Monthly Wrap-Up: May 2023

Hello and welcome back to my blog! How was everyone’s weekend?

Today, I’m here with a wrap-up of my month! I will talk about what I’ve been up to, the books I’ve been reading, and any updates in my life. Let’s get right into it!

Books I Read

The Time Machine by H.G. Wells – This is one I read for school, and it wasn’t my favorite, but it wasn’t the worst either. Just not my favorite genre in general, so I didn’t care for the story very much.

A Story of a Soul: The Autobiography of St. Thérèse of Lisieux by St. Thèrése of Lisieux – This was an amazing read. I had heard this book talked about a lot and decided to finally get to it. Saint Thérèse is a saint I admire greatly, so it was very lovely to read the words that she herself wrote. I would really recommend it to anyone!

Fame, Fate, and the First Kiss by Kasie West – This one was pretty good. If you’ve been around this blog for a while, you probably have read that I love Kasie West’s books because they are sweet contemporary romance books, but are also very clean. This one wasn’t my favorite book of hers, but I still loved it a lot.

I am also currently reading Dance of Thieves by Mary E. Pearson, which I think I will finish before the month is over. I am enjoying it a lot so far, and haven’t really been able to put it down since I started it. 😄

Writing Updates

I barely got any writing done this month, so there’s not much to update y’all on. I wrote a bit in each book, but just not a lot.

Crochet Projects

I finished a few projects this month. One was a flower pot I made for my mom for Mother’s Day! (Photo below.) I also got some more crochet books, so I’ll be picking out some patterns from those to make soon!

Blog Posts on Books and Hooks

I took a Blogging break through most of this month, so only two posts were published in May.

Monthly Wrap-Up: April 2023

I’m Back!

Reviewing May’s Goals

Continue being consistent with keyboard playing – I feel like I was good about this! I have been practicing quite a bit, but still more at the beginning of the month.

Write every day – No, not at all, lol.

Start running/biking again – I didn’t get around to this this month.

Work on my schedule – I did a bit! I’ve been waking up a bit earlier, and focusing on finishing my school earlier.

Read at least six books – Nope, just three. (Maybe four by the end of the month.)

Goals for June

  • Stay hydrated.
  • Focus on only writing my fantasy book.
  • Hit 200 followers on this blog!
  • Start running/biking/walking again, and enjoying nature more.
  • Make bread at least once a week.
  • Post at least once on my other blog.

Photos from May

What Happened in May?

  • May was quite busy, it seemed, yet I don’t know what quite contributed to this feeling of business.
  • There was a lot of driving around, from soccer, our homeschool group, and shopping.
  • Spring has begun transitioning into summer, it feels, with its 80-degree weather. I’m so excited for the summer, which is my favorite season! 😁
  • With spring/summer comes gardening, and my family has a fairly sizeable strawberry patch which has been producing a lot this month. So, of course, there was picking strawberries, and processing them for baking and other such things.
  • Besides these, I also went to a festival-type thing with friends, and have been visiting family here.

Okay, that’s all for today’s post! How was your May? What do you have planned for June? I’d love to hear from you in the comments! I hope you all have a lovely week; I will be back next Monday. Bye until then!

~ Rebekah

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Monthly Wrap-Up: April 2023

Hello everybody, and happy May! I hope you are having a wonderful day today! ❤️

Today, I’m posting a monthly wrap-up; I will just talk about what my April looked like, and I’ll share what I’ve been up to, what books I’ve read, and any pictures I took! Let’s just dive right in!

Books I Read

A Walk With Christ to the Cross by Dawson McAllister – This was a good book to read before Easter, during Lent. It was good, in my opinion, and gave me more insight and thoughts into what Jesus went through before being crucified. It was written quite conversationally, though, which wasn’t my absolute favorite, but wasn’t the worst either.

Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babitt – Despite being a children’s book, I found that I enjoyed this one quite a bit. It was a fun read, with some deeper undertones. I’ve watched the movie before, and liked it, and the book was pretty good as well!

Joan of Arc by Mark Twain – I read this one for my English class, and again, this was a pretty good book! I think it was my favorite Mark Twain book I’ve read so far.

Amy and Roger’s Epic Detour by Morgan Matson – I liked this one, though not as much as I expected to. I thought that I’d really enjoy it, because YA contemporary books are probably my favorite genre, but this wasn’t the best I’ve read. There were still a lot of things in it I liked, but there were also some things I didn’t, and I feel as if the ending is a bit rushed.

Writing Updates

I did not write as much as expected this month. After my big writing spurt at the end of March, I expected to get a lot of writing done this month, but I just didn’t. I did get a bit of writing done in the fantasy book I’m working on with my sister, as well as some of A Songwriter’s Summer, but not a whole lot.

Crochet Projects

I did not crochet much this month. I started a few new projects, such as a bunny and a pot of flowers, but I haven’t gotten a lot done with them. Hopefully, May will be better!

Blog Posts on Books and Hooks

Monthly Wrap-Up: March 2023

Happy Easter!

ThriftBooks Book Haul

The Day Tag

Reviewing April’s Goals

Practice piano. I did start practicing again this past month! I am using Simply Piano, which works very well.

Post a springy crochet pattern. I did not get around to this.

Start getting up earlier. Uhhh…I’m still working on this one. 😅

Hydrate more. Yeah, I guess!

Keep running at least three times a week. I did for the begining of the month, and then stopped. I have to try to get back to it soon, I guess.

Goals for May

  • Continue being consistent with piano playing.
  • Write every day.
  • Start running/biking again.
  • Work on my schedule.
  • Read at least six books.

Photos from April

What Happened in April?

  • One of the main things that happened was Easter! I had a lovely Easter with my family, and I would love to hear how your Easter went in the comments!
  • I also went to the zoo with my family and some of our friends. It was so much fun, despite being a bit chaotic!
  • Some family visited at the end of the month, and it was super fun!
  • Spring has finally begun, I feel like, and I’ve been spending a lot of time outside, enjoying the lovely sun and warmer weather!

Thank you so much for reading! What did you do in April? How was your Easter? What do you have planned for May? I’d love to chat in the comments!

I hope you all have a lovely week, and I’ll be back next Monday with a brand new post! Bye until then!

~ Rebekah

ThriftBooks Book Haul

Hello everybody! Welcome or welcome back to my blog, Books and Hooks, where I post about all of my different interests and hobbies, most of all, books and crochet. Today, as read from the title, I have a book haul!

For Christmas, I got a gift card for ThriftBooks, and four months later, I’ve finally used it up! In today’s post, I’ll be showing y’all the books I ended up getting! I always like reading other bloggers’ book hauls, so I thought that I would share the books I recently bought in this post. Enjoy!

I’m currently trying to read through this series with my sisters, and we only own the first two books, so I figured I’d get the next one. I’ve only ever read the first two, so I’m excited to get to this one!

This book arrived in very good condition, and I’m pretty excited to read it. I mostly end up reading young adult books, but every so often, middle-grade books are a nice change. The exact day after I ordered this, though, I realized that we already owned this book, so I guess there are two copies now. 😄

I am currently reading this book, and enjoying it so far. I have always found Saint Philomena interesting, and this was the main book that I found about her. It’s in pretty good condition, except that there was a sticker on the front which I tried to take off, and now there’s the white sticker residue. 😭 Why must people put stickers on books?!

I have always been intrigued by the topic of the incorruptibility of saints, so as I was browsing ThriftBooks and this book came up as a suggestion, I thought that I would get it. I have not yet started reading it, but I skimmed through it, and it looks quite interesting. It did arrive a bit beat up, but still readable.

This is a book that my sister has had on her TBR for a while, and she suggested I buy it with my gift card. I thought I’d get it because the plot sounded fascinating, and I’ve never read a historical fiction set on the Titanic before. I am hoping to read it very soon!

I’ve been wanting to read Amy and Roger’s Epic Detour for quite a long time, since my sister read it and recommended it to me. I am a big fan of contemporary novels, so I had to get one or two for this book haul. I don’t like that the book came without a cover, but besides that, it’s in good shape.

I read Wait for Me by Caroline Leech a little while ago, and I liked it well enough, so I thought that I might like this book by the same author. The premise of this one sounds quite interesting, too! If you have any more YA historical fiction book recommendations, I’d love it if you could share them in the comments, because I’m looking to read more of this genre.

I will probably use this book to read one or two of the short saint stories a day. I chose this book because I liked the idea of reading about saints who weren’t priests or nuns. Saints who were nuns or priests are still so important, don’t get me wrong, but I find that they’re sometimes a bit hard to relate to. I skimmed through a few of these stories, and I think I like the writing style a lot, so that’s great!

And lastly, I have a Kasie West book! I knew that I had to get at least one of her books, so I decided on Fame, Fate, and the First Kiss, which looks (like most Kasie West books) like a cute, quick, read! I can’t wait to get around to this one.

That’s all of them! Nine books in total. I am very happy with the books I got, and besides a few minor inconveniences, they arrived in excellent shape!

Have you read any of these books? What books are on your TBR list? I’d love to chat in the comments!

Thank you all for reading! I hope that you are all having a great Monday, and have a lovely week. I will be back next week. Bye until then! 😊

~ Rebekah

Monthly Wrap-Up: March 2023

Happy Monday everybody!! I hope that you had a good past week and weekend, and I hope that you are having a good start to this new week!

Am I the only one who can’t understand how we are in April already? How are we already a fourth of the way into 2023? (Honestly, I still sometimes think that it’s 2021, lol. 😄) But, seriously, this year is going by so fast!

Anyways, today I will be wrapping up March. I feel like March was a very busy month for me, especially compared to how chill February was. I got a good amount of blogging done, wrote quite a bit in my book, and overall, I felt like this was just a busy month. Let’s get into the wrap-up!

Books I Read

I got to exactly four books this month (my goal). I didn’t read a lot, but I think that that was partly due to how much writing I did at the end of the month.

Wolf by Wolf by Ryan Graudin – After all of her nagging, my sister finally got me to read this alternate historical fiction novel. I loved it, and found it so interesting! It was quite gripping, and I wrote a whole book review for it here, so you can check that out to read more of my thoughts concerning the book.

Blood for Blood by Ryan Graudin – I was going to take a break before starting the sequel to Wolf by Wolf , but I just had to continue and finish the duology! I found this book just as amazing, surprising, and gripping as the first! I would totally recommend this series.

The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry – I decided to read this book because it was a short read, and something I’d been meaning to get around to reading for a long while, due to how popular it is. I liked it, found it quite interesting and imaginative, and I liked picking apart the themes and messages.

Dare to Be More: The Witness of Blessed Carlo Acutis by Colleen and Matt Swaim – I loved this booklet. Although it was short, it really gave me some good insight into Blessed Carlo Acutis’s life. I really recommend this to anyone wanting to learn more about this amazing, modern saint.

Writing Updates

I haven’t been the best at writing consistently this year, but at the end of March, I had a big writing spurt, and wrote a lot of A Songwriter’s Summer! I was just getting so much into the story, listening to music (I really should create some playlists for this book, though), and writing some amazing scenes!

Crochet Projects

I didn’t crochet much this month. I just haven’t felt very inspired lately, and haven’t found any good patterns recently it seems. If you have any good pattern recommendations, leave the link in the comments, please! I am working on a few Easter things, though, and a spring-themed pattern to post on here, so keep an eye out for that!

Blog Posts on Books and Hooks

I am glad that I kept to consistently posting every Monday this month! Three of these were tags (that I wrote the day I published them 😅) but I still had lots of fun with posting!

The Once Upon a Time Book Tag

Wolf by Wolf by Ryan Graudin Book Review

The Spring Joy Photography Tag

The In Or Out Book Tag

Reviewing March’s Goals

Organize my closet shelving – Yep! One afternoon I just did a big organization…getting everything out, going through it all, and organizing it back onto the shelf. I wish I took before and after pics, because it honestly looks way better now, and I’m so relieved I got it done after procrastinating it for so long!

Design and post a spring-themed crochet pattern – No, I didn’t get around to this. I started designing one, but I didn’t write it out or post it yet. Look out, because I will (hopefully) have it up in April!

Continue with my running plan, and add biking in as cross-training – Yes and no. I really didn’t do any running until about a week before March ended, but since then, I’ve been consistently running and biking, following the plan I have!

Try out some new recipes – Not really. I probably did, but not to a notable degree.

Start practicing piano again – Nope, not at all! I totally forgot that this was on here.

Spend more time outside – Yes, I have! The weather is turning nice and springy, and I love just sitting out in the sun and reading, writing, or working on school. Getting back into running has also given me an excuse to get outside during the day, so I love that.

Buy some books on ThriftBooks and do a haul – No, I didn’t get around to this. I promise that I will do a haul, though, when I do order the books!

Goals for April

  • Practice piano.
  • Post a springy crochet pattern.
  • Start getting up earlier.
  • Hydrate more.
  • Keep running at least three times a week.

Pictures from March

What Happened in March?

  • My grandparents came to visit for a weekend, and I enjoyed the visit very much. We went thrift shopping, got coffee, and just spent some good time visiting!
  • Soccer started! I’ve been to only one practice so far, but I think that this season will be great. My brother will be on my same team this year, which should be fun. We haven’t had any actual games yet, but those will begin in April, and I’m excited!
  • I got sick, which wasn’t fun. I feel like I get sick so much, but I guess that that’s prone to happen in a larger family.
  • I got a whole lot of writing done in A Songwriter’s Summer, as I mentioned earlier in this post. I was in a bit of a writing slump, so this sudden burst of inspiration was sort of unexpected, but completely welcome! I wrote a whole lot, got to introduce some new amazing characters, and had a few new ideas on where the story will go!
  • Our homeschool group started up again after the long winter break, so those meetings are starting up again!

That’s all about my month! What happened in March for you? What books did you read? Did you complete your goals? What do you have planned for April? As always, I’d love to chat in the comments!

I hope you enjoyed today’s post! Thanks for reading! I will see y’all back here next week. Have a nice rest of your day!

Monthly Wrap-Up: February 2023

Hello everybody! As the second and shortest month of the year draws to an end, I figured that this week’s post could be a wrap-up, consisting of all that happened this month. I had a pretty good (but busy) month, and hope you did as well!

Books I Read

Love and Luck by Jenna Evans Welch was a sweet, yet meaningful contemporary novel. I love the sibling aspects of it, and it made me want to visit Ireland as well! I don’t know if I enjoyed it as much as its companion novel, Love and Gelato, but it was still really good!

The Beauty of Darkness by Mary E. Pearson was a very wild ride of different emotions and surprises! I think that it was a good ending for the series, yet the final book of a series is always a bit sad to read, knowing it’s the end.

Holy Moments by Matthew Kelly was a very good book! It was one of those books to me that really made me think a lot, and I would definitely recommend it to you!

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee was a book I was assigned to read for my English class. I liked it quite a bit, and I enjoyed the overall meaning and message of the novel.

Lovely War by Julie Berry was a reread, and it is one of my all-time favorite books, something I realized even further as I read through this amazingly well-written, sweet historical fiction novel. I love almost all of the aspects of this book, from the characters and relationships, to the writing, and the themes. Definitely check it out if you haven’t yet!

Crochet Projects

I am starting on some Easter and spring-themed projects (and, hopefully, the patterns will be released soon). I also finished a few smaller projects.

Blog Posts on Books and Hooks

The Seven Word Story Tag

My Favorite Book Couples

What’s Your WIP? Writing Tag #2

Reviewing February’s Goals

Go through clothes and get rid of stuff. I did go through all of my clothes, and I have lots of things to get rid of. I haven’t gotten rid of anything yet, but they’re all ready to go!

Keep consistent with running and run at least 20 miles. My consistency was sort of nonexistent throughout the beginning of the month, but toward the end, I found a training plan and have been following that. I did not run 20 miles.

Start biking again. I did not. 😕

Start making a playlist for my book. Again, I did not get around to this one.

Read at least four books. Yup!

Post at least once on my other blog. I did! Check it out here if you want. It was a collab I did with my sister covering a few ideas for Lent, if you’re interested!

Post once a week on here. I did stay consistent with this!

March’s Goals

  • Organize my closet shelving. 😬 It’s very messy! The shelf I’m speaking of is basically just the place I store anything random without a specific home: coloring books, old notebooks, games and puzzles, etc. It definitely needs to be cleaned up, and it’s a spot I’ve been dreading for a while now.
  • Design and post a spring-themed crochet pattern. I sort of have one designed, but I’ve yet to write down the pattern and share it with y’all. Keep an eye out for that!
  • Continue with my running plan, and add biking in as cross-training. The new running plan I’m using is one I found online to improve 5k time, because I hope to do a race in the spring. I’m liking it so far, but sometimes, creating the consistency is difficult. I also want to start biking more this month!
  • Try out some new recipes. I’ve been baking a lot lately, and I’ve saved a few really yummy-looking recipes, so I’m going to try them out soon!
  • Start practicing piano again. Because I haven’t in…a while.
  • Spend more time outside. I’ve been trying to do this more lately, and the lovely upcoming weather is for sure helping me to get outdoors more often!
  • Buy some books on ThriftBooks and do a haul. I have a gift card for ThriftBooks from Christmas, and I haven’t used it yet. In March, I hope to buy a few books from their website, and do book haul post.

Photos from February

What Happened in February?

  • February seemed to pass by very quickly! That’s probably partly due to the fact that it was a few days shorter than most months, but I feel like in general, I was pretty busy throughout the month.
  • I signed up for soccer again this spring! Practices haven’t started yet, but I am excited to start playing again in March!
  • I spent a lot of time outside and started trying to run consistently again. It’s always hard after taking a break like I did during the majority of winter, but I’m starting to get back into it!
  • I started experimenting and baking a lot more this month, especially bread!
  • What have you been up to this month?

That’s it! How was your February? What plans do you have for March? I’d love to hear from you in the comments!

I hope that you enjoyed today’s post! I also hope that you are having an amazing Monday, and I’ll see y’all back here next week!

What’s Your WIP? Writing Tag #2

Hello and happy Monday! How is the start to your week?

So, today’s post is going to be very very fun. I will be using the “What’s your WIP (work in progress) Writing Tag” to introduce y’all to the newest book I’ve started to write. The book is called A Songwriter’s Summer for now, as I decided to name it, so I don’t get caught talking about it as “My Contemporary Book” or something to that nature, like I did with “My Dystopian Book”.

Speaking of my dystopian book, I used this tag once before to give y’all a little peek into that book. Here it is if you are interested!

This book is the newest one I’ve been writing and is the main writing project I’ve been working on lately. It is a contemporary YA book. I will leave the rest of the explanation and summary for this book to the tag!

The Rules

  • Thank the person who tagged you & link to their blog.
  • Link back to the creator, Katja @ Little Blossoms for Jesus.
  • List the rules. 
  • Answer the questions. 
  • Feel free to add snippets!
  • Tag as many or as few people as you wish & let them know they’re tagged. 
  • Add a clean copy of the questions at the end of your post for the “tagged.”

Has your WIP a working title? If so, tell us! If not, have you any idea of what it might be?

As I said earlier, A Songwriter’s Summer is the name I’ve given my book for the time being. It probably won’t stick, but I decided to at least come up with a name for now, so I had something to call it. I think that this name sort of explains the story to some extent (it follows the main character, who is a songwriter, and it takes place during the summer) but the title also sounds like some sort of songwriting camp or something, so I’ll probably change it sometime down the road. It works for now, though!

Have you a synopsis for your WIP? If so, give it to us! If not, can you give us a blurb on what your WIP is about?

I don’t have a synopsis written, so I will just explain the story a bit.

This book follows seventeen-year-old Breena West, who loves writing songs, and secretly dreams of becoming a songwriter. The problem? Her parents don’t consider that a career and they are pushing her to go to college and pursue a more stable career that she can support herself with. When one of Breena’s favorite songwriters announces that she’s hosting a songwriting contest that has the potential to grant the winners recognition and fame, Breena sees this as her chance to show her parents that this passion for songwriting doesn’t have to be only a hobby.

Many things happen that summer. Her parents become concerned with Breena’s grades. Fynn Cooper, a fellow eleventh grader, begins helping Breena with her classes. Breena’s older, perfect-seeming sister comes home from college for the summer, and her brother shortly after. Through this period of months, Breena will discover many things, learn to understand the views of others, and to be more compassionate.

I understand that this is not a very good synopsis, but I had to write it real quick. I was just finishing this post up (because, of course, I waited until the last minute) so I am writing this just before posting.

Have you a working/mock cover for your WIP? If so, show us! If not, have you an idea in mind?

I actually do! Here it is:

This is a very basic cover design that I created on Canva. I like how it turned out, and just the simplicity of it!

How did you get the idea for this story?

I honestly don’t remember! I have recently been wanting to write a contemporary book with the main character being a songwriter, as I have become more interested in song and poem writing. I remember having the sort of idea for this book in my mind for a while, and after a while, I wrote it all down and planned the story further.

How long do you think it will be? Is it longer or shorter than you thought it would be?

I am only a few chapters in, but I have the whole book planned out. I believe it will be just about the length of an average novel, maybe a bit shorter, but I guess we’ll see!

Who’s your favourite character so far?

I love all of my characters! One of my favorite things about this book so far is that I can relate to each of the characters in some way, and see where they are coming from. Up to this point, I like Fynn a lot, as well as Breena’s best friend, Lea.

What’s your favourite memory related to this WIP?

Probably when I was in the planning phase! After I got the idea for this novel, I bought a special notebook and began planning it all out, writing every little thing down, and coming up with ideas as to where the story would go. I love looking back at those pages now, and seeing how the first ideas have been formed into the whole story that it is now!

Any special person(s) who helped create it?

My older sister! She mostly just listens to me ranting about the characters or talking about the plot. I also let her read it as I write, and she gives me helpful advice and constructive criticism. Thank you!

What’s your favourite scene so far (if you can tell about it without spoilers!)?

Hmmm…🤔 I’m not sure. There is a scene that I’m excited to write that will be at the end of the book, but I can’t describe it without giving away most of the story. So far, I have enjoyed writing the first few interactions between Breena and Fynn, and I am looking forward to the introduction of a new character that I will be writing in soon!

Can you give us a snippet? 

Sorry, I can’t yet. I just don’t feel like there is anything I’ve written yet worthy of sharing as a snippet. Stay tuned, though, because I plan to share more about this book in the future!

Is the story still what you thought it would be or has it thrown you a couple curveballs?

It’s definitely got a different ending than what I planned at first! Besides that, though, not a lot of changes have taken place yet. I am, as I said, only a few chapters in, so I’m sure that there will be some changes that I decide on as I write and get to know my characters better.

Is there a Bible verse, poem, hymn, picture, or quote that helped shape this story?

Not that I can think of at the moment.

When and where have you done most of the writing so far?

I am writing the first draft of this book in a notebook, and I’ve written a lot of it outside, actually!

Where do you get inspiration for this story?

I take a lot of inspiration from my daily life and add it to the book like I do with the other books I’ve worked on. Conversations, traits in my characters, the observations of those around me, and certain situations are all incorporated.

Are you a plotter or a pantser?

I am a big planner! I mentioned earlier that I bought a notebook to brainstorm and plan the book, and that was in the summer. I believe I just started writing this book in January, so that was about six months of planning out this book! I worked out all of the characters and basically everything that happens because I hate going into the book without a clear knowledge of the story and how it progresses!

Do you have a little ritual before you start writing?

I like to have music, usually, as well as something to drink while I’m writing. Other than that, not really. I just get my notebook out and begin writing!

Are you thinking of publishing this story?

Probably not, but you never know!

What things have you learned while writing this story?

To have fun with it! Sometimes I have to force myself to write to get through a rough patch, but I have also found ways to work on this story without writing, such as developing characters further, finding songs for each character, or writing about it like I am with this post. I do love writing, but sometimes, doing something related to the story is just as important if I don’t feel like writing.

I’m not going to tag anyone to do this tag, because I don’t know who is working on writing a book at the moment. However, if you do have a current WIP, I’d love to see you use this tag! Here is a list of the questions for anyone who plans on doing the tag:

  • Has your WIP a working title? If so, tell us! If not, have you any idea of what it might be?
  • Have you a synopsis for your WIP? If so, give it to us! If not, can you give us a blurb on what your WIP is about?
  • Have you a working/mock cover for your WIP? If so, show us! If not, have you an idea in mind?
  • How did you get the idea for this story?
  • How long do you think it will be? Is it longer or shorter than you thought it would be?
  • Who’s your favourite character so far?
  • What’s your favourite memory related to this WIP?
  • Any special person(s) who helped create it?
  • What’s your favourite scene so far (if you can tell about it without spoilers!)?
  • Can you give us a snippet? 
  • Is the story still what you thought it would be or has it thrown you a couple curveballs?
  • Is there a Bible verse, poem, hymn, picture, or quote that helped shape this story?
  • When and where have you done most of the writing so far?
  • Where do you get inspiration for this story?
  • Are you a plotter or a pantser?
  • Do you have a little ritual before you start writing?
  • Are you thinking of publishing this story?
  • What things have you learned while writing this story?

That will be all for today! I hope that you all enjoyed getting a little more information on my WIP, A Songwriter’s Summer. How did you like this post? Do you have any more questions about my book? I’d love to hear from you in the comments! Also, if you guys have any more post ideas that I can write to share more about this book, I’d love to hear them! Maybe an aesthetic or playlist?

I hope that everyone has a lovely week, and I’ll see y’all next Monday!

My Favorite Book Couples

Hello everyone! So, I didn’t get around to posting yesterday, but then I thought that this post might work better for today, with it being Valentine’s day and all!

As you have read in the title of this post, I will be listing a few of my favorite book couples! There were definitely a lot of cute couples I wanted to include in this post, so I decided to narrow the list down to five, which I didn’t technically accomplish, as you’ll see reading the list. 😄

Before reading this post, beware that it may contain spoilers for certain books that contain the couples I am going to be talking about, so proceed with caution!

Okay, here are my top five bookish couples! (They are listed in no particular order.)


Katniss and Peeta from the Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins

Starting off strong is Katniss and Peeta from the Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins, one of my favorite book series of all time. I feel like I shouldn’t have to explain this one much. Peeta is just such a good person in general, and he and Katniss just work. They’ve been through so much, but I love that they sort of got their happy ending. There is a certain quote at the end of Mockingjay about how Katniss needed Peeta, who was like a dandelion in the spring, and it’s just so sweet. I am, and will be, team Peeta forever! Here’s the quote:

“That what I need to survive is not Gale’s fire, kindled with rage and hatred. I have plenty of fire myself. What I need is the dandelion in the spring. The bright yellow that means rebirth instead of destruction. The promise that life can go on, no matter how bad our losses. That it can be good again. And only Peeta can give me that.”

Suzanne Collins, Mockingjay

James and Hazel from Lovely War by Julie Berry

I am actually currently re-reading this amazing book now. James and Hazel are such a cute couple! I love their cute little moments, and all of their slightly cringey interactions in the beginning. They go through so much, and I definitely got annoyed at both of them at different points in the book, but they are an amazing couple, and I would really recommend this book to anyone who hasn’t yet read it!

Lily and Cade from P.S. I Like You by Kasie West

P.S. I Like You is probably my favorite book by Kasie West. I like the sort of rivals-to-lover trope, and I just think that Cade and Lily are such a cute couple! One thing, though, about Kasie West’s books is that her couples come together at the last minute in all of her books, it seems. Anyways, I love Cade and Lily, and they make such a cute couple in the end.

Elias and Laia from the Ember in the Ashes series by Sabaa Tahir

I love couples in series because then, they have more time together and I have more time to get attached to them. This is no different for Elias and Laia in the Ember in the Ashes quartet. I love their relationship, how they eventually end up together, and how Laia doesn’t give up on Elias, especially during the middle/end of the series.

All of the couples in Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

Okay…this is where I couldn’t narrow down the list to just five couples! Little Women is one of my favorite books, and I love who each of the March sisters ends up with. Meg and Mr. Brookes are a lovely couple, and I really like their story and reading about the start of their life together. I like Jo and Mr. Bhaer (I don’t know if that’s spelled correctly), and how Mr. Bhaer kind of comes along at the right time for Jo. Amy and Laurie also just work so well together, and I couldn’t see it being any other way!


So, that’s it: my seven favorite book couples! Who are your favorite book couples? Do you disagree with any of my picks? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments!

Well, thank you all for reading! I hope that your week is going well, and I hope that you have an amazing day. I will see you back here next week! Bye until then! ❤

~ Rebekah

Monthly Wrap-Up: January 2023

Hello everybody! Welcome to today’s post, a review for the month of January! I hope that y’all had an amazing start to the year. I just can’t believe that we’re already a month into 2023!

Books I Read

Animal Farm by George Orwell. This was a book I had been assigned to read for my English class, and I found it quite interesting. Although it is written about animals, it was easy to understand that the author was portraying what happens at times in the human world. It had lots of political symbolism and meaning in it, without being daunting or boring in any way.

Little Women by Luisa May Alcott. I read this book several years ago, and I didn’t think about it much at the time. I remembered it being pretty good, yet I didn’t appreciate this amazing piece of literature as much as it deserved. After rereading it, I admire it very much. I love the sisters, the story, everything…it’s just such a good book. I think that it definitely makes it into one of the top spots in my favorite classic books!

The Woman with the Blue Star by Pam Jenoff. My sister and I both listened to this book, and I really liked it. It was very good. Not super amazing, but it was a good, solid read. The ending was quite bittersweet as well.

The Heart of Betrayal by Mary E. Pearson. After much nagging by my sister, I am now continuing this series. I liked this book quite a bit, although I got very annoyed at the different characters throughout the book, and it was a very crazy read! Such a cliffhanger, too! I will be continuing the series, and reading the final book soon!

Crochet Projects

I did not crochet a lot this month. Just a few smaller projects, like a mini octopus and a little bear that is almost finished. I do plan to release a pattern in February, so keep an eye out for that!

Blog Posts on Books and Hooks

I did not get much posted this month, but oh well! I’m back to my once-a-week posting schedule now.

Goodbye 2022, Hello 2023

New Year Q&A: Answering Y’all’s Questions!

Reviewing January’s Goals

  • Get into a new running routine. I sort of did, but still working on it.
  • Post weekly on both of my blogs. I did not accomplish this goal. I only posted on here twice, and I made one post on my other blog. (If you’d like to check that out, click here! 😊)
  • Create a new schedule. I did. If I followed it is another story…😄
  • Drink eight cups of water a day. Just about! Not every single day, but I made a lot of effort throughout the month.
  • Write every day. Again, just about! There were a few days that I did not get around to it, but overall, I was pretty successful!
  • Get new glasses. I did! I am so thankful that I have these new glasses because I now realize how much my prescription has changed. Things are so much clearer with my new glasses!
  • Go through my clothes and get rid of stuff. Nope. I kept putting it off, and somehow January slipped by. This one will go on to February’s list of to-do’s!
  • Read a classic. Yes!
  • Journal every day. This one, I did not accomplish, but I will say that I was more consistent than before.

Goals for February

  • Go through clothes and get rid of stuff.
  • Keep consistent with running, and run at least 20 miles.
  • Start biking again.
  • Start making a playlist for my book.
  • Read at least four books.
  • Post at least once on my other blog.
  • Post once a week on here.

Pictures from January

Not many pictures from January.

Important Events/things that Happened in January

  • In January, it was just a lot of getting back into the routine of things after the holidays, and getting into the new year!
  • I started running again!
  • I am also beginning to write a book! I technically started it in December, but only got a few pages written before 2023 came around. I wrote a lot more this month, and am really enjoying getting to know my characters!
  • I honestly don’t remember anything huge happening…it was a pretty chill month.

Thank you all for reading this post! How did your January go? What do you have coming up in February? I’d love to hear from you in the comments!

I hope you have an amazing week! I will see all of you back next Monday. Bye until then!

New Year Q&A: Answering Y’all’s Questions!

Hello everybody! If you’re new here, welcome, I hope you enjoy today’s post! If you’re not new, thank you for coming back and reading this Q&A of mine! Let’s get straight into the post!

Anna asked:

What’s your favorite book series? I have so many, and it’s tough to choose just one! The Lord of the Rings series, set in a very intricate world with well-developed characters, has to be one of my favorites! The Hunger Games is another series that is at the top of my list!

How long have you been blogging? I started a blog to post school essays for my R.P.C. classes at the beginning of 2021. I don’t know if that would be considered blogging, as I was just posting school stuff. However, I loved the community and was interested in starting a blog to share posts about my hobbies, so I started this blog, Books and Hooks, during the summer of 2021! I have been blogging on here for approximately a year and a half, which is hard to believe!

BetsyJane asked:

What’s your favorite crochet project you’ve done? There are so many! I have been crocheting for a long time. There are some that I am very proud of, such as my first amigurumi doll, or the first pattern I followed, which was a baby blanket for my little cousin. It’s kind of difficult to come up with my favorite crochet project, considering there have been so many, but there have been a lot of cute amigurumi animals, dolls, and toys that I have made, and those are some of my favorites!

Who’s your favorite singer? I like listening to a lot of Christain artists and bands, such as Colton Dixon, Francesca Battistelli, Jeremy Camp, PJ Anderson, and For King and Country. Their songs are just so uplifting and inspirational! I also like listening to Taylor Swift, and I’ll often listen to instrumental pieces or movie soundtracks while I’m working on school.

Heidi asked:

What are the top three books you’ve read this past year? I feel like I didn’t read a lot of good books this past year, but there were some that stood out. My three favorites would have to be Fountains of Silence by Ruta Sepetys (check out my book review here to learn more about my thoughts concerning this amazing book), The Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkien, and…maybe I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys. I do realize that two of these are by the same author, but she just writes really good books, and I would recommend them to anyone who wants to read something historical. I always learn more about history through Ruta Sepety’s books, and I love how she writes about little-known times in history, and events that I had almost no previous knowledge of before reading the book.

Top three movies you watched this past year? I am not a big movie person, and I don’t really keep track of the movies I watch, so this is a bit of a difficult question for me. I first watched the To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before series on Netflix this past year, and I think that it was well-made, and I probably like them better than the books. I also watched the second Enola Holmes when it came out, and I liked it better than the previous one. As for a third movie…I don’t know. I do a lot of rewatches, so I didn’t watch a lot of new movies this past year.

Top five memories from this past year? There were some pretty great things that happened this year! My siblings and I went to visit family for a couple of weeks in the summer, which would have to make it onto this list. I also made my Confirmation, which was a big memory for the year. I finished both the first and second drafts of my dystopian novel, which…really surprised me, considering I didn’t ever imagine completing both of those. I ran seven miles continuously, which I never thought possible either! A lot of good times with family, too!

Top five to ten pictures from this past year? This is difficult, because many of my favorite photos are of me or my family, and I don’t feel comfortable sharing those on here. But, I did go through my camera and pick out a few of my favorites that don’t contain faces or anything! ☺

Anoushka asked:

If you could choose only one book to read for the rest of time, which one would it be? This is such a difficult question to answer! I cannot imagine just reading one book over and over again, because I like variety in the genres and books I read. I might go with Little Women, but that answer may just be because I recently finished it and it’s still fresh in my mind.

Book/movie characters you see yourself most in? I’ve never really thought of this before…🤔 Basically any quiet or shy book-loving character. I cannot think of any at the moment, but I’m sure there are a lot. There are a few characters in the books I’m writing that are very similar to me, but I’m not sure that counts toward this question, because it was me who created the characters.

Five tv shows/movies that define you? This is another one I haven’t really contemplated before, and, to be honest, I don’t quite understand it. Movies or shows that define me?

Story ideas you’re most excited to write about? Okay, so there’s this story idea I have, and I don’t know how good it is, but I think it would be interesting to write. The basic idea is that there is one character who was in a house fire (Landon is the name I’ll give him for now) and lost almost everything. Another character (whose name will be Magnolia) donates a crochet blanket to the hospital, and the blanket ends up going to Landon who is at the hospital. The blanket is one of the only things he has in those dark times after losing his house and everything, and when he gets out of the hospital, he sets out to find who made the blanket. That’s the general concept, but I don’t really have any further ideas and I’m not sure where the story would go. I am not going to start writing it yet or anything, because I already have a couple of books I’m working on at the moment, but I will save the idea and maybe use it in a later novel! I also like the idea of writing a historical fiction novel, but I know how much research is required to write one accurately, and I do not particularly enjoy researching…maybe someday!

Favorite genre? I like reading a variety of YA genres and am always in the mood to read from different genres. My favorite, though, are between contemporary (like Kasie West’s books!) and historical fiction.

Pertsfarms asked:

What are some of your favorite memories of 2022? I listed a few of them earlier in this Q&A. Visiting relatives and meeting some of my newest cousins were definitely some of the happiest memories from this past year. I also feel like I completed a lot of goals, and got really far with blogging and my other hobbies, which is amazing and definitely produced some of my favorite memories of the year!

Lydia asked:

Do you think we owe Aragorn, son of Arathorn, our allegiance? Yes, I think we do! 😄

Polka dots or stripes? Polka dots!

Who do you look up to the most? I look up to both of my parents, and a lot of my older family members, such as my nana, aunts, and you, my older sister! There are a lot of saints that I look up to as well, drawing inspiration from their stories, and looking at their lives and the examples they’ve set.

What is one of the saddest deaths in a book or movie/tv show? I know that there are many, but I just can’t think of them right now. I guess that there were many deaths in A Sky Beyond the Storm by Sabaa Tahir, and they were heartbreaking. Also, (spoiler warning for anyone who has not read The Hunger Games series) Prim’s death in Mockingjay is just so tragic, especially considering all that Katniss did for her, and how Katniss responded. Finnick, too. I think that his death, unlike Prim’s, was sort of unnecessary. Salt to the Sea also had a lot of sadness. The Book Thief as well…there are just so many sad books! 😢

Least fav book of 2022? Probably the Summer I Turned Pretty series. The first one was okay…nothing great, but not horrible either. The second and third books were just awful, and I hated the ending!

Jan asked:

Who is your favorite author? I have read all of Ruta Sepety’s YA novels, and I’d have to say that she’s definitely one of my favorite authors. Her books are very well-researched and historical, yet contain interesting characters that drive the plot forward. As I said earlier in this post, one thing I like about Ruta Sepety’s books is that she chooses to write about occasions in history that I don’t hear about a lot, which makes them very interesting and educational. I like the characters, and…yes, she’s just an amazing author! I hope she writes another book soon!

What made you start blogging? I started a WordPress blog at first to just share school essays, but after following a few other blogs and interacting with other bloggers, I decided to start a blog to post crochet patterns and book reviews!

Who is your favorite fictional character? There are many different characters that I like, but one of the first people who comes to mind is Peeta from the Hunger Games series (preferably the books, but he’s not bad in the movies either.) I just really like his personality, and contrary to what the majority of my family believes, he is not a wimp! I also like Laia’s character in the Ember in the Ashes quartet and I like watching her character development throughout the series.

Diamond asked:

What is your favorite family memory? There are so many! I don’t think it’s possible to choose just one! 🥰

What made you start blogging? As I said earlier, I started this blog as a space to share patterns for crochet and book reviews! I have always been interested in talking about my hobbies, but it wasn’t until I started a blog to post school essays that I realized how simple it was to start a blog, and I created Books and Hooks!

Where do you see yourself in five years? I will likely be graduated by that time, and maybe be pursuing a career. I’m not sure what else. I don’t exactly know what I want to do when I am older, so this is a bit of a tricky question.

Mayim asked:

Favorite breakfast food? I love bagels with cream cheese, especially when the bagels are homemade! Smoothies are another favorite of mine!

Favorite store? I don’t do a lot of shopping, so…does a thrift store count? That’s the main type of shopping I do. Ooh, used bookstores as well! 😁

Cheese or supreme pizza? Supreme pizza!

Favorite song? There are so many! I am always listening to different types of music depending on my mood, and what I feel like listening to at the moment. I really like Taylor Swift’s lyricism in her songs, but I don’t know how I could decide on just one song. “Miracles” by Colton Dixon is one of my favorite upbeat Christain songs, and “Love Will Heal” by PJ Anderson is a calmer song that I find myself listening to a lot. So, my basic answer is that my music tastes are always changing and it is hard for me to choose just one song! These two, though, are some of my top picks.

Are you a Starbucks fan, and if so, what’s your usual order? I have actually never been to Starbucks because there is not one very near to my house. 🙁

Sophia asked:

Favorite movie? I am not a big movie person, because I often find it hard to sit still and concentrate on a whole movie. With that being said, there are some that I really do like. The Lord of the Rings films are amazing (as are the books). It’s a Wonderful Life, I’m Not Ashamed, Miracles from Heaven, the Hunger Games movies, and the To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before trilogy are some of my favorites!

Favorite show? I do not find myself watching a lot of tv shows, but my favorite is no doubt the Stranger Things tv series! I like many of the characters and a lot of the themes relating to friendship and courage. I am also going through The Chosen, which is really good! I am only on the first season, but I want to finish the series soon. I would definitely recommend it, based on what I’ve watched so far.

Favorite holiday? I love both Christmas and Thanksgiving! In the end, I’d probably go with Christmas, but Thanksgiving is an amazing holiday as well, with food, family and friends, and being reminded of all to be thankful for. However, on Christmas, we are celebrating Christ’s birth, which makes it my favorite holiday.

Where do you want to go on vacation? If I could go anywhere in the world, I’d probably choose somewhere in Europe, such as Italy or France. They seem like they have such good food, as well as many historical landmarks that would be interesting to see. Ireland would be another interesting visit!

That’s it! Thank you so much to the amazing bloggers who asked questions; I had lots of fun answering them and writing this post! How would you have answered these questions? Were you surprised by any of my answers? I’d love to hear from y’all in the comments!

I hope that you enjoyed this post! I also hope that you are having an amazing start to your week! I will probably be back next Monday, though I know I haven’t been the most consistent blogger lately, so we’ll have to see. 😄 Thanks for reading, and bye for now!

Goodbye 2022, Hello 2023

Hello everybody and happy 2023, nine days late! I am so amazed that we are already more than a week into the new year. It seems like 2022 went by in a blur, and now, we’re stepping into 2023. My 2022 was pretty good, and in today’s post, I’ll be looking back over 2022, reviewing my goals, looking up at 2023, and sharing my new year’s goals!

I made a few goals at the end of 2021, and I’ll go over them now, reviewing which ones I completed and which ones I didn’t do so well on. Honestly, I half forgot about these goals and didn’t follow them throughout the year a lot.

~ Blogging-related ~

• Get 100 followers.

Yes! Thank you, guys! My current total following count is 175 followers. I cannot believe that I made it this far, but I know that I wouldn’t be here without y’all. I am so happy to be here!

• Plan and schedule more posts.

I guess. I think that I did write more posts in advance this year.

• Do a few collabs.

I did, and they were so fun! You can check them out here.

• Have fun blogging!

Yes, I am! This year has been my third year of blogging, and it was very fun. I love blogging: sharing about the things I love, interacting with other bloggers, and reading other’s posts!

~ Writing-related ~

• Finish the first draft of my contemporary novel.

No. I just kind of scrapped that book, because I realized the lack of a plot. I might pick it up again, but probably not. I didn’t plan the novel much, and I kind of just didn’t enjoy writing it.

• Finish the first draft of my dystopian novel.

I did! Then, I wrote the second and third drafts. I feel like I got really far with this book this year!

• Write at least 1,000 words a day.

No, not really. Some months I wrote more, and other months I barely got any writing done.

~ Reading-related ~

• Read at least 60 52 books.

Starting out the year, I was aiming to read 60 books. About halfway through the year, I changed it to 52 books because I realized 60 wasn’t going to happen. I ended up reading 55 books, so about in between.

• Finish the LOTR series.

Yes, I finished the series this past fall. I loved it, and I don’t know why it took me so long to read it.

~ Running-related ~

• Enter another race.

I did! I entered a race in our local fair, and finished first for the females in my age group, although I was the only one, lol. It was a lot of fun, though!

• Run at least 200 miles.

I ran about 186, so I was soo close!

~ Life-related ~

Start waking up earlier.

This has changed throughout the months, but overall, I guess I completed the goal.

Make a better schedule.

Like with the previous goal, it’s changed throughout the year. I think that this is something I still have to work on this coming year.

• Write in my journal every day.

Nope. I didn’t do that a lot, definitely not every day.

Goals for 2023

  • Finish my new book’s first draft.
  • Improve my schedule.
  • Get 300 followers on Books and Hooks.
  • Read one classic a month.
  • Read one spiritual book a month.
  • Read at least four books a month.
  • Improve with piano.
  • Continue my Duolingo streak throughout the whole year.
  • Do a gratitude jar every day.
  • Run 223 miles (at least).

In 2022…

In 2023…

  • I plan to post consistently.
  • I will continue sharing the same types of content I’ve been sharing, although I will probably be doing more crochet-related posts, and book reviews as well.
  • I want to reach 300 followers, which may be a bit ambitious, but I guess we’ll see!
  • I will try to post once a week, although breaks will be taken.

That’s all for today! How was your 2022? Did you hit your goals? What are some of your goals and plans for 2023? I’d love to chat in the comments! Also, be sure to comment and ask me some questions on my latest post, and I will answer them soon! I hope everyone has a blessed week, and I’ll be back with the Q&A in a few days! Bye for now!