Ah, sweet memories of bygone days...

[birdienl]

01. A fictional character you identify with and why
02. Your earliest memory of reading or being read to
03. Your favourite book aged 9 ½, or 13 ¾, whichever you remember best.
04. The book that’s been on your shelves the longest.
05. A book you acquired in some interesting way
06. A book with a story for you, that reminds you of something specific in your life (a person, a place, a time).
07. What fictional character are you (secretly) in love with
08. The last book you acquired, and how (begged, bought, borrowed?)
09. Your current read, your last read and the book you’ll read next.
10. What author do you own the most books by and why?
11. Do you own multiple copies of any book? What are they? Why do you have multiple copies?
12. Book borrowing – do you use the library? Do you prefer to try before you buy? What about lending your books to friends? Are you a good borrower, do you remember to return books?
13. Do you reread a lot? Why (not)? Name a book you have reread many times.
14. What is the best book you’ve read in the past year?
15. Do you recommend books to other people? If you could force everyone you know to read one book, what would it be?
16. Adaptation: What book would you most like to see made into a film? Do you like to read the book first or see the film? Any books you have read after seeing the film version?
17. What is the most difficult book you’ve ever read?
18. Your favourite book series & your favourite book out of that series
19. Your favourite picture, junior fiction and Young Adult books
20. Least favourite plot device employed by way too many books you actually enjoyed otherwise
21. A book you thought you wouldn’t like but ended up loving
22. Your "comfort" book
23. Favourite book cover including a picture!
24. Favourite fictional relationship (romantic, friendship, familial)
25. Most annoying character ever
26. Most quotable novel or 5 of your favourite quotes from any books.
27. Any five books from your "to be read" stack. What makes you select a book for your “to be read” stack?
28. Some firsts: First book you remember loving/being obsessed with. First book that made you cry. First book you gave to someone else as a gift.
29. Saddest character death OR best/most satisfying character death (or both!)
30. The End: do you prefer everything tied up or to be able to 'make up your own mind'? What is the worst ending to a book you have read? And the best? (careful, spoiler tags!)

02 Your earliest memory of reading or being read to

Actually, I can't think of any very early memories (shock!). However, I do know my mother used to read to me a lot. I also remember she was a 'reading mother' at primary school, we would have hours in which we would sit in groups with a reading mother and go through a book. So, when I really went 'bookie' when I got older, my father always used to say it was because my mother had instilled it in me from a young age. I also remember playing 'library' some time. This was in the 'old' house, we moved when I was nine, so it has to be before that. I can only asume if I played library I was already fond of books by that time!

03 Your favourite book aged 9½, or 13 ¾, whichever you remember best

At 9½, I was in my horse-phase, so I mainly read books with horses in them. I still remember them fondly, books about girls who would experience great adventures with horses; rescuing neglected horses, going on long hiking tours etc. My own horse adventures always felt a bit bland in comparison...
At 13¾, I was slowly getting into my  medieval-phase. My favourite books at that time were of the well-known Dutch author Thea Beckman. I was absolutely in love with a trilogy about the 100 year war between England and France and a family trapped within the battles of the time. I even decided a film version should be made of these books and started by making a list of people from series and movies I then loved who could play the main characters! (I wonder if I could find that list, it would be wonderful to look at it again)