Book Meme

[bearshorty]

Taken from megan_moonlight


1. Favorite childhood book?
There are too many. Tomek books, "A Girl From the Future" by Kir Bulychev, Russian adaptation of Wizard of Oz in six volumes, over twenty Tarzan books, Beauty and the Beast, all of the Dumas novels. I really can't choose.

2. What are you reading right now?
I'm about 2/3 of the way though the Alexander Hamilton biography by Ron Chernow and I'm on Canto 29 of Dante's Purgatory. I also have Ishiguro and Bechdel on standby - I read the first chapter of each - but I'm trying hard to just finish Hamilton before my semester starts.

3. What books do you have on request at the library?
None. I do have a wish list there, if I ever get to it.

4. Bad book habit?
I tend to skim ahead in a printed book and also to look at the end. I don't do it with Kindle and I found that I started doing this less when I read a physical book too.

5. What do you currently have checked out at the library?
Nothing. I have lots of purchased books and books given as gifts that I really want to read. But I do love the library.

6. Do you have an e-reader?
Yes, a Kindle I got for my birthday four years ago. I love it. There are times when I can't carry books or can only read with the flashlight, so it's very convenient. My Dad also finds books online for me if I need them in Kindle format. And I love that sometimes when I want a book I can borrow it from the library on my Kindle within minutes without leaving the house.

7. Do you prefer to read one book at a time, or several at once?
I don't plan it but I usually have several books going at once. If I'm really engaged with a book I will just read it by itself but I like having several books at once, and reading depending on my mood.

8. Have your reading habits changed since starting a blog?
Mostly in recs. I end up reading books I didn't plan on reading.

9. Least favorite book you read in 2015
I liked all my books, actually. None of them I really disliked. I guess I liked Foundation by Isaac Asimov the least. It was fine but parts of it were a bit boring.

10. Favorite book you’ve read in 2015?
Fun Home: A family tragicomic by Alison Bechdel. Very smart and thought provoking and very honest. I really just loved it.

11. How often do you read out of your comfort zone?
I guess not a lot as I usually have a list of things I want to read or are drawn to recs. But then what is a comfort zone really? I don't think any style would make me uncomfortable.

12. What is your reading comfort zone?
I don't generally read horror or gross things but I don't really have limits on what I read.

13. Can you read on the bus?
No, I get motion sickness. I can't read in the car either. But train or plane is fine for reading.

14. Favorite place to read?
I don't really have one but I guess, lately, the train on my commute.

15. What is your policy on book lending?
I generally don't - I mostly share with Bear or Dad - there are not that many people in real life that I really talk about books with - my social circle is limited lately. But I don't really like to lend books as most people keep the book for years and I have to remind them to give it back.

16. Do you ever dog-ear books?
No. I'm protective of my books.

17. Do you ever write in the margins of your books?
Only in textbooks and books for work. And occasionally in Kindle notes. I might occasionally underline something striking but this is really, really rare.

18. Not even with text books?
Yes, in text books.

19. What is your favorite language to read in?
I don't have a favorite. I read mostly in English and occasionally in Russian, although I'm trying to read in Russian more. But it's not like I prefer one over the other, both are the same and equal for me.

20. What makes you love a book?
Characters, plot, occasionally language. And an interesting story which resonates with me.

21. What will inspire you to recommend a book?
If I love it and just want others to check it out.

22. Favorite genre?
Sci-fi, history books, historical fiction, classics , biography, non-fiction

23. Genre you rarely read (but wish you did?)
If I wished to read something, I would regardless of the genre. I guess I would read more travel books.

24. Favorite biography?
Favorite autobiography was Nabokov's - his language was just gorgeous. "Three Weeks with my Brother" by Nicholas Sparks and Micah Sparks was also very engaging and I really enjoyed it. Just this year, I really liked On the Move by Oliver Sacks.

25. Have you ever read a self-help book?
I glanced at some in the library but I don't generally find them useful

26. Favorite cookbook?
Betty Crocker - I got it when I was in my early 20s and it is still favorite today, despite looking up a lot of stuff online. That book assumes that one knows nothing and explains everything from how long to cook each vegetable to what cuts of meat mean. Some of the baking recipes in it are my to go recipes.

27. Most inspirational book you’ve read this year (fiction or non-fiction)?
On The Move by Oliver Sacks - he had such a life. And his style is just common sense and very relatable.

28. Favorite reading snack?
None. I don't really eat while I read. I don't associate reading with food.

29. Name a case in which hype ruined your reading experience.
I can't really think of anything.

30. How often do you agree with critics about a book?
I don't look at book reviews that much. And I don't compare notes afterward. I do check out some Amazon reviews when buying a book as a present but just for general idea. I used to enjoy reading book reviews when I lived in London - I would get the Sunday Times and enjoy. I got some good recs that way. But I don't really pay attention to critics. They mostly spark awareness of an author for me.

31. How do you feel about giving bad/negative reviews?
I don't do a lot of reviews but if I didn't like the book I would be honest about it. Not everyone likes the same things. I don't think it's mean to say that I didn't like a certain book.

32. If you could read in a foreign language, which language would you chose?
I'm fine with just reading in English and Russian and some Latin and some French. I guess I would want to be more fluent in French.

33. Most intimidating book you’ve ever read?
I don't know about intimidating. Les Miserables probably because it is just so long. And some Faulkner books.

34. Most intimidating book you’re too nervous to begin?
Master and Margarita I think. There is so much hype and I'm not sure if I will like it or the style. So many people love it too. But I do want to tackle it this year and see.

35. Favorite Poet?

Pushkin. And Chukovsky.

36. How many books do you usually have checked out of the library at any given time?
Right now none, but I used to check out up to maybe three books at a time. Usually just the ones I really want to read.

37. How often have you returned book to the library unread?
I don't remember but sometimes. Most of the times I take out books specifically to read them; I don't take it out just to peruse.

38. Favorite fictional character?
That's not a really fair question. There are too many.
Severus Snape, Remus Lupin, Elizabeth Bennett, Anne Elliot, Merlin from the Mary Stewart Trilogy, Athos. Too many to really list.

39. Favorite fictional villain?
Cardinal Richelieu, Crowley from "Good Omens"

40. Books I’m most likely to bring on vacation?
Any books on my reading list that are easy to pack. And my Kindle with its library. I read what I would normally read, not anything different.

41. The longest I’ve gone without reading.
Not long. Maybe a few days. If I'm not reading a book, I'm reading fanfic. I read a lot, just not always actual books.

42. Name a book that you could/would not finish.
Amos Oz's A Tale of Love and Darkness , Prague Cemetery by Umberto Eco, Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie

43. What distracts you easily when you’re reading?
Nothing, if I just set out to read. But Tanya usually, if I'm reading and she needs attention.

44. Favorite film adaptation of a novel?
Persuasion, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter

45. Most disappointing film adaptation?
"I am Legend" - that movie completely reversed and changed the meaning of the book

46. The most money I’ve ever spent in the bookstore at one time?
I don't remember. I never buy more than a few books though, so not that much.

47. How often do you skim a book before reading it?
Reading an actual book - all the time. Kindle - no

48. What would cause you to stop reading a book half-way through?
When it becomes such a chore, I start thinking why I bother. There are so many other books to read. I'm less willing to slug through as I get older. I'm loath to give up on a book but sometimes I just have to. The funny thing is, sometimes I pick up the book years later and fly though it. That happened to "The Name of the Rose" by Umberto Eco - first time I could not get through fifty pages. A few years later, I read all 600 pages in 4 days. One of my favorite books.

49. Do you like to keep your books organized?
Yes, by genre, but mostly I just put them where there is room. I remember where all are.

50. Do you prefer to keep books or give them away once you’ve read them?
Keep them! I hate giving away books. But I would rather donate books than throw them out. I can never bring myself to throw them out. That feels wrong.

51. Are there any books you’ve been avoiding?
Twilight. Fifty Shades of Gray. Bleh.

52. Name a book that made you angry.
I can't think of one. Maybe Wuthering Heights. I dislike that book and its protagonists so much. I don't generally get angry about books, though.

53. A book you didn’t expect to like but did?
Emma - I didn't particularly like the Paltrow movie so that colored my perception of the book before I read it. But the book itself is delightful.
Light in August - It was the first Faulker I read. It was in the high school AP class. I thought it would be too hard but I ended up liking it a lot.

54. A book that you expected to like but didn’t?
Dune - all the characters just got on my nerves. I had high expectations of such a sci-fi classic but I barely finished it because I grew to dislike everyone as the book progressed.
Ender's Game - the book itself was fine but the last chapter just lost me. What was that?
Ocean at the End of the Lane - I love Neil Gaiman and I was looking forward to it. But it felt like such a rehash of his themes that I didn't really like it.

55. Favorite guilt-free, pleasure reading?
I don't really feel guilty about books I read. Fanfic would probably qualify there. I read it for fun.