James D. Best

                    "And by the way, you know, when you're telling these little stories? Here's a good idea - have a P...

My wife's photo of Machu Picchu I like traveling to places my wife and I both enjoy. She loves history and art, while I prefer to s...

There have been some memorable fictional characters. Sherlock Holmes , James Bond , Hercule Poirot , and Harry Potter to name a few....

A book is always a great gift … especially if you take the time to match the recipient’s taste in fiction or nonfiction. Suddenly, ...

Looking the Part I'm not a hat person. Although I own dozens of hats, I seldom wear one. I don't even like helmets. I grew up ...

I moved to Omaha last year, so I found this 1877 article from the Omaha Herald interesting. For those who loath TSA, tiny seats,...

Honest westerns filled with dishonest characters. My son reads magazines and listens to books. He doesn’t have a lot of time for...

The best gift is a vacation … and the least expensive vacation is a book. A novel effortlessly transports the reader to another place and t...

Books are a perfect gift ... and a great way to avoid the crowds.  At times, friends and relatives can be hard to buy for. Some s...

The Author’s Academy is a subscription website dedicated to teaching “authors how to write, produce, and market their books successfu...

My wife and I just returned home from  seeing our son’s family  in New York City. He and his wife have three young kids and because they gr...

An Editor on the Comstock Lode by Wells Drury Previously, I wrote that Mark Twain is my favorite Western writer . Twain actually ...

Mike Shatzkin Mike Shatzkin has posted a discerning article about how print books are different than digital books. It’s common ...

I carry my Kindle with me almost everywhere I go. Now, instead of fuming at airport security, I read or shop for my next book. If my wife a...

My granddaughter catching her first wave Tonight, I head west. At least until I hit the Pacific Ocean. My plan is two weeks of surf, ...

Now, this is fun.

Cartoon by Grant Snider As Grant Snider so apply illustrates, a child is likely to fall in love with a single book. At least, in...

Reading a struggle? Tim Parks writes that modern man’s addiction to electronic gadgets means reading is relegated to odd snatches of...

I semi-retired early and went into consulting to forestall boredom and to help make ends meet.* I ended up consulting for a Boston direct m...

Everything is working just fine. The grandkids in New York and Omaha are great, our electronic gizmos have not rebelled against...