Sunday Stealing
You'd think that as an avid reader and a writer, I'd love questions about books, but I don't. I don't have favorite books or authors, (aside from Tolkien), and I have a difficult time with questions about books. I keep a list of books I have read, one that I started about 10 years ago with around 600 books on it, so I will refer back to that for some of these answers.
1. Authors you never get tired of reading.
A. Tolkien. Janet Evanovich. Juliet Marillier, J. K. Rowling (Harry Potter books only), Sue Grafton, Nora Roberts, Adriana Trigiani, Fannie Flagg.
2. A book you bought for the cover, and discovered it was better than you thought.
A. The All Girls Filling Station Last Reunion, by Fannie Flagg
3. A book that made you laugh and cry, and made you depressed.
A. In Pieces, by Sally Field
4. A book that was a pleasant surprise.
A. A Discovery of Witches, by Deborah Harkness
5. A book everyone loves that you don’t.
A. Most of Barbara Kingsolver's books. The only one of hers I really liked was Flight Behavior. She writes well but something about her style does not make me happy when I'm reading.
6. A book with a great sidekick that you like more than the hero.
A. The Harry Potter books, by J. K. Rowling. I loved Hermione way more than I loved Harry.
7. A book that helped you through a difficult time.
A. The Secret Life of Bees, by Sue Monk Kidd
8. A book that taught you something valuable.
A. The Tao of Writing, by Ralph Wahlstrom & The Writing Diet, by Julia Cameron. (I read them both around the same time.)
9. A book or series that it took you awhile to get into.
A. Anything by Stuart Woods. My husband loves his books, especially his Stone Barrington series, but it took me a long time to come around and listen to them with interest. It helps that they are audio books and thus I only hear them in the car. I do not think I could actually read one of these books.
10. A fictional character you’d love to have to dinner.
A. Galadriel, from Lord of the Rings. For those who don't know (I'm looking at you, Gal, non-reader of fantasy), Galadriel was a royal Elf. She was one of the leaders in the rebellion of the Noldor and their flight from Valinor during the First Age, and she was the only prominent Noldo to survive and eventually return, at the end of the Third Age. Towards the end of her stay in Middle-earth she was co-ruler of Lothlórien with her husband, Lord Celeborn, and was referred to variously as the Lady of Lórien, the Lady of the Galadhrim, the Lady of Light, or the Lady of the Golden Wood. Tolkien describes Galadriel as "the mightiest and fairest of all the Elves that remained in Middle-earth" and the "greatest of elven women".
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I encourage you to visit other participants in Sunday Stealing posts and leave a comment. Cheers to all us thieves who love memes, however we come by them.
I chose Barbara Kingsolver, too, I really don't like her writing.
ReplyDeleteGreat choice for a dinner partner!!
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful list of dinner guests! I would like to be there too to hear the conversation.
ReplyDeleteI have never read anything by Kingsolver (interesting surname though).
I laughed at your description of Galadrial. Asa for Kingsolver, I never could get into her books, so have not read any. I do agree with "In Pieces. Such a sad, depressing book. I saw one of her later movies recently -- or part of it -- and in the back of my mind was always what she was thinking/eeling about herself at the time of filming.
ReplyDeleteWe have read and like quite a lot of the same authors, I guess that isn’t much of a surprise since we both do read quite a bit. The Secret Life of Bees sparked a little something in me as well... not so good feelings from childhood memories. Like you, I enjoy a good strong female heroine. As far as autobiographies go Dolly Parton’s was a fun read, especially for a country girl. I also enjoyed Lucille Ball’s autobiography. I did not realize that Dezi Arness was responsible for TV shows being taped the way they are today. Constant movement from one room to another with a camera was something he came up with while filming “I Love Lucy” it had never been done before and of course has been improved upon but the book was very interesting but I have a fondness for “older” celebrities and the way the movie industry worked in the 1940s through to the 60s if you would like to read either let me know ...I loan them to you. :-)
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