Another meme!

What I'm Listening To: Hans Zimmer - The DaVinci Code OST; Chevaliers de Sangreal

What I'm Doing: Trying to get myself to stop procrastinating and write. TAT

Ganked this from some chick I found via google. Her version was posted in o7, so I won't bother to link to it. Just a simple meme about one of my favourite things: books.

Hardback or trade paperback or mass market paperback? Paperback of any type. I don't like hardcover novels. They're too unweildy to carry around easily, and they're difficult to hold in one hand.

Amazon or brick and mortar? Brick and mortar. Amazon's good for the really obscure stuff, but I much prefer being able to pick the books up, flip through them, really examine the cover art, and just mingle in the general atmosphere of being surrounded by books. It's a plus if there's a Starbucks attached, so I can smell all the delicious coffee as well.

Barnes & Noble or Borders? Either or. Borders is bigger, I guess, and generally has a nicer layout.

Bookmark or dogear? Ahahaha, dogeared. If my most loved books don't end up looking like the next time they're opened, they're going to fall apart, then something's wrong. Other people's books, however, no matter how loved, always bookmarked.

Alphabetise by author or alphabetise by title or random? Random, or sorted by genre. Unless I'm feeling really anal about it, and then I'm likely to sort by genre, author, and title, in that order.

Keep, throw away, or sell? KEEP. Who in their right mind would throw away a book?

Keep dustjacket or toss it? Keep, for the most part. Unless it ends up like... horribly disfigured.

Read with dustjacket or remove it? Remove it. They're such a hassle.

Short story or novel? Short stories are okay, but I prefer novels.

Collection (short stories by same author) or anthology (short stories by different authors)? Depends on who the author is, and what the stories are about.

Harry Potter or Lemony Snicket? Harry Potter all the way!

Stop reading when tired or at chapter breaks? I generally try for chapter breaks, but if I'm exhausted, then I'm just as likely to put the book down when I can't hold it up any more.

"It was a dark and stormy night" or "Once upon a time"? Once upon a time, now and forever.

Buy or Borrow? Either or. Borrowing books (from libraries or friends) is a good way to discover new things you like without spending the money.

Buying choice: book reviews, recommendation, or browse? Browsing. I don't have the patience to read about what other people think of the book; I'd rather get out there and check it out for myself. If someone really strongly recommended a book, I'd be likely to check it out, though, too.

Tidy ending or cliffhanger? Hm. A little of both. I like the suspense; it gives me things to think about, but at the same time, I enjoy a happy ending occasionally.

Morning reading, afternoon reading, or nighttime reading? How about 24/hr a day reading?

Standalone or series? Doesn't matter. There are some standalones (Sunshine) that could really benefit from one or two more books (simply because I can't get enough of it) and series give you the opportunity to spend more time with beloved characters and watch them grow.

Favourite book of which nobody else has heard? Um. *scans book piles, tries to find something she hasn't raved about to someone before* I suppose, The Summer Tree by Guy Gavriel Kay. I think Mami would appreciate that series. I haven't read the third one, and it's been years since I read the first two, but it's a really ugly series. Very much all over the place, with very few happy endings (at least, through the second book. Still need to get the third, like I said.)

Favourite book(s) read last year: I haven't the foggiest. I don't remember what I read last week, much less last year. I have a tendency to reread things over and over, though, so it's likely Sunshine or The Blue Sword.

Favourite books of all time? Sunshine, The Hero and the Crown, The Blue Sword, Beauty, The Outlaws of Sherwood all by Robin McKinley. Crystal Singer, Killashandra, Crystal Line, The Ship Who Sings by Anne McCaffrey, The Da Vinci Code, Angels and Demons by Dan Brown, The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, Battle Royale by (some Japanese dude who's name I can't recall, and I can't find the book), The Xanth Series by Piers Anthony, Anything by Michael Crichton or Teresa Medeiros.