What Is A Cozy Mystery?

Recently, I have used the term “cozy mystery” a good bit in my writing.  This prompted one of my subscribers (my husband Dobby) to ask me, “What exactly is a cozy mystery?”

Lest you think that I am married to a moron, let me clarify, my husband knows a good cozy when he sees one.  He is an avid reader, just as I am, and he likes cozies as much as I do.  His question is really about the specifics.  All of us can usually tell when we are reading a cozy.  Agatha Christie might have written it.  Jessica Fletcher might be the protagonist (and really, how cozy is it when you know someone is going to die every time your Aunt Jess comes to town?).  But how is the cozy truly defined?

I have some definite opinions on the subject.  While these are not hard and fast rules, I think that they provide a good overview of the cozy mystery.

I think that most people would agree that cozy mysteries are family entertainment.  There are few cozy mysteries that you would be concerned about letting your teen or tween read.  You would typically be willing to recommend them to your mother-in-law or grandmother.  They are mysteries that you would feel comfortable talking about at a church social.  But, that’s not really a definition.

I have read cozies since I was a child (yes, a child, I was an advanced reader, so Agatha Christie was in my reading list back in Elementary School).  And I can recite a list of traits that I feel that most cozies contain.  I also searched the internet for some additional resources to help me clarify (I was amazed by how many resources there were for the topic).  In the end, I made my own list, and I would like to share it with you.  I’d also love to hear any opinions that you have on the subject.  As always, you can reach me in the forum on the product information page or via email at unkempt ruminations@comcast.net.  A cozy may not have all of these characteristics, but it will have many of them.

So, what makes a mystery cozy?

First, cozies have an unconventional or amateur detective.  Some of the resources out there also indicate that the sleuth is usually a woman (I wonder how Hercule Poirot or Adrian Monk would feel about that).  These sleuths tend to be highly educated and have a skill set that allows them to be particularly good at solving puzzles.  Think about our Aunt Jess.  She was a mystery writer.  This implies that she has some education in writing, as well as special skills at planning out “crimes” for her book plots.

These sleuths tend to be ignored or even mocked by traditional law enforcement.  This is because they are amateurs, so the pros don’t start right out taking them seriously.  Here, I suggest that we think about Miss Marple.  She is often underestimated because of her age and her gender.  Poirot is frequently underestimated because of his appearance and the fact that he is foreign.  Chloe Boston is underestimated because of her size.

Because of their amateur status, the protagonist does not have a professional obligation to solve crimes.  This means that the protagonist solve crimes out of personal obligation.  That’s right, they do it by choice. 

Miss Marple steps forward because she feels the personal need to help.  Chloe Boston wants to be a police detective, but doesn’t qualify.  She does work for the police department, but not in an investigative role.  She lacks the professional obligation to solve a crime, but she solves it anyway. 

Poirot may occasionally be hired to solve crimes, but he chooses whether or not to take the case.  Sherlock Holmes chooses his cases as well and could be argued to fit into the cozy category for this reason.

J.D. Robb’s character Eve Dallas doesn’t qualify.  While she may have a special skill set that enables her to solve crimes, as well as an unconventional background for a detective; she is a  police detective and therefore has a professional obligation to solve crimes.

Patricia Cornwell’s Kay Scarpetta is not a police officer.  She is, however, a medical examiner.  This is a professional obligation to solve the crime (although not really an obligation to leave the lab for some unofficial sleuthing).  This rules her out of the cozy category.

This also means that a cozy mystery will focus greatly on character development.  That’s a trait of cozies all on its own.  Without strong character development, we would have a hard time believing WHY an amateur would risk life and limb to solve a crime.  Character development allows us to understand why the sleuth can’t just wait for the police to solve it.  Strong character development is essential to the cozy.

While a murder is committed, cozies do not have graphic violence.  This is another spot where Robb and Cornwell don’t fit the bill (Note, I love the Robb and Cornwell books, I’m not disparaging them, I’m just using them as an example).  There may be some mild gore (a knife sticking out of someone, a pool of blood), but the more gruesome details are left out.  Someone may have died as a result of a knife wound, but there will be no mention of exposed entrails.  A victim may have been poisoned, and their face may be described in detail, but there will be no mention of a pool of vomit.

OK, that’s enough detail on that one.  I’ll move on.

Cozies have limited use of blue language.  Some sources say that they will have no explicit language.  I find this not to be true.  It would be rare to see the “F” word in a cozy.  I don’t think that you could find me one instance where it was.  You might, however, find one or two swear words in a cozy.  An occasional “Damn” or “Shit” might occur.  They are rare, but they do exist.  Personally, I can’t think of a single cozy that I have read that has more than three cuss words in the whole text.

Cozy mysteries tend to occur in a setting with a small population.  Often, villages or towns are the setting.  A school might be the setting.  At least one great cozy occurs on an island (probably my all-time favorite -  Ten Little Indians - also known as And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie).  In some cozies (including some of Christie’s well-known works), the setting may be a large city (like London) but occur in a small neighborhood in that city.  Elizabeth Peters's Amelia Peabody series typically uses a setting of “Egypt” but the population is limited to the archaeological community, thereby making the setting a small population setting.

This point is important for a couple of reasons.  The first is to limit the suspect pool (at least somewhat).  This doesn’t mean that the criminal won’t be an outsider, it just means that the protagonist will personally know one or more of the suspects.  This is relevant because it’s one of the reasons why the hero gets involved in the case (think of how many times Jessica Fletcher had to solve a crime to get her nephew Grady out of lockup - Really Grady, your naïveté is overwhelming).

This limited suspect pool allows for the second reason for the small town setting.  The protagonist needs to have the ability to collect information in the case.  Imagine an amateur sleuth trying to interview complete strangers about a recent crime.  The first thing that they would ask is “Who are you?”  This would be followed by, “I think that I’ll just save my statement for the police.”  That would make for a rather short cozy in which the protagonist just gives up because she’s stumped.

In the small town setting, the amateur detective knows many of the witnesses personally.  When he doesn’t know a witness but needs information, he has a friend or family member who knows that witness.  When the person is a complete stranger in town, the protagonist can ask around for all of the gossip about the stranger.  And there will be gossip, because this is a small town, and everyone is watching that newcomer.

The amateur has some sort of connection to the pros.  This can be a family member or friend who happens to be a cop or coroner.  This can be a good friend who works a the courthouse, so they have access to records.  Your father’s the police chief.  Your boyfriend is the District Attorney.  This allows the author to provide some information that can’t be attributed to direct questioning or gossip.  At least one character can give us the cold, hard facts that corroborate (or contradict) the gossip.

There is no graphic sex.  Period.  This is a fairly universally accepted definition, and according to all of my research on cozies, everyone agrees with this one.  Obviously, Eve Dallas is out on the cozy mystery front.  Even if we could bend the rules for her professional obligation, her use of frequent profanity, the fact that she works in New York City - we still couldn’t ignore the mind-blowing sex that she and Roarke are constantly engaging in (nor would most of her readers want to).

Some of our protagonists are completely asexual (Poirot and Marple, for example).  The protagonists don’t have to be asexual, though.  That’s right, they are allowed to have sex .  Think of Elizabeth Peter’s character Amelia Peabody, she and Emerson have sex frequently during the course of the series (I would hope so, as they are married and the series spans some thirty years).  We just never see that sexual activity.  It occurs behind closed doors.  The reader knows that it happened, they just don’t have all of the details.

Finally, a cozy mystery has a fast-paced timing as well as plot twists.  Cozy mysteries, in general, are filled with red herrings.  The often have MacGuffins to spur on the plot.  They aren’t afraid to have multiple characters with motives.  Sometimes, you may even find that the protagonist is close to the criminal.  Cozies don’t have to have huge plot twists, but they usually have a couple.  These may throw the reader off the track, but they are often the thing that confirms the killer’s identity for the protagonist.

I realize more and more that cozy mysteries are my thing.  I have a deep love for them.  If you have never read a cozy mystery, I would recommend that you check one out.  There is a reason that Agatha Christie is one of the best known and best selling authors of all time.  She didn’t get all of those Guinness world records for no reason.  Check them out, and let me know what you think.

And, as always, happy Kindling!!

Don’t own a Kindle, but would like to?  The latest generation of Kindle is available at the following links:  with WiFi only   or with WiFi and 3G.

Christy Parker is the author of three blogs:  Ruminations from and Unkempt Mind,  Learn to Crochet - In Minutes a Day,  and You Be the Editor.

For comments, questions, notes or suggestions; Mrs. Parker can be reached in the blog specific forums on the product information pages listed above or via email at unkemptruminations@comcast.net.

Review of "The Pumpkin Thief" by Melanie Jackson

OK, so this post is a bit tragic.  Not the review part, the review is excellent, and the book was excellent.

The tragic part is that I am reviewing this book only one day after having reviewed the other.  That could be taken as a sign that I am a super-fast reader (like Dr. Spencer Reid on Criminal Minds).  But, more likely, it is an indicator that I have no life.  And that's the tragic part; I don't want my readers to think that I have no life.  So, let me say for the record, I do have a life...  as well as plenty of free time for reading.

Now, on to the review:

I read The Pumpkin Thief by Melanie Jackson in a matter of hours.  While I am a fairly fast reader, I only reach my peak speed when I am truly enjoying a work (it took me over a month to finish the serious drag Frankenstein).  I truly enjoyed this The Pumpkin Thief.

I find the character of Chloe Boston amazingly likable.  She is one of the most likable characters that I have met in a while.  I would be friends with Chloe.  She has a bit of my attitude, although I have far fewer of the fears than she has.  Spiders, fire, and enclosed spaces do not effect me.  What does are crowds, but that's a story for another day.  She's real and likable; that's what matters.

This book fully qualifies as a cozy mystery.  I think that there might have been one or two swear words in it (honestly, I'm not sure that there were), but we never got to experience any of Chloe's writing.  That means that the heavier blue writing was fully missing from this one (although I loved the comic effect of the use of her novel in the first book).

One thing that I really liked about this book (as well as the first book in the series, Moving Violation)was that there was no scene in which the villain feels the need to explain his entire plan to his rival before getting rid of them.  This is one of those things that makes me crazy in everything from mysteries to Bond movies.  The villain takes so much time with his "very good, Mr. Bond, you have figured out that I was really planning to steal the plutonium, and I did it by..." speech that it is enough time for help to arrive.  Or for the protagonist to come up with an escape plan.  Or whatever.

The only time that I think that this device really works is in Scooby-Doo cartoons.  There is a certain familiarity and love of Freddy's explanation followed by the classic "And I would have gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for you meddling kids."  Other than Scooby-Doo, writers should just leave that out.

In this book, any explanation of the crime was saved for a discussion between Chloe and her friends after the solution.  That seems like how one might get the details in real-life.  A quick round-table with the members of your team.  A rundown with your supporters.  It just makes sense.  It was more realistic and far more entertaining than the "villain speaks" alternative.  I really liked that, and I respect the author's choice in doing it.  It allowed the reader to remain engrossed without the "oh, please" moment that one often has in a mystery.

Now, on to the editing.  This book was extremely well edited.  I found only three errors (possibly two, as one might have been intentional).  This is far better than I can ever remember finding in a traditionally published novel.  Jackson has really outdone the big boys on this one.  I did email those three little errors to the author (although they might start thinking that I am a crazy, overly critical stalker), and I am sure that they will be fixed in no time.  Most people would not even notice them.  But then I am a bit overly critical, even for a crazy stalker.  ;)

I would encourage reading this The Pumpkin Thief, if you are a fan of cozy mysteries, but I would highly recommend reading the first book in the series, Moving Violation, before reading The Pumpkin Thief.

Well, that's all for now, and I will likely not post again until next week (I know, I should have held my third post for this week until Friday, but I was just too excited).

Until then, I hope you all have an excellent weekend.  Now I'm off to read Death in a Turkey Town.

Don’t own a Kindle, but would like to?  The latest generation of Kindle is available at the following links:  with WiFi only   or with WiFi and 3G.

Christy Parker is the author of three blogs:  Ruminations from and Unkempt Mind,  Learn to Crochet - In Minutes a Day,  and You Be the Editor.

For comments, questions, notes or suggestions; Mrs. Parker can be reached in the blog specific forums on the product information pages listed above or via email at unkemptruminations@comcast.net.

EBook Recommendation: Moving Violation

Yesterday, I finished a book that I just loved!  It is called Moving Violation by Melanie Jackson.  In the interest of full disclosure, I must admit that I "purchased" this book when it was a Kindle Freebie.  At the time of the publication of this article, it will run you $3.19.  In my opinion, it is well worth every penny.

The book is about a young woman who dreams of being a detective, but (due to her diminutive size, not because she's a woman) she can't successfully complete the physical portion of the exam required to be a police officer in her town.  She is, however, hired as a meter maid.  That doesn't stop her from solving crimes.

The book is cute and funny.  It would probably qualify as a cozy mystery.  Fair warning here, although the main character (Chloe) rarely swears in her attempts to be a "nice girl", there is some adult language in this novel.  This comes from her other goal as an aspiring romance novel.  While Chloe tries not to swear, she does read aloud a bit of a draft of her romance novel at a writer's club meeting.  Let's just say that this "nice girl's" writing would cause a drunken sailor to blush.  While on leave.  It's all part of the fun and quirky character of the protagonist, and a little blue language (probably) never killed anybody.  In addition, this is only one sentence of adult language in the book.  There is only one other incidence of blue language--one word uttered earlier in the book.

I did find about 10 editing errors in the book.  This is often a bone of contention in the Kindle Forums.  There is a side that argues that a self-published eBook should be every bit as polished as a traditionally published book from a large publishing house.  There is another side that feels that a self-published book has to have some leeway, as the author absorbs all of the production costs on themselves.  I see the point of both arguments, and I waver on the fence.  Some days I agree with the latter argument.  Most days, I agree with the former.

For this book, which side you are on doesn't really matter.  Because this book is every bit as polished as a traditionally published book from a large publishing house.  I routinely find at least 10 errors in any book that I read (I mean, really, no one is perfect).  The difference (for me) is that with a traditionally published book, it is much harder to find someone who is willing to listen to complaints (or what I prefer to call suggestions), and it's even harder to get them to make the corrections.

With self-published novels, especially with eBooks, I find it easy to contact the author.  I, typically, find that they are pleased with my suggestions and routinely make my corrections.  I say "typically" because I currently have a mostly positive review of another book by another author waiting for publication.  I have been unable to publish my review because I found about 100 minor errors in the book.  I attempted to contact the author, and she has not responded in any way.

I'm not being petty here, I understand that she may disagree with my corrections (although I am right, I mean grammar is not really that subjective).  The fact of the matter is that I cannot, in good faith, recommend the other book to my subscribers in its current condition.  The story was pleasant (although a good bit of "willing suspension of disbelief" was required), but the errors (while minor) were frequent enough that they warranted distraction.  I can't endorse that.

That was not a problem with Moving Violation.  First, none of the errors were major enough to cause any distraction for the reader.  Second, I contacted the author and received an email back from her the same day.  I also received an email from her husband, who is also a writer (they function as a writing team and often write their novels together, although the Chloe Boston novels are written solely by Mrs. Jackson).  Both emails were appreciative.  They gratefully and graciously told me that they were making the corrections the same day (yesterday), and even sent me a free copy of another of the books in the series as a "thank you" gift (the third book, as I had already purchased the second, I'm telling you, I like Chloe Boston).

I mention the "thank you" gift in the interest of full disclosure as well.  But, I can assure you that it in no way affected the review of this book (besides being an interesting story).  As you can see, I write the basis of my reviews prior to contacting the author.  For this book, I would not have allowed the minor errors from keeping me from publishing this review because, as I have said, the editing on this book is of high quality, just as high as a traditional publishing house.  The tiny glitches caused me almost no distraction, and my unkempt mind is easily distracted.

I am pleased, however, that the response from the author was so quick.  That means that you can download the book today and will likely not ever see the errors that I found (I don't really know how quickly the Kindle Store queues revisions, but if it is like the Blog updating, it can take less than an hour).  I have downloaded the updated copy, and the corrections have been made.  So, I can honestly offer a recommendation of this book without hesitation.

I hope that you enjoy the Chloe Boston novels as much as I do.  I'm currently reading the second novel The Pumpkin Thief (and yes, it's about more than stolen squash) and am truly enjoying it.  When I finish the novel, I will provide you with a review of it as well.

Don’t own a Kindle, but would like to?  The latest generation of Kindle is available at the following links:  with WiFi only   or with WiFi and 3G.

Christy Parker is the author of three blogs:  Ruminations from and Unkempt Mind,  Learn to Crochet - In Minutes a Day,  and You Be the Editor.

For comments, questions, notes or suggestions; Mrs. Parker can be reached in the blog specific forums on the product information pages listed above or via email at unkemptruminations@comcast.net.

Buying Books for a Great Cause

I am publishing this post in all three of my blogs (Ruminations from an Unkempt Mind, You Be the Editor, and Learn to Crochet in Minutes a Day) because I think that it is worth passing forward.  I first became aware of it through my subscription to Red Adept Reviews, and I am grateful to Red Adept for passing it on.

Simon Wood, an author reviewed and recommended by Red Adept (I have not yet read his work), is donating the proceeds from some of his books to a worthy cause.  The post in Red Adept's blog was on Saturday, so it is possible that we only have until Saturday a week to take advantage of the offer.

Here is what Mr. Wood says:

"I doubt anyone is aware that my wife and I foster animals for the ASPCA and other organizations. We usually take the no hope cases, where the animals aren’t expected to survive or need specialist care. Over the last few years, we’ve rescued dozens of cats and dogs and found them new homes. Our family pets are all rescues — ones that we couldn’t give up after the care we’d given them.

Our cat, Bug, was one of those rescues we couldn’t let go of after we’d taken him in. After five fun fill years, Bug died last week. He was a great cat and a lot of fun to have around the house. We’re going to miss him a lot.

In Bug’s honor, I’m going to donate all eBook royalties earned at Amazon and Smashwords.com for the next two weeks to Best Friends, an organization I truly admire. This applies to the following titles:

The Fall Guy Asking For Trouble Working Stiffs The Scrubs Road Rash Dragged into Darkness"

I have a $50 per month "reading budget" in our family budget.  I read a great deal, and $50 used to go quickly for me.  Since I got my Kindle (a birthday gift from my husband Dobby) I have not yet used the entire budget in any month since my birthday.  I find the free offerings plentiful, as well as the Public Domain books that are readily available.  In addition, I do buy a couple of books per week, but usually from the $2.99 - $9.99 range.  For October, I had only spent $13 at the time that I received notification of this offer.  I went ahead and purchased all of the books on the list.  I trust Red Adept's recommendation of this author.

Again, I would like to thank Red Adept for calling these to my attention, as well as Mr. Wood for making this offer.

Don’t own a Kindle, but would like to?  The latest generation of Kindle is available at the following links:  with WiFi only   or with WiFi and 3G.

Christy Parker is the author of three blogs:  Ruminations from and Unkempt Mind,  Learn to Crochet - In Minutes a Day,  and You Be the Editor.

For comments, questions, notes or suggestions; Mrs. Parker can be reached in the blog specific forums on the product information pages listed above or via email at unkemptruminations@comcast.net.

Repeating the Pattern

Last night, I ran into an old friend of mine.  Not that she’s old, we’re around the same age (insert joke about my age here), but I’ve known her FOREVER.

When I asked her what’s new, she told me that her twenty-year-old daughter was pregnant.

A long conversation ensued.  You see, my friend (we’ll call her Liz for the purpose of this article) was concerned that her daughter was “repeating the pattern”.  She was a bit unnerved that I wasn’t more concerned.  Did I stop loving Ashley (her daughter)?

Of course not.  I’ve loved Ashley since I first laid eyes on her.  Twenty years ago.  I met Liz just after Ashley was born, and we’ve been friends ever since.  I just have a different perspective on “the pattern”.

First, let me be clear that I am a big fan of the two-parent family, whenever possible.  I also understand that there are times when it’s just not possible.  There are many times when it’s not possible.  This occurs for many reasons.  I’ve seen single parents who knock it out of the park.  Not just once in a while but every day.  I’ve seen single parents who put some two-parent households to shame.  It happens, and I’ve seen it.

Second, let me also say, that I may be biased.  I am unable to have children (although we are in the process of adopting) and that may, at times, color my opinions.

But this is not my story, this story is Liz’s.  And Ashley’s.  And Ashley’s fiancé’s.

When I met Liz, it was when she was a new mother at twenty-one.  Our paths crossed when she got a job at a restaurant where I’d been working my way through college.  We were close to the same age, she was just a few years older, and we had led very different lives.

I graduated high school, got a college scholarship, and landed a job to pay my living expenses.

Liz graduated high school, was married at eighteen, pregnant at twenty, and abandoned by her husband at twenty-one (he “just wasn’t ready for kids”).

Our lives could not be much more different, which helped forge our friendship.  Liz struggled every day.  I was interested in her life because it was so different from mine.  She was interested in my life because it was a dream of hers to go to college.  We spent many hours bonding over sodas and snacks.

Now that baby is having a baby.  I’m not thrilled, but I’m not worried either.  Ashley is made of really good stuff.  If she’s anything like her mother, it will be no problem.

When Liz’s first husband left, she came to work at the restaurant.  She worked long hours, allowed herself one night per week to socialize with “the gang” from work, and devoted every spare moment to her child.  It wasn’t easy.

About the time that I was graduating from college, Liz had finally saved up enough money to take her first college class.  I started to see less of her.  The first reason was that I left the restaurant to find my first post-college “real job”.  The second reason was that Liz cut down her socialization time to one night per month.  She needed the extra time for study.

Liz was enrolled in a class, working full-time, and taking care of her daughter.  Ashley never had to miss out on things.  Liz managed to find the money for all of the field trips and even chaperoned some.  Liz made time to help her with her homework.  They ate dinner together at the kitchen table every evening that Liz didn’t have to work.  Liz always read to Ashley at bedtime.  With all of that, Ashley even got to participate in all of the normal girl things:  Girl Scouts, cheerleading classes, dance classes, etc.  The kid never suffered because she was “the daughter of a single-mother”.

It took eight years, but Liz eventually earned a B.A. in Social Work.  She then transitioned to working full-time as a Case Worker for the Foster Care system.  The time that she had previously devoted to taking classes part-time, she now devoted to working part-time at the restaurant, in the hopes of paying off her student loans before Ashley was ready to start college.

Somehow, during all of this, Liz also managed to meet her dream man.  They are now married, own their own home, and are in the midst of their “happily ever after”.

So, let’s simplify it.  Liz was a single mom who managed to do a great job of raising her child, earned a college degree, landed her dream job, landed her dream man, and got her “happily ever after”.

Things may or may not work out for Ashley and her fiancé, I sincerely hope that they do.  But Ashley is already pregnant; the die is cast on that lot.  At this point, I will be thrilled if she does “repeat the pattern”; it’ll mean that she and her child (and hopefully her husband) will have a great life.  We don’t have to be upset that she might “repeat the pattern”, we only have to be concerned that she might not. 

Cooking with Honey

As a beekeeper, I frequently cook with honey.  Some people are leery to use honey in recipes, if they have never done so before.  I often get questions on how to use honey in place of table sugar.  Here are some tips:

1.      I use honey in place of sugar at a one to one ratio.  Just remember to reduce the liquid in a recipe by ¼ cup per cup of honey used (example:  a recipe that calls for one cup sugar and one cup milk can be made with one cup honey and ¾ cup milk).

2.     Add a pinch of baking soda to recipes that don’t require sour items (i.e. sour cream, sour milk, lemon juice) so that your honey will be less acidic.

3.     Lower your oven temperature by 25 degrees.  Honey browns at a lower temperature.

4.     Store your honey at room temperature to prevent granulation.  It keeps indefinitely, so no need to worry about spoiling, as long as you keep the container tightly covered.

5.     If your honey should granulate, don’t throw it out, it’s still good!  Simply place the container in a pan of hot water until the honey returns to a liquid.

6.     Honey is hydroscopic.  That means that it will keep foods moist.  For baked goods that need to be stored a little longer, using honey in place of sugar can maintain their freshness longer.  This is a great tip for those who ship their holiday cookies to family and friends who are far away.  Honey will ensure that the cookies arrive fresh.

Don’t own a Kindle, but would like to?  The latest generation of Kindle is available at the following links:  with WiFi only   or with WiFi and 3G.

Christy Parker is the author of three blogs:  Ruminations from and Unkempt Mind,  Learn to Crochet - In Minutes a Day,  and You Be the Editor.

For comments, questions, notes or suggestions; Mrs. Parker can be reached in the blog specific forums on the product information pages listed above or via email at unkemptruminations@comcast.net.

How to Turn Locations Into Pages

First, let’s start with an important fact; I am a HUGE Kindle fan (that’s not a fat joke).  I love just about everything about my Kindle, especially the fact that it has increased the frequency of my reading.

However, I do understand that some Kindlers (as well as potential Kindlers) have concerns about certain things.  Recently, Amazon announced that they will be adding a loan feature to the Kindle.  It should come as a software update (if I understand the announcement correctly) and will have guidelines similar to those of the Nook.  That’s one concern that I hear about a good bit from people who are trying to decide between the Kindle and the Nook.  So, hopefully the new software update will resolve that issue.

The “problem” that I would like to attempt to resolve today is that of page numbers.  The Kindle does not use page numbers; it has location numbers instead.  I believe that one theory behind this is that the Kindle has variable font sizes, and this might affect pagination.  Another theory that I have heard is that different editions of the same DTB (paper books) have different numbers of pages (example:  Hardback vs. Paperback) so page numbers are really not that relevant.  Still, many readers like to know how long a book is before reading it, so that they can estimate how long it will take to read.

After Kindling for a few months, I quickly developed the ability to gauge how long a book would take for me to read by using the location numbers.  I no longer need page numbers.  I actually prefer location numbers to pagination, but I may be in the minority here.

I often see posts on the forums, as well as receive emails and verbal questions, from people about how to manage their reading without page numbers.  For this, I have some advice.

When you wake your Kindle and go to the home page, book titles have a series of small dots under the titles.  These correspond to book length.  If you are looking for a shorter book to read because time is limited, you can simply look down your list of books for the shortest line of dots.  This will tell you the shortest book on your Kindle. 

Here’s an example of book lengths compared to dots:  I have a book that contains the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, the U.S. Constitution, the Boston Port Act, as well as a Constitutional Dictionary.  This book is 1038 locations long, and my home page shows nine dots.

I also have four Bibles on my Kindle.  They include the Holy Bible: NASB version, the Holy Bible: ESV, the Holy Bible HCSB, and the Kindle Bible (WEB).  The NASB version is in the middle of the length of the four, so I will use that one for this demonstration.  The NASB Bible has 42623 locations, and on the menu page, it has 67 dots.

Mentally, I compare this to looking at a book shelf and comparing the width of the books there to select a short one.  A key difference here (and I believe that this is a difference in the Kindle’s favor) is that these dots are actually based on data in the book.  A small book on your bookshelf could simply have smaller print and smaller margins than a slightly thicker book, but you may pick the thinner book expecting (incorrectly) that it will be a quicker read.

Second, you can always convert locations to pages (and get a good estimate – not 100% accurate).  I don’t necessarily think that this is the best way to go, because I once you adjust to locations, you won’t really care about page numbers any more.  But, for those who would like to do so, I’ll give you the facts.

To start, we need to know the average number of characters per page.  I researched this pretty thoroughly.  I read it several places on the internet, and found that characters per page were listed anywhere from 1500 to 2800.  I decided to come up with my own number.  I did this by picking ten books at random (2 Hardback, 4 Mass Market Paperback, and 4 Trade Paperback) and checking ten pages in each book at random.  One-hundred pages later, and I came up with an average of 2200 characters per page (should you decide to test this theory, remember that all spaces need to be counted as characters).

A Kindle location is estimated to be about 128 characters.  Therefore:

                2200 characters per page / 128 characters per location = 17 locations per page 

Location size never varies, regardless of font.  So, if you increase the size of the font, there will still be about 17 locations per page of DTB standard print.

So, for my copy of the Constitution above:

                1038 locations / 17 locations per page = 61 pages (I could not find a comparable paper edition)

For my copy of the Holy Bible (NASB edition):

                42623 locations / 17 locations per page = 2507 pages

Now, the only comparable paper version of the NASB Bible that I could find on Amazon lists it at 2088 pages, so this estimate is obviously not accurate for extreme cases (and 42623 locations is fairly extreme).

However, when I test it on my other books, it is very close to what the paper books claim.  An example of this is the book Agatha Webb:

3352 locations / 17 locations per page = 197 (The product information lists this book at 184 pages)

Or the book Girls Like Us:  Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon…:

10112 locations / 17 locations per page = 595 pages (The Hardcover of which lists the books at 592 pages)

I hope that this helps subscribers to deal with the “page numbers vs. locations” dilemma.  

Don’t own a Kindle, but would like to?  The latest generation of Kindle is available at the following links:  with WiFi only   or with WiFi and 3G.

Christy Parker is the author of three blogs:  Ruminations from and Unkempt Mind,  Learn to Crochet - In Minutes a Day,  and You Be the Editor.

For comments, questions, notes or suggestions; Mrs. Parker can be reached in the blog specific forums on the product information pages listed above or via email at unkemptruminations@comcast.net.