What kind of reader are you?

Sandi showed a bit of her lovely library in her latest post. She asked about what folks are reading and I started to respond but it turned into a "thing" so here we are. Here's the kind of reader I am, feel free to tell me what kind you are!

I am more than willing to let an author lead me away into another world – that’s why we read, right? If you believe, then I will too.

I do re-read – some of my books are beloved friends.

- I read every Stephen King that comes out - I can't stop now, I’ve been following him for 30 years and he’s part of my inner workings. The family knows that when a new volume comes out, they can expect to be ignored for a day or two until I finish. The pic is of part of my King section - he's so prolific I resent the amount of space he demands! Here you see most of his section and the start of the poetry section. Before I had kids I had a Sex Section, with selections from erotic poetry to Masters & Johnson to old medical texts (shudder); that section and the Drugs and Rock & Roll section are both in the attic for the next few years.

- I adore Salman Rushdie; his prose is so poetic he's always on the tipping edge of form, and he has seared more lovely and horrifying images in my brain than any other author I've read. I had my original paperback copy of "Midnight's Children" (purchased in 1984!) signed last year and it was a thrill to be able to tell him I wanted my "sentimental" copy signed.

- I am currently reading "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen; will likely finish today and recommend it highly. I think it’s going to make me cry again before it’s done.

- “The Road” was probably my toughest recent read – it’s brutal and I walked around with my mind bruised for days, but it’s worth it. I do like post-apocalyptic pieces and he’s covered the turf very nicely indeed.

- Anything by Ann Patchett is a winner. Really. Run, don’t walk, to the nearest copy of “Bel Canto” and prepare to be swept away.

- Gabriel Garcia Marquez moves me; I re-read “Love in the Time of Cholera” and “One Hundred years of Solitude” regularly.

- I won't read Jodi Picoult any more - I don't like having my emotions yanked around that hard, it feels like a deliberate manipulation and I balk at that.

- Every autumn I feel a need to read Jane Urquhart’s “Away.” Why? I don’t know, it just needs to be done and I'm better off when it’s finished.

- As a child I looked forward to a new Roald Dahl hardcover for birthdays and Christmases, and I still re-read his works with genuine pleasure. I enjoyed the “Harry Potter” series immensely, and feel that J.K. Rowling is the closest thing we’ve got to Dahl these days.

- Catherine is the real villain in “Wuthering Heights,” Tess is a trollop, and "The Satanic Verses" didn't say what folks thought it did; you’ll never convince me otherwise.

- I'm also one of very few people who feels that "The Year of Magical Thinking" was a form of horrifying wallowing and only inspirational if one is considering an extended vacation somewhere they serve you via IV drip.

- I am capable of reading difficult material but don’t often do so voluntarily; I’ve made it through Goethe and Aeneid on my own but prefer someone who can immerse me in their world a little more quickly.

- I love book discussions. Our local library hasn’t had them in a while; I am hoping we’ll find a new leader to get the gears working hard again (though I would not run to re-read “The Magic Mountain”).

- I am more than willing to read my kids’ books; I loved Scott Westerfelds “Uglies” series, avidly read “Twilight” but later thought it fluffy, and absolutely loved Rick Riordan’s “Percy and the Olympians” series.

- I appreciate audiobooks and feel that some work better orally than in print - the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy and "Frankenstein" both read aloud particularly well, as does Pullman's "His Dark Materials" trilogy.

What kind of reader are you?