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We are a computer age and most of us are caught up in Twittering posting in Facebook and on MySpace, but do we still read real books? A few of the Soaps.com writers are also authors. They’ve penned their own books and they tell me that they still read, in addition to spending the odd moment on Facebook. I still read and wondered if the soap stars also still read books.

Our writers chatted up some of the daytime soap opera actors about this and found out that most do read, and they read some pretty interesting books, as well! Maybe these recommendations that the actors adored, such as "Twilight," or "The Alchemist" will suit a few of you!

Jacqueline MacInnes Wood, who plays Steffy Forrester on Bold and the Beautiful, told Soaps.com, "I’m all about spirituality books; those are kind of my genre right now. I’m reading "The Alchemist again." I love that book. I go through "The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari," all those very spiritual books. The next one I’m going to be reading, I believe it’s called "Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose." I’m all about that. I did just read "Twilight." I had to read that; you know everyone is raving about it so I had to read that before I saw it. I’m really into spiritual books like "The Four Agreements," all that kind of stuff."

Bradford Anderson (Spinelli, General Hospital), who grew up in New Hampshire, says he is reading John Irving's "The Hotel New Hampshire."

Jason Tam (Markko, One Life to Live) says, "I just started reading a book called "Motherless Brooklyn" by Jonathan Lehtem. It's a detective novel about a low status henchman with Tourette's who ends up having to untangle the mystery of his bosses death, all while trying to keep the words straight in his head. So far it's pretty good. It's exciting and it's also got a sense of humor."

Linden Ashby (ex-Paul Hollingsworth, Days) says, "I just finished a book called the "Cellist of Sarajevo," which was great. It was about the Sarajevo war and a guy who went out and he played his cello in the Sarajevo orchestra in a spot that was bombed. He played a day for every person that was killed. It’s a pretty amazing book. And then I read "City of Thieves" which was great! It takes place in Russia in World War II. (laughs) A lot of war books. Then I read a book called "State of Confusion." It’s more political commentary about the gas lighting of America. And then I’m finishing a book called, "Painter of Battles" about a war photographer."

David Fumero, (Cris Vega One Life to Live) says, "I'm reading a book a friend of mine, Gary Fortcher, wrote: "Equal Dark." I used to read a lot of Anne Rice."

Eric Martsolf, (ex-Ethan, Passions, Brady, DOOL) who has children and just started as Brady on Days says, "Books are definitely out. The only things I read are DOOL scripts. Just trying to get a handle on what Brady Black is up to. No, that’s not true actually. I read books every night, but they’re usually about five pages and they’re about some frog named. Fred or Thomas the Tank Engine or something like that. Extremely light reading!"

Lesli Kay, (Felicia Forrester, Bold and the Beautiful). "The Last Lecture" [by Randy Pausch]. He died subsequently, but he knew he had cancer and that he was going to die. He was leaving behind two children, really little children, and his wife and he was asked to do what is called the last lecture at his college he was working. A lot of professors are asked to do a last lecture, but his truly was because he was dying and had a couple of months to live. It’s a life lesson and it’s really unbelievable. Somebody got it for my husband for his birthday and he read it on an airplane recently and he said, ‘You’ve got to read this.’ It’s very reminiscent of my father leaving me a cassette tape before he died, so it’s quite emotional for me to read it, but it’s really good."

Kyle Lowder (Rick Forrester, Bold and the Beautiful) says, "I’m reading a book that my brother gave me that I just love. I’m a wine guy, a wine collector so my brother gave me a book called, "The Billionaire’s Vinegar" and it’s about some of Thomas Jefferson’s old, claimed to be, Thomas Jefferson’s old wine collection and it was uncovered in a brick walled up cellar somewhere in France and they’re being sold for like a million dollars a bottle or something like that to wine collectors. This happened like ten years ago, but there was word they might be fake or whatever and I was just fascinated by the story and my brother bought me the book."

Blake Berris, (ex-Nick Fallon, DOOL) said, "I’m reading a couple books. One of them is called "My Stroke of Insight." There was a YouTube video that went around a while ago of this woman, this doctor, named Jill Bolte Taylor who basically was a Neuroscientist who had a stroke and was able to study the entire process of having a stroke from the inside. She was very aware of what was happening to her as her left brain kind of shut down and she drifted into a completely right brain frame of mind. It’s this really awesome account of that experience and how she ended up teaching her left brain how to work again after the stroke and now she’s written a book and gives lectures and stuff like that." He goes on to say, "I’m kind of on this brain kick I guess, because the other book is called "Proust Was a Neuroscientist." It kind of goes through a bunch of different authors and artists and actually a chef and various people who…it’s basically an art and science book comparing the science behind what the artists’ were figuratively getting at. He kind of literally talks about the science behind the artists’ insights."

Judith Chapman (Gloria Bardwell, The Young and the Restless) says, "Yes, I am. I just started reading "The Road by Cormac McCarthy." I picked it up at the airport when I went to Florida to visit my folks. He is the same one that wrote "No Country for Old Men," which was a huge film last year. It is an easy read that I picked up and look forward to finishing it. I think they’re going to make a movie out of this one as well. It’s all about post apocalyptic world of survival…. Nothing cheery!" (Laughter…)

Taylor Spreitler (Mia, DOOL) shared, "I'm reading a book based on the diaries of Nikki Sixx, "A Year in the Life of a Shattered Rock Star." It's a very dark and scary story!

Kevin Schmidt (Noah Newman, The Young and the Restless) says, "I haven't picked up a book in awhile sorry to say. Any "free time" I have goes toward my own writing projects. Working on a couple screen plays, cookbook and pilot at the moment!"

Sebastian Roche (Jerry Jacks, General Hospital) told Soaps.com, "I've been reading a lot lately. I've read "Lovely Bones," "Eat Pray Love," "It Happens Every Day." His favorite authors? "Jane Austin is extraordinary. I love Tolstoy and a lot of the Russian authors. I love the classics, anything from Shakespeare to William Blake. I love poetry, too. I love buying books. It's one thing I never care about spending money on. I spend as much money as possible on books."

Katherine Kelly Lang (Brooke Forrester, Bold and the Beautiful) told us, "I just finished reading the entire series of the "Twilight" books. My daughter got me started reading them and I couldn't put them down. I had to read all of them!"

Mykel Shannon Jenkins (Charlie Baker, Bold and the Beautiful), at the time of this interview, was reading "The Artist’s Way," "The Prophet" by Kahlil Gibran and the Bible!

John Paul Lavoisier (Rex Balsom, One Life to Live) says, "I read a lot about New York City's history and its buildings. Right now, I'm not reading anything because I'm so busy at work. I do keep a book titled "New York City: A Brief History" in my side table in my dressing room though!"

Christel Khalil (Lily Winters, The Young and the Restless) recommended a series. "I love the Twilight series - they're amazing books."

Molly Burnett (Melanie Layton, DOOL) tells us, "I'm obsessed with Harry Potter,(grins)but right now I'm reading a series by Anna Godberson called "The Luxe Novels". I'm on her third book called "Envy" and I'm obsessed! They're amazing! At first the gorgeous dresses that the girls wear on the cover were what drew me in, but the books are about the upper class in the Upper East Side Manhattan New York in 1901. So, very caddy but very classy girls going around ruining one another’s lives in a very proper manor. Fun studying material for Melanie! (Smiles)

Have you read any of the books that these soap stars read? Any that you’ve read that you’d like to recommend to your fellow posters? We’d love to hear from you all! Tell us what you’ve read, what you enjoyed and what you’d recommend!

Interviews by Shannon Burrell, Christine Fix, Julie Clark Robinson, Amy Mistretta and Lori Wilson and Candace Young.