Books, books, books

1. Favorite childhood book?

Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech

2. What are you reading right now?

Vikings In The Attic: In Search of Nordic America by Eric Dregni

3. What books do you have on request at the library?

None, I'm not one for going to the library for books.

4. Bad book habit?

I look ahead in books.

5. What do you currently have checked out at the library?

Perrine's Sound and Sense: An Introduction to Poetry (this is for AP English)

6. Do you have an e-reader?

Yes, a nook. One of the best things I ever invested in, give them a try guys!

7. Do you prefer to read one book at a time, or several at once?

I can be reading a few books at the same time, like a book for school and then one I am reading on my own, but I usually will start a few and then really get into one and just read that one until I'm done and then start the other.
8. Have your reading habits changed since starting a blog?

A bit, not because of the blog, but more because I got into a weird rut this summer and I am slowly crawling out of the deep hole I fell into.

9. Least favorite book you read this year?

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins, the series just went down the drains.

10. Favorite book you’ve read this year?

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green ('nuff said)

11. How often do you read out of your comfort zone?

All the time.

12. What is your reading comfort zone?

I guess I really don't have a reading 'zone' that I would put myself in. I'll read almost anything that sparks my curiosity, but I draw the line at the paperback romance novels you can buy at CVS-Pharmacy.

13. Can you read on the bus?

Yes, I've done it a lot, but my butt tends to fall asleep quickly...(odd right?)

14. Favorite place to read?

Right now, in our new basement on the fold-out couch.

15. What is your policy on book lending?

I let anyone take any of my books and then I write down their name on a post-it note and stick it to the side of my bookcase. My reasoning? I spend much of my own money on these books and would like to get them back someday.

16. Do you ever dog-ear books?

I didn’t, but I started to when I was reading the Hunger Games trilogy. It kinda depends on how I feel about the book.

17. Do you ever write in the margins of your books?

For school I started to in AP English and I like being able to look back and see what I thought, but I can’t reread the book because of all the markings. If I really like a quote I might sometimes underline it.

18. Not even with text books?

I do in textbooks, and I also doodle.

19. What is your favorite language to read in?

I like being able to read Spanish, but I really don't know it that well to read a book in it.

20. What makes you love a book?

How the author writes, it can be a great story written by a horrible author and I won't like it.

21. What will inspire you to recommend a book?

If I have to sit and look into nothing after finishing the book and just collect my thoughts then I'll go out of my way to recommend the book.

22. Favorite genre?

Action/adventure

23. Genre you rarely read, but wish you did?

Steampunk (is that science fiction?)

24. Favorite biography?

Home: A Memoir of my Early Years by Julie Andrews

25. Have you ever read a self-help book?

Yes, I read He’s Just Not That Into You because I wanted to see the movie and I thought it was a work of fiction until I started reading it.

26. Favorite cookbook?

Thanks for the Hospitality by Carol McNaughton and Deb Cardwell. (ie; my Grandma and Aunt)

27. Most inspirational book you’ve read this year (fiction or nonfiction)?

Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad. He brings to your attention that everyone is capable of being evil when the environment is right. It inspired me to do the right thing because I don’t want to end up like the characters in his book.

28. Favorite reading snack?

M&M’s

29. Name a case in which hype ruined your reading experience.

The Pursuit of Happyness by Chris Gardner, that dude doesn't deserve having a movie of his life made about him. He's a horrible person who is obsessed with sex.

30. How often do you agree with critics about a book?

Not very often. I don’t read book reviews often and I usually do when I like the book and then the critic will say something that I don’t like and thus not agree with.

31. How do you feel about giving bad/negative reviews?

It’s fine, there has to be bad books in order to have good books and some books are bad. I just want to tell people to not read them and not to waste their time on them.

32. If you could read in a foreign language, which language would you chose?

Norwegian, because I really like being able to speak it so being able to also read it would come in handy.

33. Most intimidating book you’ve ever read?

Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad because my AP English teacher told my class that the first time she read it she didn’t get half of the stuff that was in it.

34. Most intimidating book you’re too nervous to begin?

Anything by William Shakespeare. I feel like I won’t understand the whole play unless I’m reading it in a class, but I really want to read them!
35. Favorite poet?

I don’t really read poetry.

36. How many books do you usually have checked out of the library at any given time?

Two, at the most.

37. How often have you returned book to the library unread?

A few times.

38. Favorite fictional character?

Isabelle Lightwood (The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare)

39. Favorite fictional villain?

Jane (Twilight Saga by Stephanie Meyer)

40. Books I’m most likely to bring on vacation?

Anything on my nook now so that my suitcase ins’t bulging. Otherwise smaller paperback books. Some light reading.

41. The longest I’ve gone without reading.

This summer I got into this weird rut where I just couldn’t read. And I seriously didn’t for about two months. I think I was just fried from Junior year.

42. Name a book that you could/would not finish.

The Host by Stephanie Meyer

43. What distracts you easily when you’re reading?

Food, being hungry when food is being described.

44. Favorite film adaptation of a novel?

Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Dumas or Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix because I hated both of the books and loved the movies.

45. Most disappointing film adaptation?

Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. In the second movie they just kinda gave up ad squished them all together.
46. The most money I’ve ever spent in the bookstore at one time?

Maybe 100 dollars on a nook gift card so that I wouldn’t have to keep on going to Barns and Nobel to buy a gift card, ya know, have some money built up so I don’t have to worry about it.
47. How often do you skim a book before reading it?

All the time.

48. What would cause you to stop reading a book half-way through?

It’s taking me to long to get through it. I really don’t not finished a book though.

49. Do you like to keep your books organized?

Yes, kinda’ by genera.

50. Do you prefer to keep books or give them away once you’ve read them?

I keep them, it’s my new thing to not give away any books, which I made easier by my nook.

51. Are there any books you’ve been avoiding?

The Lord of The Rings trilogy, I just need to sit down and read them!

52. Name a book that made you angry.

Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson

53. A book you didn’t expect to like but did?

Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier

54. A book that you expected to like but didn’t?

Little Bee by Chris Cleave

55. Favorite guilt-free, pleasure reading?

D'aulaire's Book of Greek Myths by Ingri and Edgar Parin d’Aulaire

Christina! You should do this!!!!

Lisbeth and Elizabeth

Most of you know I can speak Norwegian, and if you don't you should check this out.

My whole carrer at Skogfjorden I had the name Lisbeth (pronounced Lisbet). You could choose any name you wanted from the long list of names, but I choose Lisbeth because of two reasons. One, it was close to my name, and two it was beautiful. I have come to terms with my name and have indeed learned to enjoy it. It's common enough that I can find keychains with my name on them, but it's not like I'll run into an Elizabeth at every turn. Plus, I find it very regal and formal, so when I have to be a bit more reserved I enjoy introducing myself because I have the idea that Elizabeth gives me the leg up to make the person I want to impress think 'she is a respectable women, this Elizabeth'.

I have toyed with the idea of going by a different nickname when I start college. I've talked to a few people about this and they agree it's a perfect time for changing you name. Or at least how you introduce yourself. I always say 'Hello I'm Liz McNaughton' and I end up doing this a lot in regards to Cutaway Productions when I have to be a cool formal teenager who is suposed to blow away the adult clients.

There are many names that can come from Elizabeth. Liz, Lizzy, Lisbeth, Beth, Betty, Bess (coined by Gretchen), B (or Bee/Be), L (or Ell/El), Ellen, Elly (or Ellie), and Eliza. These are just the few I have come up with sitting here. But I have decided I like L and Lisbeth the best and intend on trying them on, so to say.

Saying this I was happy to find out a Lisbeth was a character in Stieg Larsson's Millennium series more commonly know as 'the girl with the dragon tattoo series'. Not only do we share the same name, but we are both small girls with lack of chest and we have the same birthday. If that isn't cool, what is? True, I haven't been raped and my father isn't a psycho, and I don't go around tazing people, but on the outside we are similar. We both even have the same (real) hair color. And for those of you who don't know Lisbeth has red hair, and I have brown/red hair. Don't freak out people, I have brown/RED hair, and I don't care if you don't agree! DEAL WITH IT!!!

After this whole ordeal I am finally getting to what I wanted to talk about, Lisbeth. I just love that girl. And the series is very much worth reading, but they are long. And just one thing, they aren't as 'disturbing' as people lead then to be. I was expecting this horrible rape scene, but it's hardly anything (or as little as a rape scene can be) don't get me wrong it's a big deal that she's raped, but it's not super graphic.

I would say the movies are more graphic, because they do what Larsson didn't write, but was alluding towards. I don't know which one I like the best (the never ending debate between the Swedish movies and the American movies) but both were good. I like seeing the Swedish one because I could watch and understand what they were saying (Swedish and Norwegian are very similar) and it was just cool hearing the book in it's original language. I think we miss a little having it translated into English and not reading it in Swedish because it's ment to be read in Swedish. Understand what I'm trying to get at? I do agree with Gretchen about how the American Lisbeth is more like the books, she isn't crazy, she is just very private and distrustful. The Swedish version makes her out to be a bit more of a person who doesn't understand social situations, when in reality she understands but she just doesn't care.

Above is a bookmark I created using Hannah's (known as SpannerX23 on Deviant art) artwork of Lisbeth. I have printed the bookmark and use it when reading the books. I'm almost half way through the third, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets Nest. It's good, I can't wait to finish!

Peace and Love

I just love when places have both Coke and Pepsi fountain drinks. It's so nice and thoughtful of the people to make everyone happy, because as we all know some people are Coke people and some people are Pepsi people.

a la Woodbury Target.

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I think they are candy canes

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