Meet the July Reader of the Month: Emily Anderson
Check out Emily’s Favorite Books
Be the next C-SPL Reader of the Month!
About Emily:
When not at the library grabbing more books than I mean to, I’m usually at the Grand Opera House helping build sets or props, painting, or at rehearsal. Additionally, I type the transcriptions for the locally produced podcast Lawful Great Adventures, and have recently taken up making my own dice sets.
I think there’s something out there for everyone to enjoy, in book form, comic book, ebook, audiobook–books are books, and books are magic. And you’re never too old to enjoy the young adult section. One of my favorite things to do is just browse the new fiction and nonfiction sections and grab whatever catches my attention, even if it’s from a section I otherwise wouldn’t go to.
Q & A:
Q. What is the best book you have read within the last year (or ever)?
A. Within the last year is probably The Once and Future Witches by Alix E. Harrow. An interesting concept that followed through with expectations while being interesting, which is a pretty hard thing to pull off. Ever, I’d say Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchet.
Q. What is your ideal reading environment (location, sound, snacks, etc.)?
A. A quiet chair in the library in the morning, some quiet music playing on headphones, with a coffee, tea, or latte is the best. Or a pillow fort (so far not in the library, but if you guys want to build some pillow forts, I’m game).
Q. What book are you most excited about reading next, and what about it is most exciting?
A. Whatever it is that Edgar Cantero is working on right now, with little out of context moments on Twitter–everything he’s written so far is off-the-wall fun and weird. Or the new Lara Elena Donnelly novel that’s on preorder. I love the way she writes characters.
Q. What book has been the most challenging for you to read? How did it challenge you?
A. . Most challenging has probably been Jack Kerouac’s On the Road. It took several attempts, many years apart. With the stream of consciousness style it’s just one that if I put it down for a bit, it’s hard to go back to. So it would just go back on the shelves until the next time, to start from the beginning again.
Q. When do you decide to stop reading a book? In other words, do you read every book to the last page, or is there a moment when you decide to stop?
A. There are a few books that have just ended up being put down, but I’ll try to skim through the rest before that if I can. There’s usually a feeling after the first 50 pages if it’s going to be one that gets put down (and maybe a nice internet search for the rest of the plot). That’s not to say every book I end up not liking is put down or skimmed, but sometimes you just can’t get through it. If you’re not excited to read it anymore, don’t. Reading should be something to look forward to.
Q. Do you remember when your love for reading began?
A. As soon as I could read. Or even before that, as soon as I could remember being read to.
Check out Emily’s Favorite Books
Be the next C-SPL Reader of the Month!
See past Reader of the Month posts here.