Thursday, November 19, 2009

The W's of Reading: What We Read?


The other day on Twitter, I sat in on a great conversation about what books people associate us with. What types of books do we choose, and why? Have you ever found yourself liking an author or genre for awhile, and then losing interest or simply burning out? Are there books that you just don't enjoy and never read? Have you ever tried something you don't usually like and found you actually enjoyed the experience?

I don't know what books readers would associate me with, although I have a good idea, but I do know what I like to read for pleasure and what I don't. Here is my list of what I read, and what I just can't get into or don't like:
  • I'm always reading classics, plays, and poetry that I haven't read yet for my AP literature classes, and for the pleasure factor of reading them. I would still like to conquer Russian Literature, but haven't been able to yet read anything other than Doctor Zhivago.
  • I enjoy YA literature and think that many of the novels coming out now are written with a wide, engaged audience in mind.
  • Yes, I still really love "chick lit" for its relation to my own life. Since we read to relate in a lot of cases, I still love to sit down and escape into a good novel by Kinsella, Cabot, or Evans.
  • I'm NOT a fan of horror. I don't think that The Stand counts as horror, but I did read this famous novel by Stephen King and actually really enjoyed it. That came after a list of recommendations from a student though, so I think I have to have suggestions if I'm going to read this genre.
  • Believe it or not, I don't enjoy mysteries. I can't put my finger on it, but they bore me to tears!
  • I love fantasy novels, but struggle with science fiction. I will admit to struggling with some fantasy though as well, because I think I'm hindered by my ability to picture the characters, locations, and situations set up in these novels.
  • I'm getting sick of paranormal novels. I love the mixing of genres and am excited to see what's coming next, but I'm growing tired of shape shifters, wolves, etc.
  • I still really enjoy anything to do with Jane Austen. I can feel a break coming soon, but for now, I still have a pretty solid Darcy love that keeps me reading!
Thankfully, and I love that word and how appropriate is for this time of year, I have a stack of books waiting for me for Thanksgiving Break. In fact, I have 24 books checked out from the library, along with all in my Mt. TBR to choose from. Because I'm heading to Hawaii for Christmas, and most of my family and friends have other plans, I'm staying home & will just be dropping in at my aunt's house for Thanksgiving. No, it won't be a busy holiday, and I'm actually really looking forward to it! Some of the books I'm excited to get started on include:


What are you going to be reading for the holiday? What would people say you usually read? What won't you read or are about sick to death of reading?

(I tried to attach a copy of my AP reading list, for those who have been curious and asked about it, but Blogger doesn't have a document attachment? If someone has a suggestion, let me know, and I'd be happy to share that reading list.)

8 comments:

  1. I've seen people upload documents to Scribd on their sites. You might like to try that out.

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  2. Believe it or not I'd write a list very similar to yours! Just a slight difference: I read War and Peace. I hope to read 2 Brontes and a Wharton during next Christmas holidays. But I also have to read for school!

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  3. It looks like you have some good books planned for the holiday weekend. I plan on finishing Guernica by Dave Boling and also hope to read My Antonia by Willa Cather(speaking of classics). I usually like to read a variety of books myself, but do tend to shy away from certain genres, like classics, romance, and mysteries.

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  4. The covers are all very beautiful and I'm reading Moby-Dick with my goddaughters this season.
    Great blog, thanks for sharing and all the very best.

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  5. I am loving this series of posts! And I'm going to be totally jealous if you read Hush, Hush before I do (still waiting for it to come in at the library--sigh).

    Here's my response to your question: http://heidenkind.blogspot.com/2009/11/equal-opportunity-book-lover.html

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  6. I really enjoyed the twitter conversation as well! People told me they associated me with fantasy, books focused on gender, graphic novels, children's lit, glbtq lit, and anything Victorian. I think that's fair enough :P I've started stepping out of my comfort zone ever since I started blogging, though, and I've had some wonderful surprises!

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  7. I really liked The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane and just seeing the cover and the title, now I want to read Casting Spells.

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  8. Well, now you've got me thinking . . . what books to people associate with me? Well, I will be adding this to my list of topics to post about and I will definitely be linking back to you on this one. Love this topic!!

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