Likes and Dislikes

In case you couldn’t guess by the type of blog this is, I love to read. While there is a lot that I will read, I admit I have my favorites. I fully believe that my love of reading came from my maternal grandmother. I almost always saw her with a book in her hands. I remember always asking if I could read what she was, but was always told “no” because they were romances. When I was about 12 my grandma bought me my first Janette Oke book The Calling of Emily Evans. I remember being very excited that I was allowed to read it. A few years later my grandma passed away and I was given her entire collection of Janette Oke books. I miss her greatly but I treasure them for the connection they make me feel.

While there is a lot that I am willing to read, I have a pretty defined line for what I will and won’t read. I enjoy fiction but I prefer books that either are or could be real. It’s one of the reasons I thoroughly enjoy historical fiction. the most common times in history that I read about are the 1800’s (Civil War and Western Expansion), and WWII. I also enjoy the Amish romances which can often feel like historical fiction.

On the opposite end I’ve read a few dystopian books that I’ve enjoyed- but I am picky about them. (Yes, I have read the Hunger Games, and yes, I hate to admit that I liked them, although I vividly remember finishing the series and saying “there’s a series they’ll never make into a movie…” I liked them for the psychology and politics but not for the fact that they involved kids killing kids). I like dystopians as long as they still have a level of realism to them. I don’t like the ones that involve aliens and/or super-genetically-altered humans taking over.

Despite being a fully-grown adult I will admit that I can get nightmares from reading a book, so I try to be careful with what I read. Unfortunately I like thriller/suspense novels, so finding ones that aren’t too scary and/or intense can be hard to find (even in the Christian section). Often after reading a suspense novel or series, I will try to read a few less intense books to give my heartbeat a rest. (Most recent: The If I Run series by Terri Blackstock… that author can sure get the heart racing! Her books are so good though that I can’t seem to put them down either).

Aliens, ghosts, graphic/gory scenes, horror, vampires, dragons and fairies, and other similar topics are things that I avoid in books. I stay away from Fantasy and paranormal genres. I believe at least part of it is how real books feel to me as I’m reading and I don’t want to get scared. (It’s okay, you can call me a baby if you want).

Generally I read mostly Christian books, but there are a few secular authors that I enjoy reading. Kristin Hannah and Jodi Picoult are easily my top two.

While I admit that I recently caved and bought a kindle, I MUCH prefer reading a physical copy of a book. If you ask the population of avid readers, I guarantee you that the majority of them would agree with me. I love the feeling of a real book in my hands and yes, the book-smell is a real thing!  I have been fortunate to get some good books on my kindle, but if I’m ever given the choice I will always choose a physical copy.

So there’s a bit of what I like, but feel free to share what you like 🙂