As I look back over my long history as a reader, memories flood in regarding specific books and book-related events. A few stand out:

• The Scholastic book catalog that used to arrive periodically in my elementary school classroom.My parents were extremely supportive of my reading, and would let me choose as many as I liked. And oh, the day my books arrived! Heaven!
• A Mother Goose story book I discovered in the library when I was in sixth grade. Although it was far too "young" for me, I loved it, particularly a story about a young woman who killed her sister. The body turned into bones, which someone made into a harp, which then sang of the sister's perfidy. It was actually rather morbid.
• OK, I've got to admit it. My folks were "rubbish pickers." They loved to find really cool stuff in other peoples' trash (don't tell them I told you). One of the best finds in the world was a complete hardback set of Beverly Gray mysteries (she was kind of like a college-age Nancy Drew). I wish I still had them, as they'd likely be worth a lot of money now.
• Taking a Bible in to school to read, and being told to take it home again as it wasn't "appropriate" for the classroom. (I still can't believe that happened.)
• Reading The Adventures of Robin Hood (over and over and over again), and dressing up like one of the Merry Men for weeks on end.
• Learning about opera from a series of library books that not only told the story of the opera, but had the musical themes notated. They were easy enough that I could play them on the piano.I fell in love with The Magic Flute and Carmen long before I ever saw an opera staged.
• Discovering Shakespeare in story synopses in my grandmother's set of The Book of Knowledge (something else I wish we still owned). I can still see the sketches of Lady Macbeth descending a staircase by candlelight, and the two princes in the tower from Richard III.
• Reading Jane Eyre with a flashlight under the covers late into the night. (Well, it felt late to me at the time!)
• My first "dirty book." My poor dad brought home A Stranger in the Mirror by Sidney Sheldon for me without apparently knowing what it was about.It had been languishing in his office's Lost & Found for months, and he thought I might like it. I think I was in junior high at the time, and was shocked – and fascinated. I did not, by the way, tell the folks what I was reading.
• Reading Stephen King's Salem's Lot, and then having to sleep with the lights on for a week.

I'm sure as readers you have your own recollections. What books or book-related events do you remember from your childhood?

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An endless supply of quotes exist telling us we should do what we love in life. Though many are cliché, I found myself rooting around for just the right one after hearing Alexander McCall Smith read from his latest book, Tea Time for the Traditionally Built. Having read most of the books in his No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, I was eager to see and hear in person the man who brought me the much adored Precious Ramotswe. As I entered the Borders bookstore in Ann Arbor, it was evident that I was not alone.

Since I probably haven't had the pleasure of listening to someone read to me since kindergarten carpet time, it was with happy nostalgia that I sat cross-legged and elbow to elbow on the bookstore floor, listening to the cadenced voice of Mr. McCall Smith. Bewitched by his lilt and laughter, he quickly transformed the packed room of overwrought adults into a sea of sunny, eager faces as he read his favorite passages from Tea Time.

Now if you haven't read any of the No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency books, it would be prudent to inform you of their beautiful simplicity. Sprinkled with charming formalities, this modern day series lends itself an air of forgotten sophistication and decency so integral to the traditions of Botswana. The detective, Mma Ramotswe, cheerfully runs her laid-back operation with both cunning and disarming common sense. In signature McCall Smith style, these modest mysteries quietly play themselves out while the background literary score pays tribute to the deep-rooted customs and ways of Botswana.

Referring to himself as a "serial novelist" in the Q&A portion of his appearance, the author made no apologies for the multiple series he now has moving through the markets, and quite frankly we don't want him to. With three series in addition to The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency, the prolific McCall Smith claims to write on the road, in the air, or wherever his travels take him. When asked how he keeps all of his characters straight, a broad smile takes over his face as the question inevitably cues up their images. Like a proud father, confusing his creations is not a problem; he knows every nuance of his characters including voice, personality, strengths and vulnerabilities. Clearly born out of creative love, McCall Smith regards his characters with a wistful and paternal adoration only solid nurturing can bring about.

Taking in the vibrant crowd, I sat marveling as each brief pause between questions brought about the fervent waving of hands, showcasing that age old "pick me! pick me!" determinism. One such hand belonged to an enthusiastic, heavyset woman in the front row. Quite overcome, she tearily thanked Mr. McCall Smith for making Mma Ramotswe a "woman of traditional build." She said that having Precious Ramotswe portrayed as a heavier woman "made her feel beautiful again."

Equally poignant was the comment shared by a dark, lovely woman, dressed in her bright yellow Sunday best. Waving throughout the majority of the appearance, the author finally chose her to end the session. Beyond pleased, she broke into the traditional greeting of Botswana, charming both Mr. McCall Smith and the audience at large. We listened intently as she thanked him for portraying her country in such a positive light. She added that her people constantly hear about America and that it is nice to be able to share the beauty of her homeland with others.

As I made my way home, I realized that this excursion meant to satisfy my curiosity had actually shaped itself into something far more humanitarian. Rather than self-promotion, Mr. McCall Smith seemed absolutely delighted to simply share both his words and our company. As readers, we wonder about the author behind the works that move us, and hope deep down that the real life version measures up. We give ourselves over to the imagination and creativity of others, also with the hope of finding growth and inspiration. For me, Alexander McCall Smith's sunny, engaging manner simply validates the importance of pursuing our passions in life. After all, as philosopher Albert Camus once said, "But what is happiness except the simple harmony between a man and the life he leads?"

Suggested Links
For a biography of Alexander McCall Smith and links to excerpts of a number of his books, visit BookBrowse
For an extremely comprehensive bibliography listing books by publication date in the UK and USA, BookBrowse recommends fantasticfiction.co.uk

Freelance writer Megan Shaffer has both her Bachelor and Master degrees in Education. She currently works in the schools of Birmingham, Michigan where she shares her love of literature. When Megan is not in the classroom, she is actively involved in the local literary scene and maintains a blog about new books and authors. Megan's reviews at BookBrowse

There was a time when the hunt for a rare book, or even just an out of print book, was a major undertaking - you could either travel the country scouring multiple used bookstores yourself or pay a commission to a book dealer who would put feelers out through his local network and, if necessary, to the wider world of book dealers through a classified ad in a trade magazine. However, with the advent of the internet and search engines such as AddAll, most of us have been able to cut out the middle-man and, with a few clicks of the mouse, track down that old childhood favorite without ever leaving the house.

But there is at least one area of book collecting that still benefits from the hands on touch - where the thrill of the chase is discovering the hidden secret of an apparently run of the mill book - and that is the search for fore-edge paintings.

To create a fore-edge painting, the pages of a book are fanned out and held in a vice. A painting is then applied usually with water color. When the paint is dry the book is released from the clamp so the book is flat again, and the edges of the book are then either gilted or marbled to completely hide any evidence of the painting from casual eyes. I was introduced to fore-edge painting while visiting a friend's father on New York's Upper East Side a few months back where, even though the book's secret was known to me, I still felt a sense of discovery in fanning the pages to find the hidden painting.

(The Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library have been kind enough to put together a 2 minute video of some of the fore-edge books in their collection.)

As Jeff Weber explains in A Collector's Primer to the Wonders of Fore-Edge Painting, the art of fore-edge painting has been around for a long time. There are examples of books from medieval times with fore-edge paintings, but the art form came into its own in the mid-seventeenth century when English binders developed their own forms with highly decorative motifs, including flowers, butterflies, royal portraits and, inevitably, more than a few pictures of a lewd nature - some of which Martin Frost has been kind enough to display in the "Gentlemen's Relish" section of his extremely comprehensive website devoted to all things fore-edge.

The twentieth-century has seen the development of more advanced fore-edge techniques including the double fore-edge painting, and the rather over the top six-way painting where all three sides of the book have a double (which not only seems a tad gratuitous but also doesn't sound to be all that good for the book as I've yet to meet a book that likes to be fanned on its top and bottom edges!)

(This brief video shows a very elaborate and moderately rude painting on two sides of a book)



So, where might you find a previously undiscovered fore-edge painting? The chances are low that you'll find one in an antiquarian bookstore because any dealer worth his or her salt will know to look out for them - but what about that dusty row of books on your top shelf that were handed down to you from Great Uncle Charles? Who knows what they might reveal! But, don't expect to find hidden treasure too easily - just like the golden invitations inside the Wonka chocolate bars - fore-edge books are few and far between and you'll have to open up a lot before you find one by chance.

If you've searched all your old books and found nothing but dust and cobwebs, and aren't content with looking at other people's collections (such as the extraordinary collection of more than 200 books in The Boston Public Library), you may wish to start your own - and there's no better place to start than at Martin Frost's website: foredgefrost.co.uk.

I asked Martin about the cost of buying a fore-edge painting, to which he replied that a poorly painted book in indifferent condition could be bought for as little as US$100, but that it would not a good investment, and most collectors who start with such a book end up replacing it before long. He went on to say that "accomplished paintings on reasonable books can be found at around $400, two-way doubles and all-edge paintings attracting much high figures, for example a splendid two-way double all-edge painting is currently available at foredgefrost at just under $3000."

The problem about buying an existing fore-edge painted book is that the chances are slim that you'll find a picture you like on a book that you appreciate. This would be an especially important consideration if you're thinking of giving the book as a gift (perhaps for a golden wedding anniversary or an important birthday) because it would be preferable if both the book and the painting had special meaning for the recipient. The solution is to commission a painting on the book of your choice. Martin is one of a handful of knowledgeable fore-edge painters working today. Since 1970, he has created well over 3000 fore-edge and miniature paintings for the book trade. He says that painting and gilding a book starts at about US$600, or about $800 if the client wishes the book to be rebound in presentation leather. If you know the title of the book you want but don't know how where to acquire a good quality copy suitable for painting, Martin can advise on that as well.

Davina Morgan-Witts, BookBrowse editor

Guest blog by Michelle Richmond
Michelle can be found online at michellerichmond.com

In the past year, I've visited many book clubs for The Year of Fog. One of the things I've learned from this experience is how deeply books live inside the minds of their readers: once a reader opens a book, the story is never exactly what the author intended it to be. It takes on a new life, a life informed by the very unique perspective of each reader. The reader is not simply a separate being in a chair, holding a book in her hands. The reader is always part of the story.

At the heart No One You Know, just out in paperback, is an acknowledgment of the power of story, as well as its mutability, an examination of the way stories inform our lives. I knew when I began writing No One You Know that I was interested in the fine line between fact and fiction, and the way stories shape individual lives, as well as the lives of families.

Early in the book, Ellie, a San Francisco coffee buyer, recalls a conversation she had with her sister Lila twenty years before, when Ellie was a college freshman and Lila was a promising graduate student in mathematics at Stanford. Ellie asked Lila whom she had been seeing, and Lila, always private, answered, "No one you know." Weeks after this conversation, Lila was murdered.

Two decades later, Ellie encounters the man who was accused of the crime but never charged. This meeting convinces Ellie that the story she has always believed about her sister's death - a story made famous by a bestselling true crime book - is false. Ellie sets out to uncover the truth about Lila's death, and in the process she discovers that she never really knew her sister. The title is meant to evoke the sense that it is difficult to truly know anyone, and that even the people with whom we are most intimate - siblings, lovers - have secrets they keep from us.

So No One You Know is a novel about stories, but it is also a novel about sisters. I dedicated No One You Know to my own two sisters, Monica and Misty. While my sisters are very different from Ellie and Lila, the intricacies of the sisterly bond that I've experienced in my own life very much inform the book. The paperback edition even includes a Q&A conducted by Monica and Misty. As is the way with siblings, they managed to bring up things about our childhood together that I had entirely forgotten. Misty even remembered my post-college stint cleaning tanning beds for five dollars an hour. There's nothing like a chat with your sisters to bring you back to reality!

I'll leave you with a quote from No One You Know: "A story does not only belong to the one who is telling it. It belongs, in equal measure, to the one who is listening."

I hope you'll visit my website to learn more about the book. On my lagniappe page, you'll find material created specifically for book clubs. I always welcome reader comments and questions, and I'm also available for phone-in book groups.

My book-loving friend Martin and I have a recurring conversation that usually starts with, "I'm going on vacation and can't figure out which book to take."  It's an interesting conundrum, and for us book addicts, a critically important decision that we begin pondering weeks before we actually leave town.

I suppose it partially depends on the type of vacation on which you're taking this treasured companion (and by that I'm referring to your book and not your spouse).  If your intent is a relaxing week at the beach, for example, you might pick something light and fun, perhaps romantic; the latest from Ann Brashares or Jude Devereaux might be your choice.  Those seeking to rekindle that special spark (and this time, I am talking about your spouse) might look for a steamier option, like Anne Rice's Beauty series or something by Jamie Denton (or perhaps no book at all!).   Still others may prefer perusing a longer or more complex book while on vacation, since it's rare for them to have a large block of time in which to read.

My vacations are generally backpacking trips, and so I've got some pretty specific selection criteria for the book that'll end up accompanying me.  First, it's absolutely, positively got to be a traditionally-sized paperback, since there's no way I'm putting one more ounce than necessary in my already over-laden pack.  Then, I've got to make sure it'll be entertaining, as nothing is more annoying than taking a book on a backpack trip and only reading a few pages of it ("I carried an extra ten whole ounces for nothing!").  Finally, I've got to make sure that it's the right size to finish over the course of our trip, as I typically look forward to resuming my "normal" reading once I'm back. This time around I opted for Harlan Coban's Gone for Good, which was the perfect choice. (Whew!). 

I've recommended that one to Martin (who's got at least a month to make his decision before he leaves with the kids for Disneyland) but he's got a rule about not reading two books by the same author in the same calendar year.   Since our book club (whoops, excuse me, book group) read Tell No One a few months ago, he's rejected my choice.  He is therefore on his own, and is not to blame me if he ends up with something that fails to engage.  (Personally, I think his rule is silly, and I've told him so.  Repeatedly.)

I'm very curious about others' choices for summer reading.  So tell us here at BookBrowse - do you change your reading habits while on vacation, and if so, what do you look for in your perfect vacation book?   Are there books that are high on your list?

BookBrowse reviewer Kim Kovacs is an avid reader in the Pacific Northwest. All those rainy days give her the opportunity to enjoy a wide variety of books that span many genres. Browse Kim's reviews.