A Novel Idea

I would have been an amazing actress because I love nothing more than to be asked questions about myself. I always enjoy talking about what I'm doing or what I'm thinking. I love sharing with people what I'm watching or especially, what I'm reading. When I stumbled across this list of questions posted by one of the Tumblr accounts I follow (it's not always about "Downton" folks), I couldn't help but answer the call. The questionnaire reminded me of the old survey days on Myspace or Facebook, except this time I'm not writing about what I ate for breakfast that morning or who will tag me in their own repost. I'm answering questions about one of my great loves in this life. BOOKS. Indulge me a little, won't you?

 Do you have any reading goals?
I have huge expectations for my own personal reading goals. I wish I could read a book a week like I did as child, heck even as a teenager. I'm lucky these days if I read a chapter a night on something I'm into. Either I'm too tired to pick up a book these days or I"m easily distracted by social networking and Pinterest. Ironically, Pinterest gives me tons of book ideas. 

Are you from a family of readers?
As far as I know, yes. My mom and dad are big readers, my father especially. He's famous for having two or three books going at once which I have always been amazed at. My mother and father have read all of the classics and then some. They have been large influences on what I read. There was a time when the walls of my childhood home were lined with bookcases. Sadly, so many of the books had to have been sold to help out in tough times. That was one of the hardest things my mother ever had to do. Books can be pieces of yourself sometimes.

Do many of your friends read? 
I think so?  I would hope so. Nobody in my life really talks about books. I started a Book Club a couple months ago called "A Novel Idea" which has (hopefully) encouraged a lot of my girlfriends to pick up a book, but sadly I think most of them find it more of an obligation. It's tough when you are a full time mom and holding down a job. So many other things come first these days and sadly, escaping into a book doesn't happen as often as we would like. Another thing I have noticed is I'm not very flexible when it comes to someone else picking what I'm going to read next. My ideal book club fantasy is I pick the book every month and then I host a bog party about it. Ha! The right mood has to strike me at the right time. That's the hardest thing about a Book Club I think. A better idea might be a club where all of the people involved are reading a certain authors work.
 
What or who inspired your reading as a child? 
I would have to say my dad did inspired me to read a lot. My father read to us nightly as I grew up, sometimes tirelessly  reading the same book over and over again, giving in to my begging. I remember all of the voices he did and I find myself doing them the same way when I read those books to my kids. As I got older my dad started reading more grown up books to me, like "The Hobbit" at night, taking it one chapter at a time. These are some of my favorite memories.

Are there any books you wish you got to read when you were younger?  
I wish I had read more Jane Austin books, more of the "Little House on the Prairie" series, along with "Anne of Green Gables". Those books would have been perfectly timed for what I was interested in back then, but I was too caught up in "Sweet Valley High" and "The Babysitters Club". It might have been the 80's influence.



What are your favorite genres?
Would you believe I don't have one? I'm more able to tell you what I don't like, compared to what I do. I read whatever suits me at the time. I could be influenced by anything at any time.

What are your favorite books?
One of my favorite books would have to be "Tully" by Paulina Simons. I was told to read it by a friend in 1997 and I loved it.

It's truly one of the largest books I have ever read and I re-read it every few years or so because I love being taken back. "The time is the late 1970s. The place is the windswept heartland of America. The woman is Tully-- a defiant young rebel with an agonizing secret. In the years to come, beyond the torments and marvels of adolescence, into a world where men will vie for her and lie to her, Tully will dare to win everything, and risk losing it all, in one raw, reckless gamble of the heart". Oh it SO good. Next to that I would say that the "Harry Potter Series" by JK Rowling. They would be my absolute favorite books. I have read the saga three times through.

Do you like to re-read your favorite books? 
The above answer to the last question should say it all, but in all honesty I love that every decade I re-read a few of the young adult/children's books I adored growing up. Books by Judy Blume are my favorite and I mostly find myself reading them again in the summer time. That probably stems from past summer vacations, when I had endless time to read. I"m temped to pick up the "Ramona Quimby" books by Beverly Cleary.

What defines a great book for you? 
Emotion. Good writing of course, but emotion is truly what I'm looking for. I want to FEEL the story, I want to love and to cry and to laugh. I want the characters to stay forever etched in my brain. I want their names carved on my heart. If I can't feel that happening in the first few chapters, I ditch the book.

What draws you to pick up a book you've never seen or heard of before? 
I've never been able to define this, I'm so random in my choices. There needs to be something about the book that just "clicks". It could be the time in my life, or someones influence, or how and who I heard about it from. When a person tells me that I should read something, I usually dig my heels into the dirt until I pick the book up, but when I finally do I am usually surprised at how hard I fall in love. A TV show could mention a book, the book store could have it in the window, I could come across it in a magazine or I could be influenced by a blog writer I follow. It's all very random. It's rare I read a lot of mainstream books. The more popular something is the less I want to read it. Except for the "Twilight" Saga. I make excuses for why I loved those books all of the time!

Do you judge a book by its cover? 

Sometimes. What I really don't like is when the movie made about the book is the art on the cover. Ugh. It truly doesn't give the new reader a chance to create and imagine the characters in their own mind. When I first read "Twilight" I had my own version of who "Edward Cullen" looked like, and he didn't look like Robert Pattinson.

Once you've finished reading a book do you like to keep it or give it away?
I would NEVER give a book away unless I didn't like the it. I would give "50 Shades of Grey" away in a heart beat though. I rolled my eyes so hard trying to read it I gave myself a headache. It was just awful. I'm amazed at how popular the book became. Don't even get me started.

 Do you prefer paperbacks or hardcover?
Hardcover.... but I can't always afford them. Hardbacks feel so good in your hands when you're reading and they always look classy on a bookshelf. Plus, they deal with wear and tear so much better. I got very lucky once and found the complete "Flowers in the Attic" series in hardcover at a thrift store. I love them.

How many books do you own? How many of these books have you read? 
I own at least over 100 books, but sadly I can't say I have read them all. I collect them as I go though life, always hoping that with the ones I haven't read I will someday have time to do so. The list goes on and on and on.

Do you like to borrow or lend out books to others? 
I never borrow books unless it's from my parents. Lending out books is quite possibly the worst thing. You had better be prepared to either never see your book again, or lose a friend.

Do you like to recommend books? Which books do you recommend most often? 

I ALWAYS want to tell someone what I've read after I'm done with the book. I recommend books all of the time to people, it's rare if I found out someone has taken me up on any recommendations. My mother in law Susann reads books that I recommend to her all of the time. I like that about her. We always have something to talk about when we share the same books. I will forever encourage folks to actually read the "Harry Potter" series and not just watch the movies. There are characters you would never meet and love just by watching the movies. The books are incredible and I will preach my love for them until the end of time.

Where do you buy your books? 
 I buy my books at Goodwill, thrift stores or at Powells. My favorite is when someone goes all out and buys me a book. I love gifted books. I truly visit the library more often than I do book stores. I borrow books all of the time from the library (the classic library smell!), the online system is incredible for finding and holding books. That way, I don't feel any sort of commitment, and if I loved the book, THEN I buy it.

What would your ultimate dream bookstore be like?
My dream book store would consist of all of my favorite characters from books muraled on the walls. 

Which genres would you like to read more of?

I would love to read more books about Edwardian Times. I find myself over the last few years incredibly fascinated, but unfortunately I only have time to watch the stories on the BBC. I really want to read more classics, but my concentration level after I had my children has been put to the test. I'm settling for easy reading these days and that's not the level I want to be at. I used to ride the bus to work every day, that was where I did so much of my reading. Lunch breaks as well. You would always find me with a book in hand in the break room, or outside somewhere downtown. These days as a stay at home mom, I day dream about laying somewhere and having complete silence, so I can read.

Do you like to keep a record of your reading - in a reading journal, collecting quotes, writing down thoughts, etc.? I wish I did this! I have been meaning to start a book journal but I'm afraid I have waited to long to start. I truly wish I had thought of this idea when I was a kid. I guess it's never too late to start? My grandmother Frances kept track of all of the books she read. I hope I can have her list in my possession someday. 

If you dislike a book, do you finish reading it? 
No, I don't. Once I left school I vowed to myself I wasn't going to continue reading books I didn't enjoy. Nothing felt worse than pushing through a book I wasn't in to. I had to read "The Pearl" by John Steinbeck in three different schools. It was TOUGH.


Do you own an eReader?  What are your thoughts on eBooks?
I own a Kindle Fire and I do everything on it except read books. I have tried countless times to do it, but there is something too bright about the pages, something artificial, that causes me to just give up every time. I am reading a short story on my Kindle now for my book club, thankfully it's only 100 or so pages. I love owning books, it's just that simple.

Do you listen to audio books? What are your thoughts on audio books? 
I absolutely listen to audio books. My father used to work at a Audio Book Store at night called "Earful of Books". This is how he discovered the "Harry Potter" series narrated by Jim Dale. I have listened to the entire series on audio CD, THREE times. I LOVE Jim Dales voice so much, that I'm a fan of his Facebook Page, "Jim Dale, will you narrate my life". The mans voice is incredible. He does 122 different characters for the series and has been nominated for Grammy's for a few of the books. Just superb.
I also own "The Lord of the Rings" audio collection on CD, which I really dig. They are narrated by a full cast ensemble giving you a full production of the books. The compositions were written and recorded in a rented castle in the 70's, located on the Scottish moors. The dark overcast and foggy setting turned out to be the absolutely perfect inspiration for Hanssons' project. The impending gloom, stark loneliness and isolation in some of his tracks is absolutely unnerving. The entire collection is exquisite!

Have you ever attended a book signing or an author event?  My mother and Father took me to a Dr. Seuss book signing when I was a little girl in Southern California. My friend Jill Thomas was with me, and I remember waiting in line after school for what seemed like forever. He was a kind and gentle man, he told me to have good luck in my life and thanked me for loving his books. This was HUGE.

Have I inspired you to read more yet? I know that after working on this post I'm ready to browse my book collection again. I just finished a beautiful book called "I'm proud of you" by Tim Madigan. It is the story of the authors personal late life friendship with Fred Rogers (Mr. Rogers to you and me) before Fred died. It was very touching. I bought myself "The Fault in Our Stars" on Mother's Day, that is sitting on my night stand waiting to be opened. If you get the chance, write me and share your favorite books with me, I will gladly do the same. Now, where on Pinterest can I find Book Journal ideas?