Books & Reading Preferences

I saw this posted on S. Krishna's Books and thought it was interesting. So here are my thoughts!

Hardback, trade paperback or mass market paperback? I prefer paperback over hardback if I must have a physical book. Otherwise I'm all about the Kindle version.

Barnes & Noble or Borders? Well since there aren't any Barnes & Nobles in my area I'll go with Borders! However, I also enjoy an independent bookstore every now and again.

Bookmarks or dog-ear? I cannot and will not dog-ear a book! Kevin, the guy who's lending me Graceling, had a page in Graceling bent and I nearly had a stroke! It hurts me if I hurt my books. Even though I'm all about having books on my Kindle I still have a love and connection with physical books. So, yes, I use bookmarks! Which is usually the nearest piece of something flat.

Amazon or brick-and-mortar? Amazon all the way! I buy a lot of things from Amazon, not just books. I have the Amazon Prime membership so shipping costs are not an issue and I get the products in a timely fashion. Plus, I really enjoy receiving packages in the mail. :)

Alphabetize by author, or alphabetize by title, or random? The bookcase that I have now has my most favorite books on it by author, by series, with the largest size books first. So, the Twilight series is first and so on. My TBR pile is sorted by size of the book and then by author if applicable.

Keep, throw away, or sell? I have a ton of books in Rubbermaid containers in my attic. Some are books that I love and really want to keep but I gave up trying to fit them all on a bookcase. Basically, I need a library where I can proudly display my favorite books. I really don't have that many but it would still require at least two or three floor to ceiling 3-4 feet wide book cases. Maybe some day we'll own a larger house to do just that. I haven't sold many books though. Maybe a few at a yard sale once. I never throw any away.

Keep dust jacket or remove it? I keep them. This doesn't apply to my daughters books. I throw those away when we get them home! Otherwise, she'll have them torn to pieces for me to clean up!

Read with dust jacket or remove it? I remove them while I'm reading so I don't damage it but it goes back on when I'm done.

Short story or novel? I've read a few anthologies but I prefer full novels. I've found that a lot of short stories are actually prequels or follow ups to previously published books. It's cool to read them.

Harry Potter or Lemony Snicket? Neither? I haven't read a Harry Potter or a Lemony Snicket. I've seen both in a movie and enjoyed them but I'm just not hurting to read the books.

Stop reading when tired or at chapter breaks? I usually stop at a chapter break but sometimes I just keep falling asleep and I end up forgetting what I've read anyhow. So at that point I must put the book down. This usually happens when I'm reading in bed at 1:30 am or so.

"It was a dark and stormy night" or "Once upon a time"? I'm definitely all about the "dark and stormy" but I also enjoy a good fairy tale. Put them together and I'm good to go!

Buy or borrow? I usually buy but hey, if someone, like Kevin, wants to share their love of a book with me I'm not going to stop them. It sucks that most of the books I buy are on the Kindle and I can't "share" them with friends or family. But I do a good job to let others know when I'm really liking a book so they might buy it for themselves.

Buying choice: book reviews, recommendations, or browse? I do a bit of all three of these. I do not leave a store without visiting the book section. Just last weekend I was in Target and bought a book while browsing. Usually I buy because of a recommendation.

Tidy ending or cliffhanger? I despise cliffhangers! Honestly, a small cliffy is fine but a huge whooping one is not cool in my book. It really just pisses me off. By the time the follow up is released I do end up forgetting how upset I was but really, it's not cool to do that to a reader.

Morning reading, afternoon reading, or nighttime reading? I do most of my reading late at night. Usually between 8 pm and 2:00 am. I'd love to be able to read more during the day but time just doesn't allow it. If I take a lunch break I do try to read a chapter or two in thirty minutes while scarfing down a sandwich and soda.

Stand-alone or series? I prefer series. I like "knowing" a character and learning more and more about them. I also like a lot of the authors and their writing style. It's a great comfort zone and that's what I enjoy the most about series. They are safe.

Favorite series? I have a lot. J.R. Ward's Black Dagger Brotherhood, Patricia Briggs's Mercy Thompson, Gena Showalter's Atlantis, Alien Huntress, and her Lords of the Underworld series, Kresley Cole's Immortals After Dark and her MacCarrick Brothers series, which I haven't finished either of these yet. I also love Rachel Vincent's Werecats series. And lastly Charlaine Harris's Sookie Stackhouse series. I'm sure I'm missing a few more but these are # 1 in my book!

Favorite children's book? I'd have to say The Castle in the Attic by Elizabeth Winthrop is one of my most favorite kids chapter books, ages 9-12.

Favorite YA book? The Giver by Lois Lowry. This was an amazing book that I will forever remember as being one of the best fantasy and futuristic books I've ever read.

Favorite book of which nobody else has heard? That would be The Lottery Rose by Irene Hunt. I read this in the 4th or 5th grade. It was the most touching book I'd ever read. Probably the first book that made me cry.

Favorite books read last year? Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher. What an amazing book. I've read a ton of great books but this is probably the most touching book that will follow me forever. The rest were just great reads that provided tons of entertainment.

Favorite books of all time? Besides the few I've previously mentioned I'd add Cane River by Lalita Tademy.All of Lois Lowry's novels and Matilda by Roald Dahl.

What are you reading right now? Well I'm reading Dayhunter (Dark Days, Book 2) by Jocelynn Drake but I put Watersmeet by Ellen Jensen Abbott aside to read it.

What are you reading next? I'll most likely finish Watersmeet but I'm also expecting an ARC of Prey (Werecats, Book 4) by Rachel Vincent from another blogger! I can't wait to read that!

Favorite book to recommend to an 11-year-old? Any of my previously mentioned books would work well. I'd honestly recommend James and the Giant Peach! :) That was a fun read!

Favorite book to re-read? That would be The Giver by Lois Lowry, again, it's the best book ever and it's short and easy to read but the message is deep and heavy.

Do you ever smell books? Sure! I don't make it a must do thing but I do sometimes smell a book.

Do you ever read primary source documents like letters or diaries? Not on purpose no. If they are included in the novel then yes.

Wow, that was a lot of questions and a lot of answering! I hope you learned a little more about me. I'm all about reading the "good stuff" but I also look for books that have depth and meaning, of which I will grasph on to and take with me forever.