BBAW Meme

• Do you snack while you read? If so, favorite reading snack? Sometimes on a weekend night, I will go and get a bag of jellybellys to accompany what I am reading. Other than that, usually not. I drink tea.

• Do you tend to mark your books as you read, or does the idea of writing in books horrify you? It really depends on the book. When I am working ( I have a job as a reviewer), I pencil mark my books for sure and use post-its throughout. I was an underliner in school and on my own ( just ask Once Upon a Bookshelf). Often, my favourite books are underlined ( favourite passages that are just aching to stand out on the page) but I will purchase an unmarked copy. Reading is a very engaging and interactive experience and I am a very effusive reader: I physically respond to reading and one of the ways is to underline or star a passage. It is ownership for me.
• How do you keep your place while reading a book? Bookmark? Dog-ears? Laying the book flat open? Bookmark---often in the form of a post-it or train ticket if it is there. Sometimes my Aragorn bookmark. Or else I remember the page number. I am really good with page numbers
• Fiction, Non-fiction, or both? Mostly fiction. But, I like to read the context of books I love so I read a lot of biography; lit crit and history
• Hard copy or audiobooks? Hardcopy of my favourite authors whose books I cannot wait for in trade. Trade is my favourite format. I loathe being read to so I loathe audio books.
• Are you a person who tends to read to the end of chapters, or are you able to put a book down at any point? Depends on the book. Really.
• If you come across an unfamiliar word, do you stop to look it up right away? Nope. Unless it excites or intrigues me. I love word sounds and the pairing of sounds with sentence structure and the way words fit into a book.
• What are you currently reading? Dogwood by Chris Fabry
• What is the last book you bought? The new Alatriste book by Arturo Perez Reverte: The Cavalier in the Yellow Doublet
• Are you the type of person that only reads one book at a time or can you read more than one at a time? I read more than one. Usually one “comfort” book for just before I go to sleep ( a re-read: right now it is Les Miserables); one kids or YA book for work; one non-fiction ( right now a biography on the slave abolitionist Wiliam Wilberforce) and I always have the Bible on the go ( I am a Christian so this ties into my daily reading) and sometimes a Christianesque devotional---right now Grace Notes by Philip Yancey so subsidize my reading
• Do you have a favorite time of day and/or place to read? Favourite place? A fall day down by the Toronto Harbour in a little Second Cup. I can read anywhere. I like my couch at home with lots of pillows and low light and tea. I like when I go to my parent’s house in Orillia and make use of the chaise lounge in the sun. It really depends on my mood. Sometimes Philosopher’s Walk( a park in Toronto near the University) under a tree.
• Do you prefer series books or stand alone books? Depending on genre: YA and Mystery and nautical fiction SERIES!!!!! General fiction standalone

• How do you organize your books? (By genre, title, author’s last name, etc.?) I literally own thousands of books. So much so that a lot of my mass markets are in layaway in big rubbermaid bins until I have my own library. I have bookshelves specifically for YA and childrens. My classics are separated ( alphabetically ) and my general fiction alphabetical; series are chronological (ie Aubrey Maturin ) if I have lit crit or biographies or related material on a certain book I put it with the author after the novels are lined up. I have a shelf just for Christianity ( alphabetical); history, etc. Let’s sum this up: alphabetical but in genre-specific regions.
• Is there a specific book or author that you find yourself recommending over and over? CATHERINE WEBB'S HORATIO LYLE SERIES!