Book Buying Bans

**A note on my notes: These are my opinions only.**

I'm currently on a book-buying ban, and I hate it. But I also think it's necessary, and here's why.

Recently, I cleaned out my bookshelves. Mainly because I was running out of room and I had a whole pile of books on my desk that just didn't fit on my shelves, but also because I felt a bit overwhelmed. I had so many books that I hadn't read and the thought of having to get through them all made me feel pretty stressed. So I decided to clean them out and I now have one and a half completely blank shelves.

In total, I got rid of over sixty books. A lot of them I had read, but if I didn't love it or didn't think I'd read it again, I decided to get rid of it. A lot of the books, however, were books that I haven't read and now probably never will. In saying that though, I still have over thirty books that I haven't read. Thirty+ books probably doesn't even seem like that much to a lot of you, and I know so many book fanatics have wayyyyyyyy more books on their TBR pile, but I'm still placing myself on a book buying ban.

The reason is, I don't want to ever have to feel stressed about all the books that I haven't read yet. I don't want it to overwhelm me and I don't want it to get so far where I'm put off reading. The ultimate goal here is to read every single book I currently own so that eventually, the only books I haven't read will be the ones that I just bought from the bookstore that very day.

Obviously, that's going to take some time; it's taken me nine months of this year to get through 38 books. And my TBR list is going to continue to grow, because I'm not banning book buying completely. If I was to do that, I would fail and feel terrible about it. So my goal is to read three books from the list of books that I already own before I buy a new one. This list only includes books that I kept from when I cleaned out my bookshelves, so if I buy a new book and read it instantly, that book doesn't count towards the three I have to read. This way, my TBR list hopefully won't grow much larger than it currently is and I can slowly get through it.

If you're thinking you need to restrict yourself with a book-buying ban, then I have some tips for you:

1. Go through your books and get rid of the ones you don't want to read any more. 
2. Write an actual list of all the books you have to read and put it somewhere where you can see it easily to encourage you to actually read the books on it.
3. Don't completely ban yourself unless you have a will of steel (which you probably don't, because otherwise you wouldn't be in this situation). 
4. Get a library card and when you feel like buying a book, go there instead of the bookstore. 
5. If you buy a book, who cares! Just read it. 

Happy Reading!!

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Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas - Review

**A note on my notes: This review is spoiler free.**

"Libraries were full of ideas - perhaps the most dangerous and powerful of all weapons."

Throne of Glass is a new(ish) young adult fantasy series that follows the life of Celaena Sardothien, an 18-year-old girl who was the very best assassin in the kingdom. That is, until she was captured. After spending a year in a salt-mine death camp, the Crown Prince of Adarlan, presents her with an offer she can't refuse: serve as the King's Champion for four years and she can earn her freedom. To become King's Champion, Celaena must compete for the position against twenty-three of the land's most accomplished soldiers and infamous criminals. Along the way, she forms unlikely alliances and interesting friendships and begins to notice that not everything in the castle is as it seems...

The Good
This book is absolutely fantastic! I loved the characters and thought they were all really well developed. Celaena is such a great heroine and I loved reading about her and learning about her life. I also loved this world! I've haven't been so invested in a fictional world in such a long time and I just found this world so interesting. The world-building was also really subtlety written so there aren't sections where you feel overwhelmed by the world-building. The plot is so fast paced that I could easily have read this book all in one sitting.

The Bad Not as Good
I didn't really have any problems with this book at all. The only thing that I wish I could change would be the detail that we're given about the tests that the contestants have to do to stay in the competition; however, in order for this to happen the book would have had to take place over a shorter period of time.

The Recommendation
If you're looking for a book that you know you'll love, then you should read this. I loved this book so much that I am recommending it to everyone, because I seriously think everyone will love it.

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A Subjective Guide to Genre - Choosing Your Next Book

**A note on my notes: This post is of my opinion only, and I'm not an expect.**

Choosing your next book is hard. 

We've all been there - when you have so many books that you haven't read, but you have no idea how to choose which one to read next. When this happens to me, I tend to choose a genre that I'm in the mood for and pick a book from it. These are the genres that I usually feel in the mood to read.

Contemporary
If you're searching for a light, easy read, then the contemporary genre is where you need to look. Often featuring cute romances and beautiful friendships, good books from this genre can easily make you laugh and cry within a few pages. If you're in a reading slump, then contemporary is usually a good genre to dive into because they're often short, stand-alone books that you can get through quickly. Some of my favourite contemporary author's are Rainbow Rowell, Nicholas Sparks, and I'd also 100% recommend Wonder by R.J. Palacio and The Simple Gift by Steven Herrick.

Fantasy
Fantasy books are often a commitment because they usually come in a huge series. Fantasy is split into two sections (that I read, anyway): urban fantasy and epic fantasy. If you're new to the fantasy genre or if you don't really feel like learning a whole new world, stick to urban fantasy (which is set in the world as we know it, but with fantastical elements, while epic fantasy is in an entirely different world). Some fantasy series that I love are the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, the Obernewtyn chronicles by Isobelle Carmody and the Infernal Devices trilogy by Cassandra Clare. If you're looking for some fantasy stand-alones, then I would recommend Finnikin of the Rock by Melina Marchetta or Stardust by Neil Gaiman.

Dystopian 
This is one of my favourite genres, and I think that it always is the most enjoyable when you hate the world. If you're feeling depressed about something that's happening in the world that you can't change it, or if you're reflecting on how shit people are or how nothing is fair, then you need a dystopian book. These books often come in trilogies, although there are several classic dystopian stand-alones that I really enjoyed. Of this genre, I would recommend The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins, the Divergent trilogy by Veronica Roth and any dystopian I mention in the classics section.

Science Fiction
I love science fiction a lot, but it's not a genre that I read that often. I often find that sci-fi is a good cross between fantasy and dystopian, so if you're feeling like one of those genres but can't quick pick something, try looking in the science fiction genre. Some of my favourites include Ender's Game and Pathfinder, both by Orson Scott-Card, as well as The Host by Stephanie Meyer. 

Classics
It's not often that I'm in the mood for a classic, but when I'm feeling really smart (or that I need to be more well-read), I usually quite enjoy them. Most classics are a challenge, so don't pick them up when you're looking for something to read quickly. For me, classic dystopians are my favourite, and I'd recommend reading Nineteen Eighty-Four and Animal Farm by George Orwell, as well as A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess. Other classics that I've enjoyed have been Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte (although don't expect to get through this quickly), To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee and The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett.

Historical Fiction
I don't read much of this genre either, but the books that I have read from it have been really good. Books from this genre often tug at your heart strings, so if you want an emotional book, something from this genre will give you that (especially some World War II fiction). My favourite historical fiction books are The Book Thief by Markus Zusak and Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen.

Hopefully, the next time you're stuck trying to choose your next book, you can come back to this list and make an informed decision. Happy reading!

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Attachments by Rainbow Rowell - Review

**A note on my notes: This review is spoiler free.**

"Every woman wants a man who'll fall in love with her soul as well as her body."

Set in 1999 - a time where the Internet isn't the centrality it is today - Attachments follows three characters who work in various sections of The Courier newspaper. Beth and Jennifer are two friends who constantly email each other back and forth using their work emails and it's Lincoln's job to monitor everyone's work emails to ensure they aren't sending personal messages. Lincoln quickly becomes engrossed in the personal lives of Beth and Jennifer and the novel follows Lincoln as he embarks on a journey to finally get his life together.

The Good
I enjoyed this book a lot, but it's not my favourite Rainbow Rowell book. Attachments is so easy to read. There are sections of the text that are written as the emails that Beth and Jennifer send to each other and I found these sections to be hilarious and very interesting. I loved the two females characters despite hardly seeing them interact other than through their emails. The three main characters all deal with very mature issues that real-life people will all probably face at some point in their lives. I found the final third of the book really picked up and I flew through it so easily.

The Bad
If you don't connect with Lincoln, or are completely opposed to what he has to do for his job, then you won't relate to him as the protagonist, which is obviously an issue. I found the first two thirds of the book to drag on a little bit (and I really mean a tiny bit; I still read it very fast) because Lincoln was thinking about the same problems over and over again. I didn't connect to any of these characters as much as I did in Fangirl and Eleanor and Park, but that's probably only because I'm closer in age to the latter characters.

The Recommendation
If you've read another book by Rainbow Rowell, then you will love this book. If you primarily read YA fiction and are looking to branch into adult books, then this would be a good book to start you off with. If you're looking for a quick, easy read then this is the book for you.

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Things I Hate - Book Edition Part Two

**A note on my notes: These are my opinions only.**

I still hate a lot of things. 

A few weeks ago now I made a post that listed all the things that I hate in regards to books. As soon as I posted it, I thought of a couple more things that really just get on my nerves. So this is part two of Things I Hate - Book Edition. 

1. Big font

I will often not buy a copy of a book that I really really want if the font in it is huge. And I'm not talking about books that are specifically designed for those with poor eyesight, I'm just talking about normal books on the shelves that have huge font. It makes me so angry because it makes the book appears so much longer than it actually is, which I really don't understand because people are drawn to shorter books, right? So why don't you make the book look shorter by giving it a normal font size!!

2. Books that are really tall or really short

I don't understand why publishers make books all sorts of different sizes. I really don't like reading from books that are really tall because it feels weird, and the same goes for those mass produced paperbacks that are really short. Books should all be the same size and it's really not that hard to make them that way. 

3. People who don't read certain kinds of books

If you're the kind of person who turns your nose up at people who read anything other than classic literature, PLEASE GET OVER YOURSELF. You're not any better than any other person based on the fact that you exclusively read classics. Also, people who look down upon YA and children's books. Seriously?

4. Stickers

If you want to ruin a book quickly, put a sticker on it. If you want to really make me angry, put the price sticker over the synopsis so I have no idea whether I want this book or not. If you want to further piss me off, put a sticker telling me this book will soon be a movie smack bang in the middle of the front cover. WHAT ARE YOU DOING!

5. Series that aren't numbered

Is it really that hard to put a tiny number on the spine of a book that tells you what book in a series it is? Really? Is that actually too much to ask for? 

6. Character names

Authors know that their readers can't listen to how their character names are pronounced. That's not a thing yet. SO WHY DO THEY STILL GIVE THEIR CHARACTERS NAMES THAT NO ONE HAS ANY IDEA HOW TO PRONOUNCE?  

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Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins - Review

First of all, I'm sorry that I didn't post anything on Monday, and I'm sorry there haven't been any YouTube videos up lately... I've just been super busy with university and I had some other stuff going on so I just needed to take a break. But hopefully, within the next couple of weeks I'll be back on track.

**A note on my notes: This review is spoiler free.**

"There are some people in life that you can't get over."

Lola and the Boy Next Door is the first of two companion novels to Anna and the French Kiss, which I posted a review for here. The story follows Lola, a budding fashion designer who likes to express herself through her outrageous clothes. Lola thinks her life is pretty good: she has a hot boyfriend, a great bestfriend and an amazing job at the movie theatre. Things are going well, that is, until the Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket, move back in next door. Lola finds herself flooded with old feelings that she has to deal with before her perfect world comes crashing down around her.

The Good
Like Anna and the French Kiss, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The plot moves fairly quickly and is pretty engaging, making the novel very easy to read. The characters were extremely unique, and I had never read anything like them before. I loved how Lola was a fashion designer and this made her a more interesting character. Cricket was the perfect love interest and I enjoyed his little quirks. I think Calliope was an interesting character as well. Lola's dads (yes, plural) were also great characters. I also loved the small appearances of Anna and her boyfriend.

The Bad
I didn't enjoy this story as much as Anna and the French Kiss; however, that has nothing to do with the actual book, I just personally connected with Anna more than I did with Lola. The only problem I had with this book is that it's very predictable, but that just comes with reading a Stephanie Perkins novel - you're not reading it for the surprises, you're reading it because you know exactly what's going to happen.

The Recommendation
If you're looking for a cute and easy read, then you will enjoy Lola and the Boy Next Door. If you haven't read Anna and the French Kiss, then I would suggest you do actually read that one first; it just makes seeing Anna in this book more satisfying.

You can find out more about Lola and the Boy Next Door here. 

You can find out more about Anna and the French Kiss here. 

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Anna and the French Kiss by Stehpanie Perkins - Review

**A note on my notes: This review is spoiler free.**

"The more you know who you are, and what you want, the less you let things upset you." 

Anna and the French Kiss follows Anna, a 17-year-old girl who is about to enter her senior year in high school. She's very excited to spend the year with her best friend and potential boyfriend. Instead, however, her father decides that Anna will finish out her schooling at The School of America, a boarding school in Paris. The novel follows Anna throughout the year as her relationships with all those close to her develop for the better of the worse.

The Good
I absolutely adored this book. It's so easy to read and I flew through it so quickly. As the main character, Anna is pretty interesting and her values, ideas and beliefs are pretty relatable to the average female reader. The other characters are fairly interesting as well and they all function nicely together as a group of friends. The plot moves along fairly quickly and is very easy to follow. The romantic relationships that develop between various characters are also pretty believable, as are the issues they all face.

The Bad
At the beginning of the book, it's possible to get quite frustrated at Anna because she's presented with an incredible opportunity and she can only see the negatives for a short period of time; however, I think Anna's reactions were quite realistic because no teenage girl wants to be isolated from her life and friends during high school, let alone her senior year. Another thing that some readers might find frustrating is that every single romantic near-miss that occurs focuses on the same issue every single time and there is a lack of depth behind the reasoning.

The Recommendation
If you love contemporary novels, then you will love this book. I would recommend Anna and the French Kiss to anyone who is looking for a quick and easy read. I would also recommend reading this book if you're in a reading slump, because the ease of reading this book will probably help you get out of it.

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Top 5 Book Casts

Character development is essential for a novel to be successful. Often, I'll continue reading a book that I think is weak in terms of plot in order to discover what happens to the characters. As a reader, I love when a book has characters that I can invest emotionally in, because it only adds to the story. This post lists the books or series of books that have my favourite cast of characters.

5. Wonder by R.J. Palacio
This book is one that I've read in 2014 and I absolutely loved it. The characters in this book are just so perfectly developed and they are so realistic. If you haven't read this book, I would definitely read it (and I've done a review of it here if you're interested). This book has multiple perspectives, which enhances each character so much and hearing a different perspective on certain issues always manages to change your opinions somehow.

4. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
Not only is this book narrated by an interesting character (Death), but it's filled with so many more complex characters that interact so well with each other. Mama and Papa are just beautiful human beings that are so realistically described and Liesel and Rudy are both incredibly accurate characters in terms of them both being children. These characters are just beautiful and I would read this book if you haven't already (and I've done a review of it here).

3. The Infernal Devices trilogy by Cassandra Clare
If you haven't read this series, you really should (I haven't done a review, but Google these books and you'll fall in love). It contains some of the most brilliant characters I've ever read. Magnus Bane is a hilarious gay warlock (which definitely makes him sound as awesome as he is) who brings a unique perspective to life due to his insane age (he's very, very old.). Then there's Will Herondale and Jem Carstairs, who have the most beautiful friendship and interact so well together. And of course, Tessa, who isn't my favourite character, but she works so well in this trilogy.

2. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
This book is easily one  of my all-time favourites (review), and the incredible characters play a huge part in this. Cath is so easy to relate to and has a million qualities that so many people can identify with. The same goes for all of the characters. The issues and struggles that each character has to overcome are so realistic. They all feel so personal. And they're all so loveable.

1. The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling
(If you haven't read these books... what are you doing with your life?). I believe that part of the reason for the success of these books is the characters. Although they're all so unreal in that they are witches/wizards that are from a world that we know we can never visit or relate to, they are so easy to understand as human beings. Children from all over the world were able to identify with these characters because not only do they have to save the world, but they also have to deal with real-world issues, like being outshone by your best friend, falling in love and growing up.

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