Readercon Filipino Friday Week 1: Introduce Yourself
Participating in Filipino Friday to show my support for the Filipino Reader Conference!
Hello, everyone. I’m Mina, and I’m a trying-to-get-my-groove-back kind of reader. In high school, I would get two new books on Sunday, finish those by Tuesday, and spend the rest of the week re-reading my favorites until the weekend came around again. Today it’s rare if I get to finish a book in one sitting, and I still hope to get around to reading 50 a year. *shakes fist at age, work, and other distractions*
My comfort zone in reading — contemporary, romance, procedurals, maybe a legal drama or a mystery here and there. If it seems all over the place, it’s because I can’t stand reading one similar book after another. (I feel I have to “cleanse my palate.”) Favorite books (also a mixed bag): Neil Gaiman’s Smoke and Mirrors, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Interpreter of Maladies, Inherit the Wind, Time Traveler’s Wife, Tina Fey’s Bossypants, Sweet Dreams #176 Wrong-Way Romance, Life of Pi, Atonement.
For years, my comfort read was Michael Crichton. Not sure why, but picking up one of his books would help me through a reading slump. Pirate Latitudes is still on my shelf, unread. I need to find a new comfort read-author.
So far, some favorites this year that I haven’t mentioned yet — The Hunger Games, and Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time by Dava Sobel.
Chachic
August 12, 2011 at 9:08 pm,
It's really a good idea to mix up the genres that you read to cleanse the palate. Otherwise, you might get fed up with one genre then a reading slump occurs. I think you already know that I'm a fan of contemporary reads? Especially when there's romance in them. 🙂
Aldrin
August 12, 2011 at 9:09 pm,
Yay for Bossypants! Oh, and I didn't know you also count Atonement as one of your favorites. That's one of my best reading experiences right there. Thanks for supporting the Filipino Reader Conference, Mina. 🙂
dementedchris
August 12, 2011 at 10:21 pm,
Are you going to ReaderCon, Mina? Would be nice to meet you and Michael there. <br /><br />Wrong Way Romance. It was probably the best Sweet Dreams title ever. Whatever happened to Sheri Cobb South?
AttyMonique
August 12, 2011 at 10:23 pm,
I love Wrong Way Romance!!!!!! Bruce and Darby, oh I'm so kilig, haha! :)<br /><br />My collection is around 20 titles short. I'm scrounging high and low for the missing ones. 😀
Mina
August 13, 2011 at 9:55 am,
@Chachic I also do a gender and nationality changeup. 🙂 Right now I'm reading my 8th book-by-a-female-author in a row, must bring back the guys.<br /><br />@Aldrin Bossypants! Am tracking down the enhanced version nga eh.<br /><br />@dementedchris I want to go, will see if I can convince him to go with me. 🙂 And I think Sheri Cobb South moved on to romances, but I didn't see any of them
dementedchris
August 13, 2011 at 11:05 am,
@Mina<br />The last Sheri Cobb South title I read was a Sweet Dreams one (with a pageant — but not The Cinderella Game). Can't remember the title now. I've always loved her characters. <br /><br />@Atty Monique<br />Just twenty titles short? That's amazing! Do you have all your favorites?
Chachic
August 14, 2011 at 1:07 pm,
Mina, a gender changeup sounds good. I definitely need to read more books by male authors. Most of my favorites are written by females. 🙂 Forgot to mention in my earlier comment that I've been looking for Wrong Way Romance in used bookstores ever since you mentioned that it's a favorite.
isaw08
August 14, 2011 at 3:03 pm,
Smoke and Mirrors! One of the first ever book of short stories I read. I remember one story there that still scare the heck out of me: Troll Bridge
fantaghiro23
August 14, 2011 at 11:32 pm,
Hi, Mina! Would be happy to meet you at the ReaderCon. Oh, I do a lot of gender change-ups, too, though not as many nationality change-ups as I'd like.
Monique
August 15, 2011 at 1:41 pm,
@dementedchris: Sheri Cobb South also wrote I think a couple more titles after The Cinderella Game. And yes, I have all of my favorites! Some of them are already so hard to find. The most expensive title I bought was California Girl by Janet Quin-Harkin for P500. But sometimes, I trip by good-condition copies at BookSale. Maybe I'll post a pic of the collection sometime. ;)<br /><br />@Mina:
almeldiel
August 18, 2011 at 4:33 pm,
Oooh, Michael Crichton! I have all of his books, except for Pirate Latitudes. I don't think I'll be able to consider him a comfort read, but he's awesome. :)<br /><br />Great to meet you, Mina. I'll try to read some of your books! Hope to meet you at Readercon. 🙂
Mina
August 18, 2011 at 6:02 pm,
@isaw08 I think it's cool that people mostly pick out a different favorite from that book!<br /><br />@fantaghiro23 One year I actually shifted from foreign to Filipino author a lot. And then got tired of it, needed another changeup. :)<br /><br />@Monique P500?! Why and how? Sobra naman.<br /><br />@almediel Hope I get to meet you too! What's your favorite Crichton?