The Book Meme

1. Hardcover or paperback, and why: I'll read pert' near anything in a cover, sweetie. Outsides don't matter that much to me.

2. If I were to own a book shop, I would call it: The Omnivorous Reader.

3. My favorite quote from a book is:

(In my case, this is more likely to be "a quote from a favorite book". Having one favorite is like having one potato chip. How can I, when they're all so salty and crispy? Anywho . . .)

How about a title of a book? Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway (by Susan Jeffers, if that sounds like a book you need). I'd probably sit home most of my life if I didn't have that one handy.

4. The author (alive or dead) I would love to have lunch with is: Uh. Well, let me explain. I'm an introvert. Doing lunch, even with an author I feel I know very well from their work, would feel a lot like eating with a stranger. Is this on my fun list? Let me look . . . no, no it isn't. Sorry. But I do a very good eating lunch and reading in my car. Terry Pratchett, Dorothy Sayers, Barbara Hambly, Margaret Mahy, Diana Wynne Jones, got a slew of 'em in here.

5. If I were going to a deserted island and could only bring one book (other than a survival guide), it would be: ONE BOOK? What madness is this? All I can say is there better be a *&^% of a lot of string on this island. One book. Hah.

6. I would love for someone to invent a book gadget that: Book? Gadget? What is this "gadget" of which you speak? Got hands, got eyes, got book. Don't need no stinkin' gadget.

7. The smell of books reminds me of: The Dr. Seuss section of the library. A book about a dragon that shot orange and purple sparks. Some time before I was four.

8. If I could be the lead character in a book, it would be: Silly. I am the lead character in my own book.

9. The most overrated book of all time is: Of all time? That's a pretty sweeping statement, isn't it? Aren't you hitting those absolutes a little hard for this time of day?

10. I hate it when a book: I hate it when an author introduces a dog character for the sole purpose of killing the dog off later in the book to show you (not tell you) how worthless, depraved, murderous (fill in the negative) the bad guy is. About 98% of the time I can tell when the dog character is first introduced that author is going to do this, and I hate hate hate it.

In a broader sense, I hate when I read two of an author's books, pick up on the pattern, and know exactly what's going to happen in number three. Look, it's the Injured Person, the Innocent Protagaonist, and the Guy who Goes either to Jail or Crazy at the End of the Book. Borrrrring.

(And a PS to allicats: I got Connie Willis's Remake, Lincoln's Dreams, and Uncharted Territory, not to mention three old Lucky Starr books by Isaac Asimov writing as Paul French.)