(no subject)
stolen from littlerhymes
Paperback, hardback or trade paperback?
Paperback! Conveniently portable.
Amazon or brick and mortar?
I love browsing bookstores. The proper ones for the shiny glossy new stuff, window shopping; the second hand and cheapie stores for actual affordable book indulgence. I do long for the days when I had uni in the morning, and then could trawl my own Bermuda Triangle of spending money that was the route from Kinokuniya down to Book Basement at Central with all the second hand places in between...
Barnes & Noble or Borders
Barnes & Noble does not exist in Australia. So Borders by default. Out of the chain bookstores, I like Borders best anyway.
Bookmark or dog-ear?
Please don't kill me...I dog-ear. My own books only, of course, but it is a habit. For other people's books I tend to just remember the page or chapter number and go from there. I own *heaps* of bookmarks, mostly gifts from well-meaning friends, but I find them annoying, and they're always dropping out of place, which defeats the purpose.
Favorite place to read?
I'm so accustomed to reading on public transport that I'm at lost if I'm on the train without a book. Otherwise, in bed, late at night.
Alphabetize by author or alphabetize by title or random?
Fiction, then non-fiction, then poetry, then comics/graphic novels; alphabetised within each section by author.
Keep, throw away, or sell?
Keep the books I love and/or are likely to want to reread. Bookmooch/give to friends for everything else. I don't throw away books unless they've gotten so tatty they fall apart when held, and even then if it's something I love I won't throw it out until I've found a replacement copy.
Keep dust jacket or toss it?
Keep it, though I don't honestly own many books with a dust jacket.
Read with dust jacket or remove it?
Without, of course.
Short story or novel?
I'm really fond of short stories, but I tend to read novels.
Harry Potter or Lemony Snicket?
HP! I loved Harry Potter from the first time I read PS, and now it's so tied in with my fandom experience that I will always have good memories of it. I never got into Lemony Snicket, because I think it relies on style and I didn't particularly take to it. I should probably give it another go.
Stop reading when tired or at chapter breaks?
Last night, I started reading a book "just for a little while before bed" at 11:30pm and ended up finishing it and going to bed a *leeetle* late. Ahem.
"It was a dark and stormy night" or "Once upon a time"?
'Once upon a time'. Fairytales all the way.
Buy or borrow?
Borrow. I belong to multiple council libraries (none of them my own, ahahaha), I raid littlerhymes' collection much too often for too long, and I'll bookmooch where I can. If I buy, it's usually from the cheap places, or second hand.
New or used?
Used is fine, because it's always more affordable, and then I can get more books. New for things that I read on loan but loved so much that I must have on my shelves for revisiting.
Buying choice: book reviews, recommendations, or browse?
I rely a lot on the flist for book recs (so whenever one of you posts about books, I love it!) because I've worked out that most of you have similar or at least very interesting book taste. But if I'm in a cheap or second hand bookshop I'll browse.
Tidy ending or cliffhanger?
I don't like cliffhangers, but I don't need the endings to be too neat either. I like resolution, with a view to things progressing maybe in the future, but not starting right now.
Morning reading, afternoon reading, or nighttime reading?
Any time! But if we factor in the realities of time, then it's usually at night just before bed, or in the afternoon on weekends.
Stand-alone or series?
Stand-alone, and finished series.
Favorite series?
Good grief! Too many to list...Discworld, HP, Hitchhiker's series. Pat Barker's Regeneration trilogy. The Sandman.
Favorite children's book?
Where the Wild Things Are. Impunity Jane. Spot books. =)
Favorite YA book?
Argh! Pagan's Vows - Catherine Jinks. Howl's Moving Castle - Diana Wynne Jones. Looking for Alibrandi - Melina Marchetta (hey, you think *you're* predictable?) I'm sure there's plenty others...
Favorite book of which nobody else has heard?
The Orchard - Drusilla Modjeska
Honk If You Are Jesus - Peter Goldsworthy
The Giant's House - Elizabeth McCracken
Favorite books read last year?
Another Bullshit Night in Suck City - Nick Flynn
Starting From Square Two - Caren Lissner
Prep - Curtis Sittenfield
Watchmen - Alan Moore
Every Man For Himself - Beryl Bainbridge
More books, and more detailed recs, in this post
Favorite books of all time?
Impossible to pick. I can't think of many people who love books who could name a favourite.
Least favorite book you finished last year?
Bras and Broomsticks - Sarah Mlynowski
When You Wake and Find Me Gone - Maureen McCarthy
What are you reading right now?
I just finished The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale last night, and haven't started the next one. I've started a few books that I haven't gotten back to - The December Boys by Michael Noonan, Black Sun Rising by C.S. Friedman.
What are you reading next?
I received Melusine in the mail today (yay Bookmooch!) so I think that'll be next. Or Peter Pan in Scarlet so I can return it to Ro soon.
Favorite book to recommend to an eleven-year-old?
Narnia series, if they haven't read it yet. The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents by Terry Pratchett. Diana Wynne Jones Chrestomanic series. Harry Potter series, obvs.
Favorite book to reread?
Little Women. Regeneration / Ghost Road by Pat Barker. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Smoke and Mirrors by Neil Gaiman. High Fidelity by Nick Hornby. Thief of Time / Night Watch by Terry Pratchett. Harry Potter series. my Dragonlance books, heh.
Do you ever smell books?
Not deliberately, no.
Do you ever read primary source documents?
Yes, I do. Hmm...this seems a little out of place as the last question.
Paperback, hardback or trade paperback?
Paperback! Conveniently portable.
Amazon or brick and mortar?
I love browsing bookstores. The proper ones for the shiny glossy new stuff, window shopping; the second hand and cheapie stores for actual affordable book indulgence. I do long for the days when I had uni in the morning, and then could trawl my own Bermuda Triangle of spending money that was the route from Kinokuniya down to Book Basement at Central with all the second hand places in between...
Barnes & Noble or Borders
Barnes & Noble does not exist in Australia. So Borders by default. Out of the chain bookstores, I like Borders best anyway.
Bookmark or dog-ear?
Please don't kill me...I dog-ear. My own books only, of course, but it is a habit. For other people's books I tend to just remember the page or chapter number and go from there. I own *heaps* of bookmarks, mostly gifts from well-meaning friends, but I find them annoying, and they're always dropping out of place, which defeats the purpose.
Favorite place to read?
I'm so accustomed to reading on public transport that I'm at lost if I'm on the train without a book. Otherwise, in bed, late at night.
Alphabetize by author or alphabetize by title or random?
Fiction, then non-fiction, then poetry, then comics/graphic novels; alphabetised within each section by author.
Keep, throw away, or sell?
Keep the books I love and/or are likely to want to reread. Bookmooch/give to friends for everything else. I don't throw away books unless they've gotten so tatty they fall apart when held, and even then if it's something I love I won't throw it out until I've found a replacement copy.
Keep dust jacket or toss it?
Keep it, though I don't honestly own many books with a dust jacket.
Read with dust jacket or remove it?
Without, of course.
Short story or novel?
I'm really fond of short stories, but I tend to read novels.
Harry Potter or Lemony Snicket?
HP! I loved Harry Potter from the first time I read PS, and now it's so tied in with my fandom experience that I will always have good memories of it. I never got into Lemony Snicket, because I think it relies on style and I didn't particularly take to it. I should probably give it another go.
Stop reading when tired or at chapter breaks?
Last night, I started reading a book "just for a little while before bed" at 11:30pm and ended up finishing it and going to bed a *leeetle* late. Ahem.
"It was a dark and stormy night" or "Once upon a time"?
'Once upon a time'. Fairytales all the way.
Buy or borrow?
Borrow. I belong to multiple council libraries (none of them my own, ahahaha), I raid littlerhymes' collection much too often for too long, and I'll bookmooch where I can. If I buy, it's usually from the cheap places, or second hand.
New or used?
Used is fine, because it's always more affordable, and then I can get more books. New for things that I read on loan but loved so much that I must have on my shelves for revisiting.
Buying choice: book reviews, recommendations, or browse?
I rely a lot on the flist for book recs (so whenever one of you posts about books, I love it!) because I've worked out that most of you have similar or at least very interesting book taste. But if I'm in a cheap or second hand bookshop I'll browse.
Tidy ending or cliffhanger?
I don't like cliffhangers, but I don't need the endings to be too neat either. I like resolution, with a view to things progressing maybe in the future, but not starting right now.
Morning reading, afternoon reading, or nighttime reading?
Any time! But if we factor in the realities of time, then it's usually at night just before bed, or in the afternoon on weekends.
Stand-alone or series?
Stand-alone, and finished series.
Favorite series?
Good grief! Too many to list...Discworld, HP, Hitchhiker's series. Pat Barker's Regeneration trilogy. The Sandman.
Favorite children's book?
Where the Wild Things Are. Impunity Jane. Spot books. =)
Favorite YA book?
Argh! Pagan's Vows - Catherine Jinks. Howl's Moving Castle - Diana Wynne Jones. Looking for Alibrandi - Melina Marchetta (hey, you think *you're* predictable?) I'm sure there's plenty others...
Favorite book of which nobody else has heard?
The Orchard - Drusilla Modjeska
Honk If You Are Jesus - Peter Goldsworthy
The Giant's House - Elizabeth McCracken
Favorite books read last year?
Another Bullshit Night in Suck City - Nick Flynn
Starting From Square Two - Caren Lissner
Prep - Curtis Sittenfield
Watchmen - Alan Moore
Every Man For Himself - Beryl Bainbridge
More books, and more detailed recs, in this post
Favorite books of all time?
Impossible to pick. I can't think of many people who love books who could name a favourite.
Least favorite book you finished last year?
Bras and Broomsticks - Sarah Mlynowski
When You Wake and Find Me Gone - Maureen McCarthy
What are you reading right now?
I just finished The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale last night, and haven't started the next one. I've started a few books that I haven't gotten back to - The December Boys by Michael Noonan, Black Sun Rising by C.S. Friedman.
What are you reading next?
I received Melusine in the mail today (yay Bookmooch!) so I think that'll be next. Or Peter Pan in Scarlet so I can return it to Ro soon.
Favorite book to recommend to an eleven-year-old?
Narnia series, if they haven't read it yet. The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents by Terry Pratchett. Diana Wynne Jones Chrestomanic series. Harry Potter series, obvs.
Favorite book to reread?
Little Women. Regeneration / Ghost Road by Pat Barker. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Smoke and Mirrors by Neil Gaiman. High Fidelity by Nick Hornby. Thief of Time / Night Watch by Terry Pratchett. Harry Potter series. my Dragonlance books, heh.
Do you ever smell books?
Not deliberately, no.
Do you ever read primary source documents?
Yes, I do. Hmm...this seems a little out of place as the last question.