Taylor Hicks Talks to the NY Post About His Reading Habits!

As we anxiously await to release of "Early Works" on Tuesday, available exclusively at all Target Stores, we find the NY Post continuing to give priceless praise and publicity to Taylor! How awesome is that? It's too bad we don't get the paper out here in California, because if it was, I think I would become a regular reader! In today's issue, we find out what Taylor keeps in his reading library! Check it out!

"....One of Taylor Hicks' favorite books is the one the "American Idol" crooner wrote himself.

"I might not be the greatest speller," concedes the author and subject of "Heart Full of Soul," which came out last summer, "but it meant the world to me to express myself through my own words, as opposed to having so many questions thrown at me, post-'Idol.'

"Letting the fans connect with me without a filter - that'll always hold a special place in my heart!"

Lately, fans have been connecting with the Alabama-born crooner through "Grease," in which he has a small but showy turn as Teen Angel through Sept. 6. And while he's waiting to go onstage, he says, he often reads a newspaper (he majored in journalism and business before dropping out to sing) and books.

"You can probably go back and look at all the great songwriters in the world, and they'll tell you reading's the key to success," the silver-haired Soul Patroller tells The Post's Barbara Hoffman. "Being around words helps you write words."

Here's what else is on his bookshelf:

Texasville

by Larry McMurtry

I remember my grandmother and I reading "Texasville" together at the beach. It's about a lower-income family that strikes oil, and basically goes through changes. I was probably 8 or 9 years old, and I remember how funny Larry McMurtry was. He's a brilliant writer.

Charlotte's Web

by E.B. White

One of my favorite children's books. The message is great.

The Da Vinci Code

by Dan Brown

I think the book is better than the movie, personally - more detailed. How that story unfolds just blew me away.

The Seat of the Soul

by Gary Zukav

He talks about how, when we feel an intuition, we need to recognize and learn from it so we can use that sixth sense even more . . . It's basically about listening to your heart....."

Backstage With Taylor Hicks on Broadway!

Great little video piece that the NY Post did with Taylor recently!

Taylor Hicks - Check My Digs Out Simon! Living The High Life in NYC!

According to a blurb in today's NY Post, "Taylor Hicks has a suite setup in a celebrity-loving condominium building. The American Idol winner, now a Broadway star, is the latest boldface name to take a pied-à-terre in the Atelier building - just a short sashay to the Brooks Atkinson Theatre where he co-stars in "Grease."

The Post has previously reported that Lindsay Lohan and Nick Lachey (and we suppose Vanessa Minnillo) have been provided with free apartments at the amenity-laden West 42nd Street complex. We're hearing Hicks doesn't have a similar pay-us-later deal, and his lease is up on September 15 (he leaves "Grease" on September 7).

"He's currently purchasing pieces and working with designers to make his apartment his own comfortable place," says a source. Our Micki Siegel will have an exclusive look inside Hicks' place later in the summer."

You can live here too if you're rich! Seems the one-bedroom furnished model is currently being rented for a mere $4,600/month! Check it out here.

So the next time you see a chroll crawling around the 'net, just remind them of Taylor's summer digs and watch them crawl back into their roach infested hole :)