Reading Trends?

Does anyone find themselves reading one kind of book at the moment? Currently I'm reading a lot of wizard/magician/magic books. I've been reading Harry Potter almost since it came out. I've just started reading Jim Butcher's Dresden Files series, as well as the Bartimaeus Trilogy, and I'm planning on reading Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell.

Last year at this time, I went through my Mount Everest phase. This past winter, it was a Jane Smiley phase. Now, I'm heading into a Geology phase, just wrapping up Krakatoa by Simon Winchester.

I read genres in waves. I went a whole summer a few years ago where I read nothing but Star Wars, which led to me finding a fantasy series about talking cats, which led to a mystery series about talking cats, which led to a mystery series set in the Middle Ages, which led to lots of Middle Ages/Crusades books....I'm still reading Middle Ages books now, and lots of H. G. Wells.

Oh, yes. Right now I'm reading romances (besides rereading Harry Potter). Before that it was murder mysteries. And then an action adventure stage. I had a biography stage too. Good golly, I'm old!

I'm in a Markus Zusak phase.

I didn't mean to pick up another of his books back to back, but I was just wowed by The Book Thief and just "happened" to find I am the Messenger staring at me while in the library yesterday. Couldn't resist!

I was re-reading the series The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant in preparation for the November release of the second book of The Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenant (quadrogy?).

I needed to take a break from it, so I've gotten back into the Books about Books genre. There are lots to catch up on there.

My wife tends to fixate on various subjects --rocks and minerals, poultry, the Renaissance, Frieda Kahlo, script illumination, the Vatican (St. Peter's Basilica, specifically), volcanoes (especially Krakatau), and currently Prehistoric cave art.

Message 6: WholeHouseLibrary -- Your wife must be even more interesting than you. I wonder what the connection is between prehistoric cave art and poultry. Who reads about poultry anyway?

# 7> People who raise chickens, maybe????
:-))

> #7
kageeh,
If you have the time, you should read my post in the Green Dragon topic:
Pets! What animals own you um, do you own?

And yeah, my wife is a VERY interesting woman (and I love her for it) -- but in a much nicer way than my ex was ~interesting~. I used to refer to the ex as "Thims" (Thorn in my side). My kids, out of respect, called her "Mom" to her face, but otherwise, she was "PiDa" -- Pain in Dad's ass. Their term; not mine.

I seem to be stuck on books about languages. I'm running out of books written for laymen and will soon need to turn to mugging college students for their linguistics textbooks.*

*I would never do that. I mean, I hope I wouldn't. Although, Notre Dame is just up the road....but, no, the books are safe. I think.

My tendency has always been to read a lot of fantasy, but I try to break it up with something else every few fantasy books. Several years ago I used romances, the last couple of years it has been mysteries, more recently it has been anything goes. There are so many different types of books recommended on LT and I've been reading those in between fantasy reads.

I always have to mix it up: a non-fiction, two completely different kinds of fiction (eg. a british classic and a modern fantasy for example) and a journal.

Ever since I finished Elantris, I find I have little patience for books that aren't real page-turners. Usually I can plow through the most dull narrative without even getting sleepy, but right now I just want something as gripping as Elantris was. (Really, I need my 5th Harry Potter back. A friend has it, so my re-reading has been delayed. :/ )

Normally, however, I have 3-8 books going at once, so I have trends, but I'm reading 5 trends at once. Starting books is a compulsion.

I'm back on fantasy again. Elantris was so good. I do tend to read in waves of genres, but then again, I sprinkle in Patrick O'Brian as sherbet whenever I just need to simply enjoy.

I try to read a variety of things, but sometimes I get cravings. In February of 2006, I was struck by a huge fantasy craving that has yet to abate, so I read a lot in that genre these days. In the past, I've gone through a couple of big mystery phases and the occasional literary fiction phase. I also had a period where I read a lot of graphic novels; oddly enough, this coincided with the point at which my library began carrying them.

#3
That happens to me too. One genre will lead to another. A few months back I was going through a mystery phase that stared out with Sue Grafton and branched off from there to authors such as Joanne Fluke. Then it morphed into sci-fi and then more specifically sci-fi with post-apocalyptic storylines which phased into horror fiction about apocalpytic settings such as Swan's Song and The Stand and The Rising. Somehow I went from sci-fi to reading classics such as Emma, The Brothers Karamazov, and Wuthering Heights.

Then I got tired of all the doom and gloom and way too serious books so I started on smutty romance novels...historical, contemporary and then recently paranormal.=) Which has led me into the current genre I'm reading now. Paranormal/urban fantasy. So right now I can't get enough of it and am reading Laurell K. Hamilton and may try books by Kim Harrison or Jim Butcher, or Charlaine Harris.

I never really have genre phases although I will sometimes read all I can by a certain author at once. i do mainly stick to fiction though, I need to branch out into non-fiction!

I am nowadays always up for reading a new book on dna/genetics/human migration, such as books by Spencer Wells and Bryan Sykes. And I'll read the final Harry Potter book after my wife finishes it in July. Otherwise I like to keep a mix going, with at least one fiction book being read.

I tend to read the same type of book for a while then switch to another genre. I'll also read mutilple books by the same author if I find a new one I like.

I kind of miss being able to have a specific focus to my reading. Living in a foreign country I'm limited to what I can find at the used bookshop. The selection actually isn't bad, but if I were at home, I'd be ravenously devouring everything I could about China during the Cultural Revolution> I'd also love to pursue my interest in Greenland and the Arctic, but those books are kind of tough to find...

To #2 - Windy

What did you think of Krakatoa?

#6 - quartet?

I specifically don't read in phases. I will read some Fantasy and then a mystery and the SF and then crime etc. The only exception is that I do like to read a series in order, so I will read all the Foreigner books for example, before moving on and reading all the Storm Front ones. I've just finished those and have started to re-read Sandkings while I wait for inspiration for my next read. Probably Thomas Hardy but Wind in the Willows might win out.