Today on the SheWrites.com blog, members are debating Publishers Weekly's Best Books of 2009 and the marked lack of female writers on the list (none in the top 10, and only about 30% of the total). Are men really better writers than women? The SheWrites members who have taken the time to post on this subject ask many interesting questions, and make some good points. In response to this list, today, Nov. 13, SheWrites is encouraging its members to buy books written by women and post which book(s) they’ve bought and why. “As the Publishers Weekly article proves, men are still taken more seriously. Their books are seen as better, more valid, and about more universal (not girly) topics.” writes Lea Beresford, in “Ask an Editor: Men, Women, Books.”

I’m not sure what to think about this. I find it hard to believe that male authors’ books are really that superior to female authors’. I would be interested to know how many books written by men vs. women are published each year, as well as more details of how the “best” books were chosen. But lists like this are important to authors, because they give them needed exposure. As a consumer, I’m more likely to pick up a book that I’ve heard of somewhere, on some type of recommended list or in a book review.

I read a lot, but the gender of the author is not a factor in my choice of reading material. I choose books that sound interesting to me, or that are recommended by someone I respect, or books that I feel I should read that are related to my work with Mothers & More. Since I keep a record of what I read each year (I know, that’s how compulsive I am), I thought I’d go back and see how many male authors vs. female authors were on my list. Much to my surprise, female authors outnumbered male authors two to one. I’ve read books by women more than twice as often as I’ve read books by men! I didn’t set out to do this. The titles, very few of which were published in 2009, include classics, murder mysteries, biographies, nonfiction, self-help and essays. My top 10 favorite books of the year (so far) would include seven books by women and three by men.

What about you? What do you think about the Publishers Weekly list? Why do you think no female authors appear in the top 10 and does that make any difference? What are your favorite books of 2009 and why?

“I think he just likes to fall down,” commented the other mother with a laugh. We were watching our kids play a recreation league flag football game, and my son had just hit the dirt clutching his opponent’s bright orange flag belt. I had to agree with her. Since early childhood, my son has never been afraid to fall—whether it was off a bike, from the top rung of the money bars, or on his behind while learning to inline skate. Falling down, for him, is just part of the deal when you’re exploring or learning something new.

My son pretty much applies this principle in many areas of his life. He has no hesitation in trying something new, even if the risk of falling—sometimes literally—is great.

He does not get this from me.

I have spent much of my life afraid of trying new things because of the ever-present risk of failure—no, not even of failure—of simply looking ridiculous. But as I’ve gotten older, I find that I am overcoming this fear, little by little. I’m becoming less interested in staying safe on the sidelines, and more interested in seeking out new and challenging experiences.

This change really began around my 40th birthday. I have loved horses all my life and always wanted one of my own, despite having little actual experience with them. I started small, by taking some riding lessons at a low-key barn. I learned what was really involved in horse care—and decided I wanted my own horse anyway. I was willing to risk failure because I wanted the experience so much. I didn’t care if I looked ridiculous.

I don’t have any special gift or great natural ability to ride. What I have is a great love for horses and a desire to learn and improve at something challenging. Yes, I have fallen, literally, from the back of my horse. And, yes, it hurts—but only for a little while. What would hurt more would be walking away from a lifetime dream.

A second new activity for me has been taking a watercolor class. I have little or no art training, so I admit that my expectations for myself weren’t that high. I didn’t expect to “fail,” but I also rather expected to look ridiculous, at least for a while. I’ve definitely had “failures,” if you want to call them that, in watercolor class. Pictures—many of them—that don’t look the way I want them to. But they’re not really failures, because I’ve learned something in painting them.

And perhaps the real success had already been achieved. When I walked in the door of the art room, and when I set foot on the barn property, I was taking the chance of “falling down,” risking failure by trying something new and challenging. While I can’t say I like falling down, I now believe that the real “failure” would be not to try at all.

Welcome to Catching Happiness! The Benjamin Franklin quote at left kind of sums things up for me. We may have the right to pursue happiness, but whether or not we catch it is up to us. I’ve had (and still have) the opportunity to pursue happiness—and catch it—and I’d like to share those experiences with others, and encourage them to catch some happiness themselves! Catching happiness doesn’t have to be complicated or hard or expensive. For me, it mostly involves simple pleasures and everyday adventures.

On this blog, I don’t plan to write about controversial issues and modern problems. There are plenty of other people who can do that much better than I. What I hope to do is add a little to the world’s store of positive things: information, beauty, entertainment. (Probably there are people who can do that much better, too, but I’m not going to let that stop me from trying!) I’ll try to balance posts that will help you get to know me, with posts that (hopefully) help you learn something new, make you smile or say, “I didn’t know that.” (You can read more about me in the, fittingly enough, “About Me” section. And please feel free to email me and tell me about you.)

So I invite you to join me on this everyday adventure, pursuing happiness, and, sometimes, catching it.