Wednesday, December 30, 2015

Month of Faves - Favorite Book Covers From My Reads This Year

 Favorite Book Covers From My Reads This Year – what did you like about each one?


23505897
I love every literal thing about this cover. I love the font. I love the interesting perspective of the picture. I even love the mustardy yellow which is weird because I usually hate that color.




18114449
For a whole book that deals with how much our main character is made up of by the books that she encounters, reads and translates it just couldn't get anymore perfect. Kind of simple, absolutely great.


15709033
I love that the Viking is wood-grainy. It cracks me up.


22638315
I just love the colors and the fluffiness of the clouds and everything about how this whole thing is arranged.



6015657
Book was kinda meh (review forthcoming) but I do like that cover






17332298
This book is all about a family whose life is just awash in alcohol. So not only is this cover interesting to look at, but is incredibly apt.

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

Month of Faves -Top 10 Books that Blew My Mind This Year

Tue. | Dec. 29 – Top 10 Books that Blew My Mind This Year – squee worthy reads



18774002 

So, the new job that I started this year involves working with people who study brains. I don't have any experience like that so I'm reading to play catch up. I learned SO many interesting things about how the human brain works (but in a fun ,easy to read book!) that I still think about it all the time.

22070129
This book photographs TERRIBLY. It's shiny silver.

What this book lacks in a photograph friendly cover it makes up for in the fact that it could save your life. It sounds ominous, I know, but this book basically tells you to listen to your intuition and to trust your instincts. If you think you might be in a dangerous situation and you're wrong you might be a little embarrassed, but if you are right you could save your own life. Review here!


22544764

First of all, cover is so interesting. The thing that I think I love most about this book is how detailed and complete the world building is. That -ish is thorough. Also, that the characters all have realistic and reasonabl feelings, which frankly is sometimes hard to come by in books. I was sucked into this book hard and read it at an almost alarming speed. Review here!



23363928



I'm incapable of describing this book well. All I can say is that you need to give this book 100 pages. If you're not intrigued enough by page 100 then you probably won't be. I was incredibly confused for awhile and then was confused and in love. Two animals owned by an asshole rapper who named them after two of the worst bombings in world history? Bring me into your twisted, crazy, ridiculousness Mount Char, it is where I want to be.


23995415


I know I've talked about this book, kind of ad nauseum, but it will always bear repeating, so here I am saying it again. This is a great book. If you think you know a lot about WWII read this book and learn about 1000 things that you didn't even know you didn't know.Etcetera etcetera etcetera, all of the good superlatives in my voabulary, and so on.




Tuesday, December 22, 2015

Month of Faves – Books on My Winter Reading List

Tue. | Dec. 22 – Books on My Winter Reading List 


Anyone read any of these? I've got Lazarus project to take with me to my in-laws this week.



17910055






23337562


6015657


23225957

25089757


23529


25042615

553995

Monday, December 21, 2015

Book Review: "I'm So Happy For You (Sort of Not Really) : Finding Contentment in the Culture of Comparison" by Kay Wills Wyma

1 sentence review: This book isn't really hoeing any new territory,  but it's all good reminders.

The best thing that this book did was be the impetus for an interesting conversation between myself and some friends about why people put what things up on the internet. We decided that while, of course, there are going to be people putting up pictures just because they are braggy mcbraggerpantses and want compliments, that isn't going to be the majority. We put up pictures of the exciting exotic things that happen in our lives because those (probably rare) moments have helped us escape our doldrums, and maybe it will help other people escape it too.

So I just got back from Mexico. I didn't put up too many pictures because I didn't want to be the braggy looking a-hole. But you would have rather have seen pictures of waving palm trees and huge waves then pictures of me hauling my behind out of bed to go into work early and then staying late every day for nearly two weeks because of my no vacation time yet, right (#newjobproblems, #firstworldproblems). We put up the pictures of the Christmas cookies that turned out perfectly because everyone has experienced the "burned to a crisp, these don't remotely look edible" cookies that are also currently in the kitchen (but in the trash).

In short, we put up the rare exciting things because everyone has the crappy boring things.

Though if I write this post on a day where I'm in a slightly less optimistic mood this post could easily turn into something less forgiving haha.


Anyway, this book.


It obviously doesn't have any magical answers to problems about being discontent. But it is heartening to know that this is a common struggle for many people.

Kay suggests trying to be genuinely happy for the person who can't stop talking about how gifted their kid is, or how nice their new car is. I think that that is a thing that will take an extreme amount of practice, but it seems worth trying, yes? (Or you can do what I do when Im super cranky about people having nicer things then me, comfort myself by thinking they're probably up to their ears in credit card debt. That's super nice of me, huh?)

She also talks about how when we compare, it sucks a little joy out of ourselves. So let's say I enjoy playing volleyball, I'm not the best at it but  I have fun doing it and it brings me joy. But then I see someone else, and they, like played volleyball in college and they look good in the short shorts and so on and so on. Suddenly I'm super conscious that I'm not as good as that other person and that takes some of my enjoyment out of volleyball. Comparison is the thief of joy.

This book really is summed up by every one of those little cliche phrases. They might be cliche but they are true.



22889874
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review

Friday, December 18, 2015

Graphic Novel Review: "The Bad Doctor - The Troubled Life and Times of Dr Iwan James" by Ian Williams

A short review of a graphic novel today.

Everyone be surprised, all of the illustrations are just black and white and very unflashy, just how I like them.

Dr James is a general practitioner in Wales. He sees all variety of things and people come through his door, and like I imagine it does to all doctors, sometimes he absorbs other people's problems and it stresses him out. His marriage is fine (but that's about it) and he finds joy on his long cycling trips through the country with his buddy.

However, Dr Williams has had a certain medical condition that has weighed on him immensely since he was a very little boy. And Im not going to tell you what it is because that would be a spoiler. But I will say that it's stressful and it can effect what kind of a doctor he is at times. And here's a nonspoiler spoiler for you, he isn't a bad doctor.

I like this graphic novel because it's just about a bunch of every day humans with every day struggles and was reflective of a lot of people's lives. 3 out of 5 stars!


22578304

Wednesday, December 16, 2015

Month of Faves – Most Useful Tools For Getting Sh&! Done

Wed. | Dec. 16 – Most Useful Tools For Getting Sh&! Done – apps, websites, journals or programs.


My new planner that is designed specifically for book blogger's from the Books and Beverages Shoppe! It has taken the place of my calendar from the Dollar Spot at Target and I'm the better for it. Especially since I've got new things on the horizon for the blog in the new year, I'm going to need to keep my sh&! together. I plan a lot of things pretty far in advance, and while I'm jealous of the bloggers who can just wing it the thought of doing that makes the anxiety start churning in my stomach.


Goodreads. Even with it's flaws, it's still the best way that I have found for myself to keep track of the books in my life. I like to line everything up so I anticipate what to order from the library next so I don't have a repeat of that time when I accidentally read too many WWII books in a row and got deeeeeepressed.


My library card. Because the magical free book fairy does not stop by my house like she should.

So I guess I keep it pretty simple! A planner, an app and a library card. And the occasional impending sense of doom. That's what keeps me on track.




via GIPHY

Monday, December 14, 2015

Book review: "Tales of Byzantium: A Selection of Short Stories" by Eileen Stephenson


Displaying 04_Tales of Byzantium_Blog Tour Banner_FINAL.png
Displaying 04_Tales of Byzantium_Blog Tour Banner_FINAL.png


Hola from the rooftop pool at Beach Palace in Mexico! I only have a few hours before flying home, so I thought I'd try to send the sound of the waves and the smell of sunscreen through the computer.

Speaking of exotic places...Byzantium. For me it sounds like one of those mysterious far off kingdoms that sound beautiful but that you couldn't find on a map to save your soul. (Well you couldn't find it on any current maps, but you know what I mean).

Eileen's short stories were perfect little poolside read. Tales of smart (and occasionally cunning and bad sneaky) men and women and their lives in this exotic empire. Honestly, my main complaint was that I would have liked a few more stories! I'll just have to wait for volume 2! Also, almost all of the people in the stories were noble, or at least associated with the palace in some way. I'd be interested to see what it was like for me every day "not special" citizens were like. However, the upside of having almost all of the characters be noble is that you find out what happens to them after the story ends! You find out if that sickly kid ever gets to be King, if that scary army ever makes a comeback after getting tricked in a risky military move, or if that exciting first love lasts forever.....

This slim volume is a great introduction to an intriguing empire. I know the next time I'm wandering the library i will be wandering over the Byzantine Empire section to see if I can find a follow up read to this one!

About the Author

Eileen Stephenson was born in Fort Worth, Texas but spent most of her life in the Washington, DC area. She has degrees from both Georgetown University and George Washington University (neither involving the Byzantines) and is married with three daughters. Her interest in Byzantine history all started one fateful day when every other book in the library looked boring except for John Julius Norwich’s A Short History of Byzantium.

Wednesday, December 9, 2015

Book Review: "Becoming George Washington" by Stephen Yochs


George Washington, action hero . . .
Long before Washington was the old man on the dollar bill, he was a fatherless boy with few resources and even less education. So how did he become the most famous person in American history?
Becoming George Washington tells the story of a young man with boundless energy, bravery, and passion, who grew from a fatherless boy into a self-confident leader. At the same time, he struggled to suppress both an awful temper and his love for a married woman, Sally Fairfax. A courageous war hero, Washington rose to the pinnacle of Virginia politics. His experiences as a young man allowed him, decades later, to lead the Revolution.
This compelling historical novel reveals the person behind the famous face and how he grew to become America’s leading Founding Father.


I want to put this out there right at the get-go, this isn't an origin story of the "Abraham Lincoln Vampire Slayer" variety. It's about real George Washington and what he really did in the years before he before he became our nation's first president. It's kind of interesting, because I never really thought about any other version of George Washington besides the presidential one. (Though there is this one YouTube video that got a lot of play in our apartment senior year in college...) Anyway....

George Washington was not a rich kid from a rich family. You know gentlemen farmers? He wasn't that, he was an actual farmer. His mother was um, a negative, imposing, unmovable force in his life. His dad was dead. But he had two older brothers - Austin and Lawrence (he was especially close with Lawrence) and a close, well-connected family friend who loved and supported him like he was one of his own children. Through lots of hard work and perseverance George gained success as a surveyor, and then later as a military man.

The talks about is treks from Virginia to Ohio sound treacherous and awful and dangerous and cold...which it was all of those things. And that doesn't even begin to cover angry Native Americans and Frenchmen. But through all of these trials, George earns his stripes. Even though he is plagued by self doubt and self consciousness about his humble beginnings and his homely appearance. (It's also kind of funny because he goes through all of this stuff and moves through the ranks and it's like "oh yeah he's only 22...because people died by 45...kind of a lot.")

One thing that happened to George (and a lot of other people) that I thought was kind of sad was that you work and fight for the Crown for years and then when American begins to struggle for her independence you could find yourself on the opposite side of the battlefield as men that you may have served with previously.

This book moved at a pretty steady clip, and if you are interested in: George Washington, early America, Virginia, or the like I think you will like this book!





About the Author

Steve doesn’t golf or fish and is a below average hunter, but his love of history and writing compelled him to pick up his pen and tell the little-known stories behind the men that made American history. After years of extensive research, Steve wrote his first book on young George Washington.
Steve lives in a suburb north of St. Paul, Minnesota with his supportive wife and two fantastic teenage sons. He graduated with honors from Boston College and the University of Minnesota Law School. He has enjoyed over two decades of practicing law in the Twin Cities, helping individuals and businesses solve complex problems.

Displaying 03_Becoming George Washington_Blog Tour Banner_FINAL.pngDisplaying 03_Becoming George Washington_Blog Tour Banner_FINAL.png

Monday, December 7, 2015

Books and Beverages Shoppe Launch!!!!

So, you probably have heard me talk about my friend Jamie? We co-hosted the Little Princess read a long. She guest posted for All Lady July. I also find myself over at her blog frequently for (among other things) the monthly Inklings reading (this month is the first half of The Silmarillon and it's kicking my butt up one side and down the other .After the first 3 pages I was like "oh no oh no oh no Tolkien you and I are new friends, why are you so crazy talking and I'm not used to it yet??") Anyway, so when Jamie was looking for Launch Team members for her new exciting endeavor I was like, why do you even ask, just sign me up, you know I'm down for these shenanigans.

Said shenanigans is....an online shop! Or I should say Shoppe! 

The first thing in the Shoppe right now, with much more to come, is a planner just for book bloggers! 



Image of The Book Blogger's Planner


For real, look how pretty this is - also it feels very well made. It won't fall apart the first time you throw it in your purse because you're trying to plan on the fly.


Here's what it entails:

-6 months that are blank so you can fill it in based on what you need. January to June? Just your busiest months? It allows for customizing. Me? Im going to buy a second one so it makes one full year, because I plan stupidly stupidly far in advance.

-For each week in the calendar there is a section for "This week's notes" and "post checklist" with spaces reminding you to cross post, and share on different media platforms. One section of that I won't be using is the "update post archive". I have failed so hard and so long on doing that I'm in an unsurmountable backlog. Hopefully no one else is in that same boat and still has hope, unlike me :)

-Space for keeping track of books that you've read

-Space for your favorite bookish quotes (so later you can get on picmonkey and turn them into Pinterest worthy works of art).

Here's the kicker - Today is the last day to preorder this lovely little planner. AND if you do preorder you will get extra bookish goodies! Maybe you saw on my Instagram that I turned my sweet bookish extras into magnets for my fridge.  They're holding up some art work.

The extra double plus good thing about Jamie's endeavor - a portion of the proceeds goes to one of several charities that Jamie feels passionate about supporting. So if you're buying it for yourself or the book blogger in your life, your purchase is stretching a little farther to support good work being done here in the states and around the world.

There will be an upcoming giveaway, which you can bet I will pass along, but just preorder it so you can get the extra goodies. It is worth it! 

Friday, December 4, 2015

Book Review: "The Gap of Time" by Jeanette Winterson

I was kind of ready to not like this book. Some people who had reviewed it said that it was complex and it is based on one of Shakespeare's less famous or performed plays. But I gave it a shot. I had a lot of feelings about it, but none of them were all bad. And if you're not a Shakespeare fan, don't worry you can still read this book. The names are weird and based on Shakespeare, but I know you can handle that, right? I am a Shakespeare fan, but I have to admit that this isn't one I was familiar with.

The plot has a lot of twists and turns and a lot of the same themes that Shakespeare uses in a lot of his plays. Here's a taste of what you're in for:

-INSANELY jealous men who are craptastic to the women in their lives
-sweet, young love
-a kind of shifty but loveable scamp of a jester/kind of bad guy
- mistaken identity

Surprisingly no cross dressing in this one. That's another Shakespeare theme he uses a looooot.

Here were two quotes that I liked:

(upon the birth of a baby) "With no skills and no training, no college diploma or science dollars, we had made a human being. What is this crazy reckless world where we can make human beings?"

"What is memory but a rope slung across time?" (I can totally see that one being a tattoo)

This book was better than I was expecting, and I will be looking into other books that this author has written. However I don't think I will race them to the very top of my TBR. I give this book a 3.5 stars.


24727420
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review by Blogging for Books

Thursday, December 3, 2015

These Are A Few of My Favorite Things in 2015 (Month of Faves)

This is the description that we're working with today– eg. to eat, drink, wear, smell, see, do, enjoy, best thing I bought, most used gift received etc, favorite concert, outdoor activity, place visited, most squee worthy moment of the year, biggest change

e.l.f. makeup brushes - I'm generally not one to invest heavily in makeup brushes (or anything makeup related, if we're being honest) so when Quinn introduced these to me I was so excited. $3 for a brush? So when I inevitably drop it in a sink full of water and ruin it I won't feel too bad about it. And they still look nice and work well! Link is to my BFF stipple brush.

Nivea crème - Most important, this thick crème is rich and creamy, and not greasy (though it takes a little while to dry.) And I feel like Greta Garbo or Grace Kelly about using lotion from a glass jar. There's something old school glam about it.


Cheese plates/boards - This year on my European vacation I learned the joy of the cheese plate. The simple and real joy of eating a bunch of cheese that you don't know quite what it is or what it will taste like but you jump in anyway, accompanied by a glass or pint of something delicious and boozy. Yes. 2 cheeseboards, no entrees needed.



Attached garages - This was a thing that I didn't want when we bought a house. It wasn't something I was going to be all up in arms about, but I would have rather not have had one. Mostly a security issue. Turns out, I like the attached garage. I'm still very mindful of the security aspect but I also really like being able to go get stuff out of or put things in my car in my jammies. In the apartment, when I inevitably realized that I'd left something I needed in the car, I would have to put on real clothes/shoes and walk across our considerable parking lot to get to our garage. Now I don't even put on pants.


Prague - I was in Prague this summer, and I have to say it's basically my favorite place in the history of places. (If you want to hear about my European adventure the posts are all in one spot.) I loved the fact the oldness of everything, but then it seemed like it was full of young Czechs who make it vibrant and fun. The Czech Republic as a whole is heavy on history (and sometimes sorrow) and I was thrilled to walk the streets and learn all about it. Time for some gratuitous Prague pictures? Hell to the yes. -For the record, my second favorite place that I saw on that trip was Dresden. There is not an old building in that city, but you wouldn't know it if you didn't know it's history. I was so ready to see ghosts that day, and I don't even believe in ghosts. -

 

 





 





 







Tuesday, December 1, 2015

#AMonthofFaves {My Reading Year}

Here's the description we're working with today:
eg. Number of books read so far, genre you read the most from, picture of favorite (or most often used) reading location, most read author, % eBooks, hardcovers, paperbacks and/or audiobooks, hint at what your favorite read of the year is (let us guess), types of books you wish you read more of, month you read the most and least)


Top 5 most popular posts:
"Spotify Lists of Classic Book Characters"


"All Lady Guest Post: Jamie from Books & Beverages talks about what person and what books shaped her as a reader!"


"Cheesy Books" (This was a complete throw away post I wrote in like, 15 minutes so I'm surprised, a little horrified, by how popular this post is, tbh.


Form Letter for a Book Review Request: A Dream


Viking River Cruise Recap - Day #1


Top 5 rated books I've read this year (rated by me, yikes it was hard to narrow it down to 5!)


"The Library at Mount Char" by Scott Hawkins

"Uprooted" by Naomi Novik


"Black Earth: The Holocaust as History and Warning" by Timothy Snyder

"Dead Wake" by Erik Larson

"When Books Went to War: The Stories that Helped Us Win World War II" by Molly Guptill Manning

5 books that were my least favorite I've read this year


"The Chosen" by Chaim Potok


"This Dark Endeavor" by Kenneth Oppel 

"Eat, Pray, Love" by Elizabeth Gilbert


"The Good Shufu: Finding Love, Self and Home on the Far Side of the World" by Tracy Slater


"Our Man in Charleston: Britain's Secret Agent in the Civil War South" by Christopher Dickey







I use Goodreads to monitor all of my reading progress. (You can be friends with me if you like!) I've knocked down my reading goal by several books because a lot of reading time has been lost to working on the house. But as it stands now, my goal is 150 books and I'm at 133. I don't think I'll make it! But such is life :)

Excited to read everyone else's posts today!