I was an English/Biology double major in college, and I love to read. My favorite "serious" authors are John Steinbeck (love and adore East of Eden), Thomas Hardy (Far From the Madding Crowd), Jane Austen (P&P), William Faulkner (As I Lay Dying), George Eliot (Middlemarch), J.R.R. Tolkien (Lord of the Rings trilogy, esp. The Two Towers and The Return of the King b/c Eowyn and Faramir rock), and J.D. Salinger (Catcher in the Rye). Among popular novels, I love to read mysteries, especially those by Elizabeth Peters (aka Barbara Michaels or Barbara Mertz). I recently read The Red Tent, which I found to be compelling. Not exactly a favorite, but a good read nonetheless. A series of books that falls under the same classification of good read but not a treasured favorite is the Lymond Chronicles by Dorothy Dunnett. I love her use of verse and quotations in her writing, but I'm not crazy about all of the books.

Favorite movies include: Amelie, Strictly Ballroom, Shawshank Redemption, While You Were Sleeping, Iron Giant, Dead Again, Speed (purely for the eye candy), Laura, Willow, Breakfast at Tiffany's (despite Mickey Rooney's horrendously racist portrayal of a Japanese man), Jennifer 8, Romancing the Stone, The Rookie, Chicago, and others.