5. Do you write in the margins?
Yes! I make notes ranging from ‘GAY’ to elaborate comments on the allusions and parallels I caught as well as the symbolism, plus I make off-handed jokes (whenever the wording lends itself to plural interpretations, I tend to draw it out for laughs, even in serious books).
11. What book do you find yourself recommending the most?
Haha probably Tartt because I find her approachable enough for most of my friends, plus she’s available in translation. (Am I delusional for finding her approachable?) I also recommend Woolf’s Orlando quite a bit as it’s the most amusing book from her lot, as well as Lovecraft’s short stories which are a magic cure for many of my reading slumps, since the experience of an atmospheric short story is so rewarding. Oh yeah and I can’t shut up about DC Elseworlds: obviously my favourites are Red Son and the Batman: Dracula trilogy, but the sheer thematic range of the stories makes it a great rec for anyone.
Of course, this is very general, and takes the perspective of literature as engagement, one that doesn’t shy away from entertainment. Which I think is the right place to start for non-literary folk; heck, even for literary folk – we shouldn’t shy away from entertainment: I think it could do wonders for the ‘reading humorous works very seriously’ pandemic (as it happens with Byron).