Michael Connelly

The crime novelist’s latest book, “Void Moon,” is in bookstores.

Small World: If we have a baby-sitter on Friday night, we’d check and see if there’s anything going on at Small World Books on Venice Beach. It has a mystery annex, and a lot of crime writers come there, so it’s a way for me to stay in touch with the crime writers I know and admire. Then we’d go out to either the restaurant in the bookstore, or B&O; Trattoria on Washington Boulevard. That’s walking distance from the bookstore. Or, 72 Market Street is for a more high-line evening.

Plan B: If there’s nothing happening at Small World, we’d stay closer to home in Hollywood. We like Woo Lae Oak, a Korean barbecue on La Cienega near Wilshire. You can get an interesting mix of food, but it’s better to go out with friends so you can get a lot of different courses.

Making a Racquet: Saturday morning I play racquetball out in South Pasadena at the Racquet Center. I’ve been playing in a game with a couple other people for more than 10 years--it’s one of the few traditions I’ve really carried on. We play for an hour or two, and how I do sets the tone for the rest of my day.

Park Play: On Saturday I also take my daughter--she’ll be 3 in February--to Griffith Park to the horse rides on the east side of the park. It’s a pony ride, really, but on a path that the horses have done so many times that they never go off the path. There’s also the little train ride there, or we’ll get back up in the car and go farther into the park to the old carousel. Also on the weekends, there’s this impromptu gathering of bongo players in the park. You can see as many as a dozen or more under a shade tree. My daughter likes to go there and rock out.

Warm Welcome: Our favorite place is Jozu, on Melrose, near Kings Road. It’s Pacific Rim food, and they always take care of their customers, it doesn’t matter who you are. It’s great to talk to the owner, Andy Nakano. And the bartender, Felix, is the best bartender in L.A. He does magic tricks and tells great stories.