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With her signature blend of self-deprecating and irreverent humor, Karen Alpert --- author of I HEART MY LITTLE A-HOLES and the popular Baby Sideburns blog --- shares a less-than-sentimental story about reading bedtime stories to her daughter. Never afraid to tell it like it is, Karen wonders how a book could possibly have no author, why they don't make 'em like they used to, and gives herself credit for an important mommy milestone: being able to read princess stories to her daughter while her mind wanders to a land far, far away.

At last week’s Random House event, I had the nice opportunity to meet three of our readers --- Augusta from Glendale, NY; Diana from Staten Island, NY; and Erika from the Township of Washington, NJ. After the event, I sent them some questions to answer so they could share their thoughts on the day. Here is what they had to say.

Holly Peterson’s latest book, THE IDEA OF HIM, is about a woman who starts to question her comfortable life choices in order to find real happiness. In Holly’s own life, she finds happiness by connecting to her tween and teen kids through books. Amid all our daily chaos and buzzing technology, it’s important to carve out some quiet, cozy time to share a good story.

Christa Allan, whose latest book is TEST OF FAITH, is a true Southern woman who knows that any cook worth her gumbo always starts with a roux. She is also aware of the importance of reading books to her children, teaching them from an early age to love a good story. Now grown, her children make their own choices when it comes to reading material, and their tastes are as diverse as they are insatiable. Here, Christa talks about how stories have the power to transcend even physical obstacles.

THE QUAKER CAFÉ, Brenda Bevan Remmes's debut novel, is brimming with Southern charm. With charm to spare, Brenda shares here the story of her family's tradition of replacing hard-to-pronounce words with a simpler, handier phrase: "Skip-it." The unconventional practice was started by a nanny who would not be cowed by words she'd never learned, and evolved into a lesson about reading between the lines --- which still proves useful today.

In her latest book, THE SAME SWEET GIRLS' GUIDE TO LIFE: Advice from a Failed Southern Belle, Cassandra King offers her signature humor and practical wisdom to new graduates in order to sustain them through life’s inevitable ups and downs. And if you’re anything like her, you won’t be able to help but read it again and again. Here, she admits to being a repeat reader when it comes to books she loves, and how she’s found --- much to her delight --- that it’s a quirk she’s passed down to her grandchildren.

Eva Marie Everson is a multiple award-winning, bestselling novelist whose latest work, THE ROAD TO TESTAMENT, was born out of her many getaways to North Carolina and the writer’s favorite question, “What if…?” It wasn’t until she turned 40 that the writing bug bit, but the seeds had been planted at a young age, when her mother would allow a restless Eva Marie to read instead of nap. Through the years, both her parents enthusiastically encouraged her writing; her mother’s faith in her was so firm that she offered to “hold her extra pen at book signings” even before Eva Marie had sold her first manuscript. When Eva Marie needed details for a story about a 1950s housewife, she knew exactly who to ask: her mother. That book, THIS FINE LIFE, remains to this day Eva Marie’s favorite, because it reminds her of her mother and this fine life she willed for her.

Unlike Leslie Carter, the underappreciated mother in her latest novel, THE LAST ORIGINAL WIFE (now available in paperback), Dorothea Benton Frank enjoys a healthy and open relationship with her grown children. Despite their heritage as “natural born liars” --- or maybe because of it --- Dottie’s children know the importance of choosing words wisely. Of course, it may have a lot to do with the family’s shared love of stories and storytelling. Dottie may have forbidden her children candy and TV, but to this day, she’s happy to foot the bill on any and all kinds of books --- an investment with immeasurable returns!

This year, we’re kicking off our Mother’s Day Blog series with a piece from bestselling author Francine Rivers, whose latest book is BRIDGE TO HAVEN. Here, she considers a parent’s role in instilling a love of reading in his or her child. Although Francine’s parents encouraged her to read, they were more practical-minded about their literature, and it wasn’t until she married into the eclectic Rivers family that she discovered the joy of genres. She and her husband made sure to pass along that joy to their children and grandchildren --- one of whom has even taken to writing fan fiction!

For the third year, Kathy Jund, a reader from Southern California, has graciously covered the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books for us. A 10-year veteran of what she has previously called “The Disneyland of Books,” Kathy certainly knows her way around the event! Some unexpected changes made for a bumpy arrival, but Kathy and her “usual crew” persevered. They attended panels featuring established and emerging authors, chatted with fellow fans about the Festival’s evolution, and made sure to sample plenty of coffee and cookies along the way.