Nienna

Reading, for me, usually takes place on my way to and from work on the train. I spend about 30 minutes commuting each way, but what with changes etc. I only get about 20 minutes actually sitting down. In this time I usually read about 20 pages of a book, with lee-way for bigger/smaller pages and what have you. That's about a page a minute, which is pretty slow, really, when I look at it! It usually takes me about a month to finish a 500 pager. I know people who can finish a 300 page book on an hour plane journey. How the hell do they do it?! I love reading, but I guess I am a pretty slow reader, which is quite frustrating considering how exponentially my TBR pile is growing. How long would it take you guys to finish a book, and am I really the slowest reader ever?

Nipple - far more interesting! Fields or urban life?

I once bought a book in the airport that I saw in the "Recommended Reads" section of WH Smith. It was called Tourism and it had a very revealing picture of a lady's chest in an almost-transparent top. It wasn't necessarily the picture that attracted me to the book (I'm a girl, fyi) but the sort of quiet thrill of buying a book with clearly visible boobies on the front! Haha, I am an idiot.

When I was a teenager (about 15) I used to read all the Louise Rennison books, like Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging, and think they were hilarious. When I was about 19 or 20 I went back to them again because I wanted a laugh and to my greatest woe realised how immature they really are. I guess it's not a bad thing, nor am I slandering against Miss Rennison, because the books are aimed at mid-teens, so it makes perfect sense if you're that age, but I was a little disappointed when the veil of disillusionment (ie. the idea that I was mature when I was 15) was lifted.

In retrospect, I think this might just be a myth, as someone pointed out to me the other day, "What if their PIN is palindromic?" : Yesterday, however, I did learn something that is actually true - the word "disaster" has an astrological meaning and comes from the notion of displeasing the Roman/Greek god of the stars, Astraeus/Astraeos or his children, the Astra Planeta: DIS ASTER.

This was just delivered to my house yesterday! Is it good? I have to finish The Professor and Wolf Hall first, so it will be a while before I get around to reading it, but I have heard good things!

Bought 6 Penguin popular classics off Amazon: The Turn of the Screw - Henry James Crime and Punishment - Dostoyevsky Vanity Fair - William Thackeray The Thirty-Nine Steps - John Buchan Candide - Voltaire Les Miserables - Victor Hugo Yeessss I'm so excited! :3

For women I would actually say Kate Winslet. She's a fantastic actress and she always portrays her roles so well. She's never done anything crass or cheesy (as far as I know) and I've loved her ever since I saw Kenneth Brannagh's Hamlet, where she played the best Ophelia I have ever seen! She does have a habit of getting half naked though ... a lot. I'd also like to lay claim to Germain Greer, but as far as I know she is Australian. D:

Joining in! I've started doing a low-calorie diet. This website - https://www.purelifestyle.co.uk/Calculators.aspx?idx=5 - allows you to calculate your BMR (Base Metabolic Rate). This is the amount of calories you would burn, according to your height, weight and age, if you just lay around in bed all day. I'm trying to keep down to not much more than this amount of calories per day (I'm not being too strict). This way, theoretically, all the walking about and activities I do all day should burn more than this. It's sometimes a bit difficult to keep track and I have to do a lot of rounding-up because it's hard to find specific calorie amounts for everything I eat. However, although some people have told me that that it sounds like WAY too few calories to be taking in during the day, it does feel like a lot of food. For example, last Friday I had a small punnet of strawberries on my break (about 50 cals) then a ham and turkey Subway at lunch (about 350 cals) and at dinner I had honey chilli chicken and boiled rice from the takeaway (it was hard to quantify calories here, but I estimated about 700 or so, and that was rounding UP instead of down). That's still only 1100 calories, so I had room for snacks! I also try to only eat when I'm hungry, not just snack when I feel like food, which should help a lot.

In the UK, if you are ever mugged at an ATM and the mugger asks for your PIN, give it to them backwards. Apparently this gives them the money, but also sends an alert message to the police with the location of the cash point! Oddly enough I've never tried it out to see how true it is. :

Yep, a lot of the time dreams are like a reflection of what you have been doing and thinking of during the day, so naturally if your mind has been occupied with moulding the universe you enter in your book, your dreams will be busier, and will probably include characters and scenery described in your reading. Also, if you remember dreams more often it means that you've woken up during the REM stage of sleep (which is when you dream) - you are ONLY likely to remember dreams if you wake up during this stage. I'm no scientist, but I think I remember that if you wake up before your sleep cycle is complete (like during the REM stage) that you're more tired during the day. Conversely, if you don't remember many dreams, it probably means you're sleeping well, or at least deeply! Would it be true that most people who can recall vivid dreams on here are regularly tired or don't sleep well?

Spotted a good deal on Amazon that I thought you guys would like to be made aware of! All Wordsworth Classics have now been reduced to

Definitely the new Penguin Classics range (black ones). I actually have their version of Jane Eyre and it has a fantastic introduction and brilliant appendices, with clear references to parts of the book. (I tend to read all the appendices of a book if they have them! Very interesting. ) The JE appendices are fascinating!

Oh I forgot, also copies of Tolkien's The Hobbit, LOTR and Poems and Short Stories Deluxe editions (that look like this: http://www.tolkienshop.com/contents/media/hobbitdeluxe1976.jpg) , not really old (1976) but collectable!

I have four Daily News memorial edition Dickens'. They aren't dated but using the powers of the internet I've estimated them at about 1910. The paper stopped printing before 1950 I think, so they must be earlier than that at least. The pages are badly yellowed and a lot of them have stuck quite solidly together, just from non-use, so I like to imagine they've been sitting in some family's attic for the last 50 years and I'm the first to open them since. I also have a little school copy of Wuthering Heights from the 30's, a book of Robert Browning poetry from the 20's (I think) and an undated book of Love Poems that looks pretty old! My oldest book (which I've never actually read!) is a copy of a book on Buddhism from 1880, including a 19th century world map which I got pretty excited about!

I watched The Reader after continually hearing that it's a really good book (which I haven't read). It was okay but I was slightly dissapointed by the lack of anything really happening. I can imagine, though, how it has translated from the book and can guess that the book probably has a lot more depth, insight and background which was left out in the film (which tends to happen with a lot of adaptations that aren't heavily plot-driven). I could be wrong though! I'd give it a 6/10. I saw Kate Winslets boobies about 10 times.

I picked up Dissolution a while back. I think I got about 100 pages into it but remember thinking it wasn't that great. Looking back now, I don't know why I thought that. I think I'll give it another go at some point - I guess it just didn't capture me.

Fear and Loathing is one of my favourite books, Cookie! It's so surreal and flamboyant, had me laughing the whole way through. Keep going!

What a good idea! I might do that with Doors Open by Ian Rankin. I bought it to try out the crime genre, which I'm pretty badly-read in, and I am sorry to say it has single-handedly destroyed any inclination I had had to try that genre out. It will take me a long time to recover. The most boring waste of time I have ever thought up and endured. Similarly, if anyone with a swapsies thread wants it, let me know! I'm sure you'll all be jumping for it as clearly I have sold it so well.

Attempting to continue The Professor under my desk at work. Also, my boyfriend bought me a little old book of love poems to celebrate going out for 6 months. I have been perusing the Marvell poems including To His Coy Mistress - lovely... yeah, shut up!

...a pang of guilt at the realisation...

Mrs. Coulter from the His Dark Materials trilogy. And how could we miss Heathcliff! Certainly a character you're meant to genuinely love and hate at the same time.

Usually online via Amazon and Play, but I do prefer to shop from Waterstones, i.e. a real-life bookshop! =o I tend to spend a long time in there when I get the chance. I also like to browse e-bay for old copies books. I like the way old books were made, with gilding on the covers and threaded spines. Usually I only get cheap ones that have a bit of battering, or - as I like to call it - "character", but sometimes I do look at old first editions of classics which usually cost hundreds or thousands of pounds and imagine having enough money to one day own a copy. I don't know what it is, I just seem to like the history of old books. And the smell.

I'm a twenty-something Eton educated orphan in 19th century England who's just called upon his rich, obnoxious, estranged brother for employment.

For fantasy mixed with satire I'd recommend Terry Pratchett's Discworld series. Full of all the dragons, wizards and dwarves (dwarfs) you could want, but with a comedic twist, usually - especially more recently - with a little pinch of background social commentary to boot. Absolutely wonderful writer, although I should point out that it does help if you're from the UK as some of the jokes are very "British humour", but I don't imagine it takes too much away if you're not. As there are now 30 or so books in the series you can either start from the beginning, or start more recently - I would recommend books like Thud or Night Watch to start you off, but really it doesn't matter where you begin at all!