Reading Is Fundamental

I read a very funny posting this a.m. by Marmite Toasty, one of the bloggers on Huckleberries, a blog by newsman Dave Oliviera (at the Spokesman Review). Dave does a wonderful job of highlighting interesting blog entries around the region (and world, in this case, as M.T. is from south England, not western United States).

It got me to thinking - what's worth reading out there? I went a long period of time a few years ago reading almost nothing in the form of a novel, as I didn't want to impact my own writing style by picking up other authors' styles inadvertently. I'm over that speed bump, and am back to reading good books. But a lot of the books I pick up now - granted, somewhat at random - seem to be missing something. Either I don't particularly care about the hero, or I can sense that some editor came in and butchered a really, really good manuscript.... I don't want to read only the classics, tried and true. And I don't want to resort to reading only "bubblegum" books (fun books that I enjoy reading but that don't have a lot of substance). I'm really interested in reading today's good novelists. I don't have a genre preference, though I'm not particularly impressed with the new trend of trying to attach readers to heroes with no moral compass. Any suggestions for "good read" books? Post below, or email me your suggestions at bethatlaw@gmail.com.