“A book Best enjoyed with a slice of pizza”

Last night I stayed overnight for our quarterly IHN (Interfaith Hospitality Network) serving.  This is where for one week a quarter, our church houses the homeless while they are working in this great program to help them find housing and jobs to get back on their feet.

Two of us always stay together and last night my roomy was Julie who just happened to have a Brainerd paper… and that is where my meandering is going this morning….

Yesterdays Brainerd paper (front page!) featured an area book lover, Barb Best,who through goodreads.com has been communicating with author Barbara Boyer and received Barbara’s book, Courage of Fear.  Barb Best was so excited to get the book, she messaged on line, “Got the book today!  The heck with making dinner!  I’M READING!”

and so… here is the story… (as printed in the Brainerd Daily Dispatch, Tuesday August 18, 2009 by Jodie Tweed Staff Writer)

Barb Best has always loved books.

But two weeks ago the book she was reading – actually, its author – loved her right back.

Best developed her love of reading while spending her summers as a young girl at her family cabin in East Gull Lake.

Barb Best, of East Gull Lake, displayed a copy of the book she won in an online contest at Varani’s Pizza and Subs at Checkered Flag north of Brainerd. Checkered Flag manager Zack Skogen, who is working in the background, delivered a pizza to Best’s home two weeks ago, courtesy of the book’s author in California, who knew through an online chat that Best didn’t want to cook dinner because she was anxious to read her book. Brainerd Dispatch/Steve Kohls

When there was nothing to do and no one to play with, Best would lose herself in a good book – Nancy Drew books were her favorite.

Best and her husband, Steven, have lived in East Gull Lake for the past six years and she’s remained enthusiastic about reading; last weekend alone she read three books and often reads at least three books a week. She maintains a large book collection and she and her co-workers in the plan records department at Ascensus pass around their favorite reads.

Since January, she has participated in a Web site, http://www.goodreads.com, where book lovers may read and write book recommendations, win free books and participate in discussions about books. Her co-workers in her department do, too. Best writes reviews of the books she’s read and she has won about 10 books so far from the site, often given away by the publishers or authors. She said she is honest in her reviews; if she doesn’t like a book, she’ll say it.

Two weeks ago, Best won an autographed copy of “Courage of Fear” by California author Barbara Boyer. Best was thrilled and sent the author a note, telling Boyer, also a goodreads.com member, she looks forward to reading it. The two developed an online rapport.

When Best did receive the book in the mail she logged onto the site to share the news with Boyer. She wrote: “Got it today! The heck with making dinner – I’m READING! Thanks for the book!!!!!” Best then quickly logged off to start reading her new book.

Boyer happened to be online at the same time and told her that they had to have lunch sometime and hoped Best enjoys the book. She also mentioned that Best should order pizza.

Meanwhile, Best did decide to order pizza for her family from nearby Varani’s Pizza and Subs so she could continue reading.

Boyer thought about it, then decided it would be fun to surprise Best by buying pizza for her family. She had Best’s address because she sent her the book. She called a Brainerd pizza place, explaining that she wanted to buy a fan of hers a pizza but unfortunately, the restaurant did not deliver to Best’s East Gull Lake address. However, the pizza employee told Boyer that he knew of the only place that did: Varani’s.

Boyer, who wrote about the experience on her blog, http://beboyer.com/blog/, said when she told the Varani’s employee the story and where she’d like the pizza delivered, the employee was shocked. The Bests had just phoned in their pizza order and it was in the oven. Boyer then paid for the pizza by credit card, added some pop to the order and had Varani’s put a note from her on the box.

After her husband answered the door and picked up the already paid-for pizza, he immediately found his wife and asked, “Who is Barbara Boyer?”

Best was sitting and reading Boyer’s book. Her immediate reaction was, “How am I going to explain this to my husband?”

In her note, Boyer told Best, “It’s always so nice to interact with folks who have such an enthusiasm like the one you have. Enjoy your read.”

Best was floored.

“It was really fun. It was such a neat thing for her to do,” Best said with a smile. She later went online to thank Boyer for dinner. They’ve e-mailed each other a few times now. “I’m sure we’ll keep in touch.”

And yes, Best liked the book. Pizza or no pizza, she highly recommends “Courage of Fear.”

“Everybody should read it,” Best said enthusiastically.

I love this story and I hope to run into Barb Best out there in the blogesphere as I do not know her blog, or if she blogs, but I would like to!  If anyone knows her please connect her this way!  🙂