Quiz (thanks to Simon)

What was the last book you bought?  

I bought two yesterday in a charity shop -- vintage mysteries by one Francis Iles, of whom I had never heard but who was said to have changed the face of crime fiction in the 1930s. Looks promising -- watch this space.

Name a book you have read MORE than once  

Many many books -- mostly Dickens, Austen, Bronte and Eliot. But recently I read Sarah Waters The Night Watch and loved it so much I re-read it straight away -- the reverse chronology had something to do with this, as it read differently the second time around.

Has a book ever fundamentally changed the way you see life? If yes, what was it?

The only one I can think of is The Bhagavad Gita.

How do you choose a book? eg. by cover design and summary, recommendations or reviews

Most often by recommendation/review on other people's blogs, but sometimes the cover and summary do grab me. And of course I buy books by writers I have already read and loved.

Do you prefer Fiction or Non-Fiction? 

Fiction! But I enjoy biographies, too.

What’s more important in a novel - beautiful writing or a gripping plot?  

I can only say both. I can't read things that are badly written, however gripping the plot, but beautiful writing is pointless unless the plot is good too.

Most loved/memorable character (character/book)  

I suppose, rather pathetically, it has to be Elizabeth Bennett.

Which book or books can be found on your nightstand at the moment?  

Anne Patchett's Bel Canto, Margaret Campbell Barnes' Brief Gaudy Hour, Tobias Hill's The Love of Stones, to name but a few (though they are on the floor, not on the nightstand).

What was the last book you’ve read, and when was it?  

A few days ago I finished Marianne Wesson's Suggestion of Death, which I blogged about on Sunday.

Have you ever given up on a book half way in?

Yes, certainly. I gave up Kate Grenville's The Secret River not long ago as I knew it was going to get really tragic and couldn't face it, though I might take it up again sometime. But I regularly give up books that bore me. Life's too short as it is.

Thanks for this to Simon at Stuck-in-a-book, who got it from Booking through Thursday.

Comments

[Simon T]

I enjoyed reading your answers, Harriet - it is so difficult to find someone who *isn't* Elizabeth Bennet, isn't it?!

Someone in my book group has been suggesting Bel Canto for months and months, and it's never been chosen...

[Simon T]

I enjoyed reading your answers, Harriet - it is so difficult to find someone who *isn't* Elizabeth Bennet, isn't it?!

Someone in my book group has been suggesting Bel Canto for months and months, and it's never been chosen...

[Rob Spence]

Iles is also Anthony Berkeley, of whom you might have heard.