Jun 6, 2009

A Meme (no, really)

I had a few drinks tonight, well...more than a few, but I decided to do this meme that Steph posted anyway. Should make for light entertainment for those with nothing better to do on a Saturday evening. Like me!

1) What author do you own the most books by?
Definitely Andrew Vachss. If you haven't read anything by him he writes hard-boiled detective fiction that deals with domestic violence. He is a lawyer in NYC who takes all the money from his writing and funnels it into his work. Not easy stuff to read, but brilliant.

2) What book do you own the most copies of?
I own two copies of "Dolores Claiborne" by Stephen King and I haven't read either of them.

3) Did it bother you that both those questions ended with prepositions?
Not until you mentioned it, but yeah!

4) What fictional character are you secretly in love with?
I've always had a big thing for Belle. Probably not from anything you have read. See my answer to #1.

5) What book have you read the most times in your life?
Either "Sword of Shannara" by Terry Brooks or "Ender's Game" by Orson Scott Card. No accounting for taste. I was a teenager when I read the Shannara series. Oh wait...maybe the first two Thomas Covenent trilogies by Stephen R. Donaldson. Read those alot.

6) What was your favorite book when you were ten years old?
"A Wrinkle in Time" by Madeleine L'Engle or the Narnia books by C.S. Lewis.

7) What is the worst book you've read in the past year?
I don't really know. If I'm not enjoying a book, I usually put it down and forget about it.

8) What is the best book you've read in the past year?
"World War Z" by Max Brooks. I'm so embarrassed.

9) If you could force everyone you tagged to read one book, what would it be?
I think the Foundation trilogy by Asimov is a must read for everyone.

10) Who deserves to win the next Nobel Prize for literature?
Steph!

11) What book would you most like to see made into a movie?
"Ender's Game" by Card. It's gonna happen soon, but I'm sure it is gonna suck.

12) What book would you least like to see made into a movie?
"American Gods" by Neil Gaiman. Film wouldn't do it justice. One of those reads that you need to immerse yourself into.

13) Describe your weirdest dream involving a writer, book, or literary character.
I had this odd little dream about Slyde and Legolas one time. I don't wanna talk about it.

14) What is the most lowbrow book you've read as an adult?
Did I mention that I enjoyed "World War Z" already?

15) What is the most difficult book you've ever read?
The one book that I picked up and put down a million times because it was so difficult was "The Silmarillion" by Tolkein, but it is more of a collection than an actual novel.

16) What is the most obscure Shakespeare play you've seen?
I've seen a bunch, but none that were obscure.

17) Do you prefer the French or the Russians?
I prefer wine to vodka, so I'm gonna go with the frogs.

18) Roth or Updike?
Updike, but I don't really enjoy him either.

19) David Sedaris or Dave Eggers?
David Sedaris, in a big way. Probably because I've never read Eggers. But Sedaris is brilliant. I've given "Naked" to more than a few people to read.

20) Shakespeare, Milton, or Chaucer?
I've read most everything that each of these men wrote, but I enjoy Shakespeare the most. Not saying much. I have terrible taste in literature.

21) Austen or Eliot?
Ugh...I guess Austen, but I couldn't care less.

22) What is the biggest or most embarrassing gap in your reading?
I can't seem to make it through "Moby Dick". It tasks me.

23) What is your favorite novel?
Anything by Vachss, really, but I have a lot of love for "A Passage to India" by E.M. Forster for some reason.

24) Play?
Don't really have one.

25) Poem?
"Casey at the Bat" by Ernest Thayer? Just kidding. Maybe something by Frost. I dunno.

26) Essay?
"Man of Steel, Woman of Kleenex (Why can't Superman get laid?)" by Larry Niven.

27) Short story?
Either "Sandkings" by George R.R. Martin (although it is kinda long) or anything by Stephen King in the early "Night Shift" years.

28) Work of non-fiction?
Maybe one of about a hundred baseball books I've read. Can't pick one.

29) Who is your favorite writer?
Closely tied to question #1....Andrew Vachss.

30) Who is the most overrated writer alive today?
James Patterson. Fucking awful.

31) What is your desert island book?
Only one book? How about a collection? "The Lord of the Rings". Fuck it if I ain't original.

32) And ... what are you reading right now?
I'm currently in between books. Any suggestions?
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Note: Remember to play the Bug-Eyed Trivia Challenge every day. Maybe I will remember this in the morning.

10 comments:

sybil law said...

Suggestion: Anything by Mark Helprin.
Nice answers!

Kaye Waller said...

How fun! Thanks, man!

Verdant Earl said...

Sybil - re-reading it this morning, I was caught up in how much sci-fi/fantasy was included. And it's been years since I've read anything really good in those genres.

Steph - No, no...thank you! :)

Verdant Earl said...

See...that's why I don't do memes or post on Sundays! No one reads them! And I put some effort into this. Sheesh! ;)

Slyde said...

i didnt know you read anything by Martin...

next you need to read Game of Thrones before the HBO series comes out..

Verdant Earl said...

Slyde - I've only read Sandkings and some of his other short works. Not that Ice and Fire stuff.

The Ambiguous Blob said...

We had the same favorite books when we were 10.
Whoa. Pretty freaking cool.

Verdant Earl said...

Tabbie - well you must have been one down 10-year old. ;)

Faiqa said...

Melville is boring... that's my gap, too.

Bruce Johnson said...

I tore through "The Lord of the Rings" in college and loved, I picked up the ""The Silmarillion" when it came out and couldn't get past the first chapter.....just made no sense. (The cliff notes version is much better)

I thought I had seen everything written by Larry Niven, but have never heard of "Man of Steel, Woman of Kleenex (Why can't Superman get laid?)" by Larry Niven.....gonna have to check this out. If they can ever make a 'good' film out of RingWorld, it would probably be the last film I would ever want to see.