insanely long book meme
25 Nov 2008 04:08 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
salineaI got tagged by ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
hamsterwoman to do this insanely long book meme.
+++INTRODUCTIONS+++
1. What's your name?
Hello, my name is Anne-Elisa, and I'm addicted to reading.
2. Do you read a lot?
That would be a yes.
3. What's your favorite genre?
SFF, that is to say the wide definition of speculative fiction.
+++FANTASY AND SCI-FI+++
4. Do you prefer fantasy or science fiction?
Given how broad both these categories are and how many specific subgenres they have, and how many books are both SF and fantasy, I would rather not answer. FWIW I tend to read more books marketed as fantasy.
5. What's your favorite fantasy book/series?
A Song of Ice and Fire by George Martin, Mary Gentle's Book of Ash, Bakker's Prince of Nothing, Tanith Lee's Tale of the Flat Earth, Zelazny's Book of Amber...
6. Who's your favorite fantasy author?
Ellen Kushner, Patricia McKillip, Neil Gaiman, Tim Powers, Jacqueline Carey...
7. What's your favorite science fiction book/series?
Ursula Leguin's Eukumen cycle; Greg Egan's Distress, Ian Bank's Culture cycle, Bujold's Vorkosigan series...
8. Favorite sci-fi author?
Greg Egan, Ian Banks, Connie Willis, Bujold, Walter Jon Williams, Ursula Leguin, CJ Cherryh, CS Friedman....
+++MYSTERY, HORROR, AND THRILLERS+++
Horror goes with Mystery and Thrillers, really? I'd have had it with SFF.
9. Which do you prefer: a puzzling mystery, or a terrifying thriller?
I'm more into mysteries than thriller.
10. Do you have a favorite mystery novel?
Not really. I tend to see mystery novel as a one-read only kind of book, which sorts of make it difficult to pick one as favourite. I do have favourite mystery writers though : Barbara Hambly, Dorothy Sayers, Tony Hillerman...
11. A favorite horror novel?
Depending on what you call "horror", maybe Clive Barker's Imajika or Celia Friedman's Coldfire trilogy.
+++ROMANCE+++
12. Do you read romance novels?
Not unless you count shoujo manga and fanfics.
13. How about gay romance novels?
Same as above.
14. What's your favorite?
Gay romance novel? I believe I mentioned Setona Mizushiro's "Corner Mouse Dream of Cheese" a couple of time before, if you're happy with manga as an answer. Otherwisebusaikko's fanfics.
+++CHILDREN'S AND YA+++
15. What's your favorite children's book?
... I don't think I have any.
16. Is it the same book that was your favorite when you were a kid?
When I was a kid it would have been the Flicka novels, Mio my Mio, Le Livre de la Licorne...
17. What's your favorite YA book?
YA as a category confuses me, because I think books should be lumped by the characteristics of their contents, not the groups of readers they're marketed at, but that would be Jonathan Stroud's Bartimaeus trilogy, Megan Whalen Turner's Thief series and Diana Wynne Jones' Howl's Moving Castle . Oh, and The Last Unicorn, I'm not sure where that gets classified.
18. Did you actually read it as a YA?
No.
19. In general, do you prefer children's books over grown-up books?
No.
+++CLASSICS AND GENERAL FICTION+++
20. What's your favorite classic novel?
Classic as in stuff that gets taught in classes? Been a while since I read any, maybe Alexandre Dumas' Three Musketeers and Count of Monte Cristo. Dostoiesky's The Player. Albert Camus's La Chute. Gireaudou's Electra if you allow Plays. Or, the most recent classic novel I read was Jane Austen's Emma and I liked it so you could count that.
21. What about general fiction?
Depends of what you call general fiction. Daniel Pennac's Au Bonheur des Ogres series if that's not too genre for you, Aamin Maalouf's Samarcande made a pretty big impression on me at the time if you wanna lump historical novels in general fiction. I used to be very fond of Ryu Murakami's books, too, at the time. Been a while since I read those stuff.
22. What classic novel do you just *not* *get*?
What is there to get?
I kind of really hated Maupassant's Une Vie as dull, depressing and contentless, but that's the whole point of the book, so I'm not sure that counts as not getting it.
23. Do you have a favorite play or drama?
Yes! Most of everything Gireaudoux made, especially Electra, Ondine, La Guerre de Troie N'aura Pas Lieu. I also like Racine, Edmond Rostan's Cyrano de Bergerac of course. Anouilh's Antigone.
24. What do you think of Shakespeare?
Yes? Liked some plays by him I saw played, felt meh about a couple of others. Not really something I read like this, though.
+++POETRY+++
25. Could you pick a favorite poem?
Sure!
Mon verre est plein d'un vin trembleur comme une flamme
Ecoutez la chanson lente d'un batelier
Qui raconte avoir vu sous la lune sept femmes
Tordre leurs cheveux verts et longs jusqu'a leurs pieds
Debout chantez plus haut en dansant une ronde
Que je n'entende plus le chant du batelier
Et mettez pres de moi toutes les filles blondes
Au regard immobile aux nattes repliees
Le Rhin le Rhin est ivre ou les vignes se mirent
Tout l'or des nuits tombe en tremblant s'y refleter
La voix chante toujours a en rale-mourir
Ces fees aux cheveux verts qui incantent l'ete
Mon verre s'est brise comme un eclat de rire
By Appolinaire.
26. What about a favorite poetry collection?
Verlaine's Fetes Galantes
27. Who's your favorite poet?
Verlaine!
+++COMICS AND GRAPHIC NOVELS+++
28. Do you read comics or graphic novels?
Yes.
29. Do you have a favorite series?
Sure. Sandman, Y the Last Man, Watchmen, Peter Pan, Soledango, Corto Maltese, Maus, Promethea, Candelabres, Le Chat du Rabin...
Not counting manga.
30. A favorite book?
Maybe "Brief Lives" by Neil Gaiman.
+++SHORT STORIES AND NOVELLAS+++
31. Do you prefer short stories (or short novels) over full-length novels?
Not usually.
32. What's your favorite short story?
Love Neil Gaiman's "Chilvary" and "Snow, Glass, Apples", Patricia McKillip and Greg Egan also wrote many gorgeous ones. Still love Orson Scott Card's "Unacompagned Sonata".
33. Favorite short story collection?
Neil Gaiman's Mirror and Smoke.
34. Do you have a favorite short story author?
Not as such, no. Maybe Frederic Brown?
+++NONFICTION+++
35. What kind of nonfiction do you usually read?
I don't, really.
36. Do you have a favorite nonfiction book?
Errr... Finkielkraut's La Sagesse de l'Amour? Levi-Strauss's Race et Histoire?
37. Read any interesting biographies?
Stuff by Aamin Maalouf, mostly, but I think you'd call them historical fictions, not biographies.
38. History books?
What do you call History Books? Currently reading something called Les Trois Exils Juifs d'Algerie. Does that count?
39. Politics?
Err, no.
40. Religious texts?
Not frequently.
41. How about books on mythology, fairy-tales, or other cultural stories?
Doesn't mythology count as religious text? And, err, none that I could reference right now but I did read some.
+++ELEMENTS OF FICTION+++
42. What's the most important element of a novel? Plot? Characterization? Style? Themes? Happy ending?
Plot, characterisation and style are the most important elements. If any of those really, really suck the novel's sunk. The one I personally care the most about is characterisation. But decent at either can do if it's carried away by the brilliance of one of the other element, or from something like themes, ideas, world building.
43. What kind of plot interests you the most?
I don't really think in terms of plots, usually, and I'm pretty tolerant of even relatively bland plots if I like other elements of the writing. Plots with a lot of intrigue and people at counter-interest scheming are always interesting, of course. I don't like the most manicheist plots, and I usually need more than only romance - I like romance as one element of the plot, I just like it better when it's not the main plot. And i love tragedies and dark stories, too.
One of my favourite kind of plot are stories that destroy a character little by little, really pull them under the grinder to show the core, and have them rebuild themselves and go on.
44. What kind of characters usually appeal to you?
Many!
I tend to like anti-heroes, in the broadest meaning, characters who de construct notions of morality, the full spectrum of anti heroes and anti villain, rogues and tragic heroes.
I tend to be pretty fond of some manipulative characters, especially if they're not Evil Overlord types, especially when they appear much more stupid, weaker or cheerful than they truly are. I do love Magnificent Bastards, and Anti-Villains. Highly socialite types are often liked for this reason.
I like badass characters, especially roguish badass, and female ones. Especially when they're realistically fucked up in being so.
I love smart characters, and nerd-ish characters, and any kind of character that makes you think 'oooh that is so clever!' even when they're villains (see Littlefinger).
I love righteous characters, when their sense of morality isn't something basic and thoughtless, when you get a sense of the real stakes that trying to be righteous is, and of wisdom about. I'm especially fond of empathetic and compassionate characters. This often makes me like the token chicks which is uber-compassionate, the one that most people bash (see Sansa, and a bunch of others). I also love bravery, again, when we get a sense that there's a real sense of price to pay for that courage. ( I love characters who spit up in the face of adversity telling it to bring it on.
I love characters with control issues. Who cannot bear to express themselves, or who are desperate to hide their emotion, regardless of how good they are at it. I love characters who are intense but in an understated way.
I love characters who have a sense of humour, especially if they're snarky or quirky. I do adore sarcasm.
I love characters who know how to enjoy life, who know how to take the most of the moment, the good with the bad, the joy with the pain. I often like hedonistic characters and kinda over the top flamboyant characters.
I like crazy characters. I will occasionally totally love a character who is both very cruel and crazy, like Bellatrix.
I tend to like characters who deflect expectations, subvert types.
Sometimes I like a character, and dislike him for something at the same time. That usually results in me mocking the character systematically. That's usually characters who are sexist jerks with some redeeming feature, but occasionally would be characters who do some other kind of idiotic thing.
In general I do have a thing for characters who are underestimated for whatever reason, but do show a great kind of inner strength, and subtle power.
I also love characters who are utterly broken and very angsty and still. go. on. by sheer stubbornness.
I love flawed characters.
45. What is your favorite book overall?
Oh, fuck you.
+++PASS IT ON+++
46. What's the last book you read?
I haven't finished reading a book in a while... I think it was Mary Gentle's Cartography. Oh, or books all medium confused, The Sword Sword comic book.
47. What are you reading now?
The Palace of Illusions by Chitra Banerjee Divakruni. And a bunch of others I got stuck on like KJ Parker's The Escapement. Been having a hard time reading, lately.
48. What are you going to read next?
Dunno.
49. Is there a book you would recommend to everyone on your friends list?
To everyone everyone? Err, Leguin's Left Hand of Darkness if you haven't read it yet.
50. Tag five people to fill out this meme:
If they feel like it,schemingreader, xraytheenforcer, meganbmoore, c_mantix, haremstress and anyone else who wants to do it, of course!
hamsterwoman to do this insanely long book meme.+++INTRODUCTIONS+++
1. What's your name?
Hello, my name is Anne-Elisa, and I'm addicted to reading.
2. Do you read a lot?
That would be a yes.
3. What's your favorite genre?
SFF, that is to say the wide definition of speculative fiction.
+++FANTASY AND SCI-FI+++
4. Do you prefer fantasy or science fiction?
Given how broad both these categories are and how many specific subgenres they have, and how many books are both SF and fantasy, I would rather not answer. FWIW I tend to read more books marketed as fantasy.
5. What's your favorite fantasy book/series?
A Song of Ice and Fire by George Martin, Mary Gentle's Book of Ash, Bakker's Prince of Nothing, Tanith Lee's Tale of the Flat Earth, Zelazny's Book of Amber...
6. Who's your favorite fantasy author?
Ellen Kushner, Patricia McKillip, Neil Gaiman, Tim Powers, Jacqueline Carey...
7. What's your favorite science fiction book/series?
Ursula Leguin's Eukumen cycle; Greg Egan's Distress, Ian Bank's Culture cycle, Bujold's Vorkosigan series...
8. Favorite sci-fi author?
Greg Egan, Ian Banks, Connie Willis, Bujold, Walter Jon Williams, Ursula Leguin, CJ Cherryh, CS Friedman....
+++MYSTERY, HORROR, AND THRILLERS+++
Horror goes with Mystery and Thrillers, really? I'd have had it with SFF.
9. Which do you prefer: a puzzling mystery, or a terrifying thriller?
I'm more into mysteries than thriller.
10. Do you have a favorite mystery novel?
Not really. I tend to see mystery novel as a one-read only kind of book, which sorts of make it difficult to pick one as favourite. I do have favourite mystery writers though : Barbara Hambly, Dorothy Sayers, Tony Hillerman...
11. A favorite horror novel?
Depending on what you call "horror", maybe Clive Barker's Imajika or Celia Friedman's Coldfire trilogy.
+++ROMANCE+++
12. Do you read romance novels?
Not unless you count shoujo manga and fanfics.
13. How about gay romance novels?
Same as above.
14. What's your favorite?
Gay romance novel? I believe I mentioned Setona Mizushiro's "Corner Mouse Dream of Cheese" a couple of time before, if you're happy with manga as an answer. Otherwise
busaikko's fanfics.+++CHILDREN'S AND YA+++
15. What's your favorite children's book?
... I don't think I have any.
16. Is it the same book that was your favorite when you were a kid?
When I was a kid it would have been the Flicka novels, Mio my Mio, Le Livre de la Licorne...
17. What's your favorite YA book?
YA as a category confuses me, because I think books should be lumped by the characteristics of their contents, not the groups of readers they're marketed at, but that would be Jonathan Stroud's Bartimaeus trilogy, Megan Whalen Turner's Thief series and Diana Wynne Jones' Howl's Moving Castle . Oh, and The Last Unicorn, I'm not sure where that gets classified.
18. Did you actually read it as a YA?
No.
19. In general, do you prefer children's books over grown-up books?
No.
+++CLASSICS AND GENERAL FICTION+++
20. What's your favorite classic novel?
Classic as in stuff that gets taught in classes? Been a while since I read any, maybe Alexandre Dumas' Three Musketeers and Count of Monte Cristo. Dostoiesky's The Player. Albert Camus's La Chute. Gireaudou's Electra if you allow Plays. Or, the most recent classic novel I read was Jane Austen's Emma and I liked it so you could count that.
21. What about general fiction?
Depends of what you call general fiction. Daniel Pennac's Au Bonheur des Ogres series if that's not too genre for you, Aamin Maalouf's Samarcande made a pretty big impression on me at the time if you wanna lump historical novels in general fiction. I used to be very fond of Ryu Murakami's books, too, at the time. Been a while since I read those stuff.
22. What classic novel do you just *not* *get*?
What is there to get?
I kind of really hated Maupassant's Une Vie as dull, depressing and contentless, but that's the whole point of the book, so I'm not sure that counts as not getting it.
23. Do you have a favorite play or drama?
Yes! Most of everything Gireaudoux made, especially Electra, Ondine, La Guerre de Troie N'aura Pas Lieu. I also like Racine, Edmond Rostan's Cyrano de Bergerac of course. Anouilh's Antigone.
24. What do you think of Shakespeare?
Yes? Liked some plays by him I saw played, felt meh about a couple of others. Not really something I read like this, though.
+++POETRY+++
25. Could you pick a favorite poem?
Sure!
Mon verre est plein d'un vin trembleur comme une flamme
Ecoutez la chanson lente d'un batelier
Qui raconte avoir vu sous la lune sept femmes
Tordre leurs cheveux verts et longs jusqu'a leurs pieds
Debout chantez plus haut en dansant une ronde
Que je n'entende plus le chant du batelier
Et mettez pres de moi toutes les filles blondes
Au regard immobile aux nattes repliees
Le Rhin le Rhin est ivre ou les vignes se mirent
Tout l'or des nuits tombe en tremblant s'y refleter
La voix chante toujours a en rale-mourir
Ces fees aux cheveux verts qui incantent l'ete
Mon verre s'est brise comme un eclat de rire
By Appolinaire.
26. What about a favorite poetry collection?
Verlaine's Fetes Galantes
27. Who's your favorite poet?
Verlaine!
+++COMICS AND GRAPHIC NOVELS+++
28. Do you read comics or graphic novels?
Yes.
29. Do you have a favorite series?
Sure. Sandman, Y the Last Man, Watchmen, Peter Pan, Soledango, Corto Maltese, Maus, Promethea, Candelabres, Le Chat du Rabin...
Not counting manga.
30. A favorite book?
Maybe "Brief Lives" by Neil Gaiman.
+++SHORT STORIES AND NOVELLAS+++
31. Do you prefer short stories (or short novels) over full-length novels?
Not usually.
32. What's your favorite short story?
Love Neil Gaiman's "Chilvary" and "Snow, Glass, Apples", Patricia McKillip and Greg Egan also wrote many gorgeous ones. Still love Orson Scott Card's "Unacompagned Sonata".
33. Favorite short story collection?
Neil Gaiman's Mirror and Smoke.
34. Do you have a favorite short story author?
Not as such, no. Maybe Frederic Brown?
+++NONFICTION+++
35. What kind of nonfiction do you usually read?
I don't, really.
36. Do you have a favorite nonfiction book?
Errr... Finkielkraut's La Sagesse de l'Amour? Levi-Strauss's Race et Histoire?
37. Read any interesting biographies?
Stuff by Aamin Maalouf, mostly, but I think you'd call them historical fictions, not biographies.
38. History books?
What do you call History Books? Currently reading something called Les Trois Exils Juifs d'Algerie. Does that count?
39. Politics?
Err, no.
40. Religious texts?
Not frequently.
41. How about books on mythology, fairy-tales, or other cultural stories?
Doesn't mythology count as religious text? And, err, none that I could reference right now but I did read some.
+++ELEMENTS OF FICTION+++
42. What's the most important element of a novel? Plot? Characterization? Style? Themes? Happy ending?
Plot, characterisation and style are the most important elements. If any of those really, really suck the novel's sunk. The one I personally care the most about is characterisation. But decent at either can do if it's carried away by the brilliance of one of the other element, or from something like themes, ideas, world building.
43. What kind of plot interests you the most?
I don't really think in terms of plots, usually, and I'm pretty tolerant of even relatively bland plots if I like other elements of the writing. Plots with a lot of intrigue and people at counter-interest scheming are always interesting, of course. I don't like the most manicheist plots, and I usually need more than only romance - I like romance as one element of the plot, I just like it better when it's not the main plot. And i love tragedies and dark stories, too.
One of my favourite kind of plot are stories that destroy a character little by little, really pull them under the grinder to show the core, and have them rebuild themselves and go on.
44. What kind of characters usually appeal to you?
Many!
I tend to like anti-heroes, in the broadest meaning, characters who de construct notions of morality, the full spectrum of anti heroes and anti villain, rogues and tragic heroes.
I tend to be pretty fond of some manipulative characters, especially if they're not Evil Overlord types, especially when they appear much more stupid, weaker or cheerful than they truly are. I do love Magnificent Bastards, and Anti-Villains. Highly socialite types are often liked for this reason.
I like badass characters, especially roguish badass, and female ones. Especially when they're realistically fucked up in being so.
I love smart characters, and nerd-ish characters, and any kind of character that makes you think 'oooh that is so clever!' even when they're villains (see Littlefinger).
I love righteous characters, when their sense of morality isn't something basic and thoughtless, when you get a sense of the real stakes that trying to be righteous is, and of wisdom about. I'm especially fond of empathetic and compassionate characters. This often makes me like the token chicks which is uber-compassionate, the one that most people bash (see Sansa, and a bunch of others). I also love bravery, again, when we get a sense that there's a real sense of price to pay for that courage. ( I love characters who spit up in the face of adversity telling it to bring it on.
I love characters with control issues. Who cannot bear to express themselves, or who are desperate to hide their emotion, regardless of how good they are at it. I love characters who are intense but in an understated way.
I love characters who have a sense of humour, especially if they're snarky or quirky. I do adore sarcasm.
I love characters who know how to enjoy life, who know how to take the most of the moment, the good with the bad, the joy with the pain. I often like hedonistic characters and kinda over the top flamboyant characters.
I like crazy characters. I will occasionally totally love a character who is both very cruel and crazy, like Bellatrix.
I tend to like characters who deflect expectations, subvert types.
Sometimes I like a character, and dislike him for something at the same time. That usually results in me mocking the character systematically. That's usually characters who are sexist jerks with some redeeming feature, but occasionally would be characters who do some other kind of idiotic thing.
In general I do have a thing for characters who are underestimated for whatever reason, but do show a great kind of inner strength, and subtle power.
I also love characters who are utterly broken and very angsty and still. go. on. by sheer stubbornness.
I love flawed characters.
45. What is your favorite book overall?
Oh, fuck you.
+++PASS IT ON+++
46. What's the last book you read?
I haven't finished reading a book in a while... I think it was Mary Gentle's Cartography. Oh, or books all medium confused, The Sword Sword comic book.
47. What are you reading now?
The Palace of Illusions by Chitra Banerjee Divakruni. And a bunch of others I got stuck on like KJ Parker's The Escapement. Been having a hard time reading, lately.
48. What are you going to read next?
Dunno.
49. Is there a book you would recommend to everyone on your friends list?
To everyone everyone? Err, Leguin's Left Hand of Darkness if you haven't read it yet.
50. Tag five people to fill out this meme:
If they feel like it,
schemingreader, xraytheenforcer, meganbmoore, c_mantix, haremstress and anyone else who wants to do it, of course!![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 25 November 2008 09:20 pm (UTC)Doesn't mythology count as religious text? And, err, none that I could reference right now but I did read some.
Uh no... Though most religions do take on from their local myth stories and some are still worshipped as such... It's not the same. Like the American mythology stories. I doubt anyone prayed to Johnny Appleseed. Generally, mythology was a story that used to explain the unexplainable, and for more modern ones focusing on humanity.
Although it would be an interesting discussion, I wouldn't necessarily group the Bible with the Labours of Hercules. XD
You really love a lot of characters, huh? Prolly best if asked what kinds do you NOT like. XD
Really interesting meme, will def have to do it hehe.
no subject
Date: 25 November 2008 09:25 pm (UTC)I think that folklore, not mythology.
Stuff like Greek mythology, Norse mythology, or Indian mythology. They were - or are - definitely parts of the religious corpus. Cosmogony and Theogony. Genesis is mythology, too, IMHO. I see no reason not to consider it as such.
mythology was a story that used to explain the unexplainable
And that's different from religion, how?
You really love a lot of characters, huh?
Lol, yes!