Here’s my next post in our continuing celebration of Book Blogger Appreciation Week. The instructions were to just pick a few or to answer them all in 5 words or less. Yeah, not so much with the brevity, but I did my best. Enjoy learning a bit more about how I read, and please leave comments sharing your own reading habits. You should also check out the main site for 2009 BBAW: http://bookbloggerappreciationweek.com
Do you snack while you read? If so, favorite reading snack?
I like to eat sweets when I’m reading, especially since most of my reading time these days is on Sunday evenings. A few Oreos or brownies hit the spot.
Do you tend to mark your books as you read, or does the idea of writing in books horrify you?
Oh, I’m a scribbler, as those of you who have been following my Ulysses graffiti know. The more “proper Literature” the novel, the more likely it is to get this treatment. I do, however, draw the line at writing in library books. That’s just bad manners (ok, I’ve copy-edited one or two, but I couldn’t help myself… really…)
How do you keep your place while reading a book? Bookmark? Dog-ears? Laying the book flat open?
I’m rough on my books– dogearring pages left, right, and center; laying books open flat for months at a time until I get back to them; underlining bits I really need to remember. And yet, for all of my admittedly abusive behavior, I’ve only ever lost the spines on one or two.
Fiction, Non-fiction, or both?
Generally, I’m a Fiction girl through and through, but this summer I’ve strayed into Non-fiction and quite enjoyed “Julie and Julia.”
Hard copy or audiobooks?Hard copy is my bread and butter, but I do love a great audio book. During my winter-time commutes (when I leave in the dark and come home in the dark), a rivoting audio book makes me actually wish for the traffic to be worse, so that I can listen to the end of the chapter.
Are you a person who tends to read to the end of chapters, or are you able to put a book down at any point?
I tend to read to the end of the chapter– wait, let’s be truthful here… I promise myself I will just read to the end of the chapter, and then I end up reading 3 more chapters before I absolutely MUST put it down and go and do real work.
If you come across an unfamiliar word, do you stop to look it up right away?
I’m a bit of a word collector, so I try to look them up and then, if I find it interesting, jot it down in my little book.
What are you currently reading?I nearly always have multiple books going at once. Currently, I’m reading “Watch Your Back!” by Donald E. Westlake, “The Code of the Woosters” by P. G. Wodehouse, and “A Beautiful Blue Death” by Charles Finch. All of them are very good in distinctly unique ways.
What is the last book you bought?“Lust, Loathing, and a Little Lip Gloss” by Kyra Davis– It’s going to be my new bath book when I finish with Wodehouse.
Are you the type of person that only reads one book at a time or can you read more than one at a time?As you can tell from my currently-reading list above, I’m a multi-book reader. I have no trouble juggling plots and characters in my head– especially since I tend to have a bunch of very different books going, and pick them up according to the way I’m feeling at the moment. I like to have a fluffy & fun “bath book,” a serious mystery, and a clever book going at any one time.
Do you have a favorite time of day and/or place to read?
I really like reading a great mystery novel on a late afternoon during a rollicking thunderstorm.
Do you prefer series books or stand alone books?
I tend to really fall in love with characters and stories, so series novels are usually how I roll.
Is there a specific book or author that you find yourself recommending over and over?I love recommending Laurie R. King’s work– every single one of them are delicious– to people who like mysteries and strong writing. Then, of course, I have my sci-fi favorite of Douglas Adams.
How do you organize your books? (By genre, title, author’s last name, etc.?)I organize my shelves superficially by author and genre, but most of the books are actually gathered into emotional groups– so that I can easily pick a book by what I Feel like reading at the time. My dvds and cds are actually organized this way as well.
Words All Day Thru 