My brother, Wyatt, tagged me for this book meme. I knew I'd like it right away - books, reading, what's not to love? Additionally, there's something about the switching around from first to second person in the questions that kind of amuses me. I suppose this means I am easily amused, huh? But I think we knew that about me already! Anyway, on to the meme!

1. Total Number of Books You Own
That's hard to say, especially since many are still packed in boxes from the last move (we donated our bookshelves to charity before we moved). I would guess that I personally probably have around 100. I know Joe has more than that, so together, we have a pretty big collection.

2. The Last Book(s) I Bought
Vol. 1 of Fruits Basket, which is a manga series. Also, Mermaid Chair by Sue Monk Kidd. I really liked her first book, The Secret Life Of Bees, and so far, this one is equally as compelling and wonderfully written. I love her writing!

3. The Last Book(s) I Read
Eat Mangoes Naked, by S.A.R.K. That was back in February. Which is sort of embarassing. It was a really good book, though, very inspiratonal. I think now that it's summer vacation for me, it's time to get back in the habit of reading!

4. The Book(s) I Am Currently Reading
Mermaid Chair, Fruits Basket, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (book 5), Sacred Space, and... a few others by my bedside that I can't remember the titles of.

5. Fiction or Non-Fiction?
I enjoy both a great deal. With fiction, I will read nearly anything, especially if it is recommended to me. Nonfiction favorites tend to lean toward the subjects of animals, feng shui, paganism, nutrition and fitness.

6. The First Book I Read
That would have to be Very Bad Bunny. It was about P.J. Funnybunny and His Unfunny Cousin, which is what I thought the title was until about 2 seconds ago when I ran an Amazon search for it and saw that I was wrong! Anyway, when I was four years old, I was completely in love with this book. Oh that dastardly cousin of P.J.'s, always making trouble! I can't remember the entire plot. I remember one picture of P.J. covered in maple syrup, and I assume P.J., being the older, responsible bunny that he was, taught his cousin some manners and all lived happily ever after. I asked my mom to read this book to me pretty much nonstop, and because she is awesome, she did.

I actually memorized the book from hearing it so much. When I looked at it on my own, I was able to see that each set of letters was a word, even though I couldn't read them yet. I remember going through and pointing to each word, saying aloud the words I had memorized, and asking my mom for help, if I got off track or couldn't remember the words. I also remember seeing the word "the" on a page and actually reading it, because I recalled it from the previous page. I flipped back and forth, looking at the pages, and yep, it matched. I was elated when my mom confirmed it. "The" was the first word I read, and very soon afterwards, I began understanding how letters worked and fit onto the page. The same day, actually, I asked my mom to show me more books, and she had these simple little books, more like booklets, really. They were phonics books, I think, to teach kids sounds of letters. I just ate them up! And that is how I learned to read. Thanks, Mom! Thanks, P.J. Funnybunny! And even thanks to you, unfunny cousin. Hee.

7. Largest Impact
Well heck, P.J. Funnybunny probably had the largest impact. Learning to read was a pretty big deal!

8. Favorite Scholarly Book(s)
What do you take me for, some kind of NERD? Heh, just kidding. I totally am a nerd, geek, whathaveyou. And I do have a favorite scholarly book! Of all the books I've had for school, the only one I found quite readable was my social psych book, which was called, unsurprisingly, Social Psychology. 5th Edition, I think. I forget the authors. I just sold it back to my school, actually, because as interesting as it was, I knew I'd never read through it again.

9. Most Read Book
I'm not much of a re-reader. I have enough difficulty finding the time (or more honestly, the self-discipline) to read novels, so when I do, I like to read new ones.

10. Sexiest Book
All of a sudden, it's readily apparent that I don't read sexy books, since nothing comes to mind! I guess Bridges of Madison County would have to qualify, since it's about an affair, afterall. I loved that book initially, before later deciding that it was a load of crap to not be with the person you love, to peg yourself as some sort of sacrificial martyr, as though denying yourself happiness equates doing the right thing. That is not a good thing. That sucks. Live a happy life, not a lie for the sake of your small town reputation! But I digress...

I do remember a somewhat suggestive scene in a Dean Koontz novel, ColdFire. It was all of one paragraph, but I was eleven years old and extremely naive about these things. So I read it several times over, trying to imagine what the cryptic and symbolic words actually alluded to, and feeling amazed that I could even catch a glimpse into that far-off and bizarre adult world. On top of that, it was a good story. I enjoyed that book a lot.

11. Biggest Disappointments
I read only one Danielle Steel novel, and it was called The Gift (if I'm remembering correctly). I thought I'd give her a shot, since I knew she sold lots of copies of her numerous books. If she was that popular, maybe her writing had some merit? Even when I got the book, I suspected her writing might be crap, but I'm willing to give anyone the benefit of the doubt at least once. So I read it and was surprised to find myself really enjoying it, getting attached to the characters, even. Then the ENDING was so completely stupid and ridiculous that I felt really let down. Not to mention, angry! Those last 30 pages crashed and burned FAST. I could see in my head the way it should have ended, the way that would have allowed it to be a decent book. I was so annoyed that I never read another one of her books again.

A similar experience was Thomas Hardy's Mayor of Casterbridge. I know a lot of people like him and consider him a fine author. People usually base this on Tess of the D'urbervilles. But I never read that because of the major suckfest that is Mayor of Casterbridge!!

I was assigned this book in my senior year of high school, and from the beginning, I didn't like it. I was told, "No, don't worry, it'll get better!" by my teacher on several occasions. And when the last line of the book basically summed up that life just pretty much sucks, I slammed down the book with disgust and said, "Fuck this book!"

The last line, by the way (the part that stood out to me anyway), was "...happiness was but the occasional episode in a general drama of pain." Which, is just so uplifting. The actual full last line is, "And in being forced to class herself among the fortunate she did not cease to wonder at the persistence of the unforeseen, when the one to whom such unbroken tranquility had been accorded in the adult stage was she whose youth had seemed to teach that happiness was but the occasional episode in a general drama of pain." And I'm not sure what Hardy intended, but what I learned in class was that Hardy believed in Fate and that your character was set from birth, and that was that. If Fate dealt you a raw deal, well then you're fucked.

When I told my teacher I hated the book, especially the main character, she asked me, "But don't you feel sorry for him??" and I essentially shouted at her, "NO!" The main character keeps making horrible decisions and gives up easily when things don't go his way. He is pouty and lame and screws up his life because he's a jerk. His life doesn't get better when he "tries" to change and he whines about everything along the way. He is a ridiculous person who is impossible to pity. And Hardy makes it worse by essentially SAYING, once you get your lot in life, that's it. Fate's got you by its nasty cold fingers and you. are. SCREWED. That's a lovely message to give young people about to head out into the world to follow their dreams. Great book for high school seniors, really.

It was incredibly depressing and disappointing, especially because I felt like my teacher was a big traitor for promising it'd get better and that I'd like it. Um, no. I'm now anti-Hardy for life, thanks. (But she was a great teacher and said lots of other things that were true, so I got over it. She actually turned out to be one of my most favorite teachers.)

If you'd like to see for yourself how painfully stupid that book is, you can read a short summary here. It doesn't do the actual book's ridiculousness and depressing message justice, but it'll at least give you an idea. If you do care to read the whole book, apparently, it's here. Weird.

12. Five Books that Mean Something to You
There are many books that mean something to me. These are just the first 5 that came to mind:

Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas by James Patterson
- This book is not complex, not intricately written, and contains no astounding imagery or anything like that. It is a very sweet, cheesey love story, and I adored it. The book's message as well as the story itself were quite touching.

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
- The author's style is so lovely, and it's a total girl-power book, too. I thought it was wonderful!

Wonder When You'll Miss Me by Amanda Davis
- I think the back cover describes this book as a very dark coming of age story, which is a perfect description. It's amazing. I was honestly sad when it ended, because I felt like I could have read about those characters forever.

Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls
- A story about a boy and his deep love for his dogs. How could this not resonate with me? One scene I especially remember is the boy seeing his reflection for the first time in his life. I liked thinking about how life might be with no mirrors, how it might affect how we think of ourselves. A beautiful story, but a definite tear-jerker.

Summer of the Monkeys by Wilson Rawls
- I had forgotten this book was the same author as above! It makes sense that they'd be so similar then. A boy finds and befriends a troop of circus monkeys in the woods. I wanted to BE that character. I mean, come on - monkeys! I cried so much reading this book, and adored it through and through. I never even saw the movie they made of it, for fear of ruining my love of the book. It was wonderful.

13. Consider Yourself Tagged
Erika
Joe Artlung

Anyone else who wants to! Let me know if you do, okay? I'd love to read the responses. And as my brother advised me, feel free to ignore the academic book question, if you want!