Sustained Silent Reading

    Ladies.  Gentlemen.  I have finished all of the books in my house.  I finished reading the Harry Potter series about a month ago, so sadly, it’s not quite time to start re-reading it.  So I need some recommendations.  I’m not super into the extreme fantasy books with half-naked women swooning into the arms of a muscled youth waving a blazing sword at a looming dragon on the cover, nor am I into poetry at. all.  If it’s written in a weird format, (“Everything is Illuminated” or that weird book about the liver we read for C.I.C, with the George-Bush-in-the-TV-static), I’m not going to read it. I like books with a quick twist at the end that turns the whole book on its head.  If the book is about communicable diseases (i.e. “The Hot Zone”), so much the better.  But really, I’ll read almost anything.  For real.  When I was a kid, I read all of the home-restoration magazines in my house (over 100 issues) before I went to bed.  Twice.  Or maybe three times.  And all of the sewing magazines, at least twice.  And boxes of National Geographic magazines.  And when those all ran out, I used my mom’s library card to check out years of old Reader’s Digest magazines.  This was all in addition to having one book in my desk at school (for reading under my desk during the math lesson and spelling tests), one in the living room at home (for post-school, pre-supper reading), and another in my bookbag for the 45 minute bus ride. 

    So.  I need recommendations.  Please, nothing with vast amounts of symbolism.  I just don’t get it.