I’m A “Tsundoku” – How About You?

Book lovers will know what I mean – but I didn’t know what that meant until recently!

The Japanese word for book collecting is tsundoku (積ん読), which specifically refers to the act of acquiring books and letting them pile up in one’s home without reading them. It’s a combination of the words tsunde-oku (to stack things up for later) and dokusho (reading books). 

While I don’t have a “book tunnel” at my house, I’ve visited this one and will share where soon…and I have more than 75 books at home still waiting to entertain me…but first, here is a new release in “The Goodpasture Chronicles” – and some of my favorite books that I already have!

Jason Halbert, who is the band leader for “The Kelly Clarkson Show”, wrote this best-selling novel last year with his wife Rhonda.

“Caretaker” was the first book in “The Good Pasture Chronicles”, a supernatural tale about a family seeking a fresh start in a mysterious house! The story explores themes of generational healing, hope, and the interplay between the physical and spiritual worlds.

It is great! So great in fact that the second book continues the story!

Halbert and his wife Rhonda, aka R.J. Halbert, are back to celebrate the launch of “Servant,” the second book in The Goodpasture Chronicles trilogy! The couple just appeared on “The Kelly Clarkson Show” to share how they again incorporated music into the series, and tease what fans can expect from this novel, and what the final book may reveal as well. Jason and Rhonda also open up about how writing was therapeutic following his cancer diagnosis.

Check it out here:

I am so happy to be able to share this work, as it is thrilling, and inspiring as well!

You can buy both books on Amazon, or at your favorite local bookstore! Buy it now to support their efforts – it’s terrific!

Now, onto one of the most iconic books about show business ever written!

“Adventures In The Screen Trade” by William Goldman. 

He was a great writer of screenplays like “Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid” and yes, he wrote the NOVEL “The Princess Bride” before doing the film’s screenplay!

I own the original paperback for “The Princess Bride” but it was his non-fiction look at the crazy world of Hollywood that hooked me to his series of real-life “Adventures In The Screen Trade.”

Goldman’s inside look at the wild business of entertainment was a guide to me when I was young and breaking into the business myself. Goldman came up with the legendary phrase “nobody knows anything” to describe the entertainment business – and how true it is!

Timeless.

Goldman died a few years ago, leaving a legacy of great content – here is a look at a life and more of his work if interested:

“The Name Of The Rose” by Umberto Eco. 

This historical drama was the first “serious” hardcover book I ever bought, and the picture above is that copy, which I still own 40 years on.

This book made me realize the power of storytelling.

This 1980 debut novel from Italian author Umberto Eco is a historical murder mystery set in an Italian monastery in the year 1327; an intellectual mystery combining semiotics in fiction, biblical analysis, medieval studies, and literary theory. 

Powerful and timeless as well.

“The Happy Isles Of Oceania” by Paul Theroux. 

You know I love this acclaimed Travel Writer and Author of novels such as “The Mosquito Coast” – “The Happy Isles Of Oceania” is his story of paddling a canoe through the South Pacific!

This fascinating account of that journey has tales of how he dodged deadly encounters with animals – and people – as he explored a part of the world that seems to still be living in the 1700’s.

Riveting.

See more about the book, as well as two other “South Seas” adventures, by clicking here:

A terrific Author, Chef and TV Host is next on my list:

“Kitchen Confidential” by Anthony Bourdain. 

The memoir where a great Writer found his voice and became the most influential food writer in the world.

It all began with an essay he wrote for The New Yorker, with hilariously insightful advice to a restaurant-goer from someone who knows: 

“Order fish on Tuesday, when it’s fresh and the chef is well-rested from his day off. Never order your food well done, because that’s where kitchen staffs get rid of the worst of their meat. (“The philistine who orders his food well-done is not likely to notice the difference between food and flotsam,” Bourdain explains.) Chicken is for people who can’t make up their minds, but pork is fantastic. At a good restaurant, there will be a stick of butter in every meal.”

Bourdain’s death was a shock to the food world – and I shared a look at ALL of his writing across many genres here:

“But Enough About Me” by Burt Reynolds.

Burt Reynolds was a fascinating movie star. I had just finished reading this before his tragic death, and it is a classic autobiography – and the title came from how he saw other Stars become so incredibly narcissistic that they couldn’t appreciate others. 

His joke was, after talking bout himself on and on, he would pause, look at the person listening, and say: “but enough about me. What do YOU think of me?”

His memoir is candid, and he doesn’t spare himself from criticism:

One of the world’s most popular Actors takes you through his career with honesty and regret, and it’s a fascinating book that really made me look at the way I live my life.

Here is a post I shared a few years ago that looked at his wild career:

For lovers of counter-culture, here is one of the greatest Authors of the 60’s and 70’s:

“In Watermelon Sugar” by Richard Brautigan.

I was hooked on this Author when I read this opening line:

“In watermelon sugar the deeds were done and done again as my life is done in watermelon sugar.”

Counter-culture Writer Richard Brautigan was most famously known for this masterpiece:

“Trout Fishing In America” made him a star in the late 60’s, but “In Watermelon Sugar” was the novel that made me a lifelong fan:

His writing was lyrical, imaginative and wildly creative, and he published dozens of novels and books of poetry as well:

Here is a look at all of his work – magical:

I’ve already shown you my love to travel books, but this Author wrote three that are among the best I’ve ever read:

“Faraway” by Lucy Ivine.

Lucy Irvine has written three of my favorite memoirs ever – her claim to fame was based on answering this newspaper ads in the early 80’s:

Her year on a desert island became the bestselling memoir “Castaway”:

Her followup book told the story of a South Seas family who hires her to write their family memoir – and she gets caught up in the story in ways you can’t predict:

She also wrote a third book in the trilogy “Runaway”, which tell the harsh story of her teenage years…you can read more about all three of these by clicking here:

As I showed you, I walked underneath a “book tunnel” – thanks to LA’s “Last Book Store!”

This is a wonderland for book lovers – click here for a tour:

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Categories: Art, Books / Media, Hollywood, Memoirs, Pop Culture, Talent/Celebrities, Travel, Travel Adventures, Travel Memoir, True Hollywood Mystery

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