Kicking off!! *Armchair BEA Week*

Hello, Armchair BEA! After armchairing at BEA for two years (the first two years since the inception of Armchair BEA), I took a two-year break, because, Armchair BEA can get really hectic, and I spent the last two years taking it slow in the blogging world, without being on my computer or phone all day long. Obviously, I've been missing all those buzz-filled days that the BEA brings with it, because I'm back again doing this. From the year I started blogging, I've wanted to go to BEA one of these years, and I still haven't done it yet. Interestingly, I don't feel as eager to go to BEA as I did four years ago because

• of a change in reading tastes? 
• of a change in motivation for blogging/reading? 
• I am generally less keen on new releases as I am on the backlist?
• I don't see that many books at BEA that excite me as much as I wish there were?
• Or, most probably, I'm more likely to pick a book if people are talking about it already than just seeing it on a list for the first time?

Either way, it works for me. I don't feel too bad about sitting at home, in my reading armchair, while I vicariously live through all the BEA tweets. Armchair BEA, however, I love. Sure, it's still all about the BEA, but it celebrates the bloggers more than the event in itself, and I'm all about sharing or being part of some blogger love. So without rambling on for much longer, here are my answers to some of the Armchair BEA questions for the day:

Please tell us a little bit about yourself: Who are you? How long have you been blogging? Why did you get into blogging? Where in the world are you blogging from?
Hello from Virginia! I'm Athira, programmer by day, reader/blogger by night. I've been blogging for four and a half years on this blog, far longer on my personal blog, which I have shut down since. I remember chancing into the book blog world a few days before Christmas of 2009. Countless hours of googling and browsing later, (and mind you, it was right at the end of a depressing semester), I knew what I wanted to do.
**Fun fact**: My blogiversary comes right at the beginning of the winter holidays that I always forget about it until the first blogger I follow mentions his/her blogiversary in the new year. Yep, I think I've celebrated my blogiversary only once so far!


What genre do you read the most?
I used to believe that I enjoyed literary fiction the best. But over the years, I've realized that's not entirely true. The books I end up loving the most are usually the genre-busters - books that step away from convention, books that are written using some novel techniques. Me Before You, Where'd You Do Bernadette, The Buddha in the Attic, Good Neighbors, The Dinner, The Elephant's Journey are some of them.


What does your favorite/ideal reading space look like?
I only got this set up early this year, after lamenting for a long time that I didn't have an ideal reading spot in our home. It actually wasn't planned much, but more thanks to couple of items coming together at that nook.

Spread the love by naming your favorite blogs/bloggers (doesn’t necessarily have to be book blogs/bloggers).

• Life hack/productivity blog: Lifehacker
• Dog blog: The BarkPost
• Food blog: The Kitchn
• Book Games: Sporcle
• And a shout-out to some of my favorite bloggers: (I wish I could just get Feedly to give me the names of all the bloggers I love, but off the top of my head, here are some of them. I know I have missed many others, though.) Helen, Kathy, Natasha, Ti, Jenny, Juju, and Sam.

If you were stranded on a deserted island, what 3 books would you bring? Why? What 3 non-book items would you bring? Why? 
There are not many books I will reread. But there a tiny few that won't bore me to death.

• If I'm stranded on an island, I will need an uplifting read, and for that, I'll take the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the last book mainly because it is the one I have reread the least number of times, but also because, as the last book in the series, it is cheerful, determined, and conclusive.
• I'll also need something that will keep me motivated and courageous. Unbroken is the perfect book to remind me every day that there are people who have thrived through the worst the world had to offer.
• And finally, a book to remind me that the worst (zombies!) has not yet passed - The Walking Dead collection.

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