Booking Through Thursday (10)

This week's Booking Through Thursday question is...

Do you read book reviews? Whose do you trust? Do they affect your reading habits? Your buying habits?

Of course I read book reviews! I love seeing how other people feel about a book and knowing the specific details that made them love (or not love) a book. I trust... a lot of people. There are a lot of blogs that I read regularly. As for my reading and buying habits: in a way. I don't think it's ever really just one review that makes me rush out and buy a book, but if I see that a lot of people love it and post reviews that make me excited for it, I'm a lot more likely to go buy that book than one that I've heard nothing (good) about. If I see a book that someone I trust really loves though (even if they're the only one!) I'll usually put it on hold at the library.

Booking Through Thursday (9)

This week's Booking Through Thursday question is...

Do you ever feel like you’re in a reading rut? That you don’t read enough variety? That you need to branch out, spread your literary wings and explore other genres, flavors, styles?

Sure! There are definitely times when I get tired of a certain genre and wish for something new. However, it doesn't really happen too often for me. Unlike some others that I've had the pleasure of meeting, I don't need to be in a certain mood to read a book - once I start, I'll adjust and settle into the world.

What about you? How often do you spread your literary wings? 

Booking Through Thursday (8)

This week's Booking Through Thursday question is...

Do you read books “meant” for other age groups? Adult books when you were a child; Young-Adult books now that you’re grown; Picture books just for kicks … You know … books not “meant” for you. Or do you pretty much stick to what’s written for people your age?

For the most part, no. I read a very limited amount of adult books, such as novels by Jodi Picoult. I think her books have a lot of crossover potential though, and aren't really strictly adult anyway. I probably was reading YA before I was technically considered a young adult, but only by a few years so I don't know if that really counts at all!

What about you? Do you read books that aren't "meant" for your age group?

Booking Through Thursday (7)

This week's Booking Through Thursday question is...

And–the reverse of last week’s question. Name one book that you hope never, ever, ever gets made into a movie (no matter how good that movie might be).

Oh. This is even harder than last week's question! I've honestly been racking my brain for an answer and I just can't think of a specific book that I don't want turned into a movie! If the movie didn't already exist (I hated the movie, by the way), I would have said The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold because I knew they would mess that up completely.

OH! I have one. I love the book A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini. If you haven't read it, it's an emotionally exhausting book that is guaranteed to make you want to roll into a ball and cry your eyes out. It's wonderful though and a story well-told by Hosseini. I don't think I'd want to see this in a movie. I feel like it would just kind of ruin the book for me since I had such an intimate connection with it and I don't know how well the substance of that book could be portrayed - you know what I mean?

Other than that, there's nothing I'm really 'against' seeing as a movie. You should have asked me which existing adaptations I hate ;) I could have given you a decent list.

Final Verdict: A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini and possibly others that I can't think of right now.

Booking Through Thursday (6)

This week's Booking Through Thursday question is...

If you could see one book turned into the perfect movie–one that would capture everything you love, the characters, the look, the feel, the story–what book would you choose?

Oh... movies. This is a hard subject for me. I'm really not much of a movie-watcher. I tend to stick with the ones I like unless something particularly interests me (like Prom - doesn't that look cute?) I mean, I think I've seen A Cinderella Story about seven thousand times - my sister, whom I force to watch with me every time even though she hates it - can attest to that. Yes, I torture my siblings. Don't pretend you don't. ANYWAYS.

I really think that Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead would make a fantastic movie. I love the entire series and I think they have a lot of potential to be translated well on the screen. There is great, funny dialogue, a lot of action and some steamy romance between Rose and Dimitri as well as Lissa and Christian (they're my favourite!) I believe that they're currently working on making it into a movie and I really hope that works out. As long as they don't completely butcher it... which is likely... I'll be pleased and I think it will be a great addition to YA-books-turned-movies.

Final Verdict: Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead!

What about you? Do you think your favourite book would make a good movie? Let me know in the comment section - I'd love to hear from you!

Booking Through Thursday (5) ... on Friday

This week's Booking Through Thursday question is...

CAN you judge a book by its cover?

This is a hard question. First off, I think that anyone that claims not to is lying. It's only natural to form an opinion of some kind from the first glimpse you catch at a book. Sometimes this a great thing and sometimes... not so much.

Truthfully, you can't judge a book by its cover. A lot of the times, a cover is the most fantastic thing you've ever laid eyes on and then the story inside just doesn't do it for you. Sometimes, though, it's the complete opposite! For example, I really don't like the covers of a lot of Tamora Pierce books but she's one of my favourite authors and I'm so glad I decided to give her a try.

Instead of the covers, I think a much better way of finding a stellar book is from recommendations (well hello, book bloggers!) or from just reading that summary.

Final Verdict: While a cool cover will definitely give a book an initial edge, it really has no effect on the story inside.

Booking Through Thursday (4)

This week's Booking Through Thursday question is...

I was reading the other day a quote from JFK Jr who said on the death of his mother, that she died surrounded by family, friends, and her books. Apparently, Jackie’s books were very much a part of HER, her personality, her sense of self. 

Up until recently, people could browse your bookshelves and learn a lot about you–what your interests are, your range of topics, favorite authors, how much you read (or at least buy books).

More and more, though, this is changing. People aren’t buying books so much as borrowing them from the library. Or reading them on their e-readers or computers. There’s nothing PHYSICAL on the shelves to tell strangers in your home, for better or worse, who you ARE.

Do you think this is a good thing? Bad? Discuss!

Okay, so I'm going to mostly talk about the whole e-book versus physical book debate because that's the underlying question here, right?

Personally, I like hard copies of books. I don't own an e-reader and at this point, I don't really want one. However, I do see why so many people read e-books! They're environmentally-friendly, cheaper and you can walk around with more than one. I also understand why people just don't think it's the same as reading a 'real' book.

In regards to how I feel about people not knowing about you based on the books on your shelves.. I don't really think it's such a huge deal. If I really want to know what a person is like, I'll talk to them, not judge it solely on their collection of literature. I mostly just like to peruse people's bookshelves to see if we share any common interests.

Agree? Disagree? Leave a comment below and let me know! 

Booking Through Thursday (3)

This week's Booking Through Thursday question is...

So … the books that you own (however many there may be) … do you display them proudly right there in plain sight for all the world to see? (At least the world that comes into your living room.)

Or do you keep them tucked away in your office or bedroom or library or closet or someplace less “public?”

Well, to be honest, I don't own very many books (really, I don't!) but the ones that I do own are kept on the same shelf. It isn't because I'm trying to hide them, I'm actually very proud of all of my books, but they're in my closet.

I know it sounds weird! It is weird when you think about it. What kind of bibliophile leaves books in a dingy little closet? In my defense, I have a walk-in closet where in addition to a lot of clothing, I keep a desk and computer. Really, I don't even refer to it as a 'closet.' My sister and I have called it the 'little room' since we were both really young and I'll probably always call it that.

Plus, there's the fact that I'm a teenager living in my parents' house and they don't read the same books as I do (or possibly any at all). It wouldn't really make much sense for me to store my books in a place so accessible to everyone in my family if I was the only one reading them.

How about you? What do you do with YOUR books? Leave a comment and let me know - I'd love to hear from you!

Note: That isn't actually my closet...

Booking Through Thursday (2)

This week's Booking Through Thursday question is...

Series? Or Stand-alone books?

Well, it really depends on the book. I feel like every book being published nowadays is part of a series which gets really irritating when it doesn't need to be. A lot of the times, a series will just drag on where it could have fitted much better into a single book. I also feel as if random problems are casually thrown in just so an excuse for another book can be made.

On the other hand, I love a lot of series and sometimes, they need to be series. Like, can you imagine if Harry Potter had been just the one book? It still would have been great but it works a million times better as a seven-part series.

I think that most of the time, I prefer series because we get to learn more about the characters, setting, theme, whatever. Plus, if I like the book/writing/author, I get more to read!

The Final Verdict: Even though a series can be completely unnecessary sometimes, I generally prefer it to a stand-alone book.

Booking Through Thursday (1)

This week's Booking Through Thursday question is...

Do you multi-task when you read? Do other things like stirring things on the stove, brushing your teeth, watching television, knitting, walking, et cetera?

Or is it just me, and you sit and do nothing but focus on what you’re reading?

(Or, if you do both, why, when, and which do you prefer?)

Not usually. Most of the time when I'm reading, I just sit down and read silently, hoping beyond hope that no one will come and disturb me. I find it a lot easier to get lost in the world of the story if I'm not being distracted by things like knitting. However, if you do knit while reading, I applaud you! I simply do not possess enough skill for something like that.

That being said, I find that if I'm really into a story, I will absolutely refuse to let it out of my sight. While sometimes I just have an abundance of time to read while doing nothing else, I also sometimes have to walk, eat and try and function as normally as possible - just with a book.

Another thing is that I try and fit reading time in whenever I can and that usually means I read in the car, on my lunch, and on 'study breaks' (awful idea - it takes hours in these instances for me to finish my 'break'). A lot of the times the TV will be on or some music will be playing but it's in the background and, to be honest, I completely forget about it once I start reading.

In conclusion: Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't. When I'm reading, my mind sort of forgets about everything else anyways though.