I'm Starting the Alphabet

I remember as I was growing up, both my mother and stepdad were avid readers. They absolutely loved to go to bed at night and read until they fell asleep. They would read while they were waiting for a doctor, or for a plane, or while they were on vacation. If they were sitting still somewhere for longer than 20 minutes, they had a book in their hand.

I can remember being on a camping trip, and I showed interest in the book my mother was reading. I was intrigued because the title was a letter. “B is for Burglar” was the title. Mom mentioned that this author, Sue Grafton, was writing a series A-Z and this was the 2nd book. Every new book was another letter, and she was on a mission to get caught up on the alphabet.

My Mom and Stepdad were frequent guests of a certain motel in Santa Barbara that overlooked the water. They stayed in the same suite every time they went, which was every 2-3 months. They were, in all terms of the statement, in love with Santa Barbara. So, after getting a few books into Sue’s alphabet series, Mom quickly realized that the town in which the series was taking place, was the town she’d come to love and know as her second home. While out on a walk along the beach one day, Mom saw Sue sitting on the wall just beyond the sand. That’s when a new relationship formed. A relationship that was brought to life from the pages of a book.

I watched Mom throughout the years read letter after letter, thinking that perhaps I would enjoy these awesome detective novels she wrote. Unfortunately, I’ve never been much of a reader. It’s difficult for me to comprehend information I read, so I’m often left reading the same paragraph more than once. It’s also hard for me to visualize the scene I’m reading, in my head. This can sometimes make the experience of reading the book more frustrating. Thus, I never finished reading “A is for Alibi”.

It’s been almost a month since Sue Grafton died. I remember seeing the news alert on my phone that made me shed a few tears. I sent Mother a text, and she responded, “Oh no! I just bought her newest book, Y is for Yesterday.”

I guess the alphabet now ends with Y.

:(

Yesterday I bought “A is for Alibi”. It’s an eBook, so I can read it from my phone. I’m determined to read this series. Maybe by the time I get to Y, they’ll have turned the books into a wild and crazy movie series.

-Until next time….