Category: Book Blogger Hop Page 2 of 5

This prompt was submitted by Billy @ Coffee Addicted Writer:

Are books a must-have in your home?

This seemed like a no-brainer of a question to answer, but I was fairly certain that whatever I ended up saying would sound a lot like something I’ve said before, so I decided to crowdsource the answer and reached out to family and friends asking them to respond to, “Are books a must-have in my home?” Here are their responses:

Steve
I’ve heard of a Chinese proverb, something like “never ask a fish about water.”

I would suppose that’s because a fish doesn’t know how important water is until it’s removed from it.

I pray you never have to be removed from printed words and their life-giving nourishment.

Steve’s known me longer than anyone who doesn’t share my last name or DNA, he knows whereof he speaks

Rosemarie
My first inclination is to go full Sicilian with my answer. I’ll be polite though and ask you, “Che cavolo dici?”

Must-have…are we talking defined as an essential or highly desirable item? Let me ask you these questions in return. Does Stephanie Plum need Janet Evanovich? Is Charles Portis essential for Reuben J. Cogburn? How about Atticus, Jem, and Scout? Was Harper Lee essential to them? Would Mr. Darcy be desirable if not for Jane Austen? Would Lucy and Mr. Tumnus ever meet if not Lewis? What would H.C. have named his children if not for the books in his home?

Yes, I would say books are essential in H.C.’s home. But then I have always had a flair for the obvious.

Victor
Home? I thought he lived in a library branch!

Rosemarie
Initial reaction to this question

Paul
“Are books a must-have in your home?” Does a fish need water? Car need gas….or electricity?? A camel need a hump? Or 2?? Peanut butter need jelly?? Elvis need Pike? Spenser need Hawk?? Quinn need Lily?? Rebus need Shiv?? A house of yours without books would be like the vacuum of space, nothingness hurtling at the speed of light in all directions, nothingness in chaos with nothingness…utter senselessness, utterly!!

Nisha
Yes!!

(I really hoped to have a paragraph or two, especially since I like to poke fun and be rotten. However, time and creativity escaped me!)

I was hoping for something more, honestly, but so were they. Figured Nisha would bring the funny, as they rarely pass up the chance to be rotten to their uncle–but I’ve been there, time and creativity are harsh and finicky mistresses. And, hey, “Yes!!” is accurate.

Carleigh, my daughter

I’m sensing a theme.

Owen, my oldest
He just sent me this FB screenshot from when we were preparing to move a couple of years ago:

A long day of work and being the family IT tech got the better of him, and he had to go with a practical answer.

My Dad
Q: Are books a must-have in H.C.’s home?

A: Absolutely! Yes, unless H.C. can totally reinvent himself and his home, family, and life. What kind of book? Probably doesn’t matter that much.

My Wife
That’s like asking if food, water, and clothing are must-haves.

My Mom (who goes last because she got serious and earnest about it)

H.C. has never lived without books in his home. He was read to and told stories from the time he was born.

At age 3 his readers weren’t always able to read to him when he wanted so he began reading on his own. He proved that he was truly reading, not just reciting books that had been read to him, when he began reading the local newspaper to himself. His appetite for books has continually grown. As his mother, I learned that I needed to read whatever books he was reading at the time so I could continue to talk to him about topics that were important and interesting to him. I ended up reading different genres (is that the right word?) of books than I would have on my own and found interesting topics and styles of writing. He outgrew me in High School with reading and requiring books to keep exploring and learning and enjoying. Fortunately, he had access to libraries since there were only so many places to shelve books in his home. He reads and re-reads books because he enjoyed them so much the first time. He remembers who wrote what book/s. He remembers the content of books he read yesterday, last month, and 30 years ago. He knows what books to recommend to or give to family members based on their interests. He treats books and their authors with respect and awe. He sees books as friends, as pathways to learning, and as entertainment. He shares books and his love of books with people he cares about as well as with people he doesn’t know. He thrives on books challenging him. The question of books being a must-have in H.C.’s home is not even a question. Makes as much sense as asking if H.C.’s body needs air, water, and food.

Oh, look, another theme.

What about you—is a house a home without a book?

This prompt was submitted by Mark @ Carstairs Considers:

What was your favorite genre to read as a child? Do you still read that genre, or do you read something else now?

My reading tastes have been called “immature” and “popular” (as in for the hoi polloi, not as in well-known—a glance at my blog stats tells me that on a daily basis), so it will come as no surprise to many of you that my tastes as a child mirror my tastes now. I had a lot of fun, actually, over the last couple of days thinking about this question before finding time to sit down and answer this. There are actually a lot of precursors to what I read today in what I read as a child. I was tempted to sit down and look at a good number of those in this post, but that wouldn’t really be answering the question. Also, that’d end up taking me longer than I want to/can afford to spend on this post. Hopefully, I get around to writing it down—if only for my sake, I’d really like to work out some of this.

Anyway—my favorite genre as a child? Mystery/Detective novels. Leroy “Encyclopedia” Brown and Sally Kimball; Jupiter Jones, Pete Crenshaw, Bob Andrews (The Three Investigators); Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny Alden (the Boxcar Children); the Sugar Creek Gang (particularly when they were solving a mystery—loosely defined); Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson; whatever Ellen Raskin novels that I could get my hands on. Those were my almost constant companions, those stories were my bread and butter. There were others, too, but the names of the authors didn’t stick for whatever reason (I can picture some covers, but, that’s about it). Possibly because I didn’t re-read those authors with the frequency I re-read those.

Essentially, if the library book had a yellow sticker depicting a figure in a Fedora and Overcoat or a white sticker with a fingerprint and a magnifying lens on it—I read it. And likely re-read it. I know in my weekly trips to the library (4-5x a week during the summer), I’d often just wander the shelves looking for those stickers. I read a lot of dross because of that (arguably some of what I listed above fits). Oddly, I never clicked with the Hardy Boys, and bowed to social pressure to never give Nancy Drew a chance (I still regret that).

Anyway—do I still read that genre? Oh, yeah. Anyone who’s read more than 2 posts on this site probably knows that. I’ve mentioned before, that I pretty much realized I was a reader who always needed a book around while reading Encyclopedia Brown, Boy Detective (although I was pretty voracious before that, I just realize it). Maybe that’s where my brain got wired that way (although I vaguely recall a couple of other detective-ish books before that), but to this day, Mystery/Detective/Crime Fiction is my default genre. I guess I’m still that kid in the backseat of my parents’ station wagon watching Encyclopedia and Sally triumph over Bugs Meany and the rest or wandering the stacks at the Payette Public Library looking for those yellow or white stickers.

And you? Have your tastes shifted?

This prompt was submitted by Billy @ Coffee Addicted Writer:

Do you prefer to read in a quiet or noisy setting?

If it’s a binary choice—quiet. I can get by with pretty much any level of noise, but I’d rather not.

But if the choice isn’t that binary, I like a little music in the background. Not something new—I’d end up paying more attention to it than whatever I’m trying to read (new music is for chores, work, or messing around online). Unless it’s something super-technical, I don’t care if it has lyrics or not. Sometimes I read something that fits the mood that I expect the book to have, but mostly I just grab something I enjoy and use it to cover up all the other sounds around—dogs, kids, dishwasher, etc. Once I’m a few pages or so in, I really don’t notice what I’m listening to (so don’t ask me why I spend so long picking the right tunes).

TV in the background will frequently distract me—even if it’s something I don’t enjoy. I’ve ended up watching too much football because I let my son turn on a game while I was trying to read.

Reading over this makes me wonder just how easily I’m distracted. I thought I had better focus than I’ve depicted myself as having. Huh. The more you know.

What about you—library quiet, or loud as a construction site?

This prompt was submitted by Billy @ Coffee Addicted Writer:

Do you have a favorite reading nook?

I can—and do—read anywhere: in a house, with a mouse, in a (or on a) box, with a fox, in a car, in a (or under a) tree, on a train (theoretically, never been), in the dark, in the rain (assuming I have some sort of cover—can’t let the pages get wet), with a goat, but definitely not in a boat (I get seasick quicker than Toby Daye gets new clothes blood-stained.

But lately, I tend to do most of my reading in my recliner—where you have to sit juuuust right, so the broken spring doesn’t dig into your back. If you do that, it’s about the most comfortable chair around. That can be dangerous when I’m a bit drowsy, but that spring can serve a useful purpose.

This question, made me think of a post from a few years ago, and since I’m too sick to come up with more than 2.5 paragraphs today, I figured I’d copy and paste it here. It seems sort of appropriate.

Where the Magic Happens…or something

Three years ago when I switched to a day job, my reading habits had to change—among other things. It took almost no time at all to realize that reading in the break room just wasn’t going to work—it was too loud, there were too many things going on, you couldn’t sit by yourself, really. And then there were all these nice people wanting to talk.

Actually, people, in general, being around was something to get used to, but that’s another story.

Then I realized that there were perfectly good stairs a lot closer to my workspace than the break room was. So I started hanging out there and reading—sometimes, sitting on the stairs, other times leaning against the railing—it’s at a decent height for that. Nowadays, that’s where 40-60% of my weekday reading happens while on break.

It’s not perfectly quiet, but it’s close enough. Except when the flautist practices every couple of months. There are people who pass through—and some of them talk to me, but the conversations are short—because they’re on their way to somewhere else. Sometimes it’s just a “hi,” and occasionally I workshop ideas for posts here when someone asks about what I’m reading. I’ve even been given a couple of good recommendations.

Now, the keen-eyed among you might have noticed a couple of post-its on the wall (circled below).

So, for a couple of years, people would joke about putting up a sign where I read with my name on it or something (more than one person has suggested getting me a chair). But last December, I moved to a different floor, and within a month, someone had put up the larger post-it reading “[H. C.]’s Reading Spot.” This would be in the larger circle.

A couple of weeks later, that person asked if I liked my sign. I had to confess that I had no clue what she was talking about and apologized profusely. Who pays attention to the walls along the stairs? Especially when you’re not climbing the stairs, but are focused on the book/eReader in your hand. So when I went out for my next break, I went looking for it—and she’d added another post-it (the smaller one), “<– This is the sign.”

Very helpful.

So, yeah, that’s where I read and recharge from all the interaction with people so I have enough energy to get back to work and interact with more people.

Sure, it’s not as snazzy as some of the reading nooks you see on Instagram, Bookstr, etc. It could be more comfortable, that’s for sure. But I’ve gotta say, when the book is halfway decent, I don’t notice. That’s where the magic happens.

What about you—do you have a particular space that’s best to read in?

This prompt was submitted by Billy @ Coffee Addicted Writer:

Do you go back and reread the previous book before starting the sequel?

In my pre-book blogger days, yes. Almost 100% of the time—or if it was part of a multi-book ARC, I’d read everything leading up to it. Sure, that led to some imbalance—I’d know the beginning of a trilogy really well, the middle part so-so, and then the third would just get one reading (unless I got the hankering to read the whole thing in one bite).

It really helped to get some minor details refreshed, remember the character names (especially in bigger fantasy tomes), and just “prime” my mind in general for what was coming. Also, I clearly enjoyed the previous book—that’s why I was coming back for the next, and it worked as an excuse to revisit the series/author.

But that really went away once I really got into blogging, and I’d have a hard time letting myself enjoy the luxury of a re-read. That’s a whole ‘nother story, though, and not something anyone but my therapist should pretend to care about.

Over the last couple of years, however—this is largely thanks to my local library really beefing up their collections—I’ve taken to listening to a book a week or two before the sequel/next in the series releases. I get all the benefits, and since I don’t make a point of writing about every audiobook I listen to, there’s no guilt or internal pressure. I probably do this for 50% or so of the books in a series that I read, time (and availability) permitting right now.

What about you? Do you go into a sequel cold or do you need a refresher?

This prompt was submitted by Billy @ Coffee Addicted Writer:

Which do you prefer to be known as: a voracious reader or a book nerd?

If I’m going to limit myself to those choices, I guess I’d probably go with “voracious reader”. I like the term book nerd, though, and would answer to it unthinkingly. But voracious seems to fit me better (although it also feels like an understatement…from my first reading to today, I saw myself in Scout Finch’s “Until I feared I would lose it, I never loved to read. One does not love breathing.”).

However, if I’m not limiting myself to those options, I have a few other ideas:
The ubiquitous Book Wyrm/Book Dragon label
A Book Shark (à la “I always read. You know how sharks have to keep swimming or they die? I’m like that. If I stop reading, I die.” as Patrick Rothfuss has said)
An Irresponsible Reader (see this comic, and, well…the banner above)
A Bookish Weirdo (thanks, Fahrenheit Press merch!)
But I think my favorite description is something I stumbled onto via a Kevin Hearne tweet: “ink drinker” (buveur d’encre) (see this post from bluesyemre for other nifty international terms).

How do you self-identify as readers?

This prompt was submitted by Billy @ Coffee Addicted Writer:

Do you watch film adaptations of books before reading them?

Almost always I read the book first. I want my imagination to be the dominant vision in my head. For example, I don’t want to put up with Gary Oldman as Jackson Lamb in my head when I read a Herron novel, as fantastic as he was (or as Dracula, or as Sirius Black). Having my mental image and the character’s voice firmly established, I can watch Slow Horses and enjoy Oldman’s take on the character.

This has backfired on me a few times, mostly when the adaptations are so divorced from the source material that it hurts the experience. take The Water Horse. I read that to/with my kids before the movie came out because we all wanted that experience. And boy howdy, could that movie have been more different from the book? I think it was perfectly nice and we’d have probably enjoyed it more had we not known the book.

Sometimes, I don’t care enough about the book based on what I’ve heard/adaptation trailer I’ve seen to care, and will watch the show/movie first. Occasionally, actually seeing the adaptation will make me reconsider and grab the book (I can’t come up with an example at the moment to use here, which is a shame).

Rarely, I think an adaptation looks so good that I don’t want to know what the novel is like. For example, Game of Thrones. You knew that the writers/producers were going to have to make changes from the novels for that, and I didn’t want to be one of those guys sitting there watching saying things like, “Well, actually Khal Drogo should have bells in his hair and…” After having seen season one, I could read the books and keep the two worlds separate in my mind. Sure, that seems to be the opposite of what I said in that first paragraph. It’s rare that an adaptation looks that good to me.

There’s always the stuff that I end up watching for one reason or another and don’t know it’s an adaptation until I’m watching/have watched. That usually inspires me to read it afterward, just to see.

So basically, the book first, but it’s not a hard and fast rule. I didn’t realize I had so many exceptions to the rule, though. Guess you learn something every day.

What about you, readers?

This prompt was submitted by Billy @ Coffee Addicted Writer:

Are any of your bookshelves bowing because of too many books?

Um…are any of my bookshelves bowing because of too many books?

My shelves? Bowing because of too many books? Er, well…

Do bears bear?

Do bees be?

Do flies fly?

Do ducks duck?

Do math majors multiply?

Do eggs get laid?

Does Spock beam up?

Er, yeah. All of them are—except for those I bought in the last 4 months, anyway (and maybe a couple of those have started).

Today's post is brought to you by a grant from David Addison and The Blue Moon Detective Agency.

Are your shelves nice and flat?

This prompt was submitted by Billy @ Coffee Addicted Writer:

Do you suggest new authors to your readers?

I sure hope I do! I don’t know that I’ve read (and therefore blogged/suggested) a lot of debut authors in 2022, but there have been a decent number of new-to-me authors that I’ve recommended.

But every author is a new author to someone—there are people out there who’ve never read James Patterson, Beverly Cleary, or Harper Lee in the same way that some people haven’t read a debut author or one with just a couple of titles under their belt. So in a way, I try to suggest a new author in every post here.

And that’s one of the joys of this little hobby, when someone tells me that they started reading Author X because of my encouragement.

So yeah, new authors, new-to-me-authors, older authors, newbies, experienced pros, mid-list authors, perennial best-sellers, relative unknowns, people who should be well-known, people who maybe shouldn’t be…I try to cover them all.

This prompt was submitted by Elizabeth @ Silver’s Reviews:

Are you lost if you don’t have a book to read?

Lost doesn’t begin to describe it, really. Up until a few years ago, it’d happen occasionally. I’d read things faster than I could get to the library, I wouldn’t have money for a trip to the bookstore, I couldn’t find anything at a bookstore/library that struck my mood, and so on (okay, that last one didn’t happen too often…but it happened a couple of times, I swear). I’d usually resort to re-reading something, but that didn’t always work.

When that happened, I would be moody and irritable. Which isn’t exactly lost, I know. But being lost does that to me, I guess.

Mercifully, I haven’t been in that state for a couple of years. I’m at the point now where I should read 4 more books by the end of the week to get back on schedule (and could say the same almost every Wednesday). Sure, I have the occasional moment of indecision about what to read next, but it doesn’t last long.

Like I talked about back when the prompt was about using the Kindle app on your phone, nowadays I have a book with me everywhere I go. They’re a handy way to deal with the stress, boredom, ennui, annoyance, etc. that comes from being stuck someplace (including social situations you’re not that interested in).

I have a nagging sensation that I left off something I meant to say here, but this is close enough. I’m gonna go read.

Do You Need to Have a Book at All Times?