Group Collaboration / Blogger's Bookshelf

Group Collaboration

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Saturday, 2 January 2021

Features | Books We Vow To Read In 2021

Happy new year everyone!

As longtime readers will know it's become tradition around here for team members to create a list every January with five titles they 'vow to read' over the next twelve months. In today's post, our very first of 2021, Anjali, Anastasia, Ria and Erin are sharing the books that they have chosen for this year. See any of your favourites? Leave us a comment and let us know.

We'd also like to invite you to create a 2021 vow to read list of your own and share it on your blog or social media account too; don't forget to tag us @bloggersbookshelf on Instagram!

Tuesday, 29 December 2020

Group Collaboration | Our Favourite Reads of 2020!

With 2021 just a few days away it's time to once again share Team BB's favourite reads of the past year.

Which books were your favourite reads of 2020? We would love to hear all about the books you read and loved over the last twleve months. Share your lists in the comments section below or drop us reading recommendations over on Instagram.

"Despite the fact that I spent a lot of time inside this year, I did very little reading. I struggled to come up with a list of my top 5 favourite reads for 2020, and as I was looking through the books I've read this year, not many were 5 stars. These books I've listed I did really enjoy, though, and definitely recommend checking out." - Anjali

I read four of the five books I vowed to read in 2020 and I really enjoyed all of them. In fact, two of them, On the Come Up by Angie Thomas and Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson, made it onto my top five books of the year!" - Anastasia

"This was the first time I've read 100+ books in one year and I really enjoyed the majority of them so choosing just five was really tricky. I almost bent the rules to share separate fiction and non-fiction lists, but it still would have been too difficult to narrow them down!" - Erin

Tuesday, 7 January 2020

Group Collaboration | Books We Vow To Read In 2020

Once again it's that time of year where we share the books we 'vow to read' over the next twelve months. As always, we've each chosen five different titles spanning various genres. If you've read any of these titles, or have made your own list for 2020, let us know!

Friday, 27 December 2019

Group Collaboration | Our Favourite Reads Of 2019!

Don't forget to leave us a comment, or tweet us @ blog_bookshelf, and let us know which books would make your top 5 lists this year!

Sunday, 15 December 2019

Group Collaboration | 2019 Reading Challenge Update

Photo by Fabiola Peñalba on Unsplash

Ria... 2/5 books vowed to read
I'm glad I did take my time to really read and enjoy the two books I did finish (Becoming, by Michelle Obama, and Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan). I'm also attributing my 2/5 to the fact I ended up reading other fantastic books this year - which made picking my 2019 favourites so hard!

Erin... 5/5 books vowed to read
Looking back through the archives, the last time I managed to cross all five titles off my list was in 2015! I chose this year's very carefully to give myself the best chance and it has definitely paid off! My favourite reads of the five would have to be Us Against You by Fredrik Backman and Full Tilt by Neal Shusterman.

Anastasia... 3/5 books vowed to read
I'm ashamed to say I completely forgot which books I had vowed to read this year, but I still managed to read 3 out of 5 of them anyway! The Magician's Land by Lev Grossman, Hero at the Fall by Alwyn Hamilton, and Puddin' by Julie Murphy were all great reads, and I might just have to scoot the other two books I didn't get to on to my list for 2020!

Anjali... 4/5 books vowed to read
Like most years, I didn't manage to get to all of my Vow To Read list, but I'm rather pleased to announce that I read four out of five! I'm quite happy with that. I had vowed to read (actually did end up reading) Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief by Rick Rirrdan, King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo, The Lady's Guide to Petticoats and Piracy by Mackenzi Lee (which I read twice!!), and Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson. The only one I didn't end up reading was P.S. I still Love You, by Jenny Han. I'm actually hoping to read it this summer (Southern Hemisphere) before the movie adaptation comes out early next year.

Sophie... 4/5 books vowed to read
I read all of my vow to read apart from All the Light We Cannot See although hoping to fit it in before the end of the year but we’ll see how I go.

Monday, 7 January 2019

Team BB | Books We Vow To Read In 2019

Happy New Year from all of us here at Blogger's Bookshelf!

A new year means new reading goals and a brand new list of books our team are vowing to read by the end of 2019. Read on to check out our picks and let us know in the comments below what you're hoping to be reading too.

Thank you to our team for their contributions.

Sunday, 30 December 2018

Group Collaboration | Our Favourite Reads Of 2018

Another year has almost come to an end, but we've discovered some incredible books over the past twelve months. As always we're rounding up the year by sharing our top 5's which will hopefully inspire you to add some of these titles to your 2019 TBRs!

We'd also love to hear which books made your lists this year, don't forget to let us know by leaving a comment our reaching out to us on social media.

Happy new year and we'll see you for more bookish content in 2019!

Books listed: The Heroes Of Olympus Series (Rick Riordan), Ready Player One (Ernest Cline), What If It's Us (Becky Albertalli & Adam Silvera), The Hate U Give (Angie Thomas), Scythe (Neal Shusterman), City Of Ghosts (Victoria Schwab), The Last Magician (Lisa Maxwell), An Absolutely Remarkable Thing (Hank Green), The Anger Of Angels (Sherryl Jordan), Beartown (Fredrik Backman), Far From The Tree (Robin Benway), Little Fires Everywhere (Celeste Ng), Girl In Translation (Jean Kwok), Hunger (Roxane Gay), Her Body & Other Parties (Carmen Maria Machado), Truly Devious (Maureen Johnson), To All The Boys I've Loved Before (Jenny Han), A Thousand Beginnings & Endings (Ellen Oh, Elsie Chapman), An Almost Perfect Christmas (Nina Stibbe), Dumplin' (Julie Murphy), Dear Mrs Bird (AJ Pearce), Renegades (Marissa Meyer)

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Saturday, 7 April 2018

Clean | Juno Dawson | Discussion

*Review copies c/o Netgalley

I can feel it swimming through my veins like glitter ... it's liquid gold.

When socialite Lexi Volkov almost overdoses, she thinks she's hit rock bottom. She's wrong. Rock bottom is when she's forced into an exclusive rehab facility. From there, the only way is up for Lexi and her fellow inmates, including the mysterious Brady. As she faces her demons, Lexi realises love is the most powerful drug of all. It's a dirty business getting clean... - Goodreads

What made you want to read Clean?

Erin: I've really enjoyed many of the author's other YA novels so I'm always excited to hear what her next new release will be. Honestly, I'm not sure whether I would have picked up a copy of Clean based on the premise alone, but I enjoy reading Juno's work and love the way she is always able to create such memorable characters, so when I saw the book pop up on Netgalley I couldn't resist!

Ria: I adore Juno's writing and have really enjoyed her previous novels, so I'm always looking out for her next release! It also helps that the premise and tone of Clean was pitched as a cross between Gossip Girl and Girl Interrupted - both films/books I love too.

What did you think about the characters? Did they feel realistic?

Erin: I loved that there was a diverse range of characters in the book, each with dealing different issues. At first, our main character Lexi felt very unlikable and unrelatable but I still found her to be an interesting guide through this particular journey and enjoyed seeing her growth over the course of the novel.

Ria: The characters in Clean definitely feel larger than life and yet there are little snippets of their personalities that do feel very much human. They all have flaws, they all make mistakes, and none of them are perfect, and I kind of love them all for it. Lexi, in particular, is obviously the living embodiment of this. There are so many moments where she is frustratingly dislikable, but she's young and she's learning.

What was your favourite thing about the book? And was there anything you didn't like?

Erin: As I've already mentioned, I liked that there was a diverse cast of characters and I also thought the opening scene of the novel was very intriguing. If I'm being completely honest I wasn't crazy about the ending, or the romance element in general, but this didn't take away from the way Juno explored such interesting yet tough topics and I love that she wasn't afraid to tackle these.

Ria: I really enjoyed how diverse the book felt without it being too forced. It as great to see such a range of different issues explored, as well as the inherent messiness of recovery and therapy. As always Dawson's humour and writing style is fantastic, she always manages to capture this age of character so well. Like Erin, I wasn't so keen on the ending but seeing Lexi's character grow and change throughout the novel was really satisfying.

Would you recommend this book?

Erin: Whilst I think most fans of Juno's work will enjoy Clean, it won't be to everyone's taste. The book and Lexi's story feel very raw and intense, so at times it can be a difficult read but it tackles some really important topics. Personally I found it to be an interesting read overall and as always I look forward to seeing what Juno will come up with next!

Ria: Yes! Whilst it may not be for everyone, I do think the stories within Clean are really important and it's rare to see a YA novel explore these issues in such an unfiltered way.

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Monday, 12 March 2018

Scythe | Neal Shusterman | Discussion

scythe neal shusterman review blogger's bookshelf

Thou shalt kill.

A world with no hunger, no disease, no war, no misery. Humanity has conquered all those things, and has even conquered death. Now scythes are the only ones who can end life—and they are commanded to do so, in order to keep the size of the population under control.

Citra and Rowan are chosen to apprentice to a scythe—a role that neither wants. These teens must master the “art” of taking life, knowing that the consequence of failure could mean losing their own. - Goodreads

First things first, what made you decide to pick up Scythe?

Anjali: I’ve only read Unwind by Neal Shusterman, but when I saw this book was coming out I knew I really wanted to read it. The themes and the ideas in the story really interested me, and it did not fail to live up the hype I had read around it either.

Erin: If you've read our Meet The Team bios you may already know that Neal Shusterman's Unwind series is one of my all-time favourites (I've also enjoyed a couple of his other books too!). I love his writing style and enjoy that he often tackles topics and themes that really make the reader think. The blurb for Scythe was super intriguing with a unique utopian concept so I automatically added it to my TBR.

Were there any characters you wanted to get to know better or that you hope to learn more about in the sequel?

Anjali: While we did get a little bit of Scythe Faraday’s story towards the end of the book, I’d like to know more about his past. I’d also be super keen to read about another junior Scythe who is a little older than Citra and Rowan, and what their experiences were like, looking back a few years on.

Erin: The character I found the most interesting was Scythe Faraday and in the sequel I would love to hear more about his story as well as Scythe Curie's. In the first book we learn that they are both well-known scythes and have been alive for a very long time so I think they must have a lot of fascinating stories to tell. If we don't get to explore their past lives further in Thunderhead, I think they could possibly make great companion novellas to the series.

Hypothetically, if this were to happen in real life, do you think the Scythedom would be a feasible solution?

Anjali: Stepping back from the story, and just looking at the idea of conquering death and how you’d deal with that as a society, hypothetically, I don’t think there would be a solution, feasible or not.

Even if rules or regulations like the Scythedom (people being selected for death to avoid overpopulation), or stopping people having kids, or capping the amount of times that people can ‘turn the corner’ to go back to a younger age, there would always be problems. Someone would get upset, someone would want to change the system, someone would think they could do it better. Humans, as great as we might think we are, are flawed. We’re incredible, complex beings, but we are flawed. Our birth and death are the bookends of our life, and without the stopper of death at the end of the shelf all the books fall off and create a big mess. Such would it be with ‘conquering’ death; a big mess, unlikely to have any real solutions.

Erin: The simple answer to this question is no. There are so many reasons - including some of those that Anjali has shared her thoughts on - why a Scythedom wouldn't work as a solution. I can't really ever see an idea like this being successful but as with any basis for a utopian world, even if there was a chance the concept worked for a length of time it certainly wouldn't be a feasible long-term solution.

Do you have a favourite quote from the book?

Anjali: There were many fantastic quotes throughout Scythe, but this is up there in the top 5:

“Hope in the shadow of fear is the world's most powerful motivator.”

Erin: If I had been able to get my highlighters on this book the pages would have been full of colour, but sadly I didn't think the library would appreciate my annotation! I also forgot to keep track of any quotes that stood out as I read because I was enjoying the book so much. I think I'll have to add a copy to my collection and re-read it, highlighters in hand, in the future.

Any final thoughts on Scythe?

Anjali: I loved this book. A lot. Few books I’ve read these days have really got me thinking, and, if my answer to question 3 is anything to go by (and I did chop it down to this paragraph!), Scythe really did. There were so many hints and nods to things in real life throughout the book, and of course, the whole concept of ‘conquering’ death that made me stop and think multiple times throughout the story. I really also enjoy Shusterman’s storytelling, and the characters he creates. Really looking forward to picking up Thunderhead. Would definitely recommend. 5 stars.

Erin: I found the whole concept of Scythe so interesting and thought-provoking which made the novel such an enjoyable read. Seeing how varied the scythes attitudes towards their job were was a particularly interesting aspect and I felt the diary entry snippets included throughout were a great addition to the story. Similarly to Anjali, I also rated the book five stars and can't wait to read the sequel!

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Saturday, 20 January 2018

Group Collaboration | Books We Vow To Read In 2018

Every January we join readers across the globe in setting brand new reading goals for the year ahead. As always, we asked you to share some of the books you plan to read over the next twelve months and you sent us lists featuring some amazing reads. We'd like to wish you all the best of luck with your reading goals for 2018 and hope you enjoy your picks!

books we vow to read in 2018 blog

books we vow to read in 2018 blog

books we vow to read in 2018 blog

books we vow to read in 2018 blog

books we vow to read in 2018 blog

books we vow to read in 2018 blog

Cover images via Goodreads & Amazon

Thank you to this month's contributors: Rachel, Lucy, Erin, Hannah, Ria, Aimee, Sophie, Anjali

If you would like to get involved with BB in future, sign up to our newsletter for updates!

Monday, 8 January 2018

How You Can Get Involved With BB This January

This is just a quick reminder that you only have a few days left to send us your responses for our January group post!

It's quick and easy to get involved, all you need to do is tell us the titles and authors of five books you 'vow to read' in 2018 via this Google form (also below). We'll be sharing your lists here on 14th January so we'll need your responses by this Friday.

If you're also joining in with our January book club, don't forget to send us your thoughts by 19th January!

- Team BB

Thursday, 28 December 2017

Group Collaboration | Our Favourite Reads Of 2017

With 2017 coming to a close in just a few days we're taking the opportunity to look back over all of the incredible books we read over the past twelve months! If you're looking to kick-start your 2018 TBR here are some of our top picks...

BB 2017 fave reads.003

BB 2017 fave reads.002

Book cover images all sourced from goodreads.com
Thank you to this month's contributors: Anjali, Cat, Ria, Kelly, Emma and Erin

As always, we'll be talking reading goals for the new year in January. Click here to let us know which five books you 'vow to read' in 2018!

Monday, 4 December 2017

Introducing The Blogger's Bookshelf Book Club!

To celebrate five whole years of Blogger's Bookshelf we've decided to embark on a new adventure by starting our very own online book club! We're always looking for new ways to collaborate and share the love of books so a book club seemed like the perfect next step for BB.

We'll be taking it in turns to select the book club reads every month throughout 2018 and to keep things interesting we've also chosen a simple overall theme we'll all have to stick to when we make our selections. The theme we've chosen is 'Short Stories' which may include a wide variety of reads such as novels under 200 pages, novellas, graphic novels, poetry collections and of course, short story collections. We're excited to discover new reads that fit the theme and by keeping the reads nice and short and we hope you'll be able to find a little time to join in too.

Each new book will be introduced in a post by the team member who has selected it, we'll then be inviting you to read it along with us over the following few weeks, with a Google form for you to submit your thoughts for the final roundup. There may also be additional posts inspired by the book club pick throughout the month and updates via our new newsletter (also launching next month) so make sure you're subscribed if you don't want to miss out!

We'll be announcing January's book next week and hope that you'll join us on our new adventure, whether it be every month or a handful of times throughout the year.

Happy reading!

- Team BB

Saturday, 18 November 2017

Get Involved | Your Favourite Reads Of 2017

Saturday, 26 August 2017

Group Collaboration | Around The World With Blogger's Bookshelf!

For our August group post we want to take a trip around the world, looking at novels set all over the globe! We asked you to help us build a list of amazing reads set all over the world, hoping to include as many countires as possible and you shared some great suggestions with us. Below are the responses we received over the past few weeks... If you have any books you'd love to see added to the list please let us know!

Afghanistan
The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini

Aruba
Dangerous Girls, Abigail Haas

Australia
Big Little Lies, Liane Moriarty
Breathing Under Water, Sophie Hardcastle
Children Of The Different, S C Flynn
Tomorrow When The War Began, John Marsden

Botswana
The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, Alexander McCall Smith

Burma
Elephant Moon, John Sweeney

China
The Crystal Ribbon, Celeste Lim

Cuba
Old Rosa, Reinalso Arenas

Denmark
The Keeper Of Lost Causes, Jussi Adler-Olsen

England
Death Wish, Charlotte Wilson
The Night Circus, Erin Morgenstern
Slated, Teri Terry

France
All The Light We Cannot See, Anthony Doerr

Germany
The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas, John Boyne

Ghana
Homegoing, Yaa Gyasi

Iceland
I Remember You, Yrsa Sigurdardottir

Iran
Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi

Ireland
The Accident Season, Moira Fowley-Doyle
Asking For It, Louise O'Neill

Italy
The Echoes Of Love, Hannah Fielding

Japan
Confessions, Kanae Minato
Memoirs Of A Geisha, Arthur Golden

Kenya
Burning Embers, Hannah Fielding

New Zealand
I Am Not Esther, Fleur Beale
The Luminaries, Eleanor Catton
Travelling In The Dark, Emma Timpany

Russia
Metro 2033, Dmitry Glukhovsky

Saudi Arabia
Girls Of Riyadh, Rajaa Alsanea

Scotland
Black Cairn Point, Clare McFall

Spain
The Andalucian Nights Trilogy, Hannah Fielding
Cruel Summer, Juno Dawson

Sweden
A Man Called Ove, Fredrik Backman
The Girl Who Saved The King Of Sweden, Jonas Jonasson
Millenium Series, Stieg Larsson
My Grandmother Sends Her Regards & Apologises, Fredrik Backman

Thailand
The Beach, Alex Garland

UAE
Dubai Tales, Mohammad al Murr

USA
Amy & Roger's Epic Detour, Morgan Matson
The Girls, Emma Cline
The Shack, William Paul Young
The Snow Child, Eowyn Ivey

Whilst this list has been created using suggestions we have recieved throughout the month of August, we are keen to keep adding to it! We would love this to be an ongoing resource for our bloggers and readers so we are planning to continue updating it. If you have any titles to add to the list please leave us a comment, send an email or tweet and we'll make sure your suggestion is added.

Thank you to this month's contributors including: Anjali, Utopia State Of Mind, Erin, Rachel, Ria, Charlotte, Hannah, Elena, Laura

Photos by Margo Brodowicz & Ruthie on Unsplash

Next month's collaboration topic is Favourite Literary Adaptations - to get involved email or tweet us!

Saturday, 29 July 2017

Group Collaboration | Why YA is important

It's no secret that we love a bit of Young Adult fiction here at Blogger's Bookshelf!

When we first ran this post topic 2016, our focus was on building a list of our favourite YA novels.

The Young Adult fiction landscape has shifted and grown dramatically since then and we thought this month's group post would be a great opportunity to find out why our bloggers feel this particular genre is still so important both to them and for the book community as a whole.

Check out their answers below!

Next month's group post topic is Around the World with Blogger's Bookshelf! If you'd like to get involved email us bloggersbookshelf@gmail.com or keep an eye out on our Twitter page for more information.

Saturday, 24 June 2017

Group Collaboration | BB's Summer Reading List

We received a varied selection of suggestions for our ultimate summer reading list so decided it might be fun to create our very own Blogger's Bookshelf mini challenge! The printable checklist below features our top picks for the summer as well as a couple of mini challenges complete with recommended reads. Click here to print out your own copy and join in to see how many titles you can cross off the list over the next ten weeks... and beyond of course!

If you decide to join in and have a go at reading some (or all) of the titles on our list we'd love to follow your progress. Use the hashtag #BBSummerReads on Twitter and Instagram to share your 'currently reading' and TBR updates with us!

Thank you to this month's contributors: Cat, Lili, Anjali, Kate, Ria, Erin

Next month's group post topic is Why YA Is Important! If you'd like to get involved email us bloggersbookshelf@gmail.com or keep an eye out on our Twitter page for more information.

Saturday, 27 May 2017

Group Post | #BBShelfies

There are many things that fill a book lover's heart with joy. One of them is the sight of an insta-worthy bookshelf brimming with books. So for this month's post we asked our contributors to give us a glimpse of their own bookshelves and send us pictures of their bookshelves - or SHELF-IES. Check out their photos below.

(l-r: @Anjali_Kay // @RCagz )

(l-r: @cococat28 // @stasialikescakes)

(l-r: @utopia.state.of.mind // @lulu_frances)

(l-r: @RCagz // @sawyerandscout)

Thanks to all of our contributors this month. If you want to keep sharing your Shelfies tag us on Instagram with #BBShelfies.

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Next month we'll be asking for your Summer read recommendations. If you'd like to be involved with this and future group posts drop an email to bloggersbookshelf@gmail.com or keep an eye out on our Twitter for updates!

Saturday, 22 April 2017

Group Collaboration | How Do You Choose Your Next Read?

It's group post time again and this month we're talking ideas on how to select your next read. The responses we received share favourite ways to choose what to read next, along with those that haven't worked out quite so well.

We would love to hear your thoughts and opinions on the suggestions below and of course your favourite way/s to choose your next read!

ARCs & Blogging

Of all the responses we received to this month's prompt one of the most popular answers was that ARCs take priority when choosing what to read next. As many of our readers are fellow bloggers we completely understand choosing ARCs over any other reads in order to stick to a blogging schedules.

"If I have an ARC that I've been sent, I'll read those first, in order of receiving them."

"Review copies always come first, and then books I've been dying to read that I own."

"I normally read according to my book blogging schedule actually! The free slots I have I just pick up books from my bought pile."

Library Loans

Another popular response was that library loans were a priority due to the time constraints and those pesky late fines!

"Next in line is always whichever library book is due next. Because late fines. Eek."

"[After ARCs] it'll be any books I have out from the library (because we don't want to add to the already-growing late fines!), and then books that have been sitting unread on my shelf for too long."

Follow Your Mood

It seems that a lot of bibliophiles find that the types of books they pick up change along with their mood or other factors like the time of year but if you have lots of unread books sitting on your shelf it can still be tricky to choose. If you manage to narrow it down by mood but you're still stuck between a few different choices why not try out the first chapter of each and opt for the one that interests you most.

"I often find it's best to look at my bookshelves or scroll through my Kindle for inspiration and pick up whichever title appeals most at the time."

TBR Jars

Another popular idea is the 'TBR jar' where you write out the names of the books on your shelves, fold them up and put them in a pretty jar to be picked out at random when you can't decide what to read next. Unfortunately, whilst this sounds like a brilliant idea it does have it's flaws as a couple of our readers highlighted. If you're more of a mood reader a good tip to try is to colour coding the pieces of paper you add to the jar, selecting a different one for each genre or even length of book.

"I tried doing a TBR jar a few years ago, as I loved the idea, but it never really worked because there was always a book I really wanted to read next."

"I tried a TBR jar once. It didn't last long, because I was never in the mood to read what I pulled out."

If You Liked That...

Another great way to choose your next read is to look for recommendations based on other books you've adored. Websites like Goodreads and Amazon have handy sections suggesting similar reads and bookstores usually have a recommended section but we really love What Should I Read Next? for finding new favourite books.

"I often look at books which have been recommended by friends, or in book stores or online. 'If you liked ... you'll like ...' invariably I do like!"

Take A Chance

If you really can't make up your mind why not leave it to chance? We loved this suggestion of numbering the books and asking someone else to pick at random, or using a dice to decide!

"If I can't figure out what kind of book I'm in the mood for, I give myself 5 or 6 options and then tell my husband to pick a number between 1 and 6. If he's not around, I roll a 6 sided die."

Image via unsplash.com
Thanks to Rachel, Anjali, Lili and all of this month's anonymous contributors.

If you'd like to get involved in our next group post drop and email to bloggersbookshelf@gmail.com or keep an eye out on our Twitter page (@blog_bookshelf) for updates!

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