So, yeah, I'm pregnant. Four months. I have nothing coherent to say about that now. So I stole this from Sheila!
A book that made you cry: A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving
Death scenes always get to me.
A book that scared you: Pet Semetary by Stephen King
Okay, I just noticed he spelled cemetery weird, I guess like a child would spell it, although I always misspell that word, too. How could I have not noticed that before? Anyway, this book scared the crap out of me and when I re-read it, it scared me just as much. Even though the book kinda bugged me sometimes because it seemed to throw more and more scary shit on oddly, like the whole Zelda thing. And there was that bizarre sex scene with the dishwashing gloves? Huh? The kid's name, Gage, still sounds like an undead child with a mashed head, walking in a disjointed, mechanical way, coming toward YOU....Jesus, it scared me.
A book that made you laugh: Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris
I think this is the one with the very short story about using the bathroom at a party and finding a nasty surprise in the toilet. Due to my sophisticated level of humor, I was crying in laughter from that.
A book that disgusted you: Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs
I didn't finish it either, which is supposed to be some kind of sin, right? I just found the sex as part of murdering someone to be, well, distasteful. I lost interest after that.
A book you loved in elementary school: Misty of Chincoteague by Marguerite Henry
Yeah, I liked horse books as a kid. What of it? I could beat you up.
A book you loved in middle school: The Once and Future King by T.H. White
Loved, loved, loved this book, particularly the childhood parts. Later I read how T.H. White hated women and this was evident in the book, but I didn't notice at the time. And whatever, excellent book.
A book you loved in high school: Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
I went through a big Vonnegut phase in high school, reading all his books, re-reading them and so on. Later I lost interest in them and appreciated his essays more. But his books are really damn creative, you know? Extremely distinctive and original.
A book you hated in high school: Walden by Henry David Thorough
Which is weird, because I was much more of a hippie then. But I couldn't stand the writing and how fucking excited he was, referencing Greek myths all the time, about how he went camping.
A book you loved in college: Jitterbug Perfume by Tom Robbins
I went through a Tom Robbins phase around that time. Hasn't stood the test of time, really. You know how Alfred Hitchcock would insert himself in every movie? Well, it seemed there was a strong theme in his books of scruffy old men bestowing wisdom and sexual education to young nymphs with round breasts. It just got a bit too obvious.
A book that challenged your identity: Offshore by Penelope Fitzgerald
This book and The Blue Flower blew me away. I can't even say what it is exactly, but they seem like perfect books. Like Time the Revelator by Gillian Welch is a perfect song. They are books I wish I'd written and, I don't know, they are so short and odd, but they just really rang my chimes in a way that I didn't expect.
A series that you love: The Wimsey/Vane mystery series by Dorothy Sayers
Your favorite horror book: Smilla's Sense of Snow by Peter Hoeg
Starts out as a mystery and turns into a big ole X Files episode with icebergs and aliens.
Your favorite science fiction book: Long Dark Tea Time of the Soul by Douglas Adams
What a damn shame he died. Such a clever, funny writer whom you could tell just had a good heart and would be a great pal. Anyway, the non-hitchhiker books are odd, but they were still funny and he clearly had a blast writing them.
Your favorite fantasy: Watership down by Richard Adams
What a great story. And such memorable details about the nature of rabbits, complete with a separate language (hrair, silflay, embleer, etc.). But all as just embellishments on an awesome adventure story.
Your favorite mystery: The Franchise Affair by Josephine Tey
I don't know that it is my favorite, but I ready it recently and quite enjoyed it. A contemporary of Dorothy Sayers, Tey is a darker writer with very good characterization. I have nothing interesting to say about it, though.
Your favorite biography: Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow
I think that's just the last one I read, although maybe I read the biography of Dorothy Sayers more recently. They were both good. My brain hasn't been able to get out of 2nd gear in a while and possibly never will again, so I found the Alexander Hamilton one interesting but a bit too dense.
Your favorite “coming of age” book: Dibs in Search of Self by Virginia Axline
Reading the first review on Amazon, it sounds like some people didn't like how the mother was cold and thus blamed for everything. Geez. Some women really are cold bitches, describing one isn't a blow against feminism or anything. I'm a cold bitch, for example. Anyway, it isn't really coming of age in terms of adolescence, since he was only five or so. But it was still about growing up.
Your favorite classic: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
For some reason, I never liked Dill, particularly. Or, he made me uncomfortable or something. But I loved Jem. Jem's growing up seems like the backbone of the book.
Your favorite romance book: Gaudy Night by Dorothy Sayers
I love this book. And it is even quite sexy, I think. Sayers always kept her characters at a distance, particularly Wimsey, all goofiness and intellectual verbosity, so the scene where Harriet notices the skin on the side of his face while watching him reading is quite...moving.
Your favorite book not on this list: This is the Zodiac Speaking: Inside the Mind of a Serial Killer by Michael Kelleher
This is by no means a favorite book, but I thought I'd mention it since there isn't a category for the book that arrived the same day you found out you were pregnant. Sha-zam!
