On Sunday, the NYT Book Review had an essay about incompatible taste in books, asking the question: are there authors that would be a romantic dealbreaker for you? Would a particular taste in books be enough to turn you off to a potential partner?
EW’s Popwatch blog picked up the discussion yesterday, and reading through the comments is entertaining. Some people think that judging others by what they read is shallow; some feel that having a partner who reads at all is good enough; and some go so far as to reject partners who loved "The Da Vinci Code" or who read Oprah selections.
Another one of my favorite blogs, Jezebel, did a similar post yesterday too. (Again, check out the comments).
I will admit to being a book snob – I suppose anyone with a book blog probably fits into that category. I avoid Oprah selections (and am usually horrified when she chooses books I have already read) and have been known to walk out of bookstores after 10 seconds if all I see is spy novels and mass market paperbacks on first glance. I have an irrational (and completely untested) distaste for Jodi Picoult. I also love to look at other people’s bookshelves – I even do it when going to open houses. (What better way to make snap judgments about people than analyzing what they read?). And I have to say – anyone carrying a copy of The Secret (not even going to dignify it with a hyperlink) is immediately suspect in my book. (Yes, I do realize that not everything I read is prize-winning fiction. I am sure people look at my list with disdain as well).
What are your own literary dealbreakers? Which authors are you snobby about? Feel free to weigh in here.
[On a totally unrelated note – if you happen to be a fan of The Westing Game – Jezebel has an excellent excellent excellent discussion of it here. Oh. My. God.]