Oh, my! The wonderful Strawberry Singh has hit upon a wonderful meme for this week, and it’s perfect for me (and for Aeon too!). We are bookworms. We love old book shoppes and scouring through libraries when we travel. Did you know that some of the most beautiful of buildings are libraries? This is especially true in the US where philanthropist and avid reader Andrew Carnegie donated funds to build more than 1,600 libraries across the nation (and several more in other countries) between 1883 and 1929. In fact, the lovely library that graces our town’s main street is one of them – and we go there often.

This meme is a joy! Thank you, Strawberry, and may your book reading continue to bring you rest and wonder!

1. Are you a bookworm? – Both Aeon and I are dyed-in-the-wool bookworms. You can find a book nearby, no matter where we are or what we are doing. We take them everywhere, for one never knows when there might be a spare 10 minutes…
2. Which do you prefer: hardcover, paperback or electronic? – Aeon and I read all forms of the written word – hardcovers are lovely (especially old ones or freshly printed ones), paperbacks are convenient, and the Kindle HDFire is, well, über-cool. They all work, so we use whatever is at hand at the moment. We both teach, so textbooks are special friends – whether they are paper or digital.
3. Which book is your favorite? – I love Franny and Zooey by JD Salinger. I’ve read it at least once a year since my first reading of it when I was a teenager. I love the two stories that intertwine and the very Zen nature of what I learn every time I read it – but I devour books and have many favourites. Aeon loves the best in science fiction when he’s not got his nose in some Romantic Period poetry or prose. Heinlein and Azimov are two of his standbys for classic reads.
4. Which children’s book is your favorite? – The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams is my favourite, but there are so many to enjoy! For example, who doesn’t love Pooh? And Charlotte’s Web is so precious! Aeon is a big Dr. Seuss fan and he loves them all! He often quotes from Dr. Seuss, and I love it when he does!
5. What’s the last book you’ve read? – I have just started reading The Body Book by Cameron Diaz. It is NOT like so many film-star-written-health books. It’s factual and very grounded. Before this, it was Twelve Years a Slave by Solomon Northrup – a moving and important read.
6. Name your top five favorite writers: – JD Salinger, Jane Austen, William Shakespeare, Gordon Parks…
7. Name a book that had a strong impact on you: – So many! The writings of Flannery O’Connor have meant a lot to me… And I find myself re-reading the more contemporary The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd (and The Mermaid Chair).
8. Favorite & least favorite book genres? – I am a non-fiction reader, but I also enjoy poetry – and prose that borders on the poetic. I enjoy a good story with a point; I like to learn. If it’s well-written and has a PLOT, I enjoy science fiction, also. Aeon loves it all. Like I told you, we’re bookworms!
9. Favorite & least favorite book-to-movie adaptions? – Like Berry, I far preferred Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy in the BBC adaptation of that wonderful novel (Pride and Prejudice). It is a lovely version and Aeon and I have watched it several times. The Learning Tree by Gordon Parks (also directed by him) was very well done. I have a soft spot for Mr. Parks as I met him a few years before he died and came to admire him so…
10. Have you ever bought a book based on the cover alone? – I’ve done that more than once. I found a trilogy that came as three of the most beautifully bound books I’ve ever seen – imprinted with elegant florals in silver and gold on rich leather. I had to have them, even though the writings inside are about (believe it or not) economics. (Mireille Jenvieve-Woodford rolls her eyes and sighs audibly.)
11. Where do you usually buy your books? – I’m a Kindle nut and often download from Amazon.com. However, I’ll buy a book from anywhere if it suits me – and there are many opportunities that I do not let pass me by! Aeon is the same, except he prefers a paperback to a Kindle read, preferring the hand of a book rather than a tablet or computer format.
12. Do you go to the library? – Oh, yes, we are library hounds – both the university library and the local one in our municipality. We travel into the city now and again and almost always stop in at the HUGE city library that is at the heart of town.
13. How many books do you own? – Well, both our offices are filled to the brim with textbooks and related publications. Aeon has far more than I in this setting because he teaches more courses that focus on reading more books (literature, religion, and philosophy courses). My books are all about psychology and sociology, and we both need a thorough look at just what we have and what we can let go for now. He probably has 100 volumes and I perhaps 25 or 30. At home, we have so many more – old classics that we’ll keep always (Shakespeare, Milton, Campbell and more), plus a lot of books read for pleasure – perhaps a couple of hundred, all told, at home.
14. If you were to write a book about Second Life, which topic would you focus on? The arts and the qualities of SL that support creativity would be my focus. There would be a section on technology as well as looks into every genre of the arts. Hmmm…I’d best get to writing! I think Aeon might focus on the value of SL in education. I’ll ask him directly about that over lunch and amend, as needed!