Tuesday 11 November 2008

Bookish meme

My lovely friend Deslily at Here, there and everywhere said she hoped I would do this meme - '7 random bookish things about me' - and as I'm always happy to natter about books, here goes.

1. I have this fantasy whereby I go somewhere totally peaceful for a holiday and do nothing but read. My ideal location would be a log cabin by a lake. England isn't exactly famous for such places so I'm thinking it would have to be somewhere in America or Scandinavia. It sounds idyllic, sitting outside the cabin with a lovely view over the lake and mountains just reading and snoozing and cooking something nice on BBQ for meals. Dream on.

2. Fantasy number two is being snowed in, in the middle of winter, in a cabin in the mountains, with Harrison Fo... I mean, um, 'loads of books' and nothing to do except read beside a roaring log fire, and make soup.

3. My tbr mountain is massive. I'm not that young any more and it seems I share with a few other bloggers the worry that I may not live long enough to finish my tbr pile but also, in my case, to read all of the books I want to read. I should stop buying books really so that the first worry might diminish a bit. Naturally, I won't or perhaps 'can't' because it is an addiction this book buying thing. Here's the current state of my tbr pile:





As you can see I'm having to shove them in between the books and the shelf above now. (Some of these have been read I should add.)

4. Which leads me to 'why' this addiction. It's a tough one to answer. I think possibly I have this inate curiosity about other people and their lives, the stories they have to tell etc. And books, fiction and non-fiction, feed that because that's what they are - people's lives between the covers of a book. I truly believe that all bookworms have this too and that's why we connect so well. We're all naturally curious and have, imo anyway, a special kind of intelligence and an enthusiasm for knowledge.

5. One of the real pleasures of my life these days is discussing books with my eight year old grandaughter. She is now reading some of the YA books that my daughter and her husband read and feel are suitable for her age group. At eight a little care still needs to be taken about content but she gobbled up the Narnia books for instance and adored them. I have a feeling that this little pleasure of mine is only going to increase as she gets older.

6. I'm really bad at starting new series of books. By that I mean that I have far too many on the go. I did a list the other day and found that I have 18 series started (fantasy, crime, novels) and 14 that I want to start at some stage. It's ridiculous. I have to blame someone so I blame partly my eldest daughter who reads YA fantasy and is always recommending new series, but also bloggers like Deslily, Nymeth and Darla who do exactly the same thing! Not to mention Danielle at A Work in Progress, with her wonderful crime and novel recs, and Booksplease, and Tara at Books and Cooks, and Elaine at Random Jottings who's responsible for the Mapp and Lucia thing and well... many others too numerous to mention but you'll know who you are I'm sure. Of course, it's mainly my own fault for not having the willpower to ignore these wonderful bookish posts...

7. And then there are charity shops of course. It seems I can't go anywhere without 'just popping in' to one or two to see what treasures they're concealing within. If Hubby is with me I just do one or two to prove I have some restraint. (HAHA) If, like yesterday, my eldest daughter is there in his place, we do every one we come across. I think we did every charity shop in the Exeter shopping centre and actually, I wasn't that bad because I *only* came away with three books:



For £3.50 I got a book of ghost stories by Sheridan le Fanu, a crime book I saw reviewed somewhere and have been looking for for a while now - Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow by Peter Hoeg and, best of all, this lovely hardback book of creepy stories by Daphne du Maurier. I mean... how could I possibly leave that behind???

And because I can I'll do an 8th. bookish thing about me.

8. I really, really, really do not understand people who never read. When I hear people say, 'I've never read a book in my life' I am totally flabbergasted and can't imagine how they ever manage to cope.

13 comments:

Jeane said...

I can never resist stopping by all the charity shops (thrift stores, here) either. You never know where you'll find a treasure someone else dropped off! I just can't pass up the chance.

DesLily said...

I love your answers! LOL.. let me comment on a few *giggle*
regarding #1.. i have dreamed, I think forever of living in a log cabin! (however since reading so many books that take place in England I have added "a stone cottage"!

Regarding #2: I too would love to be snowed in with Harrison Fo... ummm, I like you alot Cath, but not sure I would share! hahahahahahahahahahahahaha!


Regarding #3: addiction? HA! Ya think?!!! LOL

#4: you are curious.. I want to escape to a different life! (even if it has dragons or goblins!)

#5: if I lived in florida I'd be talking books w/ my grandson all the time!

#6: argh! I don't want to even THINK series! there are several "on going" ones I am reading and a day doesn't go by that I think "oh that sounds good" only to find out it's BOOK NUMBER ONE of a series!! NUMBER ONE!! Not ever number 2 or 3 Argh!

#7: Since I no longer drive and don't get out those places are foreign to me. Guess I need to come to England huh? (yeahrightsure! ain't gunna happen dang it)

#8: There are people who never read??? Wow! There really are aliens huh? heh.

Nan said...

I just loved reading this! And looking at your books. I found a few titles I want for myself! I saw the Amelia Peabody books - I've listened to all of them (I may have told you this already) and love them beyond words. My fantasy is to be in England in a cottage that overlooks field after field full with sheep grazing. I have enough lakes and woods here. Isn't that funny! I do have an anxiety about not getting to books, but I try not to think about it. Even young people who love reading seem to feel this. Maybe this is the reason people start more than one book at a time. There is a feeling that one is getting more read, even though of course one isn't! Oh, and I really enjoyed Smilla's Sense of Snow (the US title). Have you seen the film? It's good.

Ana S. said...

I couldn't agree with you more about #4! Also, an isolated cabin by a lake and lots of books is one of my definitions of paradise.

Although I'm still young, I sometimes think that a lifetime will certainly not be enough for everything I want to read. And this is a scary thought, but weirdly enough I also find it a little exciting. It means that the world will never run out of possibilities, that there will always be things to look forward to, that I will never get bored. Does this make sense?

And gotta love those charity shops. My semester over there is actually also responsible for the current state of my tbr pile. To this day I refuse to count how many books I bought in England. I know I'd give myself a heart attack if I did :P

Tara said...

I just love number 4, well all your answers, but that one the most. And seeing your bookshelves. Divine!

BooksPlease said...

Since I discovered book blogs my reading lists have got out of control - so I'm glad to see I'm not the only one. My bookshelves are double stacked and have books on top of books and I have piles in different rooms, so it's lovely seeing yours - they're very neat!

I say the same to my husband - "I'm just popping in the library/bookshop - I won't be long". He has a quick look himself and then he finds a chair somewhere to sit and wait for me.

I just cannot understand people who say they don't read either - they say they don't have time, but they watch TV!!

Vintage Reading said...

Heh. Harrison Fo.... Nice one!

Cath said...

Jeanne: I can't pass up the chance of a good find in a charity (thrift) shop either. I've had some wonderful and inexpensive discoveries.

Pat: It would be my dream to live in a log cabin, even if only for a couple of weeks. Cottages are lovely too, I've stayed in one or two - but they can be a bit cramped.

I think it might be handbags at twenty paces over Harrison Fo...

#4 *especially* if the story has dragons or goblins. LOL.

#7... Never say *never*. You never know..!

#8 Heh. ;-) Well, I told you I believed in them...

Nan, one of the things that surprised me when I first went to the US was how forested it is there. I just wasn't expecting that amount of wilderness and thought it was wonderful. England is very tamed.

Perhaps it was on your blog that I read about Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow? I honestly can't remember. I had no idea there was a movie!

Nymeth: It seems the log cabin idea is very popular! :-D

Yes that makes perfect sense. Part of the reason for my being worried about not living long enough is because there are so many exciting books out there and I want to read them *all*.

I do sometimes think that the UK is a book buyer's paradise. Mind you, I had a wonderful time buying books in the US too...

Tara: I love looking at photos of other people's book shelves too. It's almost as exciting as seeing them in RL.

Booksplease: I'm afraid other rooms aren't quite as neat, bookwise, as these here in my study. It's a long, narrow room so has to be kept in order or it would be chaotic. I think every room in the house has bookcases, except the dining room and I'm working on that...

It sounds like we're both fortunate to have tolerant husbands.

I agree... if people have time to watch TV they have time to read. But if you say that to them they look at you as though you're mad.

Nicola: Yes, Pat has said she'll share Harrison Ford with me. She's so kind. ;-p

DesLily said...

I did?!!??

Cath said...

Oh yes, I definitely heard you say that, Pat. (Heehee)

DesLily said...

well, hell! lol.. I hope I live long enough to get my turn! hahahahahahahaha

Danielle said...

I'm right there with you on fantasy #1 (and maybe #2, too, LOL). Those are impressive bookshelves and I sort of worry too about ever getting through even half of them, but that never stops me! Thanks for sharing--I love reading these sorts of post (will photos, too!). And I had not seen/heard of that Daphne du Maurier--she does indeed do creepy well!

Cath said...

Hi Danielle. I love the bookshelves here in my study. I have others all around the house but this is where I keep most of my favourite books and most (but not all) of my tbr mountain. And this is where I'll sometimes stand for ages, just looking at my books, pulling various ones out and making little piles of books to be read next. Sometimes I think I'm completely potty.

I hadn't heard of that DdM either but one glance assured me that I'd be silly to leave it behind - a hardback book like that for 99p! Bargain.