Where Jen's Book Thoughts Readers Are Reading

Happy Friday everyone! It's been a great week here in NE Ohio. Lovely weather, a visit from Markus Zusak (more on that next week)...what more could we ask for? I hope you've had a great week as well.

A couple small things before I bring on our special guest today. The first is that the Nerdy Special List for March is up over at Pop Culture Nerd. You can check out what I'm recommending and what my well-read cohorts are recommending as great reads for March.

If you are connected with me on any of the social media platforms, you probably know I've been taking some photography classes--I'm hoping to get a website set up soon to share my photos and track my progress as I try to improve my skills. Because I've been such a big fan of the group I'm taking my courses through--Shaw Academy--I've recommended them to numerous people. I have also taken their classes on graphic design and website development and am planning to take numerous other offerings in addition to more photography classes. So I decided to add a link to their site here. It's over in the side bar under the Shaw Academy header if you'd like to take a look at their course offerings. They have quite a few and continue to add more programming. I'm one of those weird people who just love to learn, so these classes have been a real treat for me. When I have my site ready to go, I'll share that with you as well.

O.k. so enough blather from me. Now on to a very beloved reader of the blog. If you spend much of any time conversing with folks in the crime fiction community, you probably know Judy Bobalik. She's a voracious reader and a familiar face at book conventions and events. I got to know Judy at my second major book event--Murder & Mayhem in Muskego. We shared a room, and she made it through the weekend without killing me, so I knew right away she was going to be a life-long friend! :-) And as extra proof of that friendship, she came to Ohio and spent a weekend with me making my library!

And Judy's put her creative touch on this project. I love this picture! She took me to 3 Floyds on one of my visits to her house. Like Judy, I'm not a beer drinker, but I was taking gifts back home, so I was tickled to receive her submission for the project.  I'll let Judy take it from here.

Being a non-beer drinker I brought two books to 3 Floyds Brewing Company in Munster, IN. I am reading BLESSED ARE THOSE WHO WEEP by Kristi Belcamino and SNOW BLIND by Ragnar Jonasson.

I've shared a lot of literary firsts with Judy (and many other fun adventures) and this May I'm going to see Fredrik Backman with her. So my heart is full today to feature her on the blog. Thank you, my friend! xoxo

As the weather is starting to break in many places now, I hope you'll consider sending your own pictures, if you haven't already. I'm so delighted at the various contributions that are coming in from all over. I'm excited to see where more of you are reading as well!