May I Introduce (BTT)

1. How did you come across your favorite author(s)? Recommended by a friend? Stumbled across at a bookstore? A book given to you as a gift?
2. Was it love at first sight? Or did the love affair evolve over a long acquaintance?

I have many favorite authors. I have always had a favorite author or two. I remember loving Laura Ingalls Wilder. I wanted to grow up and be Laura Ingalls Wilder. I read the Little House series over and over and over again. Having a mom and big sis helped much when it came to discovering great books and great authors. I'm sure Mom read at least a few of these aloud before we began devouring them on our own. L.M. Montgomery was another great find. Again courtesy of mom and big sis.

Another childhood favorite was C.S. Lewis' The Chronicles of Narnia. I love, love, love that series. The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe was a class read aloud. Mrs. Watts, my formidable fourth grade teacher, read it aloud to us. I want to say it was after-lunch reading. But I could be wrong on the time. I just know that I fell in love. I wanted to read the book, wanted to read the series all on my own. And I did. Even though the covers were really super-ugly at the time.

On to current favorites. I love, love, love Orson Scott Card. I do. It's true. My obsession with all things OSC defines me in a way. I discovered OSC through a college course. The class was introduction to children's literature. The reason Ender's Game was on the reading list is that it was an example of how adult books can be read and enjoyed by young adults. Ender's Game was and is popular with that crowd...typically speaking. I had never read any science fiction before. And the cover had me worried for a bit actually. I had no idea I was about to fall in love. But that one book led to reading and rereading anything and everything Card. Which subsequently led me to creating the Cardathon challenge.

Stephenie Meyer is an interesting story. I read Twilight on the recommendation of my friend and classmate Rose. I had never read a vampire book before. I had always looked down my nose at such stuff really. Thought there was no way I could ever, ever love such a book. But man, I had to swallow my pride on that one! I loved it. I absolutely loved it.

I really have too many favorite authors to go into the hows of how I met each and every one of them. But to sum it up, some have been through recommendations of friends and family. Some have been required reading in school (college to be exact. I never loved any required book in high school.) Some I found through chance on the shelves at my local library. I guess this falls under the umbrella of I was intrigued by the title or the cover and wanted to read more phenomenon. And here lately, recommendations from other bloggers would definitely have a huge share in where I find books. For example, Thirteenth Tale was recommended to me by so many different bloggers, I just had to read it. And I loved it. I really really did.

Usually, it's love at first sight for me. Not always. But mostly. OSC? Love at first sight. Ray Bradbury. Practically love at first sight. H.G. Wells. Almost love at first sight. Usually, the love is instant but the obsession takes time. I might not rush out to read an author's entire body of work within 24 hours of reading the first book and finding new love. But it's always just a matter of time. The only exception to the rule of instantaneous love being Mary Shelley and Frankenstein. It took a bit of time on my part to fall in love there. But it has become one of my favorites. So much so that I wrote a very long and detailed analysis of the experience.