Book ask meme

[regshoe]

Today I made a start on digitising my yearly lists of books read, because the bits of paper were beginning to get unwieldy and I wanted a backup. I've been happily reminiscing about all the good books I read five years ago, and in this generally bookish frame of mind it seems like a good time to do a book meme! Happily, theseatheseatheopensea has just posted one, so I've stolen it :D

1. Which book would you consider the best book you’ve ever read and why?
2. Are you an Austen person or a Bronte person?
3. Are there any genres you will not read?
4. Are you a fast or slow reader?
5. What was your relationship with books like as a child?
6. Are you the type of person who will read a book to the end whether you like it or not, or will you put it down straight away if you’re not feeling into it?
7. Have you ever despised something you have read?
8. Do you prefer to read first person or third person?
9. Are you for or against multiple narrators in the same book?
10. Bookmarks, dog ears or leaving the novel open and face down to keep your spot?
11. Do you prefer to read at a certain time of day?
12. Do you need to finish a book before you can move on to the next one, or will you have multiple books going at once?
13. How do you chose which book to read next?
14. What is your favourite children’s book?
15. Do you agree that Jane Eyre should be considered a feminist novel?
16. What’s your favourite of Shakespeare’s plays?
17. Do you know any poetry by heart?
18. Did you enjoy the Hunger Games?
19. E-reader or traditional book?
20. Do you read in the bathroom?
21. Ideal reading position?
22. Hardcover or paperback?
23. Nicest edition or cheapest edition?
24. Do you prefer happy endings or sad endings?
25. Do you enjoy concepts in books to be concrete or abstract?
26. A book you studied in school and ended up loving?
27. Classics or modern literature?
28. Thoughts on adults reading YA?
29. Have you ever read a book in another language?
30. Have you ever written your own book?

Comments

[ohveda]

9 and 12!

[regshoe]

Thank you!

9. Are you for or against multiple narrators in the same book?

Like many things, it's a choice that can be good when it's used effectively and annoying when it's thrown in as a gimmick! In general, I prefer more narrative distance in writing styles (prose that feels more like telling a story and less like narrating a character's thoughts), so my favourite way of using multiple narrators is in epistolary fiction where different characters give their view of events in letters and diaries (Lady Susan is a great example :D). I'm less fond of 'head-hopping', but I don't like that kind of close perspective as much when there's only one narrator, either.

12. Do you need to finish a book before you can move on to the next one, or will you have multiple books going at once?

I can have one fiction and one non-fiction book on the go at the same time, as long as I've actually got enough time to devote to both of them. I get confused if I try to read more than one fiction book at a time.

[ohveda]

Ooh. Epistolary fiction is a lot of fun, and it does make multiple narrators much less confusing.

Thanks for answering!