This is a Q&A challenge, or competition, originally set by MALU. It's not in the correct category but we're still waiting for that to be added. It will be moved as soon as the category is added.
I've hunted down this category - Competition Archive - which seems to fit the bill in the meantime (after all, nobody likes a dirty big NU slapped on their review).


* What is your favourite genre?

- I don't really have one. I quite like non-fiction: travel guides, WW1 histories, local history etc. Apart from that, I would say contemporary fiction.


* Do you read the classics, i.e., the great authors of the 18th and 19th century?

- Not really. I've read quite a lot of them, and have tried to read more, but sometimes the language is just so..... dated. The last one I read was the 'Barchester Chronicles' and frankly, it bored me to tears.


* Are you interested in thrillers?

Not as much as I used to be - I can't take the excitement these days! I think I prefer 'whodunnits' - they're a kind of thriller, aren't they?


* What about horror stories?

- What about them? Oh right. I liked them when I was a youngster, but when I realised that real-life was far more scarier than ghosts and vampires, I kind of lost interest. It ranks slightly above Sci-Fi for me.


* Do you read Science Fiction?

- Not if I can help it. I've tried, but I find that the authors usually disappear up their own arse. A classic example of all that's wrong with the genre is Iain Banks. he writes fantastic, fantastical novels which can be very strange and surreal. But when he writes sci-fi as Iain M. Banks, he leaves me stone cold.


* How many Harry Potter books have you read?

- Including the latest one? None. I keep meaning to read one, if for no other reason than to cleanse those cynical thoughts that the whole
thing is nothing more than hype. Surely millions of people can't be lining up at midnight to buy a substantially long-winded children's book just because everybody else does? I mean, people just aren't that gullible, are they?


* Have you ever read and enjoyed biographies or autobiographies?

- Not about famous people, no. I mean, I have read some, but I don't really enjoy them. And especially not about football players and their wives, or soap 'stars'. Which reminds me, apparently David Beckham is starting his second book soon.....as soon as he finishes reading 'See Spot Run'.
I've just finished reading the WW1 diaries of General James Jack which I suppose is autobiographical, but not in the usual meaning of the word.


* Do you remember any of the books you read and loved as a child?

- The first book I actually remember reading was 'Biggles', although I must have read lots before that. I also remember reading Jules Verne, RL Stevenson, Mark Twain etc. I used to have an English teacher at high school who took us for 'Current Affairs'. For reasons known only to him, his idea of CA was to read us 'The Hobbit' as though he was a member of the RSC. That was good!


* Have you re-read these books as a grown-up?

- I usually only read a book twice by mistake. There are too many books out there to re-read.


* Is there a book of which you can say it has influenced you?

- No. I can't think of anything that's influenced me, books or otherwise. Although i have been known to occasionally be under the influence of beer.


Q: Which are your favourite authors?

- Dasheil Hammet, Agatha Christie, Raymond Chandler, Robert Goddard, Iain Banks, Irvine Welsh, Alasdair Gray, Jeffrey Archer, Tom Sharpe, Kinky Friedman, Muriel Spark, John Steinbeck, Ernest Hemingway, George Orwell........ and many, many mo
re.


* Which book would you take with you on a desert island?

- 'How to Survive on a Desert Island' by Ray Mears. (If there is such a book). Less flippantly, I'd take a writing book.


* What is your attitude towards translations?

- ¿Que? A book's a book. If it's translated into English, what's the problem? I'm sure many of them lose something in the process, but not having read them in their original language, who can tell?


* Do you buy your books/get them from the library/borrow them from friends/steal them?

- I occasionally buy books or am given one as a gift. But generally, I borrow from the library and sometimes borrow from friends. I don't care about owning a book - once I've read it, I'm finished with it. Stealing is wrong and admitting to doing it in print is rather unwise.


* When you buy books, do you prefer hardcover editions or pocket books?

- Who cares about the cover - it's the contents that count. I'll buy hardback books around the same time I spend 500 quid on a bottle of wine.


* Have you ever tried Audio Books?

- A few. If I have to drive a long distance, or I'm just spending a lot of time in the car, on my own, I find they're a great alternative to just listening to music. Besides, it's rather dangerous, not to mention illegal, to read when you're driving.


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If you want to participate in this challenge, choose one of the Top 10 categories you're sure you'll never want to write in, or indeed, this category. Use the title of this opinion, then copy the questions and fill in your answers.




Thanks for reading



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