Q. What is the best book you have ever read?
A. My all-time favorite book is A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving (I’m a big Irving fan). My more recent passion is for A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki. My favorite from this past year would be Virgil Wander by Leif Enger. But a close second would be Hollow Kingdom by Kira Jane Buxton.
I get plenty of real life by being a devout NPR listener, so I gravitate toward literary fiction. There isn’t a genre of fiction that I don’t love. Young adult, Mystery, Sci-Fi, you name it. I love authors that bring characters to life and bring me into their stories. I still think about Owen Meany and John Wheelwright. And I smile when I think of the quirky characters that Leif Enger created.
I love a novel that makes me want to dig deeper into a time in history or culture that I’m reading about. A Tale for the Time Being started me on a journey into learning about Japanese pop culture, the philosophy of Proust, and the poems of Zen Buddhist, Eihei Dogen.
We all need a good laugh these days and I chuckled my way through Hollow Kingdom, a rather satirical but hopeful look at the apocalypse.
Q. What is your ideal reading environment?
A. I love listening to audiobooks. When I’m not working, I have my earbuds in and am multitasking through my day. If I wake up at night, I set the sleep timer and listen until I’m drowsy. When I have time to sit with a book, I hang on the screen porch when it’s nice out and in front of the fireplace when it’s not.
Q. What book are you most excited about reading next and what about it is most exciting?
A. I’m super excited about the sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale, The Testaments by Margaret Atwood. I re-read Handmaid’s about every other year and am a fan of the series but only Atwood can take me into the next adventure. I’m an admirer of Bill Bryson so am eager to read The Body coming October 15. I’m also looking forward to reading Will My Cat Eat My Eyeballs? by Caitlin Doughty. I think the title says it all!
Q. What book do you think more people should read and why do you think they should read it?
A. I’m an advocate for Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds (or anything by Jason Reynolds), a brilliant, electrifying novel about gun violence. Not just for young adults.
Q. What book has been the most challenging for you to read? How did it challenge you?
A. While I love poetry, I find it a challenge to read. It’s hard for me to quiet my mind enough to absorb the flow and decipher the meaning rendered. I challenge myself to read a volume twice a year.
Q. When do you decide to stop reading a book? (In other words, do you read every book to the last page, or is there a moment when you decide to stop?)
A. If a book doesn’t grab me at first reading or listening, I will put it aside. If I find myself thinking about it later I’ll go back to it – maybe I just wasn’t in the right frame of mind at the time or maybe (rarely) I didn’t like the reader.
Q. Do you remember when your love for reading began?
A. My love of libraries has always been strong. My father was the President of the Marshalltown Public Library Board for as long as I can remember, and I accompanied him there often. I loved to use the card catalog and get lost in the stacks.
Check out more of Sue Davis' Favorite Books
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