Even Longer Book Meme, An Article, and Wankage Report
Gak'd from bambu345 - because who can resist a book meme? Apparently, not me.
1. One book that changed your life:
Anthem by Ayn Rand.
This book led me to her Atlas Shrugged, which turned my political leanings inside out and led me to binge on philosophy, political science and policy, and economics, which led me to become politically active and work in campaigns, which led to law school... Enough said.
2. One book that you’ve read more than once:
Persuasion by Jane Austen.
What is it about Austen and HP fans? Or is it just HG/SS? I remember when Austen was my personal and secret pleasure--yea, verily, even before the A&E/BBC Colin Firth version of Pride and Prejudice and the slew of adaptations that followed. But it's always been Persuasion that was my favorite Austen book--if only for that letter at the end--one of the most romantic declarations in all literature--anyone who has read the book will understand what I mean.
3. One book you’d want on a desert island:
US Army Survival Manual.
bambu345 had a similar logic I think--it's a matter of survival! Though incidentally, I first got this book for fic purposes (other fandom), and I recommend it for that as well--it'll tell you everything from first aid, to how to test whether food is edible or poisonous, to basic survival in any terrain from desert to tropical to subarctic to the seas.
4. One book that made you laugh:
High Fidelity by Nick Hornby.
If you love our Snape and Draco for their wit and snark in a Brit package, you might like this one. God knows any author that can make you laugh is priceless.
5. One book that made you cry:
Kushiel's Chosen by Jacqueline Carey.
This is the third in a trilogy, and I didn't start the books before all three had been published. I devoured them quickly. By the time I came to the end of this journey, I was so completely with the heroine of this series she seemed real enough to move me to tears.
6. One book that you wish had been written:
Sandition by Jane Austen.
Austen's last, unfinished book. Others have tried completing it, but in a way I find unsatisfying - I wish Austen had lived to finish it.
7. One book that you wish had never been written:
Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler.
Predictable choice, I know. Though I doubt it's really any eloquence or any appeal of the ideas put forth in the book itself that caused the damage - unlike say Marx's Das Kapital. Truly though, if certain ideas are out there, you don't do much good by stopping them from appearing in a book--it just has to be fought on its own grounds with better ideas.
8. One book you’re currently reading:
Possession by A. S. Byatt.
I'm on a contemporary Brit Lit kick - and this book is lush, romantic, and lyrical in parts in a way hard to convey.
9. One book you’ve been meaning to read:
Churchill by Martin Gilbert.
Supposedly the definitive recent biography, from which Rudolf Giuliani reportedly drew strength in the aftermath of 9/11. Doorstopper of a book though--if it fell on my toe, it would break it.
10. Now tag five people:
I will follow bambu345's example and simply leave it to whoever on my f-list finds this irresistable.
And for all the Comma Nazi's out there and those who love them, I can't resist linking to this article about a new book about punctuation.
"New Book Teaches Kids About Punctuation"
Finally--yes, there has been the mother of all fandom wanks yesterday--but one I think is important to spread the word about. The new admin of Whispers, who calls hirself "Hermione," told authors in emails that if they didn't update stories at Whispers, their stories would be updated for them. Then someone noticed that Whispers had a new TOS that asserted a right to do batch uploads of stories from Whispers and other archives. "Hermione" then promoted on WIKTT a new archive, The Pensieve, for all completed multi-chaptered HG/SS stories. On that archive were stories lifted w/o permission from other archives. To top it all off, parts of stories and author's notes were lopped off. Rather than just repeat all that ensued, I'll just link to three LJ entries on the subject that were publicly posted:
Larilee's Post "Certifiable Nerve" (I made full use of the text Larilee provided in my own email to "Hermione")
AND
Ozratbag's Post "When Good Archives Go Bad"
AND
Metamuse's Post "Update on Whispers"
You can also take a look at the back and forth on This WIKTT thread
I deleted my own WIP, Book of Shadows from the old Whispers today. (I couldn't yesterday--"Hermione" had removed that option at that time.) Whispers was the first archive I ever posted my HP fic to, and I'll never forget the welcome I got there. I look forward to being a part of the new site run by the old admin Whispers admin, azraelgeffen, which will be called WIKTT Archives.
And if after all this, you need a good laugh, there's this from wolf_moonshadow: Click here if you Dare
And then there's larilee's hilarious spoof on the matter, The Dickless Wonder.
1. One book that changed your life:
Anthem by Ayn Rand.
This book led me to her Atlas Shrugged, which turned my political leanings inside out and led me to binge on philosophy, political science and policy, and economics, which led me to become politically active and work in campaigns, which led to law school... Enough said.
2. One book that you’ve read more than once:
Persuasion by Jane Austen.
What is it about Austen and HP fans? Or is it just HG/SS? I remember when Austen was my personal and secret pleasure--yea, verily, even before the A&E/BBC Colin Firth version of Pride and Prejudice and the slew of adaptations that followed. But it's always been Persuasion that was my favorite Austen book--if only for that letter at the end--one of the most romantic declarations in all literature--anyone who has read the book will understand what I mean.
3. One book you’d want on a desert island:
US Army Survival Manual.
bambu345 had a similar logic I think--it's a matter of survival! Though incidentally, I first got this book for fic purposes (other fandom), and I recommend it for that as well--it'll tell you everything from first aid, to how to test whether food is edible or poisonous, to basic survival in any terrain from desert to tropical to subarctic to the seas.
4. One book that made you laugh:
High Fidelity by Nick Hornby.
If you love our Snape and Draco for their wit and snark in a Brit package, you might like this one. God knows any author that can make you laugh is priceless.
5. One book that made you cry:
Kushiel's Chosen by Jacqueline Carey.
This is the third in a trilogy, and I didn't start the books before all three had been published. I devoured them quickly. By the time I came to the end of this journey, I was so completely with the heroine of this series she seemed real enough to move me to tears.
6. One book that you wish had been written:
Sandition by Jane Austen.
Austen's last, unfinished book. Others have tried completing it, but in a way I find unsatisfying - I wish Austen had lived to finish it.
7. One book that you wish had never been written:
Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler.
Predictable choice, I know. Though I doubt it's really any eloquence or any appeal of the ideas put forth in the book itself that caused the damage - unlike say Marx's Das Kapital. Truly though, if certain ideas are out there, you don't do much good by stopping them from appearing in a book--it just has to be fought on its own grounds with better ideas.
8. One book you’re currently reading:
Possession by A. S. Byatt.
I'm on a contemporary Brit Lit kick - and this book is lush, romantic, and lyrical in parts in a way hard to convey.
9. One book you’ve been meaning to read:
Churchill by Martin Gilbert.
Supposedly the definitive recent biography, from which Rudolf Giuliani reportedly drew strength in the aftermath of 9/11. Doorstopper of a book though--if it fell on my toe, it would break it.
10. Now tag five people:
I will follow bambu345's example and simply leave it to whoever on my f-list finds this irresistable.
And for all the Comma Nazi's out there and those who love them, I can't resist linking to this article about a new book about punctuation.
"New Book Teaches Kids About Punctuation"
Finally--yes, there has been the mother of all fandom wanks yesterday--but one I think is important to spread the word about. The new admin of Whispers, who calls hirself "Hermione," told authors in emails that if they didn't update stories at Whispers, their stories would be updated for them. Then someone noticed that Whispers had a new TOS that asserted a right to do batch uploads of stories from Whispers and other archives. "Hermione" then promoted on WIKTT a new archive, The Pensieve, for all completed multi-chaptered HG/SS stories. On that archive were stories lifted w/o permission from other archives. To top it all off, parts of stories and author's notes were lopped off. Rather than just repeat all that ensued, I'll just link to three LJ entries on the subject that were publicly posted:
Larilee's Post "Certifiable Nerve" (I made full use of the text Larilee provided in my own email to "Hermione")
AND
Ozratbag's Post "When Good Archives Go Bad"
AND
Metamuse's Post "Update on Whispers"
You can also take a look at the back and forth on This WIKTT thread
I deleted my own WIP, Book of Shadows from the old Whispers today. (I couldn't yesterday--"Hermione" had removed that option at that time.) Whispers was the first archive I ever posted my HP fic to, and I'll never forget the welcome I got there. I look forward to being a part of the new site run by the old admin Whispers admin, azraelgeffen, which will be called WIKTT Archives.
And if after all this, you need a good laugh, there's this from wolf_moonshadow: Click here if you Dare
And then there's larilee's hilarious spoof on the matter, The Dickless Wonder.