Reading Bingo and reading meme
Oh, right, I got to blackout on the Reading Bingo card! :D
- A book at the bottom of your to read pile: Cast in Ruin, which was "at the bottom" of my list of eBooks that I had to return unread before sabbatical (I don't have a single physical to-read pile as such)
- A book based on a true story: Chemical Cowboys. It's non-fiction, but it definitely tells a story (rise and fall of the Ecstasy trade in the US, and how the people selling it were caught and convicted), which happens to be true.
- A forgotten classic: Tristram Shandy, which was recommended to me in the bingo brainstorming post by several people (thank you for that!)
and the rest of it, from before:
- A book with more than 500 pages: Midnight Mayor
- A book with non-human characters: Seraphina (dragons)
- A book by a female author: Let's go with Moon Called, 'cos I have plenty of Patricia Briggs to go around.
- A book with a mystery: Switching this to Kellerman's Killer, 'cos that's a pure mystery
- A book with a one-word title: Blameless
- A book I heard about online: Most of them, LOL, but let's go with Inda
- The second book in a series: Blood Bound
- Free Square: Iron Kissed (why not)
- A book written by someone under thirty: Hyperbole And a Half
- A best-selling book: Iron Kissed and Silver Borne were both #1 on the NYT bestseller list according to Briggs's website.
- A book published this year: The Rift, part I
- A funny book: Dave Barry
- A book with a blue cover: Madness of Angels (which I hadn't realized earlier, having read it on my b&w
- A book that scares you: Neon Court will be the closest I get, I'm pretty sure. Blackout was plenty freaky.
- A book with a number in its title: Mr Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore
- The first book by a favorite author: The Carpet People
- A book of non-fiction: The Invisible Gorilla
- A book that is more than 10 years old: Finder (also, Dragon, though as a re-read it probably shouldn't count)
- A book of short stories: Sorry Please Thank You
- A book that became a movie: Cloud Atlas
- A book set on a different continent: Prince of Thorns
- A book your friend loves: Emperor of Thorns
*
This was a book advent calendar (sorta) meme from mauvais_pli, and now seems like a good time for it. I believe the rules are to list a book for each prompt (not necessarily read this year).
1. Iconic first line
"In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit." Plenty iconic for me :)
2. Last read
Tristram Shandy (for the "forgotten classic" square of the Reading Bingo). It was actually fairly fun!
3. On my Christmas *indulge myself with recent award moneys* list
Well, the next book I'm buying (pre-ordered, so not sure this counts) is Foxglove Summer, but as I've already read that... Mmm, it's probably whatever comes out next in my various series that I'm avidly following... possibly League of Dragons (the last Temeraire book) -- does that have a publication date yet? Unless Peace Talks (Dresden Files #16) or Vallista or Doors of Stone or several others happen to beat it.
4. For chilly nights
I don't know why, but apparently what I want to read on chilly nights are mysteries with a closed circle of suspects featuring a lot of snow. Thus Dead Mountaineer's Hotel (Отель "У Погибшего Альпиниста")
5. Quintessentially British
To Say Nothing of the Dog is the first that occurs to me, although any number of Agatha Christies would probably do for this as well.
6. Everyone should read
I'm not a big fan of "everyone should", but I do feel like giving Discworld a try is something that is well worth most people's whiles. Maybe Going Postal? being both a huge favorite of mine and kind of a standalone, and not quite so INTENSE as Small Gods.
7. Childhood favorite
Monday Starts on Saturday (the brothers Strugatsky), but in the spirit of naming a book that is actually available in English, conversation with egelantier reminded me of my love for Gerald Durrell's autobiographical books, especially My Family and Other Animals. It's so funny and warm, and as a kid who was constantly dragging home interesting bugs and caterpillars and wanting to keep spiders and snails as pets, it was also very beloved in a "my people!" sort of way. (These books were well known in Russia, and I was surprised to learn that's not the case in the English-speaking world.)
8. It's a mystery!
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. Yeah, utterly unoriginal, but they were my first love. If we want something a bit more contemporary, I am also very fond of Jonathan Kellerman's books, and the early Kay Scarpetta novels by Patricia Cornwell (say, up through Point of Origin).
9. I judged this by its cover
Haha, so you've all heard how it took me forever to pick up the Vorkosigan books because the covers are awful. This bookshop had the right idea.
10. Latest purchase
Lots of books for presents. Last book bought for me was Hawk (ebook) and, hmm, actually Inda, back in January, because I wanted my own copy. The last book I bought in hard copy without first having read was Captain Vorpatril's Alliance in October 2012.
11. Christmas classic
Not a book, but, "Gift of the Magi" by O.Henry, which I do love, and his short stories in general. So if I need to list a book,
12. Book of poems
I tend to go for "complete works" collections for the poets I love, but my favorite book of poems is the anothology Top 500 Poems, which was my introduction to Larkin and to "The Naming of Parts" and more Auden than I would've probably encountered on my own, and several of my other favorites.
13. Stocking filler
I'm not really sure what this means, but assuming it's something like "a small-sied book that can be read quickly", let me go with F in Exams, which both B and I greatly enjoyed.
14. Read at school
I liked a number of books I read for school, but I think Lord of the Flies is the one I derived the most enjoyment from, both reading and analyzing.
15. Favorite colour cover
Um... blue, maybe? It's a common enough color, and I find the shades of blue soothing.
16. For someone I love
Well, it really depends on the person in question. I've stopped giving B books because he has no time to read fiction, but I did give him Monday Starts on Saturday in the good translation because I thought he would enjoy the story and because I wanted to share a book I love (which is hard to find in English) with him. But I find I have favorite "to give" books most years -- book that I loved reading some time over the past year and can't wait to share with others. In 2013 this was Rivers of London, this year it was Seraphina. And then there are perennial favorites: I will never be tired of giving friends my favorite Discworld books or the Vorkosigan Saga.
17. Funny read
Dave Barry tends to be my go-to for funny reads. The last books haven't been as laugh-out-loud funny for me, so let's go with one of the classics: I think Dave Barry's Only Travel Guide You'll Ever Need may be my favorite overall. "Give me the fish of your brother Raoul." :DD
18. Massive tome
I was a weird kid who read War and Peace when I was 11. Why? *shurg* 'Cos it was there, I guess. But as for tomes I read and actually *enjoyed*, there's A Storm of Swords (1216 pages in paperback).
19. Travelling home -- reading this
Actually, wintertime tends to be my time to go on vacation. Mmm, last time we went to Hawaii (though it was summer), I had A Dance with Dragons with me. This time, I was reading Cloud Roads on the plane, and since we got here, have been reading one of the books that came with the apartment: Casual Vacancy (I'm enjoying it so far, though it's weird to be reading a non-Harry Potter thing by JKR).
20. Set where I live
The October Daye books are set in San Francisco/the Bay Area, as are lots of other books, like Mr Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore that I read this year. I think my favorite might be Flora Segunda, though. It takes awhile (or at least it took *me* awhile) to figure out that Califa was AU!San Francisco, but that is an aspect of the series that really appeals to me).
21. To be read
I have acquires Max Gladstone's books finally (thanks, egelantier!). Now to actually READ them.
22. Favorite festive scene
I'm sorry to be mentioning Monday Starts Saturday for like the fourth time in this meme, but, genuinely, it's the one that keeps coming up. I love love LOVE the New Year's Eve story/scene, where Privalov is left to mind the institute on his own and ends up in the middle of a party anyway. But in the interests of variety, I will also mention that I'm fond of the Christmassy scenes in the Harry Potter books.
23. The best present
I'm going to take that to mean the best book present I've ever been given. R tends to be really good at this -- she gave me The Magicians a few years back, and it was one of my favorite books for the year -- and I probably wouldn't have read it otherwise, because LJ hates Grossman :P. Oh, though I have to give a shoutout to lunasariel's present to me of The Worse Graphic Novel Ever (the terrible Jhereg adaptation), because I never expected to come across it in real life XD
24. For Father Christmas
What? I feel like I'm missing some cultural references here... Is this, like, the equivalent of the cookies and milk you leave in thanks for the presents? How about Gaiman's Smoke and Mirrors, which includes Nicholas was... :P
25. Under the tree
As mentioned in a previous post, I got The Sixth Watch (the latest -- and last? maybe? of the Lukyanenko Night Watch books) in the holiday parcel from ikel89. I'm apparently also getting a Kindle book from aome this year, but it's for New Year's so I don't know yet, but the rodents have already gotten their presents from her -- the second book of The Selection and a jewelry-making book for L (she's already finished the former, and was planning to drag the jewelry book to Hawaii with us before I advised against it XP), and the conclusion of the False Prince trilogy for O (which he finished on the plane and is now reading for the second time).
- A book at the bottom of your to read pile: Cast in Ruin, which was "at the bottom" of my list of eBooks that I had to return unread before sabbatical (I don't have a single physical to-read pile as such)
- A book based on a true story: Chemical Cowboys. It's non-fiction, but it definitely tells a story (rise and fall of the Ecstasy trade in the US, and how the people selling it were caught and convicted), which happens to be true.
- A forgotten classic: Tristram Shandy, which was recommended to me in the bingo brainstorming post by several people (thank you for that!)
and the rest of it, from before:
- A book with more than 500 pages: Midnight Mayor
- A book with non-human characters: Seraphina (dragons)
- A book by a female author: Let's go with Moon Called, 'cos I have plenty of Patricia Briggs to go around.
- A book with a mystery: Switching this to Kellerman's Killer, 'cos that's a pure mystery
- A book with a one-word title: Blameless
- A book I heard about online: Most of them, LOL, but let's go with Inda
- The second book in a series: Blood Bound
- Free Square: Iron Kissed (why not)
- A book written by someone under thirty: Hyperbole And a Half
- A best-selling book: Iron Kissed and Silver Borne were both #1 on the NYT bestseller list according to Briggs's website.
- A book published this year: The Rift, part I
- A funny book: Dave Barry
- A book with a blue cover: Madness of Angels (which I hadn't realized earlier, having read it on my b&w
- A book that scares you: Neon Court will be the closest I get, I'm pretty sure. Blackout was plenty freaky.
- A book with a number in its title: Mr Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore
- The first book by a favorite author: The Carpet People
- A book of non-fiction: The Invisible Gorilla
- A book that is more than 10 years old: Finder (also, Dragon, though as a re-read it probably shouldn't count)
- A book of short stories: Sorry Please Thank You
- A book that became a movie: Cloud Atlas
- A book set on a different continent: Prince of Thorns
- A book your friend loves: Emperor of Thorns
*
This was a book advent calendar (sorta) meme from mauvais_pli, and now seems like a good time for it. I believe the rules are to list a book for each prompt (not necessarily read this year).
1. Iconic first line
"In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit." Plenty iconic for me :)
2. Last read
Tristram Shandy (for the "forgotten classic" square of the Reading Bingo). It was actually fairly fun!
3. On my Christmas *indulge myself with recent award moneys* list
Well, the next book I'm buying (pre-ordered, so not sure this counts) is Foxglove Summer, but as I've already read that... Mmm, it's probably whatever comes out next in my various series that I'm avidly following... possibly League of Dragons (the last Temeraire book) -- does that have a publication date yet? Unless Peace Talks (Dresden Files #16) or Vallista or Doors of Stone or several others happen to beat it.
4. For chilly nights
I don't know why, but apparently what I want to read on chilly nights are mysteries with a closed circle of suspects featuring a lot of snow. Thus Dead Mountaineer's Hotel (Отель "У Погибшего Альпиниста")
5. Quintessentially British
To Say Nothing of the Dog is the first that occurs to me, although any number of Agatha Christies would probably do for this as well.
6. Everyone should read
I'm not a big fan of "everyone should", but I do feel like giving Discworld a try is something that is well worth most people's whiles. Maybe Going Postal? being both a huge favorite of mine and kind of a standalone, and not quite so INTENSE as Small Gods.
7. Childhood favorite
Monday Starts on Saturday (the brothers Strugatsky), but in the spirit of naming a book that is actually available in English, conversation with egelantier reminded me of my love for Gerald Durrell's autobiographical books, especially My Family and Other Animals. It's so funny and warm, and as a kid who was constantly dragging home interesting bugs and caterpillars and wanting to keep spiders and snails as pets, it was also very beloved in a "my people!" sort of way. (These books were well known in Russia, and I was surprised to learn that's not the case in the English-speaking world.)
8. It's a mystery!
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. Yeah, utterly unoriginal, but they were my first love. If we want something a bit more contemporary, I am also very fond of Jonathan Kellerman's books, and the early Kay Scarpetta novels by Patricia Cornwell (say, up through Point of Origin).
9. I judged this by its cover
Haha, so you've all heard how it took me forever to pick up the Vorkosigan books because the covers are awful. This bookshop had the right idea.
10. Latest purchase
Lots of books for presents. Last book bought for me was Hawk (ebook) and, hmm, actually Inda, back in January, because I wanted my own copy. The last book I bought in hard copy without first having read was Captain Vorpatril's Alliance in October 2012.
11. Christmas classic
Not a book, but, "Gift of the Magi" by O.Henry, which I do love, and his short stories in general. So if I need to list a book,
12. Book of poems
I tend to go for "complete works" collections for the poets I love, but my favorite book of poems is the anothology Top 500 Poems, which was my introduction to Larkin and to "The Naming of Parts" and more Auden than I would've probably encountered on my own, and several of my other favorites.
13. Stocking filler
I'm not really sure what this means, but assuming it's something like "a small-sied book that can be read quickly", let me go with F in Exams, which both B and I greatly enjoyed.
14. Read at school
I liked a number of books I read for school, but I think Lord of the Flies is the one I derived the most enjoyment from, both reading and analyzing.
15. Favorite colour cover
Um... blue, maybe? It's a common enough color, and I find the shades of blue soothing.
16. For someone I love
Well, it really depends on the person in question. I've stopped giving B books because he has no time to read fiction, but I did give him Monday Starts on Saturday in the good translation because I thought he would enjoy the story and because I wanted to share a book I love (which is hard to find in English) with him. But I find I have favorite "to give" books most years -- book that I loved reading some time over the past year and can't wait to share with others. In 2013 this was Rivers of London, this year it was Seraphina. And then there are perennial favorites: I will never be tired of giving friends my favorite Discworld books or the Vorkosigan Saga.
17. Funny read
Dave Barry tends to be my go-to for funny reads. The last books haven't been as laugh-out-loud funny for me, so let's go with one of the classics: I think Dave Barry's Only Travel Guide You'll Ever Need may be my favorite overall. "Give me the fish of your brother Raoul." :DD
18. Massive tome
I was a weird kid who read War and Peace when I was 11. Why? *shurg* 'Cos it was there, I guess. But as for tomes I read and actually *enjoyed*, there's A Storm of Swords (1216 pages in paperback).
19. Travelling home -- reading this
Actually, wintertime tends to be my time to go on vacation. Mmm, last time we went to Hawaii (though it was summer), I had A Dance with Dragons with me. This time, I was reading Cloud Roads on the plane, and since we got here, have been reading one of the books that came with the apartment: Casual Vacancy (I'm enjoying it so far, though it's weird to be reading a non-Harry Potter thing by JKR).
20. Set where I live
The October Daye books are set in San Francisco/the Bay Area, as are lots of other books, like Mr Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore that I read this year. I think my favorite might be Flora Segunda, though. It takes awhile (or at least it took *me* awhile) to figure out that Califa was AU!San Francisco, but that is an aspect of the series that really appeals to me).
21. To be read
I have acquires Max Gladstone's books finally (thanks, egelantier!). Now to actually READ them.
22. Favorite festive scene
I'm sorry to be mentioning Monday Starts Saturday for like the fourth time in this meme, but, genuinely, it's the one that keeps coming up. I love love LOVE the New Year's Eve story/scene, where Privalov is left to mind the institute on his own and ends up in the middle of a party anyway. But in the interests of variety, I will also mention that I'm fond of the Christmassy scenes in the Harry Potter books.
23. The best present
I'm going to take that to mean the best book present I've ever been given. R tends to be really good at this -- she gave me The Magicians a few years back, and it was one of my favorite books for the year -- and I probably wouldn't have read it otherwise, because LJ hates Grossman :P. Oh, though I have to give a shoutout to lunasariel's present to me of The Worse Graphic Novel Ever (the terrible Jhereg adaptation), because I never expected to come across it in real life XD
24. For Father Christmas
What? I feel like I'm missing some cultural references here... Is this, like, the equivalent of the cookies and milk you leave in thanks for the presents? How about Gaiman's Smoke and Mirrors, which includes Nicholas was... :P
25. Under the tree
As mentioned in a previous post, I got The Sixth Watch (the latest -- and last? maybe? of the Lukyanenko Night Watch books) in the holiday parcel from ikel89. I'm apparently also getting a Kindle book from aome this year, but it's for New Year's so I don't know yet, but the rodents have already gotten their presents from her -- the second book of The Selection and a jewelry-making book for L (she's already finished the former, and was planning to drag the jewelry book to Hawaii with us before I advised against it XP), and the conclusion of the False Prince trilogy for O (which he finished on the plane and is now reading for the second time).