The Liebster Award

A tremendous thank you goes to The Life of a Bookworm for nominating me for the Liebster Award. I’m so excited!

I’m going off of the rules she has posted, though it’s my understanding that this award (think of it like an email chain, sort of) has morphed as it is passed on, and there are a lot of variations on these rules.

1. Link to and thank the blogger who nominated you
2. Answer the 11 questions your nominator gives you
3. Tag 11 other bloggers who have 200 or less followers
4. Ask the 11 bloggers you nominated 11 questions and let them know you nominated them!

Part two:

How long does it take you to finish a great book? Depends on how much I have going on in my life with school and whatnot, but if the book is truly amazing, I’ll find the time to finish it in a day (or two).

What do you think makes a wonderful book? I fall in love with characters. I want them to be real and relatable and make me think about my own life, whether I’m thinking about the people I love or the people I hate.

What is your favorite book series and why? The Queen’s Thief series by Megan Whalen Turner, because holy bleep–so much work went into this series. The characterization and plot development are so well done and crazily intricate. Every time I reread them (and I’ve reread the third book at least a dozen times) I find something new hidden in the pages, and I love it.

How did you come to love reading? I’ve just always read. I don’t remember a time when I didn’t have my nose in a book. In elementary school, I read a few books a week and, yes, I was the brunt of some jokes for my habit of pulling a new book out of my backpack every day, but it was worth it. I love how reading is both an escape from your life, and forces you to examine your life closer than you ever have before, through the lens of another.

What inspired you to create your book blog? To be honest? My twin sister started a sewing blog, and I wanted in on the action. I don’t sew, but I read and write, so as soon as I came up with a catchy domain name, I created 52 Letters in the Alphabet.

What is your least favorite book and why? Oooh, tough one. We Were Liars frustrates me because there was so much hype surrounding it, and then it was just horrible (in my opinion). Then again, I’ve hated a lot of books that I’ve read in English class, from a combination of antiquated writing styles and the tedium of textual analysis (though I can enjoy that, if I’m in the right mood). It might be a tie between The Pearl by John Steinbeck and Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka.

Favorite childhood book? The Best Book of Mummies. It’s nonfiction, so not really the usual childhood book, but I was a weird kid. I spent my entire elementary school career OBSESSED with ancient Egypt. This was one of the first books I ever received about Egypt, and it is the first book I have a memory of “reading” (though I’d really just memorized the words on the first pages).

Which fictional character would be your best friend? I’d love to be friends with Blue from The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater. Also, being a Gallagher Girl (series by Ally Carter) would be the greatest thing ever–I can’t choose between Cammie, Liz, Bex, and Macy. (Don’t make me!!)

Where do you love to read? I have this awesome chair in my living room that I can literally curl up in. I basically lived in it this summer.

Do you read one book at a time or several? One book that I chose at a time,  plus whatever I’m reading in English class.

Do you like to keep your books clean or are they destroyed by the time you’ve finished reading it? I don’t think I destroy books, but I don’t really try to keep them in pristine condition. I will break a lot of bindings, and there will be microwave-popcorn-butter fingerprints on a lot of my books. However, I always read hardcover books without their dust jackets, A) because I hate holding dust jackets, and B) because I want to keep the dust jacket in good condition for when I put the book on my book shelf.

Part three:

I nominate (in no particular order):

1. Words We Heart

2. Bookmark For Your Dreams

3. Hyper about Books

4. What Kara Reads

5. Pointe Taken

6. Sophie the Bookworm

7. Stephanie’s Book Reviews

8. Reviews from a Self Proclaimed Bibliophile

9. Musings of a Reading Mind

10. the bibliomaniac book blog

11. The Musings of Writesy

Part four:

Here are my questions for you:

1. Can you read in loud places or only when it is quiet?

2. Do you prefer to read stand alone books or series?

3. Who is your favorite author and why?

4. Do you organize your bookshelves in any particular way?

5. What fictional character would you date?

6. What is book that has made you angry (for any reason)?

7. What genre do you never read?

8. What is the best book you’ve read this year?

9. Do you prefer paperbacks, hardcovers, or e-books?

10. What is one book you wish everyone would read?

11. What book has influenced your life the most?