• We asked last week about what draws you to your favorite kind/genre of book. This week, we want to know--how often do you depart from that comfort zone? If you love mysteries, do you ever read fantasy? If you primarily read cookbooks, do you ever read a good romance?

Once I discovered Science Fiction, as a teen, that's pretty much all I read, throwing in the occasional fantasy or horror book. In my mid-20s I got hooked by The Artists Way, and started reading creativity and journaling books, as well. So, these are the books that I am comfortable with and buy on a regular basis.

In 2002, I found Project Gutenberg, ah bliss! I downloaded 28 books on February 24th, 2002. Currently I've got about 390 free ebooks from Gutenberg... having completely read 87 of them, including 12 from my first download day! So, that's when I started reading various classics.

And in January 2005, I rediscovered Animal Fiction. Think Watership Down. There are a decent handful of similar books that I'm diving into, tho many of them are childrens novels.

In the last year or so, I have been reading some philosophy and early christian texts. I am not religious, but the myths and the history and the "why do people need this" interest me.

So, yeah. As I grow as a reader, I definitely branch out. I have even read a few popular books, ( Memoirs of a Geisha, Life of Pi) an area I wouldn't have touched with a ten foot pole as a sci-fi reader!

• How MUCH variety is there in your reading? Do you mostly stick to one type, with just the occasional toe-dip into a different style? Or do you generally read a variety of things, just, maybe more of your favorite style than anything else?

At the moment, I am only reading The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide... but reading just one book at a time is highly unusual for me. (The book is borrowed from a friend, and I'm trying to return it in decent time.)

But usually, I've got my nose in one sci-fi-ish novel, the book on my handheld is probably a classic from Gutenberg, and some kind of creativity book on the side, and perhaps some kind of science book. The variety helps me keep my stories straight!

Tag: Booking Through Thursday

Static8 > Journal > Archive > 7 Sept 2006 Entry