Along those same lines, I'm really enjoying The Secret Life of the American Musical by Jack Viertel. It's so well written that I think anyone who likes theatre would enjoy it, but as a writer I'm finding it especially helpful. I don't write plays or musicals any more, but many top playwriting techniques are applicable to novels as well.
My current research book is Village of Secrets by Caroline Moorehead. It's the fascinating true story of a French village that helped save thousands of Jews during World War II. Some of the events described in the book will show up in my fictional Cousins of the Dove series with Leslie Gould, so right now I'm trying to get a handle on the whole amazing series of events.
Finally, my guilty pleasure of the moment is the young adult novel Map of Fates by Maggie Hall. It's like a DaVinci Code for kids (but a whole lot better) with engaging characters, great pacing, and a just-this-side-of-believeable plot that's been keeping me in suspense since I started the first one in the series, The Conspiracy of Us, a few weeks ago. When I finished that one I jumped right into Map of Fates, and as I near the ending, I'm afraid this one is going to leave me hanging yet again--except that the third one in the series isn't out yet. Ack! Don't know how I'll be able to wait.
Speaking of reading, if you're like me and prefer to read with your ears rather than your eyes, be sure to check out Audible. I'm a long-time subscriber and a huge fan and cannot recommend it enough.
What will you be reading this summer? Let us know in a comment below.
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