Loading my Kindle for Italy. Any suggestions?

The Gare Bear and I are off to Italy next week, flying into Rome and taking the train to wherever it is we catch the ferry over to Sicily and on to the Aeolian Islands to meet my friend, Janet Little. I'm particular about what I read when I'm traveling, so I'm preloading my Kindle with just the right mix. Any suggestions?

Currently on tap:
Lift by Kelly Corrigan (Recently read and loved her memoir The Middle Place.)

Selected Stories of Anton Chekov by (duh) Anton Chekov (Good for trains.)

The Mortgaged Heart: Selected Writings by Carson McCullers

Valley of the Dolls by Jacqueline Susann (That's right! I said V to the D, homes. You wanna make something of it?)

I'm also taking a galley proof of The Singer's Gun by Emily St. John Mandel, which is due out in May. I've had it for a while and started it a few times, but this is one of those books I wanted to read with my full brain and heart engaged. Emily's debut novel Last Night in Montreal is one of the loveliest books I've read in years. This girl's writing will always rank a vacation slot for me.

Comments

I wholeheartedly recommend an enchanting, intelligent mystery, THE SWEETNESS AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PIE, by Alan Bradley. Just a delight from beginning to end - and a wonderful example of hand-selling by local bookseller David Thompson (no relation) at Murder by the Book. He told me this was there most successful book last year - over 1K copies sold! It also rec'd an award from indy booksellers as being their favorite recommended book of the year.

11-year-old Flavia de Luce - who dabbles in poisons for a hobby - is the most original, laugh-out-loud funny heroine to come along in an age. I can't wait to read her next adventure, The Weed that Strings the Hangman's Bag, which is happily just coming out.
If you haven't reread it lately, I recommend Dracula. The beginning is a little slow (I'm going to comment on this in an upcoming blog), but wow, once Dracula starts coming after Lucy, man does that book get exciting! I actually stayed up almost all night to read it a couple of nights ago--and I'd read it before!
Joni Rodgers said…
I did reread Dracula when the Infinite Summer people book clubbed it last year. What a great book.

Thanks for the SWEETNESS recommendation, Colleen. I'll check it out.