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Booking Through Thursday 
What’s the most desperate thing you’ve read because it was the only available reading material?
(Covered. –Deb)
What are the 5 to 10 books that represent you?
(I’m not really sure what this means (grin). –Deb)
hey Deb,
Thought you’d enjoy The Book Inscriptions Project.
http://bookinscriptions.com
We’re posting a new inscription every day….forever.
We want to see the ones you’ve found!
I wonder: how many of us read the acknowledgements?
(Good idea, thanks! –Deb)
You’ve probably already done this line of questioning but,
When growing up did your family share your love of books?
If so, did one person get you into reading?
If so, do you have any family-orientated memories with books and reading? (Family trips to bookstore, reading the same book as a sibling or parent, etc.)
(Done! –Deb)
One I found at http://bybeebooks.blogspot.com/ Naked Without Books – what book/author do you think you should have read and haven’t yet?
(Thanks. That one sounds a bit like it’s cheating, though! –Deb)
I would enjoy reading a meme about people’s abandoned books. The books you start but don’t finish say as much about you as the ones you read. Sometimes because of the books themselves or because of the circumstances that prevent you from finishing.
BTW, if you use my idea, could you credit me with it?
Thanks and happy reading,
Cereal Girl
(Coming up . . . . –Deb)
THERE ARE ALL SORTS OF GIMMICKS TO GET YOU TO BUY SPECIAL CHECKS OR A CERTAIN CREDIT CARD.
FOR EXAMPLE, THERE ARE CHECKS AND CREDIT CARDS FOR FAMOUS PEOPLE SUCH AS YOUR FAVORITE COUNTRY STAR OR CARTOON CHARACTER OR EVEN MOUSE ESTABLISHMENTS AS IN DISNEY CHECKS AND THE DISNEY CREDIT CARD. WOULD YOU CONSIDER BUYING AND USING CHECKS AND/OR CREDIT CARDS IN HONOR OF YOUR FAVORITE AUTHORS SUCH AS:
THE BROCKMANN BANK OF AMERICA CC.
THE AMANDA ASHLEY AMERICAN EXPRESS CARD
THE VICKIE LEWIS THOMPSON VISA CARD AND THOSE ADORABLE MATCHING CHECKS?
I’m still relatively new to this meme so I’m not sure if this has been asked yet, but I’m curious how many of us write notes in our books. Are you a Footprint Leaver or a Preservationist? There is an interesting article about this on the Levenger website:
http://www.levenger.com/PAGETEMPLATES/WELLREADLIFE/WellReadLifesubcat.asp?Params=category=686-726|level=3-4|pageid=3221-4329
(Coming up . . . –Deb)
Today is my first Booking Through Thursday (and it’s already Friday) but I’d be fascinated to know what we readers remember about the books we read, and how the memories are stored. Are they visual? Are they in the form of words – remembered sentences? Is it a sense … of loss, beauty, longing, or … ? Is there a clear memory of the plot, or not? I had a conversation with a friend a couple of years ago about COLD MOUNTAIN and he was convinced that Inman … well I won’t say for those who haven’t read the book, but my friend’s reading of the final pages was dramatically different from mine.
I’m curious about if and why people re-read books. I’ve seen people say they’ve read a book three times IN A ROW? So do others reread books ever? And if they do, is it right away or not for a while (when you’ve forgotten most of it.)
(This one’s been covered, but it was quite some time ago . . . One of these days, I might re-ask it. –Deb)
How do you all organize your books? Do you have separate shelves (or bookcases) for different genres? Or all they all rubbing spines together?
I have another suggestion: when you buy a book you’ve already read, do you have to read THAT new copy before it goes on your regular shelf? or do newly acquired books you’ve read before immediately join the library?
(please reword this somehow it feels a little awkward I hope it made sense)
PS I really enjoy doing these memes!
Buy a Friend a Book Week is October 1-7 (as well as the first weeks of January, April, and July). There’s even an official website for it here. During this week, you’re encouraged to buy a friend a book for no good reason (e.g., not their birthday, not a holiday, not to cheer them up)–just because it’s a book.
What book would you choose to give to a friend and why?
(Done! Thanks. –Deb)
I love question 7, from Cereal Box Reader. That’s a goody.
I’d like to ask how many readers willingly set about working their way through lists of nominated titles for prizes, like the Booker. And does the fact a book has won a prize mean you’ll read it?
How much do reviews (good and bad) affect your choice of reading? If you see a bad review of a book you wanted to read, do you still read it? If you see a good review of a book you’re sure you won’t like, do you change your mind and give the book a try?
(Coming up. –Deb)
I have a suggestion:
What was the first book that really turned you on to reading — how old were you? was it in grade school? was it fiction? was it a teacher, parent or friend?
(Kind of covered already . . . but thanks! –Deb)
Have you ever written a fan letter to an author to tell them how much you enjoyed their book? Have you ever received a personal reply?
(Definitely covered already! But, thanks. –Deb)
Do you have a favourite book, now out of print, that you would like to see become available again? (I have several…)
(Coming up! –Deb)
Hello, I love your blog. I came across it via a post on another blog. I lead a readers & writers group over at blog catalog called “Got Character?”. Please consider joining, Deb. (and of course anyone else who passes by this comment!). I have posted a thread in my group about your meme. I think my members would enjoy participating. You can see it at http://www.blogcatalog.com/group/got-character/discuss/entry/booking-through-thursdays
(Thanks, and welcome! –Deb)
Sometimes I find eccentric characters quirky and fun, other times I find them too unbelievable and annoying. What are some of the more outrageous characters you’ve read, and how do you feel about them?
(Coming up! –Deb)
Hi.
I’ve started a new site that will be listing and featuring memes.
Please check out memedirectory.com to learn more and to request a free listing.
Thanks!
My suggestion:
While acknowledging that we can’t judge books by their covers, how much does the design of a book affect your reading enjoyment? Hardcover vs. softcover? Trade paperback vs. mass market paperback? Font? Illustrations? Etc.?
What are your top 5, all time favorite book covers, and why?
What happened to today’s BTT?
I like several of these suggestions!
One that came to my mind — it may have already been done before I started BTT since I’ve only been doing these a few months — is this: What are some of the books you remember reading or having read to you from childhood, and have you sought them out as an adult for your children or for personal pleasure?
Have you ever read a book featuring a character you identified with so strongly that you had an eerie feeling the author may have actually been writing about you?
I’ve always wondered what other people do when they come across a word/phrase that they’ve never heard before. I mean, do they jot it down on paper so they can look it up later, or do they stop reading to look it up on the dictionary/google it or do they just continue reading and forget about the word?
I don’t know if this question’s been done before, sorry if I’m repeating one that’s been covered already. 🙂
Stories are Stories… are they?
Fiction books and fiction films both tell stories, but what we want from a book can be different from what we want from a movie. Is this true for you? If so, what’s the difference between a book and a movie? If not, what’s your take on the power of fiction–no matter the medium?
Nominated you for the Bloggers Choice awards! 🙂
http://www.bloggerschoiceawards.com/blogs/show/39352
I haven’t been doing this meme as long as a lot of others, so this may be a repeat question, but I was wondering if anyone has actually read a book and then watched the movie and they actually liked the movie better than the book?
Here’s something for Valentine’s Day.
Have you ever fallen out of love with a favorite author? Was the last book you read by the author so bad, you broke up with them and haven’t read their work since? Could they ever lure you back?
Here’s another idea about memorable first lines from books.
What are your favourite first sentences from books? Is there a book that you liked specially because of its first sentence? Or a book, perhaps that you didn’t like but still remember simply because of the first line?
How about a chance to play editor-in-chief? Fill in the blanks: __________ would have been a much better book if ______________________.
I’d be interested in knowing what kind of readers we have here – do you read one book at a time? If not, how many and what kind do you read at one time? Do you set aside time for reading or do you read even a page whenever you can?
Do you prefer new books or used books? Why?
And another part of that question would be: Which do you buy? Do you buy used books because they’re cheaper?
Something we thought was interesting (and possibly very controversial):
What is reading, anyway? Novels, comics, graphic novels, manga, e-books, audiobooks — which of these is reading these days? Are they all reading? Only some of them? What are your personal qualifications for something to be “reading” — why? If something isn’t reading, why not? Does it matter? Does it impact your desire to sample a source if you find out a premise you liked the sound of is in a format you don’t consider to be reading? Share your personal definition of reading, and how you came to have that stance.
I have an idea for a question–I don’t know if you have covered it before.
Have you ever been a member of a book club? How did you choose (OR what do you think is the best way to choose) what book you were going to read next and who was going to lead discussion? If you were never a member of a book club, you could still answer the second part of the question and also include if you would ever consider joining a book club.
I don’t do BTT (yet), but I love reading the responses!
What things physically about a book entice or repel you? Cover, size, smell, type size, length, title?
Are there any particular worlds in books where you’d like to live in or where you certainly wouldn’t want to live in? What about authors? Who would you trust to write your life?
(This came to me when reviewing a Jonathan Carroll book – I’m not sure I’d like to live in the worlds of his books.)
Love BTT, and thought I’d try and contribute something! Not sure if it’s been used…:
Have you ever been put off an author’s books after reading a biography of them? Or the reverse – a biography has made you love an author more?
1. Just the Right Book.
This week I haven’t been able to decide which book to read next, even though I have piles of books waiting to-be-read and numerous books I’ve borrowed from the library. Why do you think this happens? Why does it have to be ‘right’ book when there are plenty that you want to read anyway? How do you decide which one/s to read?
2. Library Memories
What is your earliest memory of a library? Who took you to the library? Have you any funny/odd memories of incidents happening in the library?
I’m particularly interested in football (soccer) fiction, there seems to be a dearth of football fiction the world over and I’d be interested to know if people have read any good sports fiction?
What it was they read? How does it differ from daily newspaper consumption of sports coverage? and most importantly …
why is there such a lack of football fiction considering the sport of football (this goes for most sports) is one of if not the most popular sport in the world?
I greatly appreciate any help.
Hi, I’m wondering whether readers feel they are more or less likely to appreciate books if they are obliged to read them for book groups or if they have chosen them off their own shelves of their own free will? I wonder how knowing they are going to read something as part of a group effects the reading experience?
I don’t know if you’ve ever done this, but I love nonfiction as well as fiction: I’d be interested to know everyone’s balance of fiction to nonfiction in their personal reading.
Here’s another idea: What are some of your favorite quotes about books from movies?
Hi again! I am enjoying thinking about this week’s post. A good follow-up might be “What book do you think should be made into a movie?” And do you have any suggestions for the producers?
An idea for BTT:
Have books ever inspired you to travel to the locations described therein? Have you visited places that are associated with an author’s life (such as birthplaces or gravesites)? Are there any fictional locations that you wish were real?
If someone asked you who your favorite authors were right now, which authors would first pop out of your mouth?
Book Gluttony! Are your eyes bigger than your book belly? Do you have a habit of buying up books far quicker than you could possibly read them? Have you had to curb your book buying habits until you can catch up with yourself? Or are you a controlled buyer, only purchasing books when you have run out of things to read?
Are you a spine breaker? Or a dog-earer? Do you expect to keep your books in pristine condition even after you have read them? Does watching other readers bend the cover all the way round make you flinch or squeal in pain?
KINDA urgent! This is not a suggestion nor a comment, but a request.
I am a new blogger and I’d like to join BTT. However, I do not know HOW to borrow the button–rather, I can’t figure out how to copy and paste it onto my blog.
smilingsal55[at]yahoo[dot]com
How much time/many pages do you invest before giving up on a book for whatever reason?
What is your favorite book of the year so far? Least favorite?
Another idea:
Have you ever gotten into a reading slump? How long did it last? What did you do to get out of it?
Got this idea from Literary Feline during her recent contest:
“Name a favorite literary couple and tell me why they are a favorite. If you cannot choose just one, that is okay too. Name as many as you like–sometimes narrowing down a list can be extremely difficult and painful. Or maybe that’s just me.”
Why don’t we follow-up the first lines meme with one about favorite last lines or best book endings? It seems like a natural continuation.
Dropped by to suggest a meme about great endings to follow up this week’s question, but Readerville beat me to that. 😀
Hi,
I came across your blog while looking for online book resources. You’ve got some interesting posts! My favorite book(s) on vacation was the Lord of the Rings series, especially the Two Towers.
Anyway, you are clearly a very active reader, so I thought you or your readers may be interested in MyBookBuyer. It’s a place were you can sell all of your old books online, and they pay for the shipping. Convenient right?
As a student at UC Berkeley, my friends and I have found it extremely helpful over the years, and a good way to make extra cash. If you find it helpful and would be interested in writing about it, let me know!
best,
Kelsey Elliott
I recently found a site featuring literary tattoos. http://www.contrariwise.org/.
Here is my question:
Would you get a literary tattoo? Is there a quotation or philosophy so important you would ink it into your skin for life? What about an image of a literary character or symbol?
Would you get inked for art and if so, what would your literary tattoo look like?
I recently wrote a post about My Deserted Island Reading List , and I’d love to see other responses to it.
My question:
If you knew you were going to be stranded on a deserted island indefinitely, without access to any way to acquire new books, which ten books would you pack, knowing you might have to re-read them several times over? All-time favorites? Shared favorites for you and your travel companion? Lengthy tomes to keep you occupied? Compromise choices to keep both you and your companion happy?
I’m not sure if this one has been done or not, but here goes… 🙂
I was looking through books yesterday at the shops and saw all the Twilight books, which I know basically nothing about. What I do know is that I’m beginning to feel like I’m the *only* person who knows nothing about them.
Despite being almost broke and trying to save money, I almost bought the expensive book (Australian book prices are often completely nutty) just because I felt the need to be ‘up’ on what everyone else was reading.
Have you ever felt pressured to read something because ‘everyone else’ was reading it? Have you ever given in and read the book(s) in question or do you resist? If you are a reviewer, etc, do you feel it’s your duty to keep up on current trends?
Since I have now entered and am preparing to write all weekend for the 2008 3-Day Novel Contest (http://www.3daynovel.com/) I wonder how many people actually look for and read contest-winning writing, aside from the biggies like the Booker. Do you feel compelled to read a book simply because it has won a prize?
My husband is not an avid reader, and he used to get very frustrated in college when teachers would insist discussing symbolism in a literary work when there didn’t seem to him to be any. He felt that writers often just wrote the story for the story’s sake and other people read symbolism into it.
It does seem like modern fiction just “tells the story” without much symbolism. Is symbolism an older literary device, like excessive description, that is not used much any more? Do you think there was as much symbolism as English teachers seemed to think? What are some examples of symbolism from your reading?
Did your English teachers nurture a love for reading or quench it? Can the enjoyment of a story be diminished or enhanced by studying the academic nuts and bolts of a literary work? What did your teachers (or your children’s teachers, if you have children) do well and what do you wish they had done differently?
Hello! We thought you and your readers might like to receive a free full-length novel, Jumble Pie, a heartwarming story about two women, a friendship, and a pie. The author has two published novels (Penguin Putnam) and is providing this as a thank-you to readers!
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Here is my question:
Is there a specific book you always recommend to friends, or even buy in mass quantities, because you’re always giving copies away?
Why that one key book?
Or is there more than one?
Alternately- any book you’ve read so much you’ve worn it out? How many times have you read it?
When I was a teenager and just getting started in writing, I read a traditionally published book that made me shake my head. The characters were flat, the plot didn’t make sense… Instead of just being a bad book read, I used it as inspiration to keep pursuing my dream of being an author.
Have you ever read a book you thought was of such poor quality (for whatever reason) that it inspired you to write your own stories/gave you confidence as a writer?
Background info.: Has a book ever inspired you to read more about the author or the place or time period of the book?
Inspired by Book Lists Life: http://bookslistslife.blogspot.com/2008/11/are-reviewers-obligated-to-be-nice.html and conversations going on around the blogosphere at the moment.
I receive a lot of review books, but I have never once told lies about the book just because I got a free copy of it. However, some authors seem to feel that if they send you a copy of their book for free, you should give it a positive review.
Do you think reviewers are obligated to put up a good review of a book, even if they don’t like it? Have we come to a point where reviewers *need* to put up disclaimers to (hopefully) save themselves from being harassed by unhappy authors who get negative reviews?
What is the book that has been on my shelf the longest?
What is a book I acquired in an interesting way?
What is the book that has been with me the most places?
Hi Deb! I tried looking back on the posts to see if this was covered before. If it is, then I guess I must have missed it. 😛
I recently got new bookshelves for my room, and I’m just loving them. Spent the afternoon putting up my books and sharing it on my blog. One of my friends asked a question and I thought it would be a great BTT question. So from Tina & myself, we’d like to know “How do you arrange your books on your shelves? Is it by author, by genre, or you just put it where it falls on?”
I like Kat’s question above!
A comment on someone else’s BTT question this week inspired this question:
Do you read any author’s blogs? If so, are you looking for information on their next project? On the author personally? Something else?
I saw that National Library week is coming up in April, and that led to some questions. How often do you use your public library and how do you use it? Has the coffeehouse/bookstore replaced the library? Did you go to the library as a child? Do you have any particular memories of the library? Do you like sleek, modern, active libraries or the older, darker, quiet, cozy libraries?
Regardless of content, which books would you consider nominating for the best title award? You may make your list as long as you like.
PS. You may reword the above question. And you don’t need to credit nor link to me, thanks.
This question was inspired by this:
Do you read celebrity memoirs? Which ones have you read or do you want to read? Which nonexistent celebrity memoirs would you like to see?
How about, “What’s the worst ‘best’ book you’ve ever read — the one everyone says is so great, but you can’t figure out why?”
Or, conversely, “What’s the best ‘worst’ book you’ve ever read — the one you like despite some negative reviews or features?”
Something I’ve been thinking about lately: “What words/phrases in a blurb make a book irresistible? What words/phrases will make you put the book back down immediately?”
Inspired by the Shelf Awareness Book Brahmins interviews: “What book(s) do you want to read again for the first time?” And why?
I’m thinking about the flip side of this week’s question – what’s the best “bad” book you’ve read? You know, objectively, that it’s junk, and yet you loved it – THAT book?
How about a book that you haven’t read, but know that you won’t like?
Or a book that you always mistaken for another book?
~ Popin
Saw this article and thought it would make a good BTT confessional question: 2/3’s of Brits have lied about reading books they haven’t. http://uk.reuters.com/article/lifestyleMolt/idUKTRE5244Q220090305?pageNumber=1&virtualBrandChannel=0&sp=true
Have you? Why? What book?
Are you a “double-copy-book-buyer”? For example, I know a person who owns no less than 3 copies each of all of the novels of Jane Austen: each in hardcover, each in trade paperback, and each in a Jane Austen anthology.
Also, would you buy (or obtain for free via a program like Project Gutenberg) an e-book, which you already owned in book format?
Do you use any of the social networking websites for booklovers, such as GoodReads, Library Thing, or Shelfari? Why or why not? If your answer is yes, which site would you recommend to your book lovin’ friends, and why?
A recent BTT post made me realize that I have pretty quirky reading postitions. I can’t read while sitting in a chair. I have to be laying down or sitting at a desk. Where do you read? Can you read while in bed without falling asleep? Do you find it difficult to read outside or in a plane or car?
“Life is too short to read bad books.” I’d always heard that, but I still read books through until the end no matter how bad they were because I had this sense of obligation.
That is, until this week when I tried (really tried) to read a book that is utterly boring and unrealistic. I had to stop reading.
Do you read everything all the way through or do you feel life really is too short to read bad books?
I’ve seen this quotation in several places lately. It’s from Sven Birkerts’ ‘The Gutenberg Elegies: The Fate of Reading in an Electronic Age’:
“To read, when one does so of one’s own free will, is to make a volitional statement, to cast a vote; it is to posit an elsewhere and set off toward it. And like any traveling, reading is at once a movement and a comment of sorts about the place one has left. To open a book voluntarily is at some level to remark the insufficiency either of one’s life or one’s orientation toward it.”
To what extent does this describe you?
I’m wondering what would compel you never to pick up a book by an author again? I tend to get leery about reading something else by an author if I love the a book of theirs that I’ve read. I’m I the only one like that or do you just never read an author if you don’t like their other works?
how bout a series that don’t have a good ending?
I have one
This Saturday (May 2nd) is Free Comic Book Day! In celebration of comics and graphic novels, some suggestions:
– Do you read graphic novels/comics? Why do/don’t you enjoy them?
– How would you describe the difference between “graphic novel” and “comic”? Is there a difference at all?
– Say you have a friend who’s never encountered graphic novels. Recommend some titles you consider landmark/”canonical”.
http://www.freecomicbookday.com
Two questions, if that’s okay.
1. When you are suffering from a reading drought, what do you do to re-energize yourself?
2. When a book starts to lose your interest, either because the book is boring, long, or whatever, what do you do to get over this hurdle?
~ Popin
A question from my friend Justin:
“What’s the most unlike you thing you’ve been curious about reading, or have read, lately?”
Does your favourite author have the same taste as you?
Have you ever boughts books because some of your favourite authors have raved about them?
If so did you like it or not?
Has it ever made you like an author more or less?
How about a BTT on “gender genres”? Here’s my idea…
For years, genre seemed to be primarily descriptive: mystery, romance, science fiction. Recently, genres have emerged that are more proscriptive: “women’s fiction” “chick lit” “men’s fiction.”
Do you think publishers should dictate which genre will prefer a work? Are “gender genres” too limiting?
Is there a book that you wish you could “unread”? One that you disliked so thoroughly you wish you could just forget that you ever read it?
I just discovered the blog, The Worst Review Ever, where authors share their worst review. While reading it, it made me wonder, do you ever feel bad for writing a bad review and having the author read it? And how do you deal with writing bad reviews?
~ Popin
^
Just to add to my last post. “How do you feel about authors who comment on bad reviews?”
~ Popin
I would love to do a BTT on Popin’s suggestion, but might add an “action” piece, too.
How about adding — “How do you, as a blogger, respond to authors who leave comments on your negative reviews?”
One more idea…
How about: “Do you feel obligated to finish any work that you review?”
Do you think any current author is of the same caliber as Dickens, Austen, Bronte, or any of the classic authors? If so, who, and why do you think so? If not, why not? What books from this era might be read 100 years from now?
Do you have a Book Review Policy? Do you think every blog should have a review policy?
~ Popin
How can you encourage a non-reading child to read? What about a teen-ager? Would you require books to be read in the hopes that they would enjoy them once they got into them, or offer incentives, or just suggest interesting books? If you do offer incentives and suggestions and that doesn’t work, would you then require a certain amount of reading? At what point do you just accept that your child is a non-reader?
In the book Gifted Hands by brilliant surgeon Ben Carson, one of the things that turned his life around was his mother’s requirement that he and his brother read books and write book reports for her. That approach worked with him, but I have been afraid to try it. My children don’t need to “turn their lives around,” but they would gain so much from reading and I think they would enjoy it so much if they would just stop telling themselves, “I just don’t like to read.”
I was wanting to try a certain author and wished I knew someone who had read her works so I could get a recommendation when it occurred to me that having a “YOU ask the question” Booking Through Thursday might be fun. Each participant could ask a question they’ve wanted to discuss with other readers. Perhaps, like me, you’d like a recommendation of a certain author’s best work, or perhaps you LOVE a certain genre or series but no one else you know does and you’d just like to discuss it with someone. Or perhaps you want to try a new genre and would like recommendations from seasoned readers.
It would help if everyone put some idea of the question or topic in their response comment here rather than just saying, “My post is up” so that those who can’t get around to everyone can see what the topics are and get to those which most interest them.
What items have you ever used as a bookmark? What is the most unusual item you’ve ever used or seen used?
What do you think of speed-reading? Is it a good way to get through a lot of books, or does the speed-reader miss depth and nuance? Do you speed-read? Is some material better suited to speed-reading than others?
Do you ever skip ahead or read the end of a book before you get there?
Do you read the inside flaps that describe a book before or while reading it?
Do you physically abuse your books at all? Dog-ear the pages, leave them spread out, drop them into the bath?
Do you prefer to buy books because it’s cheaper ( or it was on sale) or it’s because you like the content/author?
I have a suggestion for a BTT question: When you start a new book and it’s just not holding your interest, how long do you give it before abandoning it and moving on?
Here’s a little idea, something that happened to me quite often
I’ve never thought that a song will stick in my head and fit in to the theme of the book I am reading. I am a music and book-holic and therefore I always listen to music while reading.
I never tried to mix the music with the book…but sometime the y just clicked! and it stick in my head whenever I heard the song I remembered the book instantly.
So the question is…do you ever have soundtrack for books you’ve read? intentionally or unintentionally.
This meme doesn’t fit in with my new concentration of blog-following-writing/research, but I wanted to let you know I included a link to your blog/meme on my site, under “Links For Readers.” I have participated in the past through Should Be Reading and found it a great, thought-provoking meme.
You can find me at SouthernCityMysteries.
Thank you,
Michele
SouthernCityMysteries
Twist in the tale?
I love books with complicated plots and unexpected endings. What is you favourite book with a fantastic twist at the end?
What books did you get for Christmas? Do you usually ask for books on gift-giving occasions or do you prefer to buy them yourself?
Have you ever read a book by a new author (new to you) that made you go right out and get everything else that author has written (or at least wanted to)? Which authors, and which book did you read that made you feel this way? If you did get the other books, did they live up to your hopes and expectations? If not, why not?
I am new to blogging and reviewing so this may have already been asked. But will leave it and if it was a question in the past would appreciate any feedback.
How do you write a review on a book that you didn’t like at all but the author has written many books and has been on best sellers lists?
“I couldn’t sleep a wink, so I just read and read, day and night … it was there I began to divide books into day books and night books,” she went on. “Really, there are books meant for daytime reading and books that can be read only at night.”
– ‘The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Milan Kundera, p. 103.
Do you divide your books into day and night reads? How do you decide?
Good one–I haven’t thought of that book in years!
Hi Deb
I love your weekly meme and try to participate as often as possible. I have a little request which you should feel free to disregard if you disagree: would you consider posting the request that participants link to their posts HERE but not in every comment they leave on other people’s blogs. Especially when all they are really doing is copying and pasting the same silly comment in order to link and not really responding at all. It’s really obnoxiously self-aggrandizing. I read as many participants answers as I can. Sometimes I comment, sometimes I don’t, but I don’t make up responses just so that I can get some extra clicks to my own website. If I comment it is because I am genuinely interested in what they have said. You have been kind enough to host a meme that gets people traffic, but every one of your participants has not signed up to provide such a service. Thanks for reading my rant.
I don’t really see that this behavior is something I could actually change, though–I can address what happens HERE, but not what people do at other blogs!
Deb – I guess you’re right about that. Point taken. I enjoy your meme, at any rate, thanks for hosting.
I can tell people not to smoke in my house, but can’t make them stop blowing smoke in other people’s faces! (grin)
I am paraphrasing from a friend’s Facebook wall her question:
“How would a teen-age boy who is going to work with his hands ever use Literature of England in his work?”
The age-old “How am I going to use this in real life?” question. How would you answer it?
Just a comment to bookeywookey above, I think that happens because when people copy the question for the day, they also copy the line that says, “Don’t forget to leave a link to your actual response …..!” into their own posts, so some participants feel they need to leave their link in every comment they post.
But some do just copy and paste the same comment everywhere, and that does get irritating when it doesn’t seem they even read the posts they’re commenting on. But, as Deb said, not much can be done about it.
Possible question– People often read entire books at bookstores and then put them back on the shelf. Do you? How do you feel about this?
What book do you want to read after watching the movie version of that book?
If you read series, do you ever find a series “jumping the shark?” How do you feel about that?
When do you read (besides just whenever you get the chance)? Are there certain set times in your day that you read?
A question about the “extras”: Do you read the introduction, forward, afterword, or any other author’s notes in a book, or do you just read the main part of the book? Do you look at footnotes, references, glossaries, etc.?
Do you ever listen to book-related podcasts? If so, which ones and why?
Do you borrow or buy most of the books you read? Does it depend on the type of book?
How often do you use a lending library?
Which fictional character (or group of characters) would you like to spend a day at the beach with? Why would he/she/they make good beach buddies?
If you could rewrite the ending of any book, which book would it be? And how would you change it?
Do you remember the first book you bought for yourself? Or the first book you checked out of the library? What was it and why did you choose it?
Just a comment following up on bookeywookey’s comment above (about comments).
I know everyone has their own opinion on this link-in-comment question. I actually like it when a commenter leaves me a link to their blog or post, so I can just click right over, if I want. Saves a lot of time and allows me to reply to visitors quickly. And I can always just ignore the link.
I certainly don’t see it as “obnoxiously self-aggrandizing” – I think of it as a convenience.
And a little amendment to my suggestion above, about endings – no “spoilers,” of course!
I’ve seen many bloggers say that what draws them to certain books or authors is good writing, and what causes them to stop reading a certain book or author is bad writing. What constitutes good writing and bad writing to you?
Recently an author took me to task for a less than stellar review I did of her book, telling me in essence that quality fiction is of the “show, don’t tell” variety and insinuating (I felt) that I just didn’t “get it.”
I agree that the “show, don’t tell” method is usually better: few people want “the moral of the story” endings or over-explanations of things that should be clear. But when the message is so obscure that one has to write the author or read further notes, isn’t that going too far?
Some books, of course, are obscure on purpose: the writer is more interested in getting people thinking and talking than in conveying a point of view.
If you use this as a question, feel free to condense it: maybe something like, “Do you like the show, don’t tell method of writing? Have you ever read a book that was too obscure, that could have used a little more ‘telling’?”
Have you ever written to an author or publisher to comment on one of their books?
If you could be a character from any book, who would you be? And why?
If you are a book keeper/collector…what is your most unique or interesting book? (Do you have a signed first edition of your favorite author? A hard-to-find edition with certain printing mistakes? A beautifully illustrated book?)
OR If you don’t collect, what’s the most unique or interesting book you’ve read?
I’m fairly new, so you may have asked this already, but my question would be:
How do you decide whether to recommend a book to others? Does it depend on the person or is it just about your opinion of the book?