Interviewing Janie

Janie is another of my best friends and favorite people. She is one of the first people I met on Vox and in real life (Jenny is the first, as you may remember).

She’s been blogging for over a decade.  “Started in November 2001 at Diaryland. I really thought it was weird to have an online `diary,’ but a friend talked me into it.”

Like most people, she loves the community she’s found online.

“I’ve made awesome lifelong close friends with so many bloggers. People I couldn’t imagine my life without. Another great part is taking a few hours and reading old posts, especially the ones about my kids. I forgot so much, so it’s nice to go back and read about something we did together as a family or something cute one of the kids said when they were younger.  Worst part, actually finding the time to write. I know it’s important, I just put it off way too much. Months go by and I’ve written nothing and that makes me sad.”

She’s taking a pass on the mandatory book.  “The book that really changed my thinking was `The Pursuit of Holiness’ but I wouldn’t make everyone read it, because I think you’ve got to be in a place where you are ready to read it.”

The Pursuit of Holiness is also one of her top five books.  (Number two, behind The Bible.)  The other three are A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, Jane Eyre and The Poisonwood Bible.

She also loves historical nonfiction.  “I really enjoy historical books when they are written like a novel. That’s got to have a name. I loved Manhunt by James Swanson and The Devil In The White City by Erik Larson.”

I got Devil in the White City for Christmas and am excited to read it, especially since Janie loved it. :)

In 2012, she’s looking forward to reading “whatever you recommend.”

She’d love to chat with “ Scott Kelby. He writes books about photography and I have lots of questions!”

In case you didn’t know, Janie’s recently started a photography business!  Her pictures are awesome, and so you should book her for sessions.  You can learn more here!

That is why I love Janie. :)  She always has the perfect thing to say.  *slips check into mail*

(Another reason to love Janie?  She loves 30 Rock!)

She’s also a big movie fan, but can’t get too much more specific.  “Favorite movie? That’s like asking me to pick a favorite out of my five kids. Favorite actor and actress depends on whether I think we could be friends (I know, I’m weird), so Tina Fey and Matt Damon.”

Thanks, Janie! :)

Interviewing Cori

Cori is another of my most favorite people.  You may remember that she came to visit me (and also our friends Julia and Janie, plus Steph who was also in from out of town) last fall.  (I just went to re-read that post and now I’m sad.  COME BACK, CORI!)

Anyway.

Cori’s been blogging for almost eight years.

“I created my first blog on Xanga in 2004 when I moved to Boston to keep in touch with family.  Then I moved over to Vox when I moved back to California (I miss that community so much!) and to WordPress once it became clear that Vox was falling to pieces.  I maintain a lot of my Vox friendships, both online and in real life.”

The best part about blogging? Easy.  “Friends. Seriously, you all are great.  Also, I really like being able to track my life in a tangible way.  I like my behind-the-scenes bok tracking spreadsheets and the joy of composing some really great posts.  Worst:  Feeling liek there’s not enough time to write about all the things I want to write about.  Also, I SUCK at photography—I keep making all tehse great things and the photos look like crap.  First world problems, eh?”

Her favorite movie is “Casablanca…with To Kill a Mockingbird following a close second.  As far as actors and actresses go, I don’t have any that I would consider must-see.  I’m much more of a is-the-actual-movie-good sort of girl.”

Cori is a hardcore reader, but unlike me, she tends to read more Deep, Important Books.

“I know this is going ot make me sound like a crazy Christian, but I really think that the Bible is something that everyone should tackle.  First of all, it informs so much of what we read, how we think, and how we live—even if you’ve never read it before and/or are not a Christian.  Second, Jesus isn’t anything like most of the Christians you see on TV.  He’s actually a pretty awesome guy.”

Her five favorite authors are Jane Austen, Bill Bryson, Mary Doria Russell, C.S. Lewis and Donald Miller.

“I read from so many genres that it’s hard to pick a favorite.  I read a lot of general fiction, a fair amount of sci-fi, some YA and a lot of non-fiction, memoir being my favorite sub-genre.”

In 2012, “Carlos Ruiz Zafon has a new book coming out in May—The Watcher in the Shadows.  Can’t wait!”

She’d really like to meet Donald Miller.

“I’m not sure if I’d like to interview as much as I’d like to just sit down and chat with Donald Miller.  His books have changed my life, my faith and the way I view the world.  It was like someone had finally saw what I see when I look at Jesus—humble, not judgmental and loving beyond measure.  He made it okay to be one of those Christians who wasn’t all up in the business of politics and screaming on every street corner that The End Is Nigh and Thou Must Repent! Instead, he showed how to just live out my faith day-to-day by loving the people around me like Jesus did.  Donald Miller was a breath of fresh air when I really needed one.”

Thanks, Cori!

Interviewing Bekki

Bekki is one of my best friends and MOST FAVORITE PEOPLE. (As a note, I was typing too quickly and initially put in “fiends,” and while she will likely find that funny, it is not at all accurate.)

She started blogging in April 2007, because ”my good friend Lindsey kept saying `You MUST!’ and finally I believed her. I miss Vox, and the community there.”

While she is not as active as she used to be (Bekki is uber-busy all the time), she still enjoys blogging.

“Best part about blogging is the community that you create around you. I’ve made many friends and had great conversations with people over the years. I appreciate that so very much. I’m an extreme extrovert, and I often process things externally. I think them through by talking them over with friends. Blogging to me is another way of doing that. I can process, and have a discussion. The worst parts are twofold. i) I live in the boonies, and have no interwebs at my house so I don’t get to do it as much as I’d like and ii)when people won’t have a conversation, instead the yell their opinion at you.”

She has a hard time narrowing down her mandatory book.

“I try to get everyone to start reading Terry Pratchett’s discworld series. Currently, though, I’ve been telling everyone to read `The Sparrow’ by Mary Doria Russell. That being said, I think I can’t just say one book. I know that not everything will appeal to everyone, so I try to find something that will engage and challenge everyone I know. That often is unique to each person. I’ve given away more copies of `Blue Like Jazz’ by Donald Miller than I have anything else. I bought that book over 16 times, and still don’t have my own in my possession. I like it because I think Miller’s honesty undoes peoples walls, self-protections and boundaries, and then you can have a real conversation about life and faith where we’re all raw and real. I like those kinds of conversations. They’re so much more intimate and precious.”

Likewise, it’s hard to list favorite books and authors.

“I find it SO tough to do this. Because it’s so much more faceted than just ‘these are the best’. I mean, best what? For instance, lets look at spiritual books. When I want to deepen my faith, the best is Dallas Willard, if I want to push the boundaries, Brian Mclaren, the best to identify with and then be encouraged by is Donald Miller. The best alternative to church is Shane Claiborne. None of these is the best, but all of them are the best for a moment, or a genre, or a direction. Fiction is the same for me. I need to be intrigued, and challenged, and deepend, and yet have some simple, easy thrills. Every once in a blue moon I even need romance. So. best? Hmm. I’ll kind of tweak this and give my twist on things I’ve read in the last year:  Best use of imagination, lore and mythology: Neil Gaiman in American Gods.  Most haunting, taught, lovely, original, wrestle with faith in the form of a novel: Mary Doria Russel in The Sparrow.  Best laugh out loud twist on drinking, fighting, stealing scotsmen and witches: Terry Pratchett’s Tiffany Aching discworld subset – Wee Free Men, Hat Full of Sky, Wintersmith, I Shall wear Midnight.  Best true story of a woman who defied all odds, took on a dictator and won an Nobel Peace Prize : Leemah Gwobee and Mighty be our Powers.  Best childhood book that I revisited as an adult and am so amused by : A.A. Milne and Winnie the Pooh. (especially as someone who is part Brit. This book is full of laugh out loud amusement).”

For Bekki, 2012 is the year of the sequel: “Gregory Maguire has a new one out in the Wicked series. Divergent’s sequel, the new Terry Pratchett, the sequels to the Sparrow, Delirium, Across the Universe, Clockwork Prince, City of Angels… etc. So many sequels. Truth is I have a stack of books just waiting for me because I had no time to read books for pleasure during the last school semester. I’m just excited that reading can re-enter my world again.”

Bekki ALSO has Ready Player One waiting for her, so I hope that moves to the top of the stack. 

She doesn’t have a favorite reading genre.  It’s actually easier for her to say what she doesn’t like.

“I don’t have a favorite genre. I pretty much only avoid westerns. Paranormal has to work to get me, but I’m not opposed to it. Truth is, I’m so ADD that I have to have several genres going at once, so that I can read what I’m in the mood for. I’m so tickled I got a Kindle Fire as a graduation present, because it will cut down on the weight of my purses. I’ve been known to have upwards of 6 different books going at any given time. Mostly they’re all different genres.”

Not surprisingly, the author she’d most like to interview is Terry Pratchett, “because he has such an ironic and yet passionate way of looking at the world. Also, he’s got early onset Alzheimers, and I’d love to speak with him before he’s not there any more.”

Bekki’s also a huge movie fan.  She has movie marathons that can put mine to shame, and she’s one of only a few people who can say that.

“I do have some favorite actors and actresses. Idris Elba is way high on my list at the moment. His turn as DI Luther, and his role on The Big C have only heightened my appreciation for him. Daniel Craig is climbing my radar. Michael Fassbender is proving very versatile and talented, Alan Rickman, always, and James Macavoy had my heart since Becoming Jane. Far and away, though, is my deep love of the former Dr. Who, David Tennant. I will also always have a sly appreciation for Kevin Spacey. Actresses, hmmm. Natalie Portman, Audrey Tatou, Maggie Smith, and Helena Bohnam Carter all impress me either with their morphability, or brilliant character acting.  My favorite movie always changes, but often the following can be found in the top five: (in no particular order) Fight Club, The Fountain, A Room with a View, Dogma, The Princess Bride and Best in Show.”  (Yes, there are actually six.)

Thanks, Bekki! :)

Interviewing Tom

Tom is easily the funniest blogger I know.  Odds are, if you read his blog, he’s also the funniest blogger YOU know.

He’s been blogging since 2007.   “I’d had over a year of complete writer’s block, and I was trying to work through it. A couple of friends cajoled me into trying blogging, and I landed at Vox. Previously, I had written similar posts, and e-mailed them to various friends. The technology finally caught up with my insanity.”

He’s a fan of blogging but, like most of us, still misses Vox.

“I don’t really have a downside to blogging, except that I wish I were more prolific. Twice in the past 15 months, I did “every day” blogging challenges, and I enjoyed them both, even if some of the entries were much better than others. I miss the neighborhood feel of Vox for two reasons.  One, it was easier to keep up with my friends and neighbors. I could just go through my neighborhood page and see who updated when. No problem. I felt a richer sense of belonging. Also, I liked the multiple access levels. I made a lot of friends through Vox. I don’t feel like I’ve made as many since, and I find more of my energy going to Twitter.”

His one book of choice is “`Paradise Postponed,’ by John Mortimer. It’s my favorite book, and I never have anyone with whom to discuss it. It’s very British, and very dry, but I have loved it since I read it for Contemporary Lit class in college. My professor was as geeked about it as I was. The difference is that I don’t have a class full of Senior lit majors who read whatever I tell them.”

His favorite books are “Paradise Postponed”, by John Mortimer; “Franny and Zooey”, by J.D. Salinger; “A Prayer for Owen Meany,” by John Irving; “The Millenium Trilogy,” by Stieg Larsson; “American Tabloid,” by James Ellroy and favorite authors are James Ellroy, Joyce Carol Oates, Stephen King, Tim Dorsey and J.D. Salinger.

“I list them separately.  I’ve read just about everything Ellroy and Salinger have published and I like it all (although I think `Catcher in the Rye’ is far from Salinger’s best). Joyce Carol Oates could write a grocery list and it would be spectacular, but I haven’t read a majority of her work, not by the longest shot. Stephen King, I’ve never put down one of his books.  I like some better than others, but his average quality level to me is high (Except `Tommyknockers,’ in my humble opinion). Tim Dorsey is a former Tampa Tribune reporter who now writes manic, hysterical crime fiction. His main character is Serge Storms, a spree killer and gleeful lunatic.  I crack up at every book, and I love that many of them are set in my backyard. (note: Tampa-St. Petersburg, Florida; NOT my actual backyard, which is largely boring.)

In 2012, he’s most excited to read the new Tim Dorsey (Pineapple Grenade).

He reads a lot of different genres.

“I read just about anything. I’m reading `The Hunger Games,’ which is dystopian. I loved the `Millenium Trilogy,’ just for being quirky. I’ve read a lot of different mystery series—the Stephanie Plums, Serge Storms, Jack Reachers, Dave Robicheauxs, the FBI Series by Catherine Coulter, etc. I also like more Literary Fiction, going back to various classics (`Dracula,’ `Breakfast at Tiffany’s,’ e.g.), nonfiction, all manner of stuff. Except romance. Or western.”

He has several authors he’d like to interview.

“I’d like to interview Kate Chopin and Radclyffe Hall. Both women were ostracized for their scandalous works. In “The Awakening,” Kate Chopin’s protagonist, Edna, was shown to have—GASP—sexual feelings. Radclyffe Hall was—GASP, also–openly Lesbian, and her best-known novel, “The Well of Loneliness” featured a female protagonist who—SWOON—was attracted to other women. “The Well of Loneliness” was not even remotely explicit, but it was subjected to an obscenity trial upon its 1928 UK publication. (Thankfully, the book is back in print)  I admire them for their perseverance, especially when today’s novels have some amazingly graphic content.  Also, I wouldn’t mind interviewing F. Scott Fitzgerald or Dylan Thomas, as long as I didn’t have to pick up the bar tab.”

As we learned during one period of Tom’s “blog every day” sprees, his favorite movie is Casablanca.  What isn’t as widely known is that his favorite actress is Audrey Hepburn.  He can’t pick an absolute favorite actor, but it’s either Humphrey Bogart, Spencer Tracy, Kevin Spacey, Morgan Freeman, John Hurt or Liam Neeson.

Thanks, Tom! :)

Interviewing Lennis

Lennis is another of my favorite book bloggers (and Twitter friends).  I’m pretty sure she’s read everything (well, not YA, but of the “grownup books”?  She knows EVERYTHING.  I am jealous and impressed in equal measure).  So if you need a good recommendation, ask Lennis.

She’s been blogging since 2006, first on Vox and then on WordPress. 

“The best thing about blogging, especially from starting out in a community like our dear departed Vox, is the people you meet. I love that I have met all of these people because we have shared interests. One day, I hope to actually meet some of them in real life.  The worst thing is probably the guilt I feel that I have let my blog go so long without posts recently. I shouldn’t feel bad about it since it is a hobby, but I do hope to blog more this year. I hope everyone likes baby pictures.”

I told her this in a note, but I LOVE baby pictures and she literally cannot post enough of them.  (Lennis and her husband are expecting their first child, Margaret. Again, Lennis—I cannot wait to see pictures!)

Her one book of choice is “Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting by in America by Barbara Ehrenreich. I read this several years ago, and it changed the way I see the world. Ehrenreich is a sociologist who decides to embark on a project to see what it is like to live on poverty-level wages. Even though I’ve always been a bleeding heart liberal, this book really opened my eyes to how the really poor in America live. I don’t see how anyone could read this book and think it is acceptable that we leave the poorest to live in this manner.”

(I can second that; I read it several years ago and it’s an amazing, heartbreaking book.)

Her five favorite authors are Beverly Cleary, Marian Keyes, Kurt Vonnegut, Ernest Hemingway and Sylvia Plath.

In 2012, she’s most excited to read Lauren Groff’s new novel, Arcadia.  “I loved The Monsters of Templeton and can’t wait to read her new novel. I’m also looking forward to reading picture books to Margaret!”

Favorite genre of books to read?

“I have to cheat here and mention two genres… Without meaning to sound elitist at all, I am usually much more satisfied when reading adult literary fiction because the writing is usually great and it makes me think. When I need an easy read, or I’ve been in a slump where I can’t get into anything I’ve picked up, I check out a mystery. I can always count on mystery fiction when I need a book I can fly through without much effort. I read a lot of different genres though to be prepared for work.”

She’d love to interview Marian Keyes.  “ I think she would be a riot if her writing is any indication of her personality.”

But when it comes to movies, it’s all different.

“I kind of have the opposite approach to movies and reading.  I love serious books, but prefer light and fun movies. I do still want great acting though.”

She likes Love, Actually and “Tom Hanks (does anyone NOT like him?), Katharine Hepburn.  It took me a really long time to decide between Tom Hanks, Liam Neeson, and Colin Firth. They are all so versatile and likable.”

I think I’d pick Tom Hanks, too.  I love all three, but Big puts him over the top.  (Blog idea: the first time Margaret watches Big. And The Princess Bride. I know it’s years away, but maybe start planning now?)

Thanks, Lennis! :)

Interviewing Trish

I first met Trish on Vox.  I hope all of you have a friend like Trish, because she is AWESOME.  She’s smart, funny and incredibly sweet.  Also, she has a knack of always saying the right thing, the thing that will let you look at things in a completely new way.

She’s been blogging since 2005 and joined Vox in 2006.  “ I was one of the many ‘beta-testers’ when VOX was still an invitation only blog site. When VOX closed its doors I went back to Blogger for a very short amount of time and now I do the majority of my blogging on WordPress and I have another one at TypePad. I can not even begin to explain how much I miss VOX.”

Trish is a fan of commenting, which I should probably be better about.

“Best: having someone come along and comment on any of my ramblings.  Worst: 1) Wondering if the ‘reader’ can figure out just exactly what I’m rambling about. 2) Waiting on someone to acknowledge that you just poured your heart out, rambled on about the past, or verifying that the way I’m feeling is an okay feeling—even if it is a bit weird.”

She’s a reader, too (like everyone I know, right?), but would use her power for good if she could force everyone to read a book.  “This is a very hard question to answer because I know not everyone would get the same thing out of a book that I would. If you are a young animal lover then I would suggest reading Anna Sewell’s Black Beauty. Followed by all of Marguerite Henry’s the Misty of Chincoteague series, or the full story of Bambi by Felix Salten. I know that most boys would not enjoy those books.  As an adult, once again knowing that not everyone likes the same types of books, I would suggest anything by Jodi Picoult. If you want to cry and be depressed, then you should read nearly anything written by Nicholas Sparks. If suspense is what you are looking for, read a Mary Higgins Clark story. “

(See?  She’s so nice!  Because if I could make you read something, I have a whole long list.  Not that I’ve thought about it.)

Her top five authors are Laura Ingalls Wilder, Jodi Picoult, Mary Higgins Clark, Louisa May Alcott and A.A. Milne. 

Winnie the Pooh was one of her favorite books as a kid, and even now.  “I have to wonder if one of the reasons I love this book so much is because a great aunt/uncle owned a used/antique book store and I got to pick ONE book and take it home. The Complete Tales of Winnie the Pooh is what I chose) I picked that book the summer of 1975. I was 11.”

In 2012, she’s excited to read the new Mary Higgins Clark (they tend to be released near her birthday and/or Mother’s Day, which is convenient for gift-giving!) and the new Outlander book by Diana Gabaldon.

“Since her books take her quite a while to write a fan must wait two or three and sometimes even four years for the next book to come out. It was only a few years ago that I discovered her series. As I was reading the first book, I ordered the next three in the series before finishing the first one, then when I was in the middle of the fourth book I ordered the rest of the series. It took me quite a while to read the whole series, from January to mid-August(?) that when I was finished I found myself wondering what Jamie and Claire were up to and I missed having them in my life.”

Trish is pretty easy to please when it comes to books.  Sort of.

“I am not one for horror, science fiction, or mystery. I do love a nice suspense book (Mary Higgins Clark) but am not one for chick lit—it’s just too….I don’t know, but I can’t read it. I read some YA (Harry Potter and the Twilight series) I like historical romance but not one that is built around sex. What genre is Jodi Picoult?* You know, I don’t have one specific genre—I like a wide variety of books and it just depends on my mood as to who or what I want to read next.”

If she could spend time with any author, she has no problem whatsoever picking one.

“I have had conversations in my head with Laura Ingalls Wilder, since I first discovered her books in 4th grade. I have to pick her. I would love to talk about what life was really like all those many years ago. I would express my condolences that there aren’t any direct descendents of Ma and Pa. I would ask her how she felt about growing up and being a grown-up during such a rapidly growing and astonishing fast paced era. (horse and wagon as a means of travel to driving a car, manual labor in the fields to tractors and other mechanized field equipment, letters few and far between vs regular postal delivery and even the telephone.) I would discuss with her the problem of having a blind/handicapped sister and wonder why none of her other sisters ever got married. I would want to talk about her baby brother who died at such a very very young age. I would ask about her life as a married woman, if there was a reason she and Almanzo only had the one child (Rose Wilder Lane) and ask her about her life in Missouri with the apple orchard. Yup. If I could talk/interview any author it would be Laura Ingalls Wilder.”

Her favorite kids’ movie is Bambi.  Narrowing down a grownup movie is harder.

“It’s hard to put down just one as there are several that if I see them on TV while channel-surfing I end up stopping and watching the rest of the movie and will deal with the commercials. However, the thought of putting the DVD in and watching the movie sans commercials is not something that I want to do. (I guess the commercial breaks give me time to think I should be doing something else.) Those movies are: Forrest Gump, Men in Black, Fried Green Tomatoes, The Fugitive, The Patriot, and Titanic.  *Actor/Actress: Tommy Lee Jones, Mel Gibson (before his meltdown or whatever craziness that was) and…well, there really isn’t a specific actor that I *have* to see the movie just because he’s in it. However, there are a couple of actresses that I have to see in just about any movie she’s in: Drew Barrymore and Kirsten Dunst are the two that immediately come to mind.”

* = I would consider Jodi Picoult to be general fiction, but apparently she’s marketed as “women’s fiction.”

Interviewing Michelle

Michelle (it’s so hard not to call her Michelle Erin, because that’s who she is on Twitter!) is one of my favorite book bloggers.  Every time I step outside of my literary comfort zone, it’s because she’s talked about a book and I thought, “Oh, wow, I HAVE to read that!” even if it’s something I had no interest in before.

She’s been blogging since 2007 but her “blog brand” really started in 2009.  (Obnoxious technical speak mine; Michelle is not pretentious.)

The best part about blogging is “all of the wonderful people I’ve met.”

The worst part?  “The drama.  Except I kind of love the drama.”

Her one book that everyone should read is “Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer. Not because I think everyone should be a vegetarian but because I think everyone should make informed decisions about where our food comes from and what we put in our bodies. *steps off soap box*”

Her favorite books from last year were Ready Player One (Ernest Cline), The Weird Sisters (Eleanor Brown), Shift (Jeri Smith-Ready), Deadline (Mira Grant) and Everything Beautiful Began After (Simon Van Booy). 

In 2012, she’s most excited to read Shine (Jeri Smith-Ready), followed by Pandemonium (Lauren Oliver), Black Out (Mira Grant) and Insurgent (Veronica Roth).  2012 will be the year of the sequel for Michelle (and for me).

“I  read a pretty wide selection of books but I guess the YA Dystopian ones are really my favorite.”

She doesn’t do author interviews, but given a choice?  “RL Stine.”

YES.  :)  And I think I’d die if I really COULD interview RL Stine for this blog.  (Michelle has been pushing for me to interview him.  I’ll broach the subject when I meet him at BEA this year*)

* = I don’t know for sure that he’ll be there, but he was there the last two years, so it feels like a safe bet.

Interviewing Jenny

Jenny was one of the first friends I made in Baltimore (and on Vox).  She’s incredibly funny and smart and an all-around great friend.  We have several blogging projects together, so if you want to know our thoughts on Laura Ingalls Wilder or VC Andrews (which is currently abandoned but soon to be resurrected!), click the links.

She’s been blogging since 2004 and is on her fifth blog* and third blogging platform (TypePad to Vox to WordPress).

“My Vox blog was wonderful and kind of horrible at the same time. If I had saved my posts – which I didn’t – you would be able to read about the gradual and then abrupt decline of my marriage. There was a lot of pain in that blog. But I did meet some truly wonderful people because of it – Kelly, Terri and Janie. I had to shut down that blog and start a new Vox blog after my mom found it. All the privacy functions in the world can’t save you if you’ve left yourself logged in on your mother’s computer. Whoops! ”

Obviously Jenny’s a huge fan of blogs and blogging.

“I can say anything. That’s the best part. The worst part is that I can say anything. Ha! I tend to be a bit too open and honest on my blog. It’s gotten me in trouble with family members more than once. Maybe work, too. I’m not sure.”

Jenny is a total movie buff.  This is probably one of the reasons we get along so well.

“I don’t know if I can pick just one film. I love movies! Favorites include Secretary, Ben Hur, Pulp Fiction, Jaws, The Princess Bride, An Affair to Remember, Please Don’t Eat the Daisies, Gone with the Wind, A Quiet Man… I could go on and on and on!  Daniel Craig is my favorite (currently working) actor. Gabriel Byrne hasn’t done much lately, has he? I also love Cary Grant, John Wayne and James Spader (when he was hot – Robert California doesn’t do it for me).  Hmm… actresses I like include Helen Mirren, Cate Blanchett, Doris Day, Maureen O’Hara, and of course, Maggie G. I feel like I’m leaving someone out that I’m in loooooove with, but if I can’t remember her, how deep could the love be? I mean, really.”

Like most of my friends, Jenny is a reader.  Her pick for book everyone should read?

“Blink by Malcolm Gladwell. It’s about the conclusions we come to in the blink of an eye – two seconds or less – and what that can mean. Too many people bring their preconceived notions to the table without even realizing it! ”

Other favorites: Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy (“If for no other reason than the first line: Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way”), One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood and The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera (“How sad is it that I had to Google his name? Because all I could think of was Mila Kunis and I knew that wasn’t right!”).

“I don’t read a lot of YA, but what I do read is dystopian: Hunger Games trilogy, Bumped, His Dark Materials trilogy, etc. I think those all count as dystopian.  I mostly read literary fiction, with a bent towards the “classics” (such as War and Peace, Rebecca, etc.). But a lot of my favorites – Atlas Shrugged, The Handmaid’s Tale, 1984, Fahrenheit 451 – are also dystopian.”

Given the choice of which authors to interview, she’d pick Nabakov or “Malcolm Gladwell or Mary Roach. Or Jon Ronson! I bet he would be a hoot.”

2012 is going to be the year she “finish[es] War and Peace, which I feel like I’ve been reading forever. I’m only about 300 pages in, but I’m determined to see it through! After that, I think I’m most excited to read Ready Player One by Ernest Cline and A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan. I’ve heard so many good things about Ready Player One – mostly from Kelly! – and I got interested in Egan’s book after the chick lit kerfuffle. And of course, it also won the Pulitzer, so… ”

I also have (and have not read) A Visit From the Goon Squad.  Maybe a new blog is in order…?

* = “My first blog was called “Tales of a Green Card Bride” on TypePad. I started it in… 2004? I had stumbled across alittlepregnant.comwhile Googling some pregnancy trouble a friend was having. I didn’t even know what a “blog” was before reading that site. Julie used TypePad, so I signed up with TypePad. I didn’t really expect anyone to read it and I didn’t share it with too many friends. When things started to go sour with my marriage, the underlying theme of  the blog, I deleted it. But I had gotten hooked on blogging.  My second blog, also on TypePad, was called “Tales of an American Exile” and lasted at least through my stay in Tunisia in Spring 2006. But I deleted that one, too. My third blog – TypePad again – was called “Chapter 3″. For a while I had “Chapter 3″ and my Vox blog, “Two-Drink Minimum” at the same time.”

Interviewing Steve

Steve Betz is one of the best, most fun bloggers I know.  And he can talk about EVERYTHING.  Books, movies, dogs, science, cocktails, politics…pick a subject, and Steve can talk about it.  And he probably knows more about it than most people.  (Or at least me.)

He started blogging in summer of 2006 on Vox. 

“I thought I would use it to update my family and friends that live elsewhere and wasn’t aware that your online community would have people that you’d previously not met before.  The best part is being able to establish a community out of nothing by doing nothing but sharing yourself — your words, your pictures, your stories — and finding others that `get’ you. I never stop being amazed by that. I think the only negative is when you start to feel like you “should” be blogging when you’re not — in that it becomes some sort of chore, when it should never be that way.”

But because this is a book and movie blog primarily, that’s what we’re going to focus on.  (As opposed to science, which I can’t talk about at all, ever.)

If he could force everyone to read a book, it’d be To Kill a Mockingbird.  (So you’ve lucked out if Steve rises to power—at least he picked a great book.)

“To Kill A Mockingbird — such a simple story of right, wrong and the passions and fears that drive all of us. Scout is blank slate and is learning how to deal with fear, differences and the dichotomy that what people say and what they do are often different. Rather than thinking WWJD, I would have people think WWAFD.”

His other four favorite books are Watership Down by Richard Adams, We Were The Mulvaneys by Joyce Carol Oates, Game of Thrones by George RR Martin and A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K LeGuin and his favorite authors are Joyce Carol Oates, Stephen King, China Mieville, T.C. Boyle and Jim Harrison.

This year, his reading goals are simple but wonderful.

“I’m very excited to read `11/22/63′ by Stephen King, which I’ve heard is excellent. And `Embassytown’ by China Mieville which I’ve waited on because I didn’t want to OD on Mieville last year.”

(Steve, 11/22/63 IS excellent.  I haven’t read any Mieville—not even Kraken.  Kellyfail.)

When he’s reading, he prefers “probably a split between “adult fiction/literature” and fantasy. In the first, I want a vehicle for examining the human condition and in the other I want a means of escaping it.”

He didn’t seem that eager to talk about movies (“oi. Really?”) but I persisted.

“My favorite movie is probably “Raiders of the Lost Ark” or “Jaws”. I don’t really watch films for actors or actresses that much. I think Philip Seymour Hoffmann can be a great actor when he puts his mind to it — actually Brad Pitt is probably the best character actor of his generation. I also would watch anything with Kevin Spacey in it. Actresses? I love Laura Linney. A lot, but I think Michelle Williams is the best actress working right now.”

Thanks for doing this, Steve! :)  And if you don’t already read Steve, you’re missing out.

Interviewing Christa

So you all know Christa, right?  If not, no time like the present to change that!

She’s been blogging since 2001 (first on LiveJournal, then Vox and now on WordPress).  So far, WordPress is her favorite.  (Mine, too.)

“I think the best part about blogging is the people you can meet and the friends you can make. I like to use it as an outlet on occasion, too. The worst part for me is trying to keep it up regularly. I wish I did a better job of it,” she said.

Like me, she’s a pretty avid reader. 

“I like all genres and it actually depends on my mood on what I want to read. Sometimes nothing is better than a chick lit book. I also LOVE YA; people just don’t give it enough credit. Some of the best books I have read are YA.  You cannot go wrong with Sarah Dessen,” Christa said.

Given the choice, she’d make everyone read Lord of the Rings or Harry Potter (even though that’s technically cheating because they’re each a series, not a single book).  But if you make her pick ONE book?

“Gone With the Wind. It’s better than the movie!” she said.  I don’t know that I agree with that, but they’re definitely on par, and it’s Christa’s interview. ;)

Her top five books?  Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Gone With the Wind, The Time Traveler’s Wife, 19 Minutes, The Other Boleyn Girl and, as a bonus, To Kill a Mockingbird.  (I agree—all are fantastic.)

She picked her top five authors based on the fact that “I’ve read and own all their books.”  And they’re all women!  Sarah Dessen, J.K. Rowling, Jennifer Weiner, Meg Cabot and Sophie Kinsella.

She’d also love to meet Rowling. 

“I want to put `meet her’ on my bucket list. I would die if I could meet her. Can you imagine?”

2011 was a big year for Christa.  She married Zack and went to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter Orlando for their honeymoon!  (I’m so jealous; I really want to see the Harry Potter theme park.)

But this year should be awesome, too.  They’re hopefully taking a road trip to California and she wants to get into grad school.  “I think I’m more excited that this year will be less hectic [and] a new start,” she said.

Christa’s also a huge movie fan.  She loves Ryan Gosling, Jake Gyllenhaal and Jennifer Aniston.  She can’t pick an absolute favorite movie (“I own an extensive DVD collection”) but odds are that 10 Things I Hate About You and Titanic would be in the top 5.

It’s really no wonder Christa and I get along so well! :)  I hope she comes to BEA (this year or next or, even better, BOTH!) because I think we’d have the world’s best time.

Thanks for doing this, Christa! :)