courtesy of Dave...
THE BOOK MEME!
* Science Fiction, Fantasy or Horror? I have to admit I like all three almost equally... I might check out all three from the library at the same time, but I would read the Horror or Fantasy first...
* Hardback or Trade Paperback or Mass Market Paperback? It depends on the size of the book and also when/where I'm reading it -- right now I'm reading a rather large hardback book and it's just too big -- wish I had the paperback version!
* Amazon or Brick and Mortar? Both -- brick and mortar get first preference... unless their price is double what Amazon is...
* Barnes & Noble or Borders? Again -- both -- I find myself choosing B&N here but the Borders in Cheshire Oaks in England was one of the big things that helped me keep my sanity. I guess you could just call me a bookstore ho.
* Hitchhiker or Discworld? I'm likely to catch some flack for this one -- but *whispers* neither. Andy adores both -- esp. Discworld, but I just never got into it -- I tried to read the Discworld books when I first got to England and of course all the subtle humor was lost on me. So about 2 years ago I tried again, and it was all right -- I kind of giggle/smirked in a couple of places but didn't enjoy it enough to carry on reading all of them.
* Bookmark or Dogear? *GASP* as a librarian -- you can completely guess my answer to this -- I can't believe people bend pages in their books!!!!! HOW RUDE!
* Magazine: Asimov’s Science Fiction or Fantasy & Science Fiction? I don't read either -- I'm with Dave -- I would read Empire or any other movie magazine before either of these...
* Alphabetize by author, Alphabetize by title, or random? Again -- I'm with Dave -- Author, in publication date order -- although I would add -- keeping series books together.
* Keep, Throw Away or Sell? Keep -- omgoodness we have soo many books. Although when I moved from the US to England I did have to give some away, and also when we moved from England back to the US, there was some more giving away (and some throwing away)
* Keep dust-jacket or toss it? Keep it -- although I will take it off and set it aside in a safe place whilst reading the book -- otherwise it gets tatty and/or annoys me!
* Read with dustjacket or remove it? See above... lol
* Short story or novel? Both although I am big on novels -- I sometimes read short stories. I seem to recall in Stephen King's book "On Writing" that he said the art of the short story is dying out -- and I would agree -- but is that because people no longer read them or because there haven't been as many out there worth reading?
* Harry Potter or Lemony Snicket? Harry Potter for the camaraderie of Hermione, Harry and Ron -- I have read a few of the Lemony Snickets... and just didn't get into them as much.
* Stop reading when tired or at chapter breaks? Chapter breaks -- but if it's a good book -- when it finishes!!
* "It was a dark and stormy night" or "Once upon a time?" Depends on what kind of mood I'm in -- if I'm in a doom and gloom or "c'mon -- scare me!!" mood, def. dark and stormy... but if I'm in a fluffier mood filled with hope, once upon a time...
* Buy or Borrow? Borrow mostly -- we have a killer library system that just ROCKS MY WORLD!!! I usually buy if it's a book I adored or if it's something I am just dying to read that I don't know anyone who has it...
* Buying choice: Book Reviews, Recommendation or Browse? A little of each -- I will usually read a recommended book, sometimes will go and look up books reviewed in the Border's emails -- but I have also been known to browse.
* Lewis or Tolkien? Both -- I disagree with Dave on this one -- I do like the Narnia series...
* Collection (short stories by the same author) or Anthology (short stories by different authors)? Collection...
* Tidy ending or Cliffhanger? Tidy -- cliffhanger books done well are acceptable... but if you are suddenly reading along all absorbed in the story and SHAZAM it's over and you don't know what happened or why -- ummmm makes me throw the book across the room and scream.
* Morning reading, Afternoon reading or Nighttime reading? All three -- love love LOVE to read!!!
* Standalone or Series? I love series!!! Although some books are wonderful standalones...
* New or used? Both -- I don't mind older books -- like Dave said -- you just have to try to not think about where that book has been/what has been done with it...
* Favorite book of which nobody else has heard? probably Wrapped in Rain by Charles Martin -- he's a great Christian writer who has been around for a few years now -- that book took me by surprise and really touched my heart. At first the characters got my back up and kind of grated on me, but as the pages turned, I fell for them -- and wanted to be more like them.
* Top 5 favorite genre books of all time? hmm i just cannot choose... wayyyy too many.
* Favorite genre series? A toss up between the Outlander novels by Diana Gabaldon and the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan
* Currently Reading? I have about 6 books on the go at any given time -- however the one that I last picked up and read from was "Eldest" by Christopher Paolini -- sequel to "Eragon" -- an excellent book. This is the one which I wish I had the paperback for!! It's about 4 inches thick and weighs a ton.