It has been awhile since I did a survey meme. I really like them. I’ve been seen this one going around. Feel free to suggest more questions.

Do you snack while you read? If so, favourite reading snack:

I don’t really eat while reading. I like to concentrate on food when I am eating it and same with books. I find it a bit distracting if I do them together. I can only do it in small doses and with something small like grapes.

What is your favourite drink while reading?

Water or tea. Those are just my standard drinks for everything!

Do you tend to mark your books as you read, or does the idea of writing in books horrify you?

It does horrify me a bit. I find it distracting. It bothers me too when I get a library book or buy a used book where people have highlighted. I once got a library book wherein someone highlighted the grammar and spelling errors in the book and even made a comment about how badly edited it was. While that may be true, do you really need to mark so much in a public good?

How do you keep your place while reading a book? Bookmark? Dog-ears? Laying the book flat open?

Bookmarks! I usually get my bookmarks at the library or book store so nothing special. My best friend is an artist and made me a set as well. I also have a couple as gifts. I don’t dog ear or lay my books flat because I want books to last.

Fiction, non-fiction, or both?

I like both, but I probably only read 10-15% nonfiction (less than a quarter of total reading) every year. I wish I read more nonfiction, but I have a lot of novels and I read them faster for more quick gratification. Nonfiction books I enjoy are histories, crafting, travel, cookbooks, memoirs and a wide range of topics.

Are you a person who tends to read to the end of a chapter, or can you stop anywhere?

I try to stop at the end of chapters, but most times, I just stop anywhere.

Are you the type of person to throw a book across the room or on the floor if the author irritates you?

No, since I read a lot of library books and even if I own them, someone else could read and enjoy it one day. I do remember a couple books that made me want to do this. One was Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley. I have tried finishing that book TWICE, but I couldn’t do it.
I know she has a lot of fans, but the writing really grated on me as it was very redundant. Another book was Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte. I know many people who love this book, and it’s not the most awful thing in the world, but I couldn’t stand any of the characters. I wanted to throw Cathy across the room more than anything.

If you come across an unfamiliar word, do you stop and look it up right away?

Not always. I try to do it as much as I can, but it does interrupt the flow of reading. I do like the Kindle because of this reason since it has the built in dictionary.

What are you currently reading?

As of this writing, I’m in between books, but the next one will probably be another Georgette Heyer or a book for the Classics Club.

What is the last book you bought?

I bought 28 books this month! You can see that in the Used Books Haul post from last week.

Do you have a favourite time/place to read?

I just read on a chair by a desk usually. I have a workstation wherever I am so that includes me a chair, a desk, and my laptop where I often log my thoughts on books for the reviews.

Do you prefer series books or stand alones?

Most books are stand alones. I like series too. I actually have a tendency to want to finish the series or read the sequel if I found the first book ok. I don’t need to love a book to read the rest of the series though it helps. There are times when I read a book, liked it and looked into the sequel and decided not to read the rest. For example I loved Pearl S. Buck’s The Good Earth, but I won’t read the sequel because it won’t have any of the characters I like in it. I grow attached to the characters so most of the reason I continue reading a series is to find out what happened to them.

Is there a specific book or author you find yourself recommending over and over?

Not particularly because most of my friends aren’t bookworms like me. Even when they read regularly, I only recommend a book based on what they want and like which is different from each person.

How do you organize your books? (by genre, title, author’s last name, etc.)

I don’t have a lot of storage space for books. I actually had to clear out some of my read books when I bought the new ones this month. Most of my books are fiction, but for the nonfiction books such as my knitting books and my cookbooks, I store by themselves. So first by genre, but generally, I don’t have a system. I also store the fiction in likelihood of when I will read them.

That’s it for the quiz, but one a couple of other notes on my reading habits:

Since 2001, I have kept a monthly log of every book I’ve read. You can check that out here. I just like keeping lists. It is also very handy to remind me what I have read and how many books I read over the years.

I read books in as few readings as possible. I like to immerse myself into books. This is why I will often finish a standard novel (say less than 400 pages?) in a day (where I don’t work or have many other obligations). You can tell by my reviews for this year since I am starting to note when I start and finish a book. Similarly, I do not have more than one book on the go. Some books should and need to be spread out, but I like to finish books relatively quick after I start them. I am also a fairly fast reader especially of fiction so this works out. It feels like I am on a journey with the characters and the plot of the book so I want to see how that journey evolves.