{"id":6535,"date":"2007-05-25T07:38:32","date_gmt":"2007-05-25T11:38:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.sheilaomalley.com\/?p=6535"},"modified":"2024-10-27T21:52:53","modified_gmt":"2024-10-28T01:52:53","slug":"tooooo-many-books-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sheilaomalley.com\/?p=6535","title":{"rendered":"Tooooo Many Books"},"content":{"rendered":"

Got this meme from my dear friend Ted – who just started blogging<\/a> – go, Ted. (Here’s a Diary Friday<\/a>, by the way, which describes the night Ted and I became friends. We had known each other for a couple of months – but it was on this night that we realized: Uhm … kindred spirit???)<\/p>\n

A book that made you cry: <\/b>Atonement: A Novel<\/a>\"\"<\/i>. I was a freakin’ wreck at the end of that book. The rest of the book was a chilling and almost still experience – I didn’t cry all the way through reading it. But that last paragraph. I cried so intensely that I scared the dude I was dating at the time. I have been unable to pick up that book ever since – even though I sometimes do yearn to re-read it, it was so good. But nope. Too painful.<\/p>\n

A book that scared you: <\/b> House of Leaves<\/a>\"\"<\/i> by Mark Z. Danielewski<\/p>\n

Uhm … I’ve never written a post about this book. I will when I get to it. This book was a mind-freak. I actually had nightmares reading it. It tapped into a deep core of utter terror that I guess I walk around with at all times. Fear of dark, fear of claustrophobia, fear of … reaching out to find the wall in the darkness and having it not be there … This book is out of this world. Has anyone else read it? I’ll get into more detail during my book excerpt thing – but I was blown away. Not just by the look of the book (you sometimes have to turn it upside down, you have to hold it up to the mirror sometimes) … but also by his writing, which is startlingly good. I was terrified<\/i> by this damn book. I felt like a little kid reading it. I didn’t want to turn off my light because I knew I would have a bad dream. I read it a couple years ago. Great GREAT read. Scared the shit out of me.<\/p>\n

A book that made you laugh:<\/b> Scoop<\/a>\"\"<\/i>, by Evelyn Waugh I read it in a recent Book Blogger Classics Challenge – and it made me laugh so hard that I embarrassed myself during public commutes<\/a>. One of the funniest books I have ever read in my life.<\/p>\n

A book that disgusted you:<\/b> Less Than Zero<\/a>\"\"<\/i>, by Bret Easton Ellis. Those people have no redeeming qualities.<\/p>\n

A book you loved in elementary school:<\/b> Harriet the Spy<\/a>\"\"<\/i>, by Louise Fitzhugh I mean … LOOK at Harriet. I STILL dress like Harriet. She’s why I started putting my thoughts down on paper when I was 10 years old.<\/p>\n

A book you loved in middle school:<\/b> The Pigman<\/a>\"\"<\/i> by Paul Zindel – this is still one of my all-time favorite books. Ever. I still read it, on average, once a year – and have ever since middle school.<\/p>\n

A book you loved in high school:<\/b> The Bell Jar <\/a>\"\"<\/i>, by Sylvia Plath The book does not hold up. The poetry, however, just gets better and better … but the book is juvenile, and doesn’t holdup. Still some well-written sections – I latched onto this book in high school. I loved<\/i> it. Thank goodness it was a phase. Her POETRY is where it’s really at.<\/p>\n

A book you hated in high school:<\/b>Billy Budd (Tor Classics)<\/a>\"\"<\/i>, by Herman Melville. I still have feelings of revulsion when i think of how much I hated reading that book.<\/p>\n

A book you loved in college:<\/b> The Cider House Rules<\/a>\"\"<\/i>, by John Irving. Still one of my favorite books.<\/p>\n

A book that challenged your identity<\/b>: Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl<\/a>\"\"<\/i>. I was 11 when I read it. I realized, for the first time in my innocent life, how much God has to answer for. It was devastating to me. Shattering, really. I remember kneeling by my bed and screaming at God so loudly that I was scared I would be struck by lightning. That book completely re-worked how I thought about the universe, fate, fairness, free will … It was a horrible experience. I never fully recovered, I guess – and for that I am truly grateful.<\/p>\n

A series that you love<\/b>: The “Emily” books by LM Montgomery: Emily of New Moon\/ Emily Climbs\/ Emily’s Quest (3 Book Set)<\/a>\"\".<\/p>\n

Your favorite horror book<\/b>: It<\/a>\"\"<\/i>, by Stephen King. A masterwork, as far as I’m concerned.<\/p>\n

Your favorite science fiction book:<\/b> A Wrinkle in Time<\/a>\"\"<\/i>, I suppose is my answer.<\/p>\n

Your favorite fantasy<\/b>: The Narnia books.<\/p>\n

Your favorite mystery:<\/b> I must honor my younger self and say that the first 10 books in the Trixie Belden mega-series are pretty damn great. I should re-read them. I DEVOURED them when I was a kid. Nancy Drew Shmancy Drew. Give me Trixie.<\/p>\n

Your favorite biography:<\/b> Oh God, I’m with Ted. Only one?? I’m a biography freak. Let’s see. Chernow’s Alexander Hamilton<\/a>\"\"<\/i>, McCullough’s John Adams<\/a>\"\"<\/i>, the two-part biography of Orson Welles by Simon Callow: Orson Welles, Volume 1: The Road to Xanadu (Orson Welles \/ Simon Callow)<\/a>\"\"<\/i>, Orson Welles: Volume 2: Hello Americans<\/a>\"\"<\/i>, Joseph Ellis’ American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson<\/a>\"\"<\/i> and His Excellency: George Washington<\/a>\"\"<\/i>, A. Scott Berg’s Lindbergh<\/a>\"\"<\/i>, Leverich’s Tom: The Unknown Tennessee Williams<\/a>\"\"<\/i> (and he died before he could finish Volume 2! Tragedy!), Gerald Clarke’s Capote: A Biography<\/a>\"\"<\/i> is a masterpiece of the genre – and Mrs. Gaskell’s The Life of Charlotte Bront\u00eb <\/a>\"\"<\/i>. Yes, it’s gossipy – yes, it’s biased – and mythologizes the sisters -but listen – the book has not ever been out of print since it was first published. GIVE IT THE PROPS it deserves. Biographies go out of style so quickly – as new “theories” come up and go down … but that kind of staying power is notable. I love Mrs. Gaskell’s gossipy “I knew Charlotte Bronte” book … and I know I’m reading a myth, but it’s a damn good book anyway. Richard Ellmann’s James Joyce<\/i> is spectacular.<\/p>\n

I can’t stop. There are even more I need to add.<\/p>\n

Your favorite “coming of age” book:<\/b> Probably Tiger Eyes<\/a>\"\"<\/i>, by Judy Blume. Awesome book. I still love it. Wrote about it here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Your favorite classic: <\/b> Why must I choose. Why.<\/p>\n

The first thing that comes to mind is Jane Eyre<\/a>\"\"<\/i>.<\/p>\n

But I also have to say A Tale of Two Cities<\/a>\"\"<\/i>, The Brothers Karamazov<\/a>\"\"<\/i>, Crime And Punishment<\/a>\"\"<\/i> – Pride and Prejudice<\/a>\"\"<\/i>, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn<\/a>\"\"<\/i>. Great Expectations<\/a>\"\"<\/i>. These are the main ones.<\/p>\n

Oh shit, and how could I forget – Moby Dick<\/a>\"\"<\/i>. Hated it in high school – re-read it in 2003 … and felt it was one of the most EXCITING books I’ve ever read. Love it. Love love love it.<\/p>\n

Your favorite romance book<\/b>: Flowers in the Attic<\/a>\"\"<\/i> by VC Andrews.<\/p>\n

JUST KIDDING.<\/p>\n

I suppose I would have to say Jane Eyre<\/i> is the best romance ever. I want to add Possession<\/i> to the list – as well as <Life Without Friends<\/a>\"\"<\/i>, a young adult book. <\/p>\n

Your favorite book not on this list<\/b>:<\/p>\n

Hopeful Monsters<\/a>\"\"<\/i>, by Nicholas Mosley.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Got this meme from my dear friend Ted – who just started blogging – go, Ted. (Here’s a Diary Friday, by the way, which describes the night Ted and I became friends. We had known each other for a couple … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[15],"tags":[931,929,1002,691,1006,688,1032],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sheilaomalley.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6535"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sheilaomalley.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sheilaomalley.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sheilaomalley.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sheilaomalley.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6535"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.sheilaomalley.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6535\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":180767,"href":"https:\/\/www.sheilaomalley.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6535\/revisions\/180767"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sheilaomalley.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6535"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sheilaomalley.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6535"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sheilaomalley.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6535"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}