I love books (Favourite Authors)

Member Name: AbsintheFairy

Product:	Favourite Authors
Date:	08/11/09 (21 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Books are wonderful

Disadvantages: So many books, so little time

I love, love, love reading: it's my favourite thing to do! It should be - I'm going to be a librarian after all! I've adored books since I was a child, I've been a member of every public library I've ever lived beside, and I own over 600 books!

Questions shamelessly cut and pasted!

*Question: What is your favourite genre?*
It's not a genre as such, but I love the classics. If it's published in Penguin Classics, I'll read it! I also really like fantasy (the intelligent, Philip Pullman / Terry Pratchett kind).


*Question: Do you read the classics, i.e., the great authors of the 18th and 19th century?*
Oh yes! They're my favourite kind of book! They are classics for a reason - how many of the books released this year will be around in 100/200 years?


*Question: Are you interested in thrillers?*
Sometimes, if they're well-written. I don't like reading books that are popular or page-turners when they are written badly (I know, I'm a snob!).


*Q: What about horror stories?*
Same again. I really like Edgar Allen Poe; Stephen King is pretty good too. Susan Hill's The Woman in Black is fantastically spooky, and don't forget Dracula...


*Q: Do you read Science Fiction?*
Not very often - I usually find it boring or difficult to understand. However I really liked Jules Verne, and a couple of other sci-fi books whose names escape me...


*Q: How many Harry Potter books have you read?*
All of them! I'm a huge Harry fan, and love reading and re-reading them to pick up on all the subtle clues. I love the stories, the world JK Rowling has created, and the wonderful characters.


*Q: Have you ever read and enjoyed biographies or autobiographies?*
Yes, but only by/about people I am interested in, generally writers. Claire Tomalin's biography of Thomas Hardy is wonderful, and Fiona McCarthy's bio of Byron is fantastic too. I never read celeb autobios - they're probably ghostwritten anyway.


*Q: Do you remember any of the books you read and loved as a child?*
Absolutely! Loads of Enid Blyton, Chalet School, Narnia, and a book called The Doll in the Garden - can't remember who wrote it but it's really stayed with me.


*Q: Have you reread these books as a grown-up?*
Oh yes! In fact I still collect the Chalet School series. There are over 60 books in it so it will take a while!


*Q: Is there a book of which you can say it has influenced you?*
Jane Eyre was the first 'proper classic' I read and it influenced me so much - Jane's strength, her views on the world, the character of Mr Rochester. His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman is another. I read it first when I was 16 and it made me think about the world in a completely different way.


*Q: Which are your favourite authors?*
Charlotte Bronte, Thomas Hardy, JK Rowling, Philip Pullman, Jasper Fforde, CS Lewis, AS Byatt, Dostoyevsky, Pushkin, Byron, Keats, and so many more!


*Q: Which book would you take with you on a desert island?*
I know it's a cliche, but the Complete Works of Shakespeare. It would mean I wouldn't have to choose between quality and quantity - I would get both! Would be even better if I could have David Tennant along to recreate his role as Hamlet!


*Q: What is your attitude towards translations?*
They're never going to be a perfect substitute for books in the original language, but they let you explore literature from all over the world. Unless my Russian improves it's the only way I'll get to read War and Peace!


*Q: Do you buy your books/get them from the library/borrow them from friends/steal them?*
I tend to buy the classics, and other books which I think I'll read again and again, such as the Discworld series. Otherwise I use the library.


*Q: When you buy books, do you prefer hardcover editions or pocket books?*
I normally get paperbacks as they're cheaper, however it's lovely to have a smart special hardback sometimes.


*Q: Have you ever tried Audio Books?*
No, the idea of listening to a book doesn't seem right to me - I prefer to sit quietly and actually read it!

Summary: Books! Books! Books!