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Jan. 25th, 2011 12:14 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rebnessFun book meme, stolen from ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
saffronlie:
1. Favorite childhood book?
Dogsbody, by Dianna Wynne Jones. Oh my God, I love this book even now. Jones is an amazing writer. She's never patronising. She just assumes that you will know Sirius is the dog star (unlike JK Rowling, much as I love her, who presumed that a child wouldn't automatically know the secret of someone called Sirius or Lupin). She also uses Welsh myth extensively in her books and I'm always pleasantly surprised when I come across some mythology that she has incorporated. For instance, in this story there are strange hounds with red ears who go on a nightly hunt. I didn't learn until years later that it was referencing Welsh mythology. Geddin!
The girl who takes in the dog is an Irish girl who is constantly labelled a terrorist and treated awfully by her English family. Again, I wasn't quite old enough to understand why this was happening but it's great to have an author who doesn't shy away from this stuff. Howl's Moving Castle et al are also great stories but this is my absolute favourite of hers.
2. What are you reading right now?
Still on my Robespierre book, re-reading Crime and Punishment and a book about Prescot's history.
3. What books do you have on request at the library?
None. I should go to the library more often but I'm a wastrel and tend to just buy books I want.
4. Bad book habit?
Sneering at anything with a pink cover and curly text.
5. What do you currently have checked out at the library?
Um... a book on the Spanish Civil War that's pretty overdue.
6. Do you have an e-reader?
No. I find it hard to concentrate on reading a screen for any amount of time. I like the feel of a book.
7. Do you prefer to read one book at a time, or several at once?
Several at a time.
8. Have your reading habits changed since starting a blog?
...No?
9. Least favorite book you read this year (so far?)
The Glass Palace. I loved it at first it rapidly went downhill. I don't know why.
10. Favorite book you’ve read this year?
I can't quite remember my favourite of 2010. It was probably a re-read.
11. How often do you read out of your comfort zone?
Quite often, I think.
12. What is your reading comfort zone?
Historical biography and literary fiction.
13. Can you read on the bus?
Yes.
14. Favorite place to read?
On the beach.
15. What is your policy on book lending?
Happy to do that, but I hate when people crack the spine or dog-ear the pages.
16. Do you ever dog-ear books?
No. My dad ingrained it into me never to do that. I feel like it's disrespectful to the book!
17. Do you ever write in the margins of your books?
Ony ever in academic texts.
18. Not even with text books?
Uh, I just said I did.
19. What is your favorite language to read in?
English. I try to read in French sometimes to keep up the language rather than for any joy. I read a copy of Interview With the Vampire in Spanish and loved how the language flowed.
20. What makes you love a book?
Good writing. Something that transports me to a different place or time effortlessly. Something that makes me think or want to quote it aloud to people.
21. What will inspire you to recommend a book?
If it was awesome. That's really about it.
22. Favorite genre?
Pfft.
23. Genre you rarely read (but wish you did?)
I definitely need to read more non-fiction, though I'm getting better at that.
24. Favorite biography?
Probably Antonia Fraser's Marie Antoinette. That she was able to rehabilitate one of the most reviled figures in history over two hundred years later is amazing. I also really liked Young Stalin by Simon Sebag-Montefiore.
25. Have you ever read a self-help book?
Yes. I don't like them.
26. Favourite cookbook?
Anything by Jamie Oliver, which is a very standard answer but I love him. I also have a really neat Greek cookery book that gives me awesome inspiration.
27. Most inspirational book you’ve read this year (fiction or non-fiction)?
Probably some biography.
28. Favorite reading snack?
Anything to hand. A glass of wine?
29. Name a case in which hype ruined your reading experience.
Cloud Atlas. If anyone tries to tell me I don't get it, I'll get stabby.
30. How often do you agree with critics about a book?
Usually quite a bit. Sometimes they get it really, really wrong for me (see above) or patronisingly recommend some Emperor's New Clothes novel by an up-and-coming literary star who turns out to be a hack.
31. How do you feel about giving bad/negative reviews?
I have no reservations about reviewing, either way! I've paid £7 for this book and you just bored me for a week. I'm going to write about it!
32. If you could read in a foreign language, which language would you choose?
I'd love to be super-fluent in French so I could read all these old French books I have without struggling. Latin would also be neat.
33. Most intimidating book you’ve ever read?
Finnegans Wake because wat.
34. Most intimidating book you’re too nervous to begin?
Pfft, none.
35. Favourite Poet?
WB Yeats, Blake
36. How many books do you usually have checked out of the library at any given time?
Stop with the library questions!
37. How often have you returned book to the library unread?
Argh
38. Favourite fictional character?
There are so many! I'll pick Alyosha Karamazov because I love his humanity, his steadfast belief in his brother even when he knows that all the evidence points to him having committed the crime and the fact that his presence in a book of characters who are complete arseholes is very welcome.
39. Favorite fictional villain?
Javert from Les Miserables. I hate him but he certainly worked! HE GOT ME SO ANGRY. Actually, the only other villain who got me in an actual rage was Dolores Umbridge from Harry Potter. Heehee.
40. Books I’m most likely to bring on vacation?
Big fat, satisfyingly profound reads. My holidays are a time for reflection and pretending I live in a Francois Sagat novel.
41. The longest I’ve gone without reading.
A couple of months or so.
42. Name a book that you could/would not finish.
I lost interest in The Glass Palace halfway through, which was disappointing; it had a great beginning.
43. What distracts you easily when you’re reading?
Very little. I'm good at zoning out.
44. Favourite film adaptation of a novel?
I think the film of Let the Right One In is far superior to the novel on which it was based. I also loved the adaptations of Atonement, Holes and agree withsaffronlie on White Oleander. The Shawshank Redemption was sublime and Fight Club had more energy than the book. Also, Tom Hardy will forever be Heathcliff for me and I don't care who complains that he was in his late twenties when he played him.
45. Most disappointing film adaptation?
So many! The Illiad (Troy, and yeahiknow), Queen of the Damned, some terrible adaptation of Crime and Punishment I saw once and Fantastic Mr. Fox which was just freaky.
I didn't really like the film adaptation of Interview With the Vampire. I mean, I love Neil Jordan and the sets and costumes were lovely, but Brad Pitt really ruined it with his somnambulant version of Louis. It also suffered from some ruthless editing - I'd love to see a director's cut some day.
46. The most money I’ve ever spent in the bookstore at one time?
Probably on a spending spree in Waterstones after receiving vouchers. Haha.
47. How often do you skim a book before reading it?
I never used to but I've developed a terrible habit whereby if it looks like it's going to be a tragic!ending, I have to prepare myself for this fact. Likewise if a favourite character disappears, I want to know if they're coming back. It's a stupid, counterproductive habit and I need to stop.
48. What would cause you to stop reading a book half-way through?
If it was really bad or glamourised something I strongly disagree with. I remember reading a book by George Eliot and just being really pissed off at all the long-winded descriptions of the thrill of bloodsports, so I threw it. My personal scruples shouldn't come into enjoying art but I suppose if I'm reading for pleasure and it's not bringing me pleasure, it's okay.
49. Do you like to keep your books organised?
Not really. The best books go on the highest shelf, the worst on the lower shelf to punish them. That's about it.
50. Do you prefer to keep books or give them away once you’ve read them?
I'm going to agree withsaffronlie on this one: I'm building my life's collection of books and as such I don't really give many away. I spend a lot on books and hunt down rare editions and older books and I'm not just going to give them away as soon as I've read them.
51. Are there any books you’ve been avoiding?
About twenty books friends have given to me. I'll get around to them, I swear!
52. Name a book that made you angry.
Tale of the Body Thief, which is by no means the worst in the Vampire Chronicles, but which seemed really off to me compared to its predecessors. I really, really hated it. I've calmed down about it now and really enjoy some parts of it but my God, I re-read a chapter of it the other day and you can really see Anne Rice's arrogant voice beginning to come through. It's full of sentences beginning with 'understand', crappy film obsessions and a meandering style which struck me as slightly demented and God-bothering. I didn't like the tone/writing style of it at all, though obviously lots of VC fans do. Again, it's not really that bad a book. I think it was just because I had come away from reading the first three all starry eyed and in love with this author and then I was all, 'uh... I'm not ready to be disappointed in you yet.'
Let's add Cloud Atlas yet again to this meme, as well as The Wisdom of Crocodiles, on which I spent £15 when I was a very poor student. I went hungry for that pile of crap. It was written by some pretentious pleb in a polo neck (how I hated that author photo) for people who don't like literature. It's on Amazon with reviews from the author's friends. No, really. The film adaptation was surprisingly fun (and the reason I bought the book) although that's because it takes the entire plot of one chapter and uses that for the story.
53. A book you didn’t expect to like but did?
I always say this but let me say it again: The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing, by Melissa Bank. She was betrayed by the publisher giving it a nice little flowery chicklit cover but it's brilliant! It's muted and sad in some parts, dealing with death, life-affirming in others. Dudettes, read it.
54. A book that you expected to like but didn’t?
Cloud Atlas. Also, The Kite Runner which everyone told me was ~sublime~ and ~genius~ when in fact it is the most hackneyed tripe I have ever had the misfortune to inflict upon my eyeballs. It's such an absurd book, I don't know where to begin.
55. Favourite guilt-free, pleasure reading?
I don't feel guilty about my reading. Maybe going back and reading some of those Point Horror books in my collection occasionally?
saffronlie: 1. Favorite childhood book?
Dogsbody, by Dianna Wynne Jones. Oh my God, I love this book even now. Jones is an amazing writer. She's never patronising. She just assumes that you will know Sirius is the dog star (unlike JK Rowling, much as I love her, who presumed that a child wouldn't automatically know the secret of someone called Sirius or Lupin). She also uses Welsh myth extensively in her books and I'm always pleasantly surprised when I come across some mythology that she has incorporated. For instance, in this story there are strange hounds with red ears who go on a nightly hunt. I didn't learn until years later that it was referencing Welsh mythology. Geddin!
The girl who takes in the dog is an Irish girl who is constantly labelled a terrorist and treated awfully by her English family. Again, I wasn't quite old enough to understand why this was happening but it's great to have an author who doesn't shy away from this stuff. Howl's Moving Castle et al are also great stories but this is my absolute favourite of hers.
2. What are you reading right now?
Still on my Robespierre book, re-reading Crime and Punishment and a book about Prescot's history.
3. What books do you have on request at the library?
None. I should go to the library more often but I'm a wastrel and tend to just buy books I want.
4. Bad book habit?
Sneering at anything with a pink cover and curly text.
5. What do you currently have checked out at the library?
Um... a book on the Spanish Civil War that's pretty overdue.
6. Do you have an e-reader?
No. I find it hard to concentrate on reading a screen for any amount of time. I like the feel of a book.
7. Do you prefer to read one book at a time, or several at once?
Several at a time.
8. Have your reading habits changed since starting a blog?
...No?
9. Least favorite book you read this year (so far?)
The Glass Palace. I loved it at first it rapidly went downhill. I don't know why.
10. Favorite book you’ve read this year?
I can't quite remember my favourite of 2010. It was probably a re-read.
11. How often do you read out of your comfort zone?
Quite often, I think.
12. What is your reading comfort zone?
Historical biography and literary fiction.
13. Can you read on the bus?
Yes.
14. Favorite place to read?
On the beach.
15. What is your policy on book lending?
Happy to do that, but I hate when people crack the spine or dog-ear the pages.
16. Do you ever dog-ear books?
No. My dad ingrained it into me never to do that. I feel like it's disrespectful to the book!
17. Do you ever write in the margins of your books?
Ony ever in academic texts.
18. Not even with text books?
Uh, I just said I did.
19. What is your favorite language to read in?
English. I try to read in French sometimes to keep up the language rather than for any joy. I read a copy of Interview With the Vampire in Spanish and loved how the language flowed.
20. What makes you love a book?
Good writing. Something that transports me to a different place or time effortlessly. Something that makes me think or want to quote it aloud to people.
21. What will inspire you to recommend a book?
If it was awesome. That's really about it.
22. Favorite genre?
Pfft.
23. Genre you rarely read (but wish you did?)
I definitely need to read more non-fiction, though I'm getting better at that.
24. Favorite biography?
Probably Antonia Fraser's Marie Antoinette. That she was able to rehabilitate one of the most reviled figures in history over two hundred years later is amazing. I also really liked Young Stalin by Simon Sebag-Montefiore.
25. Have you ever read a self-help book?
Yes. I don't like them.
26. Favourite cookbook?
Anything by Jamie Oliver, which is a very standard answer but I love him. I also have a really neat Greek cookery book that gives me awesome inspiration.
27. Most inspirational book you’ve read this year (fiction or non-fiction)?
Probably some biography.
28. Favorite reading snack?
Anything to hand. A glass of wine?
29. Name a case in which hype ruined your reading experience.
Cloud Atlas. If anyone tries to tell me I don't get it, I'll get stabby.
30. How often do you agree with critics about a book?
Usually quite a bit. Sometimes they get it really, really wrong for me (see above) or patronisingly recommend some Emperor's New Clothes novel by an up-and-coming literary star who turns out to be a hack.
31. How do you feel about giving bad/negative reviews?
I have no reservations about reviewing, either way! I've paid £7 for this book and you just bored me for a week. I'm going to write about it!
32. If you could read in a foreign language, which language would you choose?
I'd love to be super-fluent in French so I could read all these old French books I have without struggling. Latin would also be neat.
33. Most intimidating book you’ve ever read?
Finnegans Wake because wat.
34. Most intimidating book you’re too nervous to begin?
Pfft, none.
35. Favourite Poet?
WB Yeats, Blake
36. How many books do you usually have checked out of the library at any given time?
Stop with the library questions!
37. How often have you returned book to the library unread?
Argh
38. Favourite fictional character?
There are so many! I'll pick Alyosha Karamazov because I love his humanity, his steadfast belief in his brother even when he knows that all the evidence points to him having committed the crime and the fact that his presence in a book of characters who are complete arseholes is very welcome.
39. Favorite fictional villain?
Javert from Les Miserables. I hate him but he certainly worked! HE GOT ME SO ANGRY. Actually, the only other villain who got me in an actual rage was Dolores Umbridge from Harry Potter. Heehee.
40. Books I’m most likely to bring on vacation?
Big fat, satisfyingly profound reads. My holidays are a time for reflection and pretending I live in a Francois Sagat novel.
41. The longest I’ve gone without reading.
A couple of months or so.
42. Name a book that you could/would not finish.
I lost interest in The Glass Palace halfway through, which was disappointing; it had a great beginning.
43. What distracts you easily when you’re reading?
Very little. I'm good at zoning out.
44. Favourite film adaptation of a novel?
I think the film of Let the Right One In is far superior to the novel on which it was based. I also loved the adaptations of Atonement, Holes and agree with
saffronlie on White Oleander. The Shawshank Redemption was sublime and Fight Club had more energy than the book. Also, Tom Hardy will forever be Heathcliff for me and I don't care who complains that he was in his late twenties when he played him.45. Most disappointing film adaptation?
So many! The Illiad (Troy, and yeahiknow), Queen of the Damned, some terrible adaptation of Crime and Punishment I saw once and Fantastic Mr. Fox which was just freaky.
I didn't really like the film adaptation of Interview With the Vampire. I mean, I love Neil Jordan and the sets and costumes were lovely, but Brad Pitt really ruined it with his somnambulant version of Louis. It also suffered from some ruthless editing - I'd love to see a director's cut some day.
46. The most money I’ve ever spent in the bookstore at one time?
Probably on a spending spree in Waterstones after receiving vouchers. Haha.
47. How often do you skim a book before reading it?
I never used to but I've developed a terrible habit whereby if it looks like it's going to be a tragic!ending, I have to prepare myself for this fact. Likewise if a favourite character disappears, I want to know if they're coming back. It's a stupid, counterproductive habit and I need to stop.
48. What would cause you to stop reading a book half-way through?
If it was really bad or glamourised something I strongly disagree with. I remember reading a book by George Eliot and just being really pissed off at all the long-winded descriptions of the thrill of bloodsports, so I threw it. My personal scruples shouldn't come into enjoying art but I suppose if I'm reading for pleasure and it's not bringing me pleasure, it's okay.
49. Do you like to keep your books organised?
Not really. The best books go on the highest shelf, the worst on the lower shelf to punish them. That's about it.
50. Do you prefer to keep books or give them away once you’ve read them?
I'm going to agree with
saffronlie on this one: I'm building my life's collection of books and as such I don't really give many away. I spend a lot on books and hunt down rare editions and older books and I'm not just going to give them away as soon as I've read them. 51. Are there any books you’ve been avoiding?
About twenty books friends have given to me. I'll get around to them, I swear!
52. Name a book that made you angry.
Tale of the Body Thief, which is by no means the worst in the Vampire Chronicles, but which seemed really off to me compared to its predecessors. I really, really hated it. I've calmed down about it now and really enjoy some parts of it but my God, I re-read a chapter of it the other day and you can really see Anne Rice's arrogant voice beginning to come through. It's full of sentences beginning with 'understand', crappy film obsessions and a meandering style which struck me as slightly demented and God-bothering. I didn't like the tone/writing style of it at all, though obviously lots of VC fans do. Again, it's not really that bad a book. I think it was just because I had come away from reading the first three all starry eyed and in love with this author and then I was all, 'uh... I'm not ready to be disappointed in you yet.'
Let's add Cloud Atlas yet again to this meme, as well as The Wisdom of Crocodiles, on which I spent £15 when I was a very poor student. I went hungry for that pile of crap. It was written by some pretentious pleb in a polo neck (how I hated that author photo) for people who don't like literature. It's on Amazon with reviews from the author's friends. No, really. The film adaptation was surprisingly fun (and the reason I bought the book) although that's because it takes the entire plot of one chapter and uses that for the story.
53. A book you didn’t expect to like but did?
I always say this but let me say it again: The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing, by Melissa Bank. She was betrayed by the publisher giving it a nice little flowery chicklit cover but it's brilliant! It's muted and sad in some parts, dealing with death, life-affirming in others. Dudettes, read it.
54. A book that you expected to like but didn’t?
Cloud Atlas. Also, The Kite Runner which everyone told me was ~sublime~ and ~genius~ when in fact it is the most hackneyed tripe I have ever had the misfortune to inflict upon my eyeballs. It's such an absurd book, I don't know where to begin.
55. Favourite guilt-free, pleasure reading?
I don't feel guilty about my reading. Maybe going back and reading some of those Point Horror books in my collection occasionally?
