Top 5 Wednesday – September 30th, 2015

Posted in Top 5 Wednesday by TheQuirkyBookNerd

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!

Since we are in the middle of Banned Books Week (September 27^th-October 3^rd), this week’s Top 5 Wednesday topic is the top 5 banned books you’ve read. I am extremely grateful to have grown up around people who love reading equally as much as I do, and who always encouraged me to read anything and everything.

And that is exactly what I did! During my childhood, I read any book I could get my hands on, and I still do that to this day. My reading has never been censored; therefore, I have read not only a lot of books in general, but also a lot of banned books. It was a hard list to narrow down, but here are some of my all-time favorite novels.

1984 by George Orwell

Banned/challenged for sexually explicit content and its social and political themes.

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston

Banned/challenged for sexually explicit content and offensive language.

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

Banned/challenged for offensive language and violence.

The Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling

Banned/challenged for occult/Satanism, violence, religious views, and for being anti-family.

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Banned/challenged for offensive language and racism.

This is only a very small fraction of the long list of books that have been banned over the years. It is a shame to see so many beautiful and important books being challenged and banned. These are books that educate us and shape our world. These are books that captivate and inspire millions of people. So I encourage all of you to be a book rebel! Go pick up a banned book, this week and any week.

What banned books have you guys read? Let me know some of your favorites in the comments!

-Ariana

23Sep2015

Top 5 Wednesday – September 23rd, 2015

Posted in Top 5 Wednesday by TheQuirkyBookNerd

This week’s Top 5 Wednesday topic is our top five favorite title fonts on book covers. The design of a cover is extremely important because it is the first impression that a potential reader gets, and is what will inspire them to learn more about the actual novel itself. We may not entirely judge a book by its cover, but it definitely plays a significant role in the book selection process of all readers.

As both a reader and an artist, I have always enjoyed every aspect of a novel, from the cover to the layout to the actual text of the story. I will admit, covers are very important to me and I can get pretty picky when choosing what edition I want to buy. I also happen to be a huge typography nerd, so I love covers with unique and beautiful title fonts.

It was tough to chose, but here are a few of the books that I think have both distinctive and gorgeous title fonts!

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

The Assassin’s Apprentice/Royal Assassin/Assassin’s Quest by Robin Hobb

The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August by Claire North

Jackaby/Beastly Bones by William Ritter

Cinder/Scarlet/Cress/Winter by Marissa Meyer

What are your favorite book title fonts? Let me know in the comments!

-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!

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