Alexandra Bogdanovic's Blog: That's life... - Posts Tagged "mysteries"

With apologies to Mr. Sinatra, I have had a few regrets and some of them are real doozies.
One mistake, in particular, haunts me as I continue the seemingly endless process of home renovations, redecorating and downsizing. To this day, I still can't believe I allowed my mom to sell all of my old Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew books.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not harboring any ideas that they'd be worth a small fortune. It's the sentimental value that makes them priceless. After all, I read my first Hardy Boys mystery when I was in third grade and I still remember the first word that gave me trouble. What on earth is a ho-ax? I remember thinking as I "sounded out" the word.
Undaunted, I amassed quite a collection of the blue and yellow hard-cover books over the next few years.
Eventually, as Mom recalls, we put them in boxes and took them to sell at a church-sponsored tag sale. A little boy ended up buying them, much to my mother's disgust.
He really wanted the books, but he was thoroughly objectionable, Mom recalled. I didn't want him to have the books because I didn't like him. But I finally sold them to him at the end of the day. So I regret selling your Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew books, too.
Until next time, "That's life..."

Not too long ago, I shared one of my biggest regrets with you. If you recall, I bemoaned the loss of my favorite childhood books. More specifically, I bemoaned my decision to let my mother sell my collection of Hardy Boys® and Nancy Drew® mysteries.
Today I am happy to report that I am once again the proud owner of two dozen Nancy Drew® books. I am also happy to say that I got them for free and came by them honestly.
It happened as I was leaving the animal shelter where I volunteer on Tuesday afternoons. In a never-ending quest to find homes for all of the books donated to the organization, the director asked me if I wanted to have a look through the crates in the front room. As I had in the past, I happily said yes. And I was immediately glad that I did.
It took less than a minute to spot the hardcover books with the bright yellow spines, and I couldn't hide my delight when I realized what I'd found. When I explained why I was so excited, the director agreed to let me have the books. As a bonus, she threw in the crate, along with a few Bobbsey Twins® books and one of the Harry Potter® books that were already in it for good measure.
So just why was this acquisition such a big deal? No, it's not that I think the books are worth a great deal; in fact only a few are older editions. But to me they have tremendous nostalgic and sentimental value. I have no doubt that rereading these classics will take me back to my childhood; a time that wasn't perfect, but was pretty damn good.
It was a time when reading offered escape and opened my imagination. It was a time when I smuggled a flashlight under my sheets so I could stay up past my bedtime and read under the covers. It was a time when I spent countless winter days curled up with a good book, and countless summer afternoons reading at the beach.
Of course I didn't know it back then but it was also a time when reading sparked the interests and helped me develop the skills that ultimately made me a successful journalist and an award-winning author.
It was a time I'll cherish forever.
Until next time, "That's life..."

Hi there. My name is Alex, and I'm addicted to books.
All together now... "Hi, Alex!"
Okay, now that we've gotten that out of the way, I'll get to the point. I'm serious. I'm a bookaholic. I have been since I was a little kid.
Back then my parents read to me all the time and I was only allowed to watch half-an-hour of TV per day. As a result, I developed a healthy appreciation for books and learned to read at an early age.
I read whenever I got a chance, even on the way back to school from a field trip when I was in first or second grade. I remember looking at the words above the front door and a snotty teacher asking me what on earth I was doing.
"Reading," I answered. "What do you think I'm doing?"
Yes, I was a brat. And she was another word that begins with a "B." But I digress.
In third or fourth grade, I started reading everything I could get my hands on. I read The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew, the Black Stallion books, the Trixie Belden mysteries and the Bobbsey Twins series.
When it came to reading, I was always a few grade levels ahead of most of my peers. I remember tackling my first Ludlum books when I was in middle school. I also read sci-fi and fantasy and thrillers.
I read in school. I read at home. I read at camp and on vacation. I read when I was supposed to be studying. I read on my lunch break at my first part-time job. At night I sneaked a flashlight into my bed and pulled the covers over my head so I could keep reading after I was supposed to be asleep.
Now that I'm almost 50, nothing's really changed. I read whatever I can, whenever I can. Hardcovers, paperbacks, e-books, it doesn't really matter. Mysteries, suspense, thrillers, sci-fi, romance, historical novels, fact-based novels... Yes, I'll read it all. Having said that, I prefer fiction, but I'll read non-fiction, too. I love a good memoir, but in all honesty my favorite is my own.
A really good book will keep me up until the crack of dawn. A bad one... well, that's better left unsaid.
At any rate, I've got to go. I've got to finish Best Kept Secrets by Sandra Brown.
Until next time, "That's life..."