There’s this little known fact of life about being a writer that no one tells you: it takes a LOT of freaking time to write a book. Most of us have to give something up in order to manage it. Some people give up sleep (which just-NO). Some give up being nice (let the spouse do all the work-also NO). Some give up food, clothes, and other essentials like bathing (NO NO NO).

I gave up … reading.

Seriously. I have so little time leftover after cooking and doing stuff with the family and sleeping and exercising, that I’ve been trying to fit reading in while I eat lunch. And during bathroom breaks (which is kinda TMI, isn’t it? Sorry…). Sometimes I read during commercials while I’m watching tv with the family, but with DVRing most of our shows, that leaves me about ten seconds.

So, I’ve begun reading stuff I’ve already read a thousand times. I know what happens. I know the characters. Practically no mental energy is used up trying to get into a book and then getting interrupted by life and then … well, forgetting the names of the characters.

I tend to reread things that make me either laugh or sob uncontrollably (and no, I don’t know what that says about my mental landscape, and I don’t have the time to figure it out, either, so we’ll all just have to deal).

Without further ado, here is my list:

Indiscreet by Kasey Michaels

Hysterical. I mean, I need tissues when I read this because it opens with a scene where the main characters’ parents fall off a balcony while boinking. I generally laugh so hard I cry.

*****

A View to a Kiss by Caroline Linden

The hero is a spy. He wears a disguise … an UGLY disguise. The girl falls for him anyway. Totally awesome.

*****

At the Bride Hunt Ball by Olivia Parker

In one scene the heroine throws a fruit at the hero’s forehead and he goes DOWN–>so freaking funny!

*****

Silent Melody by Mary Balogh

This is seriously old-school romance (well, not for me, I started reading romances long before 1997, but still, you get the idea). The heroine is deaf. The hero is the only one who thinks she has a brain. Sigh-worthy, heartbreaking romance in this book.

*****

I Love Everybody (and Other Atrocious Lies): True Tales of a Loudmouth Girl by Laurie Notaro

Um, do I really have to explain this one? I mean, look at the title, come on! That’s funny! This is the one non-fiction book in the list, but I have to admit, I bet Ms. Notaro took some liberties with the hilarious stories in the book. She’s possibly a connoisseur of hyperbole, of which I heartily approve.