Mockingjay Part II | Movie Review & Reaction (*SPOILERS*)

Who decided it would be a good idea to turn Mockingjay into movies? Who decided to create these movies and then put them out into the world for innocent human beings to watch? Why? 

Mockingjay Part II. Was. Brilliant. Absolutely. Brilliant. This movie was perfect. (If you haven't watched it already I recommend a large supply of tissues and I wish you the best of luck). 

Let me start this review by saying that I did not like reading Mockingjay at all. I didn't appreciate the plot and the deaths and the ending. Even if you tell me that it's good because it's realistic...no, I disagree. However I absolutely loved this book to movie adaptation. It picked up where Part 1 left off and told the story so beautifully and accurately. Tears. Drowning in a waterfall of tears.

Can I take a second to mention Josh Hutcherson and Jennifer Lawrence's acting in this movie because they were absolutely perfect. In the whole series of movies in fact but specially this movie. This movie made me sympathize with Katniss on a different level and it made me realize how hurt Peeta was, how kind he was and how much they both actually needed each other. I felt Katniss' anger so much because of how people were just using her and neglecting how much she has been through and how hard it is for her to be around all this war.

My Top Five Favourite BookTubers

Around three years ago I realized that there was quite a large book community on the internet and I first came across this community through a BookTube video. I love reading book blogs (and now writing my own!) but watching BookTube videos is really fun and there's a lot of great people there so I thought I'd introduce you to my five favourite BookTubers (in no particular order).

Christine from PolandBananasBooks

If you've watched BookTube videos then I'm sure you'll know Christine because she's made collabs wiht lots of other vloggers specially during events like VidCon and BEA. But if you don't know her, Christine is super funny and bubbly, she makes book talks (with lots of spoilery discussions so beware), book tags, videos with actual authors and other famous people (!!!) and cute little skits. She also has a comedy channel called PolandBananas20 :)

I Want More Diversity in YA Literature

To be honest I basically only read YA books apart from a couple of children's books and (rarely) adult books. I am trying to extend on the genres that I read but the thing is I really enjoy reading YA books. But when I read books from other genres I start to notice a problem with a lot of YA books that I've read. There are so few books that represent minorities and have diverse characters as the main protagonists.

If you look at the YA books that you own or have read how many have diverse characters (different nationalities, cultures, genders, LGBTQ+ or disabilities/illnesses) as an important part of the story? I think in general you might find that there is very little diversity in YA literature. (Unless you are very careful in researching and picking out books with diverse characters in which case, go you!)

Let me explain this, I don't mean to say that there aren't any diverse characters at all in YA but when there are they are a lot of the times only defined by their differences. I feel like almost all YA books with diversity are contemporary or realistic fiction books that deal solely with how the protagonist has a hard life and deals with their struggles. And while I appreciate these books because they are very important to help educate people and help them learn about another person's situations and perspectives I also think that there should be books involving diverse characters that don't focus on their issues only.

Cover Reveal | Not Enough by Mia Hoddell

Not Enough by Mia Hoddell

Genre Upper YA/NA Contemporary Romance

Release Date: November 16th 2015

Links:

Amazon UK│Amazon US│Barnes & Noble│Kobo│iBooks│ Add to Goodreads

Summary from Goodreads:

Neve Colvin isn’t good enough. As an introvert, her life is a never-ending list of labels and criticism. Pressures to change come from everyone—including the one person she thought would love her unconditionally … her mother. All Neve wants is acceptance, but surrounded by extroverts it’s a wish that’s nearly impossible to fulfill.

Book Review | The Miseducation of Cameron Post by E. M. Danforth

Released: February 7th 2012
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Pages: 470 pages
Genre: YA, Contemporary, LGBTQ

Set in rural Montana in the early 1990s, emily m. danforth’s The Miseducation of Cameron Postis a powerful and widely acclaimed YA coming-of-age novel in the tradition of the classic Annie on My Mind.   Cameron Post feels a mix of guilt and relief when her parents die in a car accident. Their deaths mean they will never learn the truth she eventually comes to—that she's gay. Orphaned, Cameron comes to live with her old-fashioned grandmother and ultraconservative aunt Ruth. There she falls in love with her best friend, a beautiful cowgirl. When she’s eventually outed, her aunt sends her to God’s Promise, a religious conversion camp that is supposed to “cure” her homosexuality. At the camp, Cameron comes face to face with the cost of denying her true identity.  

The Miseducation of Cameron Post is a standalone YA contemporary novel that follows the main character Cameron through four years in her life as she figures out who she is and who to trust. I really wanted to like this book and had high expectations for it because I know Raeleen (padfootandprongs07) and lots of other people on BookTube really loved it and while I found this book to be really interesting I also thought it was a little bit too long and detailed. E. M. Danforth's writing style is however really beautiful! This book is set in Montana in 1989 and the descriptions of it set a really nice scene of the time and place the story is taking place in.

“...and there I was sending all the wrong signals to the right people in the wrong ways. Again, again, again.”

Where To Get Discounted Books

I love going to large bookstores and going through all the shelves of my favourite genre but most of the times the books there are sold for full price which is actually quite expensive. However I have found a couple of websites where there are discounted or cheaper books with not a huge amount of shipping fees (especially if you live outside the US) and I wanted to share these with you! I have used most of these websites and had good experiences with them and one of them I haven't used but know other Bloggers and BookTubers have used them and recommended them as well.

The Book Depository is definitely one of the best places to get discounted books online, according to me anyway, because they have a lot of different genres and different books within each of the genres. Plus free shipping WORLDWIDE! I'm 100% serious! The company is based in the UK however which means that shipments to places other than Europe, UK and US might take a little longer but I do think it's worth it because they have quite big discounts, around 30%-50% on a lot of books.

AbeBooks is my next suggestion. This website has a lot more used, second hand books and lots of rare and out of print books along with some new books as well. There are tons of different booksellers who sell various types and genres of books. AbeBooks doesn't ship from any particular place, instead each bookseller ships each order themselves so shipping might take different amounts of time depending on where you are ordering from.

The Taylor Swift Book Tag ♕

If you know me you'll know that I love love love Taylor Swift so I was bound to do this tag at one point or another. I saw this tag on some blogs and on YouTube and I took these questions (with the added ones at the end) from Katytastic's video.

1. We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together

(pick a book or series that you were pretty sure you were in love with, but then wanted to break up
with)

I think the obvious answer for this song is the Divergent series but if I had to choose another one I think I'd go with the Secret series by Pseudonymous Bosch. The first two books in this series were really really good, the plot was really good and the fantasy parts were blended in really well but as the series continued on the story was so dragged out and just not fun to read anymore.

2. Red


(pick a book with a RED cover)

See what I did there?? Red is even in the title :D :D Moving on..Ruby Red has a very red cover and it's also a very good book! It was originally written in German but I can't read an entire book in German so I read the translation in English and it was a super fun story with cool mythology I hadn't read before.

The Martian | Movie Review & Discusion

Yesterday I went to watch the movie adaptation of The Martian after just having finished the book and I really enjoyed it! I went into the movie with quite high expectations because the trailer and some of the extra promo videos looked really promising and it was very satisfying to see such a good book to movie adaptation!! There were even tons of lines straight out of the book can you believe it?!

To start off the movie is really intense in a lot of scenes, like you would expect in a movie about someone trying to survive on a different planet, but it managed to capture the comedy from the book and I think perhaps made some of the running jokes even funnier. The whole thing about Lewis' music taste was funny in the book but the disco music playing in the background and the point where Watney just starts dancing along to it in the rover was so hilarious.

Book Review | The Martian by Andy Weir

Released: 11th February 2014

Publisher: Crown

Pages: 369 pages

Genre: Science Fiction, Thriller

Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars. Now, he's sure he'll be the first person to die there. After a dust storm nearly kills him & forces his crew to evacuate while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded & completely alone with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive—& even if he could get word out, his supplies would be gone long before a rescue could arrive. Chances are, though, he won't have time to starve to death. The damaged machinery, unforgiving environment or plain-old "human error" are much more likely to kill him first. But Mark isn't ready to give up yet. Drawing on his ingenuity, his engineering skills—& a relentless, dogged refusal to quit—he steadfastly confronts one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after the next. Will his resourcefulness be enough to overcome the impossible odds against him?

The Martian is one of the funniest books I have read which is quite surprising considering it's an insanely intense story about an astronaut stranded and struggling to stay alive on Mars. This book is written in diary entries from the main character, Mark Watney, as well as some parts which are written in third person about the people at NASA and the Hermes' crew members in space. I loved the whole premise of this book and it was really interesting to read all about all the ways that Watney managed to survive on a planet all by himself. His sarcastic remarks and random jokes were also a highlight of the book for me.

“They say once you grow crops somewhere, you have officially ‘colonised’ it. So technically, I colonised Mars.In your face, Neil Armstrong!” 

Top Ten Favourite Stand-Alone Books

A whole lot of YA books that are really popular and hyped up on the interweb are part of trilogies and series and while I love all those books sometimes what I really need is a quick stand-alone book to read in between all these huge series. Here are my top ten favourite stand-alone novels, most of them are contemporary/realistic fiction but I tried to include some fantasy/dystopian books as well :)

#10 Stitching Snow by R. C. Lewis

Stitching Snow is a science fiction, fairy tale retelling of Snow White set in a completely different world where there are three planets governed by the corrupt and violent King Matthias. The main character Essie just happens to be the long lost daughter of the king and wants revenge. Other than the fact that this book has one of the most beautiful covers I have ever seen, the book itself is really imaginative and so much fun!

#9 It's Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini

It's Kind of a Funny Story deals with some heavy topics following a main character dealing with depression and many side characters with other mental illnesses but it does a really good job of exploring these themes but still have a whole lot of really funny scenes along with the emotional ones.

How To Read More

I am by no means a very fast reader and don't always get to read my book every single day, but somehow I still do manage to read quite a few books overall each year. Sometimes however I just find myself not reading that much or getting into a reading slump after finishing a particularly intense book (*cough* Sarah J Maas *cough*). And while it's fine to take a break from reading from time to time, I just wanted to share a couple of tips to help you get back into reading or just read more often.

#1 Always keep a book with you 

I mean it, carry your book with you everywhere. While you might not always have a lot of time to read you might get a couple pages in while you wait in line for something or while you travel to school or work. Most of the time this works for me but because sometimes I just won't be in the mood to read when I'm very stressed during the day I'll just leave it in my bag. But noticing the book there does make me want to pick it up and continue later on. It's always better to read a little than nothing and if you read a few pages during your day they might get you pulled into the story and interest you enough to start you reading the book the second you get some free time. 

Book Review | One by Sarah Crossan

Released: 27th August 2015

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Pages: 448 pages

Genre: Young Adult, Realistic Fiction, Contemporary

Grace and Tippi are twins – conjoined twins. 
And their lives are about to change.
No longer able to afford homeschooling, they must venture into the world – a world of stares, sneers and cruelty. Will they find more than that at school? Can they find real friends? And what about love?
But what neither Grace or Tippi realises is that a heart-wrenching decision lies ahead. A decision that could tear them apart. One that will change their lives even more than they ever imagined…
From Carnegie Medal shortlisted author Sarah Crossan, this moving and beautifully crafted novel about identity, sisterhood and love ultimately asks one question: what does it mean to want and have a soulmate?

To be perfectly honest I randomly picked this book up because of the super pretty cover while I was in the bookstore. After reading the blurb and the first few pages I was completely engrossed in the story and finished the whole thing in one sitting. Sarah Crossan has written One in free verse so it is technically quite a short book even with 400+ pages but it was an absolutely wonderful read from start to finish. I am nowhere near an expert in poetry/free verse or anything of the sort but really enjoyed this style of writing. The free verse helped to draw attention to certain dramatic moments and made the main character Grace's emotions that much more real and helped me to sympathize with her.

“I read all these books,

so many words,

but I don't own any.

I don't know what's happening

inside me.

I can't get it out.” 

Autumn YA Releases

It's September 23rd and that means autumn is finally here! Wizards and witches are boarding the

Hogwarts Express back to school while muggles are trying their hardest to create their own Butterbeer. I love autumn, the pretty leaves, pumpkin spiced everything but also the whole bunch of new books that get released so I thought I would make a list of the most interesting and most anticipated YA novels that come out in the next three months.

Y       The Sword of Summer (Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard #1) by Rick Riordan

Release date: 6th October

Magnus Chase has always been a troubled kid. Since his mother’s mysterious death, he’s lived alone on the streets of Boston, surviving by his wits, keeping one step ahead of the police and the truant officers. One day, he’s tracked down by a man he’s never met—a man his mother claimed was dangerous. The man tells him an impossible secret: Magnus is the son of a Norse god.

The Viking myths are true. The gods of Asgard are preparing for war. Trolls, giants and worse monsters are stirring for doomsday. To prevent Ragnarok, Magnus must search the Nine Worlds for a weapon that has been lost for thousands of years.

 

Y       Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

Release date: 6th October

Rainbow Rowell continues to break boundaries with Carry On, an epic fantasy following the triumphs and heartaches of Simon and Baz from her beloved bestseller Fangirl.

Carry On is a ghost story, a love story, a mystery and a melodrama. It has just as much kissing and talking as you’d expect from a Rainbow Rowell story — but far, far more monsters.

Allegiant 'Beyond The Wall' | Teaser Trailer Discussion

Watch the teaser trailer first!

The first teaser trailer for Allegiant was released this weekend! To be fair half of the 1 minute and 50 seconds of the trailer was just scenes from Divergent and Insurgent (I have read and watched these thanks) but we did get some cool scenes of Tris and the group escaping the city, running around on the weird Mars-like place and later talking to David in the headquarter area.

Now Allegiant is definitely my least favourite book from this series so naturally I don't think it was a great idea to split the movie into two parts since not a lot actually happens in this book. However it seems that the movies might make some changes to the plot since in the end of Insurgent Jeanine was cut out of the story and some characters who have important storylines in Allegiant (*cough* Uriah and Zeke *cough*) weren't introduced or barely given a backstory in the movie adaptations.

Book Haul #1 | Fantasy and Fashion

Here is my very first book haul for this blog! Since I didn't buy that many books so far this month alone I decided to haul all my new books from August and September together. 

So first of all I have two graphic novels; In Real Life by Cory Doctorow and Jen Wang and Nimona by Noelle Stevenson. (If Noelle Stevenson's artwork looks really familiar to you its because she was also the illustrator for Fangirl's cover art and comic strip☺). These are my first graphic novels and I've already read and loved In Real Life. Both these books have really pretty artwork and some awesome female main characters.

Next I have two books that I got on a huge sale called ABC Treehouse sale where I paid €5 per kilogram of books. The two books I got from this sale were The Dress by Megan Hess and Fearless by Francine Pascal. The Dress is something I would never normally buy because it's wayyy too expensive considering its hardback with colour illustrations on each page but since it was on sale I had to have it. This book has the 100 most iconic dresses according to the author/fashion illustrator and they are so gorgeous, I couldn't stop staring at them.   

Book Review | Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins

Series: Rebel Belle #1

Released: 8th April 2014 
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile
Pages: 345 pages
Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal, Fantasy

Harper Price, peerless Southern belle, was born ready for a Homecoming tiara. But after a strange run-in at the dance imbues her with incredible abilities, Harper's destiny takes a turn for the seriously weird. She becomes a Paladin, one of an ancient line of guardians with agility, super strength and lethal fighting instincts.
Just when life can't get any more disastrously crazy, Harper finds out who she's charged to protect: David Stark, school reporter, subject of a mysterious prophecy and possibly Harper's least favorite person. But things get complicated when Harper starts falling for him—and discovers that David's own fate could very well be to destroy Earth.

After having this book recommended to me over and over by one of my friends I did have quite high expectations for it and I was not disappointed. Rebel Belle is one of the funniest YA books I have read in a long time. Although technically fantasy the book was written in a way that makes it read almost like a contemporary but with some mythology mixed in. Whilst being quite action-packed it had a whole lot of funny moments, a cute love story, and a wide cast of quirky characters that I really grew to care for. If you weren't aware Rachel Hawkins is also the author behind the Hex Hall series and the spin-off series School Spirits which were both quite popular three or four years ago. 

First Steps into the Forest

My first blog post! I've finally made my very own blog, my own magical forest filled with my musings on books, authors, characters and so on. I'm sure there are others just like me who are obsessed with escaping the world and finding a home in books. If you happen to stick around I hope I'll be able to inspire you to pick up a new book, discover a different author or explore a new genre. Over the next few weeks you might see a couple discussions growing around the forest and I hope you will all join in and share your thoughts as well.