willowlthewisp.bsky.social
They/Them. Autistic. Hobby artist (SFW). Books most welcome. Adventures, dragon hoards, faery rings, wizards' towers. Let's get lost in the woods together.
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I have not, but I'll check it out!
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At present my hype is reserved for the next book in Jim Butcher's "The Dresden Files," ha ha. This is a lovely display, though! I haven't browsed a bookshop in so long; I miss seeing these.
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It caught me by surprise when I first read it too. I went in expecting a Hollywood horror story, and was instead pleasantly surprised by the themes and tone of classic lit horror (I hadn't read any classic horror before this, other than some Poe for school).
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The publication page doesn't list any illustrator credits, unfortunately, just that it's copyrighted 1980 to Watermill Press. I will, however, forevermore imagine young Christopher Lloyd as the Creature while reading this, ha ha.
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I don't know. It might be that I'm autistic and reading provides a safe way to experience the (largely neurotypical) world and its at times chaotic social demands. It's also an escape, though; sometimes fantasy is just better than reality. And reading is also just purely fun, no strings attached.
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Judging by the books on my shelves, my favorite genre is probably fantasy, ha ha. I don't know that I have a least favorite genre; I'll give anything a try if it strikes my fancy.
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If we discount the many thin little early childhood books, I'd have to say Tolkien's "The Hobbit" got me into full novel reading. I read the Michael Hague illustrated edition in kindergarten and haven't stopped reading since, ha ha.
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I don't know which was my first book, but very early childhood books like "Curious Kitty" and "Guess How Much I Love You" still live in the dusty shelves of my mind library. Some other early reads: "The Velveteen Rabbit," "The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses," "Where Have the Unicorns Gone?"
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I'm not sure. I've only just learned about how folks are discussing books through tropes, so I don't quite feel like I have a grasp on all that yet.
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Right now I'd have to say it's either the one I finished rereading yesterday, "Wild Pork and Watercress" by Barry Crump, or the one I reread earlier this month, "Black Beauty" by Anna Sewell.
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Hard to pick just one, honestly. Most of my favorites are such for different reasons. Tolkien's "The Hobbit" is a huge comfort book for me, as is Adams's "Watership Down," while my most reread books are Crichton's "Jurassic Park" and Butcher's "Dresden Files."
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'Oh, that won't do!' said Bilbo. 'Books ought to have good endings. How would this do: and they all settled down and lived together happily ever after?'
'It will do well, if it ever comes to that,' said Frodo.
'Ah!' said Sam. 'And where will they live? That's what I often wonder.'
—Tolkien, LOTR
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Many books have made me cry, ha ha, too many to recount. Most recently Anna Sewell's "Black Beauty" had me in tears (again). I also broke down over the first few preview pages of Becky Chambers's "A Psalm for the Wild-Built"—I'll be acquiring it soon to read and weep over the rest of it.
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Right now I'd have to say Jim Butcher's "The Dresden Files." It checks off all the boxes for me: superb storycraft, well written, great pacing, vibrantly real characters, magic, mystery, suspense, horror, and fantastic homages to and reimaginings of diverse folklore and classic literature.
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I love the look of a nice hardcover, but my hands will ache less quickly holding paperbacks, so those are my usual preference. Hardcover dust jackets can be irksome as well, ha ha.
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Only always. 👍
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Not often, but that's mostly because I don't tend to enjoy thinking ahead; I like just being present in the journey. For mysteries, though, I'm usually annoyed if I can figure it out well before the whodunnit: to me it's a red flag for being too obvious, as I'm not at all good at solving mysteries.
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All kinds of books: the deciding factor for me is whether a story or nonfiction topic piques my interest.
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As often as I can: barring illness or the otherwise unexpected, at least a little while once a day, and sometimes that's just a page; but lately I've been reading hours at a time.
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And a very aesthetic rainbow it is too! 🌈
Spotted a wild "Stardust" in that deep blue section—excellent little fairytale!
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"Haughty haunted shenanigans"? Drat, that's another going on the TBR. (It sounds delightful!)
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That has to be one of the most adorable (and helpful) books I've ever seen! It immediately reminds me of Mr. Roger's Neighborhood and all the helpful little songs about how to identify and express your emotions.
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Today it's Barry Crump's "Wild Pork and Watercress." For tomorrow I'm indecisive between Jonathan Swift's "Gulliver's Travels" and Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein."
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I spy a pair of joyful little Marie Kondo gems down there.
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It really depends on the book for me. Generally, I love a detailed description of a given setting; but sometimes that can feel unnecessary. For example, in the Sherlock Holmes stories I read recently, it was very hit or miss whether pages of details served a given story at all.
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True!
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I bet Lieutenant Worf is browsing for Shakespeare in the original Klingon.
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I was somewhat concerned I was the only one zooming in on shelves, ha ha.
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Tiny font is in fact the bane of my poor eyes as well, ha ha. As cute as pocket editions of books are, the words are often just too small to read.
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Delightful! Makes me want to disappear into the New Zealand bush for a while, ha ha.
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I've read a little about the Comanche before—did some research (fact-checking) while reading "Dances with Wolves" last year—though nothing too in-depth. I wish my grade school history classes had covered even half as much as that regarding any indigenous cultures.
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Such an itty bitty Jabba! That is such a nice wall of books—with room to spare!
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This one's actually on my radar to read sometime this year! Looking forward to it.
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I do appreciate a well edited book (my autistic brain notices/fixates on errors quick as a whip), but the story is more important overall; illegibility is a more firm line for me. I also prefer paperbacks! My hands start aching much faster when holding hardcover novels, even thin novellas.
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T.S. Eliot's "Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats" definitely has fun Friday energy to me.
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That is one fine menagerie of books, friend Tofu.