A to Z Bookish Survey

Posted in Bookish Thoughts by

Jamie at The Perpetual Page-Turner came up with this great bookish survey. What better way to spend time than by thinking about all things book-related? Want to play? Just answer the A to Z prompts in your own post — and have fun!

AtoZsurvey

Word of warning: My answers are full of Outlander references! Yes, I get a tad obsessed.

Author you’ve read the most books from:

Bill Willingham, author of the Fables series of comics/graphic novels. (I was surprised by my “most read” results! To see yours, to to Goodreads, click on My Books, then scroll down until you see Most Read Authors toward the bottom left. Et voila!)

Best Sequel Ever:

It’s hard to choose just one… but I guess I’d go with Dragonfly in Amber, book 2 in Diana Gabaldon’s amazing Outlander series. The opening chapters really shocked me when I first read this book, and then so much happens, and it’s all so dramatic and wonderful… it just sweeps me away every time I read it!

Currently Reading:

The Cuckoo’s Calling by Robert Galbraith. (Okay, okay, we all know it’s J. K. Rowling by now, right?)

Drink of Choice While Reading:

I can never go wrong with a cup of coffee in my hand. The stronger, the better! A cookie on the side wouldn’t hurt either.

E–reader or Physical Book?

Give me a book made of paper, any day!

Fictional Character You Probably Would Have Actually Dated In High School:

Um, can I just say how NOT actively dating I was in high school? Friends, groups, etc — sure. But going on an actual date? Not so much. I’d like to think I’d have been at Hogwarts and would have dated Sirius Black. There’s a guy who needed a lot more love than he ever got in his life.

Glad You Gave This Book A Chance:

Dreamhunter (and its sequel, Dreamquake) by Elizabeth Knox. I don’t even remember how I heard about this pair of books, but these have such an interesting premise, a really unusual fantasy world, and are just so well done. I’m really glad that I read them — but I wish I knew someone else who’d read them as well!

Hidden Gem Book:

The River of No Return by Bee Ridgway. This is an amazing book — more people need to check it out!

Important Moment in your Reading Life:

All of them? I don’t know, I suppose learning to read independently as a child and then being turned loose in the local library to pick out whatever caught my eye.

Just Finished:

Openly Straight by Bill Konigsberg

Kinds of Books You Won’t Read:

There’s not much that I won’t give a try, at the very least — but if I have to pick, I’d say I won’t read military thrillers or sappy, sentimental books by male authors trying to prove how sensitive they are.

Longest Book You’ve Read:

Les Miserables by Victor Hugo (1,463 pages — yup, I read it!). Second longest is The Fiery Cross (1,443 pages) by Diana Gabaldon, #5 in the Outlander series.

Major book hangover because of:

Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick. Such a beautiful book, unlike anything else I’ve seen or read.

Number of Bookcases You Own:

I’m up to about 10 total at this point, after splurging at Ikea last fall. The saga of my bookcase building is here.

One Book You Have Read Multiple Times:

The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell. I always find something new and amazing in this book.

Preferred Place To Read:

Outdoors in the sun! My back porch on a sunny day is absolutely perfect.

Quote that inspires you/gives you all the feels from a book you’ve read:

Most recently:

“We were dancers and drummers and standers and jugglers, and there was nothing anyone needed to accept or tolerate. We celebrated.”
(from Openly Straight by Bill Konigsberg)

Reading Regret:

All the books that weren’t on my high school reading list that I’ve just never gotten around to reading! Am I the last reader on the planet who hasn’t read Great Expectations? Plus, not taking more English classes in college.

Series You Started And Need To Finish (all books are out in series):

The Dark Tower series by Stephen King. I read the first three, and really enjoyed them… but then stopped. I have the rest of the books, just need to get motivated to jump back in.

Three of your All-Time Favorite Books:

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon, the Harry Potter series, Lamb by Christopher Moore

Unapologetic Fangirl For:

Outlander! So much to love in this amazing series.

Very Excited For This Release More Than All The Others:

Gotta go with Written In My Own Heart’s Blood by Diana Gabaldon, the eagerly awaited 8th book in the Outlander series, due out in March 2014.

Worst Bookish Habit:

Buying a book that I just HAVE TO HAVE the second it comes out… then letting it sit on my shelf, unread, for weeks or months.

X Marks The Spot: Start at the top left of your shelf and pick the 27th book:

This was fun! The 27th book on the top shelf of my left-most bookshelf is Lyra’s Oxford by Philip Pullman, a small, lovely hardcover book that’s a follow-up and companion to the His Dark Materials trilogy.

Your latest book purchase:

The Impossible Lives of Greta Wells by Andrew Sean Greer. And as opposed to all the books I bought and then didn’t read (see my Worst Bookish Habit!), I actually read this one the second it arrived. And loved it.

ZZZ-snatcher book (last book that kept you up WAY late):

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. I reached a point where I just couldn’t disengage my emotions enough to stop! Sobbed my way through to the end until I finished at 1:30 am!

Are you playing too? Please leave me a link to your post so I can see your A to Z bookish thoughts!

16 thoughts on “A to Z Bookish Survey”

  1. Isn’t Jamie so clever?! This survey was a lot of fun! You learn so much about people.

    First off, you are quite the Outlander fan, aren’t you? I can’t say I’ve ever read any of the series, but I think I need to. And don’t feel bad about not reading the classics, I think most of us didn’t appreciate them nearly as much as we should have back in school. I can sufficiently say, I enjoy them more now (most of them anyway) than I did then.

    Oh man! Sirius really didn’t get enough love, did he? He was probably my favourite character in that series next to Lupin (and Snape, of course). Love him! As for The Fault In Our Stars… I’m terrified to read it, more specifically, I’m terrified of becoming a babbling mess. So yeah, I’ve put that one off for awhile. One of these days, maybe I’ll muster up the courage to read it. Maybe.

    You’ll find my answers to the survey here: http://foiltheplot.blogspot.com/2013/08/a-very-bookish-survey.html

    Reply

    • Nikki, thanks for your comments! Yes, Outlander is totally a guilty pleasure for me — usually I don’t gush quite this much in one post. 🙂 You know, I really did read more classics than I think I did — it’s just that I keep coming up against more titles that I can’t believe I never read! I suppose there’s no end to it all. I do love Lupin and Snape as well, but Sirius has always been my tragic love. ❤ Off to check out your answers now!

      Reply

  2. Dating Sirius Black!! What an awesome answer 😀 I often think that a prequel trilogy about Sirius, James, Remus and Peter in Hogwarts would be awesome!
    “sappy, sentimental books by male authors trying to prove how sensitive they are” That answer is perfection! I can’t stand that either but I couldn’t find a poignant way to say it.
    I love Gabaldon’s books! It’s been a while since I read one though. I think I haven’t read Echo in the Bone yet… to my defense, it took my mum a long time to actually buy it and she’s the one owning the series.
    I also haven’t read Great Expectations and I’m an English major. Same with Tale of Two Cities… there were other amazing books on my list though that are somewhat less well-known.
    You really should get back to the Dark Tower!! Book 4 is my favorite. It’s all about Roland’s past and Susan and Cuthbert and magic and Gilead before the fall!
    Also, I know what you mean with the W section. There are quite a few books I had to have IMMEDIATELY but then something came up and somehow I just still haven’t read them yet…
    I’ll shut up now, this comment has gone on long enough 😉 Thanks for checking out my survey earlier! I’m following you via bloglovin’ now because I think we have quite a few bookish things in common 🙂

    Reply

    • Thanks, Carmen! Always a pleasure to meet a kindred spirit when it comes to books! I know I really need to read Wizard & Glass — I don’t really have a good reason for stopping with the series, just took a break and never came back to it, and #4 is the one I was really looking forward to!
      PS – Following you too!

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    • Can’t wait to see your answers! I think there are a LOT of us all waiting for that special book to come out in March!! (I even have a little count-down ticker in my sidebar…)

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  6. lol, it’s funny, I managed to get through Tolstoy’s War and Peace but I saw the first page of Hugo’s Les Miserables and I was like “Ehhhh, maybe I’ll read this some other day (in the distant future)” xP

    I know what you mean about having to buy the book the second it comes out and then having it sit there for long periods of time afterwards…I think I have a few of those still kicking around on my shelves…

    Lyra’s Oxford! Haven’t gone around to picking up that book, even though I loved the trilogy years and years ago

    Great answers! I enjoyed reading them 🙂

    Reply

    • Thanks, Lianne! BTW, there’s another companion book by Pullman (Once Upon The Time In The North) — also good, but made me wish there was another full novel about Lyra!

      I have three hardcovers that I bought this spring — so excited to read them!! — and honestly, I haven’t touched them and don’t know if I’ll get to them before… I don’t know… Thanksgiving, perhaps? such a bad book habit. 🙂

      Reply

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