Tag: book tags

Book Tag #2: Of Friday plans and reader confessions

Jolens2 Comments

I have no plans tonight. R invited me to “his thing” but I already made up my mind: I hate social interactions on Friday nights. Sorry, R. Happy birthday.

Weather Network predicts a high of 13’ today (Celsius, not Freedom). I will be visiting another open yard site for work; I hope I don’t freeze. The last few days have been unusually warm for October, but I don’t want to jinx it. Oh god let’s not jinx it.

Maybe I should go to the gym tonight. Yes, that could be the plan. Go to the gym after work, go home, and eat cake. There should still be some beer in the fridge. Perfect.

I did another book tag I found on The Reading Hobbit. Fun, fun.

Have you ever damaged a book?

Yes, totally. And I don’t really care so long as the pages remain intact and the words remain legible. I’ve long abandoned this banal sentimentality towards physical books; nobody is any less of a reader just because their books look “used.”

Have you ever damaged a borrowed book?

Essie lent me (or gave me, haha) her copy of Junot Diaz’s The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao about 10 years ago. I’ve read it so many times and now the back cover is almost torn off. Sorry, Essie, for never giving it back.

How long does it take you to read a book?

It depends on how busy I am and how “heavy” the book is, literally and figuratively.

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Book Tag #1

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books

I found the tag here and I thought meh why not:

Find a book on your shelves with a blue cover. What made you pick up the book in the first place?

Stephen Hawking’s A Brief History of Time. Was (still am) interested in popular science.

Think of a book you didn’t expect to enjoy but did. Why did you read it in the first place?

John Grisham’s A Time to Kill. Was intrigued by the premise.

Stand in front of your bookshelf with your eyes closed and pick up a book at random. How did you discover this book?

James Corbett’s England Expects: A History of the England Football Team. Discovered in a thrift store; bought because I love football.

Pick a book that someone personally recommended to you. What did you think of it?

Stephen Chbosky’s The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Loved it.

Pick a book you discovered through book blogs. Did it live up to the hype?

Mia Alvar’s In The Country. Yes.

Find a book on your shelves with a one word title. What drew you to this book?

Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita. Is popular among lit kids; has one of the best opening lines.

What book did you discover through a film/TV adaptation?

Koushun Takami’s Battle Royale (translated into English by Nathan Collins).

Think of your all-time favorite books. When did you read these and why did you pick them up in the first place?

Two of many: Jose Rizal’s Noli Me Tangere and Edgar B. Maranan’s Sa Mga Kuko ng Liwanag. Lent to me by older high school roommates; read for the first time during sem-break of first year high school.

10 Books

Jolens41 Comments

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The Facebook tag goes, “List 10 books that have stayed with you in some way. Don’t take more than a few minutes and don’t think too hard. They don’t have to be ‘right’ or ‘great’ works; just ones that have touched you.”

I’ve done this before, here, and now here’s 10 more:

  1. The Rolling Stone Interviews
  2. How to Read Literature – Terry Eagleton
  3. Engineering Mechanics: Statics & Dynamics – R.C. Hibbeler
  4. film: A Critical Introduction – Maria T. Pramaggiore and Tom Wallis
  5. Social Media: A Critical Introduction – Christian Fuchs
  6. Mythologies – Roland Barthes
  7. Six Young Filipino Martyrs – Asuncion David Miranda (ed.)
  8. A People’s History of the United States – Howard Zinn
  9. A Short History of Nearly Everything – Bill Bryson
  10. Days of Disquiet, Nights of Rage – Jose F. Lacaba

I never imagined that I would end up reading (and enjoying) non-fiction without formal guidance from a prof or an editor. Reference materials, especially those that are heavy on -isms, intimidate me. I used to chastise myself for being too dumb to understand them but I’m kinder to myself now. I mean, there’s really no shame in trying, is there?

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