Filipno Friday 1 - Introducing My Species of Reader

This is my first time to do a Filipino Friday post, ever! I'm so excited. For those who don't know what Filipino Friday is (like me, until recently)--"Filipino Friday is a meme series that encourages the participation of Filipino readers everywhere." - Source: Filipino ReaderCon Blog.

Introductions, with a twist, is this Friday's theme. The question: "What Reader Species Are You?" based from this appropriately wordy and detailed infographic by Laura Kelly (click to view full-sized image):


Visit Laura-e-Kelly.com for more about books, reading, and authors. Reading the inforgraphic, I realize that I fit into a number of different species, like:  The Reluctant Reader I'm a reluctant reader because I only started to enjoy reading during first year high school. Josh, my best friend at the time, was an avid fan and reader of Stephen King. He got me curious, so I asked him what SK novel would be a good introduction to the master of horror, and he recommended quite aptly, Carrie, King's first published novel.  That day I dropped by National Book Store and bought myself a non-required school read for the first time. That night, I finished the whole novel. Yes, it's a short novel, but it changed my life. It made me a reader, and eventually, a writer.  The Hoarder Life after Carrie was very expensive. There were always too many books and not enough money. To save money, I went book digging in Book Sale, which isn't as bad as others may think. There I found a hardbound copy of Stephen King's IT. Yet despite the lack of funds, I ended up with too many books, and not enough time to read them. Now the ratio's about 3 unread books for every 1 read book. My dad complains that I have too many books they can't fit on my bookshelves anymore. I now stack them on my desks, and pretty soon they'll be on the floor as well. The Comfort Reader Another reason why I end up hoarding books is because there are certain novels I consider comfort reads, which I often re-read. Yes, Carrie, is one of them. Carrie isn't a relaxing read, but it is comforting to read about someone who is bullied, like me, but is able to get her revenge in the end. If I had a superpower, telekinesis would be at the very top of the list, for sure. Haruki Murakami's Norwegian Wood is another of my comfort reads. I love the novel's dream-like state (seemingly a running theme in the many Murakami novels I've read), and how the main character is in a perpetual state of searching and discovering. This brings me to the next specie I (supposedly) identify with: The Eclectic I'm a bit unsure of this specie of reader because I'm not entirely convinced Murakami's works are eclectic. Maybe five years ago this would have been the case, but now--as one of my reader friends so matter-of-factly pointed out--Murakami's the Japanese author everyone loves to read.  But I do love him and his works! He's one of my top three favorite authors, and I'm doubly sad he didn't win the Nobel Prize two years in a row (and thinking I should buy/read a novel by Alice Munro). Thinking of other novels that may be eclectic, maybe Out and Grotesque by Natsuo Kirino and Girl, Interrupted by Susana Kaysen?  The Evangelist
All of my close reader friends (and even some of the non-readers) will attest to the fact that I am a super book evangelist. Sometimes, if I can't convince them to buy a book for themselves, I'll even buy it for them as a present. I bought my one friend a copy of John Green's Looking for Alaska, and now she loves John Green. Nerdfighters unite!  Other authors I regularly evangelize are, of course, Stephen King and Haruki Murakami. Interestingly, Murakami is the more difficult author to evangelize among the three, but that's another story, for another time.