i like things like this. especially when they're about books. here we go.

1. One book that changed your life.

lots have, but if i had to choose one i suppose it would have to be the one that this blog is named after. william s. burroughs' naked lunch. burroughs is a true scientist and this is a wholly dispassionate appraisal of the human organism. you can't deny that the man had character flaws (and a dodgy aim), but his unrelenting anti-authoritarianism wasn't one of them. it's also incredibly funny - just check the talking asshole routine.

2. One book that you've read more than once.

don't generally do that. but one i have is a wizard of earthsea, because it's a book that works at different levels for different aged people (like all good 'childrens' books).

3. One book that you'd want on a desert island.

it would have to be something timeless, poetic, philosophical. maybe throw in a few warriors and gods. i think the bhagavad gita would do nicely.

4. One book that made you laugh.

zaat by sonallah ibrahim. there were lots of good bits, but i particularly remember the two husbands seruptitiously meeting in the middle of the night to watch porn being particularly funny.

5. One book that made you cry.

i seem attracted to melancholy books so this happens a lot. the god of small things by arundhati roy was one that i found particularly moving. the story is so beautiful but soul-crushingly sad. even the funny bits about the kids are tinged with darkness, about how their mother loved them "a little bit less".

6. One book you wish you had written.

any of the really stirring anarchist works, but i'll settle for the revolution in everyday life by vaneigem. ok, it's pretty laden in continental philosophy, but the situationists' total irreverance and cutting wit combined with their vision of total transformation of human relations are a pretty hard act to beat.

7. One book you wish had never been written.

strange one that. would have to be something really mediocre and self-indulgent. and expressing awful political views to boot. i reckon the world according to jeremy clarkson fits all of those.

8. One book you're currently reading.

only forward by michael marshall smith. humorous/twisted sci-fi thing with evil babies.

9. One book you have been meaning to read.