(Foucalt’s Pendulum by Rosamond Purcell)

It has been awhile since I have participated in any memes here at Stainless Steel Droppings, but my favorite younger reader/blogger Annie has tagged me with this clever bookish meme created by Eva of A Striped Armchair.

Now that I am “It”, away I go:

1. Which book do you irrationally cringe away from reading, despite seeing only positive reviews?

Eventhough I have not seen only positive reviews (they have been overwhelmingly positive, however), I think the Harry Potter books certainly rank towards the top of this list. Irrational? Yes, considering the fact that I really do enjoy young adult fantasy. No in the sense that I have so many other things I would rather read.

I also think of books like The Kite Runner, Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist, etc. when I think of books that I cringe about reading. This pretty much extends to anything that goes from being a book an avid reader loves to a book that ‘the masses’ love. That sounds really snobbish, but I know I’m not alone in this. It is very wrong to not want to read a book because Oprah recommends it. If I remember right she loved A Time Traveler’s Wife. Or some public figure/group did. Glad that I didn’t let my prejudice keep me from that wonderful book.

Irrational prejudices are certainly meant to be overcome. And yet I am enough of a realist to know that even though I will occasionally venture past the cringing to read some of these books, I will more often than not cringe and turn away.

2. If you could bring three characters to life for a social event (afternoon tea, a night of clubbing, perhaps a world cruise), who would they be and what would the event be?

I have answered questions similar to this before, often with more classic characters who I have treasured for years. This time I thought about more recent characters that I have become fond of.

Number one would be Greta Forzane, the narrator in the recently reviewed novel, The Big Time by Fritz Leiber. She came to mind immediately because of the fact that, as I described in the review, I heard her voice and pictured her personality as Kaylee from Firefly the entire time I was reading the novel. And for some reason I think I subconsciously was envisioning her as a redhead (can’t remember how she was described or if she was described in the novel). I say this because, purely for aesthetic purposes, I took the picture of said book with an old-timey sci fi magazine that happened to picture a redhead and now as I think of her I cannot help picturing Megan from last week’s Friday Favorite: Esao Andrews. She was a trippy character who would be immensely entertaining to listen to.

Number two would be the adult Ender from Speaker for the Dead. I have so enjoyed his company for the past 2 months reading Ender’s Game and Speaker that I certainly would want him on the invite for an inperson meeting.

Number three would be Jilly Coppercorn from a number of Charles de Lint novels, most notably for me, Widdershins, which I read last year. Jilly was one of those characters that you simply cannot help falling for. She is not a perfect individual nor does she have a perfect life but she is such an interesting, likeable character that I certainly would want her along. That and the fact that she has such interesting friends both in the ‘real’ world and in Faerie that the party could turn out to be very interesting.

In fact my event would be a place where Jilly’s Celtic musician friends could play so that alternately we could visit and listen to/dance to wonderful Celtic music.

3. Borrowing shamelessly from the Thursday Next series by Jasper Fforde): you are told you can’t die until you read the most boring novel on the planet. While this immortality is great for awhile, eventually you realize it’s past time to die. Which book would you expect to get you a nice grave?

I honestly cannot think of any book that I’ve read that has been so boring that it would put me to death. I have read some bad books, but not necessarily boring ones. I suspect that a comedy of errors would ensue in which I would keep thinking I had finally found the boring book that would end my immortality only to find something worthwhile in it and would then have to start my search all over again!

4. Come on, we’ve all been there. Which book have you pretended, or at least hinted, that you’ve read, when in fact you’ve been nowhere near it?

Dracula by Bram Stoker.

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Just kidding. Freaked you out, didn’t I? All I could think of when I saw this question was how much I encouraged people to read Dracula over the last couple of R.I.P. Challenges and what a shocker it would be if I hadn’t actually read it! This of course is in lieu of any real answer because I have always been a voracious reader and have been as proud of the books I have read as I have been stubborn, or at least honest, about the books I haven’t. There are several books I wish I had read as a kid: the Narnia and Lord of the Rings books for example, but even though I missed them during that magical period I still have grown to adore them as an adult.

5. You’re interviewing for the post of Official Book Advisor to some VIP (who’s not a big reader). What’s the first book you’d recommend and why? (If you feel like you’d have to know the person, go ahead and personalize the VIP).

Quite possibly American Gods by Neil Gaiman. It has enough of everything: sensationalistic sections, mythology, folklore, history, Americana, adventure, mystery…the list could go on and on. Plus it has won multiple awards and seems to be the kind of novel that crosses genre lines to some degree. A big wig just might want to have read something like this which has not only been a best seller but would still maintain a level of obscurity which would give him a leg up on others who haven’t read it. It is accessible without being easy, challenging without being hard.

6. A good fairy comes and grants you one wish: you will have perfect reading comprehension in the foreign language of your choice. Which language do you go with?

Elvish. Surely Rivendell has an enormous library of books about the history of Middle-earth that J.R.R. Tolkien never got around to reading and sharing with us. That way when I find the magic portal back into that historical period I could do some interesting reading.

7. A mischievous fairy comes and says that you must choose one book that you will reread once a year for the rest of your life (you can read other books as well). Which book would you pick?

The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien. I could seriously read that book every year and discover new favorite parts, things I didn’t catch the first time, new depths and meaning, etc. As it is I have read parts of it every year for the last 3 years since the first time I picked it up.

8. I know that the book blogging community, and its various challenges, have pushed my reading borders. What’s one bookish thing you ‘discovered’ from book blogging (maybe a new genre, or author, or new appreciation for cover art-anything)?

I’m sure many of us have discovered numerous things about ourselves from blogging and/or reading each other’s blogs. I’ve certainly found a new author that I strongly admire: Orson Scott Card. That was a direct result of blogging and a gift from a blog friend.

My list of books I have never heard of, authors I have never heard of, or books/authors that I have heard of but have never read has grown exponentially to the point that I know with a certainly bordering on clairvoyance that no matter how fast I read my pile of books to read will continue to outstrip my pile of books read. It is a good, if occasionally frustrating, problem to have.

9. That good fairy is back for one final visit. Now, she’s granting you your dream library! Describe it. Is everything leather-bound? Is it full of first edition hardcovers? Pristine trade paperbacks? Perhaps a few favorite authors have inscribed their works? Go ahead-let your imagination run free.

I know I’ve talked about this before so rather than go back and modify my last dream library, here is my latest:

Full floor to ceiling shelves all around the room with occasional spaces for art. Ladders on rails that run the lengths of the shelves (I have always wanted that). If it was a true dream it would be at least two stories, with the center of the second floor being an opening in which one could look up and see the shelves on the second floor or look down from the second floor landings to the first floor. I would want a skylight that would keep damaging UV rays out but at night would be perfectly clear for the moon and stars to shine through.

I would want special places for collections of signed, rare, special books. I would want interesting and diverse shelves with creative ways to display special books, especially since I believe that books, with their various covers, are in their own way works of art.

I would want leather reclining chairs and ottomans. Reading lights by every chair. I would want an enormous, recessed flat panel television with the latest and greatest gadgets so that if I wanted to I could reposition the chairs and watch films in there alone or with family/friends. I would want this in the library because I love being surrounded by books no matter what I am doing.

I would want rich hardwood floors with beautiful rugs and furnishings. I would want a mix of contemporary and antique furnishings like I have in my home now. I would want a chest full of warm, soft, luscious blankets for people to use when curling up with a good book in my home. I would want a place where people could make hot tea, or coffee, or hot cocoa as well as a place for cold drinks so that refreshment would be easily accessible while lost in a good book.

I would want windows that again were UV safe but would let natural light in and could be opened on cool days to let the air in. I would want a fireplace for cold days.

I would want to find a way to display all my treasures either all at once or on some kind of easy rotating basis rather than having to have things I cherished stored away somewhere because I don’t have the space for it all.

I would want the whole room wired for wireless internet and to have readily available laptops for anyone who was visiting.

I’d want columns in the room somewhere. And I’d also like some of my favorite artists to come paint images directly on the walls like Terri Windling’s former home.

I’d also like some magical way for anyone to come in to my library and read whatever they want without in any way damaging any of the books. That way I could ‘have my cake and eat it to’ as it were…sharing books while keeping them pristine.

Now I really am dreaming!

10. I won’t tag anyone specifically. Like I always do I invite anyone who wants to do so to comment here on one, two, all of the questions or to take this discussion anywhere you want to go. I appreciate the tag from Annie. This one was fun. If you click over to This post. on Eva’s site you can see links to everyone else’s answers. Well done Eva!
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Since this is a book-related post I thought it would be the perfect place to tell you about a little giveaway that Ella over at Box of Books is giving away. Ella is a very creative sort who makes very interesting and clever books. Out of her pain of losing a tome she has created these wonderful volumes and is giving one away. If you are interested please find your way over there, read the instructions, and maybe you’ll get a nice hand-made book out of the deal.