Tag Archive for: top ten tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I’m Planning to Read this Fall

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Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.  Top Ten Tuesday has been one of my favorite memes ever since I started blogging, so huge thanks to Jana for taking over the hosting duties!

This week’s TTT topic is Books On My Fall 2019 TBR.  As you’ll be able to tell from my list, I’m planning to read a variety of ARCs and older books.  The older books I’m reading are a mix of authors I’ve been wanting to try as well as several that will also work for my retellings challenge.  Fingers crossed I can stick with this list, especially since it’s more than 10.

 

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Books I’m Planning to Read This Fall

 

1. SLIGHTLY SOUTH OF SIMPLE by Kristy Woodson Harvey

(Find out what it’s about…)

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2. THE BROMANCE BOOK CLUB by Lyssa Kay Adams

(Find out what it’s about…)

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3.  THE BODIES IN THE LIBRARY by Marty Wingate

(Find out what it’s about…)

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4. THE SHAPE OF NIGHT by Tess Gerritsen

(Find out what it’s about…)

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5. TWICE IN A BLUE MOON by Christina Lauren

(Find out what it’s about…)

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6. THE GRACE YEAR by Kim Liggett

(Find out what it’s about…)

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7. THE FAMILY UPSTAIRS by Lisa Jewell

(Find out what it’s about…)

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8. GODSGRAVE by Jay Kristoff

(Find out what it’s about…)

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9. DAUGHTER OF THE PIRATE KING by Tricia Levenseller

(Find out what it’s about…)

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10. RED WINTER by Annette Marie

(Find out what it’s about…)

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11. FIRST & THEN by Emma Mills

(Find out what it’s about…)

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12. THE WRATH & THE DAWN by Renee Ahdieh

(Find out what it’s about…)

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13. CILKA’S JOURNEY by Heather Morris

(Find out what it’s about…)

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Question:  What books are you planning to read this fall?  Are any of my titles on your list?

Top Ten Tuesday – Snacks for the Reader Who is Also Dieting

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Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.  Top Ten Tuesday has been one of my favorite memes ever since I started blogging, so huge thanks to Jana for taking over the hosting duties!

This week’s TTT topic is actually Favorite Things to Eat/Drink While Reading (submitted by Jana’s mom).  While I would normally love that topic because I definitely have plenty of favorite reading snacks, I had to tweak it for this week.  Why?  Because about three weeks ago, my doctor put me on a low-carb diet and I basically had to eliminate all of my favorite foods to snack on from my diet.  Since then, I’ve spent much of my time trying to find low-carb alternatives to the chips, cookies, and ice cream I would typically be indulging in while flipping the pages.  As you can tell, I’m not much for healthy snacking and I also have no interest in anything that involves prep time, so this has been a challenge.  Here’s what I’ve come up with so far. And by all means, if you are on a similar diet and have suggestions, I’d love to hear them!

 

10 Snacks for the Reader Who is Also on a Low Carb Diet

 

 

1. PEANUTS.  Peanut butter would normally be a go-to reading snack for me, but it has way too many carbs. I’ve switched to these individual packs of peanuts, which only have 8 grams.

 

 

2. CHEESE.  Cheese and crackers were another favorite reading snack of mine, so I just ditched the crackers and now snack on cheese only. I usually go for either string cheese or these little individually wrapped pieces of sharp white cheddar from Cabot.

 

 

3. YOGURT.  Yogurt can be challenging because so many of them have a lot of added sugar, but I like this one. It’s Dannon Light and Fit Original Greek and it comes in a lot of different flavors. It’s only 80 calories and has 12 grams of protein and only 8 grams of carbs.

 

 

 

4. HARD BOILED EGG.  Even though these obviously involve some prep time, I like that I can make several at once and then have a few days worth of snacks.  I just chop the egg up and sprinkle it with a little salt and pepper.

 

 

 

5. CARROTS.  I can’t eat many of these because they still have a fair amount of sugar in them, but I’ll buy the baby carrots since it’s easy to see the serving size to help me keep track of the carbs.  I like to dip the carrots in a light Italian dressing I found that has minimal carbs per serving.

 

 

 

6. KIND MINI BARS. I actually just found these at the grocery store over the weekend.  They’re very small, no more than a couple of bites worth, but they are delicious and a mini bar only has 8 grams of carbs.  I usually nibble on it a little at a time to make it last me a few chapters, lol. 

 

 

 

7. ATKINS CHOCOLATE CANDIES.  Peanut M&Ms are my all-time favorite reading snack but since I can’t have those anymore, I purchased some of these Atkins candies to see how they compare.  They’re clearly nowhere near as good as real M&Ms, but they will do the trick in a pinch.

 

 

 

8. ATKINS CHOCOLATE COVERED ALMONDS.  A Snickers candy bar was also a favorite of mine, so I picked up these dark chocolate covered nuts.  Like the Atkins candies above, these would do in a pinch if I really wanted something sweet to snack on.

 

 

                 

 

9. COFFEE WITH SUGAR FREE CREAMER.  I also have a couple of go to beverages when I’m reading and I’ve tweaked those so that I can still have them.  I swapped my usual coffee creamer for this sugar-free French Vanilla from Coffee Mate.  It has a lot less carbs and it tastes good so it’s a win.

 

 

 

10. HERBAL TEA.  My doctor told me that I shouldn’t eat anymore for at least 3 hours before I go to bed.  She recommended having a cup of herbal tea instead of a snack.  I’ve taken her advice on this one and bought this caffeine free mint tea that I really like.  I put a packet of stevia in it, which has 0 carbs, and it’s really nice.

 

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What are some of your favorite foods to snack on while you read?

Top Ten Tuesday – Books on My TBR I’ve Been Avoiding

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Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.  Top Ten Tuesday has been one of my favorite memes ever since I started blogging, so huge thanks to Jana for taking over the hosting duties!

This week’s TTT topic is Books on My TBR I’ve Been Avoiding and Why. There are three main reasons why I’ll avoid a book that is on my TBR, even if I already own a copy:  1) I’m worried it won’t live up to the hype, 2) it’s a later book in a series that I really don’t want to end, or 3) It’s a book from an author that my luck has been hit or miss with.

Each of the books below fall into these categories, with most of them being books I worry won’t live up to the hype (King of Scars, A Curse So Dark and Lonely, and Aurora Rising to name a few, and also Nine Perfect Strangers, which doesn’t seem to be living up to the hype for anyone).  Finale and Escaping from Houdini are books from series that I just don’t want to end so in my mind, I’m prolonging the series by avoiding them, lol.  And finally, there are the disappointing experiences with authors that have me a little gunshy about reading more of their books (Seanan McGuire).

I’m sure I’ll eventually read most of these. I just have to work myself up to actually getting started.

10 Books on My TBR I’ve Been Avoiding

 

1. KING OF SCARS by Leigh Bardugo

 

2. A CURSE SO DARK AND LONELY by Brigid Kemmerer

 

3. AURORA RISING by Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman

 

4. FINALE by Stephanie Garber

 

5. ESCAPING FROM HOUDINI by Kerri Maniscalco

 

6. CIRCE by Madeline Miller

 

7. NINE PERFECT STRANGERS by Liane Moriarty

 

8. A COURT OF FROST AND STARLIGHT by Sarah J. Maas

 

9. FLAME IN THE MIST by Renée Ahdieh

 

10. EVERY HEART A DOORWAY by Seanan McGuire

 

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What are some books you have on your TBR but have been avoiding?

Top Ten Tuesday – 10 Nonfiction Books I Enjoyed Even Though I Don’t Usually Like to Read Nonfiction

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Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.  Top Ten Tuesday has been one of my favorite memes ever since I started blogging, so huge thanks to Jana for taking over the hosting duties!

This week’s TTT topic is Books I Enjoyed That Are Outside of My Comfort Zone.  This topic was rather challenging since I have pretty eclectic reading tastes and read many different genres.  Nonfiction and horror are the main two areas I would say are outside of my comfort zone, and I’m such a chicken that I’m pretty sure I’ve never even read ten books that would qualify as horror, lol.  So by process of elimination, I therefore went with Nonfiction.  It’s not that I have anything against Nonfiction either; I just typically prefer to read Fiction.  That said, I do enjoy the occasional Nonfiction read, especially if it’s something that I find inspiring.

 

10 Nonfiction Books I Enjoyed Even Though I Don’t Usually Like to Read Nonfiction

 

 

1. BECOMING by Michelle Obama.  “An intimate, powerful, and inspiring memoir by the former First Lady of the United States.”  I don’t read memoirs very often but I love Michelle Obama so I couldn’t resist reading her book.  I did the audio version and was just captivated by her storytelling ability and by how articulate and poised she is.

 

 

 

2. WHAT HAPPENED by Hillary Rodham Clinton. “In the past, for reasons I try to explain, I’ve often felt I had to be careful in public, like I was up on a wire without a net. Now I’m letting my guard down.” —Hillary Rodham Clinton, from the introduction of What Happened.  As I’m sure you’ve gathered if you’ve followed my blog long enough, I’m kind of a political junkie and even though nonfiction is typically not my thing, I just had to read Hillary’s book when it came out.  I loved how thoughtful Hillary was in the book as she reflected on what happened in 2016.  I was also impressed that even though there were clearly people she could point the finger out, she also took full responsibility when it came to things she probably should have handled differently.

 

 

 

3. I AM MALALA: THE STORY OF THE GIRL WHO STOOD UP FOR EDUCATION AND WAS SHOT BY THE TALIBAN by Malala Yousafzai.  Malala is such an inspirational young woman that her autobiography was a must-read for me.

 

 

 

4. UNBROKEN: A WORLD WAR II STORY OF SURVIVAL, RESILIENCE AND REDEMPTION by Laura Hillenbrand.   If you haven’t read the story of Lieutenant Louis Zamperini and how he survived his plane crashing into the Pacific Ocean during WWII, you need to grab a copy.  It’s a riveting journey that I read in a couple of sittings even though it’s almost 500 pages long.

 

 

 

5. THE IMMORTAL LIFE OF HENRIETTA LACKS by Rebecca Skloot.  This is such an incredible read.  It’s almost impossible to describe it in a way that does it justice, but for those unfamiliar with Henrietta Lacks, here’s a bit from the synopsis so you can see why the author wanted to tell Henrietta’s story.

“Her name was Henrietta Lacks, but scientists know her as HeLa. She was a poor Southern tobacco farmer who worked the same land as her slave ancestors, yet her cells—taken without her knowledge—became one of the most important tools in medicine. The first “immortal” human cells grown in culture, they are still alive today, though she has been dead for more than sixty years. If you could pile all HeLa cells ever grown onto a scale, they’d weigh more than 50 million metric tons—as much as a hundred Empire State Buildings. HeLa cells were vital for developing the polio vaccine; uncovered secrets of cancer, viruses, and the atom bomb’s effects; helped lead to important advances like in vitro fertilization, cloning, and gene mapping; and have been bought and sold by the billions.

Yet Henrietta Lacks remains virtually unknown, buried in an unmarked grave.”

 

 

 

6. THE END OF YOUR LIFE BOOK CLUB by Will Schwalbe. The inspiring story of a son and his dying mother, who form a “book club” that brings them together as her life comes to a close.  I was initially drawn to this one because it’s a book about books, but what I got was so much more.  It’s a beautiful and moving story about a man trying to spend as much quality time as possible with his dying mother through their shared loved of reading.  I LOVED THIS BOOK. 

 

 

 

7. TUESDAYS WITH MORRIE by Mitch Albom.  An old man, a young man, and life’s greatest lesson.  I remember devouring this book when it first came out. I loved all of the messages about life that the author learned from his time spent with Morrie, a man suffering from ALS.

 

 

 

8. IN COLD BLOOD by Truman Capote.  I’ve tried to read true crime stories a few times, but this one is the only one that has really stuck with me, I guess because it’s a classic.

 

 

 

9. TALKING AS FAST AS I CAN by Lauren Graham.  I’m not usually a big fan of celebrity memoirs, but I love Lauren Graham and the Gilmore Girls so I made an exception and read this one.  I’m really glad I did too because Lauren Graham is hilarious and this was such an entertaining read.

 

 

10. SCRAPPY LITTLE NOBODY by Anna Kendrick.  Again I made an exception and read Anna’s book even though celebrity memoirs aren’t really my thing.  I didn’t love this one quite as much as I enjoyed Graham’s but it was still a fun read. I wish I had done it on audio instead of print because I think Anna’s humor would have translated better in her own voice.

 

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What are some of your favorite nonfiction reads?

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I’ve Read That I’d Like to Have in My Personal Library

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Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.  Top Ten Tuesday has been one of my favorite memes ever since I started blogging, so huge thanks to Jana for taking over the hosting duties!

This week’s TTT topic is Books I’ve Read That I’d Like In My Personal Library (perhaps you checked it out, borrowed it from a friend, received it for review, etc. and want to own it yourself.)  This topic was actually pretty challenging since I normally do eventually go back and purchase the books I love so I can add them to my personal library.  It took me a while but I was finally able to come up with 10 that I still want to add to my collection and haven’t gotten around to buying yet.

 

10 Books I’ve Read That I’d Like to Have in My Personal Library

 

 

1. THE RULES OF MAGIC by Alice Hoffman.  I love Alice Hoffman’s books and this one is actually my favorite but somehow, I’ve still neglected to pick up a copy for my personal collection. I seriously need to remedy that soon.

 

 

 

2. THE GREAT ALONE by Kristin Hannah. Kristin Hannah is another of my favorite authors and I’ve been slowly adding her books to my library. This is one I originally checked out of the library to read, but I definitely want to own a copy.

 

 

 

3. THE CRUEL PRINCE by Holly Black.  This is another that I checked out of the library to read, loved, but haven’t purchased for myself yet. Strangely enough, I do own the second book in the series even though I don’t have the first.

 

 

4. LIFEL1K3 by Jay Kristoff.   Jay Kristoff is another author where I’ve loved every book I’ve read and so have started collecting them. I have most of his but LIFEL1K3 is one I’d love to get at some point.  I’ve been hoping to get a good sale so I can get a print copy.

 

 

 

5. THIS SAVAGE SONG by Victoria Schwab.  Same song, different verse here. Schwab is another favorite author whose books I’m collecting but somehow forgot to pick up a copy of this one. I do own Our Dark Duet so I’m wondering if I actually had this one and loaned it to someone since Schwab is an author I recommend to pretty much everyone.

 

 

 

6. ONCE UPON A RIVER by Diane Setterfield.  I read an ARC of this one and thought it was such a beautiful story. It’s definitely one I’d re-read at some point, plus the cover is gorgeous, so I’d love to have it in my library.

 

 

 

7. RECURSION by Blake Crouch.  This was such a mind blowing read for me and it’s a book I could see myself recommending to a lot of people I know. I think it would make a great addition to my personal library.

 

 

 

8. THE LOST GIRLS OF PARIS by Pam Jenoff.  Historical fiction is still, by far, my favorite genre and it’s definitely one where I collect my favorite titles. This is one I loved last year when I read it but haven’t purchased a copy for myself yet.

 

 

 

9. THINGS YOU SAVE IN A FIRE by Katherine Center.  I usually like to purchase copies of my favorite reads of the year for my collection, and I’m pretty sure this book is going to make the list for 2019.  What a fantastic book and definitely one I’ll be recommending and lending out frequently.

 

 

 

10. THE DIARY OF A YOUNG GIRL by Anne Frank.  Switching gears a bit, I was trying to think of books I’d read in school (classics, etc.) that I’d like to have in my collection.  As an English major, I’ve actually accumulated almost all of those books already since I had to purchase them for AP English in high school and then all through college.  The one exception that I could come up with was The Diary of Anne Frank.  I read it in middle school and it really resonated with me, but somehow I’ve not yet acquired a copy of my personal library even though I have other books that focus on the Holocaust.

 

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What are some books you’ve read that you’d like to add to your personal library?

Top Ten Tuesday: 10 of My Favorite Bookish Tropes

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Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.  Top Ten Tuesday has been one of my favorite memes ever since I started blogging, so huge thanks to Jana for taking over the hosting duties!

This week’s TTT topic is Favorite Tropes. Now there are plenty of tropes that I wish would just disappear – instalove, love triangles, and damsels in distress would feature prominently on that list.  That said, however, it was still pretty easy to come up with 10 bookish tropes that I love seeing in the books I read. I’ve shared them below, along with a couple of my favorite books from each.

 

10 of My Favorite Bookish Tropes

 

1. FRIENDS TO LOVERS – Josh and Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating (Christina Lauren), Starry Eyes (Jenn Bennett)

 

2. ENEMIES TO LOVERS – Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen), The Unhoneymooners (Christina Lauren)

 

3. STAR-CROSSED LOVERS – Romeo and Juliet (William Shakespeare), Beasts of the Frozen Sun (Jill Criswell)

 

4. SECOND CHANCE ROMANCE – Say You Still Love Me (K. A. Tucker), One Summer in Paris (Sarah Morgan)

 

5. MAN IN DISTRESS WHO IS SAVED BY THE DAMSEL – The Hunger Games (Suzanne Collins), Beasts of the Frozen Sun (Jill Criswell)

 

6. MONSTERS WHO AREN’T MONSTERS AFTER ALL – This Savage Song (Victoria Schwab), Beasts of the Frozen Sun (Jill Criswell)

 

7. BOOKS SET IN SCHOOLS OR ON COLLEGE CAMPUSES – Harry Potter series (J.K. Rowling), Nevernight (Jay Kristoff), Fangirl (Rainbow Rowell)

 

8. TOURNAMENTS OR OTHER FORMS OF COMPETITION – Harry Potter series (J.K. Rowling), Throne of Glass (Sarah J. Maas)

 

9. ANTI HEROES – Six of Crows (Leigh Bardugo), Vicious (Victoria Schwab)

 

10. GIRLS WHO ARE INTO STEM – When Dimple Met Rishi (Sandhya Menon), Zenn Diagram (Wendy Brant)

 

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Who are some of your favorite bookish tropes?  Do we share any favorites?

Top Ten Tuesday – Book Characters I’d Love to Have in My Circle of Friends

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Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.  Top Ten Tuesday has been one of my favorite memes ever since I started blogging, so huge thanks to Jana for taking over the hosting duties!

This week’s TTT topic is a Book Characters I’d Love to Be Besties With.  When I think of my real life friends and the qualities I love about each of them, a few common denominators carry across all of them. I love their humor and specifically their ability to bring some levity to a stressful situation, I love their loyalty and that I can always count on them for whatever I need, whether it’s a sound word of advice, a shoulder to cry on, a stiff drink, whatever.  They just have my back no matter what.  I also think my friends are very interesting and I love the unique perspective they can bring to any conversation.  And of course, we share many similar interests.

The list of fictional characters I’ve come up with embody many of these same traits so I think they would make great additions to my circle of friends.

 

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Book Characters I’d Love to Have in My Circle of Friends

 

1. HERMIONE GRANGER and FRED & GEORGE WEASLEY from the Harry Potter series.

Hermione for her wisdom and general badassery; the Weasley twins for their wicked sense of humor.

 

 

2. PERCY, MONTY, & FELICITY from The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice & Virtue

Similar to above, Felicity for her wisdom and because she’s a woman ahead of her time;

Monty & Percy because they’re hilarious and hold the promise of great adventures.

 

 

3. HAZEL from Josh & Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating

Hazel for her whimsical sense of humor. There would never be a dull moment with Hazel as your friend.

 

 

4. SAMWISE from Lord of the Rings

Could there possibly be a more loyal friend than Samwise?

 

 

5. BRIENNE OF TARTH from the A Song of Ice and Fire series

Although I’d put Brienne of Tarth as a close second to Samwise in the loyalty department.

 

 

6. TYRION LANNISTER from the A Song of Ice and Fire series

Tyrion is such a wonderful mix of wit, humor, drunken fun, but at the same time,

he is also someone you would want in your corner when it comes down to it.

 

 

7. CHARLOTTE GORMAN from The Accidental Beauty Queen

No social circle of mine would be complete without a few socially awkward book nerds. Enter Charlotte Gorman.

 

 

8. NINA HILL from The Bookish Life of Nina Hill

And Nina Hill for the same reason. Us book nerds have to stick together. 

 

 

9. CASSIE HANWELL from Things You Save in a Fire

I actually just finished this book over the weekend and found myself wishing I was friends with Cassie.

I admired her strength and tenacity, and the fact that she’s a female firefighter just made her really someone I’d like to have in my corner.

 

 

10. JUNE AND NORA from Red, White & Royal Blue

Although technically only secondary characters in this book, June and Nora were just all kinds of awesome

and I’d love to have them on my squad.  They’re fun, loyal, and very creative. 

 

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Who are some book characters you’d like to have in your circle of friends?

Top Ten Tuesday – My Top Ten Favorite Cover Makeovers

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Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.  Top Ten Tuesday has been one of my favorite memes ever since I started blogging, so huge thanks to Jana for taking over the hosting duties!

This week’s TTT topic is Cover Redesigns I Loved/Hated. Honestly, until I started blogging, with very rare exception, I never noticed how many different covers the same book can have.  I knew there were occasionally special anniversary editions, etc. but that was about it.  Blogging has been very eye-opening when it comes to book covers, among other things.

Now that I do pay more attention to the different covers out there, I do have some favorites and some where I prefer the earlier version over the newer one.

 

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My Top Ten Favorite (and Not So Favorite) Cover Makeovers

 

 

1. Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

The one on the left is the older of the two covers, and I’m not a fan. Celaena just looks too doll-like.  I much prefer the fiercer looking cover on the right.

 

 

 

2. Vicious by V.E. Schwab

I’m actually torn on this one because I really like them both.  The one on the left is the one I own so I feel very nostalgic towards it and I love how atmospheric it is. That said I also love the vivid red, black, and white on the newer cover, not to mention the skulls and bones all over it.  Both of these are winners for me.

 

 

 

3. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling

This is another set of covers I’m torn on. The one on the left is the one I own and I believe the first cover that was issued in the U.S.  It’s a great cover and of course there’s that nostalgia factor again.  On the other hand though, look how truly gorgeous that cover on the right is.  It’s stunning and I honestly think I prefer it to the original.

 

 

 

4. Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor

This series has actually had me conflicted about its covers as well, both because they changed and because I don’t think any of the versions matched each other well.  In the case of the first book though, I think the original on the left is my favorite  I do love the blue on each one, but I like the pop of the yellow on the original and I prefer the way the moths look versus the giant one on the other cover.

 

 

 

5. The Beauty That Remains by Ashley Woodfolk

Although I really did love the one on the left, which is the original cover,

I do feel like the second one does a better job of conveying what the story is about and what age group it’s geared toward so thumb’s up to the newer cover design.

 

 

 

6. Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo

There’s a lot to love about both of these covers.  Overall though, I think I prefer the newer cover on the right. I love the colors on that version and on the other two books in the series.

They’re vibrant and eye catching.

 

 

 

7.  What If It’s Us by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera

I actually love both versions of this cover too. They’re both just adorable.  I do like that the newer cover references their meet cute at the post office though so maybe give a slight edge to that cover.

 

 

 

8. Seafire by Natalie C. Parker

This is another where I really love both covers. I love all of the vibrant colors in the original on the left, but how badass does the one on the right look?  If I hadn’t already purchased the one on the left, I’d totally prefer to own the one on the right.

 

 

 

9.  The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden

This is one of my favorite books and if I had it my way, I would own all three versions of the cover.  The one on the left is my favorite because I love the atmospheric quality – the glow from the cottage, the snow the night sky, etc.  The second one is also gorgeous though and I always find myself staring at it because of all of the amazing details.  The third cover is probably my least favorite. It’s still pretty of course but just doesn’t have the special qualities that the first two have.

 

 

 

10. A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin

I’m sure there are many more versions of this cover out there, but these are the three I see most often.  My least favorite of this bunch is the one in the middle. Something about it – the rectangle in the middle, I think – just makes it looks like some dated required reading book for high school.  I think if the picture in the rectangle just took up the entire cover, it would be much improved.  I think in this case I actually prefer the original on the left with the direwolf on it.  The one on the right is nice too but it just screams generic fantasy novel to me, not to mention the ugly HBO advertisement at the top of it.

 

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So there you have it, some of my favorite cover make overs.  What are some of your favorites?

Top Ten Tuesday – 10 Books I’d Love to See Adapted for the Big or Small Screen

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Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.  Top Ten Tuesday has been one of my favorite memes ever since I started blogging, so huge thanks to Jana for taking over the hosting duties!

This week’s TTT topic is a Freebie so I decided to with books I’d love to see made in TV shows or movies.  This has been on my mind a lot lately because of all recent announcements about new streaming services.  Between the big screen, the small screen, and streaming giants like Netflix and Hulu, it seems like there is more and more opportunity out there for great books to be adapted.  Several of my favorites like Daisy Jones & the Six and The Grisha Trilogy are already being adapted, but here are a few more I hope to see adapted as well.  Now I’ll confess here that I didn’t research these very thoroughly so if you’re aware of upcoming adaptations for any of these that I haven’t heard of yet, please let me know! 🙂

 

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10 Books I’d Love to See Adapted for the Big or Small Screen

 

1, THE SEVEN HUSBANDS OF EVELYN HUGO by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Evelyn Hugo is a character who is larger than life, and as a movie star, I think it’s only fitting that this book should be made into a film. I think it would be glorious!

 

2, LETTERS TO THE LOST by Brigid Kemmerer

I think any of Kemmerer’s YA contemporaries would be wonderful as films, but Declan and Juliet’s story has a special place in my heart and I think it would make for a very moving film.

 

3, WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING by Delia Owens

I just finished reading this beautiful, heartbreaking story yesterday and all I could think about was how I wanted to see it on the big screen.  This is the book that actually inspired this week’s topic.

 

4, LOCK EVERY DOOR by Riley Sager

I love a good, atmospheric film as well and I think this book set in a creepy Gothic NYC landmark hotel would be perfect.

 

5, CARAVAL by Stephanie Garber

How fabulous would this be as either a film or limited series?

 

6. THE ILLUMINAE FILES by Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman

This amazing science fiction series would also make for an exciting limited series on any of the steaming services. I’d totally binge watch it!

 

7. THE GIRL HE USED TO KNOW by Tracey Garvis Graves

I think Annika and Jonathan’s story would make for a beautiful movie about second chances.

 

8. THE BOOKISH LIFE OF NINA HILL by Abbi Waxman

At first I was thinking film, but the more I think about it, I would definitely watch an entire series devoted to Nina and her bookish antics.

Heck, I’d watch just to see her have conversations with Phil the cat, lol.

 

9. ASK AGAIN, YES by Mary Beth Keane

This was another moving story about family and forgiveness that the entire time I was reading, I kept picturing it on the big screen.

 

10. WARCROSS by Marie Lu

Ready Player One is one of my favorite films and I keep thinking that the virtual reality world of Warcross would be equally epic on the big screen.

 

 

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What are some books you’d like to see adapted for TV or film?

Top Ten Tuesday – 10 Book Settings I Need More of in My Reading Life

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Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.  Top Ten Tuesday has been one of my favorite memes ever since I started blogging, so huge thanks to Jana for taking over the hosting duties!

This week’s TTT topic is Settings I’d Like to See More Of (Or At All).  I’m giving the topic a tiny twist because I can’t speak to how many books with the settings I’m thinking about already exist in the world.  There could be plenty of them out there that I just haven’t discovered yet.  So I’m going with book settings that I just need more of in my reading life.  That said, if you have any recommendations that fit any of the settings I’ve listed, I’d love to hear them.

 

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10 Book Settings I Need More of in My Reading Life

 

1, Books set in colleges and/or universities.

I don’t know what it is about the college setting – maybe it’s just nostalgia – but I can never get enough of books that are set there.

 

2, Books set in bookstores and/or libraries.  

Of course I want more books to read that set in my favorite places in the world. Enough said.

 

3, Books set in quaint small towns. 

As much as I love reading books that are set in big exciting cities, I’d actually love to read more books that are set in small towns.  They just tend to have such charm.

 

4, Books set in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Australia, and Asia.

I always enjoy reading books that are set outside the United States, but I have tended to migrate towards those set in familiar cities like London and Paris.

I’d love to branch out and read more from other regions around the world.

 

5, Books set in the 1920s.

I read a lot of historical fiction but most of what I read tends to be set around WWII and sometimes WWI.

I’d love to read more set in the 1920s because I find it to be such an interesting period in history.

 

6. Books set in pre-Civil War America and Colonial Times

I think my obsession with the musical Hamilton has me wanting to read more historical fiction that is set much earlier in my country’s history.

 

7.  Sci-fi books set on other planets in our solar system besides Earth and Mars.

Maybe it’s a little far-fetched, but it seems to me that with sci-fi, anything is possible, even life on planets that in reality can’t sustain life.

 

8. Books set in restaurants, bakeries, cafes, etc. 

Basically any place that features delicious food that the authors can then describe in mouth-watering detail.

I don’t know why I like reading about food so much, but I really do, lol.

 

9. Books set in big cities other than NYC, Paris, and London

These are my three favorite big city settings, but I’d love to branch out and find books set in other cities that I’m not as familiar with.

 

10. Books set in lesser known seaside/oceanside locales.

Of course books that are set on Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard immediately come to mind,

but I’d love to see some that are more off the beaten path but equally as charming.

 

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What are some book settings that you would like to see more of?