Booking Through Thursday asks: All things being equal, which would you prefer–a mystery? Or a love story?

Mystery, hands down. With love stories the only real mystery is whether or not Character A will end up with Character B. Sure, there are some bits in between that often lead the reader to believe the outcome will be one way or another, but I feel that love stories have a limited scope in things that could happen. Mysteries, on the other hand, are full of questions. Who? What? Why? Who was killed? Why were they killed? How is the protagonist going to figure things out? Often a single answer will lead to more questions being asked and makes the book more compelling to read.

Booking Through Thursday asks: Do you find that your mood affects the things you read? Like, if you’re in a bad mood, do you tend to indulge in reading that will support it or do you try to read things that will cheer you up? Do you pick different types of books on dreary, rainy days than you do on bright sunny ones?

For that matter, does your mood color what you’re reading, so that a funny book isn’t so funny or a serious one not so deep?

No. Not that I’ve noticed at least. If i’m in a bad mood and want to read something, I’ll pick up a book that I’ll enjoy but it doesn’t have to be one that matches my mood.

Wow. That was a really short answer. I don’t have anything else to say about that.

Booking Through Thursday asks: E-readers like the Kindle and iPad are sweeping the nation … do you have one? Do you like it? Do you find it changes your reading/buying habits? If you don’t have one, do you plan to?

I do not have an e-reader, sort of. I have an iPhone and the Kindle app that you can download for that. I’ve read a two or three books solely on my phone. It’s not ideal since the screen is so small. However, I do plan on getting a Kindle Fire as soon as I start seeing some reviews for that device. If the reviews suck, I’ll end up going for a Kindle Classic. I use to be against e-books, but I’ve since come to see them as a valuable extension of the book industry. While I will never give up owning physical books, there are some books I don’t care enough about to own physical copies of.

Booking Through Thursday asks:
What do you think of reading aloud/being read to? Does it bring back memories of your childhood? Your children’s childhood? Does this affect the way you feel about audio books? Do you now have times when you read aloud or are read to?

There are occasions where I will read aloud or have someone else read. Normally this is before bed and it’s the choose your own adventure books. I do spend a good amount of time listening to audiobooks which reminds me of going on road trips when I was young with my family in the minivan. We’d get an audiobook to listen to on the eight hour drive. This was exciting for Lil’ Colin because the books we listened to were grown-up audiobooks. They were books that I wouldn’t have been able to read because they were too complex or long.

Booking Through Thursday asks: It’s National Book Week. The rules: Grab the closest book to you. Go to page 56. Copy the 5th sentence.

“It was just somewhere to stick my thigh.” – Max Barry, Machine Man

Booking Through Thursday asks:
What’s the last book you were really EXCITED to read? And, were you excited about it in advance? Or did the excitement bloom while you were reading it? Are there any books you’re excited about right NOW?

And I will respond with a picture.

This is the third book in Clive Barker’s Abarat series. The second book came out in 2004. Needless to say, i’ve been waiting for this book for a long while. Just today, my ARC came from Harper! Have I mentioned how much I enjoy Harper right now?

Booking Through Thursday asks: Do you ever feel like you’re in a reading rut? That you don’t read enough variety? That you need to branch out, spread your literary wings and explore other genres, flavors, styles?

I think for the most part I read a pretty diverse range of books. Right now, however, I am in a pulp fiction rut, although I really wouldn’t call it a rut. After I finish my current book, I will be switching genres, but I am not sure to what.

There is another kind of rut that I do face from time to time. The “I don’t feel like reading” rut. I’ll still be reading at least one book, but it will take me forever to finish it and have no desire to start another book after I finish. These ruts are the hardest because I normally don’t feel like writing too. I just lay around the apartment watching movies and playing video games. It’s very un productive.

Booking Through Thursday asks: In contrast to last week’s question–What do you think of censoring books BECAUSE of their intended age? Say, books too “old” for your kids to read?

I don’t have kids, so I can’t forbid them to read any books I feel too “mature” for them. But when I was little, there were books I read that I did contain some questionable material. Not that I was complaining reading about sex and violence when I was twelve, but I do wonder how they may have made it in to young adult books at the time. My parents didn’t make an attempt to censor the books I read and for that I am thankful. If I try to censor the books my future children read, I worry that it will impact their enjoyment of books. Part of the fun of reading is discovering new books and if I, as a parent, tell my children that they can only read a certain type of books, I would be doing them a disfavor. It would limit their sense of discovery and, potentially, their enjoyment of reading.