When a book goes horribly wrong for you…but gets you exercising

I would write a review of Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, but I just don’t feel like it would do it justice. I started the book in February, but goodness…it just really didn’t resonate with me. I put it down, I picked it up, and then I put it down again. When all else failed, I downloaded the audiobook from the library. I had to do that several times. I decided that I would listen to the book when I went and walked on the treadmill at the gym. I was determined to finish. After four months of giving up and then starting again, I finally finished last night on the treadmill.

I am not one to give up on books. I rarely do it and I hate it when I do. I know, I know. Life is too short to worry about that. If it doesn’t fit with my mood, I should just chuck it. I rarely ever do though! I usually push through no matter how torturous I think the book is. I am actually glad that I finished the book and that I didn’t give up on it, but I feel that way only because it got me on the treadmill and exercising. In fact, I so loathed the thought of giving up after approximately 400-500-ish pages that I actually felt motivated to force myself to go to the gym so I would finish it. I was so satisfied last night when I listened to the last little bit last night and the music queued at the end began playing. Then, the reader of the audiobook thanked me for listening to Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. I thought, “No sir. Thank you for helping me get through this horrible experience. You made it a little more manageable.”

I can’t really give a good and true opinion of the book since it took me four months to read it, but I can say that it didn’t resonate with me. I have seen several other bloggers on GoodReads that really liked the novel so I think it might just come down to a personal taste issue. However, I am definitely not giving up my gym time. I already have my next book on my Kindle and am ready to download the audiobook from the library to keep me going. So, to Miss Clarke, “Thank you.” No, I did not enjoy your book (though I did enjoy the last volume and thought the book was well-written), but it did make me start pushing myself to become more active which I appreciate.


What do you all do when a book doesn’t resonate with you?


Do you push on, or do you give up and move to something you think you might enjoy more?


Have you gotten any good or bad habits from pushing through a book?

Friday Coffee Chat (23)–To Blog or Not to Blog?

To Blog or Not to Blog?

This week on Friday Coffee Chat, I’m going personal, and I’m going to talk about blogging which I had never planned to do. I like that all of the chats I’ve hosted before are reader based rather than blogger based. I have friends that read my blog that are not bloggers, and I like them to be able to feel like they can chime in on any chat. I hope that they will feel like they can comment on this chat as well.

Some of you may know that I am looking for a job. It’s been a frantic search because I find myself in a situation where I need a job and sooner than later is almost a requirement for me. In the last few weeks I felt like I would have to give up blogging for fear of a company that I applied to Google searching my name and finding my blog. I don’t think that I post anything objectionable on my blog, but that is in the eye of the beholder. I do review some books in the fantasy genre that some people may find objectionable just because they are fantasy books.

I did read someone’s blog who posted about her sister moving to New York and needing to find a job. This was one of the instances where blogging was an asset to a person who was looking for work. It seems like it’s the exception to the rule though. In the last week, I read several articles about people getting fired for the content on their personal blogs. I want to give myself the best chance possible to find a job, and with all these stories coming out I feel conflicted about whether or not to continue blogging.

My search has roughly gone on for two months. I set an internal goal for myself to apply for ten jobs per week. So far, I have applied for 91 jobs since starting to keep track on my nifty spreadsheet. Of those, I have definitively been turned down by roughly a third the companies. I still have faith that by remaining optimistic and showing that if I continue to plug away, search, and apply for jobs my tenaciousness will pay off and an employer will take a chance on me. I just need that one chance.

On one hand, I feel like my blog is an asset. It shows that I have taken the initiative to do something for the last year and a half that I enjoy immensely and requires some thought and work. On the other hand, I don’t tell most of the employers that I apply for jobs with that I have a blog. It’s up to their HR department to find me through web searches. I am hesitant because someone may look at my choices of books to read and decide that I am not the person they are looking to hire. Maybe this is just me overreacting and feeling overstressed to find a job, but in reality I feel like this does happen to people who run personal blogs.

I am not in a position where I can stay unemployed for very long. I feel that I have a lot to offer a prospective employer if given the chance. For so many years I have settled in my life, and now I feel uncompromising about what I want in life. I have these goals and I am pursuing them like The Goonies pursued One Eyed Willie’s booty (yes, that is one of my favorite movies of all-time)! My question is, will blogging hurt my pursuit of my dream job?

I love blogging. I love the community. I miss posting reviews. I miss talking to people about books. I miss having regular Friday Coffee Chats. It is hurting my blog and me to not be as active in posting as I once was. Not as many people are commenting on my posts, and not as many people answer my Tweets on Twitter when I talk bookish things. I know that I am taking a risk even posting about my job search and my questioning whether or not I should continue blogging, but here it is. Life is all about taking a few risks here and there. I want to know what you all think about blogging while job hunting.

• Do you think there is a risk of being turned down for a job interview if you have a blog?
• Thinking with your head and not your heart, what would you do if you were faced with the absolute need to have a job? Would you continue blogging?
• Do you think that blogging can be an asset even if you are not searching for work in marketing or the publishing industry?

Friday Coffee Chat (22)–Big Box Blunders

Is Big Box Reading in Danger?

Last week on Friday Coffee Chat I asked readers whether or not they were in book clubs. Most of you said that you would do a book club or were already in one (or even two). I thought that was a pretty interesting conversation because I expected more people to be solitary readers. Make sure you check to see if Jennifer from Girls Gone Reading put up a chat this week. If not, check out one of her awesome book reviews!

Chachic from Chachic’s Book Nook is also posting a discussion called “A Writer Only Begins a Book. A Reader Finishes It.” Make sure you head over to her blog as well after you finish here. Should be a great discussion!

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This week I wanted to explore the bookish news. By now everyone knows that Borders is on the verge of filing Chapter 11 Bankruptcy. For those of you that don’t know, Chapter 11 is the bankruptcy filing for reorganization. Chapter 7 bankruptcy is a liquidation filing (like Circuit City and Linens n’ Things filed several years ago and are no longer in business). So, Borders is looking at reorganizing the company in hopes to save itself and pay off its creditors. To do this, they are thinking of closing between 150-200 stores to lessen its debt load. Barnes & Noble is also having its own financial troubles (though it is currently much better off than Borders) as is Waterstones in the UK. I won’t bore you with all the details. If you are interested in reading some articles, here are a few:

Wall Street Journal Article: Borders seeks possible bankruptcy filing

Guardian Article: Waterstones closes branches after poor Christmas sales

Most bloggers I know prefer buying from indie stores and might be applauding the demise of big box reading. I myself try to buy from independent bookstores as well, but I also admit that I do buy from Borders and Amazon as well. When this story broke that Borders was likely to file Chapter 11 this week, I have to say that I got a little sad. While big box stores have been the bane of existence for many passionate readers, I couldn’t help but think that if more bookstores close, there is less opportunity for people to become readers. I admit that I even like browsing the big box stores because they have SO many books (There….I said it! I like going into big box stores!). Also, many smaller towns may only have a Barnes & Noble or a Borders and without it, their browsing would either be confined to the internet or driving to another town/city to be able to browse physical books.

People may say that if it weren’t for the big box stores that there would be more choice of independent bookstores to go to. That may be true, but at this point it’s sort of water under the bridge. It’s already happened so the only thing that we can do as a society is to change our policies to limit oligarchical business practices. We as a society may also need to rethink how much we are willing to pay for books to keep bookstores running. I know, I know…I am asking people to fight the Law of Supply and Demand. However, if we want more options with independent bookstores, we should be willing to pay higher prices. I am guilty of not buying books unless on sale or if I have a coupon. Only recently was I more loyal to independent bookstores. I even utilize the library quite a bit now to save money. I think most of us are guilty of doing those things because it is in fact The Law of Supply and Demand. That’s why it’s a “Law” and not a “Hypothesis”. People are willing (and able for that matter) to buy more goods and services if they are offered at lower prices. That’s just a cold, hard fact.

I will admit that a huge reason why this problem of failing business is as bad as it is, is because of the extended recession that is occurring worldwide. People aren’t purchasing luxury items like books (*gasp* I know…I just called books a luxury item) because they are trying to keep a roof over their head and put food on the table. When they do seek out their luxury items, they look for them at a discount and end up at places like Amazon.com or BookDepository.com (or .uk) because it’s so much cheaper than buying from an independent store. I have to say that I don’t judge those people for making those choices since I myself have made these choices. Our choices have had the unfortunate side effect of reducing our choices of places to shop—but it’s been out of necessity for many, and the big box stores are to blame as well. Poor business practices by Borders and B&N let Amazon.com gain a huge market share in the book industry which I believe is the majority reason why both stores are struggling as much as they are (I can’t speak for Waterstones as I just heard about them for the first time several months ago).

So what is the solution to help failing bookstores? Should we be happy that big box stores aren't doing as well as they have in previous years and hope that this will mean a resurgence of independent bookstores? Do you think the book industry as a whole will suffer as a result of lagging sales or is it bound to make a comeback? I am not sure about the answers to these questions, but I do feel a little bit sad that it's possible that there will be less bookstores in my area to choose from in the very near future. I love reading and feel a sense of camaraderie when I see another person with a book. Even though some may hate the big box bookstore, I ultimately just want to see people reading and hope that we will still have a choice to go to brick-and-mortar stores in the future.

So, the questions for this week are:

• Are you a big box buyer or a bargain shopper (used, library, discounted books, etc.) or a champion of independent bookstores?
• What do you feel about the likely closure of 150-200 Borders bookstores across the U.S., or if you are from another country, how would you feel if that happened with your local big box bookstore?
• What would you like to see happen in the retail book industry when the economy recovers? Be utopian or realistic…just tell me what you think!
• Do you think the closure of big box stores will hurt future readers? Will we be less likely to read as a society or are we just moving toward newer technology like e-books?

Friday Coffee Chat (21)–To book club, or not to book club?

To Book Club or Not to Book Club? That Is the Question!

I took last week off of Friday Coffee Chat because of Bloggiesta, but the week before that we talked about whether we should be serious readers, fun readers, or both. Make sure you check out Jennifer from Girls Gone Reading’s Friday Coffee Chats as well. She does some great ones!

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This week on Friday Coffee Chat I want to explore book clubs. So many readers are in them and since Oprah started her book club, it seems like they popped up everywhere. I myself have been in two book clubs over the years, and just tried a new one last week. Each book club seemed to have its own personality, and I definitely enjoyed some more than others.

For me personally, the book club I enjoyed most was the purely fun reading one. It was a group called Thrill Me! that I went to in Austin. I initially went to this book club because I was trying to expand the genres that I read. I miss this group of people because they were SO fun. We read things like Lee Child, Janet Evanovich, John Connolly, Tami Hoag, and others. Probably one of the funniest moments in the group was when someone pointed out that Jack Reacher (from the books by Lee Child) never bathed but he was super popular with the ladies. I loved that someone thought of that because I honestly hadn’t thought of it while reading it. This group usually sat around and talked about the book for 20-40 minutes or so and then we would just shoot the breeze at the café for a LONG time afterwards. I loved that because we really enjoyed each other’s company outside of just talking about books.

My other book club tended to be much more cerebral. It was fun for sure and my brain usually got a workout from it. The company was good and we usually had some good food too as well as pretty in depth discussions about the book that would go on for quite awhile. While I thought this group was great in its own way, I have to admit that I enjoyed the thriller book club more just because it was crazier.

Last week, I tried a new book club. Everyone was really nice and welcoming, but they tended to pick literary fiction (or so it seems) and while I enjoy literary fiction from time to time, I have found that I more like the company in book clubs than just talking about the books we read. When I get together with readers, I do love talking about books, but I also really want to know them as people too. I also admit that I get a little intimidated by those literary books because I read more for the story than the technical aspects of books. When people in the group talk about the technical aspects I admit that sometimes I get bored and sometimes I feel stupid! Should I be admitting this? Maybe. Maybe not, but I am owning that this is something that I actually feel during book clubs.

Thinking about what type of book club I look for, I realized that not all people even like book clubs. Some people prefer to read on their own while others enjoy chatting about books with friends. It made me wonder what people’s motivations were when they either chose not to do a book club or sought one out. Are people just shy when they choose not to join a book club? Is reading a private thing? These are some questions that have come up in my mind now that I’m searching for new readers with which to connect.

This week’s Friday Coffee Chat questions are:

• Are you a member of a book club?
• If so, what are your motivations for joining a book club?
• What do you look for when you join a book club? Do you seek out strangers to talk about books with (like on Meetup.com) or do you only do book clubs with friends you know and are comfortable with?
• What kind of books do you prefer to read with a book club?
• Do you like themed book clubs like romance, thriller, literary, chick lit, etc.?
• If you don’t like book clubs, tell us all why you prefer to read alone? Is it because you are shy or because reading is just private to you? Is there some other reason?

Friday Coffee Chat (20)–Why so serious?

Why so serious?

Last week on Friday Coffee Chat we talked about quotes from books that really moved us. If you have any quotes that you’ve thought of since last week, make sure you go back to the chat and let me know. I LOVE wonderful quotes! After you comment on this week’s Friday Coffee Chat, head over to Jennifer’s blog, Girls Gone Reading and comment on her Friday Coffee Chat topic, Comfort Reads.

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This week on Friday Coffee Chat I want to talk about serious reading v. reading for fun. I know this has been a topic of conversation on Twitter and all over the blogosphere off and on and the topic may be beaten to death, but let’s visit it just one more time, shall we?

There are serious readers. You know, those readers who only read literary fiction or complicated non-fiction and they tell you that any other books are meaningless and therefore not worth the paper they are written on. I had someone in college tell me that all fiction was ridiculous because people should focus on what is real rather than made up situations that people went through. Even historical fiction didn’t count for this person. He felt that non-fiction was the only worthwhile thing out there.

Then there are the literary fiction readers who wouldn’t be caught dead with a trashy romance novel or paranormal fantasy book. They like to read all the award winners and classics. It may just be what they enjoy, or they may feel like those grocery store reads aren’t worth their time. Who knows?!!

On the other end of the spectrum are those readers who spend all their time reading “for fun”. They don’t want to delve into some psychological exposition on human nature like Dostoevsky writes. They want something they can blaze through like Dean Koontz or Charlaine Harris. Literary fiction and non-fiction are sure to send them into a coma for three months and should be avoided at all costs.

So what is the big deal about this? Well, as we all know people take their reading seriously no matter if you are a serious reader or an escapist reader. It’s part of what makes talking to other readers so interesting. We are all different and enjoy different things. Every once in awhile people will get offended when someone turns their nose up at the newest vampire novel or when someone calls another person a book snob for reading Tolkien over Rowling. We all love our favorites and never want to hear that someone else doesn’t like what we hold dear.

My questions for this week are:

• Is there a happy medium? Is it possible to enjoy both serious AND fun books, or do people tend to choose one or the other?

• Do you think books should be enriching all the time and must have redeeming qualities, or is it ok to read a trashy fun novel at any time you feel like it?

• Do you ever turn your nose up at a literary reader or an escapist reader? (Come on now…be honest…you know you want to—we’ll be respectful of what you say)

• If you are a one or the other reader, tell us all why you feel the way you do and if you think it’s ok that people read whatever they feel like reading.

Friday Coffee Chat (19)–Notable Quotables

Book Quotes That Have Moved You

It’s been awhile since I last did a Friday Coffee Chat because I took a blogging break for about four to six weeks. I know a lot of you have said you missed the chats so I’m going to do my best to bring them back. They are quite a bit of fun and help all of us get to know each other better so I hope that I can continue blogging for the long term and continue learning about all my blogging friends. After you comment here, make sure you check out Jennifer at Girls Gone Reading’s Friday Coffee Chat topic on graphic novels.

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Most of the time, when I think of quotes I think of quotes from movies that move me. There are always some memorable scenes or memorable quotes from movies that even if we haven’t seen the movie, we know the quote. Lately, I’ve been noticing that that has been happening more and more with almost every book I read.

Don’t get me wrong. Not all of these books are deep and profound. Some of them are quite simple, but just have this moment of conviction for me. There are these quotes that just stand out to me and speak to me. Some of you know that 2010 was not the best year of my life and a few quotes from books I’ve read really hit me hard in a few ways. Maybe it’s a mid-life crisis of sorts, but some of these quotes are helping me to reevaluate my life and look at the way I’ve been living.

Other quotes are just really thought provoking and don’t necessarily have anything to do with my life at all. Sometimes they remind me of other people in my life and sometimes they are just good quotes. No matter how they get into my brain, they usually stay with me and I’ve started writing them down to keep them with me forever.

Here’s a few that have had a huge impact on me in recent months:

“’But what if I don’t win?’ he asked. ‘There is no dishonor in losing the race,’ Don said. ‘There is only dishonor in not racing because you are afraid to lose.’” –The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein

I’m going to admit. I actually cried when I read this quote. I have lived my life so daunted for years and when I read this I realized how much I wanted to “race” but was too afraid to actually do it. This is something that is a process for me. I’m still daunted, but I don’t want to be and I hope that someday I will be racing.

“I think that perhaps too many people want things to be simple when they are not and cannot be. Encouraging that desire is seductive and rewarding, but also dangerous.” –Ysul Demri (Sharrow) in Against a Dark Background by Iain M. Banks

This one also hit me like a brick. I think that so often we look for life to be simple and want to take the easy way out. I’ve lived my life this way and have seen other people do it too. Really, life should be about persevering and embracing the things that are difficult. It’s adversity that builds character. I read this at a really critical point in my life this past Summer and changed how I looked at the world.

“…The things you do when you’re desperate aren’t who you are.” –Niall to Leslie in Ink Exchange by Melissa Marr

This is another quote that kind of goes with the taking the easy way out. Sometimes we do things that are just out of character or when life is out of control we do things that we are not always proud of. I think the challenge is in working on changing ourselves to be who we really are and without resorting to that behavior in desperate times.

These are just a few of the quotes that have given me pause in the last few months. They are insightful and really meaningful to me. They won’t necessarily hit other people the way they’ve impacted me. I’m entering a truly introspective time in my life I think and I’m really enjoying finding quotes that make me think more about life than I previously have. I hope that over the next few years I’ll be come a more complete and stronger person.

• What are some quotes from books that have had an impact on your life?
• Do you think that meaningful quotes can come from books that aren’t super philosophical reads?
• Do you ever write down quotes from books?

I hope you guys will all share some of your favorites with me. I would love to read some of them!

Friday Coffee Chat (19)–What are we telling young people?

What are we telling young people?

Jennifer from Girls Gone Reading is taking the week off of her portion of Friday Coffee Chat. She'll be back next week with a new post so make sure you stop by her blog next week!

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This week I have invited Amy from Amy Reads and Rachel from And the Plot Thickens to cohost a special edition of this week’s Friday Coffee Chat. I have had conversations with both of them about the portrayal of young women in books. Because all three of us have read some of the paranormal romances like Twilight and Shiver, we decided to write about it this week and really open a dialogue about this topic.


Click here read Rachel and Amy’s full comments on the topic.


I have to say that for the most part, I don’t think a lot of the books are super harmful. I enjoyed Twilight even though it is clear that Bella has issues. To me, the relationship between her and Edward is troublesome, but not for the reasons everyone might think. His possessiveness I had always thought of as part of his vampiric nature which is animalistic—meaning that it is difficult to control (he does after all see Bella as filet mignon) so when he told Bella not to answer the phone when Jacob called, I thought that his vampiric nature was showing. I also never thought about the obsession/possessiveness because I thought, “Hey, there’s a group of bloodthirsty, super-fast vampires after her. I might want a scary vampire to protect me too!” However, after hearing what Rachel and Amy had to say, it gave me another perspective.

Rachel’s Point of View

Twilight has morphed into this oddly shaped monster that is devouring the minds and souls of women everywhere! Overly dramatic? Yup, totally. But with good justification. I am sure anyone who has been living and breathing for the past two years is just as sick of hearing about Twilight as I am.
So besides my obvious distaste for this series due to it's hold over the mass media, what else do I see is wrong with it? Frankly, it sends a very bad message to teenage girls and Bella is a shockingly poor role model for impressionable teens.


Teenage girls, in general, are moody, dramatic and easily swayed. I know this because I was one, and because I teach them. Every little thing is the end of the world. If I move a girl away from her friend for talking while I am trying to teach, that is cue for tears and tantrums.


They take dating very seriously and break ups... oh boy... It's a combination of World War III and a Joy Division song all rolled into one. So the fact that their role model is a girl their age, who has a dramatic break up then wants to die, worries me. The only reason she gets it back together is because of another guy. What sort of message is that sending?



I will say that in Shiver (click HERE for my review), Maggie Stiefvater accomplished what Stephanie Meyer did not when she actually brought up the painful subject of parental neglect when Sam confronted Grace about her absentee parents. However brief, it was something and extremely profound since so many teens turn to the opposite sex for love when they are not receiving it at home. The thing that disappointed me was that Grace didn’t seem to realize this and was the aggressor when pursuing Sam physically. There was so much hurt in her that turning to a physical act of love would eventually not cover up the emotional hurt from the lack of parental involvement in her life. However, I know the book was a romance so I need to give a little slack to the book and its author, Miss Stiefvater for my reservations about how the situation played out not only for the pure romance of it, but also for the truth in how those situations often play out.


Amy’s Point of View

This year I’ve been reading [a lot] more young adult books than I usually have in the past, and more recently published books. In my reading, I’ve been noticing a disturbing trend. Most (if not all) of the young adult paranormal books that I read show unhealthy relationships, girls being forced into things and then deciding they like it so of course he should have pushed her. They show girls who at the age of sixteen to eighteen are saying they know who and what they want for the rest of their lives – based on these unhealthy relationships and rape situations.

Twilight was one book, now it’s seeming like it's all books. This, to me, is disturbing. The more often we see the same message, the more we internalize it. The more we internalize it, without realizing it, the more we come to accept this behavior as normal. Yes, we like to think we know better than to believe these things, but if we get it enough times it won’t matter because we’ll absorb the message anyway.


As women, we want to read about strong women and yet we turn to these romance stories and enjoy them. While talking to Rachel and Amy the other day (they have a much more firm stance on these YA romances than I do), I made the comment that we love old fairy tales and don’t hate characters like Cinderella because she is also saved by a man from a terrible home situation and lives happily ever after. We realize that it is a fairy tale and fantasy, not real life. I pointed out that these YA romances today seem very much like that to me—modern day fairy tales that are not always written well but resonate with us on that fairy tale level.

Amy’s Point of View
Fairy tales aren't always the most positive representations for women... but the thing with older fairy tales though is that they were quite often written BY men FOR men and were about keeping us women in our place. As female authors have been re-telling them, they quite often create stronger female characters and show the positivity in the situations. With the young adult paranormal books we are still stuck in the past, only we have women writing these disparaging situations for women. Shouldn't we want to build each other up?

The situations in these ya paranormal books are, in my opinion, often written they way they are because it is the quickest and easiest way to move forward. They are fighting? Well, don't have them talk it out respectfully, have him jump her and she will realize how much she loves him deep down and everything will get better. I refuse to give authors the pass anymore, so I will point it out.

One book isn’t a big deal, a constant barrage of the same unhealthy message certainly is.





Rachel’s Point of View
I just want to make it clear that I am not anti-sex in teen books. I think sex is an important issue and needs to be addressed. It's a natural part of life for teens and a good YA book should talk about it (so it's not taboo) but in a educational/responsible way. It should not glamorize sex, or make it 'a bad thing', just something that should be well thought out before you take that 'big step'. Making the decision to have sex takes emotional intelligence which a teen does not get just because they have turned 16. This is something that YA books seem to miss. Usually the character (and often the female) can't wait to be bedded and practically jumps the male! Although true for some teens, how about looking at why she feels so needy that sex seems like the best way to be close to her honey?. I'm all for a bit of a nakie romp but not because your parents neglect you and you want to feel loved. That does not send a good message.


Point is, paranormal romance does not send a good message to teenage girls and I really hope this all just a passing craze. It's time we started giving our teens (and adults) great books to read! Stories with strong, morally grounded heroines who take on the world and retain their individuality in the face of adversity! Who never stop fighting and live good,well-rounded lives. We need heroines who put education, achievement and being true to themselves before shacking up with a hottie.





Some good food for thought from Rachel and Amy. Make sure you check out both of their complete statements HERE

So my questions for readers this week are:

• Do you think that the female protagonists in YA romance novels are poor role models for young women?

• Do you think that teenagers are not capable of understanding these situations where young women depend on young men are fantasy and not how healthy relationships really are?

• Do you find some of the sexual content objectionable where it normalizes teen sex rather than make it something that should be more thoughtful on an emotional level?

• Are you disturbed by the trend of adult women fawning over these teenage boy characters who give so much attention (sometimes in a far too controlling way) to their female counterparts? Is it inappropriate?

Friday Coffee Chat–Book Burnout

What do you do when you have book burnout?

Last week on Friday Coffee Chat we talked about movies that were better than the books. I was surprised to see so many movies on people’s lists and I definitely have to add some of these movies to my Netflix queue. After you weigh in on this week’s chat, head over Jennifer at Girls Gone Reading’s Friday Coffee Chat. This week she is talking about reading fears so make sure you let her know what you think!

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As readers we all go through book burnout. I occasionally see the blog entries from other bloggers about how they are feeling when they go through a reading slump. Mostly it seems like we all want to know what to do to get us back to reading. The more I’ve thought about it lately, the more I’ve realized that yes, sometimes I go through reading slumps, and I’ve felt guilty about putting down my books and doing other things. Lately I’ve been wondering why I’ve felt guilty. It makes no sense. I have a lot of different interests and I realize now that it’s ok to go through periods where I read less. Does this make me any less of a reader? I don’t think so. I just like other activities besides reading.

So, let’s throw the guilt out of the window. When I hit these slumps there are a few things that are my go tos:

Crocheting

I find crocheting so relaxing. I don’t have to think about what I’m doing and I can just sit and watch a movie while I make cool things like blankets! I am also trying to teach myself to knit. These are worthwhile things to do I think because it works a different part of my brain than reading does.

Movies/Television

OK…this one is a vice in a way. Sometimes I watch WAY too much television and films, but I do think that sometimes I watch really good quality film and television that I don’t feel bad. Other times I admit that I watch utter crap and still enjoy it. I really enjoy watching foreign films and documentaries which to me, open my eyes to the world and lets me see culture and events outside of the United States.

My Dogs

Oh the baddies! I love them though and sometimes I just would rather take them for a walk than read. They get so much joy out of being outside of the house and it makes me happy to watch their doggie faces of joy.

Friends

Sometimes just like to shoot the breeze with friends. I like having coffee or dinner with friends once in awhile just to get outside of myself and see what is going on with them.

So there it is. Those are some of the things that I really enjoy when I’m not reading or in a reading slump. I refuse to feel guilty about enjoying these things anymore. Life is too short to not enjoy every moment!

• Do you ever feel guilty about going through times where you don’t read very much?
• What are some of the things that you enjoy outside of reading?
• Is there anything you wish you could learn to do outside of your reading time?

Friday Coffee Chat (17)–Better Than The Book

The Movie/TV Show is Better Than the Book!

Last week on Friday Coffee Chat we talked about whether or not we imagine everything we read right down to length of someone’s hair. I found out that I’m somewhat of an oddity because I am one of those people that imagines everything, but there are a few people that read the same way I do! It makes me feel like less of a freak! Jennifer at Girls Gone Reading talked about whether or not we require great lines in books to really love them. Make sure you check out Girls Gone Reading’s post this week on Friday Coffee Chat after you comment here.

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This morning, one of my friends posted an article from the Huffington Post on my Facebook page talking about movies that are better than their paper counterparts. Is this possible? Blasphemy you say? Surely there must be a movie or TV show that you saw that a) was better than the book, b) made you feel it was unnecessary to read the book, or c) was just as good as the book. I definitely have a few shows and movies that are amazing.

I’m just going to admit it right off the bat. I loved Sense and Sensibility starring Emma Thompson. I could watch it OVER and OVER again. Could I read the book over and over?…hmmmm…No. I read it, and maybe someday I’ll read it again, but for now, I’m good snuggling up on the couch with my dogs and watching the movie. I think most Jane Austen fans would think that was blasphemous because the movie does combine some characters and inevitably left things out. Emma Thompson was also older than Eleanor Dashwood was supposed to be. I don’t care. I love her. She’s my favorite actress and I could watch that movie forever!

Field of Dreams is another movie that I don’t know if it’s better than the book, Shoeless Joe by W.P. Kinsella, but it comes pretty close. I mean, that scene with Annie when she is protesting at the school board meeting to ban books is perfect. “You want to step outside you Nazi cow?!!!” Now tell me there is a better line than that?! Atonement is another movie that I thought was just as good as the book. The film was beautiful and stayed very faithful to the story. Even the casting was perfect for the film.

In television, Band of Brothers is probably one of my all-time favorites. I actually do like it better than the book because I think it captured the essence of brotherhood better. The book was fantastic as well, but the mini-series I watch several times a year. I watch it so often that I know some of the lines in each of the episodes and I even know most of the more minor characters (who aren’t really ‘characters’ since they were real people).

The other show that I haven’t read the book for, but it’s on my short list of non-fiction that I MUST read is The Corner: A Year in the Life of an Inner-City Neighborhood by David Simon and Edward Burns which HBO’s The Wire is loosely based on. The Wire is simply the best television series I have ever seen in my life. The book itself actually had a mini-series that was produced before The Wire, and I need to see that as well. It’s an amazing show.

…And my last TV show, is True Blood. The show is SO much better than the books (of which I have only read four). The books are ok, but the show is just amazingly written. The characters are better, the situations are better…but Bill is still as boring as ever and Sookie is still just as life-sucking as ever. It’s the supporting cast and writing in that show that makes it worth watching and the dialogue is so good! I love it.

So the questions for this week are:

• What movies or TV shows do you think are BETTER than the book and tell us all why you think that.
• Are there any movies or TV shows you think are comparable to the book and you enjoy them equally?
• What TV shows or movies have you seen that make you want to read the book?

Friday Coffee Chat (14) – Are you a dreamer?

Are you an imaginative reader?

Last week on Friday Coffee Chat we talked about whether or not big name reviews were important to us and most of us get our book recommendations from people we trust rather than a nameless person that doesn’t know anything about us. However, some of us felt that the big name review often trickled down to our reading lists because the books that are reviewed by big name media outlets are often heavily marketed.

Make sure you check out Jennifer at Girls Gone Reading for this week’s Friday Coffee Chat and last week’s chat on the books that turned you into a reader.

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This week on Friday Coffee Chat I wanted to ask how many of us are imaginative readers. What do I mean by this? I am a slow reader. Why? I’m slow because I often imagine EVERYTHING about a book—the setting, the characters, their accents, what clothes they are wearing, and how they wear their hair among other things. It’s so bad that I even sometimes read out loud to myself trying to imitate whatever accent I think the character speaks. If there isn’t a lot of dialogue, I imagine the narration to be by some fabulous actor or actress with a wonderful voice that just fits the book perfectly. I even do this with non-fiction books no matter what they are.



I think that classifies me as an imaginative reader (this is a term I just made up—who knows what it’s really called…probably GOOFY!). I know people that tend to speed read and they don’t necessarily create the entire world in their head. To me, the concept of this is completely foreign. I wouldn’t comprehend anything, but all these people have excellent reading comprehension and often remember just as much or more than I do once they are done with the book.



I also have a tendency to change the “look” of the character if I don’t like the way they are described. I am not a fan of flowing, long, man hair so whenever there is a character written with long hair, I usually change it in my mind to short and some actor I think is handsome. Is that weird?!!! Probably! I do the same thing for girls. There is such a shortage of female characters that are minorities in the books I read that I never feel like I could ever put myself in their shoes since I could never look like them. Is that weird?! Probably! Either way, they get switched to Asian or Hispanic or Black or any other minority in my head sometimes just for variety and to know that yes, I could be a character in a book!


So my questions for you readers this week are:

• Are you an imaginative reader? Do you build the world and characters in your head?
• Are you a speed reader and you don’t imagine anything while reading—you just comprehend it all and move on?
• Could you ever fathom trying the opposite of what you do when you read?

Friday Coffee Chat (15) – Are big name book reviews important to you?

Are big name reviews important to you?

Last week on Friday Coffee Chat we talked about whether we are character driven or plot driven readers. Ellie pointed out that I had missed theme driven—probably because I don’t read a lot of theme driven novels! This week, Jennifer at Girls Gone Reading is asking readers about the most influential book they have read. Head over to her blog after you comment on this week’s chat on my blog!

I have also added an index of the previous Friday Coffee Chats in the menu bar under “Events/Features”. If you are interested in the previous topics covered, make sure you check it out!

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This week on Friday Coffee Chat I am asking readers about reviews. While at the Texas Book Festival last weekend, several authors expressed frustration with the New York Times Book Review because the reviews seem to not actually review the book the writer is reviewing. Two authors that spoke at a talk both said that they had read reviews of their books from different media outlets that had very little to do with their own novels. Another author also expressed dismay at a negative reviews of their book in which he said the reviewer had obviously not even read the book.




Media outlets tend to have big pull when it comes to books. Whether it’s the New York Times Book Review, Publishers Weekly, or any other magazine or newspaper that garners thousands upon thousands of readers, this is often where we readers hear the initial buzz about new titles. Even if we don’t read these publications ourselves, it’s often where books get the attention to become bestsellers. I am one of those readers that doesn’t follow the big outlets that feature reviews so I was completely unaware that these big name reviewers review books without even really talking about the book they are reviewing. That was kind of disappointing to hear authors say these things at the festival. Is it true? Do the reviewers really talk more about themselves than they do about the book. Don’t reviewers read the books they review? I scanned through a few different reviews and didn’t really see what they were talking about, but I’m sure that it happens from time to time.

I tend not to get most of my books through the suggestions of friends and even through *gasp* data mined suggestions based on books I’ve purchased online. I even buy books by "new to me" authors that have positive blurbs from authors that I have previously enjoyed reading. The point is, I tend to trust “reviews” from people I know and respect more than a reviewer that is backed by a big name media outlet. My question is, where do my friends and family get recommendations? Is the lowest common denominator these big time reviews?

Another thing one author expressed was irritation at getting a negative review. I actually felt a little turned off by that statement even though I thought the author was really well spoken and I enjoyed what they had to say. Throughout the chats we’ve had on my blog over the past few months, we have all expressed our opinions on books even if we don’t agree with each other. Why is it so bad for someone to practice their freedom of speech and express that they didn’t like the book? It can have a true impact on whether or not the author sells books, but if reviewers were to not review the books they don’t enjoy, I don’t think we as readers would have a true picture of of the books we read. To me, it seems disingenuous to only print rosy reviews of books. We are all different so what is to say that I will enjoy a book to the same degree that one of my friends or family members enjoys? In my eyes the world would be a pretty boring place if we all liked the same thing (and if this were the case, there would be far fewer published authors out there).


So my questions for readers this week are:

• Where do you as a reader find the books you want to read?
• Do you think that the major media outlets publish reviews in their newspapers and magazines that include very little reviewing of the actual book?
• Are you influenced by the big name media review outlets? If so, which ones do you recommend?
• Are you turned off by negative reviews and think that reviewers shouldn’t review books they don’t like? Do you think they should pass the book onto someone they think will like the book?

Friday Coffee Chat (14) – What’s Important to You? The Story or the Character…

Are you plot driven or character driven?

Last week on Friday Coffee Chat, we talked about book bullying. Most of us admitted that we tend to be nosy about what people read and sometimes judge people by what they read, but we rarely vocalize it. I think it was a fairly eye opening conversation for me, and I feel like I learned a lot. This week, Jennifer at Girls Gone Reading is talking about reading out of your comfort zone. Head over to her blog after you are done commenting here to let her know if you have ever ventured out of your reading comfort zone!

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This week on Friday Coffee Chat I wanted to talk about something that I’ve been noticing about the books that I tend to enjoy. For four months this year, I read Middlemarch with my friends Ellie and Lydia from The Literary Lollipop. This book was huge and not much really happened in it. The book was largely about the people in Middlemarch and how society functioned at the time. Now, I know there are TONS of Jane Austen fans, but she largely falls in the same category. Lots of characters, but not a lot of plot. The characters undergo some transformation during the book, but it doesn’t take a war, tragedy, or any other huge event for these characters to have a huge impact on us. I say that these books are character driven and largely introspective. The books talk about the human condition or are social commentaries, but the plot can play second fiddle to the characters themselves.

After finishing the book, I felt so conflicted. I liked it. It challenged me to think in so many different ways, but quite frankly, it was boring for large parts of the book. A lot of people complain about Oprah’s Book Club choices to fall into the same pit of misery. The books are about the characters change, not necessarily the plot. After finishing Middlemarch, we decided to pick up The Count of Monte Cristo for a read-a-long which is VERY plot driven. Who hasn’t heard of Edmond Dantès quest for revenge against Fernand Mondego—the man who had him falsely imprisoned for many years? It’s such a popular story that is has been made into several movies. It’s exciting. There is plotting, revenge, swordfights, and the transformation of the characters is external rather than introspective. I am excited to read it because it is so plot driven and is so much more exciting to read than Middlemarch was.

All this got me thinking about what kind of reader I am. I tend to be a plot driven reader. I mostly read books where the plot is a huge factor. The journey in the book tends to override any changes the characters go through themselves. I like action in my books and I like it to be frequent! I do enjoy that the characters learn from whatever conflict happens in the book, but it’s the plotting, revenge, etc. that keep me turning the pages of books. The character driven books are usually more of a chore for me even if I do enjoy them in the end. I’ll even admit that these are the books that tend to have lasting impact on my life.

For example, take Sophie’s Choice by William Styron: nothing good ever happens to poor Sophie and you don’t find out why until later in the novel when you learn what her choice is. The book was torture because the entire time I just wanted to shake the woman and tell her what a huge mistake she was making with Nathan and say how out of control she was. I hated almost every moment of the book, but it has had this incredible lasting impact on me because it was SO character driven. The book was about Sophie and why she ended up the way she did. In some ways, the plot with Nathan was fairly incidental because the epiphany in the book was just on a few short pages. Those few short pages were so profound that the book is lasting (same thing in Middlemarch—the epiphany was one sentence on the last page). However, these books are just few and far between for me because I find them such a task to read.

I will go so far as to say that for every 30 books I read, I may only read one character driven book. Should I change my habit? I don’t know. I definitely have opened myself up a whole lot in the last two years as to what I will read, but I still maintain that the plot driven books are the ones I enjoy most even if the character driven ones tend to be lasting in my memory.

So, my questions for readers this week is:

• What kind of reader are you: Plot driven or character driven?
• Do you like books that have a good combination of both plot and character development or do you normally pick one over the other?
• Do you get frustrated that other people might not understand your book choices?
• What is your favorite book(s) that is/are plot driven and/or character driven?

Friday Coffee Chat (13) – Have you been book bullied?

Book Bullying: Are you a victim or a perpetrator?

Last week on Friday Coffee Chat we talked about Weird Reading Habits. We all have some and maybe sometimes people look at us funny for our odd reading habits. This week, I want to talk about bullying of the book persuasion. Jennifer at Girls Gone Reading is talking about movies that are BETTER than the book this week on her portion of Friday Coffee Chat. Can you think of any? I think I actually can so make sure you go put your two cents in on her blog as well!

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Book bullying. Does such a thing exist? For weeks we’ve been talking about things like judging a book by its cover, the YA phenomenon, and odd reading habits we have. But are any of these things embarrassing enough that we actually hide what we read around others for fear of being made fun of or just outright bullying?

Last week on Twitter a fellow book blogger tweeted that she had been mocked and made fun of in the lunch room for her choice of reading. Not only did they make fun of what she read, they went through her Kobo and refused to give it back until they had all had their bits of fun. I was honestly horrified that this person was basically bullied. These aren’t kids in grade school—these are grown adults that were making fun of her for choosing to read YA and some Middle Grade books. Never mind that this woman is a mother and who reviews YA and some younger fiction regularly on her blog; these people decided that it would be a nice thing to mock her by saying things like, “What are you going to read next, Clifford?!” Hmmm…she’s a mom so it IS in fact possible that she might read Clifford to her children. Instead of fighting back which would almost certainly end in more retribution, she sat there quietly until they had finished. She felt humiliated.

I have to admit. I felt so bad for her. I think what is worse is that I felt bad for her because while I may not have gone to that extent to humiliate someone, I have definitely judged people on their reading choices at times. That’s right. I am openly admitting that at times I have vocally said things about the choices that people make about their own personal reading! I am ashamed. After doing these weekly chats for three months, I have learned so much from all the bloggers that stop by and give their input. We don’t always agree, but we usually have a good laugh, give each other a virtual handshake, and move on because we all know we have different personalities and therefore, different tastes. Because of this, I have become much less judgmental of all those people out there that choose to read things that I would never pick up. I no longer care if someone has an Edward or Jacob obsession, or if they like reading Gossip Girl. I don’t care anymore if people like reading steamy romances or erotica. We’re all unique and there are enough books in the world to satisfy us all. I might even throw some glitter on my friends who like the sparkly vampires to show my support!

My point is, what exactly does it accomplish when you question what someone is reading? Is there ever a time when it is justified? I still struggle some with people reading books by Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin, Ann Coulter, Al Franken, Michael Moore or other polarizing figures. I might even make an off-handed comment if I saw people reading it. Is that ok for me to do? I think good conversation is ok. I think it’s ok to disagree, but I’m beginning to see that it’s possible that my off-handed comments can hurt someone’s feelings. I also think that sometimes we all can be overly sensitive and that stepping back from a situation and looking at things from a different perspective can open our eyes to what people may be trying to get across (in the blogger’s case at the beginning of my post I think she was truly bullied and the people in question should be ashamed of themselves). I have taken comments on my blog and on Twitter personally sometimes, but then I realize that I am who I am and I can only control my reaction to things—the world will not change for me as much as I want it to. I will say that I am trying harder to be more aware of what comes out of my mouth and my fingers while typing. I may still disagree with people, but I hope that I will never be disrespectful or make that person feel bullied.

So this week, I want to ask you readers:

• Have you ever been bullied for what you read OR have you ever bullied someone for what they read (be honest here…we’ll be respectful of admissions)?
• Have you ever hidden what you read for fear of someone making fun of you or criticizing you?
• Do you think people are too sensitive when it comes to the books they enjoy?
• Are there any times that you just cannot keep your mouth shut when you think you should (like me and my penchant for ranting against political pundit books)?
• Do you think it’s possible to be opinionated about reading/books without backing someone into a corner?

Link of Note

I saw this really good blog post by a man that was bullied as a child. Good food for thought:

Dan and Noah’s Single Dad Laughing – Memoirs of a Bullied Kid

Friday Coffee Chat (12) – Weird Reading Habits

Are you a weirdo when you read?

Last week we talked about book series that last too long and we all had at least one series that just seemed to drag on forever. Sometimes we marched on through the series even though it no longer had the pull it once did, while other times we got disinterested enough to just toss the series and move on. This week I wanted to talk about something less serious and ask you all, “What are your weird reading habits?” After you are done answering my questions, make sure you head over to Jennifer at Girls Gone Reading’s blog to see what her topic is this week!

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We all have them. Some of us can’t sit down without a cup of tea or coffee when we read while others couldn’t fathom having food or drink near their prized books. I have a couple of odd habits while I read. I noticed recently that not all of these habits are good and others really help me get through a book.

One of the oddest habits I have is multiple bookmarking. I am not alone in my weird habit because I’ve actually had this conversation with Amy from Amy Reads. She and I both tend to put multiple bookmarks in our books as a way of benchmarking where we would like to end up or just to give ourselves an idea of where the next chapter starts. I enjoy this. It’s goal oriented, and I’m a fairly goal oriented person. I have something to look forward to when I feel the pages getting thinner and thinner as I turn each one. I also tend to look at how many pages are in every book I read. It is just something I do.

 

Some not so good habits I have. I tend to twirl my hair while reading A LOT which breaks my hair. I have “baby chicken” hairs all over the place on my head that poke up out of my head. I also have a tendency to touch my face a lot while reading so I break out in pimples! I’m in my 30s! Far to old to be looking like a teenager with pimples all over my face. I must stop! I also *gasp* bite my cheeks while reading. Worst habit ever, but it’s compulsive! It’s such an embarrassing habit. I get scolded by my dad when I am around him. I’m much too old to be scolded by my dad!

 

So I have some habits I need to change while reading, but others I will hold on to (like drinking water while I read and my bookmarking obsession).  All of this got me thinking, what do other readers do while reading? Are you a compulsive popcorn eater while reading? Do you read the last page in your book? So many questions that could be asked so here I am, asking you to tell me what your strange, embarrassing, good, bad, and ugly habits are.

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  What is your best reading habit? Are you compulsive about spreadsheet stats, bookmarking, putting your book away when not reading, etc?
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  What is your worst reading habit? Do you like to eat desserts or other foods while eating, have coffee or other beverages, bite your nails, or anything else you can think of?
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  What is your most embarrassing habit? Do you like to reading your “library material” in your “library’s porcelain chair” (aka, the toilet), read out loud to yourself, fall asleep often while reading, etc?

I want to know it all! Tell me all about your weirdness!

Friday Coffee Chat (11) – When a series drags on for far too long…

Have you ever burned out on a book series?

Last week on Friday Coffee Chat we talked about books that you thought were so bad, you couldn’t pass it on to anyone else. It generated good discussion and people were, shall I say, VERY forthcoming about the books they abhorred.

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This week, I want to talk about those books you love and are part of a series, but somehow seemed to drag on for so long that the story has become stale and you just can’t wait for it to end.

Jennifer from Girls Gone Reading is talking about a similar topic this week in her portion of Friday Coffee Chat. She wants to know if a book can still be interesting when there is very little action and the characters don’t seem to do anything. Head over to her blog to post your thoughts!

I’m going to admit it. I love a good series. I get so connected with the characters that they end up feeling like family to me. I love it when and author makes their story and characters so rich and full of life that I sit away and pine for more while they work on their next book. Anne McCaffrey did this with her Pern series. Masterharper Robinton became like a father to me and Menolly was my best friend for many years. I dreamed of having a fire lizard as a pet, a dragon as a companion, and life on a planet that while unfriendly at times (I mean, spores that ate anything organic did fall from the sky) was so wonderful that I just wanted to move there.

Not every series does this for me. There are some that I love but now just feel like I’m in it for the long haul or I’ve just decided that I’m tired of feeling like the author is trying to milk their series for every last penny. You know…there are the books that seemingly have an end, but then you find out there’s a prequel. Or a prequel to that prequel. Or better yet, a few hundred years have passed and now you’re reading about the characters’ great, great, great grandchildren.

Terry Brooks’ Shannara series is kind of like this for me. Oh make no mistake…I’m in it for the long haul. I didn’t even like the first book in the series, but it was a trilogy so I reluctantly read the second book, The Elfstones of Shannara and ended up really liking it. I devoured just about all the books in the series and thought I was through, but no, I found out there was a prequel. I read the prequel and liked it, but then I found out that there were books that took place in the future and…well, you get the point. I’m finally toward the “end” of the series, but I just found out that he just released a new Shanarra book, Bearers of the Black Staff, in an apparently new series called Legends of Shanarra. Sometime along the way, the books just stopped being super fun and now I feel like I’m watching an episode of ER. I’m so connected to the world that I HAVE to finish the series, but the story has kind of fizzled and the characters don’t have the draw that they used to. The cover of the book even features the series name larger than the title of the book. I just can’t help but feel like Terry Brooks is wringing that pile o’ cash out to see if a few more pennies will fall out. That being said, despite my lamenting that this series has gone on too long, I’ll most likely be at the bookstore picking up a copy of Bearers of the Black Staff at some point in the future!

I’ve also heard people say similar things about Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series, Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s series, and Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series. I’ll even begrudgingly admit that I’ve felt that way about my beloved Pern. Anne McCaffrey passed the series on to her son after the books came to a good and satisfying conclusion (the last book I might add, sat on my shelf for 3 years before I read it because I was SO sad that the series was ending). Granted, there is history on Pern that Todd McCaffrey is now writing about, but the first book was kind of rough. They’ve since gotten better and of course I won’t give up my Pern but I would also be completely ok if they decided to let Pern only live on in the heads of its fans.

I have to give props to writers like J.K. Rowling who had a story in her head, wrote it all out on paper, and ended the series once her story was told (although don’t get me started on the Epilogue to Harry Potter). Why don’t some authors realize that all the compelling storytelling has passed when the conflict in the story has been resolved? Why do I keep buying books for series that should have ended long ago? A part of me feels like a sucker.

 My questions for you this week are:

• What series’ do you wish would just end so that life can go on as normal?
• Do you think authors still have stories to tell in their series, or do you think that publishers are trying to ride a wave of success and they push the author to write more?