I prefer fiction and non-fiction more or less equally, I do most of my reading on the internet, reading stuff like slashdot and wikipedia very freqently. (in fact, I've been known to spend hours sitting down and reading wikipedia for fun and I've often ended up very far from where I started from because I delve into side topics linked to on the main article, and then delve further into sub topics from that article, etc.

I enjoy learning about esoteric subjects and topics, so wikipedia (and related wiki sites) allow me to indulge my interests often to the point of my detriment. (I've often let important assignments and other things slide because of this)


I'm rather selective in the fiction I read, I've got a special preference for Sci-Fi. In fact, if someone wanted to lure me into a trap, all they would have to do is use a Star Wars Expanded Universe novel as bait and they could ensnare me very easily.
(The only exception bei
ng the New Jedi Order books-- I never really liked that series or anything set after it)

Post and vote!

Fiction most of the time, nonfiction can be plain and boring for most of the time in my opinion. Yet history is somewhat interesting at times.

Then again, there is a lot of plain and boring fiction...

So I guess in conclusion I'd take good fiction over good nonfiction nearly every time.

I go through phases of each, at the moment I'm slap bang in the middle of a non-fiction phase. I read New Scientist every week and also go trawling through wikipedia sometimes in the way you described. It's never just for the sake of it though, I'll always have something I wanted to look up, and I'll find that, then realise two hours later I've meandered on to a completely different subject. The last few books I read were all non-fiction too, though not intentionally, they just happened to be the most appealing looking books on my shelves that I hadn't read. I can't remember what the last piece of fiction I read was, but contrary too all this rambling, I do really like that too. Sci-fi and fastasy, and thrillers are my preferences.

I really can't get into most fiction books. The only fiction I like reading is where it's pretty much real life with no deus ex machina thrown in by the author.

wikipedia counts as reading now?

I hve binges where it's one or the other.

SW novels are my big thing, although since I've read all but a few (Dark Nest, Outbound Flight, some of the kiddie series) I haven't read any in a long time. School library doesn't carry much, either.

And I guess I'll share, too.

Right now I'm at the end of Anna Karenina (like, the last 20 pages). I'm pretty sure I'll be reading The Death of Ivan Illych (short story collection, also by Tolstoy) afterwards, and then maybe War and Peace or Crime and Punishment. I also find that I like to reread my favourite books a lot, so I'll probably do Dune, Foundation and The Honorary Consul (this amazingly funny novel by Graham Greene) sometime soon.

I used to really like the Star Wars books - I read Dark Force Rising (which I haven't read since, but I remember liking it) and then hunted down like ever Star Wars book for a while...I didn't find any that I enjoyed as much as Zahn's books, though (I especially love Vision of the Future. With a book like Karenina I don't know enough about the times 150 years ago so I don't catch many of the jokes and references, but I really think I got Vision of the Future. It's a mockery of all the other Star Wars EU stuff).

I just got done reading the Colour out of Space by HP Lovecraft.

Excellent story.
I spend an equal amount of time between nonfiction and fiction.
(I usually spend hours on wikipedia as well. )

I read anything that I can get my hands on...so an equal mix. Lately I've gotten so desperate for reading that I'll read the labels off the things I eat/drink. It's kind of sad >_>

I only read books that have a lot of philosophy in them

Does looking a cookery books count as non-fiction? It's something I've just found myself doing lately.

Fiction I'd say anyway.

Fiction, mainly because reading is a form of escapism and it's hard to escape into reality. However, I do enjoy the odd non-fictional read. I just got finished reading The Guv'nor, the lifestory of Lenny McLean. That was a great read. I also just bought Romance of the Three Kingdoms to take away on holiday with me. I know it's the retelling of the fall of the Han dynasty, but I don't know if it's a dramatisation or what since I'm not touching it until I get to Spain

What do you mean? Maybe I need to read it again o.o

I have a hard time reading books at all. My attention span isn't good enough to keep me interested in words on paper.

Though, I have a huge affinity for articles (journalism), so I would vote Nonfiction if those were the only options, but since I hate books I chose the Utopian answer.

Non-Fiction to learn, Fiction to entertain.

Haha I actually have it the other way around
I read fiction for the literature, to study prose n tone n style (I'm a writing freak) .. Fitzgerald is my all-time prose hero and I have like 50 million of his books and short stories

I read non-fiction (read: time, wall st. journal, new york times) for entertainment .. not the big serious articles unless they're specific subjects of interest, but the little side stories or columns they usually have


Oh but I do read fiction for fun sometimes.

I read non-fiction - news and magazine articles, textbooks - to learn, and I read fiction to entertain myself.

All the Luke and Mara parts (which I initially thought were kind of boring). I could pull out my copy and find you exact quotations. Basically, Zahn (though Mara) sarcastically mocks all of the crap Star Wars writing that went on between his Thrawn trilogy and the two hand of Thrawn books. Mara calls Luke on a lot of his stupider EU adventures, which I took as potshots by Timothy Zahn at some of the other Star Wars authors.

On a more minor point, he also retcons away that thing where Lando and Mara were dating (which was really, really dumb). It must be kind of frustrating: he's the first Star Wars EU novelist, writes three good books and then has his characters spoiled by other EU writers jumping on the bandwagon.

I generally prefer to read fiction, but not exclusively. I'd say 4 out of every 5 books I read are fiction.

I currently have 33 books out fromt the library. 32 of them are fiction. I'm the biggest escapeist reader ever.

Sometimes I wonder if I read everything BUT books....

I am a very picky reader. In general cases, I'd rather read Wikipedia about the history of the floppy disk than read a book. I guess school has destroyed any book-reading motivation I might have once had.

what the..... holy ......

33 books?! WTF?! They only give you two months! WTF!

Bah, I bet over 20 of those are trashy romance novels ....

I finished reading the first Dark Tower book not too long ago. I tend to prefer fiction, though if I'm already predisposed towards a subject (like game design or improving one's writing), I'll be absorbed into non-fiction too. But it's more like textbook stuff than non-fiction, so... yeah.

It really matters. The thing for me is that non-fiction has to be written well. I can get through sub-par fiction novel without a problem, but a sub-par non-fiction novel is worse than death. For instance, the book I am reading now is non-fiction, The Rise And Fall Of The Third Reich by William L. Shirer, and I would say it is one of the best books I have read, fiction and non-fiction alike. I am also reading a Dean Koontz books for that times I don't feel like doing any hard reading and just want an fun and interesting story.

So I guess both are good, I'm just stricter about non-fiction.

Rainbow Six was a good book, that's probably the only non-Star Wars novel I've read in a long time.