Do you find yourself appreciating different kinds of writing than before?

[sadya]

I disliked descriptions, I wasn't always fond of them. Until I read LOTR, which did have some nice descriptions. And I had read something of Virginia Woolf which I liked. But those were an exception, even years after that, I still disliked descriptions and I confess I sometimes didn't read them entirely!

 

Then I discovered writers like Gogol, de Balzac, Gorki, Proust and I read more of Woolf, that changed my understanding and appreciation of descriptions. There are writers whose descriptions alone are worth reading!

 

Some years ago I took a course to learn to write stories. That changed the way I read too. Trying to write seriously more stories yourself makes you appreciate certain writings even better, knowing difficulties and recognising certain efforts. The writing course also thaught different ways of writing and I then read some books about analysing literature. So when I read a book now, after reading it, I think about all that and try to view the book in light of a certain theory or understand the construction.

 

And what about the discussion which is becoming clich

Edited July 5, 2009 by sadya

[KaraM]

Before I started attending a reader's group with some older ladies, I used to read mainly fantasy novels. However, they opened my mind to a whole new world of books. Classics, autobiographies and many more. It was a bit of a chore to begin with. Then I realised that I was beginning to enjoy each new style of writing, each new type of book. I can't claim to like all books, but I certainly enjoy more than I did before.

[BookJumper]

Hm, interesting question.

 

I've never really been one to shy away from types of books on principle, except maybe as a young teenager when I felt too mature for children's books - a silly attitude I regretted when a broken foot forced me to read, and love, the first four HP books in a matter of two days.

 

The few types of books I still shy away from on principle are books that couldn't be more removed from my way of thinking, i.e. chick lit or historical fiction; the honourable exceptions in these fields (such as "The Diary of Bridget Jones") are always the result of insightful recommendations from friends who know my reading tastes inside out.

 

Most genres I like of my own accord (I grew up with speculative fiction - fantasy, horror, sci-fi - adventure tales, classics; in school I learnt to love poety and philosophy; as someone writing both fiction and verse from a very young age I've always savoured description), and I revel in rather than feel daunted by flowery language and the like.

 

I do get frustrated with books that don't have a message - such a message need not necessarily be earthshatteringly profound, however if a book does not contain a single grain of Truth then yes, I will feel like I have wasted my time.

[Nollaig]

I've found myself reading different kinds of books as a result of joining this forum and reading reviews and thoughts on books I would have otherwise never picked up. Having said that, I don't think I was ever really drawn to a particular style of writing - I've read YA, Fantasy, Horror, Classics, Crime/Thriller. Autobiographies etc over the years as I've wanted to. But I was definately less drawn to horror and crime/detective stories, because I always found them not scary and repetitive, respectively. Nowadays I really try to vary my reading, and find there's always something I like, be it flowery prose, witty narrative, realism or surrealism and so on. I think it's less that I appreciate different writing styles, than have lost prejudices against them.

 

As for meanings and truthes - thats a difficult one. I don't want to learn something from every single book I pick up. If I learn a fact, find a good quote, relate to a character, get caught up in an emotion, or simply get a glimpse of another perspective - that of the author, that's enough for me. I don't see books as something constructed necessarily to entertain and educate me, I see them as self expression and a window into the mind of other people. If I get nothing from a book, then it's not a waste, because I'm sure there's someone else out there who will and I've added to the list of things which don't move or teach me.

[Talisman]

The thing that has taught me how to appreciate different types of writing, was becoming a writer myself and meeting with and talking to other writers, I must admit that reading has also played a part, but it is mostly for me from the writing itself. Although I have met some writers through this site, they have mostly been from writing rather than reading sites. my two best writing friends both live overseas - one in Arizona and one in Spain, both of whom I have never met, but have influenced me in lots of different ways and offered invaluable help with marketing from passing on their contacts. Mind you, I have done the same for them - it is what it is all about.

[Pablo]

To be honest I wasn't entirely aware of the possiblities of historical fiction until I read Dan Simmons' The Terror.

 

It's fair to say that there's a new genre filling in the spaces among my book shelves now.

 

Elmore Leonard is worth a mention from me also, as I've never read any other crime offering before or since cruising through most of his collection.

[Ruth]

I never used to read historical fiction, but last year, someone suggested I read The Queen's Fool, by Philippa Gregory; that led to me trying other historical fiction writers, and now it's a genre I really enjoy.

 

I like books to challenge my thinking sometimes, but at other times I like to read something light hearted, just for the sheer pleasure of it, and if I take nothing more from a book than pure enjoyment, then I'm happy.

[Inver]

I think maybe I do thanks to lots of good recommendations on here, although I do still have lots of room for improvement as it were.

[sadya]

Thanks for the interesting replies everyone.

 

I have to say, that on this forum I also found many book titles. Reading opinions against and for certain books, actually did make me very curious to read those books myself. Also, these past years, I've been reading more classics than contemporary books, so I didn't keep up with the writers of our time. This forum is also interesting because of that, to find out what is being published now and when I read the positive and negative opinions or just what a book is about, it gives me an idea of our current writers and what is being published now. It's easier then to decide what to read of our contemporary writers.

 

Sometimes that also results in reading books I normally wouldn't have read or even noticed.

 

Movies are also one reason to read something different. I didn't think about that when I wrote my first post, but I've also noticed some writers or chosen some books after wachting or hearing about some movies. Often in these cases, when I read the book after watching the movie, I understood the movie better. Mostly I liked the books more than their movies, not because I had seen the movie first though, because when I read a book first which was later filmed, I also mostly like the book more.

[Scarlette]

I've never really shied away from any particular genre - although very gory novels tend to put me off right away. I've read a bit of everything from historical fiction to chick-lit to crime. There are a few genres I favour, but in general I'll read anything that appeals to me.

 

I have to say, however, that as a teenager, I only read vampire and romance novels.

[Beccles]

As I get older I am in more need of Fantasy I guess life is getting too tough and I need a real big escape. I still cannot get into the Classics.

[busy91]

I have always been an ecclectic reader, so I've read at least one book of every major genre. I used to shy way from Romantic Fiction (the nice kind not the bodice ripping kind), and then I read Jane Green and from there found there are some really good romantic authors. I've always liked sci-fi and fantasy, but didn't read it exclusively. I still find myself reading more memoir's/autobiographies than anything else though. I also was never big on horror, but I've learned to appreciate some of the authors works like King and some more supernatural stuff like from Koontz.

 

Being in on-line book forums, I get a lot of inspiration to read different things. I've even read a western, but don't think I'll be doing that again any time soon. LOL!