orientation day at Hogwarts - and books

I dropped our son and his best friend at the High School today for Orientation Day.It was absolutely pouring down rain so I drove them - so pathetic really, because it's about 500 metres away. We call them "Harry and Ron" (although neither have red hair or glasses) because they are both so non-groovy,un-hip, un street-wise, whatever (thank goodness) - just daggy 12 year old boys who worry about everything and have next to no interest in girls. They were very nervous, which is understandable, but our boy's sister has had 3 years there so he's not the first of the kids to go. I was greatly amused by the fury of the mothers who thought they would drive their poppets on to school property and drop them at the front door so they wouldn't get wet - one of the co-ordinators was kindly but firmly blocking the driveway and waving them on, to park in the side streets and let the kids *gasp* walk in ON THEIR OWN. Welcome to the big league, ladies. I love High School. It's a combination of Hogwarts,St. Trinians and Summer Heights High and a bit School of Rock (we have a "bandie" in the family). Also once you've got High School kids you realise, whatever your age, you are no longer a teenager, and you need to kind of move on if you think you're still a teenager yourself.

Anyway - books.
I finished Sara Paretsky. It got very "Bourne Identity" towards the end with all the escaping and dressing up and hiding and bugging and what have you. Also the police corruption made "The Wire" seem like a teddy bear's picnic. (I don't watch The Wire, but my husband tells me about it). I've decided to read the two Charlaine Harris/ Harper Connelly books next, "Grave Surprise" and "An Ice Cold Grave". Everything else will have to go back to work and be re-borrowed next year, because I'm not taking library books overseas.

I'm not talking much about where we are going in TEN days because I feel so gloom and doom ridden by the recent events, and I won't believe it's going to happen until the plane lands at the ultimate destination (silly and superstitious, that's me).
But I'm thinking about plane reading. I have some op shop books that I've stock- piled this year that I will post about tomorrow, but I'm wondering if anyone can recommend a good plane read.( I was going to take "Wolf Hall" but kind, more sensible people have pointed out what a doorstop it is. I do need a lot of reading material because my idea of purgatory is being stuck anywhere without something to read). First leg is about eight hours I think, then an overnight stop-over, then a looooong night flight to our Christmas destination.Thoughts?