I am really excited to be doing this tag – big thanks to Cayce @ Fighting Dreamer for tagging me!
The Book Blogger Test
I really love doing tags (they’re so fun!) so I’m super-excited to be tagged for the Book Blogger Test! Bring. It. On.
What are your top three book pet hates?
1. When a cover is changed midway through a series (I like things to match).
2. Terrible covers on my favourite books, for example The Doctrine of Labyrinth series by Sarah Monette. Excellent fantasy series that avoids the usual fantasy tropes and has a gay protagonist to boot. The covers however…OK, the middle two are actually quite good but the first and last book covers kind of make the books look porny (is that a word??) which is not representative of the series at all.
3. Purple prose. Don’t get me wrong, some authors really can make this work but sometimes it is just not necessary and a more concise style would be far more appropriate. It can depend on the genre, certain fantasy novels for example can tend towards purple prose and it can work but sometimes it is just really jarring.
One of the worst offenders for me is Janny Wurts. I think she is an excellent writer (her collaboration with Raymond E. Feist’s The Empire Trilogy is a favourite of mine, her style in conjunction with Feist’s more simple and direct writing really created something fantastic) but her Wars of Light and Shadow series lost me somewhere a book or two ago. This was mainly due to her flowery writing style and the fact that the plot seems to be going nowhere in a hurry.
Describe your perfect reading spot
Somewhere comfy – usually an armchair. I read in bed a lot but I wouldn’t say it was the comfiest place to read.
Tell us three book confessions
1. I haven’t yet read The Book Thief or The Fault in Our Stars – arguably the two biggest YA novels out there at the moment.
2. I get sucked in by a pretty cover. I fall for books all the time because the covers are gorgeous. I then beat myself up about it when the book proves to be less than perfect but I then fall for the same thing again and again. It is a vicious cycle.
3. I used to like my books all tied up with a happily ever after ending but nowadays I love angst. The sadder and more depressing the ending, the more I like it usually. I freely admit that I am weird that way.
When was the last time you cried during a book?
Em…I get emotional at books sure, but I really do not find myself crying very often. I got a bit teary at Teeth by Hannah Moskovitz and Crush by Laura Susan Johnson was particularly hard-hitting but I do not full-out weep when reading.
How many books are on your bedside table?
Eh…a lot! Seriously probably about 40 stacked at my bedside – not a lot of room for anything else apart from my lamp!
What is your favourite snack to eat while you’re reading?
I don’t really like to eat when reading in case of mess but if I was to eat something it would probably be something like mini muffins – they are reasonably easy to eat without lots of crumbs.
Name three books you would recommend to everyone
1. Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard
2. Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
3. Assassin’s Apprentice by Robin Hobb (the whole series really but that would be cheating!)
Show us a picture of your favourite bookshelf on your bookcase
My shelves are in total disarray so this one is my favourite because it is, by far, in the most order!
Write how much books mean to you in just three words
Books are friends (I borrowed/paraphrased that from a bookmark I had as a kid but it is definitely true – books have got me through some really tough times). OK now I’m imagining saying it like Bruce the shark from Finding Nemo!!
What is your biggest reading secret?
I…used to read the last page first. I know how bad that is but I must admit I do not do it anymore – I hate to ruin an ending.
I’m tagging:
- Alicia @ A Kernel of Nonsense
- Lucy @ The Reading Date
- Annette @ Booknerderie
- Luna @ Luna’s Little Library
- Andie @ Thebookheap
for more tags, click on the below link:
Yay! Thanks for the tag, Brin!! I’ll do this bad boy when I get home 🙂 and true story, I used to read the last page first. I hate suspense and to keep from speed reading I would read the end to calm my nerves. Now I’m over it but still…:) great answers.
You’re welcome!! I thought this was a really fun tag. 🙂
Yay – I’m not the only one who used too skip to the end!!
Awh brilliant, looking forward to doing this! I enjoyed reading your answers Brin. Bwahaha Books are friends, not food.
It’s loads of fun!
Lol – I can just hear it now. 😀
This is cool 🙂
It is really fun! 😀
This is such a fun Tag! I think I might do this one 🙂
DO IT!! Lol 😉
Seriously though, I had a blast doing it – it was so much fun. 😀
Thanks for tagging me. I just uploaded my post.
Great answers – hope you had fun with this!! 😀
I actually don’t care much about cover changes, but purple prose rarely works for me either. And terrible covers are just terrible. I haven’t read The Book Thief either (have seen the movie, though)
Purple prose can really pull me out of a story – it can work occasionally but more often than not it just bugs me.
I hate some of the covers for fantasy and science fiction novels especially those from the 1980’s – they are…well, tacky is the only word that comes to mind. 😀
I wanted to read The Book Thief before seeing the movie but might end up seeing the film first at the rate I am going. 😉
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