Books!!!

I found this over at Whispers Of the Wind ( http://arries-whispersofthewind.blogspot.com ) and thought it looked like fun!

1. Favorite childhood book/s?

The Archives of Anthropos by John White.  Or else The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis.

2. What are you reading right now?

Magic for Marigold, by L.M. Montgomery, and The Doula Book, by Klaus, Kennell, and Klaus.

3. What books do you have on request at the library?

Homebirth: The Essential Guide to giving Birth outside the Hospital, by Sheila Kitzinger.

4. What do you currently have checked out at the library?

Nothing currently…I own too many books I need to read while waiting for the one I have requested.

5. Do you have an e-reader?

No.

6. Do you prefer to read one book at a time, or several at once?

Up to three, depending on what they are.  One non-fiction, one fiction, and maybe one history thrown in there.

7. Can you read on the bus?

I have never tried!  I can read in a car though.

8. Favorite place to read?

I have a comfy chair in my room…

9. Do you ever dog-ear books?

No!  Many of my books are very, very old, and if I tried to dog-ear them, the corner would break off.  I use bookmarks, or remember where I was.

10. Do you ever write in the margins of your books?

No.

11. What makes you love a book?

I must be able to identify with and respect the characters.  They must have hearts and souls, and yet act in a way that I can put myself in their place.  And usually there is some sort of redemption story, or noble sacrifice made by one to save others.

12. What will inspire you to recommend a book?

If I feel that not only did it hold my interest, but I took something away, gleaned something, am better for the reading of it.

13. Favorite genre?

History and Historical Fiction, as long as it’s not fiction trying to pretend it’s historical by taking modernized people and sticking them a few hundred years back.

14. How do you feel about giving bad/negative reviews?

If a book just does not hold my interest, I will probably forget about it before I could tell someone not to read it.  Only if I take strong issue with a book, and am filled with indignation that someone would dare write such a thing, will I tell everyone I know not to read it.

15. Favorite Poet?

Longfellow…I know there are others but they escape my memory at the moment.

16. How many books do you usually have checked out of the library at any given time?

One or two, although once I reserved a record 50.  My mom told me never to do so again. J

17. How often have you returned books to the library unread?

Rarely.  On occasion I will just flip through the book, but that is usually if it is an instruction manual, with lots of pictures.

18. Favorite fictional character?

Mary Barton.  Or Molly, from Wives and Daughters.  Or Helen, from the book of that name by Maria Edgeworth…Although I must say, Louisa May Alcott’s Rose Campbell and Polly from an Old Fashioned Girl are up there…With Sir Percy Blakeney (we are talking about books here) .  When I first started to read the Chronicles of Narnia, Susan was my favorite because she had dark hair that went down to her feet…but then when I got to The Last Battle and heard how she’d strayed, she plunged down in the ranks.

19. Favorite fictional villain?

Citoyen Chauvelin! Shagah and Hocoino, The Goblin Prince, and the Mystery of Abomination from the Archives of Anthropos!

20. Books I’m most likely to bring on vacation?

Whatever I haven’t read in a while and can delude myself into thinking I’ll have time to read.

21. The longest I’ve gone without reading.

An actual physical book? I have no idea.  A few weeks maybe?

22. Name a book that you could/would not finish.

A Southern Woman of Letters.  It’s supposed to be a collection of letters written by Augusta Jane Evans Wilson, but I read only the introduction, in which they twist every known fact about her to try and make her sound as evil (or what they would consider good) as possible. I could no longer bear their commentary and haven’t picked it up since.

23. What distracts you easily when you’re reading?

Once I’m settled down and have read a bit, not much, unless I’m really tired or have something else I need to do that I keep thinking about.

24. Favorite film adaptation of a novel?

I don’t like it when they make movies of books.  They should come up with their own stories instead of stealing other peoples.  However, some of the older versions of the Jane Austen films are not too bad and stick to the books pretty well.

25. Most disappointing film adaptation?

The Sound of Music.  Read The Von Trapp Family Singers by Maria Von Trapp, and you will find that the only things they kept the same were her name, the genders of the children, and the fact that she ends up marrying the captian.

26. What would cause you to stop reading a book half-way through?

Not being too interested in it and having other things keeping me busy, or righteous indignation at what is written therin.

27. Do you like to keep your books organized?

 I am a very organized person.  People laugh because I am not able to achieve anywhere near a level of organization most of the time, but my books are the one thing that is perfectly organized.  By Author, time it was written, series, and topic.  Each book has a specific spot.  It must be there or I am bothered by it.  I can always tell when someone has borrowed a book, and what it was.

28. Do you prefer to keep books or give them away once you’ve read them?

I collect books.  I couldn’t bear to give them away.  Even if I have duplicates.  I can hardly bear to buy someone a book, even if I got it specifically for them, because I am sorely tempted to keep it.