Thursday 5 March 2015
World Book Day
Hey everyone, today's World Book Day and as far as I'm concerned any excuse for us to celebrate books and reading in general is a genuinely awesomeful thing. Not to mention the brilliant work it does to encourage the kidlets to read. Their website is pretty awesome, and contains trailers for YA books such as the one below for Opal Plumstead by Jacqueline Wilson (enjoy!)
Monday 2 March 2015
Being Bookish
You know you're a reading addict when...
...your book piles look like a treacherously cunning game of Jenga.
...you volunteer as tribute.
...you can't walk past a stall of second-hand books without your head craning to look, with or without your permission.
...you want to finish the book but you don't want to finish the book.
...when you close a book you keep judging how much is left by where the bookmark is.
...there's no such thing as too many books!
...your book piles look like a treacherously cunning game of Jenga.
...you volunteer as tribute.
...you can't walk past a stall of second-hand books without your head craning to look, with or without your permission.
...you want to finish the book but you don't want to finish the book.
...when you close a book you keep judging how much is left by where the bookmark is.
...there's no such thing as too many books!
Wednesday 25 February 2015
Time to Review the Evidence: Traitors of the Tower
As promised, here's my review of Alison Weir's Traitors of the Tower. I'm still trying to work out the best, most useful, and most refreshing ways to review books on this blog so please have patience and let me know what you like!
Title: Traitors of the Tower
Author: Alison Weir
Genre: Non-fiction
Series: Quick Reads
A few starting notes:
This is a short and interesting book by the historian Alison Weir. It's part of the Quick Reads series - an excellent series funded in part by literacy charities, skills agencies and the Welsh Assembly via Basic Skills Cymru. This series is worthy of being praised to the hilt - short, easily digested books by top authors on a variety of subjects. This is an affordable series (though I borrowed mine from the library) at the incredibly reasonable price of about £1.99 per book. Appropriate for the reluctant and the avid reader alike.
Premise:
This is a work of non-fiction focussing on 'traitors' who have been executed in the tower of London (does what it says on the tin!) It's set into chapters, with each chapter really being a standalone piece in its own right, as each deals with an individual 'traitor.' It's set out chronologically (in time order of deaths.)
Best bits:
The length means that this is a book you can stick into your lunch-breaks or train-journeys. The way the structure works with the different chapters means that you can read a chapter and then have a ready made break to the next one. The way Quick Reads describe their series is as a shot - and I think that's pretty accurate: short, distilled, enjoyable.
The author is knowledgeable; Alison Weir knows her stuff, and writes confidently, slimming down her normally intensely detailed writing into its core components to give an overall impression of the events.
The whole of the book is planted firmly in the Tudor period (which Weir knows well,) which is as popular and interesting as ever. What's so good about this book however is that not only does it include the big names (Anne Boleyn; Katherine Howard,) but it also includes names which are a little less well known (Lady Jane Grey; Margaret Pole,) which means there's plenty to interest you.
Not so great bits:
Sometimes the writing seems a touch forced - as if the slimming down purpose has caused it to lose some of its sheen, this is only occasional but is noticeable in some parts.
There's no debating the details here - now, I don't mind this, but some history buffs wouldn't be so thrilled. I think it fits the series though, so it's really not too much of a minus point.
Verdict:
This is a great book to fill in those in-between times such as breaks, or waiting at a doctors surgery. It's accessible to those who don't have a lot of time, and those who maybe aren't so confident in reading, while still absorbing and interesting the reader. A job well done by Ms Weir.
Title: Traitors of the Tower
Author: Alison Weir
Genre: Non-fiction
Series: Quick Reads
A few starting notes:
This is a short and interesting book by the historian Alison Weir. It's part of the Quick Reads series - an excellent series funded in part by literacy charities, skills agencies and the Welsh Assembly via Basic Skills Cymru. This series is worthy of being praised to the hilt - short, easily digested books by top authors on a variety of subjects. This is an affordable series (though I borrowed mine from the library) at the incredibly reasonable price of about £1.99 per book. Appropriate for the reluctant and the avid reader alike.
Premise:
This is a work of non-fiction focussing on 'traitors' who have been executed in the tower of London (does what it says on the tin!) It's set into chapters, with each chapter really being a standalone piece in its own right, as each deals with an individual 'traitor.' It's set out chronologically (in time order of deaths.)
Best bits:
The length means that this is a book you can stick into your lunch-breaks or train-journeys. The way the structure works with the different chapters means that you can read a chapter and then have a ready made break to the next one. The way Quick Reads describe their series is as a shot - and I think that's pretty accurate: short, distilled, enjoyable.
The author is knowledgeable; Alison Weir knows her stuff, and writes confidently, slimming down her normally intensely detailed writing into its core components to give an overall impression of the events.
The whole of the book is planted firmly in the Tudor period (which Weir knows well,) which is as popular and interesting as ever. What's so good about this book however is that not only does it include the big names (Anne Boleyn; Katherine Howard,) but it also includes names which are a little less well known (Lady Jane Grey; Margaret Pole,) which means there's plenty to interest you.
Not so great bits:
Sometimes the writing seems a touch forced - as if the slimming down purpose has caused it to lose some of its sheen, this is only occasional but is noticeable in some parts.
There's no debating the details here - now, I don't mind this, but some history buffs wouldn't be so thrilled. I think it fits the series though, so it's really not too much of a minus point.
Verdict:
This is a great book to fill in those in-between times such as breaks, or waiting at a doctors surgery. It's accessible to those who don't have a lot of time, and those who maybe aren't so confident in reading, while still absorbing and interesting the reader. A job well done by Ms Weir.
Monday 23 February 2015
Book Haul - #LibraryHaul
I went to the library this morning (Yay!) and picked up this awesome haul, some fiction, some non-fiction, some graphic novels...all combine to make a happy reading addict!
I hauled the following:
Prince of Shadows; Rachel Caine
The Shape Stealer; Lee Carroll
Mr Briggs' Hat; Kate Colquhoun
The Witch's Daughter; Paula Brackston
Traitors of the Tower; Alison Weir
Under the Never Sky; Veronica Rossi
Graphic Novels:
Wolverine: Hunting Season
Genju no Seiza vol. 1
Vermonia 1 Quest for the Silver Tiger
I'm hoping to review some soon - espec. Traitors of the Tower, since it's a Quick Read and I think that that's such a very awesome scheme/series! Happy reading everyone!
Wednesday 18 February 2015
Gotta build myself an audience!
Hey guys! I hope you enjoying my weird and wonderful musings on all things reading and book-related, but my mission is to spread the book love as far as I can!!! Watch this space, and if anyone has any ideas then let me know!
Tuesday 17 February 2015
Magazines, magazines, magazines!!!
You may not have guessed, but this post is about magazines :P . Yep, magazines - I'm a big fan and my current magazine tbr pile is pretty impressive. This is on account of the fact that a) I'm a reading addict, I have a tendency to buy reading materials; and b) I do magazine swaps.
Magazine swaps, in case you weren't aware, is where you swap your old magazines with someone else's old magazines - it pretty much does what it says on the tin. It's also an eco-friendly way to re-use old magazines before they go to that great big printing house in the sky. You end up with a pretty eclectic mix - I have New Scientist magazine alongside Marie Claire, for example, but that's half the fun! The only problem is, as I tend to buy more magazines than anyone else, I don't tend to get so much in return; still, what I do get I'm thankful for as it spreads my money out a bit more.
My magazines tbr list currently consists of:
Magazine swaps, in case you weren't aware, is where you swap your old magazines with someone else's old magazines - it pretty much does what it says on the tin. It's also an eco-friendly way to re-use old magazines before they go to that great big printing house in the sky. You end up with a pretty eclectic mix - I have New Scientist magazine alongside Marie Claire, for example, but that's half the fun! The only problem is, as I tend to buy more magazines than anyone else, I don't tend to get so much in return; still, what I do get I'm thankful for as it spreads my money out a bit more.
My magazines tbr list currently consists of:
- 10-15 issues of New Scientist
- 3 issues of Marie Claire (UK)
- 3-5 issues of BBC Wildlife
- 1 issue of Glamour (UK)
- 1 issue of the Big Issue (well worth buying!)
- 4-5 issues of Vogue (UK)
- 1 issue of Look
- 4-5 issues of Papercraft Essentials
- 3 issues of Empire
Friday 13 February 2015
Reading addict struck by flu!
Argh, I hate the flu. There's just no relief. It's horrible, and you end up taking painkillers and making very little sense in general. Not that I usually make all that much sense, but yesterday I caught myself thinking "He was always so good at that," with absolutely no idea where that came from or what it was about.
On the plus side, been burying myself in books. I'm reading more slowly than normal though so that I understand what's going on! My brain is all fuzzily!!!
On the plus side, been burying myself in books. I'm reading more slowly than normal though so that I understand what's going on! My brain is all fuzzily!!!
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