Return and About Books

I've been away in Neuchatel, Switzerland for the weekend for La Fete des Vendanges, but now I am back with a meme about books, a review (to be posted later in the day), and, just possibly a list.

And I just finished the very long meme, and I feel like I interviewed myself. Read if you dare. :-)

Monday's Book Meme

1) What author do you own the most books by?
Oddly enough, probably Piers Anthony.

2) What book do you own the most copies of?
American Gods by Neil Gaiman (I have two in English and two in French)

3) Did it bother you that both those questions ended with prepositions?
Yes it did, even though I know I end sentences with prepositions and I know that it is something that is totally accepted in the English language.

4) What fictional character are you secretly in love with?
Isn't every girl secretly (or not so secretly) in love with Mr. Darcy? Other than him, though, I'd say Macon from Sarah Dessen's "Someone Like You."

5) What book have you read the most times in your life?
"Bridge to Terabithia" by Katherine Patterson.

6) What was your favorite book when you were ten years old?
That would have to be "Bridge to Terabithia" once again. Or anything from the Goosebumps or Sweet Valley High series.

7) What is the worst book you've read in the past year?
"The God of Small Things" by Arundathi Roy. I think it's actually the worst book I have ever read in my entire life.

8) What is the best book you've read in the past year?
It's cheesy and fluffy, I know, but I really LOVED "Twenties Girl" by Sophie Kinsella.

9) If you could force everyone you tagged to read one book, what would it be?
"American Gods" by Neil Gaiman. There are things to be learned from this book, though they might not be immediately apparent. Also, I really think that ANYONE, even someone who hates to read, can find something to enjoy about this book.

10) Who deserves to win the next Nobel Prize for literature?
I really can't say. I haven't read enough "real literature" lately to feel like I'm qualified to have an opinion.

11) What book would you most like to see made into a movie?
"Snowflower and the Secret Fan" by Lisa See would be awesome. I would also love for them to remake "Memoirs of a Geisha" and do it justice this time.

12) What book would you least like to see made into a movie?
"Interworld" by Neil Gaiman - I just know they couldn't do it right.

13) Describe your weirdest dream involving a writer, book, or literary character.
I was on this really weird silver circular thing floating above the trees, and I was being forced to dance even though I didn't want to at all. Then Kurt Vonnegut fell out of the sky onto the circular thing with me, and I wanted to talk to him. But I couldn't make myself stop dancing, and he kept talking and wondering why I wouldn't respond.

14) What is the most difficult book you've ever read?
Maybe "the Crying of Lot 49" by Thomas Pynchon. I'm sure I've read books that others would find more difficult, but this one was hard for me. I did love it in the end, though.

15) What is the most obscure Shakespeare play you've seen?
The only one I've ever seen live is "A Midsummer Night's Dream"

17) Do you prefer the French or the Russians?
The French. I love Russian literature, and, if I couldn't read the French in their own language, I might like it more. But the fact is - I can read French authors in their original language, and that changes everything.

18) David Sedaris or Dave Eggers?
Dave Eggars - I don't love love LOVE him, but I don't even like David Sedaris. I find him petty and annoying. So there you have it.

20) Shakespeare, Milton, or Chaucer?
Chaucer, of course - the Canterbury Tales are what it's all about. Although I have to admit I've never read Milton. I should put "Paradise Lost" on my TBR list.

21) Austen or Eliot?
Austen, because she is just SO amazing. I can indeed say that I love love LOVE her. Then again, I don't know how this even compares. I'm not into poetry, so Eliot's not for me.

22) What is the biggest or most embarrassing gap in your reading?
Paradise Lost, perhaps? Or maybe "Lolita" by Valdimir Nabokov, but I'm unfortunately not that interested in reading it.

23) Play?
tie between "Salome" and "the Starlight Express"

24) Poem?
I don't really read a lot of poetry, as I don't love it, so this is hard for me. It's cliche, I suppose, but I'll go with "the Road Less Traveled" by Robert Frost. Or really anything by Robert Frost.

25) Short story?
Any short story by Haruki Marakami or Roald Dahl. Unfortunately, I have trouble with short stories. I find myself always needing and wanting more. So I don't really read a lot ot them.

26) Work of non-fiction?
I'm sure I'm forgetting some, as I never really decided on a favorite non-fiction, but I really enjoyed "Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World" by Jack Weatherford. Oh, and "Guns, Germs, and Steel" by Jared Diamond.

27) Who is the most overrated writer alive today?
Arundathi Roy - because people actually LIKE her, and I can't for the life of me figure out why. And now I feel mean having said that.

28) What is your favorite desert island book?
does "the Counte of Monte Cristo" count? There are islands in that. And they are pretty much deserted.