Booking Through Thursday (4.09.09)

For something different, I’m borrowing a question from … here! One of the very first questions ever at Booking Through Thursday. Back from 2005 when Laura owned the blog but, because it was so new, it didn’t get as many responses as it does now … so, why not revisit?

Here’s the question:
Some people read one book at a time. Some people have a number of them on the go at any given time, perhaps a reading in bed book, a breakfast table book, a bathroom book, and so on, which leads me to…

(1) Are you currently reading more than one book?

No, I'm not. I actually have never been very good at reading more than one book at a time, so I don't find myself doing that too often. The only recent case was when I got about a chapter of the way through The Host, set it down, and started reading other books. But since I never got back to The Host until after reading other books, I don't really consider that the same thing :-)

(2) If so, how many books are you currently reading?

See above :-)

(3) Is this normal for you?

Ok, apparently I only needed the first question. Or really, my problem is that I can't just answer a simple Yes or No question with just one word.

(4) Where do you keep your current reads?

My current reads are usually somewhere near at hand. I keep them in my purse during the week, so I have them at work and easily accessible once I get home. When I'm at home on weekends, I usually keep the book I'm reading by my side of the bed or downstairs where I read while sitting in the love seat in our living room.

Booking Through Thursday: The Library

This week's BTT post was suggested by Barbara:

I saw that National Library week is coming up in April, and that led to some questions. How often do you use your public library and how do you use it? Has the coffeehouse/bookstore replaced the library? Did you go to the library as a child? Do you have any particular memories of the library? Do you like sleek, modern, active libraries or the older, darker, quiet, cozy libraries?

I became a member of our regional library system just a few short weeks ago. (I'm still embarrassed to admit that I lived in Georgia for over 5 years before joining a library.) I've only been a couple of times, but given the size of my TBR/Wishlist, I know that it will be imminently more practical to check some of these books out from the library. I can't be going brooke here!

I definitely used the library a lot when I was growing up in VA. We had two county libraries where I lived, and when I went to school I joined the regional library there as well. For one summer in high school, I served as a library volunteer. I have to confess that I don't remember it being a spectacular job, but it gave me a lot of time to become acquainted with the library's book collection. I can remember when they built the second library in my county and how excited I was about their larger selection of books. The downside was that it was WAY across the county and not very practical to get to, while I probably lived less than half a mile from the existing library.

As for the look and feel of the library, I guess I'm not picky--I'm really more concerned with the book selection. I definitely prefer for there to be a lot of seating, in case I want to stick around and read for a bit. Our library in Canton is among the sleek and new, but I wish it had a bigger book selection. Happily, as it turns out there are 7 libraries in the region, so I can have any other branches' books delivered to mine. I haven't taken advantage of that yet, but imagine I will sometime down the road.

I don't see how coffee shops and bookstores could truly replace the library. They aren't really based on the same concept, and after joining my library I have to say I'm a lot more inclined to support it more than I have been. I think libraries are instrumental in making books accessible to everyone and I'd never want to see them disappear.

Booking Through Thursday: Movie Potential

Tami inspired this week’s question:

What book do you think should be made into a movie? And do you have any suggestions for the producers?

Or, What book do you think should NEVER be made into a movie?

This is a great question!! I have to confess that I often feel like movies don't do the books justice, though there are a few exceptions--The Lord of the Rings being one that comes to mind. If they could be done right (like the A&E/BBC version of Pride and Prejudice) I would LOVE to see some of Georgette Heyer's books made into movies. My top two picks would be The Grand Sophy and These Old Shades.

Generally, if any book can be treated "right," I'd love to see the movie version. So often, though, the movies disappoint me (as was the case with Twilight--yes, I know, I'm probably in the minority). I was also disappointed with Eragon. Generally, I wish more fantasy books were made into movies, but again, you never know how they might turn out.

BTT - Collectibles

This week's Booking Through Thursday asks:

~ Hardcover? Or paperback?
~ Illustrations? Or just text?
~ First editions? Or you don’t care?
~ Signed by the author? Or not?

If I could afford to buy every book in hardcover, I would. At this point, I've limited myself to a few select series to try to collect in hardback. For example, Harry Potter, B&N Classics, The Twilight Saga, and Mary Higgins Clark mysteries are among those I try to collect in hardcover. In some instances, it's because I first started buying the books in hardcover and I'm just anal enough to want the entire collection to remain that way, in others it's because I can easily find used or bargain copies in hardcover. In a few cases, I've bought hardcover omnibus editions to replace (or instead of) paperbacks. I'd say the majority of my books are paperbacks, but I've been fortunate to collect quite a few hardcovers along the way.

I don't really care one way or another about illustrations. Put it this way--I don't go out of my way to buy books that DO have illustrations. And since I don't read too many (any) children's books, I don't have too many books that do have much in the way of illustrations.

As for the edition of the book, I haven't gotten too caught up in that. I buy the books more for the story than for the collectability anyway.

And lastly, I think I only have one book that is signed by an author--A National Party No More by Zell Miller. When I used to work for B&N College Bookstores at Georgia Tech, he did a signing at our store so I picked up a copy for myself and one for my grandparents. I used to have another book that was signed, but it was one I never read and knew I never would (and therefore will remain unnamed), so I ended up giving it away to someone who would value it more than I would.