Do you read books?

So, I was discussing my book cover, as some other people decided they don't like it.

A lovely person said the guy on the cover looked like a grown up Link (from Legend of Zelda). Now, I was obsessed with that game when it first came out. Maybe some of that's come out?? I commissioned the artwork, so had a say in the design. Oops!

It led me to wondering what books gamers read.

The opinion seems to be that books about games are rubbish.

But, if there was a book with sorcerers, magick and dragons in, would you read it?

Mine does have those things, but also includes romance.

So a) what books do you like to read (if any)

b) would mine appeal?

I'm really sorry if this sounds like an advert, but I am honestly interested.

I used to really like fantasy books but after LOTR, Eragon and A Song of Ice and Fire I'm kinda tired of the genre. So I started reading sci-fi and crime/detective fiction.

@johnd13: Oh cool. Yeah, you can have too much of a good thing. I write romance, so read mostly romance. But I REALLY like to change it up sometimes. I have eclectic tastes in all things, I guess.

I read my dad's collection of Ballantine's Illustrated History of World War II (Campaign, Battle, War Leader, and Weapons). Been reading them since I was 8.

I read all the time. Main jams are horror, crime, and fantasy/ sci- fi. And speaking from one author to another, this thread is going to get shut down fast because it basically IS an advertisement.

I read kindle. I enjoy reading about Scottish history, art related books and occasionally fiction.

Most recently read the Exorcist and throughly enjoyed it, barring it's abrupt ending. My favorite book is Mary Queen Of Scots by Antonia Fraser.

@tlclark: to answer your questions - a. i read books a lot. i still prefer hard copies over digital and i read a mixture of fiction and non-fiction. just finishing homo deus a brief history of tomorrow. it's not the best but it's entertaining enough.

and b. sorry, no it looks a little homo-erotic and sounds like a twilight clone from the title. but i am judging a book by its cover...

I am horrible about reading and I havent done it in years.

I say 'horrible' because its top on my list of things I want to get around to but I never do.

Elite Dangerous novels and now old 'horror' novels like Dr. Jeckel are on my to-do list

No

I usually read Comics books by Marvel/DC since I was a kid and I also read few Manga but as far as Manga goes, I'll just watch the Anime over reading Manga series.

Comic books are my favorite things to read over and I don't like reading actual books. But I do love to read that's something to do with our solar system, the stars, our ecosystem, and anything with Animals & Bugs.

Yup, currently reading 'Death and the Devil' by Frank Schätzing. I also read some Manga on the net, if that counts.

Wow, more responses than I expected. Thank you all so much for your candor.

OK, so I'm going to change my cover, for sure.

And I'm really pleased to see the mixture of reading material you peruse. As I said, I'm genuinely interested to find out what your reading experiences are.

Only ever read “the hobbit” only book I ever finished. Not a large reader but that is amazing book!

I read whenever I get a chance. I mainly like fantasy novels and music related books like autobiographies. At the moment, I'm reading The Beatles' Anthology book, which covers the whole history of the band.

I used to... Haven't done in too long now. Maybe during Easter I will have time to read.

@abbreviateog: I love LOTR books. I was sort of hoping, like Tolkein, that I could write a sort of fairytale for adults, but in a very different way than he did. I'm not anywhere near his league. :)

It's a tough read, given that's your only book. I reckon you should read some more. But that's just me. And I'm impressed.

not ever since i discovered the joy videogames

video games are better than books and movies.

yea I read quite a bit, almost exclusively historical non-fiction. Read loads about WW 1, 2, the history of BC, and lots of stuff about early mountain climbing expeditions.

Yeah totally this. (except the movie part) Playing games like Skyrim or the Witcher 3, I find it cool to just read the games actual books which "I can kill 2 birds with one stone"

I like to travel and I've done a lot of it. One of my favorite books to read while sitting down on the toilet is The Atlas of Middle Earth. It kinda tries to map all aspects of Middle Earth from the very beginning to the Fourth Age. It did a pretty decent job.

I loved the how the book traced each waypoint of all travel from the Hobbit and LotR. Reminds me of my own planning before our road trips.

I typically read fantasy, but I like to intersperse it with non-fiction, romance, horror, historical fiction, and whatever else I decide to read on a whim.

I didn't crack a book that I didn't have to for all my teenage years. But after Disney bought out Star Wars I started reading the old expanded universe novels that were generally considered canon. Some of the novels are actually really good and well written.

I work at a library. You're kind of expected to read a lot. Of course, I don't read as much as I want to because I have to try to stay on top of my gaming hobby.

Typically I read a positive book review from my favorite critic (who also happens to be my favorite columnist), then I buy it together with 2 or 3 other books that I browse, and eventually I read the shortest one. I guess I prefer contemporary books about society, to put it simple. As for your book cover, I'm not sure if it's a girl with a guy's body, or a guy who's trying to pose for a picture, but really needs to go to pee.

Anything and everything. Western philosophy from Plato to Nozick. A wide variety of classics. A wide variety of modern literature of the Booker, Giller, et al quality. Pulp fiction ranging from sci-fi to police/detective to fantasy to action. Some business. Specialty like art, architecture, sport, some biography. Considerable amounts of history. Thousands of books.

not always

I'd be lying if I say I'm an avid reader but I read any chance I get. Carve out half an hour in subways and busses. Been reading The Witcher Saga recently. Read the first book The Last Wish a little while back and now the second, The Sword of Destiny. Before this saga I read Alex Ferguson's Leading. There was so much to learn in this book.

I love reading Fictional historical war (Not sure if that's what they call it.) like 'Hannibal Barca' and 'Azincourt'.

Not too often, though I did just come out of a Never Ending Story style binge reading of Ready Player One over the weekend.

I read journal articles mostly.

I used to read stories in wattpad.!

Nope.

Literally reading about math tricks so I can get good at Calculus.

Yes, I always read the E-Book

Garfield comics and the occasional graphic novel, but even then not often.

i read a lot. i started the wh40k series a while back, and i'm on book 40-something. hoping to finish the series one day. i used to read a lot of fiction of all sorts when i was in school, but now i feel like i'm more into sci fi.

as for non-fiction, i like to read news, current affairs, longform writing on technology, politics, stuff like that.

I haven't read a traditional story book in a long time. I usually read data sheets for electronic parts (exciting I know), lately I've been reading through the HDMI 1.3 specification (~270 pages). I also read tons of poorly written IEEE research papers.

I used to like reading short stories in my English/literature classes, I like it when a story gets to the point quickly.

Oh yea, started picking up 2000ad collections on kindle Judge Dredd/Anderson collection.

Pretty fun, some terrific artwork.

No, not got the patience and my imagination sucks, I never imagine anything interesting from the descriptions of characters and locations given from the book.

I read all the time.

Real, physical books, not kindle.

Yep, daily. My local library is a gem I frequent for books, games, and movies.

The latest book I read was for high school... So not really :p

I'm currently Reading Oathbringer, (3rd book in the Stormlight Archives) by Brandon Sanderson. I can't get enough of his work. He'll go down as one of the best fantasy authors of all time.

occasionally, mostly non-fiction

For the longest time I didn't read at all. I'm really not sure why. I used to read as a kid a bunch but just completely stopped for about 10 years. I changed that this year. I started reading again. I'm currently halfway through The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy(which is phenomenal) and I plan on reading Brave New World next. I really do enjoy reading and I finally overcame my procrastination.