It has been a long day, so I’m going to take it easy on myself and answer random questions about my reading life. How would you answer these questions? Feel free to tell me in the comments. And if you have book-related questions for me, put them in the comments too! I’ll definitely answer!

What are my go-to genres?

• Historical Fiction
• Family Drama
• Fiction
• Memoir
• Non-fiction Politics/History – written by journalists
• Pop Culture
• Books on writing

What book(s) are on my nightstand right now?

I went upstairs to look and realized it is the perfect representation of the go-to genres I listed above. I didn’t even plan that!

• Unbelievable: My Front Row Seat to the Craziest Campaign in American History, by Katy Tur (Political/Journalism)
• Inheritance, by Danni Shapiro  (Memoir)
• This Time Tomorrow, by Emma Straub (Fiction/Family Drama)
• Writing is My Drink, Theo Pauline Nestor (Writing)
• Directed by James Burrows: Five Decades of Stories from the Director of Taxi, Cheers, Fraiser, Friends, Will & Grace, and More (Pop Culture)

What is my favorite childhood book?

It’s a toss-up between:

• Are You There God? It’s Me, Margret, by Judy Blume
• Charlotte’s Web, by E.B. White
• Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, by Judi Barrett

Do I dog-ear book pages or use a bookmark?

• I use a bookmark or something that acts like a bookmark. Right now, I am using the ticket from Andrew’s high school graduation. I’m not opposed to dog-earring a book, but I try not to do it often.

What is my ideal reading setting?

• Depends on the season. In the winter, I love to sit on the couch with a warm blanket on top of me, wearing my favorite pajamas, drinking a hot beverage, and relaxing by the pellet stove.
• In the summer, at the pool or on the patio.
• I also miss my commute to work. I used to read on the train or listen to a book on Audible in the car. I read a lot more books that way.

What is my favorite indie bookstore?

• How much time do you have? I don’t have a favorite indie bookstore because I love all of them. They are all so charming, and I love exploring them all. Besides the endless shelves of books, book-themed gifts, and staff recommendations, I mostly enjoy the people. They are a combination of random strangers and old friends who are book nerds like me. They come from all walks of life and are not shy about telling me about the book I’m holding in my hand and letting me know what they think of it. And, when there are kids in the store, I want to put a book in their hands and offer to pay for it. The saddest thing is when I see a child asking their parent for a book and is told no. It breaks my heart every time.

What book am I embarrassed to say I’ve never read?

Oy! Okay, here we go.

• To Kill a Mockingbird (I know, I know!)
• The Thornbirds
• Anything by Jane Austen

The Lightning Round

• What I am reading right now – Unbelievable, by Katy Tur and Can’t We Talk About Something More Pleasant by Roz Chast (my first non-fiction graphic novel!)
• First book I remember reading – One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish by Dr. Seuss
• Last book I read – Playing with Myself by Randy Rainbow
• Last book I bought – Upstream: The Quest to Solve Problems Before They Happen by Dan Heath
• Paperbacks or ebooks – I prefer paperbacks, but I read both
• Favorite classics – The Scarlet Letter, The Crucible, Romeo & Juliet
• Least favorite classic – The Old Man and the Sea
• How many books do I read in a month – 4 or 5 books

That’s all I’ve got! Don’t forget to play along by answering any of these questions or ask me a question in the comments

XO,

Elisa

• 2 comments

You guys – I can’t believe I did this. I’m so embarrassed. How can I describe myself as an avid and voracious reader and then pull a stunt like this?! Seriously, what was I thinking? I left my house without a book, a Kindle, or my earbuds to listen to something on Audible. And there I was at my son’s swim meet during a rain delay with nothing to read.

I know. I know. I’m just as shocked as you are. It was just last night that I picked up Katy Tur’s brand new memoir, Rough Draft. I waited in line for almost an hour for her to sign it. When I got home, I placed the book on my nightstand so that I would read it before bedtime. That’s where I went wrong. I took the book out of the car and brought it into the house, leaving me with no reading material whatsoever.

This is such a rookie mistake for me. I ALWAYS bring something to read. I’m never without an emergency page-turner in my drawstring bag. And in a real pinch, I can usually rely on an old magazine in the back seat of my car that I can dust off and catch up on the latest gossip. I dug around the seat cushions, underneath the seats, and even checked the trunk to no avail.

I was lost. I had free time and nothing to read. My heart was in my stomach, and a cold chill ran down my back.* I’m not used to feeling this empty inside. I quickly turned to my iPhone and opened the New York Times app for today’s news. This was the perfect time to catch up on some articles until the meet resumed. But then I realized I had another problem – I forgot my reading glasses at home too.

UGH! Now, what was I going to do? Talk to my husband? I supposed we could have engaged in a little light conversation. Sadly, he was entertaining himself with endless Facebook Reels. When he showed me a clip of a dog licking a sign advertising ice cream cones, I knew we weren’t on the same page. (Thank you – I’ll be here all night!)

I’m happy to say that I survived. I took out my contacts to read the small print on my phone screen. I eeked out two articles before I decided to close my eyes and listen to the radio. I’ve learned my lesson, although I thought I had already learned it during the long car ride to Grandmom’s house in the summer of ’87. That was a rough night. I don’t like to talk about it much.

Now, if you will excuse me, I must prepare my drawstring bag with two (maybe three) books, a few magazines, and my reading glasses. Next time, I won’t leave home without it.

*Okay, some descriptions in this blog post were embellished for dramatic effect. 🙂 

Look at all of the books I could have been reading!

• 4 comments