Book Genre Quiz
Field Guide
You line up lots of things side by side and take your time checking even the smallest differences.
A field guide is a book that introduces the things in one subject — plants, insects, fish, stars and so on — one by one, with pictures or photos. Name, size, where it can be found and other details are given in the same format for each, so you can look things up in the index or compare similar ones side by side.
Rather than reading from the first page to the last, you open a field guide at whatever page catches your interest and enjoy spotting how it differs from the next. You're the kind of person who keeps an eye on a wide range of things while slowly checking the fine shapes and colors of each one.
Because you can compare many things in fine detail, time can slip away while you compare, and you may hesitate when it's time to decide. You might even find you've researched the difference between two products more thoroughly than the salesperson. Narrow down what you'll compare to three points first, and deciding gets quicker.
Strengths
- You can compare lots of things by the same yardstick
- You notice small differences between similar things
- You can organize what you've gathered so it's easy to look up later
Where you may stumble
- While you're comparing, the time to choose runs out
- You talk about fine differences and get ahead of the other person's interest
- You can't settle on one until you've seen them all
Sounds familiar, Field Guide?
- You find yourself looking up the names of roadside flowers and bugs
- You rearrange the things you collect by color or size
- You can explain the differences between things other people say “all look the same”
Where you shine
Choosing from lots of options, or sorting and organizing things. Your eye for fine differences can make the choice a lot easier for whoever has to make it.
Tips for “Field Guide”
- Narrow what you'll compare down to three points first
- Save the fine details until the other person asks, “And?”
- Set a time to decide, and pick whatever's best at that point
Matches
See every match in the Book Genre Quiz compatibility chart →
History — History is another genre that checks facts carefully. To each thing Field Guide lays out, History adds its origins — when and why it came about. Instead of stopping at comparison, you get to enjoy the story beyond it.
Poetry — Like you, Poetry is a book people open at any page and savor slowly. To the name of a flower or insect that Field Guide has found, Poetry adds another way of seeing it, in just a few words. You're both books that can be opened anywhere, so neither of you hurries the other.
Mystery — Mystery is a genre that chases one puzzle and turns the pages briskly. To Field Guide, which wants to lay things out broadly and compare, Mystery's urge to get to the answer feels rushed — while to Mystery, Field Guide's detours look like they've wandered off the plot.
Close neighbors
These differ from this one on just 1 of the 3 axes. If one of your axes was near the middle, you may have their side too.
Which one are you? 18 everyday situations, about 3 minutes.
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