Harry: A History | Melissa Anelli | Review

Monday, 8 July 2013

Harry: A History | Melissa Anelli | Review

Harry: A History chronicles the birth and evolution of the Harry Potter book series, the phenomenon and fan culture that surrounded it.

Narrated through the eyes of Melissa Anelli, journalist and now the webmistress of one of the biggest Harry Potter fansites in the world - The Leaky Cauldron - the book opens with a prologue of her and many of her close friends affiliated with Potter and the fandom, finding out about the release date of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

In the subsequent chapters Melissa details not only her journey to discovering the series as an unemployed graduate, post 9/11, working an unfulfilling journalism job, but that of other facets of the fandom - of which there are dozens - the publishing teams behind the book series and JK Rowling herself.

The timeline extends as far back to detail how the Harry Potter series was picked up by Bloomsbury, the initial release of Philosopher's Stone, and how the book was then taken across to Scholastic to market to the North American market. Anelli also details the history of the earliest Harry Potter fansites, blogs, fanfiction and Rowling's first interactions with the fan community and fame.

The story of the Harry Potter fandom is a surprising roller-coaster ride of legal battles - known as the Potter Wars, where Warner Bros tried suing teenagers running Potter websites for copyright infringement, stories of book burning, the infamous evangelical Christian Laura Mallory (and her quest to get the series banned from public libraries due to it's supposed pagan influence on children) and - of course - shipping wars!

It's not all bad though, there are heartwarming stories of how the earliest fan communities helped people find friends who loved something as much as they did; how Wizard Rock lead the way to hundreds of amateur musicians to realise their dreams of playing to thousands of people; and how the series inspired writers and artists around the world to create.

So what's my verdict?

If anything, if you were remember buying your copy of Deathly Hallows at midnight, reading 'Harry' will leave you with a feeling of nostalgia. Arguably, Harry: A History captures a time in literary and publishing that will never happen again. For those of us who are fans - such as myself - who perhaps simply watched from the sidelines at the time, the book fills in the gaps of where we missed out or simply details parts of the fan community you may never have heard of.

I've seen many reviewers criticizing the fact that this feels like too much of Anelli's own story than that of the fandom's, but for me that's part of the charm of the book. It would be impossible to capture every fan's personal story and journey with the Harry Potter series, but Melissa does a good job of including the stories of dozens of others from around the fandom. There's also the fact that Melissa's story is both interesting and remarkably unique in itself. Her position as webmistress means she's seen every facet of and experience the biggest moments of the Harry Potter fan community's history. So what better person to write a book about it?

All in all, Harry: A History really does pack a punch covering a truly unique point in literary history. Even for those who aren't - gasp - Harry Potter fans, the insight Melissa provides into the publishing process and the finer details of fan culture and popular culture is fascinating. And for die-hard Potter fans? Tissues at the ready, the anecdotes from people post-Potter may leave you a little weepy. Not to mention proud that you were part of something really special. 

Reading soundtrack:

To Have A Home: A Very Potter Sequel soundtrack; Accio Deathly Hallows: Hank Green; I Am A Wizard: Harry & the Potters; Meet Me At King's Cross: Alex Carpenter; End Of An Era: Oliver Boyd & The Rememberalls;

For lovers of

Harry Potter - duh - and popular culture enthusiasts

This post was written by regular reviewer Ria, get to know her here.

*image (c)Ria Cagampang

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Event | LeakyCon 2013: A Magical And Literary Experience - Ria

Saturday, 24 August 2013

Event | LeakyCon 2013: A Magical And Literary Experience - Ria

LeakyCon is a Harry Potter fan convention, established in 2009 by Leaky Cauldron webmistress , journalist and author Melissa Anelli. Their first run of conferences held in the US centred around the series, it's fandom and the positive messages of the books. Since then the size and scope of the convention has expanded at an astronomical rate, encompassing all kinds of popular culture, and more pointedly literature. 

This year at LeakyCon's ran their first European convention, held at the Grand Connaught Rooms in central London. Their focus was very much present on it's roots in the Harry Potter fandom with the celebration centred on the 15 year anniversary of the Battle of Hogwarts and dubbed by Anelli as the 15 year reunion for the fans. Though the focus was very much on Harry Potter, fans of Doctor Who, Supernatural, Glee, Games of Thrones, Nerdfighters, Team Starkid and so many more, were all attendees at the convention.

Close friend of the convention runners and YA author Maureen Johnson helped establish LeakyCon's Lit Track, a special pass for attendees to get the opportunity to meet authors, discuss writing and literature. 

This year's Lit Track came along sans Maureen (*sad face*) but there was still plenty on offer for those with passes to go along to.

The authors present at this year's event included James Dawson, Laure Eve, Sally Gardner, Abigail Gibbs, Will Hill, Dawn O'Porter, Samantha Shannon, Elizabeth Wein and Matt Whyman, all of whom were the loveliest people ever and I was lucky enough to meet some of them all at the author's signing too.

As well as being their for book signings many of the authors participated in panels about writing. Due to the insane amount of scheduled events at Leaky I sadly only got to properly join in on a few of the panels, but the ones I did attend were amazing. The first, held on the Friday, was about 'Fear and Loathing in the writing process', the authors present discussed techniques breaking writer's block and shared what scares them the most about publishing a novel. It was reassuring to hear that even some of the most experienced YA authors suffered from the same anxieties about getting their work right as an amateur.

The other panel dubbed 'Who needs school' focused on the authors, their academic (or in some cases non-academic) lives and whether a creative educational background helps you become an author. This panel was my favourite as it started on topic and ended up with conversations about side-jobs the authors did to supplement their career as novelists, conversations on writing under pen-names and pseudonyms and secrets I'm not allowed to reveal about certain authors writing for certain dancing dogs from BGT's autobiography...;)

The biggest panel of the LitTrack was open to the whole convention and had James Dawson and Dawn O'Porter debate Boys vs Girls: Who has it worse? I caught only the part of this one - damn scheduling again! - as the two debated topics centred around feminism. 

- LitTrack authors panel l-r moderator Rosianna and authors James Dawson, Matt Whyman, Samantha Shannon, Abigail Gibbs & Elizabeth Wein during the 'Who Needs School?' panel - Dawn O'Porter & James Dawson debate Girls vs Boys - 

As you can tell from the small amount of Lit programming I was actually able to attend - once again Ahhhh scheduling! - , LeakyCon ended up being a lot more hectic than I anticipated. With Harry Potter as the obvious starting point, literature, literary discussion and insane amount of creativity literature inspires ran on throughout the whole Convention.

Not to mention the awesome that was Waterstones Oxford Street - and the man behind their genius Twitter account! - set up a pop up shop on the fourth floor with all of the Lit authors books, John Green and Maureen Johnson's YA novels, and all of the Potter novels. They were even lovely enough to take orders for Leaky attendees and would bring them to the Convention the next day!

Writing this post-Leaky has made me think of the impact Harry Potter as a literary series on so many people. It's been almost 6 years since the last Harry Potter book was released yet Rowling's work still stands to inspire every individual who was at the Convention. From the creative minds who run the Convention such as Melissa Anelli and Maureen Johnson, the special guests from the Potter films (including Evanna Lynch herself!), the 'crazy Internet famous' stars like Hank Green and Team Starkid, YouTubers like Lex (who was running Lit Day in Maureen's place) and Sanne (a.k.a BooksandQuills, who I managed to chat with brief at the Con!), the Lit Track authors and the Wizard Rockers. No matter how famous, no matter how old, or how dedicated, everyone was a fan at LeakyCon :) and they sum it up best in their Mission Statement...

We come from the Harry Potter fandom and celebrate everything about it, and everything about the pop culture fandoms our community is growing to include. LeakyCon is a place where fans can, finally, be their true selves. Where that’s the coolest thing in the world to be. - LeakyCon website

LeakyCon really was a fantastic experience and was actually a great opportunity to plug Blogger's Bookshelf too ;)

....hehe Mischief Managed!

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If you want to read more about my LeakyCon experience check out my round ups on my blog here and here, feel free to tweet me questions (@RCagz) about the Con or comment on here if you wanna know more!

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Features | My illustrated Harry Potter editions

Tuesday, 18 July 2017

Features | My illustrated Harry Potter editions

Recently, I was looking to kill some time in town. Somehow or another, I found myself in my local Waterstone’s, browsing amongst the books, like I usually do. Or at least that was the plan. 

Instead, I found myself swept up in some sort of party. There were owl races, wand-making classes and house quizzes. It was the 20th anniversary of Harry Potter and my local bookshop was making sure the town was celebrating. As I watched all of the families around me share the love for the wizarding world, I found myself getting swept up in the enthusiasm all over again. I remember how much I loved the hype while I was waiting for the books and films to be released. Harry Potter was a pretty big part of my childhood so it was great to see that the magic remains for other people too.

It made me want to experience the magic all over again. I’m planning a major re-read in the next couple of months, now that I’m done with my degree and have a little more free time on my hand.

In the meantime, however, I’ve been taking my time to flick through my illustrated editions of Harry Potter. And then I decided that these were too beautiful not too share!

I have both Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets in the stunning illustrated copies and I just can’t get enough of them. I love seeing someone’s vision of the wizarding world come to life. Even if saw some of the characters a little differently in my head, I still love these editions.

Of course, this is just another edition of a story that I’ve read once or twice before but I think it’s such a lovely way to get something new out the world of Hogwarts.

While I may only have the first two right now, I am hoping to collect the rest of them when they are released. Surely I can’t be the only one who buys more than one edition of the same book, just because they love it? Right?

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Carry On | Rainbow Rowell | Review

Thursday, 11 October 2018

Carry On | Rainbow Rowell | Review

I'm not going to lie, I was didn't think I would like this book. I knew going into it that people have compared it to Harry Potter fanfiction and my head just wasn't going to let that go. But it was Rainbow Rowell, and seeing as Anjali had recommended it and she's a big a Potterhead as me I thought I'd give it a try.

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Simon Snow is the worst Chosen One who's ever been chosen.

That's what his roommate, Baz, says. And Baz might be evil and a vampire and a complete git, but he's probably right.

Half the time, Simon can't even make his wand work, and the other half, he starts something on fire. His mentor's avoiding him, his girlfriend broke up with him, and there's a magic-eating monster running around, wearing Simon's face. Baz would be having a field day with all this, if he were here — it's their last year at the Watford School of Magicks, and Simon's infuriating nemesis didn't even bother to show up.

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I won't lie to you, I went into this comparing every little character to a Harry Potter character and I wasn't the biggest fan. I didn't like how they had to say random phrases to make things happen, I understand Harry Potter spells are sort of random phrases but like different nursery rhymes would do certain things. It just sounds a bit rubbish compared to a snazzy word, imagine trying to have a serious duel and you had to say Mary Had A Little Lamb or something.

Another thing that confused me was the fact they were always going on about how some smaller spells were a waste of magic. The further I got through the book I realised this was because they didn't have unlimited magic, that using magic was like using energy and doing constant magic would make you exhausted. Again, definitely too into my mindset of Harry Potter.

However, once I got used to Simon as a character and wasn't constantly comparing everything to Harry Potter I did enjoy it more. Once the plotline thickened and I'd figured out whether Simon and Baz hated each other or loved each other I started to get into it. I'd gone into the book thinking Simon and Baz were a couple so you'd understand why I was slightly confused at their hatred for each other.

Although, while the storyline was great and I did enjoy it I did feel like this wasn't the first book. So many conversations touched on previous incidents and storylines that felt like I'd started reading the third and last book in a trilogy before reading the first two. This is just being picky though, I did really like it. Enough for a 3 1/2 - 4 stars worth anyway.

Have you read it yet? Did you enjoy it? 

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Features | Holiday Gift Ideas

Thursday, 10 December 2015

Features | Holiday Gift Ideas

It's that time of year again! And if you're anything like me you're probably more than a little behind on your holiday shopping (I have bought exactly two presents so far. Terrible.) So if you're stuck for ideas for the bookish friends in your life then look no further because I have plenty of suggestions to get your holiday shopping started!

For Harry Potter fans

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone Gift Edition (£19.99 at Book Depository) and Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone Illustrated Edition (£15 at Book Depository)

In my experience you can never go wrong with a special edition of a favourite book from someone's childhood. Luckily, two beautiful new hardback editions of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone have been released this year so you have a choice between the lovely orange gift edition in its purple slipcase or the beautiful fully illustrated edition that came out a few months ago. Personally, I would be pretty happy to find either of these in my stocking this year.

For Wes Anderson fans

The Wes Anderson Collection (£14.95 at Book Depository) and The Wes Anderson Collection: The Grand Budapest Hotel (£14.95 at Book Depository)

As well as being filled with beautiful illustrations and photographs, these two Wes Anderson Collection books are also full of interviews and behind the scenes information about all of Wes Anderson's films so far. These would be an interesting read for any film film but, of course, they're especially perfect if you know anyone who loves Wes Anderson's work.

For sci-fi fans

Doctor Who: The Vault (£14.20 at Book Depository) and Doctor Who: Time Lord Fairy Tales (£9.09 at Book Depository)

If there's a Doctor Who fan in your life you're struggling to buy for then either of these books could fit the bill. The Vault is a big coffee table kind of book, published for the show's 50th anniversary, all about the history of Doctor Who. Time Lord Fairy Tales on the other hand is a compilation of short stories, written as fairy tales that would have been told to Time Lord children, and would definitely be a fun read for fans of the show.

William Shakespeare's Star Wars Trilogy: The Royal Box Set (£22.75 at Book Depository)

With the new film coming out very soon it's starting to seem as though everyone I know is secretly a massive Star Wars fan! If you know a Star Wars fan who is also into William Shakespeare or just might enjoy these quirky re-tellings of episodes 4-6 as Shakespearean plays, then this box set of the first three books in the William Shakespeare's Star Wars series would definitely be a fun present. (You can also buy each of these books separately.)

For classics fans

Wuthering Heights (£7.99 at Book Depository), The Tenant of Wildfell Hall (£7.99 at Book Depository) and Jane Eyre (£5.99 at Book Depository)

Similar to my reasoning for the Harry Potter books, I know a lot of people would love a prettier version of their favourite classics to sit on their shelves. Vintage have just released these beautiful new covers of these three works by the Brontë sisters, which I'm sure any Brontë fan would love to own.

Emma (£7.99 at Book Depository), Pride and Prejudice (£5.99 at Book Depository), Mansfield Park (£7.41 at Book Depository), Sense and Sensibility (£7.99 at Book Depository), Persuasion (£7.99 at Book Depository) and Northanger Abbey (£7.99 at Book Depository)

Vintage also released these gorgeous editions of Jane Austen's novels last year. These designs are so pretty they make me want to have another go at reading Jane Austen just so that I can justify having these designs in my bookcase, so I'm positive any diehard Austen fan would love one of these copies of their favourite Austen book.

For YA fans

My True Love Gave To Me (£5.99) and Let It Snow (£5.59)

There's nothing better than a collection of festive short stories from your favourite authors and authors you might not have discovered yet to get you into the festive spirit so I think either of these two collections of holiday themed short stories would be an excellent present for any YA fan this holiday season. With stories from John Green, Maureen Johnson, and Lauren Myracle in Let it Snow and Stephanie Perkins, Rainbow Rowell, and David Levithan among others in My True Love Gave To Me there will definitely be a story in at least one of these collections for every YA fan.

I hope this has helped some of you with your holiday shopping this year! Feel free to share any of your suggestions in the comments (no, really, I could do with some ideas) and happy holiday shopping!

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Group Collaboration | Fandom Pride

Sunday, 26 July 2015

Group Collaboration | Fandom Pride

Summer is just around the corner and hopefully this means you guys have a little more free time to indulge in. For some of us - well, lets be real here, most of us - this means delving right back into our beloved literary fandoms. 

We know you guys love sounding off about books you love here on Blogger's Bookshelf but this month we got our blogger's talking beyond the books and about the communities surrounding them...

*image via Open Book

While I think I'm part of more TV show fandoms, when it comes to book-based fandoms, I'm most certainly a part of the Harry Potter generation and will be part of the wonderful fandom always. I'm also a big fan of the Shawdowhunter world, created in the Mortal Instruments and the Infernal Devices series by Cassandra Clare, and will never pass up an opportunity to spend hours scrolling though images, memes, gifs and the general awesomeness that is Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, and The Hobbit.

Of course these are also movies, and while I love them too, the books always win. I used to really like the Twilight series, and had read the first book or two before they became cool. My friend and I used to talk about it a lot (when it came out we were only 15), but I think the hype and the movies definitely pushed me out of that world, and I found myself no longer caring. Funny how that happens sometimes. 

- Anjali 

I'm still waiting for the day that I get thrown into a community in the depths of Tumblr and obsess over it until something more important comes around, which probably won't ever happen. I find it pretty admirable that some people's levels of dedication to their fandoms range from casual browser to complete die hard obsessive. I've also found myself at levels of astonishment at the effort people put into fan-art, and I see it and wish I had the talent to do what these fandoms do.

I may not be part of one, but if you are part of one, rest assured, you can keep up the good work and be applauded and not judged by me. Until you write creepy fanfiction. That gets creepy… 

- Joshua

I grew up in Potter Madness. I was desperate to receive a Hogwarts letter on my eleventh birthday, and truly believed that it was possible. For the release of the final book I remember queueing up outside W H Smith at midnight while I was on holiday in Cornwall, there were so many people there and the queue went back down to the beach, it was a wonderful excited atmosphere. Even though I haven’t read the books for a number of years I will always be a fan, and although I never thought the films did justice to the books I still loved those too, and went to the Harry Potter studio tour as soon as it opened. 

- Cat

I started my 'fandom' journey like many through the Harry Potter books and I haven't really left - I'm definitely a person on the periphery now but I've loved being a part of the online aspects and going to Harry Potter conventions. After that I pretty much went along most of the 'big' fan eras since then. I'll begrudgingly admit to being a Twi-hard back in the day, but I was also super into the Hunger Games (totally the feels after finishing Mockingjay when it came out and all the JLaw casting drama!) and Divergent communities for a while.

Nowadays I'd probably identify myself first and foremost as Nerdfighter, which in all honesty is a community that stretches far past John Green's books. Over the years a lot of my books I read are less 'series' based so I find myself just being a lukewarm fan of most things. I'm still waiting for the day I get suckered into my next huge fandom phenomenon! 

- Ria

What about you guys? 

Which book fandoms have you stuck with till the very end? 

Are there any you've dropped from your lives? 

Or are you still searching for that one book that will take hold of your life beyond the novel?

Leave your comments below! 

Next month we wanna get an idea of where you read and your reading routines. If you fancy getting featured in the post just email bloggersbookshelf@gmail.com or drop us a tweet @blog_bookshelf!

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Being A Book Blogger | Interview with Kate aka Parchment Girl

Monday, 15 August 2016

Being A Book Blogger | Interview with Kate aka Parchment Girl

Welcome to another edition of Being A Book blogger! Today I'm chatting to the lovely Kate who blogs over at Parchment Girl! Here's what she had to say about book blogging, personality typing & Harry Potter meets Lord Of The Rings...



BB: For those who aren't already followers of Parchment Girl could you tell us a little bit about yourself?

Thanks inviting me over, Erin! I’ve been blogging about books at Parchment Girl for six years now. I’m also a Book Riot contributor. I’ve been doing that for about 3½ years. I have a particular interest in medical and environmental science, and I devote a lot of time to reading books on those two topics.

BB: What made you decide to start a book blog? And what has been your favourite part of blogging so far?

I love reading (duh) and before I started blogging I didn’t really have an outlet to discuss that. I was drawn to the idea of having a community of book lovers with which to share my literary passion and I was also interested in the technical side of blogging, which didn’t hurt. It’s hard to pick just one thing I love about blogging because I love [almost] all of it! The community is definitely at the core of why I love blogging, but I also get a rush when I see a post go viral or I receive a comment that one of my posts influenced someone’s reading choices in some way. That’s always exciting. I love seeing my blog grow and evolve over time and I love that the Internet is a constantly changing landscape that continues to challenge me!



BB: We love a good recommendation, if you had to pick your top reads of the year so far which books would make the cut?

I really love The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead (out in September), which is a reimagining of the Underground Railroad as a literal railroad running through tunnels all over the country. I just finished Missing, Presumed by Susie Steiner, which was a Book of the Month July selection. It’s a mystery set in Oxford (holding me over until the new season of Inspector Lewis airs!). Another recent favorite is Women in Science by Rachel Ignotofsky, a gorgeous illustrated compendium of short biographies of brilliant women in the STEM field. Along those same lines, Lab Girl by Hope Jahren was amazing. Last one (promise!): If you’re into hard-hitting nonfiction, Frackopoly by environmental activist Wenonah Hauter is probably the single most important book I’ve read this year. If you’re not already spitting mad about the oil and gas industry’s destructive extraction practices, you will be after reading this book.

BB: As well as books, you're a fan of personality typing. Who are your favourite fictional characters that share your personality type?

Oh, great question! Now, I know the typing of a couple of these characters is controversial, but I would have to say my top three are Gandalf, Sherlock (the BBC incarnation), and Severus Snape. I type these guys as INTJs (from the Myers-Briggs system). Gandalf is definitely my #1.

BB: For our next group post we're discussing which books we wish had a sequel or prequel. Are there any favourite worlds you wish you could delve further into? Or any characters you'd love to follow into the future (or past!)?

It’s funny because I was just thinking about this very topic a couple of weeks ago. Middle-earth and Hogwarts are my two favorite fictional worlds, but I’ve never been the sort of person to delve too deeply into fanfiction or even J.K. Rowling’s recent additions to the world of Harry Potter. I tend to go all in for the core canon and then jump ship. If I’m not completely crazy about a series, I might even abandon it before reading all of the core books. So, if I were the type of person that really enjoyed prequels and sequels, I would definitely want more Rowling and Tolkien, but as it is, I’m pretty satisfied with the canon we have.



BB: Just for fun, which two fictional characters from different books/series would you like to see appear together in a new story and why?

Definitely Harry Potter and LOTR! There's a hilarious video called “Lord of the Potter” which highlights all of the parallels between the two stories (maybe that’s why I love them so much!). I think it would be amazing if Gandalf met Dumbledore and Harry met Frodo. I can just picture Gimli at Hogwarts swatting away ghosts. Priceless.

BB: Finally, which booktubers/bloggers (other than yourself of course!) would you recommend our readers go and subscribe to?

I will try to keep this list contained…here we go:

• River City Reading 
• Fourth Street Review 
• Bookwi.se 
• The Book Satchel - Her photography is gorgeous! 
• Modern Mrs. Darcy - Her Summer Reading Guide is amazing! 
• Jen Campbell - She regularly features indie press and poetry books that I probably wouldn’t hear about any other way. She’s also the author of The Bookshop Book. 
• Books and Quills 

That’s just a sampling of my favorites.

Where To Find Kate Online: Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest | Instagram | Goodreads

I'd like to say a huge thank you from all of us here at BB to Kate for taking part in this interview. If you are a booktuber or book blogger and would like to be featured in a similar post we'd love to hear from you - just email us at bloggersbookshelf@gmail.com for information!

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Meet Our Team | Part One

Thursday, 24 October 2013

Meet Our Team | Part One

Today we're continuing on with our birthday celebrations with the first in a mini series of interviews  we hope will help you get to know our review team a little better. We're kicking off with the two newest members of team BB; Anjali who joined us in February and Kath who's very first post as a team member goes live tomorrow! Here's what they had to say about being part of team BB...


Kath
I'm Kath, I'm 21 and I've just graduated from University and currently going through a slight existential crisis that I think (hope!) all new graduates go through at some point. I like writing on rainy days and looking at pictures of cats on instagram. I've dreamed of getting a book published since I knew what books were and hope to move to London in the next couple of months to be in the centre of the UK book industry.

How did you initially get into blogging?
If I'm being perfectly frank about it, I was quite jealous of the amount of fun Ria was having with her blog and wanted a piece of the action. Being the good friend that she is, she kept identifying things that I could blog about and was slowly influencing me to starting one. I started Sensitivity And Flair at the start of my third year at University and consequently was not able to give it the love and attention it deserved for a large part of the year. Now I'm cultivating my blog into what I want it to be, giving it some very overdue attention and enjoying every moment of it.

As our newest member of the team what are you most looking forward to about blogging for BB?
I love the community aspect that has come along with BB, which you don't see with many other book blogs. The selection of bloggers who post, along with their diverse love of different genres and authors has created a really special atmosphere that I've certainly noticed as a reader and occasional reviewer. I'm looking forward to seeing how I slot into this community that has developed and what I can bring to it.

Which reviews have you enjoyed reading before joining the team?
I really enjoyed reading Anjali's review of The Knife of Never Letting Go back in February. The book is written in a style that can be a bit confusing so it was great to have someone explain what it was going to be like before I got round to reading the book. Apart from that,  I adored Ria's The Name of The Star review for many reasons including the fact that I convinced her to read it, so it was great to see what she thought.

You've written two guests posts for us already about 'An Evening with...' events with authors, which event did you enjoy more Neil Gaiman's or Maureen Johnson's? And why?
Maureen Johnson's event, without a doubt. Neil Gaiman's event was wonderful, definitely. It was amazing to see and to meet one of the most recognised writers of modern times but just for the style and pacing of the evening alone, it has to be Maureen. At Neil Gaiman there were a few hundred people, at Maureen there was about 30 of us. This allowed us to actually get into conversations with her and have a bit of fun with her in a very relaxed setting. Somebody had a dance off with her, and then she gave us anecdotes of her puppy's adventures.

If you could swap lives for the day with any fictional character who would it be and why?
I imagine that this is the answer that a lot of girls from my generation would give but it would just have to be Hermione Granger. I don't think that feeling of being eleven and not getting a Hogwarts letter will ever go away so I would choose Hermione to experience the magical world J.K. Rowling created. Preferably one of the days Voldemort wasn't around causing mayhem though.

Finally, which books are top of your TBR list right now?
The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde. I've wanted to read this series for absolutely ages and have just never got round to it. I managed to get the first three books in the series in a very good deal so I must settle down and get started on them sometime soon. I also want to read The Luminaries to see what all the fuss is about, and of course the just-released Allegiant. 


Anjali
My name is Anjali (pronounced Un-ja-lee, emphasis on the 'un'), and I'm a New Zealander who is currently living in England. I have way too many hobbies, and a slight obsession to Harry Potter, all of which you can find on This Splendid Shambles.
 
How did you initially get into blogging and what was it about joining team BB that appealed to you?
My first blog was back in 2008, and it was just about day to day things and whatever was going on in my life. I posted maybe once a month, and it was a total non-event. But then in 2010 I got back into it with a new blog name, a new purpose, I guess. My family were up and moving to England without me (I stayed behind to finish my degree), so I started blogging about moving in to my friend's house and the adventures we had, and then, as time went on a little, actually moving country. Hence, 'From L&P to English Tea' (L&P is a NZ drink). The rest, they say, is history. I've always been a huge reader, and I started writing reviews on my blog. Erin (co-creator of BB) approached me and wondered if I'd like to guest post on BB, which I started doing quite regularly. A little later, I became a regular reviewer, and I have loved being a part of a great team of people who love books as much as I do. I think that's one of the most appealing parts - knowing that you and your new found friends share the same interests.
 
Which of your published reviews are you most proud of? & any favourite group posts?
I don't think I have reviews that I'm proud of, though maybe that's because I've never thought about it. But I did enjoy writing the review from Daughter of Smoke and Bone, so I think it reads quite well. I love participating in the group posts - it's so much fun both to write, and to see what other people think about the same topic. My favourite group posts to write for have been Wish You Were Where?!, Laugh Out Loud Literature, and Favourite Couples in Fiction.
 
As an avid traveller are there any books you can remember taking with you to read that were particularly memorable?
My most recent travel adventure was up to Scotland, and we drove from the top of South West England all the way up. I took a pile of books with me, as well as my kindle, but on the entire way up (mostly because I couldn't put it down) I read A Discovery of Witches, by Deborah Harkness.  On the way down from that trip, I read The Fault in Our Stars, by John Green, in it's entirety. Now every time I see these books, I think of that holiday. Then there are little adventures, like to London just last week, where, on the coach there and back, I read The Dead-Tossed Waves, by Carrie Ryan. I have a feeling I'm going to think of that uncomfortable journey whenever I see that book now.

Sticking with the travel theme - are there any book-related destinations that you would love to visit but haven't had the chance yet?
Does Hogwarts count? Narnia? Neverland? No? Okay. I've been lucky enough to go to a lot of literary places that would have been on my list (Platform 9 3/4 at Kings Cross Station, from Harry Potter; Amsterdam, from The Fault in Our Stars; Oxford, from A Discovery of Witches; Baker Street, from Sherlock Holmes books; Bath, from Persuasion; Chicago (though not the dystopian version, duh), from Divergent ...the list goes on), but I really enjoy going to places where the authors have been inspired, or have actually taken a seat and wrote something. I've been to a few places, like Beatrix Potter's house in the Lake District in England, and seen the pub in Oxford (The Eagle and Child) where C.S Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien sat and chatted. Things like that; nothing specific at the moment though.
 
If you could invite 5 fictional characters to a dinner party who would you choose and why?
Luna Lovegood - Harry Potter Series, by J.K. Rowling. She's my favourite Harry Potter minor character, and I just think she is so weird, but so wonderful and if it weren't for the fact that she's super quiet, I would say we're quite alike. Also, she'd probably bring radishes to a dinner  party, and that could be potentially handy.

Charles Carter, from Carter Beats the Devil, by Glen David Gold. Carter is a magician, and every dinner party needs some form of entertainment. Maybe he'd even bring his pet lion with him! He might even be able to conjure up some dessert, because chances are I'll burn whatever it is I had planned on making.

Daisy Buchanan, from The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Not because I like her, but because I'd like to knock some sense into her. Doesn't she realise that everything Gatsby has done, he's done for her?! The conversation may go something a long the lines of "Seriously, woman! What's wrong with you? Yes, please pass the salt."

Gandalf, from The Hobbit, and The Lord of the Rings, by J. R. R. Tolkien. Wise words and overall genius are needed in at least one guest at a dinner party, and not only that but he can blow some mean smoke rings! No one else can create ships and sail them throw rings made of smoke like Gandalf can, and besides, I'll need someone to tell 'put that out right now! No smoking in the house!'

The Hatter, from Alice in Wonderland, by Lewis Caroll. Why? He's mad! And he makes hats. Supposedly. Also, he's super bad at telling jokes ('Why is a raven like a writing desk?'), but would be fun to have around none the less. We could all have matching mad hats by the end of the evening. Side note, if he actually were Johnny Depp, then that would be an added bonus.

Finally, which books are top of your TBR list right now?
Ender's Game, by Orson Scott Card
Cloud Atlas, by David Mitchell
Fuse, by Julianna Baggot
Days of Blood and Starlight, by Laini Taylor
The Name of the Wind, by Patrick Rothfuss

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A big thank you to both Anjali & Kath for taking part in this post.

Over the next couple of weeks we'll be getting to know more about the rest of the team, so don't forget to check back for more interviews!

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Bookish Links #36

Wednesday, 29 November 2017

Bookish Links #36

1. Wizards Unite - we're sure you've all heard by now but we just had to include a link to the news about the upcoming Harry Potter augmented reality game. Will you be playing?

2.  Lit Chat - we enjoyed reading Emma's post about Lit Chat, a set of cards featuring reading-themed questions. We're looking forward to future posts inspired by the cards!

3. Graphics - in a reading slump? Graphic novels may be the answer! Check out this post from The Ardent Biblio to find out how.

4. Bookstagram - we've been enjoying following the picks from Emma Roberts book club Belletrist so we really loved this EW post listing all of the book recommendations from her Instagram account. Your TBRs are about to get a whole lot longer...

5. Making Time For Books - in this post Hannah shares her top five tips for finding time to read as a parent.

6. Dystopia/Utopia - if you can't decide what your next read should be check out this list of feminist Utopian and Dystopian reads recommended by Lotte.

7. For John Green Fans - looking for post-Turtles All The Way Down reads? Jamie has you covered with this list!

8. Reading Harry Potter - we loved reading Janssen's interesting post all about introducing Harry Potter to children.

9. Travel Companions - if you're heading out on a roadtrip over the holiday season you'll love this list of audiobook picks from Emma over at A Beautiful Mess.

10. Books To Gift - our final pick is Lauren's post filled with awesome bookish gift ideas. You're sure to find a title here for everyone on your Christmas list!

If you've read or written an interesting bookish article you think our readers would enjoy please let us know - it may be featured in a future post!    

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Bookish Links #21

Wednesday, 10 August 2016

Bookish Links #21

Welcome to another Bookish Links roundup post where we share some of the articles, videos and blog posts we've enjoyed lately!

1. Bookseller For A Day! - ever wondered what it would be like to run a bookshop? This article from Buzzfeed is all about an Airbnb bookshop in Scotland!

2. Looking For A Summer Read? - why not try picking up a non-fiction title? Check out these awesome ideas from Brit + Co that are anything but boring!

3. Author Recommendations - we always love discovering authors we haven't read before and enjoyed Samantha's recent post on three of her favourite Filipino writers. Have you read any of their novels?

4. Page Marker - so many books, so little time means the need for multiple bookmarks and we love these cute magnetic designs from Happy Hello Co.

5. Nerdy Bookworm Box - how awesome does this UK-based monthly subscription box look?! Have you tried out the Nerdy Bookworm Box or any other bookish subscription services?

6. Genre Swaps - if you've ever wondered what your favourite novels would be like if they were written in a different genre you'll love this post from Emily over at Loony Literate.

7. #OwnVoices - in this post Nuzaifa takes a closer look at the important issue of diversity in the stories we read and shares her thoughts. What are your thoughts on this issue?

8. Writing Recipe - in this post Lucy shares her top writing tips that helped her break the 2,000 word road block on her own project. Definitely one to check out if you're working on your own novel or short story!

9. Vacation Dreams - who doesn't love a good road trip? We really enjoyed Hannah's guest post on which characters she'd love to road trip with. Who would make your list?

10. 19 Years Of Harry Potter - our final post of this roundup comes from BB blogger Anjali, who recently shared a post on Harry Potter a whole nineteen years after the release date of The Philosopher's Stone. What does the Harry Potter universe mean to you? Let us know in the comments!

If you've read or written an interesting bookish article you think our readers would enjoy please let us know - it may be featured in a future post!  

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Features | Unlucky Characters

Friday, 13 May 2016

Features | Unlucky Characters

In honour of today being infamously unlucky Friday the 13th I thought it might be fun to look at a few of the unluckiest characters in literature. So if you're having a particularly unlucky day today you can look at this list and think 'hey, at least that isn't happening to me!'

The Baudelaire Orphans - A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket

With a title like A Series of Unfortunate Events, I think even those of us who have never read these books could guess that the Baudelaires' lives are pretty much filled with the absolute worst of luck. From their parents' untimely demise at the start of the first book to the string of awful foster carers and increasingly worse situations that the Baudelaires find themselves in throughout the 13 books. Honestly, these kids probably have the worst luck of any of the characters on this list but hey, at least they never give up trying! Even when their efforts are continually thwarted. At least they try.

Brian Jackson - Starter for Ten by David Nicholls

And here's another one who just keeps trying. Starter for Ten is full of Brian trying. Trying to get his teammate Alice to be his girlfriend, trying to make friends, trying to fulfil his dreams of being a University Challenge champion. But his rotten luck just keeps holding him back. Bad dates and embarrassments in front of Alice's parents, unfortunate instances with old friends and potential new ones, and some choices that mean even his University Challenge dreams take a beating. Brian's story is really just one of never quite being able to catch a break.

Mia Thermopolis - The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot

Now you might think that finding out that you're the heir to the throne of a small European country is actually pretty good luck, but Mia would absolutely be the first person to disagree with you. Finding out that she's a princess puts a real spanner into the works of Mia's life. Over night she goes from being a normal, if a little unpopular and slightly nerdy, teenager to being the future ruler of Genovia. Of course this comes with unwanted media attention, regular princess lessons with her less than cuddly Grandmere, and a new bodyguard to follow her around 24/7. All things Mia would most definitely prefer not to have.

Neville Longbottom - The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling

Oh, Neville. From Neville's very introduction as the boy who Hermione is helping find his lost toad on the Hogwarts Express in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone to his frequent run-ins with Professor Snape, bad luck never seems very far away for poor Neville. The worst luck of all, of course, being that he just happens to share a birthday with Harry Potter, once putting Neville's parents right in the firing line of Voldemort's paranoia. But, like a true Gryffindor, Neville never lets his bad luck keep him down.

Oliver Twist - Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens

Like most of Charles Dickens's protagonists, Oliver gets his happy ending eventually, but boy does he have to wade through some absolute rubbish to get to it. We first meet Oliver as a starving child in the workhouse with the gall to ask for a little bit of extra food so that he might get a fighting chance of making it into adulthood, and somehow things only get worse from there! First to the funeral home, then to Fagin's band of merry thieves, Oliver gets more than his fair share of bad luck before it actually starts to tremendously balance out. So let that be a lesson. If you're hitting a run of bad luck now, there might just be some crazy good luck around the corner!

Who are your favourite unlucky characters? I would absolutely love to hear about them in the comments! Let's all share some examples of terrible luck so we can maybe all feel a little better about our own lives.

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Being A Book Blogger | Interview With Ruby aka Feed Me Books Now

Saturday, 27 June 2015

Being A Book Blogger | Interview With Ruby aka Feed Me Books Now

Welcome to another Being A Book Blogger interview! Today I'm talking to the lovely Ruby of the fab blog Feed Me Books Now. Here's what she had to say about everything books from her love of Harry Potter to the series we should all read...



BB: Hi Ruby! For any of our readers who aren't yet subscribed to Feed Me Books Now could you tell us a little bit more about the girl behind the blog?

Hi, thank you for letting me stop by! I'm Ruby, a 16-year-old idealist, introvert and word lover. (I'm also a proud Ravenclaw, in case you were wondering.) My little area of the internet – Feed Me Books Now – is essentially a blog-shaped bundle of loose thoughts, ideas, opinions and ramblings about books. I'm obsessed with Buffy the Vampire Slayer & I own a typewriter named Sylvia.

BB: Where does your passion for reading come from and how did you get into reviewing?

It's a cliché, but I honestly can't remember a time when I wasn't completely bewitched by words. I've always been an introverted person & I've always enjoyed spending time with just myself and a book – for me, that always seemed like the natural way to spend my time. I mean, all children love adventures, and every child has their own way of connecting their mind to the adventures. For me, it seemed incredibly natural for words to be the bridge between reality and fantasy. I guess, when I first began the Harry Potter series (aged 6 or 7), that's when I realised there would never be a time in my life when reading wouldn't be important to me. In terms of how I got into reviewing, I was around 13 when I started blogging. I'd never even seen a book blog before, but I wanted a space where I could simply talk books and – voila! – my little blog stumbled rather clumsily into existence.



BB: We love your discussion pieces which feature some very interesting topics. Which has been your favourite to write so far?

Thank you – that's lovely to hear! I think my favourite is possibly "Taking Refuge In Secondhand Dreams". It's not strictly-speaking a discussion as such, but it's definitely food for thought. It's only a short post, and it was actually a page from my journal initially.

BB: We're always looking for recommendations! Do you have any favourite series you think our readers should pick up?

The first series (other than Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings) to jump to mind is Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson. I read this series last year, and it was honestly the most exhilarating diversion from reality. Similarly, I've really enjoyed the first two books in The Bone Season series by Samantha Shannon.



BB: Just for fun, if you could be best friends with any fictional character who would you choose and why?

Ahhh, this is tough. Possibly Luna Lovegood? I just feel as if her presence would be the most wonderfully odd reassurance there could possibly be.

BB: Finally, we would love to know which book blogs are your favourites to read?

Tiny, weeny bit bias here (seeing as this blogger is my pen pal), but I adore It Was Lovely Reading You. I also love reading The Book Journal and Paperback Castles.

Where To Find Ruby Online: Blog | Twitter 

I'd like to say a huge thank you from all of us here at BB to Ruby for taking part in this interview. If you are a booktuber or book blogger and would like to be featured in a similar post we'd love to hear from you - just email us at bloggersbookshelf@gmail.com for information!

Images c/o Ruby

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Guest Post | An Evening With Rainbow Rowell

Tuesday, 29 July 2014

Guest Post | An Evening With Rainbow Rowell

A few weeks ago we headed off the Waterstone's Piccadilly for 'An Evening With Rainbow Rowell' which was hosted by the lovely (& hilarious!) Bim Adewunmi who led the evening's questions to Rowell. In the UK to celebrate not only the release of latest novel Landline but also the success of her three previous novels, Rowell talked all topics from growing up to identity to fanfiction and magic phones!

On Attachments...
Her first foray into writing was Attachments, which was a novel that was five years in the making. The setting, a newspaper office just starting to embrace the Internet and email at the turn of the Millennium, originated straight from Rowell’s own career as a journalist in Omaha and like the story, they too hired an IT security guy to filter and check employees emails.

A relative newcomer to the writing world, she admitted to feeling daunted by the task of writing a traditional novel, before deciding instead to pen the emails between Beth and Jennifer first before writing Lincoln’s story around them. She was keen to explore the idea of giving Lincoln attributes so often seen in young female characters in literature, showcasing his anxieties and struggles with identity throughout the novel. She ended up enjoying writing the male voice so much that it became the reason why Eleanor & Park was written from a dual perspective.

On Eleanor & Park...
Compared to the five year writing process of Attachments, Eleanor & Park, Rainbow Rowell's second novel, came into her head relatively unplanned. The world Eleanor lives in within the novel was one very similar to what Rowell experienced early on in her teenage years, with elements of the pain and insecurities Eleanor faces very much feelings she once held about her own life. Her sentiments towards Eleanor as a character were echoed as she answered the question 'If you could give advice to one of your characters, what would you say?', admitting she would simply let Eleanor know 'It gets better'.

With the exciting news that Dreamworks had acquired the rights to make Eleanor & Park into a movie, it was only natural for Rowell, as an author, to feel protective over her two characters and their story. So much so that her final challenge to the studio over the negotiation table for the rights was that she would be allowed to write the entire screenplay for the film...to which they agreed!

Rowell was also sure to voice her concerns to Dreamworks, to ensure the adaptation is as faithful as possible, not just in terms of the story but the casting of her two leads, with Eleanor as a larger, red headed girl and Park as an ethnic Korean boy. Despite her initial doubts, she's also spoke of her excitement to challenge Hollywood stereotypes on the 'boy meets girl' story and is keen to see Eleanor and Park's relationship played out not just as 'chubby girl falls in love with a skinny Asian boy' - a description she admittedly sees far too often in magazines as the summary of her novel - but as a story of two people, one living with hope and one without any hope, falling in love and taking a chance on each other.

On Fangirl...
Perhaps her most popular novel Rowell spent a fair amount of time talking about Fangirl, her second YA novel. The idea came about from Rowell’s own love of fanfiction which she was not afraid to admit! Although at first her agent wasn’t keen on the idea - the conversation evidently went something like this; RR: 'It's about a girl who write fanfiction', Agent: 'Oh no...', RR: 'And she writes slash fiction!' - she was determined to create a main character who also loved that world.
Taking inspiration from the world of Harry Potter, Rowell created Simon Snow, the series that Fangirl’s protagonist Cath is obsessed with since her own love on fanfic was partly born out of the release of the final Harry Potter book and films.

“I went online and typed in ‘best Harry Potter fanfics’ and basically read that for like a year.” - RR

Although J. K. Rowling’s famous creation may have been part of the inspiration behind Rowell’s third novel she also admitted to writing X-Men fanfic as a child, casting herself as the main character before anyone even knew what ‘fanfic’ was! She also talked about how she didn't feel the pressure to create perfect fanfic for Fangirl but instead wanted to capture the way a US kid would try to write a story set in the UK.

One of the audience questions on the night was ‘Why twins?’ and although not a twin herself Rowell discussed how she has always been fascinated in twins and how they differ so much from each other, touching upon the subject of identity which fascinates her. Growing up she was always compared closely to her own mother who looks-wise she is almost an exact copy of, she talked about how this led to people expecting certain things of her, presuming that her personality would be an exact copy too. Her experience of this led to her feeling it can be hard to find your own identity when you’re compared to someone else so often leading to identity being a topic explored in all of her novels to date.

When talking about Cath’s personality specifically Rowell stated that she too suffered with social anxiety, and liked the idea of Cath moving away into a fictional world to find comfort. She also said that compared to how parts of her life were reflected in Eleanor (of Eleanor & Park) Cath and the world of Fangirl represent a more joyful time in her own life. Plus, those amazing emergency dance parties Cath has? Those were a real thing when Rowell herself was at college!

One of the big things to come out of Fangirl was Rowell’s new found love of writing Fantasy as she thoroughly enjoyed creating the Simon Snow chapters and writing the dynamic between those characters. This has gone on to influence her future plans as she is soon going to be working on both a YA Fantasy novel and a Fantasy graphic novel.

On Landline...
Not wanting to give away any spoilers Rowell didn’t speak too much about her latest release a short adult novel titled Landline which features a magic phone that allows main character Georgie to speak to the younger version of her now husband. She did however explain that the novel was partly inspired by the telephone conversation chapters written for Eleanor & Park which Rowell admitted she really enjoyed writing, despite thinking that her editor would ask her to cut them down!
How about the mystery of how this clever phone works? Rowell advised ‘It’s a magic phone, just get over it and accept it!’, feeling that it was silly to try and come up with a plausible explanation instead believing once you get past the fact it isn’t explained you will be able to just enjoy the story.

Thank you to Rainbow Rowell, Bim & Waterstones Piccadilly for hosting such a great event!

This post was written by BB creators Ria & Erin

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Let Me Introduce Myself... | 5 Favourite Genres

Thursday, 18 January 2018

Let Me Introduce Myself... | 5 Favourite Genres

Well hello there! I haven’t done a first post in years, this is kind of weird. I’m Sophie, the newest member of the team, usually writing over at sofilly.com. In case you don’t read my blog, I thought my first post would be the perfect time to introduce myself by sharing some of my favourite books.

I discovered this ‘tag’ of sorts through a tweet from @acaseforbooks and basically the gist is you share not necessarily your favourite all-time books, but the books that would give someone else the exact idea of what sorts of books get you going. So, without further ado, here’s a summary of the kind of books I’m into, and what sort of genres you can expect from my future posts!

Harry Potter and the Nostalgic Childhood

Let’s start out with a biggie that shaped my life and introduced my love of reading. Harry Potter is my all-time favourite book world, while the books may not be my favourite books of all time they still mean so much to me. I call this genre my nostalgic genre, all the books from my childhood and teen years that instantly take me back. The books I could read again and again and quote half the book without even thinking.

See the Harry Potter series, and Lola Rose by Jaqueline Wilson (and the other JW books).

A Court of Fantasy

I’m incredibly picky about the types of fantasy books I enjoy, but finding the first novel to a huge series of fantasy novels is one of my favourite things. I love magic, human/animal beasts, humans with powers, certain non-sparkly vampires, and Greek gods. The books that transport you to another world where your 9-5 job doesn't exist and you don't have any homework to do, the places where everything is possible once you've got past a full on war or two - you know the kinds. The books that allow your imaginations to run wild, who knows what a high fae looks like? It's fun to see what others imagine too.

See the A Court of Thorns and Roses series, Percy Jackson, and The Mortal Instruments series.

Awkward Anna and Perfect Life

Young Adult is my favourite genre, and probably still will be for a fair few more years even though most YA books are based on two or three different storylines and are sort of aimed at people younger than myself. You know the ones; the ones all over the internet that everyone is reading and posting on their gorgeous flatlays because the covers are usually rather attractive. I admit I have bought a few of these solely for their covers without really knowing what the story is about. It's because it's YA I know I'll usually 95% of the time really enjoy it.

See Anna and the French Kiss series, Everything Everything, certain John Green novels, and Rainbow Rowell novels.

The Book Historian

Similar to Fantasy, while I love select Historical fiction I'm not a fan of most. I have particular parts of history that I enjoy reading about, not because of the suffering and tragic stories these people went through, but because these timelines interest me the most. These are obvious if you look at the books I enjoy in this category; mostly World War II, with a little of black history (slavery, segregation etc). I enjoy learning about these points in history and while most are fictional tales I'm more likely to take information in if they're fictional stories rather than non-fiction textbooks.

See The Book Thief, The Secret Life of Bees, and Maus.

Under Italian Skies with a Gorgeous Italian

You can usually never go wrong with a cheesy romance novel. It's obvious what's going to happen; introduce a lonely woman (usually in a new job or new place or freshly single), walks in prince charming, they hate each other, they love each other, something bad happens, then they live happily ever after. You know the ones. I can't help but enjoy most of these, usually they're the type of books I grab when I've just finished an intense read, maybe something historic or a long action-filled fantasy. Having a brain-numbing book for your brain to switch off during is sometimes rather useful, it's like watching Keeping up with the Kardashians, you don't really care what's happening but they're entertaining you enough to keep your mind at ease and relax.

See Under Italian Skies, and select Nicholas Sparks novels.


Are you into any of these genres too? Whats your five favourites that describe you, I'd love to get to know you!

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