Reader's Ink discussion
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Book Survey!
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Mod
1.Book next to your bed right now: “Conversations With Lillian Hellman”
2.Favorite series: The “Great and Terrible Beauty” trilogy, of which I only have read one book (I’m pacing myself so it’s not over too quickly), but it was JUST THAT GOOD.
3.Favorite book: “Jane Eyre” by Charlotte Bronte. Duh.
4.The one book you would have with you if stranded on a desert island: “How to Survive on Desert Island”
5.Book/series you would take with you on a long flight: My own. That way I could get some work done.
6.Worst book you were made to read in school: “Huckleberry Finn.” I hated the dialect and the meandering plot.
7.Book that everyone should be made to read in school: Wait, I can’t repeat a book? I guess “Jane Eyre” is out. Let’s go with Jane Austen’s “Emma,” although it WOULD require curriculums to include a FEMALE author.
8.Book that everyone should read, period: “Half the Sky”—arguably the best and most practical book on the plight of women worldwide that has been published. Ever.
9. Favorite character: Again, I can’t use Miss Eyre. Or Emma Woodhouse. Hrmm. You know, I really loved Olive Kitteridge.
10. Best villain: Voldemort. Everything about Voldemort is GENIUS.
11. Favorite concept series: What’s the difference between a “series” and a “concept series”? I’m guessing one more literary, the other more commercial? So, commercial/concept: Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.
12. Favorite invented world: The magical world of Harry Potter.
13. Most beautifully written book: Ooh, this is tough. “Evening” by Susan Minot would be a strong contender.
14.Funniest book: “Bossypants” by Tina Fey, but it’s no secret I have a total girl crush on her. TOTAL GIRL CRUSH.
Vonnegut's A Man Without a Country is on my shelf - thanks for giving me some motivation to read it, Julie!1.Book next to your bed right now: Skippy Dies, Making Supper Safe, Leaves of Grass, and Persuasion (What can I say? I like book hopping.)
2.Favorite series: The Ordinary Boy series, because, even two years after reading it, I'm still surprised at how unexpectedly charming I found it.
3.Favorite book: A Prayer for Owen Meany
4.The one book you would have with you if stranded on a desert island: I'm copying Ashley: “How to Survive on Desert Island”
5.Book/series you would take with you on a long flight: A.S. Byatt's Possession so I would finally read it.
6.Worst book you were made to read in school: Romeo and Juliet (Mostly because, in retrospect, my English teacher had no business trying to teach Shakespeare, and it made me absolutely hate Shakespeare until I was 23.)
7.Book that everyone should be made to read in school: Elements of Style in a futile hope to improve society's grammar and spelling.
8.Book that everyone should read, period: The New Jim Crow - it's disturbing, controversial, and permanently shifted my world view.
9. Favorite character: Not favorite exactly, but most memorable for me? Lady Catherine from Pride and Prejudice, because she's so wonderfully absurd and she spoke one of my favorite lines in literature: "If I had ever learnt, I should have been a great proficient."
10. Best villain: Didn't love the series as a whole, but President Snow from the Hunger Games series terrified me.
11. Favorite concept series: I have no idea what this means, so I'll just include another series. Alan Bradley's Flavia de Luce murder mysteries.
12. Favorite invented world: Harry Potter. I'm still in awe at Ms. Rowling's ability to create such a magical world that seems so real.
13. Most beautifully written book: Charles de Lint's Moonlight and Vines - I read this in college, and some of the passages absolutely entranced me, because they read like works of art.
14.Funniest book: As far as 2011, my funniest book to date is I am a Genius of Unspeakable Evil and I Want to Be Your Class President by Josh Lieb.
Mod
1.Book next to your bed right now: "Skippy" and "Blood Lure" by Nevada Barr.
2.Favorite series: Jan Karon - "The Mitford Series," and "Anna Pigeon Series (National Park Rangers)" by Nevada Barr.
3.Favorite book: "The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society"
4.The one book you would have with you if stranded on a desert island: Bible/Book of Mormon.
5.Book/series you would take with you on a long flight: "Elm Creek Quilting Series" - by Jennifer Chiaverini
6.Worst book you were made to read in school: At the time, "Moby Dick." I'm probably the only person that didn't like this book, but it was true struggle for me, and I usually like happy endings....
7. Book that everyone should be made to read in school: "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Lee Harper and "Bless Me Ultima: by Rudolpho Anaya
8. Book that everyone should read, period: "The Screwtape Letters" by C.S. Lewis, or "Amazing Grace: William Wilberforce and his Heroic Campaign to End Slavery" by Eric Metaxis
9.Favorite character: Sarah Agnes Prine in books by Nancy E. Turner
10.Best villain: The albino in The Lost Symbol. So creepy. Really Creepy. Also Hannibal Lector.
11.Favorite concept series: Books by Malcolm Gladwell: What the Dog Saw and other adventures, Blink, The Tipping Point and Outliers. He see's things outside the box, and helps me to think differently and broader.
12.Favorite invented world: I've started reading a series called "FarWorld." It is a Young adult/teenager type series. A friend and I are reading it together, and don't know if it really is my favorite, but to share it with someone makes it more special to me.
13. Most beautifully written book: "1776" and "John Adams" by David McCollough. You probably think I'm nuts. I hated history in School. We read these for our book club a couple years ago, and I absolutely fell in love with them, and it has started me loving history and reading a lot more and APPRECIATING IT. McCollough has inspired me more than any single author for this type of writing.
14.Funniest book: All Creatures Great and Small - Series by James Herriott. I love these books, and I laugh out loud as much as I might shed a few tears, but I think these are treasures too.
1. JULIET BY ANN FORTIER2. FAVORITE SERIES: SHARON KAY PENMAN'S SERIES ON THE PLANTAGENETS
3. FAVORITE BOOK: PILLARS OF THE EARTH BY KEN FOLLET
4. STRANDED ON A DESERT ISLAND: BIBLE
5. LONG FLIGHT: 2 BOOKS I HAVEN'T READ YET--HISTORICAL FICTION OR MYSTERIES OR BOTH
6. WORST BOOK: HEART OF DARKNESS
7. REQUIRED READING: SELECTED POEMS OF JOHN DONNE
8. BOOK THAT EVEYONE SHOULD READ: WUTHERING HEIGHTS
9. FAVORITE CHARACTER: ELIZABETH I IN I, ELIZABETH
10. BEST VILLAIN: BILL IN OLIVER TWIST BY CHARLES DICKENS OR MISS DANVERS IN REBECCA BY DAPHNE DU MAURIER
11. FAVORITE CONCEPT SERIES: ????
12. FAVORITE INVENTED WORLD: ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND
13. MOST BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN BOOK: KING LEAR BY SHAKESPEARE
14. FUNNIEST BOOK: THE HELP---I LOVE THIS BOOK!!!!
1. Book next to your bed right now: "Skippy Dies", and "Simply Whidbey: A Collection of regional recipes from Whidbey Island, Wa" (anyone else like to read cookbooks?)
2.Favorite series: "Twilight"- sucked me in, but I am NOT a twihard.
3.Favorite book: It would be so hard to choose a favorite- but two that stick out to me are "I Am Charlotte Simmons"- Tom Wolfe, and "My Sister's Keeper" Jodi Picoult
4.The one book you would have with you if stranded on a desert island: I'd have to go with "How To Survive On A Desert Island" as well, or I'd have no chance!
5.Book/series you would take with you on a long flight: Whatever I happened to be reading at the time- maybe 2 or 3 if it were that long....but I don't think I'd "save" anything for a long flight.
6.Worst book you were made to read in school: "1984"....I thought it was terrible at the time!
7.Book that everyone should be made to read in school: "The Perks of Being a Wallflower"....might be a bit too racy, but a seriously good read for the outcast, which lets face it, most high schooler's are or feel to be.
8.Book that everyone should read, period: "Send In The Idiots: Stories from the Other Side of Autism". Probably my favorite book written by an autistic person or about an autistic person (yes, I've read lots of them).
9.Favorite character: Jo March
10.Best villain: Because I read it recently and its still on my mind, Old Nick from "Room". Seriously disgusting character, but incredibly believable.
11.Favorite concept series: Did anyone figure out what this is? Maybe "The Hunger Games", if that fits?
12.Favorite invented world: "Where the Wild Things Are"
13.Most beautifully written book: "Memoirs of a Geisha"
14.Funniest book: "Sh*t My Dad Says", or "Bossypants"- Tina Fey
Rules of this survey - no two answers can be the same book!
1.Book next to your bed right now: Bossypants by Tina Fey
2.Favorite series: The only series I remember being into is Babysitter's Club. Love it!
3.Favorite book: White Teeth by Zadie Smith
4.The one book you would have with you if stranded on a desert island: Bible.
5.Book/series you would take with you on a long flight: Committed by Elizabeth Gilbert.
6.Worst book you were made to read in school: At the time, A Tale of Two Cities. I'd probably like it now, but not in 9th grade.
7.Book that everyone should be made to read in school: Three Cups of Tea. I know it's under fire but I think it's an important story.
8.Book that everyone should read, period: A Man Without a Country by Kurt Vonnegut
9.Favorite character: I'm taking a raincheck on this question. :)
10.Best villain: The albino in The Da Vinci Code. I honestly lost sleep thinking about him! So creepy.
11.Favorite concept series: Not sure!
12.Favorite invented world: Maybe the Wrinkle in Time world?
13.Most beautifully written book: A Short Guide to a Happy Life by Anna Quindlen
14.Funniest book: Born Standing Up by Steve Martin. Or anything by David Sedaris.