Top 10 Words/Topics That Make Me Not Pick Up A Book

It's been a while since I have participated in a Top Ten Tuesday from The Broke and The Bookish blog, but I figured it was time to get my act together. This week's topics is:

Top 10 Words/Topics That Make Me Not Pick Up A Book

I didn't think I'd be able to come up with ten since I will read almost anything that stops moving in front of me long enough, but here they are:

1. Erotica

Even when Fifty Shades of Grey was all the rage and all of my family and friends were raving about it, laughing about it and insisting the I, "the reader" must read it I knew it wasn't my thing. I don't know what it is, but I am just not interested in a story where the point is sex. Sex can be a part of a story and oftentimes should be, but not the driving force. 

2. Historical Fiction

I keep telling myself that I should reconsider this particular aversion, but right now it exists. I didn't really appreciate History as a subject in school either. Now I wish I paid more attention. I worry I will have the same thoughts one day about historical fiction as well. Oh well... it isn't going to happen unless I stumble upon a historical fiction story that knocks my socks off (suggestions?).

3. Unauthorized Biography
This just feels all kinds of shady to me.

4. Abridged
Oh hell no. When I was younger I once read a Reader's Digest book that had four abridged novels jammed into one hard covered book. I distinctly remember that one of the books was Clear and Present Danger by Tom Clancy. It was painful to read through the rush. I was in junior high school and I knew there was a problem!

5. [in audiobooks] Enhanced
I am cringing as I write this. Whenever an audiobook has been enhanced with music or, even worse, sound effects I just want to throw a pillow over my head. There is nothing more distracting to me than this. It does not enhance the story for me at all - it takes me right out of it!

6. John Grisham/Dan Brown
I am not trying to be a hater here. I loved the books I read by these two men. In both cases, when I read their books I was in some serious head-over-heels book love. I look back on the reading experiences of The Firm and The DaVinci Code with great fondness. However, in both cases, when I dove in to read more from each author, I found myself reading the same story again. This irked me so much that, as much as I loved them both, I have been turned off.

7. Ernest Hemingway
Don't throw anything at me! I had a bad experience. It was called The Old Man and The Sea. Grant it, I was probably too young or immature to read and fully grasp whatever the heck was going on, but that was one high school book that I thought was torture to read. Surprisingly, even though I later read A Farewell to Arms and loved it, it wasn't enough to shake my aversion to him.

8. Part (anything but 1) of a _____ book series
If I wasn't waiting anxiously for this book's release, then that means I haven't been reading the series. If I haven't been reading the series, I am not picking up a book that is somewhere in the middle. I keep telling myself that I have to get over this, but it is not working!

9. Based on the video game ________
My husband reads some of these. He was particularly hooked on one author of the Halo books. I suppose I haven't needed to stay in a video game world without the graphics, so these books just never appealed to me.

The last one is a topic that gives me pause, but I'll probably pick up the book anyway. 

10. High Fantasy
Is there anything more intimidating than these two words? I love high fantasy, but it scares the heck out of me. I wait until I have tons of recommendations before I take the leap into the dense reading that is high fantasy. 

What about you? What words or topics keep you away from a book?

10 Characters I'd Switch Places With for 24 Hours

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. There's a new book-related top ten list every single week and it is a great way to get to know other book-loving bloggers! Everyone is welcome to join in the weekly linky party, even if you can't think of TEN for a certain Tuesday (just think of as many as you can!), just make sure you link back to The Broke and the Bookish if you do!

This week's topic is:
TEN CHARACTERS I'D LIKE TO SWITCH PLACES WITH FOR 24 HOURS

24 hours is the key to this week's list in my eyes. If the topic was simply characters I'd like to switch places with period, I think a bunch of these choices would be off right away. On the other hand, knowing that I can enter the world and life of my choice for one day and, no matter how scary or surreal that world may be, return back to the simplicity of my own dull life I felt a bit braver in my choices.

1. Hermione Granger from the Harry Potter series by JK Rowling.

I know a thousand people will have this character as one of their selections. I mean who doesn't want access to a magical world just beyond the reaches of our own and a time turner? I don't think this requires a whole bunch of explanation.


2. Annabeth Chase from Percy Jackson and the Olympians series by Rick Riordan.

 A half-blood daughter of Athena, Annabeth gets access to Camp Half Blood out in Long Island and has cool friends like Percy Jackson, his brother Tyson and Grover Underwood. Being Annabeth for 24 hours would give me the ability to see beyond the mist so I could see all the awesome mythological, godly and magical stuff happening right in front of me every day!


3. Any hobbit from The Hobbit or The Lord of The Rings by JRR Tolkien.

I want to see the Shire, live in a hobbit hole and have one full day of hobbit life. This should include merriment, lots of eating and - hopefully - not be my birthday (hobbits have a tradition of giving gifts to everyone else on their birthday, this way they gifts all year round, rather than just one day). 

4. Lucy Pevensie from The Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis

I'd like to meet Aslan. Since Lucy was always the most faithful of the Pevensie children chances are, even with a mere 24 hours, stepping into Lucy's shoes give me the greatest chance to do so. However, even if the great lion doesn't drop by, at least I'll be able to explore Narnia which is awesome!
 

5. John Smith/Number Four from I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore.

 

It's all about the power here, not the impending doom of another alien race set on my demise. John Smith has super strength, speed, telekinesis, Lumen (an awesome power that allows him to shoot heat from his body and be able to resist fire whenever he needs to),  but my all time favorite power that he possesses is Animal Telepathy! I need this power! While I'd love to have it in my own home, so Champ (the ShihTzu) and I could really talk, just getting into the mind of any animal would be fun for me.

6. Sookie Stackhouse from the The Southern Vampire Mysteries series by Charlene Harris.

 

Although this is kind of cheating (I feel like I cheat every week in Top Ten Tuesday!!) since I haven't read the books yet, I know enough about Sookie's life from friends who have read the books that I think I'd like a day in the life of Sookie. This is a combination of world exploring and character exploring. First, I need to check out a world in which vampires are publicly recognized, and I want to mingle around. Second, Sookie is a super-charged fairy with magical friends, I'd like to take her powers for a spin!

7. Marcus Yallow from Little Brother by Cory Doctorow.

 

Marcus has some pretty fantastic computer and hacking skills. I'd like to be him for 24 hours and, while him, spend the 24 hours writing up a how-to manual for the real me to make me the most web-savvy person I can be. I just hope I won't get distracted with an ARG. On the other hand, I will accepting LARPing distractions; they sound like loads of fun!

8. Grover from The Monster At The End of This Book by John Stone.

 

Alright. There. I admitted it. I want to be a muppet. It's only for a day, and why not be the most lovable furry blue monster on the block in Sesame Street?

9. Effie Trinket from The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins.

 

I'm not into mak-up and doing my hair all fancy, or even getting dressed up all that much, but I would like to spend 24 hours experiencing all the insanity that is the Capitol and I feel like Effie could get me right in the middle of that muck. I'll treat that day as my own Halloween as I take part in all the garish flamboyance that is expected as the norm. 

10. Hobbes from Calvin & Hobbes by Bill Watterson.

 

I love to surprise and terrify those I care about. I hide behind doorways, under counters and in darkened halls waiting for the perfect moment to jump out and SCREAM! It's wonderful when the victim screams as well, when you see their eyes turn into saucers and you can run and hide before they shake off the fear and realize they just want to murder you for the time you've shaved off of their life... This is something I relish in. However, in my nearly 36 years of practice in this art I have never mastered a pounce the way Hobbes has. I love when Calvin is creeping through his front door knowing that Hobbes is just waiting somewhere quietly in some shadow to pounce on him. Calvin knows it, but it doesn't matter. Hobbes gets him every time. I want to be Hobbes for one day so I can - in my long, furry, agile tiger body - deliver the scare I have been reaching for my entire life. 

...and then maybe after that Calvin and I can play with the Transmogrifier.

YOUR TURN!

 

Who's on your list? You've got 24 hours to be any character from  any book; who do you choose? Who did I forget? Post your answers in the comments section below!

5 Fictional Characters I Identify With

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish which I found out about thanks to Amber over at Me, My Shelf & I. There's a new book-related top ten list every single week and it is a great way to get to know other book-loving bloggers! Everyone is welcome to join in the weekly linky party, even if you can't think of TEN for a certain Tuesday (just think of as many as you can!), just make sure you link back to The Broke and the Bookish if you do!

This week's topic is:

TOP TEN CHARACTERS WHO REMIND ME OF MYSELF OR SOMEONE I KNOW IN REAL LIFE

image source

Although I identify with almost all characters I read, I found this list to be quite difficult to put together. Therefore, I stuck to the five characters that, before I was faced with this assignment, jumped off the page and screamed their similarities to me. This can also double as part of my list of my favorite reads of all time!

CHARACTERS THAT REMIND ME OF ME: 

1. Barbara Thorson from I Kill Giants by Joe Kelly and JM Ken Nimura 
Because I understand her battle and know how hard it can be to kill giants at any age.

 2. Boo Radley from To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Because since leaving work I have become as pallid and reclusive as Boo and imagine that the kids in my neighborhood are coming up with fantastic tales about me every day :)

CHARACTER THAT REMINDS ME OF MY BEST FRIEND, DAWN: 
 
3.  Sophia from I Kill Giants by Joe Kelly and KM Nimura
Because she never gave up on Barbara and stood by her through all of her battles.

CHARACTER THAT REMINDS ME OF MY MOM:

 4. The Tree from The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein
Because she always gave and it always made her happy.

 
CHARACTER THAT REMIND ME OF MY HUSBAND:

5. Hobbes from Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson
Because we go, together on all of the crazy adventures we can imagine, have long philosophical and sometimes ridiculous conversations, he's cuddly, likes tuna and has been known to tackle loved ones with a strength that doesn't seem fair. Also, he is predisposed to having impromptu dance parties in the middle of the living room without warning.

 

So what about you? Which characters would you pick?

Top 10 "To-Reads" for the Summer

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish which I found out about thanks to Amber over at Me, My Shelf & I. There's a new book-related top ten list every single week and it is a great way to get to know other book-loving bloggers! Everyone is welcome to join in the weekly linky party, even if you can't think of TEN for a certain Tuesday (just think of as many as you can!), just make sure you link back to The Broke and the Bookish if you do!

This week's topic is:

TOP TEN BOOKS ON THE SUMMER TBR LIST

 

 This list is mostly comprised of books I have started and better have finished by the end of the summer! Some are new starts, but a couple have been hanging around for way too long!!

1. 

 

I grabbed this book up about a month ago, but I was already in the middle of to other must-reads for reviews I had scheduled.I have since starting getting into it and I am finding even the first chapter fascinating!

2.

 

I started Skinny last week because it is one of the books I have been looking forward to most from my BEA stash. An overweight teen has this voice in her head named "Skinny" that whispers to her what everyone else is thinking. I think this is going going to be a very important YA book coming out this Fall.

3.

 

I know this cover looks ridiculous, but this is the Philip K. Dick collection that contains the story that Total Rekall is based on. Since I am a book before the movie kind of girl, I wanted to read the story, as well as get a taste for some of Philip K. Dick's other stories. (This will increase my nerd-cred.)

4.

 

I happened to catch a really cool interview on The Today Show a long time ago (I think it was last year!) with Al Roker and the children's reading group where they were discussing this book. I thought it sounded fun and fascinating. I really do love reading kid's books, particularly like this - the title is secret, the author is "pseudonymous bosch" and the narrator is just terrible at keeping things hush hush!

5 - 10 ++ Curtis High School's Summer Reading List
About ten years ago, when I was still teaching I took home my school's summer reading list. I always taught freshmen and, while I taught mathematics, I loved to talk to my kids about what they were reading. I thought that if they had someone else to talk to about their books besides just their English teacher they could see that reading was really awesome and not just homework. Until this day, that was one of my most productive reading summers. I read every single book on the list that I hadn't already read. In many cases I read multiple books in one day! It is something I've wanted to do again.

I no longer teach, but my husband is still an English teacher at the school I used to work at. The summer reading list has been completely redrafted. I asked him to bring it home to me last week to see if there were a lot of books I hadn't read, or if it was just a couple of additions.

Here's how the numbers play out:

• Freshman reading list: I read two of the book choices and have not read nine others.
• Sophomore reading list: I read five of the book choices and have not read five others.
• Junior reading list: I read one of the book choices and have not read seven others.
• Senior reading list: I have read three of the book choices and have not read five others.

Based on this, and on my "rules" from the last time I went with the last time I tackled the summer reading list, that means I have twenty-six more book to add to my TBR list! To see the complete list, check out my post about it here.