1. Birthday - Introduce yourself to the world, using just the title of one book.
Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. I have no shame in admitting I am a fangirl; I'm proud of having a passion for the things I love. I can still be critical about the things I enjoy, and I often am, but at heart I just want to bounce around and tell the world how amazing something is.
2. First Experiences - What was the first book you read by yourself?
The earliest I remember is Watership Down by Richard Adams, when I was four or five. The first book my mother remembers me reading on my own was an illustrated version of The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame when I was two and a half. Yes, I am telling the truth. I've always been a book nerd. I have not read them since I was a child, but it is something I'd love to do.
3. School - What book has taught you a lifelong lesson?
I know this is a chance to go very deep and profound... but I'm not going to do that. Elpenor from Homer's Odyssey got very drunk one night when they were staying on Circe's Island, and decided to sleep on a roof. In the morning when he woke up, he fell off the ladder and fell to his death. I think this serves as a reminder to always be aware of your surroundings, especially if you are in an epic poem with people dying by the line.
4. University - If you could live with any character before their story starts, who would it be?
I'd like to have known Professor McGonagall as a young witch, but leaving Harry Potter aside, there are some other characters I'd like to have lived with. Bilbo Baggins from JRR Tolkien's The Hobbit seems like a wonderful person to live with, especially with the amount of food hobbits eat. I would be very happy curled up with books, and crochet, and embroidery, and just eat various meals and drink tea all day.
5. Relationships - Whether platonic, romantic, or otherwise, has any fictional relationship shaped you as a person?
Coming across the Anita Blake series by LK Hamilton in my early teens definitely shaped me. As I made my way through the series, especially meeting characters who are LGBTQ+ and/or are in poly-amorous relationships, allowed me to see that I'm most definitely not alone. It gave me the confidence to come out as LGBTQ+, and even now it is a series I still love. I can't list just one couple, but rather all of Anita's relationships.
6. Holiday - What fictional location would you like to visit?
I'm not going to say Hogwarts, as tempting as it is. I'd love to visit St Mary's from Jodi Taylor's The Chronicles of St Mary's series. I'm fully aware that I would die a horrible, tragic death if I ever did visit the university, but I would most definitely enjoy my time there.
7. Mid-life crisis - Ever read a book and thought "Wait, no, that can't be it!" once you reach the end?
Most recently this was the case with Blood Divine by Greg Howard, but I think the prize has to go to Mark Z Danielewski's House of Leaves because there is so little closure. Don't get me wrong, I utterly adore House of Leaves and I think part of its charm/horror is the lack of closure. I just really want more of the Navidsons and Jonny.
8. Growing older - What book or series has stayed with you the longest?
I think this has to be the Anita Blake series again, but for a standalone piece I'd probably go for The Complete Works by Edgar Allen Poe. I read this when I was in my early to mid teens, and I just fell in love with horror and Gothic horror. Without that book, I would not have wanted to read so many VIctorian and pre-VIctorian works of literature.
9. Last thoughts - Have any fictional deaths left you heartbroken?
Most of the Anita Blake deaths have left me speechless, and for Anita's loved ones some of the deaths have made me cry. As for a book I've not mentioned previously in this post, I've not really had a fictional death that has left me heartbroken. I would love to know what other people say though.
I am going to tag three people in particular, but if you want to do this, go for it! Send me links to your post or video via Twitter or Tumblr or as a comment on this post.
I am tagging...
1. Jax from An Anxious Mind
2. Annamaria from little hands clapper
3. Xavier from Charles Xplosion
If you want to check out more of my posts, feel free to take a look through my series Fangirl Friday or my Top Five Wednesday posts.
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