Book meme from scaeriefaerie13
Currently reading:
The Wonder Spot by Melissa Bank. And because I can't just read one book at once, also The Icarus Girl by Helen Oyeyemi.
Next reading:
Probably Kate Atkinson's Emotionally Weird - that's on my borrowed-from-the-library-due-back-soon pile.
Last read:
The Favoured Child, the second book in Philippa Gregory's Wideacre trilogy.
Last book bought:
I'm trying to be good and use the library rather than buy books this year, so I think the last book I bought was a 50p copy of Nicole Krauss' The History of Love from the Library sale shelf not long after we arrived in London.
Shortest book owned:
Difficult to say as most of my books are in storage boxes or shelves on the other side of the planet. Taking a guess, I'd go for Hairy Maclary from Donaldson's Dairy which I bought for a publishing assignment last year.
Longest book owned:
Probably the complete works of Shakespeare, though Shantaram would get the award for the longest book I've attempted (and failed) to read cover to cover.
Favourite book:
It's difficult to pick just one here. If I had to say the one that had the most emotional impact on me, it'd probably be The Time Traveler's Wife… but maybe that was just a case of the right book at the right time. Another recent favourite was The gangster we are all looking for by lê thi diem thúy which I read twice in one night.
Book read the most times:
I haven't read it recently, but Julia Cameron's The Right to Write used to get me writing again when I hit a wall (maybe I need to pick it up again now). The short story collection I've read most often is probably Emily Perkins' Not Her Real Name.
Least favourite book:
I don't think I have a least favourite book. I have books that I don't like, but I just don't like them - because of the plot or the writing or the characters or a hundred other reasons. But I couldn't rank them in terms of least favourite ever, second least favourite and so on.
Favourite 'serious' fiction:
I'm not sure what to categorise as 'serious fiction.' To me it suggests high school English, and being graded on the intense essays I used to write… so in that vain, I'd have to go for To Kill a Mockingbird or 1984.
Favourite comedy:
I found parts of Jonathan Safran Foer's Everything is Illuminated pretty funny. Then again, other parts made me cry.
Favourite classic:
Pride and Prejudice - the book, and all the movie/TV series versions.
Favourite Shakespeare:
Hamlet.
Favourite poetry collection/poet:
I should read more poetry. I really enjoyed what my classmates were writing, and the selections from other poets they brought along to class, but I don't feel qualified to choose a favourite.
Favourite fantasy:
The Harry Potter series, and if I have to choose just one, then Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Apart from that, I don't read much fantasy.
Favourite sci-fi:
Do books like Never Let Me Go and The Handmaid's Tale count as sci-fi? If so, those two. If not, I don't know.
Favourite non-fiction:
The Guardian newspaper.
Favourite historical fiction:
I've been reading more of this recently, particularly novels set in Renaissance Italy… but all time favourite historical fiction would probably be Philippa Gregory's The Other Boleyn Girl.
Favourite chick lit/lad lit:
High Fidelity by Nick Hornby.
Favourite horror:
Red Dragon - the only one of the Hannibal Lecter books that I can say I enjoyed reading.
Favourite Young Adult:
Anything by John Marsden, the 'penpal' books by Jaclyn Moriaty (Finding Cassie Crazy, etc), and Anne of Green Gables.
Favourite manga/graphich novel/comic:
None at the moment, but I'm looking forward to the arrival of the Season 8 Buffy comics in March.
Favourite 'other':
I guess the 'other' category for me is New Zealand fiction even though titles by NZ authors appear in other categories, because back home that's the shelf I spend most of the time browsing. Again I've got lots of favourites, but if asked right now, I'd choose Emily Perkin's Not Her Real Name, Maurice Gee's In My Father's Den and his Plumb trilogy, and My Real Life and Other Stories by Julian Novitz. On a different day, I'd probably have different favourites though.
Favourite series:
Again the award goes to Harry Potter. I'll probably need counselling after Book Seven.
Favourite short story:
Again, difficult to choose. Perhaps Charles Baxter's Kiss Away for the way it plays with point-of-view, or Jo Randerson's The Penguin People for the emotion and the way it flows or Katherine Mansfield's At the Bay because its just a classic.
Favourite play:
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead by Tom Stoppard.
Best book read this year:
Behind the Scenes at the Museum by Kate Atkinson.
Worst book read this year:
Actually they've all been quite good so far, but as
scaeriefaerie13 wrote, it's early days yet!
The Wonder Spot by Melissa Bank. And because I can't just read one book at once, also The Icarus Girl by Helen Oyeyemi.
Next reading:
Probably Kate Atkinson's Emotionally Weird - that's on my borrowed-from-the-library-due-back-soon pile.
Last read:
The Favoured Child, the second book in Philippa Gregory's Wideacre trilogy.
Last book bought:
I'm trying to be good and use the library rather than buy books this year, so I think the last book I bought was a 50p copy of Nicole Krauss' The History of Love from the Library sale shelf not long after we arrived in London.
Shortest book owned:
Difficult to say as most of my books are in storage boxes or shelves on the other side of the planet. Taking a guess, I'd go for Hairy Maclary from Donaldson's Dairy which I bought for a publishing assignment last year.
Longest book owned:
Probably the complete works of Shakespeare, though Shantaram would get the award for the longest book I've attempted (and failed) to read cover to cover.
Favourite book:
It's difficult to pick just one here. If I had to say the one that had the most emotional impact on me, it'd probably be The Time Traveler's Wife… but maybe that was just a case of the right book at the right time. Another recent favourite was The gangster we are all looking for by lê thi diem thúy which I read twice in one night.
Book read the most times:
I haven't read it recently, but Julia Cameron's The Right to Write used to get me writing again when I hit a wall (maybe I need to pick it up again now). The short story collection I've read most often is probably Emily Perkins' Not Her Real Name.
Least favourite book:
I don't think I have a least favourite book. I have books that I don't like, but I just don't like them - because of the plot or the writing or the characters or a hundred other reasons. But I couldn't rank them in terms of least favourite ever, second least favourite and so on.
Favourite 'serious' fiction:
I'm not sure what to categorise as 'serious fiction.' To me it suggests high school English, and being graded on the intense essays I used to write… so in that vain, I'd have to go for To Kill a Mockingbird or 1984.
Favourite comedy:
I found parts of Jonathan Safran Foer's Everything is Illuminated pretty funny. Then again, other parts made me cry.
Favourite classic:
Pride and Prejudice - the book, and all the movie/TV series versions.
Favourite Shakespeare:
Hamlet.
Favourite poetry collection/poet:
I should read more poetry. I really enjoyed what my classmates were writing, and the selections from other poets they brought along to class, but I don't feel qualified to choose a favourite.
Favourite fantasy:
The Harry Potter series, and if I have to choose just one, then Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Apart from that, I don't read much fantasy.
Favourite sci-fi:
Do books like Never Let Me Go and The Handmaid's Tale count as sci-fi? If so, those two. If not, I don't know.
Favourite non-fiction:
The Guardian newspaper.
Favourite historical fiction:
I've been reading more of this recently, particularly novels set in Renaissance Italy… but all time favourite historical fiction would probably be Philippa Gregory's The Other Boleyn Girl.
Favourite chick lit/lad lit:
High Fidelity by Nick Hornby.
Favourite horror:
Red Dragon - the only one of the Hannibal Lecter books that I can say I enjoyed reading.
Favourite Young Adult:
Anything by John Marsden, the 'penpal' books by Jaclyn Moriaty (Finding Cassie Crazy, etc), and Anne of Green Gables.
Favourite manga/graphich novel/comic:
None at the moment, but I'm looking forward to the arrival of the Season 8 Buffy comics in March.
Favourite 'other':
I guess the 'other' category for me is New Zealand fiction even though titles by NZ authors appear in other categories, because back home that's the shelf I spend most of the time browsing. Again I've got lots of favourites, but if asked right now, I'd choose Emily Perkin's Not Her Real Name, Maurice Gee's In My Father's Den and his Plumb trilogy, and My Real Life and Other Stories by Julian Novitz. On a different day, I'd probably have different favourites though.
Favourite series:
Again the award goes to Harry Potter. I'll probably need counselling after Book Seven.
Favourite short story:
Again, difficult to choose. Perhaps Charles Baxter's Kiss Away for the way it plays with point-of-view, or Jo Randerson's The Penguin People for the emotion and the way it flows or Katherine Mansfield's At the Bay because its just a classic.
Favourite play:
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead by Tom Stoppard.
Best book read this year:
Behind the Scenes at the Museum by Kate Atkinson.
Worst book read this year:
Actually they've all been quite good so far, but as
scaeriefaerie13 wrote, it's early days yet!