Speed reading to relax a little

Happy Friday! Here’s a question:

Read any good books lately?

I ask because about six weeks ago, Judith Worthington invited me to her “DeSoto Street Little Free Library” kickoff in Beverly Hills.

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There are 13 Little Free Libraries in the county. This map shows the locations.

Judith’s commitment to the cause is impressive. She wants kids, especially, with books at their disposal all the time. Check out her Facebook page for daily updates.

A few of my JWC Inner Circle members suggested summer reading as a blog topic. I like that since it gave me an opportunity to mention the DeSoto Street Little Free Library.

Reading fascinates me. I once shadowed a Forest Ridge Elementary School kindergarten teacher for a year. I wanted to write stories explaining how little kids are taught to read. I observed, but I really don’t think I ever comprehended exactly how that knowledge transferred from teacher to 6-year-old.

I have vague memories of struggling with reading in elementary school. Sent to a special class, that kind of thing. (I’m telling ya…I am SHOCKED to have a writing career considering how poorly I did in school.)

What saved me? The newspaper. Kid you not. I wouldn’t touch a real book unless forced to, but each morning I read through the Detroit Free Press, and each afternoon, The Macomb Daily (which I also delivered in my first newspaper job). Not just sports, but the front page too. The seeds for political writing were planted at age 12.

Eventually, reading became second nature. Geez, there’s so much to glean from practically anything. My first job out of college, I took home the UPI Stylebook and read it daily. Over a 40-year career, I’ve read hundreds of reports, studies, and strategic planning documents. Just this past week I read the Citrus County Comprehensive Plan.

Pleasure reading really took off when I arrived in Florida. Chronicle Publisher Gerry Mulligan loaned me a paperback of Carl Hiaasen’s “Tourist Season,” and that was all she wrote, so to speak.

I am a regular library patron. That’s probably why the Library Guy antics bother me so much. If those people with baseless claims about library books spent time enjoying the library like the rest of us, maybe they’d have a more pleasant outlook.

Now. I’m not the guy grabbing random books off the shelves. I have my favorite authors, and will re-read the same books time and again.

I mentioned recently that I’m on a serious Hiaasen kick. I have read — seriously — no less than six Hiaasen books in the last six weeks. I read his latest, “Fever Beach,” in three days.

I’m constantly harassing the librarians. “I know you have more Hiaasen here. Where are you hiding him?” Fortunately, the library folks have pity on me, and I have plenty of Hiaasen to keep me busy for a while.

If not Hiaasen, Tim Dorsey. It was Community Services Director Eric Head who told me about Dorsey a few years back. Dorsey is Hiaasen unhinged.

Tragically, Tim Dorsey died in November 2023 at the young age of 62, dashing dreams of readers who, like me, always hoped a Dorsey-Hiaasen collaboration would bring Serge and Skink together.

Florida fiction works best for me. I had a pleasant Cattle Dog chat Thursday afternoon with my friend and loyal JWC follower P.J. Auffhammer, who dropped me her copy of John D. MacDonald’s “Condominium,” which I probably read decades ago.

I’m finding the desire to read fiction even greater these days. I rarely watch TV. When the Just Wright Citrus workday ends, it’s to the porch with a book.

Here’s hoping it’s a summer of good reads for kids and grown-ups alike. 

Now, if you’ll excuse me, “Condominium” is calling.

Have a great weekend, friends.

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