of them for free.

I have come to realize that the reason I love my Kindle Fire so much is that when I am holding it, it's just about me enjoying some down time.  And we could all use a little more of that!

(all book images from the author's web sites, check them out if you are interested!)

5 comments:

  1. Tell us how you feel about the FEEL of your Kindle. Is the font an easily readable size? Is the page bright enough? About how much does it weigh? Thanks!

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  2. Awesome. You are really enjoying that gadget. Good for you!

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  3. Moffitt, it weighs less than a pound (14.6 oz.) and the feel is your hand is just right. I am not sure what the actual material is, but it is really comfortable to hold for extended periods of time. You can adjust the brightness of the page-which comes in handy when I read it in the middle of the night. The font size is perfect for me, and you can read vertically or horizontally, and can zoom in out out whenever you need to. It is SO FAST, in terms of web browsing. The battery life is really long, which is nice when you have a book you are absorbed in. I am getting used to the touch screen (when typing on the keyboard) as I haven't used touchscreens on any other devices. I don't know if my review is worth much, since I haven't really used any other devices like this, but it is perfect for what I use it for. Some have lamented the fact that it has no camera, but I don't see where that is a problem. Hope this helps!

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  4. I'm not at all techy either and doubt I'll ever own a kindle (never say never), but I sure enjoyed looking at and hearing about your list of books! I love your book posts.

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