I will try not to be maudlin.

Our black and white tom cat, Mittens, was killed by a car last night.

Before going to bed, we'd had an unusually sweet evening together as a family. We decorated the tree while listening to Christmas carols. The kids all helped, and then we sat snuggled together on the couch, admiring our handiwork. It was a serenity scene that might have come out of a movie.

(For the rest of this article, see: http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/opinion/x758547324/)

It's only mid-August, definitely still summer, yet the first whiffs of fall are already in the air. Nights are a touch darker and cooler, the edges of garden leaves begin to blight and brown. Back-to-school machinery cranks and squeaks, and we begin to fatten up and hunker down. 

It ought be sad, but fall is welcome in Berryland, because cooler temperatures perk me up like Botox, and oh, what glorious months we'll have before there's any real reason for antidepressants. I was always the kid who couldn't wait to go back to school with shiny new pencils and sneakers. My birthday lands in early September, too, which gives the month a magic luster. 

The fading of the year dredges up all my nostalgic impulses, and nowhere do I see this more than in my autum reading appetites. My sights turn backward to books that brought cozy comfort long ago. Generally the books I reach for were written long ago, and possibly set even further back into the past. Books that might be tiresome in April become welcome November friends. Gone is any pretense at reading the "right" kinds of books, or even reading challenging, complex books. I look for books that will stroke old feelings, make me laugh, sweep me away with romance, persuade me that all's right with the universe. Books full of auld lang syne. Books I've read before, so I can re-enjoy the ending. And that goes for mysteries, too. I'm empty-headed enough to have read The Murder of Roger Ackroyd twice w/o remembering who the killer was.  

The beloved British classics are a good place to start, but so are Wodehouse, Pratchett, Christie, all of them warm mental pudding. What else shall I read this fall?  Haven't decided.  I probably won't have time for anywhere near as much of this snug reading as I'd like.  How 'bout you?  What do you want to read in the fall? Got any fall-y titles to recommend?

Found a great article today on the Wall Street Journal about the rising popularity of "really gross" books for boys. Inspiring for all of us who write for boys, I'm sure.  ;)  As a mom of 4 boys, I'm desperate to get them reading and mostly tolerant of eschatological humor.  I will admit, though, they pick up a level of crudeness and pranksterism that I wish they didn't. It's hard to teach my guys that what's funny in a book is not at all funny in real life. But ... I'm still glad they're reading. 

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121814900158422243.html?mod=todays_us_nonsub_page_one

I'm working on a project that I hope will become a series for boys ... this makes me wonder, is it gross enough?  :)

Hey All,

Here's today's humor column, "Church arms teens with more than faith."

http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/opinions/x2109422256/Berry-Church-arms-teens-with-more-than-faith 

Enjoy!

Here's today's humor column, appearing in the Sunday Metrowest Daily News:

http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/opinion/x2109421290/Berry-Summer-skincare-advice-for-non-stupid-people

Enjoy!

My ten-year old son keeps asking me if I'm famous yet, and I've given up trying to persuade him that that's not in the cards, not on my mind, not even the right question to ask. "Nope, not yet," I say, figuring he and I will both learn some patience through this process.

But everyone has their fifteen minutes, they say, and mine came yesterday, in my small town, when the local paper, obviously desperate for summer copy during the slow months, did a feature article on, um, me, the newest author in our very, very, very small town.  The article was tastefully written, and the photographer did her best with what she had to work with.  Still, it's hard not to feel self-conscious about such things.  But in the spirit of full disclosure, I post it here, in a link made palatable by ShortLink:

http://shortlink.co.uk/uc2