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What are you reading right now?
Loved By Choice: True Stories That Celebrate Adoption
which I picked up at our local bookstore. This book is awesome! You hear so many negative stories and situations surrounding the idea of adoption - it's a good idea to immerse one's self in the positive aspect as well. Because adoption IS a positive thing.Do you have an e-reader?
Guffaw! NO! Nor will I ever likely have one. I'm an old fashioned kinda gal who likes her books in her hands, thanks.
Do you prefer to read one book at a time, or several at once?
Well. I PREFER one at a time. However, curiosity has been getting the better of me and I've been working my way through a couple at the same time. I finally gave in and have been keeping one book in the bathroom. (I've previously never understood the books in the bathroom thing until I had kids.)
Have your reading habits changed since starting a blog?
Yes. In some ways the changes have been good, and in other ways not so much. I'm really starting to tighten the belt on review copies, for example, because they are dictating too much of what I read and when and that becomes tiresome. Reading should always be a joy and it's something I absolutely LOVE to do! I want to keep it that way. So I'm taking fewer review copies and reading what I want to read and when again. It's quite lovely, actually!
How often do you read out of your comfort zone?
Rarely. Having children + being a stay at home mom = not very much reading time. Must be choosy! I want to read what I like!
What is your reading comfort zone?
Historical fiction, general (clean, clean) fiction, humor, Middle Grade fiction, and anything by Lucy Maud Montgomery and C.S. Lewis (as you all are well aware!)
Favorite place to read?
On the couch, during naptime.
What is your policy on book lending?
Well. I used to have more of an open door policy until I realized that people don't care about my books as much as I do. Either they come back damaged or they do not come back at all! Hence, I really don't loan books anymore. I either GIVE a book away (so I don't have to think about it anymore) or I just make a recommendation to another person and encourage them to buy it for themselves. But loaning is no longer a possibility which is unfortunate.
Do you ever write in the margins of your books?
NO!
What makes you love a book?
I love a book that challenges me to grow spiritually. I love a book that has a good, strong character that I can identify with and find humor in. I love well-written passages that express my own feelings or opinions on a subject matter.
What will inspire you to recommend a book?
See answers to the last question.
Genre you rarely read (but wish you did?)
Biographies. But that's only because any GOOD biography is going to be a long one and so I have to allocate time for it and time is something I'm generally lacking in.
Favorite biography?
Oh goodness. Hmm. I don't know if I have a favorite biography. Each one is really interesting to me in different ways and for different reasons. I liked Jack: A Life of C.S. Lewis, by George Sayer and I also really enjoyed Bonhoeffer, by Eric Metaxes which was the most recent bio that I read. (You can click on those links to read my reviews if you care to.)
Most inspirational book you’ve read this year (fiction or non-fiction)?
This is another hard one. I think I"m going to go with Swindoll's Great Lives Series which I've been plucking away at this year. They are each fantastic but so far Elijah has been the most surprising to me.
How do you feel about giving bad/negative reviews?
Ah, here's an interesting question. My typical practice is NOT to give a negative review. But that's fairly easy to avoid anyway because I've grown extra choosy about the books I accept for review.
But here's the thing - the only reason I pretty much avoid negative reviews is because authors have a tendency to hunt down reviews for their books. (Pet Peeve.) I rather wish they wouldn't do that because they take offense if you don't like their book. (And I typically wish that they wouldn't leave a comment even if they DO like your review.)
That said, I WILL write up a negative review if any of the following conditions are met:
a.) I think the book could stand an online critique;
b.) I purchased the book myself (or borrowed it from the library) so that I could feel free to speak my mind about it;
c.) I think the book had great potential but somehow fell flat and I can give it a "pro/con" review.
Otherwise, I pretty much stick to books that I really like or got something out of.
Most intimidating book you’ve ever read?
The Faerie Queen, by Edmund Spenser. My friend Canaid at Dwell in Possibility finished it and wrote up a fantastic (and funny, I thought!) review. If you get a chance, you should click over and read her thoughts!
Most intimidating book you’re too nervous to begin?
Hmmm....probably anything by Dickens that isn't A Christmas Carol.
Favorite fictional character?
Anne of Green Gables. Are you surprised?
The longest I’ve gone without reading.
Maybe a week. But I get grouchy if I haven't read anything. As Jonathan. Books are like food. Must eat. Must read.
What distracts you easily when you’re reading?
Nothing much. Like I said, I usually read during naptime and the house is quiet and I don't check e-mails or answer phones so....I get a good hour or so in.
Favorite film adaptation of a novel?
Anne of Green Gables because the first film followed the books well.
Most disappointing film adaptation?
I think I should substitute the word "disappointing" for "enraging." In which case, that would be Anne of Green Gables: The Continuing Story. I refer to it as Anne Heresy.
What would cause you to stop reading a book half-way through?
Bad language or intimate scenes which are too descriptive.
Do you like to keep your books organized?
Yes. But I reckon that my system doesn't really make sense to anyone else checking it out. I know where everything is and why it's there.
Thanks, Barbara, for the fun of the meme!
8 comments:
I used to say that about an e-reader until I got one. :)
Now I realize that there are some books that I love in electronic format and others (presidential biographies, history, books with diagrams or charts, etc.) that I still prefer in paper.
The big thing about the e-reader is how much more I read...because my book is not only on the e-reader but also on my iPod or phone...
I knew we'd have the same answer to the most disappointing film adaptation. :-)
I don't set out to write negative book reviews as I usually read books I think I will like or that have come highly recommended. But I also don't want people who read my reviews to equate them with endorsement or approval. Like the one I mentioned recently with too much intimacy. I had seen reviews for that all over the place and don't remember anyone mentioning that point. So that makes me wonder if that kind of thing is okay with them -- or they just didn't want to mention it and seem negative -- or what. But I know some of my readers are even stricter about that than I am, so I wouldn't want them to read something I reviewed, taking it as a recommendation, and then be surprised and dismayed by something like that.
Plus being of an analytical mind I tend to evaluate good vs. bad points. But I don't want to be nitpicky either. Too, when I read book reviews on a blog that are always constantly at a high level of enthusiasm for each and every book they've read -- that just doesn't ring true to me.
I kind of like it when authors stop by. I've only had one that seemed a little defensive. But I would hope they's look at criticism as a way to improve their writing. I did have another author e-mail me to ask a little more about why I felt the way I did, and I appreciated that because it seemed like she wasn't just being defensive but was trying to understand a reader's opinion.
I enjoyed reading your answers!
This was fun! I always enjoy hearing about someone else's interest in reading and books. I might do this meme on my blog.
I'm totally stealing this meme :)
This was fun to read! We have lots of common ground in our reading practices...
So you're not a margin writer? I don't know about that... I've taken to lending my books to others, begging them to write in the margins so I can have a little informal "dialogue" with them about the book.
I think my reviews tend to be all or nothing--either I totally want everyone to read the book, or I absolutely don't want anyone to read the book. But then again, that's probably because I just skip reviewing the "meh" titles.
I love all your answers! We are so alike! :) Sadly, I have so little time at the moment that I'm dropping out of one of the book reviews gigs I do... I have probably 30 books that I haven't read and I feel so pressured that I can't read what I actually want to read. :(
No writing in the margins? Naturally I don't in borrowed books or library books but I do in the ones I own. Helps me find stuff again.
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