I love reading – always have done. Give me a book instead of TV any day – not only can you take a book anywhere, you don’t need to spend half an hour searching for the flippin’ control panel, do you? All I need is a bit more time at present to get through (a) all those unread volumes I’ve bought over the last few years, (b) other half’s enticing titles, (c) some of the recommendations from fellow dooyooers.

So here goes for this challenge set by MALU on Books:

Question:
What is your favourite genre?

Answer:
Biography, without a doubt. Sometimes historical/political/royal (but I draw the line at sycophantic or soap opera stuff about the contemporary royal family, I’m more interested in the 18th and 19th centuries); sometimes literary/artistic/musical, though there again books about living persons tend to be unsatisfactory, usually as they have to err on the side of charity towards their subject. For that same reason I tend to read memoirs but rarely, though I loved Dennis Waterman’s ‘Re-minder’ – not only was he the star of one of my all-time favourite TV series, but he also had an interesting tale or two to tell. The last historical biography I read was Katie Whitaker’s ‘Mad Madge’, about a pioneering woman author of the 17th century. I also have a passion for browsing in biographical dictionaries. In my late teens, I could quite happily spend a whole afternoon in the school or public library immersed in the Dictionary of National Biography. That hasn’t changed!
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Q:
Do you read the classics, i.e., the great authors of the 18th and 19th century?

A:
I tend to feel I ‘ought to’ read them, though they can be heavy going. I do quite enjoy the Brontë sisters, and loved Jerome K. Jerome, George & Weedon Grossmith, and so on. But going back to my answer for the previous question, I always like to know or find out something about the authors’ lives before I read their books.
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Q:
Are you interested in thrillers?

A:
I went through a phase years ago of loving thrillers, particularly Agatha Christie. After going off them for a while, I’m finding my way back. I read a P.D. James recently and rather enjoyed it. Being a bit of an insular old thing, I prefer British to American. I recently read a Raymond Chandler, just to step out of the familiar territory a bit, and found it rather heavy going.
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Q:
What about horror stories?

A:
Might have guessed someone would have written biographies of Blair and Bush. Erm, being serious - I loved Edgar Allan Poe’s stories. Modern horror…not quite me. Guess I’m a tad too old-fashioned at times! Would you call Mervyn Peake’s Gormenghast trilogy horror? That’s stretching things a bit, but I enjoyed that.
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Q:
Do you read science fiction?

A:
I liked H.G. Wells, but found it hard to get into more recent sci-fi.
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Q:
How many Harry Potter books have you read?

A:
Guilty secret…none! Oh for 24 hours of staying awake for a week and I’m sure I’d rectify that one.

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Q:
Have you ever read and enjoyed biographies or autobiographies?

A:
Oh good. I’ve answered this already.
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Q:
Do you remember any of the books you read and loved as a child?

A:
As a youngster, I adored the William books by Richmal Crompton, Anthony Buckeridge’s Jennings, and High Lofting’s Dr Dolittle. I know the latter is considered somewhat un-PC these days, but there we go. Oh, and the Narnia Chronicles by C.S. Lewis. I also went through this phase of being fascinated by the Caesars when I was about 11-12, and read Robert Graves’ ‘I, Claudius’ and ‘Claudius the God’ in quick succession, much to the amazement of the rest of the family.
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Q:
Have you reread these books as a grown-up?

A:
I sometimes read William stories again for a bit of light relief. They’re timeless. I’ve even acquired the odd few second-hand ones over the years, and must have something like 80% of the lot now.
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Q:
Is there a book of which you can say it has influenced you?

A:
I’ve written the odd book myself (well, not intentionally odd books, in a manner of speaking), and many of the titles I read when I was starting out as a writer myself influenced my style a good deal. But as regards books which might have, at the risk of sounding pretentious, made me a better person – to be honest, I can’t really point to any one in particular.
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Q:
Which are your favourite authors?

A:
I adore anything – well, almost anything – by P.G. Wodehouse, ever since having been introduced to the Jeeves and Wooster stories when I was 11. His plots are cheerfully predictable, like the proverbial comfy pair of slippers, but his style and turn of phrase are hilarious. Miles Tredinnick is another extremely funny writer; having made his name as a comedy writer for stage and TV, he’s only written one novel so far, but I for one hope he writes more. Non-fiction, I tend not to have specific authors as that’s more subject-driven, but I always enjoyed Theo Aronson’s biographies tremendously. I have to come clean and admit that I met the man once, and remained in touch with him regularly for nearly 20 years, until he sadly died of cancer in 2003.
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Q:
Which book would you take with you on a desert island?

A:
I don’t suppose a complete set of the Dictionary of National Biography would count! In which case, it would have to be a Jeeves omnibus.
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Q:
What is your attitude towards translations?

A:
Don’t have any strong feelings on the issue, really.
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Q:
Do you buy your books/get them from the library/borrow them from friends/steal them?

A:
Space in our house being somewhat lacking (and even more so at present as we have had the builders in for nearly six months, with no end in sight), I rarely buy fiction. Purchases tend to be restricted to non-fiction, and stuff that I want to keep to refer to, or know I’ll probably find useful for later writing projects and so on. Or else borrow them from the library – I am a library assistant at a CFE, and regularly use the nearby public library (where I worked after leaving school) for research.
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Q:
When you buy books, do you prefer hardcover editions or pocket books?

A:
Paperbacks are easier for portable reading, e.g. on a long coach journey. But I dislike having to open a new paperback too far, as it damages the spine so much. If it’s already old and tatty (and therefore not so pleasant to read), maybe careful handling doesn’t matter so much! Hardcover books are much easier for keeping and referring to as they can be opened flat for working from.
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Q:
Have you ever tried Audio Books?

A:
No.
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Q:
Last book you bought/read?

A:
I’m currently reading ‘The Coastliners’ by Joanne Harris (belongs to and recommended by other half), and also dipping into ‘The George Harrison Encyclopedia’ which I found remaindered in MVC Records a few days ago.

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This challenge was originally set by MALU, please join in, read other people's entries and pass the challenge on to another bookworm!