Reader Rayna

Month: November 2015

  • November 2015 Wrap-Up

    Did this month even exist? I feel like it was literally just October 31st a week ago. It’s amazing how fast time is flying this year.

    So this month was very lacking in the blog and reading department, but I still want to just briefly talk about what I did read and some of the things I talked about this month.

    What I Read

    • The Amazing Book is Not On Fire [Audiobook] by Dan Howell and Phil Lester – Yes, I already read this book last month, but as soon as I heard about the audiobook, I just couldn’t resist. And honestly, I loved it so much more than reading the book simply for the fact that Dan and Phil read it, had their own little commentaries here and there, and just some of the quality of it was so much better. I laughed a lot and I just enjoyed it immensely. If you’re a fan of these guys, I suggest giving their audiobook a go. 5/5 stars. Check out my book review here!
    • The Raven Boys by Maggie Steifvater – This book was so awesome and very atmospheric. It really brought me into the story and had me craving more and more with each chapter, trying to figure out the mystery behind many things going on in the town of Henrietta. I rated it 4.5/5 stars. Check out my review!

    What I Talked About

    • All the Updates – I talked about a lot of things that are going on in my life including my one year wedding anniversary, reading, my bird, NaNoWriMo, my life, and this blog.
    • Books That Changed My Life – I talked about some of the books that have impacted me in more ways than one.
    • Writing Slumps & How Much They Suck – Yeah, they really, really do… I failed at NaNoWriMo this year, so I just kind of wanted to vent a little about why writing slumps suck.

    Fun Things

    • Fall Time Cozy Time Tag – A fun tag where I answered some questions about some books that reminded me about some of the different things that come to mind when you talk about fall.
    • Top Ten Tuesday: Quotes I Love from the Past Year or So and Non-Bookish Things I’m Thankful For – I did two Top Ten Tuesdays this month and in one I talked about some of my favorite book quotes from books that I’ve read over the last year that I love, and in the other I talked about some of the non-bookish things I’m thankful for.
    • Top 5 Wednesday: Books I’m Grateful For – On this day I talked about five books that I’m grateful for and that I have really impacted my life in one way or another.
    • Book Tree Decorating – I made a Christmas tree with just some of the books that I own! It was a fun project and I definitely want to do it again.

    So that’s it for this month! I know it’s not a lot, but I still read things that I really enjoyed, and talked about several things that made me smile, so that’s really all that matters.

    See you in December!

    How was your November? Did you meet any goals you may have set out to reach, or did you get left in the dust like I did? Let me know!

  • Book Tree Decorating

    So, not only did I decorate our regular Christmas tree this year, but I also did a book tree! It was so fun, so I want to share with you all what I did.

    Let me know if you’ll be decorating a book tree this year! I’d love to see what you came up with.

  • Writing Slumps & How Much They Suck

    Well, it’s pretty much the last week of NaNoWriMo and I only wrote a few times during the first week. Pretty much: I gave up. It’s not that I didn’t like what I was writing because I worked on this story earlier in the year, it’s just I’m so drained of energy after working 8-10 hours that I have no oomph to think about writing.

    I find that slumps in general just suck. I’m in a huge reading and writing slump and it makes me sad because I absolutely loved doing both at the beginning of the year before I started my full time job; now it just kind of feels like a chore to do either.

    But since I already talked about reading slumps and how much they suck, let me talk today about writing slumps and how annoying they can be.

    When you’re writing a story, at least from my experience, you become engulfed in that world and you want to know more about your own characters, the world in which they live, how society, magic, whatever works in that world. I know when I was writing this story back in March or April, I was so in love with it. I was on a roll and I managed to reach my goal of 50,000 words written – it was awesome!

    And then soon after that, after Camp NaNoWriMo ended, I slowed down to the point I stopped writing. It’s not that I didn’t want to continue my story – I knew where I wanted it to go, what plot points I wanted to add, etc – but I just couldn’t bring myself to do it since I didn’t have a word goal to work toward anymore.

    I think that for me, I need that word count goal to work toward. So you’d think that with NaNoWriMo I’d be totally set, right? Well, I hadn’t written for so long at that point that writing was 1) refreshing, but 2) was also a pain. I had to pick up where I left off, and I wasn’t super happy with what I had written and I didn’t want to rewrite until I reach the editing stage.

    Unfortunately that means that I’ve put off actually completing much of any writing for this month. I wrote over 5,000 words for this NaNoWriMo, which is awesome, but it still wasn’t enough for me to be happy with.

    I think that part of the problem is my job, as I’ve stated, but it’s also just me. I’ve become incredibly lazy when it comes to my passions and that alone scares me. It’s incredibly hard for me to focus on what I’m reading lately, and I think that’s translating over to my writing.

    Nowadays I just want to sit on YouTube all day and watch videos, or listen to music, or watch Netflix. It’s so frustrating and it upsets me, but I also don’t do much to change it.

    So what about getting out of a slump? What about getting out of a writing slump and pushing through to finish the story?

    Well, I’m going to seriously look at what’s important to me and try to figure out some sort of schedule or something to work for me.

    What about you? If you’re a writer, do you feel like you get stuck often, or do you just chug through to the end? Let me know!

  • The Raven Boys Book Review

    theravenboysTitle: The Raven Boys
    Series: Book 1 in The Raven Cycle
    Author: Maggie Stiefvater
    Publisher: Scholastic
    Publication Date: September 18, 2012
    Genre: Young Adult – Paranormal
    Pages: 408
    Format: Gifted Paperback

    Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue never sees them–until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks to her.

    His name is Gansey, a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble.

    But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can’t entirely explain. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul whose emotions range from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher who notices many things but says very little.

    For as long as she can remember, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love to die. She doesn’t believe in true love, and never thought this would be a problem. But as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she’s not so sure anymore.

    This first installment of this series was, in my opinion, amazing. I thought that the premise of it being about psychics and some huge mystery was actually very unique and exciting. In fact, I didn’t think I would like it as much as I did for some reason, and I’m not sure why.

    I thought that the plot itself was driven by the characters and their actions, but also just by the sheer fact that they exist in the universe that they exist in. It’s hard to explain, really, but I thought that the plot kept moving forward, even though some of the slow times, as if those times were purposeful and meant to be there.

    At the end of each chapter I wanted to continue to flip the page, to find out more, to have answers to my unanswered questions. I just feel like the plot really delivered, and I think a huge part of that had to do with the characters.

    When I first read about Blue, I thought that she was just… different. She, herself, was unique in this unique setting, and I found it to be entertaining where she lived and who she lived with. Her personality was subtle, a little sheltered, but still one that was down to earth and in control of her emotions. She understood more than what many might not, especially given the circumstances for which things were happening. She was strong, but not overpowering, and I thought that she was actually kind of cool in her own way.

    Gansey was super formal and tried too hard to please others, I think. He always had a mask on and would only let it slip on occasion, so I’m really interested to see how much that mask falls off later down the road. And even though he was the “leader” of the Raven Boys group, he didn’t really act like he had all of the power and the most money; he was just trying to be helpful. I think part of his personality bordered on innocent, while the rest bordered on, well, an excited teenaged boy on an adventure. I think that he’ll definitely grow in the future books and I’m intrigued to see what happens with him next.

    Ronan was the badass of the group, and rightfully so. His whole posture and demeanor screamed “troubled teen,” but he also surprised me in more ways than one. Not only was he a badass with daddy and sibling issues, he also holds dark secrets and he has a soft side. I mean, what more can you ask for? Frankly, I just want to be his friend because he proved himself more than just once in this book that he cares greatly for his friends, even if he doesn’t always show it.

    Adam was like the outsider of the group – the one who was raised in a different situation than the rest of the boys – but I think that really humbled him. He was kind and generous, but he also had a lot of moments where his pride took over. I thought that he was trying so hard to be so strong, when really, he was crumbling on the inside. I am interested to see if certain events take place and how he pans out as a character, but so far I like him.

    Noah was the super quiet, mysterious one, that you almost forget is that. And, hell, that’s how he’s even described as in the book! I figured out who he was a few chapters before it was found out, and I loved that whole mystery around him. I think that he adds a definite calming aura for the group, as well as just a little bit of light when it’s needed. I hope there will be more of him in the future because he just seems like one of those characters you can’t help but love.

    There were also the side characters of Maura, Persephone, and Calla, who were all fun and witty and each their own person and I liked greatly, as well as Neeve, who was mysterious and creepy. And then there was Whelk, who, well… I didn’t really like. I wonder what will happen in future books with some of these characters?

    So, all in all, I really loved this book. I only I had a few problems, which were a few typos and the big resounding question of why anyone is actually going along with these things that take place without asking more questions, but alas, maybe those questions will be answered later on, or maybe they won’t. But overall, I think that this was a really enjoyable read and I would recommend this to those who love paranormal, mystery, and books that keep you wanting to turn the page.

    I give this book a 4.5/5 stars.

  • Top 5 Wednesday: Books I’m Thankful For

    Welcome to another Top 5 Wednesday as hosted by gingerreadslainey from YouTube. Today’s topic is about the books we’re thankful for, and since I talked about my top ten non-bookish things I’m thankful for yesterday, I figured I’d participate in this week’s T5W.

    So here are my top five favorite books that I’m thankful to have in my life:

    5. A Certain Slant of Light by Laura Whitcomb

    acertainslantoflight

    I had to choose a book for summer reading one year, and I actually had to read the book this time because it was my last year for summer reading and I wanted to actually make an effort, and so when I found this book on the list I was amazed: it was boring, old, or weird like the rest of the summer book selections from years past. This book surprised me in the best possible way: it had romance, it has drama, it had a young woman trapped in someone else’s body trying to live again. It was amazing and wonderful and I think this is the book that got me back into reading when I first entered high school, and for that, I am truly grateful.

    4. Chinese Cinderella by Adeline Yen Mah

    chinesecinderella

    Though this story was extremely frustrating and saddening, it’s the true story of an unwanted daughter in China and it really just opened my eyes to a world in which I thought everyone could be loved, but really, it’s not that simple. This book showed so much hate and disdain for this girl, and how she had to deal with those things, and though I can’t exactly remember how it ended, I do know that it greatly impacted me, especially since I read it when I was a young teen.

    3. Twilight saga by Stephenie Meyer

    twilight

    I was a fan before these books got big, and let me tell you, I am thankful for it. This was the first book series I’ve ever fangirled over, and the one that I bonded with my friends over. Heck, I even got my husband to read them, too, back when we were just starting to date. Oh yeah, I’m amazing. I know this series gets a lot of crap for one reason or another, but during a time when I was just going into high school and trying to figure out life as a teen, this series was right there with me and for that I am grateful.

    2. The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer

    houseofthescorpion

    This was one of the first novels I’ve ever reread. It was also one of the first ones that I remember effecting me so much and caused me to want to read more like it, even if I didn’t (I honestly can’t remember). It’s such a strong and powerful morally driven book, and it really explores the question of “what if the world was like this in the future.” It just brought out a passion in me for reading, I think, and I’ll be forever grateful to this book for that reason.

    1 . Tokyo Mew Mew by Reiko Yoshida & Mia Ikumi

    tokyomewmew

    I’m so thankful to this series as it was the first manga series I was ever introduced to back in the sixth grade. It was one in which I found my best friend again after years of not seeing each other, and it was just a series in which I could escape reality from and imagine and dream of a world in which I could be a super hero with special animal abilities. Though that sounds kind of weird, it’s true, and I’ll forever hold this series in my heart.

    So there you have it, the top five books that I’m grateful for. And I even still own all of these books because of how much I love them and how much of an impact they’v made on me over the years.

    What books are you grateful for having in your life? Let me know!