By Lynn Schmidt
Idaho has a large population of excellent authors for you to explore. There are Idaho authors who write books in every genre that you enjoy to read. This Fall Reading Guide provides you with recommendations for five books written by local authors. This list includes a trail guide, memoirs, historical fantasy, and a murder mystery. Support your local authors!
Boise Trail Guide: 95 Hiking and Running Routes Close to Home
By Steve Stuebner
Fall is a glorious time to be outdoors in Idaho. This recent edition of the Boise Trail Guide contains 95 trails in the greater Boise area including Eagle, Boise Foothills, Bogus Basin, Owyhee Canyonlands, and Boise National Forest. The guide includes a wide variety of trails for all experience levels. The categorization of hikes, detailed maps, and directions provides you with everything you need to get out and explore southwest Idaho.
My Place Among Men
By Kris Millgate
This memoir tells the story of a young girl who overcame her fear of the outdoors and built her endurance by hiking Utah’s Wasatch Mountains. The book examines how the persistence she learned by exploring the outdoors led to a career as a wildlife journalist. My Place Among Men includes historic environmental stories and insights on being a woman in an industry dominated by men. The story illustrates how a girl’s big dreams can come true.
My Plain Jane
By Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows
My Plain Jane is a spin on Jane Eyre that includes mystery, romance, and adventure. This young adult novel inserts a teenaged Charlotte Bronte into a story with Jane Eyre, ghosts, and a supernatural investigator, Alexander Blackwood. Jane Eyre’s ability to see ghosts launches Charlotte, Alexander, and Jane on a quest to solve a murder mystery. The novel is a fun historical fantasy that readers of all ages will enjoy.
Overdoses in Olympia: Capital City Murders Book #1
By Troy Lambert and Stuart Gustafson
This novelette is the first in the exciting new Capital City Murders travel crime series. Each novelette in the series involves photographer Nick O’Flannigan in a murder mystery in one of the 50 state capitals in the U.S. Overdoses in Olympia takes place in Olympia, Washington. While Nick is in Olympia, he learns there have been two overdoses in a local hospital in one week. Nick gives the investigators a hand in solving the mystery.
Vietnam… Can’t Get You Out of My Mind
By Jim Jones
This memoir chronicles Jim Jones’ tour of duty in Vietnam during the Vietnam War. The story provides unique insights into Vietnam and the war that only someone who lived and worked with South Vietnamese forces can provide. The memoir includes stories about serving as an aerial artillery spotter in the military, helping a Vietnamese orphanage, and getting to know the Vietnamese people personally. It’s a straight-forward book that will expand your thinking about the Vietnam War.