MrsBasil Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 I'm pregnant and having seriously bad morning sickness. The meds I'm on are not working all that well, so I'm stuck on the couch or in bed a lot of the time in order to keep water and/or food down. I need some light reading suggestions. I've been reading stuff like Twilight, some of the Outlander series(but the constant sex and plot dragging has done me in), Mitford, Nora Roberts, Marian Keyes, Micheal Crichton, Peter Benchley, The Perfect Storm and some of Linda Greenlaw's books, if that gives you an idea of the level of reading I want. Airplane or beach ready basically! I'd prefer something without a ton of gore-not Stephen King and the sex to be...less prevalent than in Outlander. :o Nothing to emotionally heavy, this pregnancy has me on a rollercoaster as it is. I'm comfortable with just about any genre. Thanks for any ideas! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tristangrace Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 Lemmesee . . . when I need Extra-Lite fiction, I have several series I turn to, like Earlene Fowler's mysteries or the Little Lady Agency romances by Hester Browne. I'll also read young adult or juvenile literature, like Anne of Green Gables or Harry Potter. And I love P.G. Wodehouse's Jeeves and Wooster stories. Also, when I'm in the mood for engaging but non-jarring reading, I'll read any classics I've already read so many times that they have worn comfortably familiar grooves in my mind--some Charles Dickens or Jane Austen novels fit the bill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparkle Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 The Shopaholic series, and other novels by Sophie Kinsella are fun. Also The Provincial Lady series by E.M. Delafield, The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall Smith are both good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 For light reading, I've loved the Number One Ladies' Detective Agency series (by Alexander Mccall Smith), as well as the Mrs. Pollifax mystery series (by Dorothy Gilman). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heidi Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 (edited) The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith. I loved those books. They're light and fun; they'll make you laugh. ETA: oops. someone beat me to it. Edited May 2, 2011 by hmsmith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 The Year of Living Biblically and The Guinea Pig Diaries, both by A. J. Jacobs The Beekeeper's Apprentice (this is the first in a series) by Laurie R. King the Flavia de Luce books by Alan Bradley The 13 1/2 Lives of Captain Bluebear by Walter Moers Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert Three Ways to Capsize a Boat by Chris Stewart :grouphug: Hope you're feeling better soon! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dobela Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 I like Steeple Hill romances by Harlequin in those situations. They are Christian themed romances so they are light, sex free, and happy endings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsBasil Posted May 2, 2011 Author Share Posted May 2, 2011 Thank you all, these look great! Stacia, some of your recs sound a little Bill Bryson-ish! Bless you, I adore him, but didn't think of him when I was making my list. I've heard of the No 1 Ladies Det Agency, but never read it. Seeing so many recs for it...I'm heading to my library website to reserve it. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beth in OH Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 Have you tried books on CD (or mp3)? I just "read" on CD, The Divine Secrets of the YaYa Sisterhood. The reader did the southern dialect soooo well, and the book was light, but the characters were rich. I've also enjoyed a lot of Dickens on CD. The humor of his characters really jumps out when a good actor does the reading. I really like the Recorded Books versions. I can recommend A Tale of Two Cities, David Copperfield and Nicholas Nickelby (Although Dickens needed a good editor when he wrote Nickelby. It rambles). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janie Grace Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 The Help Abundance (it's a historical novel about Marie Antoinette -- SO riveting and good!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poke Salad Annie Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith. I loved those books. They're light and fun; they'll make you laugh. ETA: oops. someone beat me to it. I agree with you, and with the others who've recommended them. I love these books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sebastian (a lady) Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 I'm pregnant and having seriously bad morning sickness. The meds I'm on are not working all that well, so I'm stuck on the couch or in bed a lot of the time in order to keep water and/or food down. I need some light reading suggestions. I've been reading stuff like Twilight, some of the Outlander series(but the constant sex and plot dragging has done me in), Mitford, Nora Roberts, Marian Keyes, Micheal Crichton, Peter Benchley, The Perfect Storm and some of Linda Greenlaw's books, if that gives you an idea of the level of reading I want. Airplane or beach ready basically! I'd prefer something without a ton of gore-not Stephen King and the sex to be...less prevalent than in Outlander. :o Nothing to emotionally heavy, this pregnancy has me on a rollercoaster as it is. I'm comfortable with just about any genre. Thanks for any ideas! Agatha Christie Dorothy Sayers Elizabeth Peters (but only the Amelia Peabody series) Ellis Peters' Brother Cadfael series. And there are over 20 volumes in the series. Jeff Shaara series about the American Revolution Harry Potter (I'm rereading them again) Lois Bujold (Science fiction, may or may not be your cuppa, but I found them pretty good. I read them very out of order, but they are better if you can get them in order) Miss Read (Books about village life in England. Very good. I think Jan Karon must have had these in mind while writing the Mitford series.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angel Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 "The Girl Who Chased the Moon" by Sarah Addison-Allen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twoforjoy Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 My go-to reading when I'm needing something very light and not feeling very well is young-adult fiction. I'll usually just head to the library's YA shelf and pick up whatever looks interesting. I'd particularly recommend anything by John Green and Laurie Halse Anderson to start with. You really can't go wrong there. Some of their books can be a bit "heavy" but since it's YA fic, it always has a satisfying resolution. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 Some of my favorites for light (and hilarious) reading: Bridget Jones's Diary and the sequel by Helen Fielding Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal by Christopher Moore This one isn't funny, more of a fairy tale: Stardust by Neil Gaiman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Negin Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 MY FAVORITES The Help The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende and anything else by her, but this is her best. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Allende :D The Geography of Bliss – non-fiction, very insightful OTHER BOOKS THAT I HAVE LOVED (not in any particular order) The Five People You Meet in Heaven - if you're in the mood for a very, sweet and easy read - as are all of his books - Tuesdays with Morrie - and pretty much any other Mitch Albom book – we even got the DVDs of three of his books and really liked them Can't Wait to Get to Heaven by Fannie Flagg and most of her books - very sweet and light - and quite funny :) Funny in Farsi - if you need a nice laugh as well as her other book Laughing without an Accent Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett The Secret Life of Bees Harry Potter books Books by Maeve Binchy – light, fluffy, but also very accurate about human interactions and relationships OTHER BOOKS THAT I HAVE LIKED (not in any particular order) Dave Barry’s Only Travel Guide You’ll Ever Need – funny, funny, funny The No. Ladies Detective Agency series Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Belacqua Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 Jen Lancaster's memoirs, starting with Bitter is the New Black, are hilarious. She has quite a mouth on her, and the language can get a bit salty, but they're otherwise clean (she's a self-described prude who spells out anything related to s-e-x with really amusing results). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T'smom Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 I'm about 3/4 of the way through Pioneer Woman's Black Heels to Tractor Wheels and I am LOVING it! It is hilarious and sweet and it makes me remember when hearing dh's voice on the phone made my knees go weak! It's not technically fiction, but it reads like it. There's lots of kissing- but no descriptions of s*x- at least not yet! It's sooooo good! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lauracolumbus Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 I just finished Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake. It was quite different, but still engaging. I also like Maeve Binchy for light stuff. Or the White Queen line. Thanks to pp for suggestion of Abundance. Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 For taking me away...I like travel non-fiction like Frances Mayes 'Under the Tuscan Sun' and 'Bella Tuscany.' I despise the movie of the same name. Trust me the books are better. Anything by Peter Mayle and his adventures in the south of France. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsBasil Posted May 3, 2011 Author Share Posted May 3, 2011 I'm having to restrain myself from reserving too many of these at the library at once. :D The thread tools are so handy, I subscribed so I can keep coming back as needed. Thank you all! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tearose Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 Beauty--Robin McKinley (YA, but a lovely re-telling of Beauty and the Beast) A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again--David Foster Wallace (an essay collection I've reread multiple times. A few of the essays are a bit too weird and out there for me, but most of them are great, especially the ones about the cruise ship and the state fair) The Blue Castle--a lesser-known LM Montgomery novel, more adult-oriented GK Chesterton's Fr. Brown mysteries (short stories) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsBasil Posted May 3, 2011 Author Share Posted May 3, 2011 Beauty--Robin McKinley (YA, but a lovely re-telling of Beauty and the Beast)A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again--David Foster Wallace (an essay collection I've reread multiple times. A few of the essays are a bit too weird and out there for me, but most of them are great, especially the ones about the cruise ship and the state fair) The Blue Castle--a lesser-known LM Montgomery novel, more adult-oriented GK Chesterton's Fr. Brown mysteries (short stories) I adore this book, but I haven't read it in years and years! Thanks for the reminder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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