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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Fight Club - Review

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

"The first rule about fight club is you don't talk about fight club."

Flight Club by Chuck Palahniuk is a very interesting novel and I can assure you that you've probably never read anything like it at all. This book is narrated by a young man who isn't satisfied with his life. He finds everything pointless and is upset with the lack of connection he has with other people and that people in general have with each other. He then meets Tyler Durden who completely changes his life, and the story follows their journey together. 

The Good

I enjoyed this book. I found a lot of really great quotes that I can easily apply to my own life and life in general, which is always a sign I connected with a book. Fight Club is filled with extremely unique and unusual characters and they are so realistic. I found the plot relatively easy to follow; HOWEVER, I had previously seen the movie, which definitely helped me to keep up. The novel is also littered with little interesting facts, that I'm not sure are true or not, but they were fun to read and learn about. 

The Bad

Now, these things aren't necessarily bad... They are just things that might be a problem for some people. The plot is quite intricate, and if you haven't seen the movie, then you might not have any idea what's going on. The writing style is 100% unique, and it took several chapters before I was able to immerse myself in the story, and even then, it took me quite long to read considering how short it is. Like I said before, I am also certain that I would not have followed the plot easily if I hadn't already seen the film and therefore known what was happening.

The Recommendation

This is very unorthodox for me, but if you know nothing about Fight Club, I am actually going to recommend that you go and watch the movie first before you read this book. I know, it's a strange recommendation, but the movie is fantastic and a lot easier to follow, and it doesn't take away form my impressions of the book either. Don't be fooled by the shortness of this novel; don't go into it looking for a light, easy read, because you certainly won't get one. This book is hard work (as far as reading goes), so I would recommend reading it when you're in the mood for something that really makes you think. 

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Favourite Book to Movie Adaptations

**A note on my notes: These are my opinions only and I'm not an expert on this subject (although I wish I was). Accept that perception is a real thing that exists and don't claim that I'm wrong or you're more right.**

I love books. I also love movies. I don't always love book-to-movie adaptations. So when one of my favourite books is about to be turned into a movie, you could understand why I get a little nervous. I mean, you saw The Hunger Games (or didn't see, with all the shaky camera...) or Percy Jackson and the Lightening Thief (yes I know I haven't read the book, but the adaptation was still terrible) so you probably all know exactly what I'm talking about.

While book-to-movie adaptations definitely make me nervous, and I do end up hating a lot of them, there are some that just get everything right. Here is a short list of all the book-to-movie adaptations that I am truly grateful for. (Note: the list is in no particular order.)

1. Catching Fire
The Hunger Games movie was bitterly disappointing. Granted, it had a few moments where I was happy, but overall, the entire movie was a let down. Because of that, I really wasn't that excited for Catching Fire to be released, because I was preparing myself for a re-emergence of the bitter disappointment I'd felt with its predecessor. However, I didn't need to prepare for that at all! Catching Fire was such a beautiful movie, because it so accurately portrayed the book. I was completely happy with this movie. Johanna. That's all I'm going to say.

2. The Book Thief
Now I read this book after I saw the movie, so my opinion of the movie might be a little different had I read the book first... But I also highly doubt that, because I read the book straight after and noticed hardly any differences between the book and movie. I think the casting for this movie was perfection. The acting was just beautiful. I also thought the portrayal of Death as the narrator was done well, which would have probably been the thing I was most worried about if I read the book first. But I didn't need to worry because it was done right.

3. Harry Potter in general
This is kind of a hard one to judge for me, because the time between when I read the books and when I watched the movies was so huge that I mostly didn't even remember what was going to happen. Because of that, it's hard to judge whether the movies were accurate adaptations, but they're on the list because I do remember that when I watched the movies I loved them just as much as I loved reading the books. The whole Harry Potter universe is just incredible, so I would love anything that is a part of the Wizarding World.

4. Water for Elephants
This is another one where I read the book after seeing the movie, but in this instance it was a couple of years after. However, I remember that I loved the movie when I first watched it, and then I loved the book when I read it in July of this year. I can't say whether it was an accurate adaptation, but from what I gathered, the major details were the same and I did really enjoy both the movie and the book, which is why it's on the this list.

5. The Perks of Being a Wallflower
This book was brilliant, and so was the movie. It was such a faithful adaptation and the movie really captured the essence and tone of the book and its story. I think the acting in Perks was perfect, and the casting was so accurate. I was extremely happy with the way this movie turned out.

6. Divergent
I really enjoyed the Divergent book series, but to be completely honest, I wasn't expecting the movie to amount to much. I thought that there were a lot of emotional scenes that just wouldn't work on screen as well as they did in the book. But I was pretty impressed with the adaptation! It's not my favourite movie and there were a few things that I wasn't happy with, but overall, the movie just made me so pumped. There was so much adrenaline running through me after seeing it, which is why I'm putting it on my list of favourites, because it captured the tone of the book.

Those are six book to move adaptations that I think were extremely successful. Let me know what your favourite adaptations are. Happy Reading!

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Embarrassing Unread Authors

If you haven't already guessed, I read quite a lot of books. Despite this, there are still some authors that are insanely popular, have written insanely popular books or are simply highly praised that I have never read. For example, it wasn't until about May this year that I read my first ever John Green, Rainbow Rowell or Markus Zusak novel. I know, it's shameful. So here are 5 authors who I'm embarrassed to say I have never read.

1. Neil Gaiman 
This really upsets me because I really want to read The Ocean at the End of the Lane and The Graveyard Book, but I just haven't gotten around to it yet.

2. Patrick Ness
I saw a review on More than This, which made me extremely interested in Ness as an author, but I never got around to picking up the book.

3. Brandon Sanderson
I am huge fan of books of either fantasy or dystopian genres that cross over with science fiction, so I know that I would absolutely love so many of Sanderson's novels. Alas, I own none and have read none.

4. J.R.R Tolkien
No, I haven't read Lord of the Rings or The Hobbit. I own them, but I've just ever gotten around to reading them which is a real shame because I think I could be really invested in the world.

5. Rick Riordan
For someone who watches the BookTube community (and now even makes videos myself!!), it's very surprising that I haven't been convinced to read the Percy Jackson series. I saw the first movie when it came out and it just really put me off reading the books.

Those are five authors that I'm embarrassed to say I haven't read. However, I plan on reading at least one book by each of these authors (except maybe Rick Riordan) by the end of the year. If you have any embarrassing authors like me, let me know!! Happy Reading!

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Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen - Review

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

"Life is the most spectacular show on earth." 

I saw the movie adaptation when it first came out, and I loved it. The movie is actually what inspired to me pick up the book, which I did shortly after. It's been sitting on my shelf, gathering dust, ever since. I finally got around to reading it last week, and my love for the story was renewed.

The novel follows an about-to-graduate college student in the time of the Great Depression. Suddenly, Jacob finds himself all alone in the world and is forced to start afresh with absolutely nothing. Seeking a new beginning, he hops aboard a train speeding past him, which unknown to him at the time, happened to house a travelling show. Jacob soon earns a place in the circus, and the novel follows his adventure.

The Good
As I said earlier, I really enjoyed this book. I thought the character development was incredible and the plot was extremely interesting. The author committed over four months of research for this novel, and I think that effort really shows in the writing - it's easy to believe that the fictional tale is actually truth because of how realistic the situation is described to be.
The story is told from the perspective of Jacob both as an old man in a nursing home as he reflects and remembers his life in the circus. I think this way of telling the story worked perfectly and I found myself often connecting more to the story when the elderly Jacob was talking about being an old man.
I loved the ending. I thought it was beautiful, wonderful and all things good.

The Bad
I found the beginning of the novel was pretty slow. Not a lot of relevant plot points occur until just before halfway, as the beginning contains a lot of character and world building, which as a historical fiction novel, I understand is important. However, this slowness didn't really bother me because I had seen the movie and knew what was going to happen and what I had to look forward to.
There were a few scenes that I think actually translated the meaning better in the film than in the book, which is rare. Because of this, I knew how touching certain scenes and situations were as I had seen the movie prior to reading, but if you haven't then you might not be as touched. That's not to say that the book is unemotional or anything like that, because it's still a very emotional tale, I just found the movie sometimes expressed that emotion more poetically/beautifully.

The Recommendation
If you haven't seen the movie, I would definitely recommend watching it soon after finishing the book, because the story really is touching and the movie sometimes portrayed the emotional messages a bit better/clearer. If you're interested in the inner workings of historical travelling shows, I would recommend that you read Water for Elephants. If you have someone who is toward the end of their life cycle, like a grandparent or someone of similar old age, I would 100% recommend that you read this book, because it was really eye-opening for me in that regard.

Overall, I loved this book and while I won't be reading it again any time soon, the story and its message will stay with me for a very long time.

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