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Che-Cheh tagged me with this bookworm Q&A, so here goes.

P/S: If books bore you, then you can skip this post.


1. Do you remember how you developed a love for reading?

Since I was young, I had tons of books. Even my parents didn't have that many books. My books took up an entire 4-tiered shelf. Ironically, I preferred to read on my own. My parents did attempt the nightly read-to-your-child-during-bedtime, but I didn't enjoy it much. Too boring. And they read too slow.


2. What are some books you read as a child?

Books by Ladybird and Enid Blyton were firm favourites. I did indulged in Nancy Drew (Hardy Boys were boring) and works by Judy Blume. The first adult novel I read was A Stone for Danny Fisher by Harold Robbins. I was 9 or 10 at that time. However, my earliest "education" came in the form of Harold Robbin's Goodbye, Janette. Sex, cat o' nine tails, S&M, incest, girl-on-girl, man-on-man... pretty heady stuff for an 11 yo.

If anyone thinks I am making this up, my colleague can vouch for this. We were primary school classmates. I almost had my Goodbye, Janette confiscated by the teacher.


3. What is your favourite genre?

As a result of over-indulging in adult romance novels at a very young age, I'm now inclined toward children's fantasy. Which is why I happily splurge on Harry Potter, Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials Trilogy (which include The Golden Compass), and The Spiderwick Chronicles.

If anyone is willing to sell/gift me the entire Tim and the Hidden People series by British author Sheila K McCullagh, I will be eternally grateful. I used to be a fan of this 80's children's book series back in primary school. Short of robbing my old school library, I have no idea how to get my hands on these books.


4. Do you have a favourite novel?

I have three, and all three are by my favourite chef Anthony Bourdain. I read and reread Kitchen Confidential, A Cook's Tour, and The Nasty Bits.


5. Where do you usually read?

Anywhere and everywhere. Unfortunately, some people find my reading habit offensive. Once, I was having lunch at a kopitiam with my parents. After eating, I took out my book while my parents chatted with the kopitiam owner. Suddenly he reached over, took my book from me and closed it while saying, "You shouldn't read so much!"

I didn't know whether to be tickled or appalled.


6. Do you usually have more than one book you are reading at a time?

Sometimes. I'm fine with multi-reading.

7. Do you read nonfiction in a different way or place than you read fiction?

Nope. It's all the same to me, although I hardly read nonfiction.


8. Do you buy most of the books you read, or borrow them, or check them out of the library?

Now that I am working, I prefer to buy books. That said, I adore going to the library to borrow books, but I hardly have the time to do so. Sometimes I lend my books to my friends and they lean theirs to me.


9. Do you keep most of the books you buy? If not, what do you do with them?

Of course I keep my books! I only sell my old textbooks. But most of my childhood books have been given away to charity. I'm all for cultivating the reading habit. I think children nowadays should be reading more instead of rotting their brains out in front of the television or the PC.

I'm not as mean as Che-Cheh to not lend out my favourite books. On contrary, if I enjoy a particular book, I'm more than willing to lend it out. Unless of course, the borrower has a history of destroying my books.


10. If you have children, what are some of the favorite books you have shared with them? Were they some of the same ones you read as a child?

My children are going to be avid readers. I wouldn't have it any other way. And I'll probably start them on a diet of Enid Blyton classics, but as long they're into reading, I'll probably let them have a free rein in choosing their own books.


11. What are you reading now?

I am rereading Neil Gaiman's Mirrormask: The Illustrated Film Script of the Motion Picture from the Jim Henson Company.


12. Do you keep a TBR (to be read) list?

Nope. If I did, it'll be far too long.


13. What books would you like to reread?

Sheila K McCullagh's Tim and the Hidden People series and Puddle Lane series, Judy's Blume's older works, and Beverly Cleary's Ramona series.

I miss Ramona Quimby :)


14. Who are your favourite authors?

Neil Gaiman and Anthony Bourdain.