Favorite Southern Writers

Today, I want to share a list of my favorite Southern writers.  I read for pleasure and fun so you will see that most of my list would not be considered the most intellectual choices.  I will say however that I love Charles Dickens and Robert Frost.

John Grisham – A great mystery writer but my favorite of his is The Painted House and it isn’t a legal mystery.

Nicholas Sparks – He is not originally from the South but I love his romantic novels.  He writes about places I have been and places I love.

Pat Conroy – Again he wasn’t born in the South but I am sure he considered Beaufort South Carolina as his home.  I loved his book South of Broad and his writing is completely different from anything I have read.  He definitely wrote with his heart and wrote the best cookbook I have ever read.

Mary Kay Andrews – Many of her books are set in Savannah and that makes me love them even more.  They are usually hilariously funny and it just makes me think of girlfriends and their special relationships.

Fern Michaels – Again, Fern wasn’t born in the south but she lives in South Carolina now.  She can surprise you in her books as some of them are nothing but fun. However, some of them can be mysterious and suspenseful.

Sue Monk Kidd –  One of my most favorite books was written by Sue, “Invention of Wings.”  I enjoyed it so much and will continue to read books written by Sue Monk Kidd.

Ann B Ross – I have enjoyed reading some of  the Miss Julia Series books written by Anne.  They are light and easy to read.  As Miss Julia is older, I can see me in some of the situations presented in these books and I usually end up laughing out loud.

I don’t think we should ever judge anyone for their book choices anymore than anything else we do.  If I want to reach down in the depths of my soul, I read Pat Conroy.  If I want to read a page turning mystery, I read John Grisham.  If I want to laugh out loud, I read Mary Kay Andrews or Ann B. Ross. Just as most of life, it is definitely a choice.

Happy reading everyone and thanks for stopping by.

 

Mary Kay Andrews – Blue Christmas – Foley Family Irish Corned Beef Dip Recipe

My sister, Maxine, and I talk a lot on the phone.  She lives in Wilmington, NC close to the Carolina seashore and I live in the foothills of North Carolina.  Both of us enjoy reading books and recently she has told me about reading books by Mary Kay Andrews.  As most of her books are based in Savannah, Georgia, I really became interested in reading one of her books.  Last week my husband and I visited the library and he has been listening to audio books for a long time.  As I was standing in the audio book section, I looked for a Mary Kay Andrews book and found Blue Christmas.  I thought it would be a great way to give an unknown author a try as I could listen to the book very quickly.  I loaded the book on my Walkman so I could listen to it while at the gym.

I LOVED IT.  It was so wonderful to hear about events happening in one of my favorite cities because I could picture River Street and the beautiful downtown area as Mary Kay wrote about it.  It was funny but at the same time it had a story to it that kept me interested in the plot of the book.

As I reached the end of the book, it closed with recipes and I was especially interested in Mary Kay’s recipe for corned beef dip.  The great holiday of St. Patrick’s Day is coming soon and that is a big day in Savannah.  I found the recipe on the butterybooks website and here is the link to it:

http://butterybooks.com/appetizers/foley-family-irish-corned-beef-dip-recipe/

The website suggested having a Blue Christmas book party and include Mary Kay’s recipe for the corned beef dip.  I think it would be great for a book club meeting,  girl’s night out or a St. Patrick’s Day event.

Here is a link to Mary Kay’s website and I just signed up for her newsletter.

http://marykayandrews.com/

As I was listening to the book, I realized I had read one of Mary Kay Andrews books before about Bebe and it was Savannah Breeze. There are so many successful Southern authors that have written such vivid books about the South.  What gifted Southerners!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks for stopping by.