Bookish This or That

Hello!! Today, I’m here with a bookish this or that!!

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Hardbacks or paperbacks?

I love both of them for different reasons. Paperbacks are easier to read when you’re laying down, and they are just lighter and smaller. But, hardbacks are awesome too! They look nicer in my opinion, and it’s harder to break the spine on it. Hardbacks are also more durable too, so I’d choose hardbacks!

Reading in the morning, or at night?

I don’t really care, to be honest. I just read when I feel like it, but I do tend to get more reading done at night, because in the morning I have school.

Background noise or silence?

I’m someone who doesn’t mind background noise when I’m reading, probably because of my siblings, who can be pretty noisy! I usually like listening to music too, but silence is also good. Overall, I’d probably choose silence.

E-book or printed book?

Printed book!

Read outside or inside?

I love to read outside as long as it’s nice weather!

Library or bookstore?

I love going to the bookstore, and actually owning books, but I find myself going to the library more!

Read a book really quickly, or take it slow and steady?

I read some books quicker (like any Kasie West novel) but there are others that take me a while. I think, though, if I had to choose, I’d pick quicker.

Standalone book or a series?

I love standalone books because they are quicker, and you don’t have to commit to reading a whole series, but I just love series! They can be so great, because it feels like you’re going through so much with the characters, and you get to know the characters more!

Fantasy or contemporary?

I love both, but I’d choose contemporary!

Mood reader or planned TBR?

I have some books I want to read, but not a planned tbr. I just read what I feel like!!

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Thanks for reading! If you want to ask any bookish this or that questions ask them in the comments, and me or other bloggers can answer!! I’d also love to know how you’d answer these questions in the comments!

Okay, have a great rest of your weekend!!

~ Rebekah

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Guess the Book Character By Emojis

Hello everyone!! I hope you are having a great week so far!

Today’s blog post is a little shorter than most of my others, but I thought it would be a fun idea! I chose five different emojis for different book characters, and you can try to guess who I’m talking about in the comment!! Okay, let’s go!!

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Easy

1. 🙂🎨🍞🌅💪

2. 💕💌🧁🍪😊

3. 🏹🔥🚄💅😒

Medium

4. 🔱🎣👩‍❤‍👨🌊😭

5. 🍂➡💇👁🥸

Hard

6. 💻📸🍂🇬🇧🪙

7. 🎸🎶📝🥧😮

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I had so much fun doing this!! Like I said, you can try to guess who all the characters are, or just a few, in the comments!! If you liked this post, please tell me if you’d like to see a part two!

Also, if you have five emojis for any book characters you love, you can comment them, and other bloggers or I can try to guess which character you’re trying to describe!!

Okay, that’s all for today’s post. Thanks for reading and have an awesome day!! I’ll see you on Saturday!! ☺

~ Rebekah

Ten Of My Favorite Books I Read In 2021 📚❤

Hi, happy Wednesday!

If you’ve been following me for a while (or if you just saw my blog name, lol) you probably know that I like books! I’ve read 92 books this year, even though I only set out to read 52!

Anyways, I thought that, because it’s almost the end of the year, I’d tell you my favorite books I read this year.

When I first had this idea, I quickly thought better of it. How would I pick only my favorites?! I loved so many of the books I’ve read this year!!!

And because of that, I decided to only choose 10! This is going to be such a challenge, but it’s going to be fun to look through all the books I’ve read! I’m also going to count each series as one book, because I couldn’t just pick one book in that series!!!

My favorite books of 2021!

The Nightingale by Kristen Hannah

Genre: historical fiction

This book!!!! There are so many words to describe it: awesome, amazing, lovely, shocking, heartbreaking…so many! I absolutely LOVED this historical fiction book set during WW2! It was so amazing and heartbreaking…I would definitely recommend it. (There are so many great quotes too.)

“Some stories don’t have happy endings. Even love stories. Maybe especially love stories.”

— Kristen Hannah, The Nightingale

By Your Side by Kasie West

Genre: contemporary/romance/YA

This was the first Kasie West book I read, and now, she’s one of my favorite authors! This was a sweet, cute contemporary romance, with also some drama! It’s probably one of my favorites of her’s! Love it!

“It was hard to remember what I’d been so scared of. Being treated differently? Lack of acceptance? I was the one who hadn’t accepted myself for who I was. I was the one who needed to be comfortable in my own skin. I hoped I could do that moving forward.”

— Kasie West, By Your Side

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Genre: historical fiction/YA

I took so long to read this book, but I don’t know why! It’s absolutely amazing, not to mention sad and heartbreaking! I really loved the narrating of this book; it was really different and unusual, but I liked it! It’s another WW2 historical fiction, and there’s also a movie about it!

“The only thing worse than a boy who hates you: a boy that loves you.”

— Markus Zusak, The Book Thief

Lovely War by Julie Berry

Genre: historical fiction/YA

This is another historical fiction, this one set during WW1 and WW2. It’s an amazing story following two sweet romances! My sister and I even got my mom to read it, and she loved it! You should definitely read it!

“If music stops, and art ceases, and beauty fades, what have we then?”

— Julie Berry, Lovely War

To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before, P.S. I Still Love You, and Always and Forever, Lara Jean by Jenny Han

Genre: contemporary/ romance/YA

This series is soooo great! I loved them so much, that I stayed up until four one night reading one of them! They were all three amazing! I think that because it was a series and not just a standalone novel, I liked them even more, because I went through a lot with all of the characters!

You might have heard of the movies, which are on Netflix, too! I haven’t watched them (because my family doesn’t have Netflix), but I hope to watch them sometime!

“Love is scary: it changes; it can go away. That’s the part of the risk. I don’t want to be scared anymore.”

— Jenny Han, To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before

“People come in and out of your life. For a time they are your world; they are everything. And then one day they’re not.”

— Jenny Han, P.S. I Still Love You

“I guess that’s part of growing up, too–saying goodbye to the things you used to love.”

— Jenny Han, Always and Forever, Lara Jean

The Shadow of the Bear and Black as Night by Regina Doman

Genre: YA/ Christian fiction/fairy tale retellings

I really liked these ones! The first was a really good retelling of the fairy tale “Snow White and Rose Red”, and the second is “Snow White” I think. I found the characters really relatable and the story very compelling. They’re also both great Catholic books.

“Every once in a while you just have to decide to do something very crazy and very right–just to dare yourself to live. I don’t mean doing something stupid and destructive–just something fun and good and beautiful.”

— Regina Doman, The Shadow of the Bear

“Skin white as snow, hair black as night.”

— Regina Doman, Black as Night

P.S. I Like You by Kasie West

Genre: YA/contemporary/romance

Another Kasie West book! (I just love her books!) This one was definitely one of my favorites of hers. It’s just so sweet and nice!!! Loved it!

“People easily accept things that they want to be true.”

— Kasie West, P.S. I Like You

A Curse so Dark and Lonely, A Heart So Fierce and Broken, and A Vow So Bold and Deadly by Brigid Kemmerer

Genre: YA/romance/fantasy

I loved this fantasy series! (Even though my sister hyped it up so much!) They were all three amazing, full of realistic and flawed characters, a story that makes you want to continue reading, and plot twists! I have a book review for the first one here!

“I am always surprised to discover that when the world seems darkest, there exists the greatest opportunity for light.”

— Brigid Kemmerer, A Curse So Dark and Lonely

“Ah, yes, the most dangerous person at the party is the girl sitting alone with a book.”

— Brigid Kemmerer, A Heart So Fierce and Broken

“I will come back to you.”

— Brigid Kemmerer, A Vow So Bold and Deadly

Instructions for Dancing by Nicola Yoon

Genre: contemporary/ romance/ YA

This was such good book, although the ending…….😢😢😢 I like when a book has a meaning, and this one definitely does, although I can’t really say because it’ll spoil the end! I read Nicola Yoon’s other books, and I loved them too, although they didn’t quiet make it to the top!

“Given enough time, all love stories turn into heartbreak stories.”

— Nicola Yoon, Instructions for Dancing

All this Time by Mikki Daughtry and Rachael Lippincott 

Genre: contemporary/YA

THIS BOOK! I had so many different feeling while reading this: happiness, confusion, sadness, more happiness, DEFINITELY more confusion, HEARTBREAK!!! It was an emotional ride! But I ended up loving this book! I got my sister to read it, and she likes it too!

“Everything’s the same. It’s me that’s different.”

— All this Time by Mikki Daughtry and Rachael Lippincott, All This Time

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Okay, I hope you liked this little mini review for each little book! I definitely read a lot of great books during 2021, but these are the ten that made it to the top! I would (definitely) recommend any of these books!!!

See you on my next post on Saturday!!!

Books I Want to Finish Before the New Year

Hi! Welcome (or welcome back) to my blog!!! Today I’m going to be sharing with you guys all of the books I want to finish before 2022! Well, let’s just get right into it!

The Lord of the Rings trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien

I read the first Lord of the Rings book (The Fellowship of the Ring) last month, in October! It took me a while to read, but I really liked it! I’m currently reading The Two Towers, and before 2022, I want to try to finish the second and read the third!

The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

The Hobbit is a companion novel to the Lord of the Rings series. I am wanting to read it after I finish The Return of the King!

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

I already read The Book Thief back in February, but I want to re-read it! I remember being so sad at the ending. Also, last time I read it, I took a long time to finish it, so there are a lot of parts I can’t really remember, so I want to read it again this year!

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

I want to read this book this Christmas. I remember listening to this book before, but I don’t really remember it much. I have watched the movie before, so I know the story. But after reading A Tale of Two Cities, I really liked Charles Dicken’s writing, so I want to try and read this book this Christmas!!!

Messenger and Son by Lois Lowry

I read both The Giver and Gathering Blue this year, so I want to finish the quartet this year by reading both Messenger and Son. I really like these books. They are all so different, but great. I’m really hoping to at least read one of them in 2021.

Conclusion!

This was my first year keeping track of all the books I’ve read, and my goal was to read 52 books. I really underestimated how much I read, because I’ve read 86 books already! I am now aiming to read at least 90 books before the end of December.

I think that I can do it because I only have four more books to read then, but I am probably going to have a busy month in December with getting ready for Christmas, and maybe visiting family.

Anyways, I hope you’re having a great weekend so far!!! Have an awesome day! Bye!!! Thanks for reading.

Library and Bookstore Haul

Welcome (or welcome back) to my blog! Today’s post is a bookstore and library haul, as you probably saw from the title! On Thursday, I went to the library with my sister and then yesterday we went to a nice used bookstore near us! I got some pretty great books, so I decided to do a haul!

Library Books

I got this because I want to learn some more blogging tips. It’s actually eight mini books in one, so I’ve been skipping around in it and reading parts that looked interesting! I was debating on getting a photography book, but I decided to get this one instead. I’ve been messing around with my camera and learning different features and cool modes on it. Hopefully I’ll be able to upload them to the computer and share them with you guys!

My sister read this series, and she really loved it, so now I’m reading it. This is the second book in the series. The first book is A Curse so Dark and Lonely, which I actually did a book review on. I’m looking forward to reading this book a lot, because I really enjoyed the first one!

Here’s the third book in the series. I was just going to get the second one, but my sister said that I would regret it (I guess there’s a big plot twist at the end of it or something), so I got this one too!

I already read this book last year, but I thought that it was time for a re-read! I remember liking it a lot when I read it the first time. Let’s see if it’s as good as I remember!

This is the last book I got at the library. I got it because I really liked Five Feet Apart which was written by the same authors. I don’t know if I’ll like this one as much, though. Let’s see!

So, the limit at my library is five books. I don’t know if I’ll be able to read all of these by the time I have to return them though, because I’m still in the middle of reading The Fellowship of the Ring. It’s definitely a slow book, but I am actually liking it a lot!

Bookstore Books

I’ve already listened to this book, but I wanted to get it, in case I ever want to re-read it, or if my sister wants to read it.

Another Kasie West (all the ones from the bookstore are Kasie West’s books)! I also read this, but again, I might want to re-read it or something.

This Kasie West one, I never read. I’m excited to read it, but it’ll probably be after I finish all the library ones!

This one looked really cute, it’s also one I haven’t read.

I love Kasie West’s books; they are so cute, and they are pretty quick reads. I like how all her books have the people on them, but you just can’t see their faces! It’s the total opposite of the ones that have close ups of their faces.

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I hope you liked this book haul! Please tell me if there are any posts you would like to see in the comments! Have an amazing day!

My Favorite Book Covers

Hey everyone! Happy fall! Summer went by so fast! I hope today’s post will be entertaining for you and you will enjoy it. I’m going to be finding my ten favorite covers of books I own. Thanks for voting on my last post, so I know what types of things you want to see more of. So, let’s get started.

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#1. Pride and Prejudice

I think that this cover of Pride and Prejudice looks so fancy and elegant! I like the combination of the dark green and light pink too!

#2. Salt to the Sea

I think that this cover of Salt to the Sea is so…haunting. If you read it, you’ll get why there are the three pairs of shoes. But if you haven’t, you might not really get it.

#3. Again, But Better

I like this cover so much! It’s just so artsy and creative. I also like how half of it (the blue part) is all glossy and then, the white part is smooth and matte.

#4. True Places

I like this cover a lot. It’s simple but pretty. I love all the colors of blue and then the pink and the tree branches!

#5. A Sky Beyond the Storm

This is the last book in the ember in the ashes series. I love the purple and then the gold coloring. I also like when there are people on the cover, just not when it’s a close up of their face (Configured, Delirium, etc.)

#6. All the Light we Cannot See

This book is set during WW2, and I like the cover. I love the blue, and then the cityscape. It also relates to the story, but you’d kind of have to read the book.

#7. Lovely War

Lovely War is a WW1 and WW2 historical fiction book. This book cover definitely captures the story well.

#8. The Book Thief

The Book Thief is another WW2 historical fiction book. I think that this cover is very haunting and it really captures the story.

#9. Lord of the Rings Series

I really like these copies of the lord of the rings series. Even though I’ve never read them, I think that they capture the story well, and they are just so nice. (My sister finally got me to watch the movies!)

#10. Hunger Games Series

And finally, the hunger games series! I think that these covers are so simple, yet they tell the story. (1- in the pin. 2- starting to break free. 3- free.) But one thing I don’t like is how the first one is different from the others!

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So, I hope you liked this post! Have a great day! My next post will be on Saturday, and it’ll probably be a crochet pattern! Bye.

Five YA Book Cliches

Hey everyone! I hope you are having a good weekend so far! This will be a fun post. It’ll be about different cliches in YA books. The definition of cliche is: a phrase or opinion that is overused and betrays a lack of original thought. So, this post will cover some things that are in a lot of YA books!

#1: Raising one eyebrow

“He raises one eyebrow at me” is in so many books. It’s usually the love interest, and it’s just so common. And they usually smirk too. Here’s an example: “He raises one eyebrow at me, and smirks mockingly.” I can only raise one eyebrow if I lower the other one, and it just looks so strange.

#2: Weirdly colored eyes

This is another thing that’s in a lot of YA books. It’s either that they have have weirdly colored eyes, like gold or purple, they have beautiful eyes, like green flecked with gold, or they have some unusual shade of eyes. Like, their eyes are an unusual shade of green, like sea foam.

#3: Their eyes change color

I know of at least a few books where the narrator thinks the love interest’s eyes are one color, but then no! They get a closer look and see that they are actually a different color! It usually goes something like this: “I thought his eyes were blue, but now that I get a closer look, I can see that they are actually an unusual shade of grey.”

#4: Letting out a breath they didn’t know they were holding

This has to be one of the most common ones. It’s in almost every book. It’s never “I let out my breath” or “I hold my breath. Then I let out the breath”. Nope! It has to be that they let out a breath they didn’t know they were holding. How did they not know they were holding their breath?

#5: Their heart is pounding

This is also another that is in a lot of books. Like, a bunch. I think that almost every book I know of has a part where the narrator is thinking “I’m surprised they can’t hear my heart pounding” or “My heart is pounding so loud, I think it might burst”. But this is more believable than the letting out a breath they didn’t know they were holding.

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I hope this was a fun post! Are any of these in your current read? Comment if you want a part two! 🙂

Do I have that book challenge?

Hi everyone! For my first post, I’ll be doing a bookish challenge. The Do I have that book challenge is a fun challenge is a fun challenge where there are several questions, and I have to choose a book for each of those questions! Many booktubers (youtubers that post things about books 🙂 ) do this challenge, and it is usually timed. I won’t be timing it, but I’ll try to do it as fast as I can!

1. Do you have a book with deckled edges?

I absolutely hate deckled edges! They are annoying, and you also can’t flip through all the pages when the book has deckled edges. With that being said, I still have a few books with deckled edges. The first book I found was my sister’s copy of The Orphan’s Tale by Pam Jenoff. I haven’t read it yet, but my sister says it’s very good! It’s a historical fiction book taking place during WWII.

2. Do you have a book with three or more people on the cover?

This was a hard one, because most books only have one or two people on the cover, but I found Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly. This is yet another book that my sister has read that I haven’t gotten to yet. She said that it was pretty good, and it’s another historical fiction WWII book.

3. Do you have a book based on another fictional story?

Would this be fairy tale retellings? I guess that it is. If so, I have the book Shadow of the Bear by Regina Doman. This is yet another book my sister has finished and I haven’t. I am reading it now.

4. Do you have a book with a title 10 letters long?

Mockingjay! This is the third book in the Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins. It is the best series ever! I would definitely recommend it to anyone who loves YA books or dystopian series. I think it the only book I own that has 10 letters too.

5. Do you have a book with a title that starts and ends with the same letter?

I guess I’ll choose Twilight for this one. If you haven’t heard of this book (which is very unlikely because it is super popular) it is a YA book about a vampire romance by Stephenie Meyer. I think that it is the only book I have that starts with the same letter it ends with.

6. Do you have a mass market paperback book?

I had to google what this meant, and the definition of a mass market paperback is a smaller book I think. I don’t have any.

7. Do you have a book written by an author using a pen name?

My sister has a copy of City of Bones by Cassandra Clare. This one was hard because I don’t think that I would really know if one of the authors were using a pen name. But I do know that Cassandra Clare is a pen name.

8. Do you have a book with a character’s name in the title?

I have a copy of Zac and Mia by A.J. Betts. Idk what it is really about except it being a contemporary book about two people who are sick. I think it might be like Five Feet Apart, but again, I haven’t read Zac and Mia. I also have Four by Veronica Roth. It is a book that is kind of in the Divergent series, but it’s told by someone else, the love interest.

9. Do you have a book with two maps in it?

Most books only have one map. But I found an old beaten up copy of The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien. I believe it has two maps. I haven’t read it (or watched the movies) but my sister loves them. She keeps telling me to read them.

10. Do you have a book that was turned into a TV show?

Zac and Mia was turned into a TV show, and I think that that is the only book I have that was turned into a TV show. Most of them are turned into movies.

11. Do you have a book written by someone who was originally famous for something else? i.e. celebrity, athlete, politician, TV personality, etc.

I don’t think so.

12. Do you have a book with a clock on the cover?

I thought I did, but it was actually pretty hard to find. I eventually saw the the copy of the Wrinkle in Time trilogy had a small clock on the mantle of the picture in the cover.

13. Do you have a poetry book?

My mom has some on the bookshelf in our living room, but there are none on my bookshelf.

14. Do you have a book with an award stamp on it?

The War that Saved my Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley has an award for Newberry Honor Book, but I don’t really know what that means. I started reading it a bit ago. It is actually a children’t book but it’s really good so far.

15. Do you have a book written by an author with the same initials as you?

Not many people have the initials B.P. My actual name is Rebekah, so I guess R.P. would count too. But all I could find were two books, both by the same author, who had the same first initial as mine. Ruta Sepetys. She wrote Salt to the Sea and Between Shades of Grey and those are both books I love so much. Both are set during WW2. They are companion novels. One follows a girl, and the other follows her cousin. Highly recommend them.

16. Do you have a book of short stories?

Yes! Fifty Best American Short Stories is one of the books on my shelf. I haven’t read any of the stories yet though.

17. Do you have a book that is between 500 and 510 pages long?

This was a hard one. It involved looking through almost every book on my shelf. I thought that the last book I finished, Reached by Ally Condie, had about 510 pages. But it was 512 pages! After a long search, I finally found Never Fade by Alexandra Bracken with 507 pages.

18. Do you have a book that was turned into a movie?

So many. The Hunger Games series, which is three books, are all made into movies. The prequel, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, is also supposed to made into a movie. I also have the Divergent series, the Twilight series, the Lord of the Rings series, and The Book Thief.

19. Do you have a graphic novel?

Yes. Only one. I don’t usually like them, but the one I have is A Thief Among the Trees be Sabaa Tahir. This is a graphic novel about some of the characters in the Ember in the Ashes series, which is one of my favorite series.

20. Do you have a book written by two or more authors?

I mentioned reading Five Feet Apart by three different authors. But I got that one from the library. I don’t think a collection of short stories really counts, so I guess the answer for this one is no.

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This was a really fun challenge. I hope you like it! Please like and follow! I hope to be posting another blog post on the weekend. This was a fun first post. Have a great day! 🙂