Top 5 Anticipated Releases of Fall 2015

Posted in Miscellaneous by TheQuirkyBookNerd

It’s coming! The time of changing leaves and crisp breezes. The time of cozy sweaters and boots, of apple cider and pumpkin everything. The perfect time to curl up by the window with a cup of hot tea and a good book to read, as the leaves fall and cover the ground in a blanket of warm colors.

2015 has been a wonderful year for new releases, and there are still so many more to come in these final months. And since the official start of fall is just over a week away, I thought I would make up a list of my top five most anticipated releases of the season.

The Marvels by Brian Selznick (September 15^th, 2015)

As I mentioned in my September TBR, I am a major Brian Selznick fan, and I have been looking forward to this book for a long time. I just love the unique format of his novels, and the spectacularly vivid stories he creates through both the text and the illustrations. This is one of my most anticipated books of the year, and I plan on picking this one up some time before the end of the week.

Beastly Bones by William Ritter (September 22^nd, 2015)

This is the sequel to Jackaby, which I read earlier this year and completely loved. It was such a fun, quirky read that totally captured my heart, so I’m dying to get my hands on this next one. I’ve had this on preorder for months, so I’ll most likely be getting started on it fairly soon after it releases!

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo (September 29^th, 2015)

I’ve wanted to read something by Leigh Bardugo for a while now, and though I do plan on trying out her Grisha Trilogy at some point, this one sounds more like my type of story. It seems like it will be a story filled with tons of action and magic, as it is a fantasy novel about criminals trying to pull off a major heist. A book about anti-heroes, magic, and heists? Yes please! This is an Ari book. It is very high on my TBR this fall.

The Sword of Summer by Rick Riordan (October 6^th, 2015)

I’ve recently been working my way through the Percy Jackson series and have very quickly become a major Rick Riordan fan. I have always been absolutely fascinated by anything to do with the mythologies of different cultures, so his books are all definite must-reads for me. I’m so eager to see what this series has in store, and to learn more about Norse mythology, which I don’t know a whole lot about. And I swear I’m not letting my love of the Thor films affect my excitement at all…maybe.

Winter by Marissa Meyer (November 10^th, 2015)

Of course this has to be on the list; it is my most anticipated book of the entire year. I’ve been making my way through The Lunar Chronicles this year, and I can safely say that it is on my list of favorite series ever. I can’t wait to see how it all wraps up, and I know this is going to be an epic conclusion to a fantastic set of stories!

Let me know in the comments what books you are most anticipating this fall, as well as your favorite parts of the season!

-Ariana

12Sep2015

Review: The Unfinished Life of Addison Stone by Adele Griffin

Posted in Book Reviews by TheQuirkyBookNerd

The Unfinished Life of Addison Stone by Adele Griffin

My Rating: 1/5 TARDISes

Series: Standalone

Date Published: August 12^th, 2014

Publisher: Soho Teen

Pages: 256 pages

Source: Library

Links: Goodreads | Amazon | The Book Depository

Synopsis: National Book Award-finalist Adele Griffin tells the fully illustrated story of a brilliant young artist, her mysterious death, and the fandom that won’t let her go.

From the moment she stepped foot in NYC, Addison Stone’s subversive street art made her someone to watch, and her violent drowning left her fans and critics craving to know more. I conducted interviews with those who knew her best—including close friends, family, teachers, mentors, art dealers, boyfriends, and critics—and retraced the tumultuous path of Addison’s life. I hope I can shed new light on what really happened the night of July 28. —Adele Griffin

____________________________________________________________________

This is a spoiler-free review.

This novel is structured in a way that makes it sort of like the literary equivalent of “found footage”. It is a work of fiction, but it is written as if it were an actual biography about an up-and-coming young artist named Addison Stone, whose life ends very suddenly when she mysteriously falls from a bridge during an art installation. Adele Griffin writes as herself and functions as a journalist who is compiling this biography; she adds in short pieces written from her point of view throughout the novel. The book is comprised of interviews with a number of Addison’s family and friends, and pictures of Addison and her artwork are interspersed within the text. All of these elements are meant to work together to make the reader feel as if this might be a real account of a person’s life.

When I first discovered this book, the concept and the format it is told in piqued my interest right away. The inclusion of the photographs of and artwork by the subject of the “biography” itself further sold me on it, and I was eager to pick it up. However, while the idea was incredibly creative and the layout of the novel quite artistic, unfortunately, the story ended up falling rather flat for me. Now, this is not at all because I started out believing this was not a work of fiction; that was clear to me from the start, and did not affect the reading experience in any way. I simply felt that, while the concept was clever, it was not executed quite as well as it could have been.

It is clear that this novel is trying to address celebrity culture in today’s society, and the idealistic views that people tend to have about those in the public eye. To construct a plot that did just that, Griffin creates the tale of a person that embodies the type of celebrity that might encounter something akin to worship from their fans. And while this is a fascinating and relevant topic, everything was far too exaggerated. Instead of presenting the reader with a subtle commentary that inspires thought, the story forms characters, situations, and relationships that are far too stereotypical to be taken seriously.

Addison is too special, too perfect to be believable, thereby making it difficult to become invested in her story. Every single person who she crossed paths with throughout her short life became instantly enamored with her; they all found some reason to utterly worship her and everything she did. It was as if she could do no wrong in anyone’s eyes no matter how poorly and immaturely she acted, and this became tiring quickly.

Addison has some problems, some struggles and issues to deal with, but it’s hard to connect with and feel for her despite that. In fact, mental illness appeared to be her only “flaw” which, quite frankly, really bothered me. Overall, I was not thrilled with the way mental illness was addressed. It was not taken as seriously as it should have been, and was many times passed off as something that simply made her life into that of an alluring, tortured artist. The strange discover at the conclusion of the novel regarding one major aspect of her mental troubles also seemed to further diminish the true severity of her illness, and was very unsatisfying and nonsensical.

As a whole, many aspects of this story were very formulaic, using far too many common literary tropes. The excessive use of clichés made this story and each of the characters feel far too much like caricatures. Many aspects of the plot were too over-the-top, and I found it challenging to bring myself to care about any of the storylines.

In terms of the format of the text, the main issue I had was that it was nearly entirely told in the transcripts of the interviews that had been conducted by the narrator after Addison’s passing. This took away from the experience for me, and slowed down the plot massively. While all the writing is the work of the real-life Griffin, the fictional author is writing next to nothing, which is very unrealistic. We see a short paragraph from her a handful of times throughout the text and that is all; mainly, we are reading the exact words of the interviewees. Overall, that ended up counteracting any attempt to give this the feeling of a real biography, and made it feel more like reading paperwork rather than an intriguing account of someone’s life.

Artistically, I loved the layout of the book. My favorite part of this reading experience was seeing the way the pictures connected to various points in the plot as it unfolded. I thought this concept was incredibly inventive and unique; this is the first time I have ever come across a book like this. I had no issues with the visual format. From a design perspective, this book completely nailed it.

Overall, this had a lot of potential. Adele Griffin had a number of good thoughts and intentions in her creation of this novel, and I would definitely be interested to read one of her other novels to experience more of her writing. She had a clear and interesting point that she was trying to make, and if she had employed more subtlety in the creation of her characters and their relationships, it would have come across in a more convincing way. The book lacked depth, and ended up feeling more like a caricature than anything. Using common stereotypes, while effective when it comes to conveying the themes clearly, ends up taking away a lot of the integrity and sincerity, making it less thought provoking and believable.

10Sep2015

Review: The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Posted in Book Reviews by TheQuirkyBookNerd

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

My Rating: 5/5 TARDISes

Series: Sherlock Holmes #1

Date Published: May 1^st, 2012 (first published October 14^th, 1892)

Publisher: BBC Books

Pages: 324 pages

Source: Purchased

Links: Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes is the first collection of short stories Arthur Conan Doyle wrote about his famous detective. Each work chronicles the various cases that Sherlock Holmes works on, accompanied by John Watson, who narrates the tales. Originally, the twelve stories featured in this collection were individually published in The Strand Magazine between 1891 and 1892; they were then released together as a whole novel in late 1892.

I had read one or two individual stories in school over the years, but this was my first real experience with Sherlock Holmes and Arthur Conan Doyle’s work; and I completely fell in love with everything about them. I love a good mystery that makes me really think, and that is exactly what I got over and over again throughout this collection. I found each story to be incredibly absorbing, and they kept me guessing right up until the very end. Each one is full of twists and turns that constantly surprise, but wrap up perfectly in the final pages.

Doyle’s writing style was so captivating, making this a very enjoyable read for me. He is a master at pulling the reader completely into the story, fully into the characters’ lives, and making you care for each and every one of them. In Holmes, he has created a character that does extraordinary, seemingly impossible things in a completely believable way. Despite his extreme intelligence and astonishing powers of observation and deduction, Sherlock Holmes is still realistic. Relatable. Genuinely human.

Watson is a perfect narrator and companion for the great detective. He also works as a great foil for Holmes. This may be a bit surprising because Watson is an exceedingly intelligent man in his own right, so he doesn’t function as a complete contrast to Holmes. Instead, he highlights Holmes’s abilities with his own intelligence by being unable to fully understand his process of deduction. However, Watson as a character still holds his own, and proves to be invaluable at many points during the cases. Overall, they are a wonderful pairing.

So, in short, I absolutely adored this book. Reading these stories gave me that warm, cozy feeling of curling up by the fire with a cup of hot tea while it’s snowing outside. I can’t wait to continue on with the other books in the series, and dive back into this world and these amazing adventures.

Now, I’ll very briefly go more in-depth with a summary of each of the individual stories in the collection. Note: These are spoiler-free descriptions.

My favorite stories from this collection were The Red Headed League, A Case of Identity, The Man with the Twisted Lip, The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle, The Adventure of the Speckled Band, and The Adventure of the Copper Beeches.

A Scandal in Bohemia

This is one of the most famous stories in the collection, starring Irene Adler or, to Holmes, “the woman”. In this story, Holmes is hired by the King of Bohemia to retrieve blackmail, in the form of a photograph, from opera singer Irene Adler, with whom he had been romantically involved with a few years earlier. Now that he is engaged to a woman of noble birth, Adler has been threatening to send this photograph to the family of his fiancée, which would cause them to call of the wedding. It was fascinating to watch Holmes match wits with Adler, who is almost as intelligent and as cunning as him.

The Red Headed League

A redheaded man named Jabez Wilson comes to Holmes with questions about a job he was urged by a friend to take that offered a high salary, but was solely for redheaded men. Wilson was the only one chosen for the job, simply because his hair was the right shade of red. In this story, Holmes is able to connect and solve two cases that appear to be completely unrelated. This was one of my top favorites of the collection.

A Case of Identity

In A Case of Identity, a woman named Mary Sutherland comes to Holmes when her fiancée mysteriously disappears on the morning of their wedding. That very same morning, he had made her promise to remain faithful to him no matter what happened. Holmes soon discovers that this man is not exactly whom he has made himself out to be. This was another one of my favorites!

The Boscombe Valley Mystery

Inspector Lestrade enlists Holmes to solve the murder of a man named Charles McCarthy, whose son has been linked to the crime. The evidence points very strongly toward the son, but his fiancée, and Holmes himself, maintain a belief in the man’s innocence. The twists and turns that this story took were incredible; they hooked me immediately, and kept me thinking until the very end.

The Five Orange Pips

A man named John Openshaw presents Holmes with a case about multiple strange deaths in his family. Openshaw’s uncle received a letter from India containing five orange pips, then passed away no more than two months later. A few years after this, his father also received a letter with the five pips and died three days later. Openshaw himself has just received this very same letter, and is certain he will meet the same fate.

The Man with the Twisted Lip

A man named Neville St. Clair has disappeared, but his wife tells Holmes that she is certain that she saw him looking out of the upstairs window of an opium den. St. Clair is a respected businessman, and not only is it unlikely he would be in there, when she went into the house, the only person inside was an old beggar. I loved the way that this mystery played out, and it was one of the few that I was actually able to deduce the answer to myself!

The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle

A former thief is arrested when the Countess of Morcar’s priceless blue carbuncle is found missing. However, a man with whom Holmes is acquainted discovers this blue carbuncle in the throat of his Christmas goose. This was a definite favorite of mine because, as well as being an intriguing mystery, I found it to be incredibly funny and witty at times!

The Adventure of the Speckled Band

This is arguably Arthur Conan Doyle’s most famous short story about Sherlock Holmes, and his own personal favorite. A woman named Helen Stoner approaches Holmes with fears that her stepfather is trying to kill her after he makes her move into the bedroom in which her sister died two years prior. Apparently, her sister passed away just before her wedding saying, “it was the Speckled Band”. This is the only one that I had read prior to reading the full collection, and it remains one of my favorites.

The Adventure of the Engineer’s Thumb

Watson attends to a man named Victor Hatherly, whose thumb has just been cut off. While in his office, he relates the story to Holmes and Watson of how he was very secretly hired to repair a machine that compressed “Fuller’s Earth” into bricks. Hatherley was not allowed to know the location of the machine, and was taken to it in a carriage with frosted glass windows to prevent him from learning the route. When he discovered something that implied that the machine is not being used for what he was told it would be, his employer attacked him.

The Adventure of the Noble Bachelor

This case involved the disappearance of Hatty Doran following her wedding to Lord Robert St. Simon. She attended the wedding and they were married, but she disappears from the reception, and her wedding band is found floating in a nearby lake. Holmes also discovers that the servants had kept a former lover of hers from forcing his way into the house earlier that morning, and that she had been seen having a secret discussion with her maid shortly before she went missing. There were elements of this story that I guessed as I was reading, but the ending was very surprising, and even more complex than I thought it would be.

The Adventure of the Beryl Coronet

A banker named Alexander Holder presents Holmes with a case after a client he loans money to leaves a beryl coronet, an extremely valuable public possession, with him as security. Holder heard a noise and woke in the night to find his son holding the coronet, which had been damaged, and now has three beryls missing from it.

The Adventure of the Copper Beeches

A woman named Violet Hunter comes to Holmes after she is offered a job as a governess that has some very unusual requirements attached to it, some of which have to do with altering her appearance in a specific way. Holmes urges her to take this oddly high paying job, and to call him in to investigate as she discovers more about the position, and the family. This was another one of my favorites: a very complex and interesting case.

I most definitely recommend this novel to anyone and everyone, especially if you enjoy classics and a good old-fashioned mystery!

8Sep2015

Top 10 Tuesday – September 8th, 2015

Posted in Top 10 Tuesday by TheQuirkyBookNerd

As you can probably tell by this point, I quite enjoy making lists! I promise I’ll be doing other types of posts soon; in fact my first review will be Thursday’s post. But since it is Tuesday, I couldn’t resist giving Top 10 Tuesday a try for the first time. This is an original weekly blog meme created over at The Broke and the Bookish. Each week, there is a new bookish topic for bloggers to create a list about. If you want to know more about Top 10 Tuesday, click here!

Today’s topic is the top 10 finished series that I have yet to finish. It is also my “look at all these TBR books I need to read but haven’t yet” guilt trip. Or maybe the “you need to stop buying so many books you crazy person; you’ve gone insane” list. All I can say is, I’m glad this topic is specifically finished series or we would be here all day!

Anyway, this was a fairly easy list to create because, as you will soon see, I discovered that I have way too many series that I haven’t gotten around to finishing yet. I also realized that I’m actually not in the middle of many series at the moment. So this is a mixture of series that I have already started, and ones that are simply on my TBR and that I would like to begin soon.

The Daughter of Smoke and Bone Trilogy by Laini Taylor

In my opinion, this is probably my most embarrassing unread series from this list because I’ve owned Daughter of Smoke and Bone since it was first released. I’ve now also recently purchased the other two books so I can marathon the trilogy. I’ve been keen to read these ever since I first heard the synopsis, and I know that I’m going to love these stories; not to mention the fact that they take place in Prague, one of my favorite places. I really need to get going on them!

The Divergent Trilogy by Veronica Roth

I read Divergent for the first time last year, and it has definitely become one of my favorite books of all time. However, I continued on to Insurgent earlier this year and it was okay, but I didn’t love it nearly as much. That, coupled with the mixed reviews I always hear about Allegiant (plus the fact that I’ve been majorly spoiled) have sort of slowed down my progress through the trilogy. I do plan on trying to finish it soon though.

The Chaos Walking Trilogy by Patrick Ness

After reading A Monster Calls, I instantly fell in love with Patrick Ness’s writing, and I have been extremely eager to get to these books. I’ve owned the entire trilogy for a while now, but for some insane reason I have not yet started it. I need to get moving on this!

The Percy Jackson and the Olympians Series by Rick Riordan

This one is definitely another embarrassing one since it’s a series that I’ve been meaning to read for about a decade! I finally started it at the end of last year; I’m three books in and absolutely loving it. I’ve already bought the final two and I’m hoping to finish them off this year so I can move on to The Heroes of Olympus series.

The Mistborn Trilogy by Brandon Sanderson

I have been meaning to read something by Brandon Sanderson for the longest time, and the Mistborn trilogy is what has been recommended to me the most. But really, as a massive fantasy fan, it’s quite shameful that I have not yet read one of his novels! I do feel slightly less guilty about this one because I intend to read The Final Empire this month.

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy Series by Douglas Adams

This one is just insane because I absolutely adore these stories! I’ve read the first book multiple times and seen the film more times than I can count. My dad got us a box set so we can both finish the series, and I’m hoping to continue on with it in the next month or so.

The Darkest Minds Trilogy by Alexandra Bracken

This is yet another trilogy I have, but have not gotten around to starting yet. And I cannot believe that I haven’t because it is basically everything I could ever want in a book series. These books have my name written all over them. I mean, a dystopian series about kids with super powers? Um…YES. Soon.

The Legend Trilogy by Marie Lu

I read, and thoroughly enjoyed, Legend last year, and my dad got me a box set of the trilogy this past Christmas. My only excuse for not having finished this trilogy already is the fact that I may or may not be slightly terrified of the feels I know are coming in the last two books. I will get through them soon though, because I am dying to know how the story ends!

The Seven Realms Series by Cinda Williams Chima

I’ve known about this series for a while now and I still have yet to begin it. It’s another fantasy series that I have always heard wonderful things about. I recently purchased The Demon King, and it is high up on my TBR, so I’ll hopefully be diving into it soon.

The Shatter Me Trilogy by Tahereh Mafi

This is a difficult one. It is another trilogy I own, and I have read the first book, but the other two remain unfinished. To be honest, I did not love Shatter Me. I had a really hard time getting into it, and I’m not in a mad rush to move on to the next book. However, I hate leaving series unfinished and I do hear that it keeps getting better, so I think I will try to finish it off at some point.

Well, as you can see, I am downright atrocious at finishing series! I think this may call for some marathons. Let me know in the comments what series you guys still need to finish.

-Ariana

6Sep2015

September 2015 TBR

Posted in Wrap Ups And TBRs by TheQuirkyBookNerd

Can you believe it’s September already? This is coming a bit late as we are already almost a week in, but I thought it would be fun to share my TBR for the month. It is a bit ambitious, and I have a feeling I won’t end up making it through all of these books by the end of the month, however, I am hoping to read a good number of them. So here’s a list of books at the top of my reading list that I plan on working on this month!

The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin

This is the book that I’m currently working on and I am already loving it! The writing is wonderful; the story is very funny, heartfelt, and emotional. And on top of that, it’s a perfect story for book lovers and anyone who has had their lives touched by literature. I can’t wait to finish it!

Scarlet by Marissa Meyer

I read Cinder at the beginning of the year and completely fell in love with it, and I cannot believe I haven’t read this book yet. I’d also like to catch up on these stories so I can read Winter when it comes out at the end of the year. So it’s about time I continue on with the series!

The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson

This is another book that I’ve been meaning to get to for a while now. I constantly hear people raving about this trilogy, and Brandon Sanderson’s work in general, so I’m very eager to finally pick up one of his novels. Plus, I’m really in the mood for a good fantasy novel right now.

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

I always love reading new authors every year, and this is one debut novel that I’ve been hearing a lot of amazing things about. The premise sounds very interesting and incredibly funny, so I’m definitely looking forward to checking it out.

The Marvels by Brian Selznick

I am a huge fan of Brian Selznick, so of course I’m dying to pick up his newest book! His stories are always fantastic, and as a writer and artist, the format of them always intrigues me. This is coming out toward the middle of the month, and I plan on reading it right away.

Dissonance by Mariella Hunt

This is another debut novel; it just came out a few months ago and is actually written by a friend of mine. The plot sounds very interesting and I’ve read, and loved, her writing in the past, so I’m really looking forward to diving into this.

The Singular and Extraordinary Tale of Mirror and Goliath by Ishbelle Bee

This is another book by a debut author, and it’s pitched as a dark, adult fairytale, which is right up my alley. It seems like it will be a really unique story, and it sounds similar in style to Neil Gaiman’s novels, so I think this will be an enjoyable read.

Miss. Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

My mom and a number of my friends have been recommending this to me for a few years now so, once again, this is a book I’ve been meaning to read for a while. With the final book coming out this month, and the movie in the works, I thought it would be a great time to get going on this trilogy.

Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee

Okay, so I will admit that I have been a bit nervous about reading this one. To Kill a Mockingbird is my absolute favorite book of all time, so with the very mixed reviews, and the controversy surrounding this novel, I have been hesitant. However, I have mentally prepared myself (and have To Kill a Mockingbird on hand for a cheer-up re-read if need be), so I think I’m ready. Also, I have a few family members and friends who have already told me they are waiting to hear what I think about it before they read it, so I want to get to it soon. To be honest, I think I will probably end up liking this and my fears will be for nothing.

Dark Places by Gillian Flynn

I cannot sufficiently explain my eagerness to get to this novel! I just read Gone Girl this summer and I loved it. I am already a total Gillian Flynn fangirl. Her writing style is wonderful, and I am so impressed with her ability to create such complex and intriguing storylines and characters. I can’t wait to read more of her work!

I also plan on continuing to read a few stories out of The Return of Sherlock Holmes.

So that’s my TBR for the month. Let me know in the comments what books you guys are currently reading and/or what you are planning on reading during the month!

-Ariana

4Sep2015

Book Blogger TMI Tag

Posted in Tags by TheQuirkyBookNerd

Let me put this out there: I am horrible at talking about myself.

Seriously, it’s a problem. The words “tell me about yourself” send me into a complete panic. The “about me” section is the bane of my existence. I mean, I basically react as if I’ve just stumbled into a room and been asked to describe the entire life history of that random guy over there in the corner whom I’ve definitely never met, but feel like I should know all about.

Okay, so maybe that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but talking about oneself is stressful. I think that part of the reason for this is that many times, it can feel too formal. And I find that this is not at all an ideal way for me to convey my personality. So I’ve been debating for a while what would be the best way to go about introducing myself as I start this blog, and I came up with the perfect solution. A tag! This way, it feels a lot more personal and informal, and I can say all the arbitrary facts I’ve always wanted to say when I am asked about myself.

Side note: This ended up being a mixture of a number of tags (both book related and not book related) that I’ve seen floating about the Internet.

How old are you?

I’m 21-years-old.

How tall are you?

About 5’5”.

Which Hogwarts house are you in? (People need to ask this more often!)

Proud Ravenclaw!

Any piercings/tattoos?

I don’t have any tattoos, but I do (much to the dismay of my family) have 10 ear piercings.

What place do you want to visit?

Iceland! I think it would be an absolutely beautiful and fascinating place to visit. I’d also love to go to Italy or back to Prague.

Who are your favorite bands?

Panic at the Disco, Fall Out Boy, Imagine Dragons, and Muse, to name a few.

What was the last song you listened to?

The Kids Aren’t Alright by The Offspring

What is your favorite TV show?

It’s so hard to pick just one! My favorite show currently still on TV is probably Doctor Who, but my all-time favorite is Frasier.

Who is your favorite actor?

Again, it’s so hard to pick just one! My top favorites are Jimmy Stewart, Gregory Peck, Katharine Hepburn, and Meryl Streep.

Favorite author?

Surprise—once again, I’m finding it impossible to pick just one! My favorites are Arthur Conan Doyle, Harper Lee, Neil Gaiman, Patrick Ness, Gillian Flynn, J.K. Rowling, and Shakespeare. That’s definitely a lot more than one…decisions aren’t really my forte.

Ebooks—yes or no?

They’re nice when traveling, but nothing can ever compare to actually holding a physical book.

What was the last book you read?

Nimona by Noelle Stevenson, which was fantastic!

What book are you currently reading?

The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin

What is the book you’re going to read next?

Scarlet by Marissa Meyer

What is the number one book on your wish list?

Half a King by Joe Abercrombie

What is your favorite book?

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee!

Which is your favorite book-to-film adaptation?

To Kill a Mockingbird…yeah, that last question kind of took the suspense out of this one.

Who is your all-time favorite book character?

Atticus Finch. Need I say more?

Who is your book boyfriend/girlfriend/fictional crush?

Atticus Finch of course! Okay, I think I have sufficiently demonstrated my love of this book. For now. (Fair warning—it will probably come up again.)

Do you prefer books with female or male protagonists?

Gender of the protagonist doesn’t usually matter to me. The most important part is the portrayal of the character.

If you hated reading, what would you be doing instead?

*Gasp* How could I even imagine such a thing?! Okay, so I guess I do also enjoy writing, singing, and film/photography. But hating to read? *faints*

What do you do when someone tells you reading is boring?

Usually have a heart attack.

Going outside being active or staying in and reading a book?

I do love going out for a good walk or bike ride but…reading. Definitely reading.

Where do you prefer to read?

Snuggled in bed!

Which do you enjoy reading more—negative reviews or positive reviews?

I like reading an equal amount of both. I love hearing differing opinions on things like books and movies, especially after I’ve read or seen them. It always really gets me thinking.

What is your favorite book quote?

“I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what.” –Atticus Finch, To Kill a Mockingbird

Phew, we made it!

I really had a great time answering these questions! I’m so excited to be starting this blog, and I hope you guys will stick around for future posts. There will be book reviews, tags, and many more bookish posts to come, so stay tuned!

-Ariana

2Sep2015

Top 5 Wednesday – September 2nd, 2015

Posted in Top 5 Wednesday by TheQuirkyBookNerd

Hello everyone, and welcome to my blog!

I’ll be putting up a full introduction to the blog and myself within the next few days. However, since today is Wednesday, I thought I would jump right into blogging with a Top 5 Wednesday post. This way, I can also kick things off by sharing a few of my favorite books with you guys. So here’s a little taste of what’s to come on this site!

Top 5 Wednesday was created by Lainey at Gingerreadslainey. Every week, book reviewers all over the world are given a bookish topic and respond with their top 5 books (or elements of books) that relate to that topic. Click here for the Goodreads group if you would like to learn more about Top 5 Wednesday and join in!

This week’s topic is Top 5 Fictional Cities. I was finding it a bit hard to come up with locations that were specifically cities, so this is more of a list of my favorite fictional places.

The Capitol (from The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins)

So, this isn’t exactly a place where I’d like to spend a lot of time. But come on, it would be absolutely fascinating to visit The Capitol. The architecture would be beautiful, sleek, and futuristic (I’ve always been completely obsessed with architecture). And the fashion! It would be very interesting, and honestly pretty hilarious, to see the strange clothes and insane hair and makeup. Overall, it would definitely be quite a memorable experience…to say the least.

Luna (from The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer)

Again, not a place that I would particularly like to spend a lot of time. However, I’d like to go here for pretty much the same reason as The Capitol: the architecture. And let’s not forget about the location. Seeing those buildings against an interstellar backdrop—now that would be truly incredible. So, as long as you observe quietly from the shadows, preferably without being noticed by the Lunar, and keep as far away from Levana as possible, it would be a great place to visit. Also, I may or may not secretly dream of going to space. Possibly.

Dictionopolis (from The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster)

This is the first location that Milo and his friend Tock (part dog, part alarm clock) journey to after Milo enters “The Lands Beyond”. Here, you can find an entire market where people buy and sell letters and words. Basically, it is paradise for a writer such as myself. When I read this book as a kid, this was always the city that I was most enthralled by.

Hogwarts or the Harry Potter world in general (from the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling)

I definitely feel like this needs the least amount of explaining because, honestly, who wouldn’t want to go live in a giant, magical castle in the UK? Who wouldn’t want to spend time just about anywhere in the Harry Potter world for that matter? Personally, I’d spend all of my time down in Hogsmeade, or maybe in the library at the school. It would also be wonderful to get lost for hours exploring all the secrets the castle holds. I’m still waiting for my acceptance letter—do you think 21 is too old?

Narnia from The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis

Any fan of the series can relate to that feeling of knowing it’s not real, yet still hoping that, one day, you’ll go to grab something from the wardrobe and end up stumbling into this beautiful world. A world of animals that can talk, enchanting mythical creatures, and long expanses of lush forests divided by crystal clear waters. A world where exciting adventures are always just around the corner—a world you want to get lost in. What more can I say? Narnia is pure magic.

So there you have it—my top 5 favorite fictional locations. I hope you all enjoyed this first post; there will be plenty more to come! Let me know in the comments what your top favorite fictional cities/places are.

-Ariana

The Quirky Book Nerd

Tag Archives: book blogger

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