What to read after Harry Potter?

There are some people who weren't really readers before HP. They didn't know the dispair of a book release date two years in the future or the jubilation of its eventual release. Hopefully these people will become more that Harry Potter Readers, they'll become Readers, open to books that don't involve Hogwarts. (Although, I've already heard comments like "I'm done with book 7, now I won't have to read ever again.")

Well here are a few suggestions, if you liked Harry Potter you will probably find more books you like.

1) The Hobbit - J.R.R. Tolkien - Another book for young adult readers, follow Bilbo Baggins all over middle-earth in his hunt for treasure. Followed by...

2) The Lord of the Rings - Tolkien also - You probably saw the movie but the books reads pretty differently. These are definitely written on a more adult level than the Hobbit and HP.

3) Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card - Ok, here is a book without any wizards in it, I know its shocking but you will probably love it! It does have kids and a special school, instead of a train there is a shuttle to get there. This is one of my Top 5 of all time. This book revolves around Ender Wiggin and his admittance into Battle School, were children are taught to be the military commanders of tomorrow. (I know you're thinking "Science Fiction barf!" but science fiction and fantasy are essentially the same genre, you just replace "magic" with "technology" to make miraculous things happen.)

4) The Once and Future King - T. H. White - Back to Wizards, the story of young King Arthur's rise to power. A classic. This book is so good Magneto reads it while he is in prison during X-Men 2.

5) Eragon - by Paolini - DON'T WATCH THE MOVIE... it stunk. But the book is fantastic. A young boy finds a dragon eggs, which are thought to be extinct. This book is for young adults and was written by one. (Of course some of you grown up who've only ever read Harry Potter books might consider yourself a young adult readers even if your 25.)

Well there are 5 books (if you count LotR as one which I do.). And don't give me that "how long are they" business. You just read 750 pages in one weekend!

I'll wait a few weeks before I talk about Harry Potter to allow people to read and digest.

Low in the grave I lay

Tuesday we had the Teddy Bear Tea party and I suspect one of our little princesses passed on their child germs to me. I started to sweat (not uncommon) and cough (actually uncommon). Thus began my tale of sickness.

I got home around 5 and hit the sack and slept in fevered way until 9pm. Then I got up shock myself, took two Advil and went back to sleep.

Wednesday morning, my condition had worsened. Now I was running a fever and had trouble taking deep breaths without fits of coughing. I began to medicate with Alkaseltzer and Nyquil.

I became a real Alkaseltzer connoisseur. Tablets disolved in water lost their zing. So I tried it with Sprite, Orange Juice (nasty), and Orange Gatorade (not bad).

Wednesday evening I went to CVS and bought foodstuffs, I only had pickle juice and tamales from last Christmas.

Thursday was the day for being either sweaty or shivering cold. And my dreams were nightmares were a laticwork would encompass and overtake anything that my brain thought of. If I thought of a person he would appear then get eaten by the strange mechanical framework. It sounds stange to read it now, but at the time it was terrifying. The machine was testing me, anything I loved it took from me.

I awoke and had to check my phone to determine it was friday. I had a bried period of lucidity, followed by a crash into teeth chattering coldness. Sometime on thursday I had gone to the doctor but don't remember driving. I took the perscription and drank it as regulalrly as I could. It was horrible. I allowed myself to swish and spit but not swallow.

Saturday, I woke and showered and convinced myself I should go buy Harry Potter. I make it back alive. I slept and read, slept and read. Sunday I woke and felt like a shadow of myself, but came to church. I've returned to the land of the living.