Malu's challenge - the Big Read (Top Ten Non Fiction Books)

Member Name: cswann

Product:	Top Ten Non Fiction Books
Date:	04/11/03 (45 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Some wonderful books

Disadvantages: No time to read everything

Thanks to Malu for this highly diverting challenge.

My turn...

q.1: What is your favourite genre?

Novels - I prefer to have an open mind about this, and love books which are Genre-less!
Non fiction – books about music, the nerdier the better. Lists of people’s favourite albums / singles; top 40 charts; guides to certain eras or musical genres. I even liked Nick Hornby’s book (“Songbook”), though I can see it was an incredibly insular project.


q.2. Do you read the classics, i.e., the great authors of the 18th and 19th century?

Yes – Dickens, Austen, Bronte, and I’m also keen on American writers like Mark Twain. Mostly I re-read them, rather than pick up a classic I’ve never read before. There’s just so much to get out of a book like Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice” or (even better, as far as I’m concerned) “Persuasion” that one reading is not enough, and at least 4 or 5 readings are what I’d guess is really called for. That way I’ll be able to remember the difference between the Annes, Lydias, Elizabeths and Harriets!


q.3. Are you interested in thrillers?

Not really – although I very much enjoyed Iain Banks’ “Complicity”, which I’d definitely classify as a thriller.


q.4. What about horror stories?

Not really, although having said that I do enjoy Stephen King’s earlier novels, and Edgar Allen Poe’s stories are excellent.


q.5. Do you read science fiction?

Yes, and my favourite of all has got to be “The Hitchhikers Guide” series. Does fantasy count here? Terry Pratchett is another favourite.


q.6. How many harry potter books have you read?

The first three. My strategy is to read one a year, just keeping ahead of the films. I’ve enjoyed all 3 so far, readin
g them very quickly because they are so unputdownable.


q.7. Have you ever read and enjoyed biographies or autobiographies?

Yes – plenty of them, mainly music or showbiz ones. Books about Little Richard, Marianne Faithfull, Cher, Joan Baez and Audrey Hepburn spring to mind as good ones.
I would never touch anything about MPs or royalty.


q.8. Do you remember any of the books you read and loved as a child?

Anything by Enid Blyton – from Noddy to the “Mystery of” Series.
The Richmal Crompton’s William books
Anna Sewell’s “Black Beauty”
all those Ladybird books… especially the ones to help you to learn new words.
Bannerman’s “Little Black Sambo” (frightening, that one!)


q.9. have you re-read these books as a grown-up?

Only the William books – and they are just as good. The settings and fashions were completely out of date even when I read them as a child (men wearing galoshes, overshoes, and weekly spending money of about two old pence) but it didn’t matter then and it doesn’t matter now!
I know that Enid Blyton’s style of writing would really annoy me now, so I’ve avoided re-reading those.


Q.10 Is there a book of which you can say it has influenced you?

”The Naked Civil Servant” by Quentin Crisp. Very moving, very funny, historically quite an interesting account of post-war London, too. A book that changed the way I look at people in general, and always makes me think “don’t let anyone ever make you feel bad about yourself”.


Q.11. Which are your favourite authors?

(Deep breath) William Shakespeare, Jane Austen, T.S. Eliot, T. F. Powys, B.S. Johnson, Iain Banks, Lesley Glaister, Jeanette Winterson, Douglas Adams, Sarah Walters – is that too many?


Q.12 Which book would you
take with you on a desert island?

Charles Dicken’s “Little Dorritt” – all his books have such a great range of characters, but I’d choose this particular one. There would be plenty to keep me going for months in just the one book.


Q.13 What is your attitude towards translations?

I know I’m probably not getting the full sense of the writing, but it’s better than not being able to read it at.


Q14. Do you buy your books/get them from the library/borrow them from friends/steal them?

I’m a great believer in libraries, and de-cluttering my house, so borrowing is always best. There are some books, such as recipe books, music books and favourite novels which I’ll always want to keep, so I’ll buy those.


Q.15 When you buy books, do you prefer hardcover editions or pocket books?

Give me a paperback anytime – not as heavy to carry around, and cheaper.


Q.16 Have you ever tried Audio Books?

No. I hate the thought that they could be abridged and I’d be missing something. And they all seem to be narrated by Martin Jarvis anyway… ;-)


And yes, I will be reading as many of the Big Read books as I can - starting with His Dark Materials, not sure how I've not come across those books before.

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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. I'm assuming the new cat will be sorted by the guides involved....”

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