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G: Genres I Like To Read #AToZChallenge


'Give me a book and I'll forget the world' - Is a very nice thing to say but the first thing I'd ask would be, "Which book"? Yes, I'm a bibliophile and all that but I prefer to only read certain genres. To start with, I can only read fiction. Non fiction is something that has never appealed to me. While I was good at understanding and sometimes mugging up from school/college books, non-fiction books are really difficult for me to comprehend. I need a book to have a proper beginning, middle and ending. Else, the whole structure seems wrong to me. Fiction makes sense in every way to the reader in me. Stories are something that I flow with. I need characters to imagine in my head and I also like to get into the head of the author to know what he/she was thinking while writing this particular story.

In fiction too, I only prefer a few genres. Since I started my reading journey with mystery, thrill and crime, it will always remain my favorite genre. Murder mysteries, heists, adventure, crimes and thrill leave me craving for more. Such stories are the best and we do have quite a number of authors who excel at this. My recent discovery of Keigo Higashino and his books was such a winning moment for me. The mystery and the level of thrill in his books is just the best. I've read most of his books that are translated to English and I would give a four plus star to all of them. He develops mystery in levels and just when you think that your are reaching the last level, he briskly changes the whole thing taking you back to the start. When the mystery is finally solved, it is nothing that you expected and it just explodes in your face. Weirdly, that is a wonderful feeling when you are reading a mystery novel. The suspense is the best part of this genre. You make a thousand predictions that may or may not come true. This genre challenges you and sucks you into the story. That is why this will always remain my favorite.

I like family sagas and dramas too. While most of Sidney Sheldon's books had an element of mystery in them, the drama in them was the best. 'Master Of The Game' is one of the best books that I've ever read. Moving from generation to generation, this book captivated me completely. Same with Danielle Steel books. They just talk about a bunch of characters and weave a story around them. It is a simple story, but it is so beautiful. There is no unexpected surprise or crime, just the story is enough to keep the reader wanting for more. This is the reason why Jeffery Archer is one of my favorites.

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Fantasy fiction is another genre that I am fascinated with. It is just a fascination and I'm not very fond of it. I always thought that it would be good since everything is imaginary. Unfortunately, the first fantasy series that I read was the Twilight series. I was not a fan to be honest, but one of my best friends egged me to go for it. After reading the first two books, curiosity struck and I ended up reading the other two as well. Still did not become a fan. I haven't read 'Lord Of The Rings' or the 'Inheritance Cycle', but it is on my list. Sadly, nothing was motivating me enough to go ahead and buy them. Then, Harry Potter happened. More on that later.

Classics is a favorite genre too, but it applies only to a few books. While I've loved the Shakespearean classics, 'Little Women' would be my favorite here. I've read quite a lot of books in this genre and have enjoyed most of them. 'Wuthering Heights', 'Lolita', 'Oliver Twist' and 'Treasure Island' come to mind now. I haven't read any book by Jane Austen until now and it is such a shame. While I've watched the movie, I want to read 'Pride And Prejudice' someday. Just to understand Mr. Darcy better. I started reading 'One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest', and I loved the 22 page foreword. But then, it got a bit difficult for me to understand. I'm yet to go back to it. But soon, I will.

I love writing poetry, but when it comes to reading them, I'm not a big fan. Yes, I do love to read poems on blogs and write them, but an entire book on poetry is something that I may never read. I love Pablo Neruda and his words but reading a lot of them back to back in a single book would be something that I'd never do. I don't know why, but the thought just doesn't appeal to me. Another genre that I'm not very fond of is romance. Some love stories I've fallen in love with like 'P.S: I Love You', but I can count them on my fingers. Somehow being a realist, the idea of love in books doesn't make sense to me. It is very contrived and perfect to be true. Given a chance, I'd probably never read these genres. Voluntarily.

Horror, Religion, Politics, War and Science fiction is not something that I can see myself reading. Maybe I never gave it a chance. Oh wait, I've tried reading Robin Cook's 'Seizure' and stopped after a couple of chapters. I don't recall why, but had I enjoyed it I would have definitely gone back to it. The story was really interesting though. Let me look for it on my bookshelf. I might just give it another try.

What are your favorite genres to read? Do recommend some good books for it.

Comments

  1. I also like fiction but my taste has changed from sci-fi to now more 'close to human' stories. Classics are always good - they take time but leave an imprint. I don't like self help but at the same time I love research on human psychology and behavior so Malcolm Gladwell and Dan Ariley are two authors, I am enjoying to read these days.

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  2. These are more or less my favorite genres as well. I love romance though. Not much into non-fiction or poetry. I so want to read Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones. Have been waiting for the author to finish writing the GOT series. But I think I will have to wait indefinitely! :/
    Thailand Travel Stories at Kohl Eyed Me
    26 Indian Dishes at Something's Cooking

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  3. My favourite genres would be contemporary fiction and young adult. Crime/psychological thrillers/mysteries are next along with literary fiction. Classics I'm hot and cold with...some I enjoy, most I don't! :)

    Ghazal - Love

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  4. I too read only specific genre. Thrillers and sci fiction is my favorite. I haven't read Neruda and only one Daniel Steel. Will check out their most read titles.

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  5. He he, I actually like non fiction ;) But that's only been a recent development after I started working on my memoir. But I've found fabulous non-fic books of late. It's all in the timing, though, so don't force it. In fiction, I like mysteries, fantasy and very very few romances. That means I cannot read half of Indian writing today!

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  6. For fantasy, I suggest Dark Things - it's all kinds of excellent! Also the Golem and the Genie and Night Circus are excellent if you haven't read them already. I've been enjoying Keigo Higashino' books too - they're excellent!

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  7. I love reading memoirs, if that is genre enough. I am gravitating towards memoirs of funny people like Steve Martin and Stephen Colbert and Tina Fey these days because OH MY GOD, so much fun!

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  8. I love crime thrillers although I worship the printed word and enjoy all kinds of genres. But what really gives me a high is serial killer crime novels :) I love that there are authors who've written a series of them, with common characters who feel like family after a while. I enjoy romance, too. Love comedy. Wodehouse being my all time favorite. I can;t believe you didn't mention Wodehouse.Or are you saving him up for W? Love medical/legal thrillers, too. And I read a lot of non-fiction...developed a liking almost a decade ago. Hugs, Hottie!

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  9. Soumya, you and I are book soul sisters! I love fiction and I can't bear to read non-fiction. The authors you have mentioned, the exact same authors are my favourites too! I picked up Keigo Higashino on your suggestion and yes I really enjoyed reading his work.

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  10. Guess we all started with mysteries and thrillers. Somewhere we graduated to literary.
    I've always stayed away from non-fiction cos it reads like text book. But I think the sub genre of creative non fiction ought to be good. Again, it depends on the author and how they write it.

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  11. I love reading fiction too. Non-fiction is a no no to me. Of all the genres I love, mythological fiction and fantasy fiction are two of my favourites :)

    Great Indian Sale

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  12. Classics are called so for a reason! I also enjoy thrilled and family dramas. Romance not so much.

    Have not read any of Keigo Higashino's books. Will put that on my TBR list.

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  13. Yay! Finally I've read the words Inheritance Cycle in someone's posts! I think you should pick up Inheritance Cycle first. Its way less boring that Lord of The Rings! I just read the first book of Lord of the Rings, got bored and gave it up. But Inheritance Cycle is something I've read and reread and loved a lot! If you need motivation to pick it up, let me say that it has, in addition to human characters, dragons, dwarves, elves, shades, DRAGONS!

    I'm assuming that your H for post is Harry Potter, because you've written 'more on that later'. ;)

    I haven't seen any YA fiction books in your post. I'd recommend 'Eleanor and Park' by Rainbow Rowell to you, even though it has a bit of romance in it. The book has a lot of other (and better) themes in it, and it's the first YA fiction book that made me cry. Do check it out if you're interested in reading YA fiction!

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  14. I said ditto..ditto...ditto for everything you wrote! Authors, books, everything. Haven't read Keigo, but now I'm keen to explore since our choice in books is so similar. The one series that I haven't read and don't intend to is Harry Potter. I don't know why!

    Shubhangi @ The Little Princess

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  15. Except for poetry, I would read all the genres you like. But I also like Literary Fiction, Historical Fiction and Romance. Recently, I am enjoying reading Non-fiction also. Fantasy, YA is a bit out for me. But, I recently read some LGBT stories and they were fabulous. Horror and science fiction are strict no, nos.

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  16. You did not mention A Walk to Remember! I know it gave you moist eyes :)
    You and I have such drastic genre preferences :D
    I am reading Lord of the Rings right now (was reading before A to Z began) and I feel that you need separate time alone to read such books. You should be at peace with no distractions so you can imagine everything that has been written.
    I bought One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, but himmat ni hui kabhi padhne ki :D
    Pride and Prejudice is a beautiful book! If you are interested in classics, Jane Eyre is also lovely.
    I hope you have read And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie. If not, do read that right away!

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