Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl
This week’s prompt required some brainstorming for me because I’m the sort of reader who is drawn to characters and plots that I would not actually want to spend much time with in real life. For example, I love rereading Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, but I would never want to join Dr. Frankestein as he sewed pieces of various corpses together and then electrocuted them to see if they could be reanimated.
Needless to say, watching Netflix and ordering in a Hawaiian pizza is much closer to my idea of a relaxing date night. If I’m leaving the house, I’d rather go on a long, exploratory walk than buy tickets to something that must be attended at a specific time. The characters I’m about to discuss are the sorts of folks that I think would at least occasionally enjoy my laid-back approach to life.
1. Lyra from Phillip Pullman’s The Golden Compass.
What we’d do together:
Visit a museum on one of the nights when they offer free or half-price admission. She’d try to sneak into one of the employee-only rooms. I’d attempt to convince her to give up on this plan and probably not succeed at that. We’d have a wonderful time comparing what I’d seen in the official exhibits and what she’d found in the archives, though!
2. Fern from E.B. White’s Charlotte’s Web.
What we’d do together:
Visit a local animal shelter, adopt two of the dogs there that no one else wanted to take home, and live happily ever after.
3. Liesel from Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief.
What we’d do together:
Bake chocolate chip cookies, spend a few hours reading in companionable silence, and then talk about what we read.
4. Matthew Cuthbert from L.M. Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables series.
What we’d do together:
He’d teach me how to fix farm equipment and take care of livestock. I’d teach him how to turn on a smart phone and surf the Internet. Hopefully, we’d both be able to swap tips about living with social anxiety. (I genuinely believe he would have been diagnosed with it if he lived in our era!)
5. Alice from Claire Kann’s Let’s Talk About Love.
What we’d do together:
Since Alice is asexual, I’m demisexual, and we’re both biromantic, we’d probably start off comparing notes on what dating and relationships are like for queer people on the aro spectrum.
After that, I’d invite her to play cooperative board games with me. She struck me as the sort of person who might really enjoy working together so that everyone wins.
6. Faythe from Rachel Vincent’s Shifters series.
What we’d do together:
We’d discuss feminism and gender equality. I loved this character, but I really disliked the were-cat culture she’d been raised in because of how much the men in her pack tried to control the women around them. She deserved to be treated so much better than she was by most of the men around her.
I’d also be interested in watching her shift between her human and were-cat forms if she was comfortable doing it in front of me. The book’s descriptions of this process were fascinating.
7. Bilbo Baggins from J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit.
What we’d do together:
Cook a feast, invite friends over, and have a big, cheerful dinner party. Hopefully, there would be some dancing and joke-telling, too, after everyone had eaten their fill. I know there are far larger and more powerful characters in this universe, but I’ve always identified with the hobbits more than anyone else. They knew how to live a simple, happy life.
This is such a lovely list! I want to read Let’s Talk About Love – I need more ace rep in my life.
Aww, thanks. Let’s Talk About Love was a very sweet book. I hope you like it.
Matthew Cuthbert, yes!!
I love this list and that you added what you would do together. That’s a really awesome idea!
Thank you very much!
I only know most of these characters by reputation, if at all, but I love your imagining of what you’d do together. I would love to join you in pretty much all of these specific activities.
Thank you. You’d definitely be invited to whichever activities sounded fun to you. 🙂
FYI, I tried to leave a comment on your post. Livejournal said it was marked as spam?!
Ah, yeah, LJ assumes pretty much any URLs with links in them are Suspect unless it’s a user I’ve friended. Don’t worry about it — it still shows up as a hidden comment and notifies me, so I just unscreened it and it’s visible now.
COMMENTS with URLs/links, rather
I agree with you. I’m drawn to characters that I wouldn’t want to deal with in real life. Hence, the reason I only have 5 on my list
So many great characters! I love that you thought about what you’d do as well, it’s such a nice touch.
Thanks. I appreciate that.
Oh, I LOVE how you included what you’d do with them! Lyra would be a hecka fun person to spend some time with, and you’re right, she’d totally be trying to get into areas she’s supposedly “not allowed,” like she does. Bilbo’s a great choice, too! I mean, I do love the Elves and some humans. How can you not? But the hobbits definitely know where it’s at, and they sure know how to throw a party.
Thanks a lot! Yeah, hobbits would throw such a great party.
I love your take on why you chose these book besties. And oh, Matthew Cuthbert! Great choice.
Thank you. I’m glad you liked my list.
I like your approach to this and I think Lyra would be fun. Are you going to be watching the new series?
Thank you. Yes, I will be checking out that series. It could be fun!
I like how you included what you’d do together today!
Thanks. 🙂
Aw, Matthew! He’s one of the best characters, and now I think about it, he’s really quite underrated too. One of the best from classic literature. 🙂 Thanks so much for visiting Finding Wonderland, Lydia.
Yes, he sure is.
And you’re welcome.
I love how you did this, Lydia 🙂 I never thought about what I would do with my book besties, but this makes me want to think about that 😀
Thank you very much. I hope you come up with answers to what you’d want to do with your book besties soon.
Lovely list! I’d like to be friends with Lyra & Liesel too!
My TTT
Thanks.
I really need to reread Anne of Green Gables. My mother read most of the series to us as bedtime stories, but I haven’t read them as an adult.
I also totally agree with you comments about the society poor Faythe was raised in.
Great post!
Glad to hear it. Yeah, Faythe should have had a much better life.
I hope you enjoy rereading Anne of Green Gables. The first few books in that series are the best.
This is a great list! I love your explanation of activities with each one! A hobbit party sounds inviting! 😍
https://readingladies.com/2019/08/12/book-characters-that-id-like-as-best-friends/
Thank you. And absolutely!
I love how you made your list especially your pick of Bilbo and what you’d do together!
Thank you. What a nice compliment.
I didn’t even think of Lyra! She’s such a good one. I would have totally picked Bilbo if I read the books ☺️ Great list!
Heh, thanks.
I’m down with your low-key approach to friends’ gatherings. Those rare friendships in which you can read in companionable silence are a gift.
Can I attend your Hobbit party?
Heh, absolutely. 🙂
Matthew Cuthbert would be a wonderful friend to have
I couldn’t agree with you more there.
The hobbits are way underrated. No one in power really understands why Gandalf loves the hobbits so much, but he understands that they are the heart and soul of Middle Earth.
I love your idea of a perfect day with Fern. That sounds lovely.
Yes, the hobbits definitely are the heart and soul of middle Earth.
And thank you.
I have to check out Lets Talk About Love.
I hope you’ll like it!
Bilbo is an interesting choice!
Thanks.
I would absolutely love to attend a dinner party hosted by a hobbit!
It would be amazing for sure. Hobbits know how to throw together a good meal!
Oh wow, I’d love to read Let’s Talk about Love. I am demisexual panromantic (married in an opposite-sex relationship though) and didn’t know there’s even any fiction out there for us.
That should’ve said “fiction *about* us”, not for.
There isn’t much of it, but there is a little. I hope you enjoy Let’s Talk About Love.
And hello to a fellow demisexual bi/panromantic! It’s always cool to meet kindred spirits like that.
Great list!
Thank you.
I adored Liesel and Alice, and I’d 1000% would love to be friends with them both. Great list! 🙂
Yay! And thank you.
Lyra and Bilbo would be great friends to have! Especially Bilbo though! If we’re talking older Bilbo, he would have some amazing stories to share! And if we’re talking younger Bilbo… maybe he’d invite us on one of those adventures! (although… I hope it’s an adventure to a library or cafe and not to fight trolls. I have no troll fighting skills XD )
Happy Reading! <3
I’m so glad you agree with me on those picks.
And no thank you to troll fighting for me as well. Singing or having dinner together is much more my speed.
Lovely list! It’s so nice you included what you’d do together! I would absolutely love to be friends with Liesel – The Book Thief is my favourite book! 😊
My TTT: https://lifewithallthebooks.com/2019/08/13/top-ten-tuesday-book-characters-id-love-to-be-besties-with/
Thank you very much!
Your list just kept getting better and better as I went down. Definitely YES to Bilbo.
Aww, thanks! What a nice compliment.
Honestly I was thinking about Bilbo Baggins the other day (as you do) and I’m surprised I didn’t include im on my list because you are 100% right and on point about that friendship potential and I’m here for it.
Yay! So glad to hear that.
Awww Matthew, so much yes. That gives me the warm and fuzzies. Perfect answer.
Thanks. 🙂
I love how you included what you each would do together! I would also love to throw a party with Bilbo! I channel him whenever I have people over for food, right down to my No Admittance: Party Business Only sign
Thank you! That sign would be a perfect touch, too.
Yaassss Faythe!!!! I LOVED that series! I loved Faythe too! Though at times I kind of wanted to shake her a bit! Lol. But I’d do that to my besties too!
Thanks for visiting my TTT post!
I’m glad you had a similar reaction to Faythe. And your’e welcome.
I love that you added “what we’d do together” for your picks. Great list.
Thank you!
I love how you formated this post 🙂 I’d love to meet Matthew Cuthbert!
Aww, thanks. Yeah, Matthew was such a nice man.
This is such a great list. I love that you have activities you’d do with each of them as well.
Thank you very much.
What a fun approach – I love that you’ve figured out how you’d spend time together! I can’t believe I didn’t think about Lyra when I was putting together my list. I love her so much.I wouldn’t mind hanging out will Bilbo or Fern or Matthew either!
Thanks! Yeah, there were several characters I saw on other people’s lists that I wish I’d remembered. The TTT bloggers are a creative bunch.
Seeing how you describe it, I definitely want to read Let’s talk about love!
Cool. I hope you enjoy it if you read it.
Fern would be awesome, and Bilbo too. I would love to hang around some hobbits. 🙂
They would keep life interesting for sure.
I love the way you organized this and told us what you would do together. Fun.
Thank you.
I agree with Alice too and I associate myself with being demisexual too. What an awesome list and thanks for stopping by The Phantom Paragrapher
It’s nice to meet another demisexual! And you’re welcome.
Bilbo Baggins, for sure! And I can’t believe I didn’t think of Matthew Cuthbert. He’s such a good-hearted person and could use some more friends. 🙂
I totally agree with you there.
I love how you’ve set out your list. Bilbo would definitely be good fun, (as long as you didn’t get him onto his poetry.)
Heh, excellent point. And thanks.
Great list, Lydia! I love how you also included what you’d do with them. That’s so awesome 😃and it sounds like you’d have such a great time with all these characters lol
My TTT post
Thank you very much.
Let’s Talk about Love has been appearing in lists recently and the previous one and your post here makes me kick myself for not reading it sooner!
I think you’d love that book!
Most recently, I keep seeing Let’s Talk about Love and posts like yours make me want to read it sooo much!
Cool!
Cooking a feast with Bilbo sounds like a lot of fun!
I know, right? 🙂
Alice is a great choice. Let’s Talk About Love was a great book, and Alice was a very relatable character. I definitely agree she’d be a fun friend.
I’m so glad you agree there. I adored Alice.
Such a great list!!! There are quite a few books on here that I need to read 🙈!
That’s awesome. I hope you get a chance to read them soon.
I love your take on the topic… sharing what you would do together. 🙂 Your plans with Bilbo sounds positively perfect. Count me in, too! 🙂
Thanks. Yeah, dinner with Bilbo could definitely include you, too.
Hawaiian pizza and Netflix? YES this sounds like the best relaxing hangout. I’m not familiar with a few of these characters but I enjoyed that you added what you would do together! Thanks for sharing 🙂
You’re welcome!
I love how you brainstormed activities to do with these book protagonists! Ahhh, I still need to read so many of these books: The Golden Compass, Let’s Talk About Love, The Book Thief, and The Hobbit!
Thank you! I hope you enjoy those books.
I totally agree, Liesel is the best, especially to discuss books with 🙂
Awesome. 🙂
Alice sounds like a great character to be friend with! (also need to get my hands on that book). Bilbo is That Friend who’d throw dinner parties to gather up the gang. And you included Liesel here! I haven’t reread The Book Thief in so long..
I hope you enjoy Let’s Talk About Love. And thanks.
Definitely have to agree with Fern, Matthew Cuthbert, though I am not sure about Liesel from The Book Thief as it still on my To Read list, but hopefully, fingers crossed, that I will get it read by the end of the year. Hope you have a great reading week.
The Book Thief was fantastic. I hope you have fun reading it! Are you planning to watch the movie, too?
Have a good reading week yourself.
Oooh Lyra is such a good answer!! I still need to read the third book. Great list!! Thank you for checking out my post!
You’re welcome. Yeah, Lyra is the best. Will you be watching the TV show based on that series that is coming out?
Lewis and Benjamin Jones from On the Black Hill by Bruce Chatwin
Cool.
Aw, I love Bilbo!
I haven’t yet read The Dark Materials but I really need to get a move on with the TV series soon to launch!
It’s a great series. I hope you love it.
And I never would have guessed that so many folks had a soft spot in their hearts for the hobbits, too. It’s pretty cool. 🙂
Great list! I love that you’ve added in something that you’d love to do with each of them
Thank you.
I love that you included Alice! She’d be such a fun bestie and it would be nice to have a bestie who’s also on the ace spectrum. And Bilbo Baggins for sure! I also always related more to the hobbits myself 🙂
Thank you. I never would have guessed so many other folks related to the hobbits, too. 🙂
Matthew Cuthbert! AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW. I love that you chose him <3 <3 <3
Thank you.
I’ve wished for a prequel about him ever since I first “met” him. He was such a wonderful, kind-hearted man. Honestly, I can’t think of a better father-figure for a kid like Anne who had been bounced around between homes so much before she arrived at Green Gables.