Vacation Thoughts and a Photo Shout Out to Beth

I'm on vacation. I sat on a porch swing last night and listened to frogs croaking and cicadas chirping. I watched bats dip in and out of the skyline, searching for their dinner. And I soaked up the humid air. (I'm crazy, I love humidity.) This morning I had blueberry pancakes for breakfast and the blueberries were picked from a bush that grows just a few feet from the backdoor. And this little fairy greeted me near that same backdoor.In a few days, I leave this country oasis for the beach. A nice, uncrowded beach where wild horses roam free and you can still find seashells on the sand. Aren't vacations wonderful?

This next picture is for Beth. (She's always posting pictures for other people on her blog so I though it was high time to give her a picture). This lotus was tucked away in the garden near the book fairy, just ready and waiting for me to take a picture. Beth, thanks for all the wonderful, thought-provoking posts and beautiful pictures on your blog (and for the signed copy of House of Dance!). I always know it's going to be a good day when there's a new post waiting for me at your blog. Beth's latest postings, on her site and on HarperTeen Myspace, bring up questions about name brands and book banning in teen literature. I would love to hear what everyone thinks about this.

I probably won't be posting many reviews in the next couple of weeks, but I have been reading a lot. Some books that I've read and enjoyed recently are In Your Room by Jordanna Fraiberg, Confessions of a Triple Shot Betty by Jody Gehrman, and Audrey Wait! by Robin Benway. I'll be posting reviews of those in early August when I get back from vacation.

These pictures were taken from my new phone. Pretty good quality for a cell phone! :-)