Booking Through Thursday: Queue

What are you reading now?

Would you recommend it?

And what’s next?

Seriously? What am I not reading?

I may or may not have totally dived into several dozen books.... okay, I exaggerated, but seriously, I'm not following the 'one at a time' rule very well at the moment. I'm trying to hold off starting Emma by Jane Austen, since I'm in the middle of City of Bones by Cassandra Clare and The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan. I recommend them both (for now), I haven't really gotten that far in either of them...

Up next is... um... I have no idea. Have you SEEN my to-read list lately...? Timeline by Michael Crichton needs to be taken care of soon, and Austen book, and I want to get through Jane Eyre by Miss Bronte.

And don't EVEN get me started on what I have to read for classes!

Booking Through Thursday: Storm Weather

While my town dries out of record-setting, epic flooding from Hurricane Irene, let me ask you:

What’s your book with weather events? Hurricanes? Tornadoes? Blizzards? Real? Fiction? Doesn’t matter … weather comes up a lot in books, so there’s got to be a favorite somewhere, huh?

Ah, Hurricane Irene. Hurricane Irene had me sleeping in a car Sunday night. (Should I totally blog about this adventure...? Maybe over the weekend...) She was not the type of weather I like to indulge in at all, trust me. I love a good rainy day to snuggle inside with a cup of tea and a book. I also love books with a little bit of stormy weather themselves, but this is a hard question.

There aren't any novels that pop into my head that really scream weather. If I went searching for one, that wouldn't be fair. Preston-Child sometimes write in large weather events into their books, but that's only because they just love to complicate things for their characters. A few classics dash in some weather as an emotional  load on the characters, either good or bad.

When it comes to non-fiction, I like to read book where weather has played a part, of course. Books that follow events or battles during the second world war are always fun to indulge in, because weather really affected these movements in history.

Other than that? Nothing. I'm not entirely thrilled by natural disaster themed book, so I don't usually pick one up all excited and read through it. I love a good book where the weather is playing a part along side the characters, but not usually when it replaces the plot.

Do you think I'm wrong? If you know any books where the weather is evident and hard to ignore, please tell me! I love recommendations, and after blogging this, I feel as though I better find a good weather-read quick!

Booking Through Thursday: History

Sometimes I feel like the only person I know who finds reading history fascinating. It’s so full of amazing-yet-true stories of people driven to the edge and how they reacted to it. I keep telling friends that a good history book (as opposed to some of those textbooks in school that are all lists and dates) does everything a good novel does–it grips you with real characters doing amazing things.

Am I REALLY the only person who feels this way? When is the last time you read a history book? Historical biography? You know, something that took place in the past but was REAL.

I LOVE history. I’m a history major and life-long history buff. I’m also an English Major, and an avid reader. For these two things to never cross paths is insane, so of course I’ve read and still read non-fiction historical biographies.

These books are exactly like the novels the rest of the population cracks open on a daily basis. There’s a plot, characters, twists, and an outcome that once shocked the world. Only it’s real. Why would you not want to read something so fantastic and groundbreaking, and be able to look back and know it was real?

The last non-fiction books I read that truly stood out were Playing the Enemy, Robert’s Ridge, and The King’s Speech.

Booking Through Thursday: Fluff

You’ve just had a long, hard, exhausting day, and all you want to do is curl up with something light, fun, easy, fluffy, distracting, and entertaining.

What book do you pick up?

Fluff for me is always young adult. I really can't explain it, but I read it the fastest and it's usually not as deep was what I usually read. So... yeah, YA. That's my fluff.

I usually read classics or adult level thriller or mysteries. When I most want to crawl up with something and really relax, I think Young Adult helps me do this. Now that I'm reading a little more YA, I've found that I'm a lot less stressed about reviewing and the books are just quicker to read. Not easier,  but I'm sure we can all fairly judge the difference between YA and Shakespeare.

What about you?

Bookin Through Thursday: National Book Week

 

It’s National Book Week. The rules: Grab the closest book to you. Go to page 56. Copy the 5th sentence as your status.

Grabbing book...

Thunderhead by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child

Page 56 and 5th sentence...

"Now how does this thing work, exactly?"

Kinky.

Booking Through Thursday: Anticipation

What’s the last book you were really EXCITED to read?

And, were you excited about it in advance? Or did the excitement bloom while you were reading it?

Are there any books you’re excited about right NOW?

The last book I was excited about? I don't know... I guess I'm excited about all of the books I read, but that's because if they didn't excite me I wouldn't want to read them. Although I suppose some have caught my attention more than others. Among them, Thunderhead, The Lost World, and A Great and Terrible Beauty.

Some I get even more excited about as I read them. Some I'm just totally ready to rip into before I've even cracked the spine. Other's have my interest mildly peak then quickly improve.

Right now I'm super excited to start reading Cold Vengeance. I have been waiting well over a year for this book to come out, and now that I have it I really can't wait to start it. Favorite authors!
Yourselves?

Booking Through Thursday: Night Owl

What’s the latest you’ve ever stayed up reading a book? Is staying up late reading a usual thing for you?

 

Guilty!

 

I have a demanding life. Even when I get the chance to sit down and 'relax' there's always something to be done. When does nothing need to be done? Well in the middle of the night, of course. When I'm finally home and settled, the rest of the family is starting to wind down, I find myself a corner and read. So yes, staying up late reading is very common for me.

 

As far as how late? Depends on the books. Three-Four in the morning is not impossible for me. I don't do it all the time, mind you, but when you just have to finish a book, well, you just have to finish the book.

 

Reading is just fun, so when I finally get a chance to read, it's usually late at night. I also like to read a very large chunk of a book in one good sitting, so reading into the late, or early, hours of the night just comes with the hobby.

 

What about you all? Night owl or do you crash before eleven?

Booking Through Thursday: Repeats

What’s the first book that you ever read more than once? (I’m assuming there’s at least one.)

What book have you read the most times? And–how many?

I haven' read many books more than once, which is a shame because there are so many books out there I'd love to get my hands onto again to read at least one more time. I suppose I'm just lucky enough to have had time to read these books once again.

I've read Ragtime several times, it's a classic, but most of those times attribute to having to read the novel in school or college. Shakespeare's plays I've worked myself through a few times, especially Julius Caesar and Macbeth. (Classics are just easy for me to tackle...)

I re-read the first Harry Potter novel after finishing the series. (I was sort of depressed how it all abruptly ended.) The Hobbit is just such a fun read, why wouldn't you read it more than once? I have.

Short stories are just prolific in educational settings. It goes without saying that more than once my professors have told me to read a story I've already read... probably several times.

Books I want to read again, hopefully if I find the time, include The Island of Doctor Moreau, Lord of the Flies, The Great Gatsby, The Lord of the Rings, Pride and Prejudice.

So is it a bad thing that I haven't read so many books more than once? Or is it alright that most of my 'reading time' is directed towards something new?

Booking Through Thursday: Biographies

There are so many crappy biographies … would you rather read a poorly-written biography of a fascinating life, OR an exquisitely well-written, wonderful read of one of a not-so-interesting life?

So not a fair question, but let’s see how I do…

How fascinating of a life is it? I mean, if the life is amazing but it’s so amazing that I find I’m enjoying it despite the evil style of the author than can I look past it? Or are we saying that the writing is so poor that no matter how amazing the life is, we can only make faces and lose out interest completely?

But if the writing is wonderful, and the life not so interesting, is that saying the writing is so good that it becomes interesting? And what do you mean by not interesting? (Okay, I would so read a biography of some unknown English Cricket player, but I wouldn’t go near a biography of some world-renowned pop singer.)


I guess I would rather read the well written biography of a not so interesting life. If the writing is good, it should be a lovely read, and who says that the life is interesting to one person and not another? I think it would be horrible to read a biography of a person I admire and have it be written so poorly.


Besides, even though I read to gain knowledge, I do read for the enjoyment of it. Have you ever enjoyed something with really, really bad writing?

Booking Through Thursday:

Since my dog is turning 10 today … what animal-related books have you read? Which do you love? Do you have a favorite literary dog? (Snoopy, anyone?)

Wait... do Dinos count...?

Seriously, I don't think I've ever read anything animal related. How sad is that, since I'm a huge animal lover? Is 'Animal Farm' a stretch? Is 'Jurassic Park' just a corny answer?

Will you let me pass with Scooby-Doo...?

I feel horribly guilty now, after having read this week's question. I honestly failed at reading books about animals. I don't know why, animals are fun, adorable, and I am a huge fan of the cute lil' things. There are books by the basket-full out there about animals, and a lot of them have bee wonderfully reviewed by hundreds if not thousands of readers.

So what's my problem? No idea. It's not like one of those novels where I hiss if I get too close. I really do want to read animal books but I just... haven't...

I don't know if this is a proper answer. This is more of a, 'Becca, you silly, silly fool...' answer.

Do any of you have any suggestions of good animal books to read? I really need to redeem myself!

Booking Through Thursday: Size Matters

It's time for another 'Booking Through Thursday!' I can't believe how quick this week has gone by. Lots to be done, still, but a break from reading for a meme never hurt!

What’s the largest your personal library has ever been? What’s the greatest number of books you’ve ever owned at one time? (Estimates are fine.)

Is your collection NOW the biggest it’s ever been? Or have you down-sized?
What’s the fewest number of books you’ve ever owned (not counting your pre-reading years)?

I'd say that through my early reading years I had... problems giving away books. Really, I'd buy them, be gifted them, find them, etc... and whether I read them or not they sat on my shelf for years. There are times I completely forgot about a title and only came across it when picking up my shelves. This was a serious problem as I was always, and still am, strapped for space. My library, at the largest, probably ranged from 250-300 books.

I have since down-sized. After a while I learned not to by every book that I could find or thought sounded interesting. I use the library more, and I've learned to part with a lot of titles. I do a lot of donating/gifting, so it's become easier not to have my library swell. At present I probably have 100-150 books, only around 50-75 I absolutely will NOT part with.

As far as the fewest number of books, I'd say that when I moved and had to narrow down my library I had around 50 or more books, 100 pushing it. These were my most prized books, however, and I would never leave them behind.

I think I'm still good about keeping my library under check. I've learned to use the library a lot more and get rid of books that never interested me or I have no intention of reading. I can feel myself getting bitten by 'the bug,' however. Recently I've found myself wanting to purchase books that I've read and loved and want my own copy of. I'm still trying to keep this in check, but no promises!

What about you all? Tell me about that library of yours! Apparently, size really does matter!

Booking Through Thursday - Soundtrack

It's me again! A while ago I did a few BTT and it was pretty fun. Let's see if I can't get back into the swing of things again!

What, if any, kind of music do you listen to when you’re reading? (Given a choice, of course!)

There are times I listen to music and times I don't, but I almost never listen to music with words or vocals. It's too distracting and I find myself attached to those words rather than the ones on the page.

However, when I finally do get around to listening to music, I try to 'pair' it up with what I'm reading. (Weird, I know.) Jazz belongs in a novel set in the 20's, but I'd never listen to while sifting through Shakespeare. I can pretty must slide in classical music to pair with any novel I want to, but other times it's too slow and not as upbeat as the plot. Right now I'm reading Sense and Sensibility and I'm listening to the soundtrack to 'Pride and Prejudice' which seems to fit along with what the words on the page are telling me.

Needless to say there are times when the music bugs me and I read in complete silence. Sometimes the music relaxes me, though, and I can read more than usual. It's really a case by case situation.

Your thoughts? Are you a music reader, or do you read silent and solo?