Tonight is the last episode of Jeopardy! hosted by Alex Trebek. I read his book, published last year (it was excellent), and am looking forward to another one I recently found, but I also picked up a commemorative edition of People magazine (not a normal read for me): Alex Trebek: Jeopardy!'s Beloved Host and am including it here. It's a nice synopsis of his life and career along with some good pictures. Worth a look.

There have always been writers in the Pacific Northwest, and Washington (might have something to do with the weather). Many were prolific, many won awards for their writing and all were popular in their day. Peter Donahue feels they should not be lost to history and has gathered them together in Salmon Eaters to Sage-brushers: Washington's Lost Literary Legacy. There is a nice biography for each, plus a sample of their most popular work. Some of them are dated (obviously) but all were good and gave wonderful descriptions of life in the early days of the area. You might recognize a few names, a few of the books are being re-released. A most interesting read.

I used to ride the Greyhound bus to Pullman in my college days. It was not fun. There are dozens of stops in small towns (often to deliver a stack of newspapers) between where I lived and the bus station over there. Many years later, and reading about many of those stops (plus a lot more) from the comfort of my recliner, those same towns became a lot more interesting! Nicole Hardina put a lot of work into Little Washington: a Nostalgic Look at the Evergreen State's Smallest Towns ... she is both author and photographer. She explores 100 towns with populations from 38 - 3500, giving a bit of history and fun facts about each.

Reading Hermit With Dog