1. Who is/are your favourite author(s)?*
Maybe Vonnegut, because I like him as a person, although it can't be said he wrote very well (prose-wise). Also, Ivo Andric. And from contemporary authors, I've read all of Ben Lerner's fiction and thought every one of those books was a masterpiece. Dostoyevsky was great although longwinded. I loved some of Nabokov's books (one of the best stylists in English for sure) although I think he peaked with
Lolita. And some of Hemingway's books are excellent (although some of his earlier works feature truly terrible dialogues).
For whom the bell tolls is one of my favorite books I think.
2. And your least favourite?
Least favorite authors I don't read.
3. What is your preferred genre to read?
No preferred genres, I read everything, but mostly splitting my attention between literary fiction, sci-fi and fantasy, in that order of frequency.
4. What is/are the best book(s) you ever read?*
I guess my No. 1 book is
The Bridge on the Drina by Ivo Andric. It is so beautifully written I had to pause quite often just to soak up the sentences. And aside from beautiful prose, it has loads of wisdom and the plot is lovely too.
5. And the worst?*
One of the books I gave up on the soonest was
Vernon God Little. I wrote a
scathing review on goodreads after having read maybe 10 pages.
6. Who do you believe gets more credit than they should as an author?
Hilary Mantel. Her prose is terrible. No idea why she's so popular and lauded.
Same again please, when you're ready there mate!
7. What determines, generally, if you stop reading/lose interest in a book?
Mostly if I'm annoyed or just bored. I give a maximum of 30% of the book length to intrigue me, if it hasn't done it by that point I normally bail.
8. Do you have a Kindle/reader and if not, do you ever intend to get one?
No, no point. Prefer actual books and if I want to download stuff I read it on my ipad.
9. How large (approximately) is your book collection (to the nearest hundred, say)
Maybe a hundred physical books (about a 1000 digital ones), strewn across at least 4 different locations.
10. What is the best line you ever read in a book?
Skip.
11. What is/are your favourite non-fiction book(s)? *
I liked
Just kids by Patti Smith but probably the most impressive non-fiction book was
Far from the tree by Andrew Solomon. Very well written, in depth and insightful.
12. What book(s) have you never read, but would like to?*
Maybe
Das Kapital and also
In search of lost time. Some day, maybe.