Berberis and books

Ages ago, Thimbleanna tagged me and two others have done so since. Apologies for not responding earlier. Never have a minute to think. Here’s the Thimbleanna one.


Hardcover or paperback, and why? Hardcover. They’re easier to balance on the edge of the bath.

If I were to own a book shop , I would call it…. . I don’t think I want to own a bookshop. I wouldn’t want people fingering my nice books and having free reads of them on the quiet.

My favourite quote from a book (mention the title) is… Goodness me, I have lots and lots of favourite quotes. But, one I like very much is from “Glittering Prizes” the television series of play from years ago by Frederic Raphael. He has one of his characters say, “I’d like a small house in the country, with a big garden surrounded by large, barbed wire dogs.” Sometimes I feel a bit like that. I'm really quite sociable but after a day teaching and dealing with people’s problems I occasionally just want a bit of peace.

The author (alive or deceased) I would love to have lunch with would be… Oh, nobody. I would be frightened that they would be a disappointment; or, come to that, that I would.

If I was going to a deserted island and could only bring one book, except for the SASsurvival guide, it would be… It would have to be a Jane Austen. Probably “Sense and Sensibility”, but any of them. There is no author so soothing. Except maybe Garrison Keillor – his Lake Wobegon stories, not his novels.

I would love someone to invent a bookish gadget that… held up a heavy book in bed at just the right angle for when I’m lying on my side (which I have to do – bad back).

The smell of an old book reminds me of… my childhood, I suppose. New books were a rarity then. Most that I read were from the library or my parents’ shelves.

The most overestimated book of all times is… This is a bit of a big question! I’d say “Ulysses” if I’d ever got past the first few pages. “White Teeth” didn’t impress me much; nor did anything by E M Forster and I’m not too keen on D H Lawrence either.

I hate it when a book … is sad. I used to be able to read sad books but now I only want to read reasonably happy ones. Which cuts out a lot of literature, especially since I’m not keen on explicit sex scenes or violence either. This is a really feeble answer, isn't it? Actually, what I really hate is when a book falls in the bath.

If I could be the lead character in a book (mention the title), it would be… oh, possibly Elizabeth Bennet from “Pride and Prejudice”. I would have the disadvantage of marrying Mr Darcy, who is frankly a bit of a pompous bore, but on the other hand he’s rich, he’s probably away a lot and he has Pemberley and its lovely gardens (at least, I’d make sure they were lovely). No housework. No work, come to that. Bliss...


If anyone would like to be tagged, please consider it done, but may I suggest Loth of The Gym Isn't Working, K of Square One and anyone doing the NaBlowhatever who's a bit short of inspiration today?