Bookie Thoughts

Do you read in pictures?

/ justbookreading / 6 Comments

When I read, I sort of ‘see’ the story in my head, like a movie but with a lot less of the action. Sometimes it’s a scene only, other times, its characters that I see very clearly. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not a running movie in my head, but more or less a picture slide show that accompanies the book.

This is really handy, until a movie comes out and every character and every scene looks different than the images I created in my head. This is the reason why I like to read a book before I see a movie but it doesn’t always work to my advantage for the movie viewing. An example would be The Lord of the Rings. I adore the movies but the characters, and especially the pronunciation of names, were far outside of what I had pictured, although some things came very close. It seriously made me wonder if Peter Jackson can read minds… Another example is historical fiction. The settings are extravagant and so are the costumes which make it another good genre for picturing a book. Contemporary fiction, which I don’t read much of, doesn’t work as well as say fantasy or historical fiction which might be one of the reasons I’m not drawn to it as often. It’s also one of the reasons I tend to skip battle scenes in books. I have an amazing ability to picture copious amounts of blood and gore. I have no idea why this is.

I do find this function of my brain helpful, to a certain extent. Over time, these mental images I create while reading tend to fade which is one of the reasons I re-read so much. I guess I like replaying the story and I do like to revisit a story to see if I have the same reaction to the scenes and characters years later. It also helps when I write reviews but sometimes the scenes accumulated in my head have nothing to do with the plot. Bad function of my brain or bad story, take your pick; we all process things differently.

You see, reading is so much more than words for me and I suspect the same is true for many of you out there as well. I connect with the words in ways that make a story more than ink on paper. When I return to a story I know, part of it is to relive the story, visit known characters, and to see those images again and see if life has changed how I view the story.

When you read a story, what do you see? Or maybe a better question — what does the story do for you?

When comments bring the answers

/ justbookreading / 10 Comments

It happens. A person leaves a comment and it leaves me thinking.

Recently, I wrote this about not liking a particular character (Emma Woodhouse from Jane Austen’s Emma if you’re curious) and how this dislike stopped me from finishing the book. The comment:
JBR 1 - when comments bring the answerJBR 2 - when comments bring the answer

It made me wonder, do I need to finish a book even though I don’t like a character, plot, setting, whatever?

The short answer is no.

There is a longer version, which still amounts to a no, but let me go on…

The majority of reviews on this blog are positive; I don’t come right out and say it anywhere or qualify it, but it’s true. The reason? I read these books on my own time, my personal time, time I’m NOT paid for. I like talking about books I read and enjoyed and that translates to what gets posted. When I stop reading a book, usually because I’m not enjoying it or it’s not working for me on some level, I usually (almost always) don’t talk about it. It might get a mention as a DNF but I tend not to talk about it because, not having read the book, I don’t feel I can comment on it in a meaningful way. In the rare occasions I do talk about a book I didn’t finish, it’s because I want to hear what others thought and sometimes that leads me to try the book again. Good or bad, that’s mostly what happens. So, what that means is that there are not many negative reviews here (a few do exist).

But that doesn’t mean there are books I don’t like. There are. Loads of them. But when I come across one and I decide I can’t finish it, I just walk away. There are too many other books on my list, at the bookstore, and at the library that I can turn to for entertainment.

Yes, there is the argument for negative reviews and the idea that reviews of the negative variety can be helpful to readers and even authors. I agree that when a person finishes a book and doesn’t like it, writing about it honestly provides a valuable service. In fact, we should all be doing this but that’s another post for another day. And, sometimes, I do feel it’s refreshing to not like a book. Not all books are good fits.

So, where am I going with this? It’s okay to not like a book. It’s okay to stop reading a book. If you want, it’s okay to write a negative review of said book.

Well, the comment may not have answered my question but it got me writing so I guess in a way it did bring me an answer, sort of.

Thanks for the inspiration, Elizabeth.

Are you a hater?

/ justbookreading / 17 Comments

OK, first off, I’m not going to use the word hate because I think it’s just too strong a word and there are very few things I can apply that type of energy to. How about intense dislike? Yes, let’s go with that. It makes a bad title though so I’m leaving that alone.

If you stuck with me (I’m writing this while battling some nasty cold germs.), you probably now want to know what I’m getting at. Fair enough. Here it is — is there a literary character you intensely dislike? One that will make you stop reading? Toss a book across a room? One that makes you explain, in detail, to random people on elevators, how awful this fake person is?

Mine — Emma Woodhouse of Jane Austen’s Emma.

Here’s why.  In easy to read bullet points.

  • She’s annoying
  • She’s spoiled
  • She’s frivolous
  • She gets up in everyone’s business
  • She doesn’t know when to shut it
  • She’s inconsiderate
  • She’s manipulative
  • She thinks she knows what’s best for others
  • She needs to focus on herself but she can’t
  • She’s self-centered (Yep, that goes against my last bullet — my point: she thinks she’s helping others when really all she’s doing is mucking up everything for everyone else. She sees herself as a savior of sorts but is a elephant barreling over everything and everyone.)

I’m going to stop there.

PLEASE, PLEASE don’t start with the hateful comments. I’m being hard on Emma but she’s not real people. NOT REAL! *deep breath* * prepares for comments*

I’ve read all of Austen’s novels (I think I’m missing a few short stories — Sanditon and one other.) and I love almost every one; my degrees of love vary but every book has something I have come to adore. I’ve read many several times. My favorite is one that doesn’t get much love and I’m good with that because we all like different things — I still ❤ you Sense & Sensibility! And I know there are many people out there that love and adore Emma, the book and the character. I just don’t. The character doesn’t offer me anything I can like and I want to like her. In fact, I’ve given her several chances, but she never comes around for me. I’ve tried to read the book numerous times but I never get through it. Last year, my most recent attempt, I made it further than I ever have but still didn’t see the end. And the movie with Gwyneth Paltrow, I couldn’t even finish that. My intense dislike of all things Emma is all pervasive.

Funny thing, my mom thinks Emma is hysterical. I don’t see it. She also thinks Sense & Sensibility is boring. On some things, we agree to disagree. My mom also intensely dislikes carrots. I don’t know how but she does. And no, that bit about carrots doesn’t matter at all but I’m just pointing out that it’s OK to disagree about things. It happens.

So, tell me your least favorite, most annoying, intensely disliked character. I know you have one. OR, convince me why I should give Emma one more try? I only have so many attempts left in me…

PS — If you tell me you intensely dislike Gandalf, I will find you and explain to you, in a detailed conversation, possibly in an elevator, why that cannot be. Kidding! Possibly.

PPS — That PS won’t happen. I don’t talk to people in elevators.

PPPS — I should not write blog posts after taking cold medicine. That is all.