Haha, those covers really look ugly, I'd probably not feel tempted to read that either if I came across it in a book store. But I also don't like the covers they put on at the bookstore, so I still wouldn't read it :-P
As a child, my best friend and I couldn't read books with orange covers. There were several in our library and we always talked about how we would never read those because they were orange.
I don't know, it was always such a faded ugly orange color, not a shiny bright orange. It just looked ugly, so we decided we wouldn't read those books :-P
But I also don't like the covers they put on at the bookstore, so I still wouldn't read it :-P
I think it's one of those cases where -- maybe not very usefully :P -- the people best able to appreciate the stick-figure covers from the bookstore are those who have already read the book :P Honestly, I wish somebody would reissue these books with modern, clean, symbolic covers instead of these 80s monstrosities -- I think those would suit best. (I do highly recommend the books, if you're ever in the mood for warm, funny, character-driven space opera.)
Haha, I was going to ask about the vendetta against orange covers, too -- whether it was because of the color itself or if you noticed a pattern where books you disliked had orange covers -- but you've already answered that below. It's not a color I see on books very often anymore, at least...
You are very welcome! (Also, this reminds me, now that I found a Facebook link, I really should share it with my RL friend who's a fan of the series)
Gerald Durrell was also widely read in India, where I lived as a kid.
I was going to comment, over on egelantier's post, that I think you are actually the first non-Russian(-expat) whom I've encountered who's actually read these books, let alone grew up on them -- that explains it! I might have to ask around at work to see if any of my coworkers who grew up in India are fans, too; they're mostly not animal-loving people, so Durrell might not have the same appeal to them as to me, but I'm very curious now!
I was intrigued to hear that he is still read in Russia!
Other British writers who were very popular in India included Georgette Heyer and PG Wodehouse (both also read in the US), and Enid Blyton. I have met vanishingly few non-British or Indian people who have ever even heard of the latter, but I read literally hundreds of her books.
I have heard of Enid Blyton, but only via LJ, I think -- haven't read any of her books myself. And while I've seen Georgette Heyer books around in the library here in the US, it wasn't until LJ that I knew anything about them to be able to distinguish them from "generic period romance" (I actually picked up Georgette Heyer via recs from Vorkosigan-loving friends, though I've yet to read A Civil Contract; her books are not quite my thing, but I did enjoy what I've read in an expanding-my-horizons sort of way, as well as just enjoying the writing.)
The bingo idea is fun! I think though, for all the books I read this year, I can't get bingo.
Blue cover: I don't know! I see them only in black&white nowadays. A forgotten classic: Forgotten by me? By everyone? Who decides what is a classic? Book with number in the title: I don't think so, though I did read books from series. A funny book: Oddly, I never read humor books. Book of short stories/nonfiction/based on true story/scary: Don't generally read.
I found the bingo card to be more effort than I had anticipated, which probably just means it's put together well :P
Blue cover: I don't know! I see them only in black&white nowadays.
This was similar for me! I actually only realized one of the books I'd read in ebook had a blue cover when I saw it on the cover of a different book (you know, "other books in this series". (Does this mean you're reading on the Kindle these days? I remember you complaining about the lack of color when you first got it.
A forgotten classic: Forgotten by me? By everyone? Who decides what is a classic?This was one I struggled with for similar reasons -- like, what does that even mean? Ultimately, the book people suggested (Tristram Shandy) definitely satisfies the criteria -- it's old, it was read as a classic at some point, and currently isn't part of standard curricula (unlike, say, Shakespeare or Dickens) or public consciousness (unlike, say, Jane Austen), so is pretty well forgotten. And it's definitely not a book I would have picked up if not for
( ... )
(Does this mean you're reading on the Kindle these days? I remember you complaining about the lack of color when you first got it.
I'm 100% reading on the Kindle now, yep. Which is good, since my iPad is sadly dying. I charged it up before that big storm we had, and it lost about 10% charge every 24 hours. It's a first generation iPad, so I must have had it for many years, but it's still sad that it's going. (Maybe the battery could be replaced at a service center? Unfortunately it's too big and clunky for me to really put any money into extending its life.)
I tend not to read nonfiction, based on true story, or scary either, so these areas required stretching outside of my regular fare just for the bingo.I enjoy doing that as well. I think it was last year I took on... what was it called... "stretch reading challenge" maybe. There were 25 choices and you had to pick 10. Interesting ones like "a book written before 1918" and "an autobiography". I didn't complete the challenge, but I did read a number of books I wouldn't otherwise
( ... )
Aww, that's too bad about the old faithful iPad -- I definitely know the feeling of having a piece of technology that can be much more easily/effectively replaced than repaired but being sad at its demise (several old flip phones, e.g.)
I think I did not see the "stretch reading" challenge -- that sounds like it would work similarly (although I do kind of like how the Bingo leaves a lot of room for interpretation, and how a lot of it *could* be filled with my usual reading).
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Haha, those covers really look ugly, I'd probably not feel tempted to read that either if I came across it in a book store. But I also don't like the covers they put on at the bookstore, so I still wouldn't read it :-P
As a child, my best friend and I couldn't read books with orange covers. There were several in our library and we always talked about how we would never read those because they were orange.
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I think it's one of those cases where -- maybe not very usefully :P -- the people best able to appreciate the stick-figure covers from the bookstore are those who have already read the book :P Honestly, I wish somebody would reissue these books with modern, clean, symbolic covers instead of these 80s monstrosities -- I think those would suit best. (I do highly recommend the books, if you're ever in the mood for warm, funny, character-driven space opera.)
Haha, I was going to ask about the vendetta against orange covers, too -- whether it was because of the color itself or if you noticed a pattern where books you disliked had orange covers -- but you've already answered that below. It's not a color I see on books very often anymore, at least...
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*HUGS*
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Gerald Durrell was also widely read in India, where I lived as a kid.
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Gerald Durrell was also widely read in India, where I lived as a kid.
I was going to comment, over on egelantier's post, that I think you are actually the first non-Russian(-expat) whom I've encountered who's actually read these books, let alone grew up on them -- that explains it! I might have to ask around at work to see if any of my coworkers who grew up in India are fans, too; they're mostly not animal-loving people, so Durrell might not have the same appeal to them as to me, but I'm very curious now!
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Other British writers who were very popular in India included Georgette Heyer and PG Wodehouse (both also read in the US), and Enid Blyton. I have met vanishingly few non-British or Indian people who have ever even heard of the latter, but I read literally hundreds of her books.
Now I need to go on a Durrell re-read.
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Blue cover: I don't know! I see them only in black&white nowadays.
A forgotten classic: Forgotten by me? By everyone? Who decides what is a classic?
Book with number in the title: I don't think so, though I did read books from series.
A funny book: Oddly, I never read humor books.
Book of short stories/nonfiction/based on true story/scary: Don't generally read.
Apparently I'm a picky reader.
Congratulations on hitting them all!
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Blue cover: I don't know! I see them only in black&white nowadays.
This was similar for me! I actually only realized one of the books I'd read in ebook had a blue cover when I saw it on the cover of a different book (you know, "other books in this series". (Does this mean you're reading on the Kindle these days? I remember you complaining about the lack of color when you first got it.
A forgotten classic: Forgotten by me? By everyone? Who decides what is a classic?This was one I struggled with for similar reasons -- like, what does that even mean? Ultimately, the book people suggested (Tristram Shandy) definitely satisfies the criteria -- it's old, it was read as a classic at some point, and currently isn't part of standard curricula (unlike, say, Shakespeare or Dickens) or public consciousness (unlike, say, Jane Austen), so is pretty well forgotten. And it's definitely not a book I would have picked up if not for ( ... )
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I'm 100% reading on the Kindle now, yep. Which is good, since my iPad is sadly dying. I charged it up before that big storm we had, and it lost about 10% charge every 24 hours. It's a first generation iPad, so I must have had it for many years, but it's still sad that it's going. (Maybe the battery could be replaced at a service center? Unfortunately it's too big and clunky for me to really put any money into extending its life.)
I tend not to read nonfiction, based on true story, or scary either, so these areas required stretching outside of my regular fare just for the bingo.I enjoy doing that as well. I think it was last year I took on... what was it called... "stretch reading challenge" maybe. There were 25 choices and you had to pick 10. Interesting ones like "a book written before 1918" and "an autobiography". I didn't complete the challenge, but I did read a number of books I wouldn't otherwise ( ... )
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I think I did not see the "stretch reading" challenge -- that sounds like it would work similarly (although I do kind of like how the Bingo leaves a lot of room for interpretation, and how a lot of it *could* be filled with my usual reading).
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