Random Buzz

By bookreader4 on July 2, 2008 at 12:18:42 PM

For me to really like a book...THERE NEEDS TO BE A PLOT!  I hate it when the book just goes on and doesn't have a beginning or ending point.  It's just like a day out of their lives.  Nothing happens!  It's so boring.  I had that problem with the Gossip Girl book.  There was no plot and it was extremely boring.  Characters are very important to me as well.

By JessiKay22 on July 2, 2008 at 12:49:16 PM

In order for me to consider a book my favorite, it has to be "unputdownable," or what I like to call an "escape" book. If I can pick up a book and get totally lost in it, to the point where I don't even realize that I'm reading anything, then I know it's a wonderful book and that I'll probably catalog it with my favorites!

By Mistwraith on July 2, 2008 at 01:06:07 PM

In order for me to pick a book as my favorite, there needs to be a really good plot, there has to be a point to the story.  I think it's also important that the book keeps me guessing until the very last page, I don't like books where I can figure out everything that's going to happen within the first few chapters, those kinds of books usually don't hold my attention.

By TheBookworm on July 2, 2008 at 02:03:51 PM

Well, I always hope and enjoy well written books and there diffintily has to be a plot, but all I need is a good character.  I usually read books from a boys part of view, how I explain that is because me being a girl I already know how they think, but a boy, begining inside their head is something new to me.  The book could be completely awful but if their is a good character I will read it and enjoy it.

By chillngirl12 on July 2, 2008 at 02:29:13 PM

When I read any book there are somethings that it has to have. Like a good plot. Also, a lot of the time, I find the characters personalities to be a big fact in what books I like. All those books with the main character being basically perfect and getting everything they want in the end just doesn't suit me. I feel like a character should have to work throughout the book to achieve what they want. I've read books where the character is able to do more then anyone else with only a little work, and then I have read books that the characters struggles, but in the end proves him or herself (for example, Harry Potter.). I personally find the latter more interesting, though I have nothing really against the former.

By lipizzaner_4 on July 2, 2008 at 03:42:05 PM

I agree with all you guys. I think that for me to like a book, there has to be a really amazing plot. That is what I pay the most attention to when I read- the story. I also pay a lot of attention to the way the words are put together. In a good book, I like the sentences to be readable and, well, just to have good word choice and order.

By bookgrobie on July 2, 2008 at 04:06:31 PM

For me to really love a book It has to have a really good plot, but it also has to have characters that I can relate to. If I don't like the personality of the main character, then I won't like the book.

By Wiesteria on July 2, 2008 at 05:24:40 PM

I understand when you say that the books nowadays can't compare with the books back then. It's just something I can't quite put an finger on. The books I read when I was a kid was thrilling, gripping, and just plain awesome. On the other hand, some of the books today are...bleh. For me to love a book, it has to have good characters. If I don't like the characters, it ruins the whole story for me. As for plot, that's also necessary, but it is still second to characters. And when I say plot, I mean real plot, not the whole gossip girl chick-lit style.

By historyheroine on July 2, 2008 at 09:16:03 PM [Rating: +1]

Characters are a big part of it for me--I love a variety of personalities, and characters with memorable quirks, etc. For me to really, truly call a book "my favourite," I also have to be unable to stop reading it. There's a quote that goes something along the lines of, "A book should leave you feeling slightly exhausted at the end. You've lived several lives during it." That's the way I like my books. If I'm sad at the end that the book is finished, it usually means it's one of my favourites!

Also, I tend to like YA/children's books more than adult fiction. There's too much realism in adult literature for me. Something about children's book is just...magical.

By Ethrohil on July 3, 2008 at 12:51:02 AM

I focus a lot on character, plot, and setting.  If it's a book that makes me think, is not too jumpy, and is not like any other books, it becomes my favorite.  I also like voice and description.  Good books for me doesn't take a lot physical description, but more of mental, and surrounding detail.  I like books that express the thoughts of the character, but also have a different viewopint of others, so you get the feel of the other characters, and not just the main.

But, really for a favorite book to be favorite, it has to be good enough that I didn't get everything the first or second time I've read it.  Hands down.

By kaldaka on July 3, 2008 at 09:47:25 AM

When I read a fantasy book (when anyone reads any book, actually, but it's more necessary in fantasy) I go into what is called 'willing suspension of disbelief.' In other words, I will 'believe' things that are obviously impossible in our world- elves, dragons, magic, etc. It is the author's job to make that easy for me- to set rules and stick by them. Books that break the rules they have created so that their characters can be 'speshul' are the type of books that I simply cannot read without having my willing belief in it being broken repeatedly, which makes it difficult for me to actually get into the book. That's a major factor of whether I can like a book or not.

By bookworm08 on July 3, 2008 at 10:33:09 AM

For me to like a book, it has to have a quick plot. Like, not a slow book that takes forever to get to the end. Especially in mysteries and fantasy, I hate when they lag on and on, you know?

By CourtneyLouWrites on July 3, 2008 at 12:19:49 PM

For me to really truly like a book, I think it's all about the authors abilitly to capture the readers attention and make them want more. I also think it depends on the pace of the story, the plot (of course), the characters, descriptions. So basically, a story that has been well written. A story that you don't just read, but see. In the end I think the a book is hit or miss, not just because of plot, though it's extremly important, but because the author had the ability to lure readers in with words and the way they're used.

readingrocks94 on July 3, 2008 at 12:35:32 PM

My most favourite books are the ones you can really picture in your head.  I get so carried away in a book, I think i saw a movie!!!!! I love that kind of book.

By riverlullaby on July 3, 2008 at 05:49:21 PM

If I'm going to add a bookto my list of favorites, the first time I read it, I couldn't put it down. If I was able to easily put it down when I read it, it's not going to make it on the list. It also has to be a book I'll read again. Usually, when I read a book I'll only read it once, but if I really love it, I'll go back and read it again and again. The book has to hav a great plot and unforgettable characters.

By face_in_book on July 3, 2008 at 08:47:12 PM

For me to really consider a book my favorite it has to make me think about it. It has to run through my head all through math class, and shove itself into my dreams. A book I really love just sticks in my head. Perhaps it's the character who becomes my best friend, maybe it's the plot I'm guessing ahead at (and typically failing to get it right in a good book,) or maybe they just give me a new world to run rampant in. Regardless of why I love it, any book I truly do love "sticks" beyond the insignificant dreary "fodder" of publishing companies which I constantly cram into my mind and daily toss right back out.

By Rika85 on July 4, 2008 at 04:24:15 PM

For a book to be a favorite of mine, It has to have the whole package: It has to be magical. It has to be so wonderful that you can't put it down. It has to touch your heart in a way no other story book does. In order for that to happen, it has to have an original plot, it has to have believable and unforgettable characters that can be related to, and the author's world has to be detailed; not really detailed so some things can be left to the reader's imagination. For me, my favorites would have to be the original, unabridged versions of Bambi and Peter Pan as well as The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Magician's Nephew, The Hobbit, A Wind in the Door, and the first Harry Potter book. These books really swept me away to another world. I still enjoy reading YA books as well as children's books and sci-i and fantasy books, but these will always be my favorites.

Mylaa on July 4, 2008 at 08:09:50 PM

   Books for me truly have to be captivating. If I'm not interested after the first few chapters, I know there is no way that it will ever become one of my favorites. The author's ability to make the story so believable that the words fly off the page into my bedroom is a must. When I start feeling the pain of a character or smelling the forest he's traveling through, I know this is a book I'll read again and again. When I'm at a bookstore trying to figure out which one of the many I will actually buy, I go with my gut feeling. I can usually tell how good a book will be just by reading the first page. If the author gets me from the beginning, their book will certainly make to my own personal library.

By cahira on July 5, 2008 at 03:36:41 PM

In order for me to add a book to my list of favorites it has to (obviously) hold my attention until the end.  I hate it when an author doesn't know when to stop and the book just drags on and on.  The main thing that contributes to whether or not I really like a book is if I become a character in my mind or if I become good friends with the characters.  I escape to books.  If it is like entering a different world and I feel as if I really participated in the story and went to the places it describes, then it is one of my favorites.

By Foxpaw on July 6, 2008 at 03:33:09 PM

 There are certain qualities in my books that I seem to need in order to enjoy them. I am very much a fantasy reader, which means there usually needs to be magic of some sort, or creatures that don't exist in the 'real' world: You know, vampires, werewolves, dragons, that sort of thing. My favorite books right now are the Dresden Files. It seems to have everything I want in a book. Now when I look at books, I tend to gravitate more towards books set in the modern day (Like the Dresden Files, or Harry Potter). There's something about the idea of an underworld, for lack of a better word: a world that exists right under our noses that appeals to me. It feels more real, because it includes everything we know about now.

I also tend to like heroes that aren't really... I don't know, superheroes. I like heroes that have weaknesses, and are more normal than others (Like Harry Dresden from the Dresden Files, or Peter Parker from Spiderman). I enjoy that sense of someone like me going up against something bigger, someone who's got the same sort of hangups and problems that everyone else has.

By nenbookworm on July 7, 2008 at 04:54:13 PM

I really can't define what constitutes a great book.  It's really an impossible task. Novels can't be put into a formula than spat back out, it's not math (thank God). I'll take a shot though.

 Personally I need semi-relatable characters.  If  character is flat  then there really isn't a purpose in reading their story.  I'm not interested in perfection.  I also like my protaganists with bits of hate or mischeviousness, and I like my antagonists understandable and quirky.  Totality isn't interesting.

Like many of my fellow readers my final judgement is the "escape factor."  If I can pick up a book be transported somewhere for hours and when I'm done feel myself being yanked back to reality, I know the book is worthwhile.  That's also a version of the "one-sitting" test, which is pretty obvious, and to be honest not many books make the cut.

Here are a few of my favorites. The Abhorsen Trilogy by Garth Nix, Trickster's Queen by Tamora Pierce (well really anything by Tammy), The Gemma Doyle Trilogy by Libba Bray, the Harry Potter Series by the lovely Mrs. Rowling, and most Irene Radford books.

Happy Reading

By Shadowfang92 on July 8, 2008 at 04:52:49 PM

^_^ For me to add a book to my Favorites, The book needs to have a Great plot line! and the and the book needs to have twist and turns, like stuff you wouldent expect.

I will also like the book, if its original...and most of all if it has a sad ending, I really love sad ending or a dramatic ending, if my favorite character dies, I love it..well if they die in a semi dramatic way ^_^. I Prefer my favorites to has alot of suspense as well.

Here are a few of my Favorites. Cirqu Du freak Sage by Darren Shan, David Rain Trilogy by Chris D'Lacey, Anything by Amelia Atwater Rhodes. ^_^ and the Twilight series By Stephenie Meyer. Both Eragon and Eldest whos auther's name I cant spell at the moment.

^_^ YAY Book nerds!

By Elvenstar on July 10, 2008 at 12:53:58 AM

For me, the book needs a good story and a good hero and villain. The hero should be good, someone imitable who I can cheer for, unlike those in the His Dark Materials trilogy, where the heroes seem no better than the villains. The villain should be evil, but human at the same time,  a way of exploring my own dark side without having to go there. Does that make sense? I also like there to be a sharp line between good and evil, none of this, "Well, that depends on your point of view." nonsense. There also needs to be action. If there is no action, it will not hold my attention for more than a hundred pages. (which, by the way, I can easily read in a day) AND, last but hardly least, it needs a good climax. I cannot stand it when the excitement is building and building, and then it all ends with. . . a misfire or something of the like. So, yeah. That's what I like in a book.

lilsky102 on July 11, 2008 at 08:58:42 PM

For me the book has to make me feel like I'm in the story and it has to make me want to re-read it as many times as i can. It has to make me have the same emotions as the characters, like if the character is upset, I'll be upset in real life. The book has to make me want to never put it down. It has to make me not want to go to the bathroom, or eat, or go out of the house because I won't be reading it. I mean I do, do those things but I wish I didn't have to. The book would make me upset when it's over because i don't want it to end. But most of all it has to make sense and make me love the characters. 

By oliviababyy on July 13, 2008 at 07:04:08 PM

i agree with everyone here. my books have to have substance and an amazing plot. i also like my books to fast pace. i hate when i read something and it takes fify million hours to get the the main problem. my book has to be something you cant put down. i like to feel like im actually in the story and feeling every thing the charaters are !

By Asteria on July 22, 2008 at 03:09:33 PM

Plot, characters, writing style-they're all important. The plot has to be alive and the problems believable. The characters have to be realistic in their motivations and can't be obnoxious. I like there to be a little bit of humour, just to lighten the mood. And, as for writing style, have you ever read a book where the story would be just fine if only the author's writing style wasn't so hard to read? Or if the story keeps jumping back and forth between two major plots and characters? That's just destracting. I find a good way to figure out if a book is one of my favourites (I could never have just one!) is if I want to read it again the second I've finished it, or, even if I've borrowed it from the library more than once, I still want to own it so I can read it whenever the mood strikes me.

By Neveen on August 2, 2008 at 11:19:51 PM

I am obsessed with books like the Harry Potter series , Garth Nix books & many fantasy books but the one that I will stay obsessed and crazy about foever is LORD OF THE RINGS; I always feel connection between me and the characters; I can not help it & I will love it forever.

By SakuraGirl on October 14, 2008 at 02:06:06 PM

The plot is fresh and surprising. There is LOTS of description. It makes you consider if your life is stagnant and, if it is, want to change it.