TGIF (6)

A book-question and weekly recap meme hosted by Ginger at GReads.

"Character Envy: If you could be one character from a book, who would you choose & why?"

Ack! This question is so hard. I always admire authors that can make me yearn to be a part of their stories, especially for fantasy or supernatural worlds. I chose three characters from my favourite fantasy series'.

Daine, The Immortals series by Tamora Pierce. - She's so amazing! I would love her ability to both interact with and become animals. Daine also sold me on Tamora Pierce and I'd kill to live in Tortall for a day.

Hermione, Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. - Hermione is the best. As a kid I always looked up to her and admired her. I'd love to slip into her shoes, especially when they were younger and still at Hogwarts, and see what a normal day was like for her. So much emphasis was put on Ron & Harry's shenanigans that often Hermione was left in the dark until needed so I'd love to check out her classes and see if she had any other friends.

Calwyn, The Chanters of Tremaris series by Kate Constable. - Calwyn was one of my first female heroines I ever read in the fantasy genre and I absolutely fell in love. It would be awesome to sing like she does and control the world around her in such an awe-inspiring way. Similar to Tamora Pierce, I'd love the opportunity to explore Tremaris and live in rather than read about the culture. Plus Darrow was really hot in my imagination so cha-ching! 


Did you do a TGIF today? Post your link in the comments below and I'll be sure to check it out!

TGIF (5)

A book-question and weekly recap meme hosted by Ginger at GReads.

"Bookshelf Tour: Where do you keep your books at home? Are they organized?"

Awesome question! I've been dying to do a proper bookshelf tour since my blog was started in January, especially after I got new bookshelves in early July. 

Here's my video! I try to list all the titles/authors but end up giving up half way through. LOL

Did you do a TGIF today? Post your link below and I'll be sure to check it out!

TGIF (4)

Yesterday I was featured at Daisy Chain Book Reviews for Summer Spotlight. I wrote a guest post about older YA summer favourites and selected some of my favourites. Check it out!

Also due to a lack of interest as of this week I will be discontinuing my Wannabee Book Hipster weekly meme. I might be bringing it back in the late fall or early winter if more people are interested in participating. Saturdays will now be another review day.

TGIF

A book-question and weekly recap meme hosted by Ginger at GReads.

"Book Blogger Appreciation: Which book blogs have inspired you or made a difference in your blogging exprience?"

According to my Google Reader I'm following about 70 blogs. It's so hard to keep everyone straight! A few have made an amazing impact on my book blogging experience and I really hope you'll check them out. (Also see my blog roll on the right sidebar for more blogs)

• Kristi, The Story Siren - The queen of YA blogging. This was the first book blog I ever read and I absolutely fell in love with her style, her outlook, her connections, her love of literature, her amazing blog design, her memes, etc. I followed her for a few months before deciding to take the plunge and start my own blog.
• Ari, Reading in Color - I'm a fan of just choosing books off the shelf and I don't really think too much about the statistics and what the books represent. Ari, on the other hand, seeks out multicultural books and POC main characters. She challenges authors and publishers to not white-wash their casts and include realistic portrayals of POC characters. I've been inspired by her to diversify my reading and think critically about the YA publishing world.
• Christy, The Reader Bee - I love Christy! She was one of the first people to reach out to me when I first started blogging. She's a wonderful, efficient, caring blogger who runs one of the nicest blogs I read. She was my first "friend" in the book blogging world and helped me make connections with other bloggers.

Did you do a TGIF? Post your link in the comments and I'll be sure to check it out!

Happy Canada Day & TGIF

Happy Canada Day!

If you haven't already, check out my Canada Day Giveaway. It's open to US & Canadian residents. If you're a Canadian resident from Ontario, hopefully you can be a part of our YA book blogger meetup on September 25th. Check out the giveaway post for more details.

As I enjoy the warm sun at my cottage for the weekend I hope you're all having an awesome Canada Day!

Unfortunately Book Blogger Hop's question of the week hadn't been announced when I wrote this post on Wednesday. I'll be sure to do it next week!

TGIF 

A book-question and weekly recap meme hosted by Ginger at GReads.

"Mr. & Mrs: Who are your favorite book couples?"

Romance. The best part of most YA novels. Love it! Some of my favourite couples have stuck with my for years and others are new loves. My top 8 is:

• Annabel & Owen, Just Listen by Sarah Dessen
• Daine & Numair, The Immortals series by Tamora Pierce
• Lyra & Will, His Dark Materials series by Philip Pullman
• Tessa & Adam, Before I Die by Jenny Downham
• Calwyn & Darrow, Chanters of Tremaris series by Kate Constable
• Claire & Henry, The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
• Alianne & Nawat, Daughter of the Lioness series by Tamora Pierce
• Clary & Jace, The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare

Did you do a TGIF? Post your link in the comments and I'll be sure to check it out!

Book Blogger Hop & TGIF (2)

I loved doing Book Blogger Hop and TGIF so much a few weeks ago that I've decided to do them every other week!

Book Blogger Hop

Book Blogger Hop is a weekly book party for book bloggers to connect with other book lovers, make new friends, support each other, and generally just share our love of books, hosted by Jennifer at Crazy for Books.

“How many books are currently in your TBR pile?"

Too many to count! I have about 20 out from my local library, 4 for review from publishers and authors, 12 on NetGalley, 9 on GalleyGrab, 3 on PDF, plus about 15 on my bookshelf that I just haven't read like Little Women.

I've decided to tackle a bunch of them during my Once Upon a Read-a-thon and see if that helps make a reasonable dent in it? *sigh* So many books, so little time!

TGIF 

A book-question and weekly recap meme hosted by Ginger at GReads.

"What are some of your favourite book quotes?"

 I have a whole Word Document of my favourite lyrics and quotes, but here are some of my absolutely favourites:

If you were drifting with a thousand other people, could you really still say you were lost? 

– Nineteen Minutes, Jodi Picoult 

It’s a lot easier to be lost than found. It’s the reason we’re always searching and rarely discovered-so many locks not enough keys.

- Lock & Key, Sarah Dessen

I am beginning to measure myself in strength, not pounds. Sometimes in smiles.

- Wintergirls, Laurie Halse Anderson 

Maybe I’m dreaming you. Maybe you’re dreaming me; maybe we only exist in each other’s dreams and every morning when we wake up we forget all about each other.

- The Time Traveller's Wife, Audrey Niffenegger 

One never learns how the witch became wicked, or whether that was the right choice for her. Is it ever the right choice? Does the devil ever struggle to be good again, or if so is he not a devil?

- Wicked, Gregory Maguire 

Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?

- Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows, J.K. Rowling 

Weekly Recap

Review: My Heartbeat by Garret Freymann-Weyr

Waiting on Wednesday (23): My Favorite Band Does Not Exist 

Review: The Poison Eaters and Other Stories

Birthday Discussion: June 15: 18 Years of Literature

Review: Stay by Deb Caletti

Wannabee Book Hipster (5): 

Did you do a TGIF or Book Blogger Hop? Post your link in the comments!

Book Blogger Hop & TGIF (1)

I've been experimenting with trying new memes this week. On Sunday I traded In My Mailbox for Books for Thought. On Tuesday I switched Teaser Tuesday with Top 10 Tuesday.

I couldn't decide which Friday meme to test out so I decided to do 2 of them!

Book Blogger Hop

Book Blogger Hop is a  weekly book party for book bloggers to connect with other book lovers, make new friends, support each other, and generally just share our love of books, hosted by Jennifer at Crazy for Books.

“Share your favorite post from the last month and tell us why it’s close to your heart!”

My favourite post that I wrote in May is my review of Exposure by Therese Fowler. Exposure was the first novel I'd received from a publisher asking me to review it on my blog and I was over the moon about it! I never thought that I'd receive a request so soon after starting my blog and that it would jumpstart more publishers contacting me

My favourite post by one of my favourite bloggers is Do You Miss It? by Audrey at Holes In My Brain. She talks about how she misses not knowing about books months before they come out and being able to see a book at the library and go "Never heard of that before! I wonder what it's about." Check it out!

TGIF 

A book-question and weekly recap meme hosted by Ginger at GReads.

"Do you share your books with others? Who was the last person you sent a book to?"

 All the time! I love sharing books, especially ARCs with my book club friends. I also love to let me non-book-loving friends borrow my favourites to see if I can get them interested in the book world. A few days ago I gave my friend Sam my copes of Crash Test Love, Freaks & Revelations, and Rosie & Skate.

Weekly Recap

Review: Gone by Kathleen Jeffrie Johnson

Waiting on Wednesday (21): Pregnant Pause by Han Nolan

Top Ten Tuesday (1): Beach Reads

Review: Love Inc. by Yvonne Collins & Sandy Rideout

Books for Thought (1): When you are called a nerd for loving books, how do you feel?

Wannabee Book Hipster (5): Waves by Sharon Dogar / Am I Right or Am I Right by Barry Jonsberg

Did you do a TGIF or Book Blogger Hop? Post your link in the comments!