What are you currently reading?

I am currently reading an advance copy of Ian McEwan's latest work of fiction ... Sweet Tooth.  Once again, McEwan shines forth as a magnificent purveyor of exquisite prose, and leaves the reader with a silent sense of dread for the loss one feels as the last pages of his novel approach.

What was the last truly great book you read?

Unquestionably HHhH by Laurent Binet.  This historical novel about the most dangerous man in Hitler's cabinet, Reinhard Heydrich, reads ... at times .... like a stream of consciousness, where the author grants himself poetic license to break all the rules and take the reader into the heart and soul of a city, Prague, the Gestapo, and two men, a Slovak and a Czech whom, in broad daylight, killed one of the highest-ranking Nazis, and ultimately changed the course of history.

Are you a fiction or nonfiction person? What’s your favorite literary genre? Any guilty pleasures?

Fiction, with a bent on current affairs, although I have been known to sneak off under the cover of darkness and grab a good ole' "who dun-it" that can spin a good yarn.  Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl fits that description beautifully; a very clever and well-written plot that leads you up one blind alley after another, giving little or nothing away .... until the bitter end !

What book had the greatest impact on you?

I simply cannot narrow it down to one book ... way too many books have had hugely significant impacts on my life, and certainly shaped most of my current opinions and views.

What is your ideal reading experience?  Your reading habits?

As an avid reader, I can read literally anywhere ... and never hesitate to grab those free moments that arise during the day to cast an eye over my latest "read" .... whatever it may be.  But there's a lot to be said for the romance of a very rainy day or stormy night and a good book .....

Do you prefer a book that makes you laugh or cry?  One that teaches you something, or distracts you?

I want a book to give all my senses a workout, and leave me reeling !

What were your favorite books as a child?

Having grown up in Ireland, the entire Enid Blyton Collection pulled every kid into the delicious and delightful art of reading, and honed up out appetites for what lay ahead.

Who are your favorite heroes and heroines of fiction?

F. Scott Fitzgerald's Jay Gatsby certainly intrigues me, as he shed a light on a highly-privileged and massively wealthy 'Americana'' with all its trimmings, whom for many, would never get the slightest insights nor exposure to.  And Sophie in William Styron's masterpiece, Sophie's Choice - who had to make the ultimate decision .... with heartbreaking and devastating consequences.

Disappointing, overrated, just not good?

Eat, Pray, Love

Do you remember the last book you put down without finishing?

The Help

What's the funniest book you've ever read?

Maybe The Moon by Armistead Maupin, and Herman Wouk's Don't Stop the Carnival.

If you could meet any writer, dead or alive, who would it be?  What would you want to know?

My list is endless, my questions too numerous .... but for now, I'd settle for a chat with W.B. Yeats, and would love to know how he came up with the name "Minnalousche" for his cat, and did Minnalousche actually dance under the moon?

What do you plan to read next?

Sabina Berman' new work of fiction Me, Who Dove into the Heart of the World.  Although unfamiliar with her work, I'm sensing a novel of extraordinary sensitivity.