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1. Have you always loved books? Who, if anyone, in your life has most inspired you to read?

Yes I have. I was raised in a home filled with books and it stuck. My Mom read to me all the time when I was a child and she kept reading to me long after I could read to myself. We used to go to the library and check out as many books as we were allowed to take out at a time on both our cards put together. That was 60 books.

2. What was your favourite childhood book?

The first book to come to mind when reading this question was Madeline. I loved the Madeline books. I also loved The Little Match Girl, The Little Mermaid, (the real version, not that God awful crap Disney made) The Red Shoes, The Snowy Day, Corduroy, Amelia Bedelia, the Little House on the Prairie books, The Baby-Sitters Club books, this list could go on and on, so I think I'll stop there.

3. Which books do you remember studying at school? Did you enjoy them?

I don't really have an answer for this one.

4. Where do you most enjoy reading? Do you need silence to read, or can you read almost anywhere?

I like to read in bed. I really need quiet to read. I can block out some background noise, but not a lot. I've always been jelous of people who can read anywhere.

5.Choose five of your favourite books and tell us why you loved them so much!

1. Eurydice. This play made me fall in love with theatre and every time I read it I fall in love again.
2. Number the Stars. The first book that broke my heart.
3. The Man of My Dreams. I see so much of myself in the main character and Sittenfield's writing is brilliant.
4. Courtesans: Money, Sex and Fame in the Nineteenth Century. The most fun non-fiction can be. If these women were alive today they would have a reality TV show called The Real Courtesans Of The Aristocracy and I would watch it because it would be awesome.
5. The House of Mirth. The first classic that really touched me. There have been others since of course, but this one will always have a special place in my heart.

6. Do you prefer reading fiction or non fiction?

I read far more fiction. But my non-fiction books have a higher average because I can usually find something interesting in my non-fiction reading. My fiction reading is far more hit or miss.

7. Are you fond of a particular author and what attracts you to their books? (You can pick a few if you can’t choose!)

Amanda Eyre Ward I can't really explain why it is, but something about her writing style really draws me in.

8. Is there an author you haven't yet tried but you'd really like to?

E M Forster, Henry James, and Toni Morrison come to mind off of the top of my head.

9. Do you rely on goodreads to keep track of your reading or do you have your own method?

Yes I do. I used to keep a notebook with the books I read in it, but I was always forgetting to add my books to it. For some reason I'm much better at adding books here then I was at adding them to the notebook.

10. What's the best book you've read so far this year? What are you reading at the moment? What will you be reading next?

Nothing I've read so far this year has been five star. The book I liked best was No Book but the World. I found the writing style really engaging. Right now I'm reading Rules of Civility. I hated the preface and I hate when authors use dialect speak for the black characters and not the white ones, but other then those flaws it is pretty engaging. I'm not sure what I'll read next. Maybe The Clean House and Other Plays, or Salvage the Bones, or Close Your Eyes. They are all books I'm been meaning to read for a long time.

Nice Journey amber!
AS mother I've always read to both my kids - I didn't like to play a lot with theM mainly outside but In Perugia where I live there are several months when you can't use the garden! - long after they could read by themseves. This is what Pennac suggest in his Come un romanzo

Interesting journey amber! I have fond memories of Madeline too :)

Interesting journey, amber! We don't share many books in common so you have given me a lot of new ones to check out! And if you decide to read a Henry James book sometime, I would join in as he is an author on my to-read list as well. :)

I like Sarah Ruhl, and Eurydice would be a good complement to the ancient Greek plays coming up! Maybe it would be a good readalong for April...

LauraT wrote: "Nice Journey amber!
AS mother I've always read to both my kids - I didn't like to play a lot with theM mainly outside but In Perugia where I live there are several months when you can't use the gar..."

Isn't it sad how many people stop reading to their kids once the they learn to read to themselves? Nikki Giovanni has talked about how she kept reading to her son after he learned to read because she didn't want to punish him for learning to read by having it be the end of something instead of being a good thing.

Jean wrote: "Interesting journey amber! I have fond memories of Madeline too :)"

Madeline is awesome! Of all the adventurous redheaded girls in children's books she will always be my favorite!

Leslie wrote: "Interesting journey, amber! We don't share many books in common so you have given me a lot of new ones to check out! And if you decide to read a Henry James book sometime, I would join in as he i..."

Glad I could help your TBR list grow Leslie! We will have to set up a James readalong at some point! It is always a good idea to read Eurydice! ;)

amber wrote: "Isn't it sad how many people stop reading to their kids once the they learn to read to themselves? Nikki Giovanni has talked about how she kept reading to her son after he learned to read because she didn't want to punish him for learning to read by having it be the end of something instead of being a good thing.
"

Good point!
I remember that once we were on holiday in my summer house in Sardinia and the kids had 12 and 9 years, We had with us some friends of the older and they were all sleeping together, so we read to them as well. When back home thay asked their parents to go on with the book. I found it a real success! It was also a really good book: Rumo & His Miraculous Adventures

LauraT wrote: "amber wrote: "Isn't it sad how many people stop reading to their kids once the they learn to read to themselves? Nikki Giovanni has talked about how she kept reading to her son after he learned to ..."

My nephews still like being read to and they are well into grade school. :)

Thanks for telling us your story, Amber, it's been interesting to read. I don't know many of the books you mention, but now you have brought them to my attention, I shall look out for them!

I read The House of Mirth last year and enjoyed it, too. It made me want to read more books by Edith Wharton. It's interesting that this was the first classic that really touched you. You must have read it at just the right time for you.

Great reading journey Amber, lots of books I haven't heard of and a few that are on my TBR, such as The House of Mirth :)

Pink wrote: "Great reading journey Amber, lots of books I haven't heard of and a few that are on my TBR, such as The House of Mirth :)"

Yeah I'm not sure how Brit friendly my list is, a lot my favorites aren't that well known in the US, so I'm guessing they would be even less known in the UK.
I hope you enjoy The House Of Mirth. I still find myself thinking about Lily and Seldon now and again. :)

Shirley wrote: "Thanks for telling us your story, Amber, it's been interesting to read. I don't know many of the books you mention, but now you have brought them to my attention, I shall look out for them!

I rea..."

I do have a habit of loving things no one has heard of and disliking the things that are really popular. ;)
I think Mirth had the benefit of my reading it after I'd read enough classics that they weren't intimidating, but while reading them was still a new experience. I also just really felt for Lily.

Love your reading journey Amber. I loved The House of Mirth too but have never read Madeline I shall have to look out for it. I think you are never too old to enjoy a good children's book!

Tweedledum wrote: "Love your reading journey Amber. I loved The House of Mirth too but have never read Madeline I shall have to look out for it. I think you are never too old to enjoy a goo..."

Thank you Tweedledum! Do give Madeline a try, if you enjoy the first one there are several others in the series as well. :)