Book Meme
I’ve been (uh, er, more or less) tagged for the following book meme from Tigers in Red Weather.
1)Total number of books in your house:
I was going to estimate by feet, but unlike some, I own a lot of children’s books, and they’re usually thinner. Plus my copy of Infinite Jest hasn’t arrived yet, and it’s 7 feet wide. I’m going to say that I own around 100 books. See, I’m a librarian’s daughter, so I’ve grown up borrowing, and borrow I will until I die.
Although as I am not a librarian myself yet, I haven’t catalogued my collection – give me two year. Post LIS, I will be able to tell you EXACTLY how many books I have.
2)The last book you bought was:
I just bought a knitting reference book for mastery – The Knitter’s Book of Finishing Techniques by Nancie M. Wiseman. It hasn’t shown up yet though.
3)What was the last book you read before reading this?
I just finished reading Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. I hadn’t read it before, and I’m going to see the movie on Tuesday with Yason.
4)Write down 5 (or 6) books you often read or that mean a lot to you.
1) The Little Prince. I have a tattoo of him, for Cripe’s sake. Favorite book ever. If you ever need to borrow a copy in German, Portugese, or French, let me know.
2) I’ve read all the Harry Potters, and I’m gnashing my teeth waiting for July 16 to come around. I went to the downtown Chicago Borders for the midnight release of book 5, and that was tons of fun. Too bad I won’t be in the city to see hundreds of people streaming onto the El with a giant green book in front of their faces.
3) My friends and I all went through that phase where we bought multiple copies of Cunt to give to other friends.
4) I think The Time Traveler’s Wife might end up being a lifetime favorite. Some of it has to do with the circumstances of when you read a book.
5) I’m a big Roald Dahl fan. I love everything I’ve read of his, except The BFG.
6) You know what? With the exception of The Battle for God, I will read just about anything, especially if I get to sit outside in the sun to do so.
5)Who are you going to pass this onto and why?
I’d pass this on to el sig oth, but he hasn’t posted since 1983. Therefore, the most logical people to ask are Jake, as he DOES own Infinate Jest and is the most literate person I know (“Can I show you something in a Dilillo?”); Allison, because I end up reading her books anyway (still have Tropic of Cancer!); and Alena, because I’m obliged to (saysters).
Wasn’t this fun?
Roald Dahl is my very favorite author. Why don’t you like the The BFG?
Sidenote: Matt Ryan is good friends with a girl named Lucy. Lucy’s father was once hired by Dahl’s second wife to write a biography about Dahl. He went to the Dahl house to interview him. At this point in Roald Dahl’s life, however, he was old and somewhat senile and all he wanted to talk about was his first wife. So his second wife discontinued the project and Lucy’s father was fired.
I think you and Jason and I should have an Infinite Jest summer book club. It’s time for my biennial rereading, and the book is much more fun to read when you have other people to geek about it with.
And no, I’m not kidding around. This is literature we’re talking about, for Christ’s sake.
Done and done. Who else has a copy I can borrow?
I, um … I have two extra copies.
I’m in. It’s about time I read that book all the way through. Should we set up a thread on jeaun to discuss it?
Example:
Q: Hey dudes! I was reading Infinit Jest! Why does DFW use all these big words? What the devil is a Kekulean dream?
A: Kekule was a chemist who figured out the structure of the carbon atom while having a daydream on a bus in London. A Kekulean dream is a dream that contains a flash of insight. Now you know!
Sounds good to me. We can also stage dramatic readings of the footnotes.
I screwed up. Kekule discovered the structure of Benzene, not the carbon atom. Also, I’m not certain that he was on a bus at the time.