book meme taken from J!
Hardback, trade paperback or mass market paperback?
Trade paperback is my favorite, then mass market paperback -- hardcover is my least favorite.
Barnes & Noble or Borders?
Borders! everyone is so much more friendly and it has a better selection of the things I like -- and most importantly, they offer better coupons (coupons and clearance are the only ways I buy new).
Bookmarks or dog-ear?
Bookmarks (I dog-ear pages I especially like). But I can never remember to get proper ones so I end up using scrap paper. I started putting a bookmark in each of my books so that I will have one, but that project is far from complete.
Amazon or brick-and-mortar?
I read reviews and do searches on Amazon to learn what I might like, then go hunting for them in used book stores and list them on my bookmooch wishlist. ;-) If it's something that I OMG MUST HAVE RIGHT NOW (and it's cheap), I get it from amazon. If it's expensive, I just sigh wistfully and don't get it because I'd rather get a ton of books than just one.
Alphabetize by author, by title or randomize?
They used to be organized but now I have so many that it's really impossible to organize them as I have no shelf space. They're mostly in three groups -- to-reads (139), regular have-reads (156), and favorite have-reads (55). (and then there's a stack of to-be-traded which fluctuates) Within those sections they're grouped by author but not in any order.
Keep, throw away or sell?
Mostly keep, but if I dislike a book or know I'll never get around to reading it, I will trade it in at a used book store or on bookmooch. But if I think there is the slimmest chance I'll want to re-read it I will keep it.
Read with dust jacket or remove it?
Keep it on (and use the flaps as bookmarks!!!).
Short story or novel?
Both, but short stories are not as appealing to me. If I like something I want it to be big enough to swim in.
Stop reading when tired or at chapter breaks?
I'll often stop in the middle of a sentence. I've never understood the reading-to-the-end-of-the-chapter idea. Maybe because I read so fast (with fiction, anyway).
Buy or borrow?
BUY. I like to write in my books (sometimes arguing with the author) and underline and dog-ear, which is frowned upon in a borrowed book. I used to adore libraries but now, with my very eclectic taste and huge stack of to-reads, it just doesn't work for me any more. Which is kinda sad because I love library culture -- going to a place where other people who like to read hang out, strolling among the books in the sweet, hushed quiet that is unique to libraries and empty sanctuaries.
Buying choice: book reviews, recommendations or browse?
If someone recommends something and I spot it for a good price I'll get it just to see, but I don't go out of my way for those because they don't usually end up making me happy (still, my curiosity makes me never ignore them!) Usually I read reviews to get a feel for what the book is about (often a book will have like 2 stars on amazon but the negative reviews will complain about things that I would love so I know that that is a good choice). I also browse -- my method is to read the blurb and then open to some random pages in the book to get a feel for the author's style. Often I'll open to scenes which I HATE (it's like a sixth sense), and then I know not to get it. Things that make me put a book back include: rape scenes that are written as smut (I've come across at least four, and opened right to them), or sex scenes are written with a limp noodle and a raging bull, or the tone will be dry/dull, or I'll see that all the characters are male, or the females will be portrayed in a slut/child/dominatrix/princess/slave way, or the dialogue will make me laugh at the silliness of it -- in short, glancing through a book is the best way for me to get a feel of whether or not I will like a book.
Tidy ending or cliff hanger?
I agree with J: I love cliff hangers if there's a sequel. Otherwise, tidy endings.
Morning, afternoon or night time reading?
Usually morning, because that's when I schedule it, but sometimes I read when my partner is playing on the computer at night.
Stand alone or series?
Prefer series, because if I like something, I want more more more of it. But some books work best as stand-alones and I like them the way they are.
Favourite series?
an autobiographical series by Michael J. Roads, Elysium Cycle by Joan Slonczewski, The Twelve Houses by Sharon Shinn, Samaria by Sharon Shinn, Word and the Void by Terry Brooks, an autobiographical series by Betty Eadie, Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn by Tad Williams, & The Hitchhiker's Guide by Douglas Adams.
Who is your favorite writer?
ohhh, hard to answer. For evokative setting and world-building, Tad Williams & C. J. Cherryh; for non-fiction societal commentary, Carol Tavris & Robert Jensen; for hilarity, Douglas Adams; for non-fiction storytelling, Torey Hayden; for historical fiction, Alexandra Ripley & Susan Vreeland; for overall imaginativity, richness of prose, and vibrant characters, Tanith Lee; for objective spiritual facts, Melvin Morse M.D.; for culture-creating and myth-building, Sharon Shinn; for mind-twisting and paradigm-shifting, Joan Slonczewski & Stephen Leigh; for gripping plot, Judith Tarr & Pauline Gedge; for spiritual insight, Betty Eadie; for children's fantasy, Zilpha Keatley Snyder.
Who is the most over rated writer alive today?
dunno. I don't pay any attention to the OMGAMAZING raves, and the only popular author I've read was J. K. Rowling and I don't think ze's overrated. Maybe ze gets more attention than ze deserves, but not more praise.
Favourite children’s book?
oh, Catwings!
Favorite YA book?
anything by Zilpha Keatley Snyder.
Favorite book of which no one else has heard?
hm... well, since I make sure people hear about my favorites, that's hard. What have I not gone on and on about? maybe Betty Eadie's books... I like them as a group -- Embraced By the Light, The Awakening Heart, & The Ripple Effect. The first one is about the near-death experience that ze had, and the second two are about what ze learned from that and since then (I like them even better!).
Favorite books read last year?
good grief, how can I choose?? I read so many AMAZING books last year. I'll pick top five: Dark Water's Embrace by Stephen Leigh, The Secret Life of Plants by Peter Tompkins, Getting Off by Robert Jensen, A Door Into Ocean by Joan Slonczewski, & Journey into Nature by Michael J. Roads.
Favorite books of all time?
HAHAHAHA like I could CHOOSE! for crying out loud! I have at least 55 all-time favorites. Instead I'll list the favorites I've read three or more times: The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis, Scarlett by Alexandra Ripley, Betty Eadie's books, One Child by Torey Hayden, War of the Flowers by Tad Williams, Biting the Sun & The Silver Metal Lover by Tanith Lee, and the hitchhiker's guide series by Douglas Adams (there are others I've read 3+ times, but they're no longer favorites).
What are you reading right now?
actively: Powers That Be by Anne McCaffery & Elizabeth Ann Scarborough
slowly, in bits: Trees by Zim Martin, The Gender Knot: Unraveling Our Patriarchal Legacy by Allan G. Johnson, Meetings with Remarkable Trees by Thomas Pakenham, and The Meaning of Trees: Botany, History, Healing, Lore by Fred Hageneder.
What are you reading next?
dunno, depends on my mood when I finish what I'm on. I'll probably read the rest of the Petaybee series when I finish Powers That Be.
Favorite book to recommend to an 11-year-old?
the same books I'd recommend to an adult. I've heard that a child's brain is fully developed at 8 years old -- they can comprehend, they just don't know as much -- I'm not sure if that's true because I haven't researched it for myself, but I know that as an 11-year-old I was capable of reading pretty much anything I am now, and understanding most if not all of it. My recommendations would be based on what level the child read at.
Favorite book to re-read?
Biting The Sun, though I try not to read it more often than once every two years so that it stays fresh.
Do you ever smell books
Oh, definitely. I loooooooove the smell of old books! love love love.
Do you ever read primary source documents, like letters or diaries?
yeees... I think so, though nothing is coming to mind right now.
What author do you own the most books by?
Alan Dean Foster (ze's the most prolific of my favs).
What book do you own the most copies of?
The Mismeasure of Woman (one copy for me, one loaner copy (my biomom has it), and one to give away)
What was your favorite book when you were ten years old?
Ten, hmmmm, probably something by Louisa May Alcott (I liked all zir other books more than Little Women, which pissed me off because Jo was supposed to marry Teddy DAMMIT) or Zilpha Keatley Snyder (whom my mom Did Not Approve of, so I had to sneak them out -- quite a feat when ze was at the check-out counter of the library with me).
What is the worst book you’ve read in the past year?
We Come As Friends by Peter Michaels. Some of the stories rang true but most of it seemed made up so that the storyteller had a platform for their own ideas on What Is Best For Humanity. Sorry, but a truly superior race is not going to act all "oh you pathetic little worms, let me stomp on you." With true wisdom comes humility.
What is the biggest or most embarrassing gap in your reading?
Hm, nothing embarrassing, but I don't read so-called "classic" novels as they pretty universally rate a 3 or less on my personal scale.
What is your favorite graphic novel?
Unicorn Jelly by Jennifer Diane Reitz
What is your favorite science fiction?
Biting The Sun by Tanith Lee, A Door Into Ocean by Joan Slonczewski, Dark Water's Embrace by Stephen Leigh.
Best Memoir?
Blood Money by Carol Everett.