10 Signs of Book Addiction

I borrowed this from The Story Siren:

10 signs of Book Addiction

I have a problem.... do you? If you find yourself nodding your head to any of these statements, you might suffer from Book Addiction. Don't worry you are not alone.

You might be a book addict if:

1. You buy your purses based on how many books you can fit inside. [ALWAYS. The smallest purse I own can fit a small paperback. The largest purse I own can fit five hardbacks.]
2. The Fed Ex and UPS carriers, know you by name. [Well, no. They tend to drop and run.]
3. Your family refuses to buy you books because they don't want to support your habit. [My family rarely buys me books. This last birthday was an exception.]
4. You own multiple versions of the same book. [Yes. Mostly books I love like The Lord of The Rings, Henry James, Shakespeare, etc.]
5. You dream about books. (Getting them... meeting the authors that write them.) [Yes. I've had dreams about being BFFs with authors.]
6. You always have at least one book on you at all times. Even if it's just a quick trip to the dollar store. [Like I said, my purses are important. If I don't bring a book, it's like not bringing my cellphone: I fidget and worry.]
7. You usually help shoppers at the bookstore, because you are more knowledgeable than the staff. [LOL no, sorry. But I do know my local Borders like the back of my hand.]
8. You've been known to skip family functions or outings with friends because you can't stop reading. [Would I actually admit to that?]
9. There are books in every room of your house. [Hm well no but I share my house with several other people who steal books.]
10. If you are within five miles of a bookstore, you find yourself drawn to it like a homing device from the mothership. [YES YES YES YES TAKE ME MASTERS.]

Score: 6/10.

Top Ten Tuesday: Most Anticipated Books in 2011

This is a meme by The Broke and the Bookish. I actually only have 8. :( Fail! I'm probably not remembering plenty of other MUST READ 2011 releases. They are listed vaguely in order of how excited I am for them.

1. Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare (no cover yet)

I loved the first one, and oh babies I want to know what happens next.

2. Supernaturally by Kiersten White (no cover yet)

SEE ABOVE.

3. Choices of One by Timothy Zahn

TIMOTHY ZAHN! STAR WARS! STORMTROOPERS!

4. A Memory of Light by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson (no cover yet)

It's FINALLY going to end!!!! I actually still need to read The Gathering Storm and Towers of Midnight...no biggie!

5. Iron Queen by Julie Kagawa

These books are snuggly.

6. Across the Universe by Beth Revis

It sounds coooooooooool.

7. City of Falling Angels by Cassandra Clare

Need. To. Know.

8. Prized by Caragh O'Brien (no cover yet)

You know, the more distance I have from Birthmarked, the more I like it, and the more I want to know what happens next.

Those are ALL sequels except for Beth Revis. Hm.

My Life According To Books

This meme is from PopCultureNerd , and my attention was brought to it by ElizabethaWhite. :)

Using only book titles you've read this year, answer the prompts below.

In high school I was: The Historian (Elizabeth Kostova)

People might be surprised: How To Cheat a Dragon's Curse (Cressida Cowell)

I will never be: Aloft (Chang-rae Lee)

My fantasy job is: Guardian of the Dead (Karen Healey)

At the end of a long day I need: Black Coffee (Agatha Christie)

I hate it when: M is For Magic (Neil Gaiman) [not really, but nothing else worked. :(]

Wish I had: Dragon and Thief (Timothy Zahn) [lolz a dragon and a thief of my very own!!!! [I really want to read the next one...wah.]]

My family reunions are: The Valley of Fear (Arthur Conan Doyle) [tongue in cheek]

At a party you’d find me with: Guns, Germs, and Steel (Jared Diamond)

I’ve never been to: The Sea of Monsters (Rick Riordan)

A happy day includes: The Changeling Sea (Patricia McKillip)

Motto I live by: I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have To Kill You (Ally Carter)

On my bucket list: The Geeks' Guide to World Domination (Garth Sundem)

In my next life, I want to be: Fire (Kristin Cashore)

55 Quirky Questions for Readers

Meme from the Literary Lollipop! I love that name.

1. Favourite childhood book: The Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, I guess. I have a lot! Little House on the Prairie, Big Bear's Book, Moog, Harriet the Spy.

2. What are you reading right now? The Book That Changed My Life ed. Roxanne J. Coady and Joy Johannessen

3. What books do you have on request at the library? Many debut novels. I'm most excited about Hex Hall, probably.

4. Bad book habit: Buying too many, too fast, and reading them too slow. :P

5. What do you currently have checked out at the library? The Book That Changed My Life, The Changeling Sea, and Beauty (read Beauty straight through last night).

6. Do you have an e-reader? Nope. I may get a Kindle someday.

7. Do you prefer to read one book at a time, or several at once? Depends. If I start one and am bored with it, I will start another one. Also, if I'm in school, there is really no limit.

8. Have your reading habits changed since starting a blog? Not really. My reading habits have changed from READING other people's blogs. ;)

9.Least favourite book you read this year: Hm. Blu's Hanging. Made me feel icky.

10. Favourite book I’ve read this year: YOU IMPOSSIBLE QUESTIONER. I'll just throw out The Blue Castle by LMM because I read it twice in a row. ;)

11. How often do you read out of your comfort zone? 30-40%, because of school and YA recs.

12. What is your reading comfort zone? sci-fi, fantasy, children's, and old classics. I'm pretty PG-rated too.

13. Can you read on the bus? Yes.

14. Favourite place to read: A couch or a deck-chair.

15. What’s your policy on book lending? I rarely do it and only to close friends, unless I have duplicates for some reason.

16. Do you dogear your books? No. O.o

17. Do you write notes in the margins of your books? Sometimes for school. I do underline, if I'm in the mood.

18. Do you break/crack the spine of your books? I TRY NOT TO???? But actually, I usually read paperbacks, and it's pretty impossible to read a thick paperback without CREASING the spine.

19. What is your favourite language to read? English. I can only read Latin besides that. :P And that takes me 10 times as long.

20. What makes you love a book? The characters and/or the writing style/language.

21. What will inspire you to recommend a book? If it is amazing in every way and overlaps in several genres, or is ungenreable, OR if I know someone well enough that I know they will love it.

22. Favourite genre: Probably children's fantasy.

23. Genre you rarely read (but wish you did): historical

24. Favourite Biography: OOO HARD GAME. I haven't read many. I liked Tom Shippey's Tolkien bio, but it wasn't really a bio...yeah fail. Fanny Crosby by Bonnie C. Harvey was good.

25. Have you ever read a self-help book? (And, was it actually helpful?) I've read a lot of writing self-help books. No Plot? No Problem! by Chris Baty is a fave. 7 Habits for Highly Effective Teens (or something) was pretty good but I didn't actually end up USING it to help myself. lol.

26. Favourite Cookbook: I've never spent enough time with one to have a fave. :P

27. Most inspirational book you’ve read this year (fiction or non-fiction): Little Women, strangely. I really identified with Jo (I know, how original of me! But that's what makes it classic, I guess).

28. Favourite reading snack: Reese's pieces. :P

29. Name a case in which hype ruined your reading experience: Hunger Games almost....I had such high expectations that it was just difficult to be objective. I also wasn't a huge fan of Wicked Lovely, but I don't think I would have loved it even if there wasn't hype. So I dunno.

30. How often do you agree with the critics about about a book? I don't really read book critics, so I don't know. And book bloggers all have different opinions, so if they ALL love a book, it's usually something special.

31. How do you feel about giving bad/negative reviews? lol I'm fine with it. I'm not really a "professional" book blogger reviewer person though.

32. If you could read in a foreign language, which language would you choose? Latin? I want to be fluent, really I do!

33. Most intimidating book I’ve read: The Historian. 900 pages of travel and art and research and a little bit of thrill.

34. Most intimidating book I’m too nervous to begin: Jonathon Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke

35. Favourite Poet: Elizabeth Barrett Browning, maybe. Or Robert Frost?

36. How many books do you usually have checked out from the library at any given time? 1-3, or 1-8 if we include manga.

37. How often do you return books to the library unread? 1/3?

38. Favourite fictional character: Faramir? Elizabeth Bennet? Howl Jenkins? TOO HARD.

39. Favourite fictional villain: Darth Vader. We've been like this & ever since I was 5 or so.

40. Books I’m most likely to bring on vacation: Something lengthy, fictional, and what I hope to be an engaging read.

41. The longest I’ve gone without reading: No idea. I had issues last year, before the summer.

42. Name a book you could/would not finish: I can't think of one just now.

43. What distracts you easily when you’re reading? Sometimes music. TV/movies.

44. Favourite film adaptation of a novel: The Fellowship of the Ring, probably.

45. Most disappointing film adaptation: Eragon, because at the time I loved the books way more than I do now.

46. Most money I’ve ever spent in a bookstore at one time: $50

47. How often do you skim a book before reading it? If it's for school, probably.

48. What would cause you to stop reading a book halfway through? If the writing is sloppy, and/or if I don't care about ANY of the characters.

49. Do you like to keep your books organized? Yes, plz! Especially now that they all fit on my shelves.

50. Do you prefer to keep books or give them away once they’ve been read? Keep them, unless I hated it or don't plan on reading it again.

51. Are there any books that you’ve been avoiding? Jonathon Strange and Mr. Norrell, and The Gathering Storm by Robert Jordan. They're super long.

52. Name a book that made you angry: Liar

53. A book I didn’t expect to like but did: Albatross by Josie Bloss

54. A book I expected to like but didn’t: Gifts by Ursula K Leguin

55. Favourite guilt-free guilty pleasure reading: Manga and Star Wars novels.

Continued book meme from Picaresque.

Part 3– The best book you’ve read in the last 12 months:

This is an absurd question. But okay. I'm just going to put my top.....6 from 2010 (cuz it's easy to check on Goodreads, lol).

-The Blue Castle by Lucy Maud Montgomery

-The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

-The Sign of Four by Arthur Conan Doyle

-The Bostonians by Henry James

-The Game by Laurie R. King

-Fire by Kristin Cashore

Part 4 – Your favorite book or series ever: This is such an impossible question! But I'm going to say The Lord of the Rings trilogy, because honestly it's really what turned me into the bookworm I am today. :D A close second would be Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones, because I've read it countless times and love it to bits.

Part 5: A book or series you hate: Twilight? I don't know, I tend to block out books I hate and just refuse to think about them anymore. OH I did have to read a book for school this year, Blu's Hanging by Lois-Ann Yamanaka, which despite being good writing I completely hated. It was just too disgusting for words.

Part 6: A book that was adapted into a movie you liked better than the book (or vice versa, or both): Well I've never read a John Grisham book, but I love the movies The Pelican Brief, The Client, and The Runaway Jury. Does that count? Books that I like better than movies include Howl's Moving Castle, Inkheart (although I loved the movie except for the last scene), Dark is Rising, and of course Eragon. I don't care how much you hate the Eragon book, the movie is a travesty to humanity.

Part 7: Least favorite plot device used in books you otherwise enjoy: Random tragedy or deaths or emotional angst that is used just to get you to "connect" or "empathize" with the characters. Save me useless drama, people. If it's needed for the story and completely understandable and believable, okay. Otherwise, no.

Book Meme parts I and II

Book Meme from Picaresque. :) Who knows where it started.

Part I: A series you wished had gone on longer or one you wished would just END ALREADY (or both!): I would read Diana Wynne Jones' Howl books until the world ended. I don't know if that's healthy or whatever. But it's true. It's unlikely we will get any more.

Series that need to END are Paolini's Inheritance "trilogy" and Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series (which also started as a trilogy). Both series have major weaknesses, but I also love them to bits and would like to see some CONCLUSION.

Part 2: A series or book that you wish more people were talking about and reading: Hmmm....hard game. Well it's actually quite hard to find some good old Henry James lovers....I keep gushing about the poor man and everyone thinks I'm insane. I would love to discuss his books and themes in-depth. Also I was very sad for a while because I didn't know anyone personally who had read Howl's Moving Castle, despite its utter MAGIC, but that's solved now, yay! The Perilous Gard and Sherwood's Ring by Elizabeth Marie Pope are, as far as I can tell, extremely under-read and underrated.