Welcome to Book Blogger Appreciation Week! This used to be one of my favorite blogger events because of the love shown for books and bloggers. Then it started focusing too much on blogger awards and was feeling more like a popularity contest and I was kind of glad when it fizzled out. But lately, I feel like the sense of community is waning so I'm very happy that the event has been resurrected (sans awards) and I'll be enthusiastically participating!
Day 1 Introduce yourself by telling us about five books that represent you as a person or your interests/lifestyle.
One of my favorite books as a kid was No Flying in the House by Betty Brock. I probably read this book twenty or more times. It's about Annabel who finds out that she's half fairy. This book not only kept me trying to kiss my elbow for years (that's how you can tell if you are a fairy) but it established one of my favorite kind of books -- real world with magic added in. Books like this give me hope that there is real magic hidden somewhere in this sometimes bleak world.
Amusing side story: a few months ago, I met up with two lovely friends who I've met through book blogging--Natalie and Selena--and Selena brought books for Nat and me. She was giving me mine and said "there's this one that was one of my favorites as a kid and it's about, well, not flying in the house ..." and I immediately freaked out and then knew that we would be friends forever. This is why books and blogging are so awesome!
And then there is The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde. It's all about books, brains, and humor -- just like me! When I first read this book, I felt like I was home.
The first line of David Copperfield by Charles Dickens is possibly my favorite opening line in all of literature (so far) --
Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by anybody else, these pages must show.I first read this book when I was a teen and then a few times since and it's always inspired me with amazing characters and a heartwarming story. It also established that I would never fear classics.
I had already read and loved Wilkie Collins' The Woman in White when I read The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield. This book led me to Lady Audley's Secret and the realization that Victorian sensation fiction was a genre and that I loved it. From East Lynne to Armadale to The Mystery of Edwin Drood, I can't get enough of these crazy novels. Add in neo-Victorian sensation novels like The Meaning of Night and The Quincunx and I'm in heaven. I think what I love about this genre is the outrageousness -- without the sordidness of the modern equivalents.
Finally, I have to credit Gone With the Wind (and my mother, who gave it to me to read in my early teens) with my love for chunksters. When one of your first adult novels is over 700 pages long, you learn to love a big, meaty read.
So, my dream read is a Victorian chunkster that has a realistic world with magic in it and a lot of talk about books? Hmm ...
Well, not quite Victorian but I don't mind! Based on these books, comment and give me a book recommendation!
Self-discovery through shelf discovery,
K
Ooh, good question, why did I not ask that? JS & MrN is pretty much my dream book in this particular vein too, I'm not sure I can top that...have you tried Joan Aiken? Her neo-Victorian pastiches can be a lot of fun. Midnight Is a Place is my favorite of her children's books, and If I Were You (aka Deception) is also a good one.
ReplyDeleteI've only read The Wolves of Willoughby Chase and the Armitage collection so this is a great recommendation! I have been meaning to get to more Aiken. Thank you!
DeleteOooooh: Thirteen Tale, Jonathan Strange, GWTW! Fforde! I don't know the first book & and I'm only neutral about Dickens.
ReplyDeleteI have actually started re-reading The Thirteenth Tale because I started thinking about it as I wrote this post and couldn't stop. :)
DeleteOh my goodness what a great list. So fantastic! But where is Diana Wynne Jones??? :P
ReplyDeleteI know, she's not here but, in my library, her books are literally on a shelf of their own. I couldn't figure out how to fit them in! ;)
DeleteIf you like Jonathan Strange, Zen Cho's Sorcerer to the Crown might be a good fit! That's the first book of a planned trilogy, iirc. I loved the first one a LOT.
ReplyDeleteI read David Copperfield as a teen too and it's still memorable.
I LOVED Sorcerer to the Crown. It also fits perfectly on my list of dream books. :)
DeleteThat's quite the opening line - I see why you like it.
ReplyDeleteI love books set in the Victorian era, although I don't read enough of them! I actually recently picked up JS & MN on audiobook recently - looking forward to delving in to it.
Thanks for sharing a bit about yourself.
Reading With Jade
Thanks for stopping by! I hope you enjoy your listen to Jonathan Strange!
DeleteReal world with magic added in it is my favorite kind too. Glad to come across your blog through BBAW. :)
ReplyDeleteI'm sure I'll find where that magic is hiding soon. ;)
Deleteneat choices! I tries The Eyre Affair some time ago and it didn't work. Seeing your summary, I need to try again! And now that I have read and loved The Woman in White, I need to read Diane's book, which has been on my TBR for far too long. Here is me: http://wordsandpeace.com/2016/02/15/bbaw-2016-day-1/
ReplyDeleteThe Eyre Affair doesn't seem to work for everyone but I would love if you tried it again because I love it and hate to see it not on every single reader's list of favorites. ;)
DeleteAmazing how some of our first books really leave an impression on us forever. I have got to read The Woman in White, have had it for awhile.
ReplyDeleteI reread it a couple of years ago and loved it again so I hope that it becomes one of your favorites as well!
DeleteI strongly considered JS&MN for my list, too!
ReplyDeleteIt really collects a good chunk of my bookish loves into one fat volume ... or three, if you have that edition. ;)
DeleteThe Thirteenth Tale was very reminiscent of Rebecca to me. I have yet to read any Wilkie Collins, though I can't wait. Also adding all the other sensational books it led you to to my tbr.
ReplyDeleteI cannot believe I left out Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell! That book redefined magic for me! Such a chunkster and I never once felt like there was too much of it. I was also pleasantly surprised by the BBC series.
Great picks. Have a nice week! :)
I do love any book where the magical system is so well-defined that you can't understand why it doesn't actually exist. That was Jonathan Strange for me! And I hope you love the sensation books. East Lynne and Armadale and wonderful and lesser known!
DeleteWhat a delicious list of books you have here! GWTW, The Thirteenth Tale, The Eyre Affair? We are of a mind, my friend.
ReplyDeleteYay! Book soulmates are the best. :)
Delete>>I think what I love about this genre is the outrageousness -- without the sordidness of the modern equivalents.
ReplyDeleteYES. I so agree with this. It feels far enough removed from me that the madness is fun, rather than stressful. I love a good Victorian setting.
I'd make you additional recommendations but I think you've read all of them already. :p
Haha. It's tough! I can't find more of these books either. I kind of fit To Say Nothing of the Dog in here too because the magic of science feels like real magic in that book. ;)
DeleteNo Flying in the House!!!! I LOVED that book and yes, spent a lot of time trying to kiss my elbow. I gave it to my daughters and have given it to nieces. It is just about a perfect story.
ReplyDeleteOh, and the rest of your picks are good too. Eyre Affair! :)
You did! Hooray! I just gave it to my niece recently too. She hasn't told me that she's actually part fairy yet. ;)
DeleteI love Dickens! I've had Jonathan Strange on my shelf forever. I know I'm going to love it so I'm not sure why I've waited so long.
ReplyDeleteDickens is one of my absolute favorites. I'm long-overdue for a Copperfield reread. I used to get to it every couple of years. This is a side effect of book blogging though. We have lots of intentions to get to books but there are infinitely more books! Good luck getting to Jonathan Strange. :)
DeleteOh, you and I have to talk. Truly. I loved The Eyre Affair and also other books in that series. And I also loved The Thirteenth Tale. Such an interesting book and I need to reread it for my Gothic challenge. Loved your list!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Kay! I have reread the entire Thursday Next series more than once. If I could have a dodo and meet Miss Havisham, I would be in heaven. :) And I've just picked up The Thirteenth Tale for a reread too. I owe it so much!
DeleteI don't know how we haven't met yet but I'm glad this has been corrected. :)
Oooh, oooh! I have one for you. The Name of the Wind by Jonathan Rothfuss. Have you read it already? Or The Night Circus?
ReplyDeleteI didn't know that Victorian sensation fiction was a thing. (It may not be my thing, though. I liked The Thirteenth Tale, but didn't love it.) I loved The Eyre Affair and Jonathan Norrell and Mr. Strange and the audio edition of David Copperfield, which I had somehow never read at all before I was 50!
The Night Circus is an absolute favorite but I haven't read The Name of the Wind yet. It has definitely shown up on my radar more than once though so I really need to pick it up! Great recommendation!
DeleteAnd doing an audio reread of David Copperfield actually sounds really good right now. Thanks for the idea!
I resisted The Night Circus for a year or more, and now I own two copies of it!
DeleteOh, and I just realized I said Jonathan instead of Patrick Rothfuss...
DeleteI figured that Jonathan Strange crept back in there. ;)
DeleteLove Jasper Fforde and the Thirteenth Tale! And Jonathan Strange is on my shelf...what a fantastic list!
ReplyDeleteThank you! Anyone who loves Jasper Fforde is okay with me. :)
DeleteI didn't read GWTW until last year, and oh my goodness, I LOVED it! I can see how it would have sparked an early love of long novels for you. That one is worth the time it takes to get through all those pages.
ReplyDeleteYes. It helped that it's super absorbing and epic. There are many of chunksters that I could have picked up instead and had the opposite reaction! I'm a lucky reader. :)
DeleteOh no! Not Drood! LOL! I didn't read through all the comments, but did someone mention Sarah Waters? She writes in Victorian time and there's usually a mystery included (at least of the two I've read).
ReplyDeleteLoved Eyre Affair! I really need to continue along in the series. PS--like the new look!
Haha. No, not Drood, one of my most hated books of all time. I've read all of the Sarah Waters but that is totally the right type of book!
DeleteAnd thank you about the look! I messed with it a bit this week to make it a bit brighter and I like it too!
If you like Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, maybe you'd like something like Jo Walton's Tooth and Claw, which is set in kind of the 18th century, only with dragons acting like people.
ReplyDeleteThat is a great suggestion. I have still only read My Real Children by Jo Walton so I need to move forward with her books! Thank you for the prompting!
DeleteMaybe you should have included Drood just because you hated it. ;)
ReplyDeleteLOL - Hopefully I won't ever encounter another one like it and so I don't have to define that category (books that take historical characters and totally twist their personalities and habits to make them into total asses ... not that I obsessed about it ... argh!).
DeleteAh, nice list! I really liked David Copperfield, and I loved Gone With the Wind (much to my surprise!). Strange & Norrell was also pretty cool - I liked the whole concept of the book as a type of historical study, with footnotes and (fictive) references and etc. Very interesting and unique.
ReplyDeleteYes. The sense that it was a real history of the time and the magic made it seem very real!
DeleteI love Victorian sensation novels too. Great take on the prompt!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Chris!
DeleteOh my, I'd love to be half fairy :) I adore The Eyre Affair -- you and me both ...;)
ReplyDeleteI started listening to the audiobook of The Eyre Affair this week because I started thinking about the book after writing this post. Sadly, the narrator wasn't very good so I'll just have to read it myself again!
DeleteI love your list here! Jonathan Strange is one I need to read. I haven't read Thirteenth Tale yet but I remember being intrigued by it when it first came out.
ReplyDeleteI reread Jonathan Strange recently and loved it just as much as the first time. I also just finished rereading Thirteenth Tale and didn't enjoy it quite as much as I remember but it was what books it led me to that was the best part of it and that can't be changed!
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