Pack Your Books by Jim Hart

 It’s vacation season and what’s the most important thing to pack? Books, of course! Who needs clean socks? Those people at the shore don’t know you anyway.

Vacation time, whether you plan to travel or stay home, can be a guaranteed opportunity to dig into that book that’s been patiently waiting to be picked up for the past year (or two).

What’s the attraction of a good book on vacation? Getting lost in a book just completes the ultimate vacation goal of getting away from it all. To be immersed in the pages of a novel, in a quiet, scenic location is a true treasure.

Do you plan far ahead on what books you’ll choose as traveling companions? Or do you find a local bookstore and wait to see what treasure is waiting to be found, hidden on some shelf? There are few things that compare to finding a local independent bookstore and leisurely exploring their shelves. It's great to support these small bookstores buy picking up at least one title.

That’s how I got my copy of The Harbinger. I also found Daniel Lanois’ memoir Soul Mining while on vacation. And a really cool graphic novel version of The Martian Chronicles ­– that was a cool surprise. The Harbinger and Soul Mining have long been read. I haven’t dug into the graphic novel yet, I don’t want to bend the pages too much. I’m thinking it won’t take up too much space in my suitcase this year.

A couple of years ago, on my first cruise I took the print version of Homer Hickam’s Crater with me, and a really long 138,000 manuscript on my tablet (Yes, I was reading for work, but the manuscript was so good I couldn’t put it down.)  Finished them both. Oh, and on that trip I finally finished reading The Shack. Not sure about that one. I’m still trying to figure out what all the hubbub was all about.

So here’s what I want to know:

What will you be reading on vacation this year?

  

What’s your criteria for the perfect vacation read? A Thriller that make your heart pound? Historical Romance that melts your heart?  Or that 120,000 word High Fantasy that completely transports you to another realm? Or is vacation a chance for you to re-visit a classic first read years ago?

Will you take print books or an e-reader? Or both? Or an audio book?