I Stole an Hour to Read Sue Grafton's Kinsey Milhone

After submitting a report that literally consumed three weeks of very, very long hours of work each day, I had to force myself to stop working this afternoon to read for an hour.

In fact, as soon as I submitted the report on Thursday, I felt an adrenaline rush pushing me to buy the next Sue Grafton mystery for my Nook. And I started reading J is for Judgment at 4pm today. (Lapse in time due to catching up with work for other clients.) Unlike the Horrible H is for Homicide, J is for Judgment hasn't disappointed in the slightest. I can't describe how wonderful it feels to relax with my most beloved private investigator, Kinsey Milhone. At 34 years of age now, she is as brazen and as "out of the mold" as she can be. Grafton's metaphors coming out of Kinsey's mouth make me laugh out loud--they are so creative and wonderfully idiosyncratic. Kinsey's voice and tone are impeccable. Check out Kinsey's biography.  I read for an hour and felt at peace. For a view of Sue Grafton and photos of her to-die-for writer's office, follow this link.  I have had the experience, on several occasions, of women readers telling me they don't like Kinsey or Sue Grafton's series. I must admit I find myself scratching my head after such a confession. I find myself thinking, "Well, it's a good thing you don't know me very well because I'm like her in many respects." I must admit that I HIDE my Kinsey-ness from the world as much as possible, as I believe most women do, because I don't think most women of a certain age find her traits respectable or admirable. But I adore her and admire her.

I'm still reading The Mare by Mary Gaitskill, as much as I can each day before bed and sometimes for a few minutes in the early mornings. The plot has had buried heat smoldering and now that fire is  building, and sparks are starting to fly with the horrors of intense conflict that I sense are coming. This novel is everything the critics say it is. Superlative!