A Bookish Meme
Karrie tagged me! No one ever tags me!
Hardback or trade paperback or mass market paperback? Big fan of the trade paper. Hardbacks can be too bulky; mass market too flimsy. Trade paper is Just right.
Amazon or brick and mortar? Amazon, if only because I live where I live. We have a very, very small mall (called by the residents, appropriately, "the sMall.") and a smaller still Borders Express, which is practically useless if you want something specific. The folks who work there are swell -- but they just can't stock all that much in a former Waldenbooks.
Barnes & Noble or Borders? If forced to pick, I'd go with B&N for unspecific reasons. The two are more or less interchangeable to me, tho.
Bookmark or dog ear? Depends. If I own the book, I'll abuse it in every matter possible -- except for dog-ears, which just seem wrong to me.
Alphabetize by author or alphabetize by title or random? Since I get lots and lots of advance copies because of Bookslut, I've had to institute a relatively rigorous system. The books on the small shelf upstairs haven't been read and about half of those are books for possible review. The other half, in case you were wondering, is books that I mean to read any day now, like House of Leaves and Nicholas Nichelby and Anna Karenina. On my nightstand are the books that I'm actively reading. On my desk are books for school, which includes Fun Home and The Satanic Verses (and don't *you* wish you could take my class?). The downstairs bookshelf is full of the books that I've read. No more books can really fit there, so I have to get rid of one before adding another. Cruel, but necessary. If/when we have a bigger house, the rules might change. Also in this bookshelf are the books that I have no intention of reading and that will be leaving my house in some manner.
Keep, throw away, or sell? Mostly sell.
Keep dust jacket or toss it? Why would you toss a dust jacket? That's crazy talk.
Read with dust jacket or remove it? Dude. Seriously. You are hurting me.
Short story or novel? Novels, mostly. I read a lot of non-fiction as well.
Collection (short stories by same author) or anthology See above.
Harry Potter or Lemony Snicket? Potter all the way.
Stop reading when tired or at chapter breaks? If I can do it, I stop at chapter breaks. My body often has other ideas. I'm wacky enough that I absolutely have to read something before sleeping. It can be just a line from People magazine but it has to be *something.*
“It was a dark and stormy night” or “Once upon a time”? “The night was sultry.” It's all good.
Buy or Borrow? Buy, mostly.
New or used? Whatevs.
Buying choice: book reviews, recommendation or browse? I'll take all three. It's more about what's at arms reach lately.
Tidy ending or cliffhanger? I prefer some of my ends a little loose.
Morning reading, afternoon reading or nighttime reading? Nighttime reading. With a thunderstorm, if that option is available.
Stand-alone or series? Stand-alone -- and I feel like I've been duped if a book in a series doesn't clearly identify itself as such in big bold letters on the cover.
Favorite series? Bujold's Vorkosigan sagas. Love them.
Favorite children’s book? The Phantom Tollbooth.
Favorite book of which nobody else has heard? I'm a big Iain Banks fan. Of his, I'd have to pick Use of Weapons.
Favorite books read last year? Too hard to pick just one. Um.... Jo Walton's Farthing, if I were forced. Oh, and my own, natch.
Favorite books of all time? Lordy. I couldn't even begin to narrow it down.
Least favorite book you finished last year? I'm with Karrie: "If it sucks, I stop reading."
What are you reading right now? This quiz. Duh.
What are you reading next? Some of what I'm reading is a secret. However, next up on the just random fun pile is either Bryson's Thunderbolt Kid or Queen of Fashion. Or not. My reading patterns are pretty hard to predict.