| I did this meme on my birthday last year and since it’s been revamped for 2010, I thought I might do it this day each year it’s around. Basically, you just complete the sentence with a title of a book you’ve read during the current year. Here’s this year’s story/summary of my life (although I’m [...] Name a book or author that you truly wanted to love but left you disappointed. (And, of course, explain why.) Sadly, there are a number, more so specific books than authors. For whatever reason, though, the one that comes immediately to mind is Norman Mailer’s The Castle in the Forest. In naming it my [...] Do you read book reviews? Do you let them change your mind about reading/not reading a particular book? I’ve subscribed to the NYT Book Review for a number of years and, off and on, a variety of other book review (Bookforum) and book-oriented (The Believer) publications. And, of course, I have a number of [...] Where is your most often used (favorite) reading spot? Do you have more than one? What makes your favorite spot just that? All things considered, my favorite spot is probably out on the deck of our house. Now, granted, it is far from a prime (or even desirable) location in the winter. But spring, [...] What books do you have next to your bed right now? How about other places in the house? What are you reading? This item comes late today because the answer isn’t that easy. It’s more a matter of numbers. My bed not onlyhas two small headboard shelves, there’s a small bookcase next to it. [...] What’s the most useful book you’ve ever read? And, why? My “most useful” book isn’t one book, it comes from a series of books. You see, law students rely on a couple commercial devices to help survive. They include outlines, such as “Gilley’s” (short for Gilbert’s Law Summaries), and the books in the West [...] So … you’re halfway through a book and you’re hating it. It’s boring. It’s trite. It’s badly written. But … you’ve invested all this time to reading the first half. What do you do? Read the second half? Just to finish out the story? Find out what happens? Or, cut your losses and [...] God* comes to you and tells you that, from this day forward, you may only read ONE type of book–one genre–period, but you get to choose what it is. Classics, Science-Fiction, Mystery, Romance, Cookbooks, History, Business … you can choose, but you only get ONE. What genre do you pick, and why? *Whether [...] Which do you prefer? Lurid, fruity prose, awash in imagery and sensuous textures and colors? Or straight-forward, clean, simple prose? My journalism degree and background seems to almost demand simple and clean prose. That is called good writing. Now good writing can also be descriptive, but “lurid, fruity prose” would seem the antithesis of [...] In honor of National Grammar Day … it IS “March Fourth” after all … do you have any grammar books? Punctuation? Writing guidelines? Style books? More importantly, have you read them? How do you feel about grammar in general? Important? Vital? Unnecessary? Fussy? I admit it upfront. The main — if not the only [...] | DisclaimerThe views expressed here are mine and mine alone. I do not speak for my law partners, our associates, staff and clients or my family and friends. Not only should any opinions here not be attributed to them, chances are they probably don't agree with me.  Contact meYou can e-mail me at prairieprogressive at gmaildotcom. |