Elizabeth at An Adventure in Reading recently posted an A-Z list of favorite and newly favorite authors on her blog. I thought it sounded like fun, so I am copying her idea for today's Sunday Salon.

Who are my favorite or newly favorite authors? Or, as I think of it, what authors am I always excited to read, or am excited to read more books from in the near future?

A - Margaret Atwood and Poppy Adams (who had a strong debut with The Sister)
B - Stefan Merrill Block (brilliant debut with The Story of Forgetting) and Geraldine Brooks
C - Michael Chabon and David Czuchlewski (check out The Muse Asylum if you like psychological thrillers)
D - Tim Dorsey (recommend to all Floridians)
E - Leif Enger (I have not read his books, but I have Peace Like A River on my bookshelf that I can't wait to get to)
F -
G - Steven Galloway (read The Cellist of Sarajevo and you'll thank me for it later!), John Green (check out his YouTube videos too) and Sara Gruen
H - Khaled Hosseini and Travis Holland (The Archivist's Story was a phenomenal, edge-of-your-seat book)
I - Kazuo Ishiguro (a new-to-me writer; his Remains of the Day is on my TBR list this year)
J-
K- Barbara Kingsolver
L - Lorna Landvik (she writes fun chick lit with some substance)
M - Margaret Mitchell, Cormac McCarthy, Ian McEwan, Kate Morton (her The House at Riverton is gothic fiction at its best!) and Valerie Martin (looking forward to Property)
N - Irene Nemirovsky
O - Julie Otsuka (When The Empire Was Divine was absolutely divine)
P - Jodi Picoult
Q - Anna Quindlen
R - Anne Rice and Mary Doria Russell
S - Diane Setterfield, Shel Silverstein, Lee Smith, Nicholas Sparks and Matthew Sharpe (reading his Jamestown and snickering my way through it)
T - Anne Tyler
U-
V-
W-
Y-
Z- Carlos Ruiz Zafon and Markus Zusak (highly, highly, highly recommend The Book Thief and I Am The Messenger)

I have some letters missing - any suggestions?

The lovely Amy from The Sleepy Reader tagged me with such a challege, which originated here:

"As I read yet another book review of a memoir this weekend, my husband told me that I should write one. I said that my story would be much too short and rather boring so when I ran across the following book I decided it was just my speed. A six word memoir! Written by Larry Smith and Rachel Fershleiser, Not Quite What I was Expecting: Six Word Memoirs by Famous and Obscure is a compilation based on the story that Hemingway once bet ten dollars that he could sum up his life in six words. His words were- For Sale: baby shoes, never worn. There’s a video on Amazon with examples from the book, it sounds like a fun read! I’d like to start a six word memoir meme and here are the rules:

1. Write your own six word memoir

2. Post it on your blog and include a visual illustration if you’d like

3. Link to the person that tagged you in your post and to this original post if possible so we can track it as it travels across the blogosphere

4 .Tag five more blogs with links

5. And don’t forget to leave a comment on the tagged blogs with an invitation to play!"

MY SIX-WORD MEMOIR

"Life is short. Smile a lot." (and these guys always make me smile!)

Now for my tags. Ready, set, go.

1) Elizabeth (Raidergirl3)
2) Julie
3) Phoebe
4) Megan
5) Teddy Rose
6) anyone else who wants to be concise about his/her life

Teddy Rose tagged me for the very popular and fun 123 meme. The rules are simple:

1. Pick up the nearest book (of at least 123 pages)
2. Open the book to page 123
3. Find the fifth sentence
4. Post the next three sentences
5. Tag five people

So, from Choosing Sophie by Leslie Carroll, here is what appears on page 123:

"Oh, lookie, it's a cute little house!" he said in a high voice, which I suppose was intended to mimic my own.

Dusty came between the two limited partners and laid a hand on each of their shoulders. "All right, knock it off, you two. We've got a team to put together here."

We settled into seats behind home plate. Farina Arena seemed a ghost town with only a handful of us in the stands.

Notice the lovely mid-paragraph shift from first to third person? I underlined for your quick reference. This is the what I am dealing with in this book, which I am reviewing for CurledUp. Where the heck is the editor?

Okay, okay. I'll broach that subject later in the review.

So, now I am supposed to tag five people for this meme, but I think I am the last one in blogland who hasn't completed this meme. So, if you are interested in this meme and you haven't completed it yet, consider yourself tagged!

Both Lisa at Book. Lists. Life and Megan from Leafing Through Life picked me for the same meme about reading. Thanks, fellow bloggers, for thinking of me! And without further adieu,

Which book do you irrationally cringe away from reading, despite seeing only positive reviews? I have to admit it's War and Peace. A lot of blog buddies are reading and enjoying it. It's too much of a doorstop for me to tackle though.

If you could bring three characters to life for a social event (afternoon tea, a night of clubbing, perhaps a world cruise), who would they be and what would the event be? I would definitely have to include Scarlett and Rhett - just to keep things lively - and perhaps Rosie the elephant from Water for Elephants. She is sweet with a nice vengeful streak. And maybe Scarlett could ride on her back.

(Borrowing shamelessly from the Thursday Next series by Jasper Fforde): you are told you can’t die until you read the most boring novel on the planet. While this immortality is great for awhile, eventually you realise it’s past time to die. Which book would you expect to get you a nice grave? Hmm, it would be hard to discern what is boring unless I have tried to read it. But, I don't relish the thought of dying so I would want it to be a long book - but I also don't want to be bored, because who wants to die feeling bored? Okay, I choose Moby Dick. Long and somewhat boring. but I would die with the best vocabulary on the planet.

Come on, we’ve all been there. Which book have you pretended, or at least hinted, that you’ve read, when in fact you’ve been nowhere near it? There are a lot of books that I have studied in college and I didn't read a word of them. I could tell you the story line, characters, literary tropes and significance of many books, including Frankenstein by Mary Shelly, The Scarlett Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood and so many others. I have often thought about creating a personal challenge to "read the books I was supposed to read in college but never did." Come on gang, doesn't that sound like fun?

As an addition to the last question, has there been a book that you really thought you had read, only to realise when you read a review about it/go to ‘reread’ it that you haven’t? Which book? Nope.

You’re interviewing for the post of Official Book Advisor to some VIP (who’s not a big reader). What’s the first book you’d recommend and why? (if you feel like you’d have to know the person, go ahead of personalise the VIP). I  would start with The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein and take it from there.

A good fairy comes and grants you one wish: you will have perfect reading comprehension in the foreign language of your choice. Which language do you go with? French. Doesn't everything sound beautiful in French?

A mischievious fairy comes and says that you must choose one book that you will reread once a year for the rest of your life (you can read other books as well). Which book would you pick? Oh, easy, easy, easy. The Book Thief.

I know that the book blogging community, and its various challenges, have pushed my reading borders. What’s one bookish thing you ‘discovered’ from book blogging (maybe a new genre, or author, or new appreciation for cover art-anything)? I discovered a whole world of interesting and fascinating fellow readers who I adore, but they are all enablers. Every last one of them. THANK YOU BLOG BUDDIES!

That good fairy is back for one final visit. Now, she’s granting you your dream library! Describe it. Is everything leatherbound? Is it full of first edition hardcovers? Pristine trade paperbacks? Perhaps a few favourite authors have inscribed their works? Go ahead-let your imagination run free.  I am not a keeper of books. This has mostly to do with space, but I also don't reread books so it seems kind of wasteful to keep them. So, I think I would want my perfect library to be one that others can access. They can request a book, and it would magically be on the shelf. That would be cool.

Okay, now I get to tag other bloggers for this meme. So, ARC Angels out there, it's your turn to play.

I received this survey through e-mail and thought it would be fun to add to my blog. I added some graphics too, including a baby picture of yours truly at 13 months old (everyone say "Awww...").

Feel free to copy and paste into your blog if you want to reveal some childhood trivia of your own.


Your birth and family

Where were you born?

Poughkeepsie, NY

What is your birth order?

I am the youngest of three (older sister and brother).

What is the first name of your mom and dad?

Ann and Bill

Did you live in a house, apartment or trailer?

We lived in a four bedroom, one bathroom house in Newburgh, NY, until we moved to Florida when I was six.

Toys and Games

Did you have a favorite toy or stuffed animal that you slept with?

Yes, I had a raggedly old monkey and Minnie Mouse. The monkey was “accidentally” thrown away, but I got a new Minnie every year from Disney World.

What was your favorite board game?

Aggravation

Barbie or GI Joe?

Barbie, for sure!

Getting Around

What did your first bike look like?

It was a purplish/pinkish sparkly Huffy with a floral-print seat. No basket. No bell. Just me and the wind, baby.

Did you roller skate or skateboard?

I roller skated. I had a shiny red roller skate top from Zayre’s that I like to sport when I was skating. I was definitely not coordinated enough for the skateboard.

Was everything within walking distance from your house?

No, I either had to ride my bike or have my parents drive me around.

Sports and Entertainment

Did you play any team sports?

Again, not coordinated!

What was your first record, 8-track, cassette or CD?

My first record was Olivia Newton-John’s “Have You Ever Been Mellow?” (1975!)

What was your favorite TV show?

As a preschooler, I liked “Sesame Street.” When I hit school-age, I liked Chips, Bionic Woman, Charlie’s Angels, Wonder Woman (the magic lasso!) and the Dukes of Hazzard.

What was your favorite movie?

I don’t really remember watching many movies as a youngster. I remember seeing E.T., The Rescuers and The Fox and the Hound – and they all made me cry. The first “grown up” movie that I remember seeing in the theater was Grease.

In school, every year, we had to watch that movie about the red balloon. It was torture. No words. Just some boy following a balloon around the city. Why would you show a six-year old this movie?!

What was your favorite book?

I was an avid reader – even back then. I started reading Nancy Drew books and Shel Silverstein poetry in the 4^th grade. Before that, I read what I could from the library. I remember a favorite story about a girl named Sarah and her cloak – not sure what the title was, but it was a beautiful story about a young girl and her dad who were pioneers traveling out west.

School memories

Who was your kindergarten teacher?

I had two. My first one was Mrs. Ciden. Then we moved to Florida, and I had Mrs. Green. All I remember about Mrs. Ciden is that she pulled hair – hard.

Were you ever sent to the principal’s office?

Nope. I was a good kid.

Did you ever win a spelling bee?

Yes! In the second grade. I got a poster for a prize – cute cocker spaniel with “When’s Recess?” on top. I loved it!

What was your favorite subject?

Language arts and social studies

Are you still friends with anyone from your childhood?

No, we have all lost touch.

And finally

What is your favorite childhood memory?

I had a great childhood with lots of good memories. One memory that stands out is riding my bike around my grandparents’ motor home park in Florida. They owned the park, so I had free reign to drive around it. It was like my own little town. The yellow trailer was the bank, the white and brown one was the mayor's house, the white and green one was the post office. I would stop at intersections, make blinker noises when I wanted to turn and always stop by the watermelon patch to thump on the melons. Just call me the princess of the trailer park...