MY READING INFLUENCES

A couple of years ago, I did a video on my YouTube channel where I talked about the people who influenced me to read and to read more. They definitely have not necessarily shaped my reading tastes because I very much have my own. Some of my influences read books that I don't want to read because they simply aren't what I'm interested in. And that's okay. But they have encouraged me to read more (and to read some things that they have starred in adaptations.)

E M I L I A    F O X

I have been a fan of Emilia Fox for ten years. It wasn't long into that ten years when I found out that Emilia loved to read. I found an interview where she said that she always carries a book with her. She even did a photoshoot where she recreated iconic book looks; Jump, Harry Potter (Hogwarts uniform), Alice from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, Bridget Jones, etc. 

Emilia is one of those influences that has encouraged me to read more, not necessarily to read what she is reading. It wasn't until recently that I really began to get into the books that she has either narrated an audiobook for or starred in an adaptation. My favourite of them all has to be 'Rebecca' by Daphne du Maurier. I haven't watched her adaptation but I did love the book. My favourite of her audiobooks is 'Jackdaws' by Ken Follett. She did an incredible job narrating it. I do believe that our reading tastes do cross over ever now and then, like a Ven Diagram. We meet in the middle somewhere. She has made me curious to check out other books that I might not necessarily have been interested in in the first place. Sometimes it's good to step out of that comfort zone. I have enjoyed some of the books that she's either mentioned, narrated or acted in and some, I haven't liked; I'm looking at you, The Wreckage.

I'll do a blog post in a few weeks about all of the books that I've read because of Emilia Fox and the books that I still have left to read. 

@ emiliafox twitter.

K A T I E    M c G R A T H

Katie McGrath aka Emilia Fox's sister, Morgana in The Adventures of Merlin aka BBC's Merlin. I love that these two love to read so much. I love that most of the behind-the-scenes photographs of Katie are of her reading books that rival the height of her heels. Sometimes you can clearly see what she's reading and one of those photographs show Katie reading one of Ken Follett's books. From the look of the book cover, my guess would be 'The Pillars of the Earth.' That's my guess. That book has been on my radar for a while now and oddly, not because it looks like Katie McGrath was reading it. I only just noticed it when I was looking for photographs for this blog post.

Katie has influenced some of my reading because she's been in adaptations; I read Dracula by Bram Stoker because she played Lucy Westenra opposite Jonathan Rhys Meyer and Jessica De Gouw in a television series. I also read 'Labyrinth' by Kate Mosse because she played Oriane opposite Jessica Brown Findlay (and Emilia was one-half of the narration duo for the audiobook). I nearly died laughing when her character is seen reading in Jurassic World.

You can actually see what she's reading in the reflection of the window. I can't quite make out the title because the screencap is blurry but she's reading about dinosaurs. Quite apt, right?

I think that out of all of my influences, I feel that Katie would have the most similar reading tastes to me. I do know that she has read 'A Song of Ice and Fire', which I loved when I read it.

K A T E    M U L G R E W

I vividly remember watching a convention panel with Kate Mulgrew and she recommended 'especially to this child, in a coma' in the front row (bored out their mind, the child was), to read. She is a voracious reader. If I remember correctly, Kate Mulgrew has said that Dr. Zhivago is one of her favourite books. Admittedly, the likes of Dr. Zhivago and War and Peace would not be the books that I would reach for immediately if I had other books to choose from. If I had a thousand-page Fantasy book and a thousand-page historical fiction classic, I know which one I would choose; the Fantasy. Like with Emilia and Katie, I may not sure their tastes in books, I love that they read and are always reading. When I'm travelling, I do like to have a book or an audiobook handy. 

M Y    M U M

Last but by no means least, my mother. For as long as I can remember, she has always had a book in her hands. She loves Danielle Steel and has every book she has ever had published (and she has duplicates of some books because she has forgotten that she owns them). My Mum has a whole bookcase in the dining room dedicated to Danielle Steel and it is overflowing. I could easily arrange all of those books in a rainbow because there are so many different covers of every colour. 

One summer, I read nothing but Danielle Steel and Barbara Taylor Bradford's books. I just wanted to read books one summer and there were so many at hand. I honestly really enjoyed them. I most certainly was not at the age to read those books. I wasn't their key demographic at 16 years of age. I've always read outside of the box. I love to talk to my Mum about books. She is definitely not a Fantasy and Science-Fiction reader like me. She once read the synopsis of 'Strange the Dreamer' by Laini Taylor and her eyes crossed. It wasn't up her street at all but I love to talk about what I'm reading with her. Though I will say, never ask her what she's reading because she will tell you every last detail.


Who are your reading influences? As I said often throughout this blog post, all of my influences may not have influenced what I have read but they have encouraged me to read and to find what I like to read.