I have asked you on Instagram whether you would like me to do a bookish Q&A where I answer your (obviously book related) questions. You have sent in many questions and I will, for the sake of not making this blog post very long and boring, try to answer each and every one of them with a rather short answer (because we all know that when it comes to such questions I tend to write kilometric answers).
One book on your bucket list?
One book that has been on my list for a long time now and I really want to read but I am intimidated by its length is The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo. I could also add War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy and the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon.
What’s your least favourite book?
I rarely feel hatred towards books, but there was a book that literally made me feel like throwing up every time I picked it up, and I had to read it as it was one of the novels I had for my literature class. The book is Levantul by Mircea Cărtărescu, I don’t know if it has been translated to English, but the word-for-word translation would be The Levant.
What’s your favourite genre?
I quite enjoy historical fiction and if you’re looking for such a recommendation, I always suggest The Virgin Blue by Tracy Chevalier.
Could you recommend us all your favourite books?
Sure, I’d love to! Here they come (in no particular order):
L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables (first book of the series)
Tracy Chevalier, The Virgin Blue
Muriel Barbery, The Elegance of the Hedgehog
Claire Keegan, The Forester’s Daughter
Eleanor H. Porter, Pollyanna
Helen Humphreys, The Evening Chorus
Dorothy Canfield Fisher, Understood Betsy
Alice Walker, The Color Purple
Which character do you identify the most with?
Definitely Anne Shirley Cuthbert from the Anne of Green Gables series. I strongly identify with her love for nature, beauty, her ability of seeing the good in the bad are something we share. If you would like a bit more about this, you can check out the review for the novel.
Have you ever read a self-published book?
I have, a couple of self-published authors gifted me their books in exchange for a review. Lovely experiences as I quite enjoyed the books!
What’s the last book you bought?
I bought two, Normal People by Sally Rooney and The Forest of Moon and Sword by Amy Raphael.
Have you ever had someone spoil a book you were really looking forward to reading?
YES! I wanted to read The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides, but SOMEONE (wink wink) told me how it ends and now there’s no point to reading it.
Can you name one of the most problematic classics you’ve ever read?
I feel most classics are problematic, in some cases the problem is more obvious, in other cases it’s very well coated in words and with specific literary devices. One of the most difficult ones I can think of is Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad in which the portrayal of African natives is very racist and the main protagonist’s views are very biased and … problematic. Even Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte’s novels have certain elements that are no longer applied or can no longer be condoned under any circumstances. Regardless, I do not believe in censorship and I definitely don’t suggest removing such literature from library shelves, but we have to keep in mind that these books are products of their times and we should treat them as such.
Do you consider yourself good at guessing twists?
That depends a lot on the book, but generally I’m 95% sure of what’s about to happen next, but that’s because most of the books I read are quite predictable. If talking about mysteries and murderers, I almost every time guess who the murderer is. For instance, I knew from the very beginning who the murder was in Agatha Christie’s Death on the Nile (but I did not except them to end up like that!).
Török J. Sándor 