I say that "I like books that are more about characters or people than events." That covers all the genre bases.

"I can think, I can wait, and I can fast."

Good book.

Lovely book, read it many years ago

Why couldn't you just list a few genres?

I’ve read The Outsiders more times than I can count! I actually had to buy a new copy of it a few years ago because my first one was literally falling apart. It’s an easy read and only takes a few hours so I know I can get it done in one sitting. I often read books that I’ve already read.

Historical fiction all the way. I try to venture into new genre these days cause Historical fic is the only thing I've stuck with for a long time.

I don't think it was too implausible for Sofia to defect, that wasn't an unheard of thing for folks during those rare occasions when the iron curtain was lifted. I'd say there is a bit of melancholy when considering the fate of many of the characters who take ideological stands against Stalinism (e.g. disappearing into Siberian obscurity, or outright death). That being said, I agree with your point that the ending (as well as the rest of the book) is distinctly American. The characters the book occupies itself with around the Metropol tend to be the individualistic free thinkers idolized by the west, so it shouldn't be too surprising it ends with a bit of western sentimentality.

I think folks looking for a bleak or darkly comic tome were bound to be disappointed by this one though, it's definitely more a cozy comedy of manners and light philosophical romp. Not every book that takes place in Moscow needs to be The Master and Margarita!

Much like your comment....

I sat down in a cafe to have a glance at this new book I'd bought, Anna Karenina, having not known much about it, and having intended to read it after my upcoming month of exams. Just a glance, why not?

I read the first line, sighed, and thought "fuck, I'm definitely going to read this huge book instead of revising for my exams".

I read just enough to figure out that it's a sentimental feel-good piece of faux intellectualism designed to dazzle the reader with "profound" aphorisms and quirky caricatures that can be comfortably discussed at book club over glasses of white wine....so this ending doesn't surprise me at all.

I’ve re-read The Lord of the Rings something like 20 times on paper or on a screen, and 4 or 5 more times as an audiobook.

I totally agree with you on the feeling; if I’m feeling overwhelmed by life it’s incredibly comforting to immerse myself in a familiar story.

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I also read a Stephen King book every fall, Pet Cemetery. I don’t remember exactly why I started doing it but I do know why I continue. It was the first book my dad bought me, and he has since passed so it makes for another reason to keep this book tradition

I don't know, but at least I know that someone else doesn't know either. I absolutely hate when people try to cram everything into a genre (I like post-apocalyptic urban fantasy! And being a predictable consumer!), and seemingly that's the only general way to answer that question.

The problem is that it's a bad question to ask. You don't read kinds of books. You read authors. So the correct question is "what authors do you like". That question I can answer. Or, you can ask what they're reading at present. Also a good question.

I don't think any interesting person likes genres in the abstract; they like specific authors. Sometimes that leads to genres, sometimes it doesn't. Of course, the follow-up tends to be "what do you like about them?" Or, "what are their books about?" Which can be damn hard questions. Good novels aren't easily summarized, and pithy descriptions of them tend to sound stupid. And most people probably don't know the authors you like, so it makes for a confusing conversation. Talking about books with random people is hard.

Trying to work backwards into a general set of rules about what makes a book a book you like is very difficult, and makes for a pretty personal conversation. Probably an interesting one with the right person.

Very, very good ones. So typically I choose highly regarded books. I do read some that are merely popular but I don't hold high expectations of those.

I read The Shining every October. I'm not sure why, but it's something I've been doing ever since I was thirteen. I'm not even a Stephen King fan; just something I do for unknown reasons. Like you, I rely and look forward to reading it every year. It definitely is comforting. I also read Animal Farm every year.

The Lord of the Flies:

“The boy with fair hair lowered himself down the last few feet of rock and began to pick his way toward the lagoon.”

That this story will include a narrative on the loss of innocence and purity is conveyed by the first seven words. A boy with what is initially described as “fair hair” (later in the book described as “yellow” when he fails to stand up to the other boys) lowers himself down (his own actions bringing him from a high place and sinking lower) sets up how these characters will fall from the more pure state of their childhood innocence to a more morally complicit young adult status.

The Great Gatsby:

“In my younger and more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice that I've been turning over in my mind ever since. ‘Whenever you feel like criticizing any one,’ he told me, ‘just remember that all the people in this world haven't had the advantages that you've had.’”

“Younger and more vulnerable years” again conveys that some loss of an earlier innocence has occurred that this narrator has now learned from. We are then set up with advice that when we are tempted to be critical of someone, to understand the context of their socioeconomic advantages or lack thereof as having an important place in how we should analyze that person’s actions. The narrator, Nick, comes to learn that Gatsby fabricated his entire identity to try to attain the social status that would, he thought, make him able to be with Daisy. Gatsby didn’t have the socioeconomic status that Tom had, and the reality was that nothing was going to change that. The creation, Jay Gatsby, could never be with Daisy because the creator, James Gatz wasn’t born with money. Should we judge him for his criminal acts to obtain money to spend on lavish parties just to win over some girl he met years ago? Yeah maybe a little, but his naïveté was believing that there was a path toward real socioeconomic mobility, a myth the United States continues to tell itself in its own self-imagining. The narrator, Nick, was vulnerable because he cared for Gatsby. He witnesses when the this image that is Jay Gatsby gets “shattered” but then Gatsby still takes the blame for when Daisy recklessly kills someone. Nick tells Gatsby that Gatsby is “worth the whole damn bunch [of the born rich] put together,” for naïvely believing in a myth he has been shown to be false but hoping for its virtue anyway. The final pain for Nick is realizing that Daisy and Tom were in truth “careless people…they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money,” and thus, Nick is calloused from the pain of seeing what naïve hope suffers in the face of the power of old money.

I just say "I like all genres but am less likely to read x genres".

It's easier for me to say what I don't read then try and remember every type of book I like to read on the spot.

I like to explore a variety of genres, topics, and authors.

I think that's the most succinct way I can describe my tastes in books. I do enjoy reading mysteries, but too much of that gets boring, so I always set goals and join challenges to help me choose a wide variety of books.

I have trouble putting books down when I am really into them. I'll flip back to a logical start of something happening instead of just jumping in.

I love to read books more than once. When I do that I don't usually go back as far.

Mostly fiction. I’m going through a stage right now where I’m reading a lot of classics, but really just anything that looks interesting or is recommended to me.

So fantasy

I lean on local indie authors (thank you comicon and regional pride!) and lean even more heavily on fantasy while taking the occasional, spectacular detour into different genres.

Those are usually found by neurodivergent rabbit hole research, not going to lie, but I find some really interesting stuff once my curiosity is engaged.

Well, if you tend to jump around genres, is there certain plots you like? Characters or character arcs you like to see? Tropes? Maybe describe what emotions you want a book to evoke--"I want a book to give me the warm fuzzies" or "I like books that make me thoughtful".

For example, I have a soft spot for stories where a main character time travels back into their own past and has to try and change their fate even as they have to play things by ear when things change from their memories. I could say that's Fantasy, but it's a pretty niche plot there.