Hey guys so today is another book review, this time on Far From You by Tess Sharpe. This was another book that I'd not heard mentioned in the book community and picked it up purely based on its intriguing blurb. This book follows a teenage girl called Sophie who is not only overcoming her drug abuse but coming to terms with the death of her best friend Mina.
I found the story line to this book really interesting as it unfolds like a murder mystery. Sophie has so much to deal with and prove not only to herself but her family.
One thing about this book is that it jumps back in forth between to time periods, so if this is something that you don't enjoy in a book or get confused by this is probably not the book for you. One set of chapters is set after Mina's death and follows Sophie through and getting out of rehab and trying to uncover Mina's murderer. The other half of the chapters are set before Mina's death and you really get to see what her and Sophie's relationship was like.
If you watch or have read Pretty Little Liars I feel you would enjoy this book however don't expect it to be anywhere near as good as PLL! Overall I did enjoy this book and gave it 3/5 stars however I probably wouldn't read it again.
Below is a more in depth review I filmed over on my YouTube Channel.
So seeing as I have so many books to review at the moment I thought I would combine them into one post. Stay tuned for the end for my corresponding video.
Pages:170
Rating: 5/5
So you may know the film or even the t.v. series 10 Things I Hate About you but did you know its based off of a book? 10 Things was originally written by David Levithan and is inspired by the Shakespeare novel "Taming Of The Shrew". 10 Things is my favourite film and I've been looking for ages for the book. Well recently I finally found it on the market place of Amazon and got it for around £4 used! I couldn't believe it! You can definitely tell its been read and pre owned however its still in really good shape all things considering. If you don't know the story its set in a high school and has a few main characters. Bianca and Kat are sisters and Bianca is set on being popular and dating Joey. Kat on the other hand is pretty much anti-everything including Joey. Cameron is new to Padua High School and instantly has a crush on Bianca however to get her to go on a date he needs to find a date for her sister Kat. This is where Mr. Patrick Verona comes into play to try and whoo Kat.
Its just a really funny typical teenage book and in my eyes a classic. I really could not recommend this book or the film enough!
Pages: 448
Rating: 3/5
This book is a true story based on the authors experiences and follows her from age 5 to around 18/19. Her story starts in Buczacz, Poland with her mother and 3 brothers. This book starts straight away by telling you who dies in Alicia's family and really sets the tone for the book. You know that it's not going to be easy for her to loose so many family members and that it will take a toll on the whole family. This book is quite different to other stories I've read of Jewish people during the war and Holocaust as they usually involve a camp of some sort or being held prisoner. Alicia's story was different as it was all about hiding and doing whatever she could to feed her family and hide from the authority's. One aspect of Alicia that stood out to me was how grown up she was for her age, understandably she probably had to grow up quicker than expected and naturally didn't have the typical childhood. I really liked how Alicia in the end set up an orphanage for other children who are in the same situation as her. I did enjoy this book and it was definitely different from other Holocaust books i've read however I did loose interest towards the end of the book.
Pages: 253
Rating: 3/5
I purchased this book about 4 years ago and shamefully have only just got around to reading it! I originally got this book at the Titanic museum in Tennessee and it just so happened that the author was there signing and selling his book. I'd never heard of the book before but was interested to read this mans book (and to get him to sign it). This book contains any information you would ever want or need to know about the ship, its voyage and the passengers who travelled on the liner. Overall I found this book quite interesting and would really recommend it if you are super interested in the Titanic. This book goes into extreme detail about how the ship was made and all the statistics about it. It can at times be a bit overwhelming and hard to picture its true size.
The facts I found most interesting were about the passengers themselves as I liked to find out about their backstories and wether they survived the tragic event. It was also fascinating to read about the passengers that had bought tickets but for various reasons ended up not going on the voyage and therefor saving their lives. One stand out story was about a man who survived the Titanic however a couple years later was hit by a cab in New York and died.
One thing you realise when reading this book is that the Titanic was bound to have an accident or crash. This is because they cut so many corners such as not giving it a long enough test drive just in case it pushed back the voyage date. There was a fire on board ship and things took longer than expected and were there for rushed. Another aspect I found really shocking was the amount of life boats on board. They had enough to please the standards regulation however there wasn't nearly enough to take the amount of people on board hence why so many lost their lives.
This is a thoroughly interesting book however there is a lot of statistics and numbers that really just went over my head.
I hope you enjoyed this mini review and below is my corresponding video.
I'm really excited to bring you this book review today as I gave this book 5/5 stars. Origin by Jessica Khoury is set in South America in the middle of the rain forest and follows Pia a 18 year old girl who has been bred for immortality and lives within a compound called "Little Cam" who's main aim is to breed an immortal race.
Pia lives day to day learning about her immortality and training to one day become a scientist herself at Little Cam. However curiosity becomes the better of her when she finds a hole in the compounds fence and decides to venture out into the unknown jungle. Whilst looking around she meets a boy called Eio. Eio shows Pia what it's like to live so to speak in the "real world" and Pia starts to question her life in Little Cam.
I want instantly gripped by this book which is something that hasn't happened for a while. I was really intrigued by the setting and it makes you question wether places like this could possibly exist. I was really drawn to Pia as a character and how she had to grow up being the only child of her age and subsequently had to make friends with the animals to compensate for the lack of people.
Being in Little Cam Pia is very sheltered from the rest of the world and its vast amount of people, countries and technology. All the scientists have had to agree to not bring in or talk about anything to do with the outside world however when a new scientist called Harriet comes in she starts to bend the rules and expose Pia to life outside the compound.
This book really kept me engaged and I wanted to read on to find out more about the secrets that lied in the jungle and Little Cam. Overall I really enjoyed this book and seeing how Pia and Eio's relationship grew throughout the story. Looking on Goodreads this book does have many mixed reviews so it may not be for everyone however I certainly would recommend this book.
I've filmed a corresponding video over on my YouTube channel which you can see below.
So today is going to be a trilogy round up of Quarantine by Lex Thomas.
(Lex Thomas is the pen name that two authors write under).
Quarantine is a series about a high school on lockdown after a deadly virus is exposed to the teens and they are forced to live and be quarantined within the school. I will be reviewing each book and will notify when spoilers will be present.
Rating: 5/5Pages:
The first book is "The Loners" and starts of with there being "a drop" in the school playground that the kids are all anticipating. We don't know why or what has happened at this point. It then goes back in time to before this big event and we meet the two main protagonists. David and Will are brothers of which it is Will's first day at high school. They are walking the hallways when all of a sudden there is an explosion and the teachers start to throw up blood and instantly die ( If you think that's too gruesome this book probably isn't for you). The book then follows David and Will as they try to come to terms with the fact they are trapped within the school wondering how they will survive and get food especially since they aren't part of a group. The teens have taken it apon themselves to craft different groups such as "the pretty ones" or "the freaks". These are largely social status based but offer vital protection and food.
Let me start by saying the book is extremely violent and is probably not one for the younger readers(below 16?) There's scenes of swearing, sex, rape and acts of murder and it is just extremely brutal. Normally I would shy away from such violence however I really liked it in the book as it showed what lengths they went to to survive and how savage they had become. There was also a lot of thieving for food and people would trade whatever they owned just go get the basics.
We later find out that the virus only thrives in the bodies of teens and that it is deadly to anyone younger or older ( hence why the teachers died). We are also told that a teen who had the virus from an illegal experiment escaped and ran into the school in which the military then had to shoot at him and blew up part of the school.
In the foyer of the school is a scanner in which pupils go to on what is supposed to be their graduation day. Their grad day signifies the virus leaving their body and if the scanner recognises this then they are taking through a chamber and out of the school.
This book reminded me of The Hunger Games as it was very survival based and brutal but it also reminded me of The Maze Runner in which they had to learn to be self sufficient.
David ends up protecting a girl called Lucy and we find out that Will has had a huge crush on her however she likes David and we are faced with a love triangle storyline.
Overall this book really kept me gripped as it's very different from anything I've read before and again I actually really liked how gruesome and survival based it was.
The rest of the review contains events that happen late in the book and I suggest you don't read on unless you've read the first book. Below is a review I recoded over on my YouTube channel.
David is approached by some people called the scraps who do not belong to a group and ask him to be a leader for a group they want to be called " The Loners". David agrees and this is a natural progression for the book which I enjoyed reading about.
One day a student tries to escape during another students grad day and after that stint no more food is dropped into the quad. Things get really desperate for the teens especially for David as not only does he have a group to run but his graduation ay is approaching.
The day he's supposed to graduate the portal and scanner aren't working and David needs to find a way out to survive or risk death due to be surrounded by his friends.
Will, Lucy and the other Loners help David however we are left with a huge cliffhanger!
David find a tunnel to get out however the tunnel collapses on him and Lucy and we don't know if either of them have survived!
Finally a group of outsider teenagers manage to enter the school offering food and help. We are left not knowing who they are and if they are infected or not.
Needless to say I got straight to ordering the next two books and would highly recommend this trilogy!
Rating:5/5
Pages: 384
The second book starts off different from the first as we start to read from Will's and Lucy's perspective and are left to question what has happened to David. That being said it does pick up right where the first book left off with the group of kids called "The Saints" trying to free the quarantined students. Will and Lucy make a break for the exit and are so close to freedom when a school bus crashes into the side of the school and blocks their only way out. Faced with the reality that they are still trapped within the school the students turn to the Saints for answers about the outside world.
One of the ousiders tells them that other teens have been infected including the Saints and that family's were moving away from their children to protect themselves. The Army proceeded to shoot some of the infected teens and then put out a call for teens to hand themselves in however they didn't know that their fate would be a gas chamber. ( To me it sounded like a lot of what happened during the Holocaust and people handing themselves in not knowing what their future held for them.
Will and Lucy spot a outsider teen wearing an eyepatch that they instantly recognised as David's. When they approach the teen he tells them that he got it off a dead kid and this further backs up our thoughts that David is dead. For me I felt that his death was rather overlooked and didn't focus on it much however this did become apparent why at the end of the book.
Without David the group of Loners starts to disintegrate as they no longer have a leader to guide them. Members including Lucy reach out to new groups in hope of finding somewhere new to belong. Lucy decided to join the slut group and has to endure an initiation week... completely naked.
This leaves Will essentially on his own until Gates a member of the Saints asks him to become their leader. Will suddenly has to deal with this huge amount of power and pressure which I feel goes to his head a little.
It was really interesting to see the tables turn on Sam and to see him go from being the leader of the Varsity guys to being held hostage by the Saints and crumbling to nothing.
There became a point in the middle of the book where everyone seemed at peace with one another and their situation. They had all the supplies they wanted ( thanks to the help from the parents who visited them on the wall) and there seemed to be no major arguments between the groups.
I really liked that in this book you could read from Lucy's and Will's thoughts, experiences and perspectives. I especially liked getting to know Lucy more in the second book.
One overall point I want to make about this book is that it is just as brutal and violent as the first book which I actually really liked.
I'll stop there if you havn't read "The Saints" but if you have or want to see more of my thoughts on the end of the book then keep reading.
During Lucy and Will's time apart in separate groups they have an argument and from a reader's perspective you really want them to makeup and get together now that David's out of the picture and not complicating things. Surprise surprise not long after this point in the book they make up and even get down to... the deed... if you catch my drift.
One event that was quite unexpected and just reiterates how gruesome this book is was when Sam got killed by the pig that managed to get loose. It also showed once again how far Sam had fallen in such a short period of time. When I think of Sam being killed you would expect it to be in a fight probably shot or stabbed not mauled by a pig!
One character we start to get to know a lot in this book is Gates who is one of the Saints. Towards the start of the book we don't know that much about him but as the story progresses we not only find out about his past but I feel the school and the virus as made him go quite mad. Gates slowly starts to go crazy and hallucinate, he starts to believe that Will is his dead brother Colton ( who Gates actually killed).
The big twist at the end is when Will gets to graduate early, leaving Lucy truly on her own and we're left speculating what will happen to her and how will Will cope on the out side. When Will does get outside of the school who is he faced with but his brother! David's alive and thats where they leave it on a cliffhanger. Personally I really liked this ending as you are left with so many questions such as "How is David still alive?" " How's the rest of the state dealing with this virus?" and "How will the book end?". After reading this book I was really excited to see how the authors could possibly wrap up the trilogy and bring it all to a conclusion.
Don't read on if you havn't read the first two books.
Rating: 4/5
Pages: 272
The third book "The Burnouts" starts again exactly where book 2 left off which is a element I really like within this series. Book 3 is noticeably smaller than the first two books however I didn't feel as if there wasn't enough or too little content. After Lucy kills Gates in the first book she is kicked out of the sluts in the third book as their leader Violent also died in the same fight and the Sluts blame Lucy for her death.
One huge question left from the end of the second book is now that David's alive who is going to be in a relationship with Lucy?! We are back with the love triangle which is made even worse by the fact that Lucy is now pregnant with Will's baby! (This was a major unexpected twist).
One of the things David tells Will when he gets out is that there might be a cure for this virus and they begin to plan to find this cure. However when Will finds out Lucy is pregnant he is set on going back in to find her.
I'll stop there to save spoilers but if you want to find out more and get my review on the final book in the series then keep reading.
So Lucy is left pretty much on her own now that she is group less and stumbles across the "burnouts" who spend all their time making and taking any drug they can find in the school.(she also has a miscarriage, which we probably feel is for the best seeing what situation she is in). One twist to the story was how Hilary dies at the prom she puts on before her graduation. For me I felt like she had it coming to her and she finally got a taste of her own medicine.
David then helps the remaining kids escape the school and sees them reunited with their parents. Then the love triangle really comes to a head. Will gives Lucy an ultimatum to choose between him and David. When Lucy ultimately chooses David, Will flees town and is met by a group of people saying they have "the cure". Sadly this is not the case and the liquid they start to spray on the infected teen actually makes the start to throw up. When David,Will and Lucy start to see this they start to run but tragically Will gets shot in the head. As a reader we feel compassion for his loss but this seems not to be the case for David who essentially turns and leaves him showing very little affection. I also felt that Will's death was very abrupt in this book.
Now fast forward to the last chapter of the book. Lucy and David are reunited and the biggest plot twist of all is that Lucy is still pregnant! When she previously had her miscarriage she only lost of of 2 twins she was carrying! This was really unexpected and its sad that Will never got to know about this other child he had. This last chapter really left me hanging and I would of liked there to of been some kind of epilogue set in the future to see how they tried to get mack to normality.
Overall I really enjoyed reading this series as it really was a different read for me!
I would really recommend you start reading this series if it interest you and until next time,
I recently purchased two Anxiety related books off of Amazon and now after reading both I'd like to share my thoughts on them.
I've also filmed a review over on my YouTube channel which you can see below.
Rating: 4/5
Pages: 132
The first one is called "Making Friends With Anxiety" by Sarah Rayner.
Out of the two books this one was my favourite as I found it to be written on a very personal level and it was extremely relatable.
This book is broken up into 7 chapters each focusing on a letter of the word Anxiety. For example A is for Adrenaline and T is for Time. One thing Rayner really focused on was making this book easy to read when having a panic attack therefore its all broken up into small paragraphs and the most important info is highlighted in bold text. I can see this being really helpful as I like Sarah find it hard to focus during an attack.
This book starts off with acknowledging the signs of anxiety and learning about symptoms that come with it. For me this was something I already know about and wasn't that helpful however if you think you may have anxiety and don't know a lot it could help. She also goes through the types of anxiety which helped me to know which category I fit in (Generalised Anxiety Disorder and Panic Disorder).
One thing I liked that Sarah included was the medical reasons behind some of our symptoms for example "Blood is taken from areas of the body where it's not needed, such as the stomach, because in a life threatening situation, you're not going to stop for food. Thus when you're afraid, you may feel sick and unable to eat." This is reassuring to know the reason behind what you're feeling.
Sarah goes over some of the things you can do to help with your anxiety from Yoga to medication. I've tried a lot of different things and have just finished Hypnotherapy sessions. I found it helpful to know a little more on different types of medication as this may be the next option I take. Sarah includes a few breathing exercises which is good for those who havn't been to a doctor/counsellor or searched for some online and is one of the reasons why this is a good book for people who don't yet know a lot about their anxiety.
Sarah talks about not fighting your anxiety and to acknowledge that its there but at the end of the day it is just anxiety and it is just adrenaline causing it. This can be helpful however I sometimes find it useful to almost do the opposite and distract myself during a period of anxiety or when I'm having a panic attack. I'm not saying this is the correct thing to do but it's what I do to cope.
Sometimes when your enduring a long period of anxiety it can become second nature to expect to wake up and have an anxious day however this is not the case and Sarah has a tip for this. "When you wake up tomorrow, rather than think ' I'm going to have an anxious day and feel rubbish' you could venture to consider ' today might be ok after all'". Another tip Sarah gives is "If you are triggered, try to remember that the sense of panic will pass. Nothing in life in permanant including anxiety."
One quote that she included which really stuck with me was said by Frank Zappa "A mind is like a parachute, it doesn't work if it's not open". I like this quote as I feel you do have to be quite open minded with anxiety as you have to be able to try different coping methods and want to learn and analyse more about yourself and your anxiety.
Sarah talks and demonstrates what happens when you avoid a anxiety prone situation for example getting on the tube or going out with friends. For me it is key to try and not avoid the situation but to face it and prove to myself that I can do it. Yes I know this is easier said then done and I have struggled a lot of times with this but to just slowly push myself out of my comfort zone helps to not completely isolate myself.
One thing Sarah suggests and has been recommended to me numerous times is to talk to yourself during a period of anxiety how you would talk to your best friend. You're more likely to be reassuring and give yourself realistic facts.
Overall I really liked this book as it felt very personal and relatable. I would really recommend it to people who are just starting to be aware of their anxiety or have had a panic attack for the first time.
Pages: 128
Rating: 2/5
The second book is Anxiety: Panicking about panic by Joshua Fletcher. As you can see from the caption above I only rated this book 2/5 this was largely down to how scientific it felt and impersonal.
It felt that Joshua was talking to us as if we didn't know anything about anxiety or that he was trying to explain what its like to someone who's never experienced it before. For me it felt quite redundant reading a lot of the book but for someone who wants all the scientific facts this is the book for you.
Throughout the book it seemed that Josh was repeating a lot of the same information and it just seemed like we were going over the same thing just worded slightly differently.
This book is split up in four parts the first being about Anxiety and diagnosing if you have it ( chances are if you picked up the book you know you have it), the second being symptoms. In the third part Josh goes over how to cope with anxiety mentally and physically. Personally I feel the last part could be the most helpful, its an emergency panic attack help page. This is literally a couple of pages that are meant to help calm you down and reassure you during an attack and I can see this being very helpful.
I could relate to Josh with his symptoms and how he likes to distract himself during anxiety/panic attacks. However he made it seem at times that it was so easy to get over and deal with your anxiety and he just made it easier said than done.
Like I said if you don't know anything on anxiety and want some real scientific facts then this is the book to pick up.
I hope you enjoyed this post and I hope to do some more anxiety related posts soon.
I originally didn't want to write or vlog about this book as I really didn't enjoy it and only gave it 2/5 stars however I like to keep a record about all the books I read and felt I owed my readers my true opinion on the book.
This book is set in Brighton/London in the 1960's and follows a girl called Barbara/Sophie who wants to make people laugh like her inspiration Lucille Ball.
I was drawn to this book solely for the fact it mentioned Lucille and thought it would actually include more about her.
This book really didn't grab me in and I couldn't relate or bond with any of the characters. I felt by the end of the book I was just reading it to say that I actually finished it.
This book wasn't completely what I expected as I envisioned Sophie becoming some big comedic star however for most of the book she stays on the small screen like Lucille did with I Love Lucy.
The show Barbara (and Jim) reminded me very much of I Love Lucy and then when they progressed to Everyone Loves Sophie it reminded me of Here's Lucy.
I felt this book didn't just focus on Sophie but her colleagues around her and this was something I wasn't interested in and felt was somewhat unnecessary.
During the book Sophie had a very brief encounter with Lucy and I would of loved this scene to of been longer and for Sophie to of had a better experience meeting her.
I really skim read the last quarter of this book as I just didn't have much of an interest to the storyline and just wanted to see how it ended.
Below is my review over on YouTube.
A very short review this time and I hope to have a better rated book next time for you.
I picked this book up last month on quite an impulse buy as I'd never heard about it before. But I was quite drawn to the cover and had a fair inkling as to what it would be about. I'm always looking for books that are slightly different from the normal teen romance or dystopian stories and also for those that are on subjects I don't know much about or have never read about before. Well this book ticks those boxes. This book features two protagonists and the chapters alternate between both of their perspectives.
The first protagonist is called David and his secret is that he wants to be a girl. Only he two best friends know this and David is preparing to break the news to his parents.
The second protagonist is called Leo and for circumstances that don't become apparent towards the end of the book he has to move schools which just happens to be the same school that David goes to.
Everyone has theories as to why Leo got kicked out of his previous school and see him as the moody scary one. However David is drawn to him especially when Leo decided to hit the bully that is picking on him.
This book follows the two as their friendship unexpectedly grows and how David is dealing with his secret.
I really enjoyed this book and gave it 5/5 stars on Goodreads. I felt that it was a very refreshing and eye opening to the subject of being transgender and it was like nothing i've read before.
Here is the video I recored on my YouTube page.
The rest of this post contains spoilers.
Throughout the book I knew there was something big behind why Leo left his previous school. And as the book went on I had my suspicions that Leo was also transgender or gay. Well my theories turned out to be right Leo used to be a girl and he had to leave his precious school due to a large amount of bullying that was putting his safety at risk. I was extremely relieved when David and Leo both shared their secrets with each other as it meant they could really relate as to what they were going through. Naturally I wanted David and Leo to get together however I understand that that wouldn't be the realistic outcome and I'm glad Leo was able to repair his friendship with Alicia.
It was also nice to see David's parents be so understanding about him being transgender and they acknowledged that it would take time to adjust and that they would face hurdles on the way.
I hope you enjoyed this review and might even read it yourself. So until next time, Sophie x
I'm really excited to bring this book review to you today as it's one of the best book's I've read over the past couple of months. The book is "All I Know Now" by Carrie Hope Fletcher.
Now I know what you're thinking " Oh no not another YouTuber book!" but for some reason when I knew this book was being released I didn't see Carrie as a YouTuber but just a normal person wanting to share her experiences and help other like minded people of her age and younger who are maybe struggling with different aspects of their life.
For me All I Know Now is a cross between an autobiography and a survival guide as Carrie does throw in her anecdotes which makes the book very relatable.
From the get go I loved Carrie's writing style and could just imagine her reading it ( get on that audiobook girl!).
Carrie made the book so personal and you could really tell how well thought out it all way from the illustrations used to calling the chapters "acts". It made it feel like Carrie has the manuscript stored away for months/years waiting for an opportunity rather than having to make something up just because you've been offered a book deal.
Carrie talks about various subjects ranging from bullies to living out your dreams. Unlike the book Ask Elizabeth by
Elizabeth Berkley I feel I could relate to this book and use more of its advice now and in the future. Maybe it's because Carrie's younger than Elizabeth that I could relate to it more.
Carrie talks about her time at school and how she felt like she didn't fit in, just wanted to read and had a small circle of friends. I could really relate to this as I was also quite quiet and shy at school.
Carrie gives a little tip early on in the book for if you're stressed. She suggest's blowing on the end of your thumb, i've tried this and I can see why it would work to calm you down as it helps to regulate your breathing and help you concentrate on something.
Carrie talks about how you need to have a period of time in your life where you are just single but in a way date yourself. You need to get to know what you like and the hobbies you enjoy. Otherwise you're going from relationship to relationship and you won't really know what it's like to be just you. You'll always be seen as a couple rather than two individuals.
Towards the end of the book Carrie answers questions that her readers and subscribers were able to send in to her. Again this shows how much Carrie appreciates her fans and wanted them to be the centre of her book.
Finally at the end of the book Carrie includes a list of "props" which are website and helplines for some of the subjects she touches on such as food disorders or depression. However these aren't just useful for British people as she also recognises her fans from other countries such as Ireland and Australia.
This book really made me want to pick it up and read it and thats one of the reasons why I gave it 5 stars of Goodreads.
Below is my review over on my YouTube page on the book.
I hope you enjoyed this review and I'll talk to you soon! Sophie x
Last month I decided to read Marie Kondo's "The Life Changing Magic Of Tidying" with the intention to then carry out the "KonMari" method on my clothes, books, papers etc. I'd seen two of my favourite YouTubers, Jen from "OrganisedJen" and Gillian from "GillianAtHome", talk about this book and their experience with applying it to their lives. Well it looked really effective and I was in a complete spring cleaning mode when I bought the book.
Marie Kondo is a Japanese woman who specialises in organising and decluttering your life.
In this post I will not only be sharing my thoughts on the book but my entire experience with reorganising my stuff! In this post I will link 3 videos that are on my YouTube channel, the first being the book review and the other two being the whole process of sorting out my clothes and books.
So join this journey with me as I uncover the secrets on tidying your life.
This book is only 207 pages long and therefore I was able to read it within one afternoon/evening. I would encourage you if you can to do the same as it makes for a very fluid read and I was then able to start organising the next day.
At the start of the book I did feel like Marie was really hyping up the book to be some life changing event that is the cure to all you messy problems and for me this came across slightly pretentious as she's saying how she never get's repeat customers and she so quickly gets booked up for work. Because of this you expect the book to dramatically change your thought process on organising and anticipate getting rid of a lot of stuff.
One thing I've learnt is that you put in what you get out, if you go in half assed then your not going to get the best results then if you 100% follow Marie's rules.
Marie says that the one thing we're not taught at school or generally in life is how to tidy yet we're just expected to do it as children. I found this an interesting point as being organised can have a huge effect on how we live. One thing I relate to Marie on is that we both like to get rid of a lot at once rather than little amounts in stages, this is something Marie feels is key to a tidying success.
Another point Marie makes is about the use of storage solutions and how they prevent us from actually getting rid of stuff we don't need. She says "Putting things away creates the illusion that the clutter problem has been solved. " " This is why tidying must start with discarding." I must say I have been a victim to this,
Marie has created the "KonMari" method which is her process for organising and discarding. She starts of by telling us to tidy by category and not location. By this she means don't tidy room to room but for example take all your clothes from each room and bring them together to one space to then sort out. By doing this it helps to see everything that you have and often brings a shock factor to it.
Naturally before I clean my room I always tidy it first by putting clothes away and putting anything back to its rightful place, I also discard things if I no longer need them. This usually helps to clear surfaces and give a more minimal feel (even if thats not what your going for). By naturally doing this it really set me up for a KonMari experience.
Marie says this process should be quite quick and should take about 6 months! I'm sorry but that is not quick! For me I did it in a day and maybe because of that my outcome from the process isn't as drastic. The KonMari method is set up in stages that have been well thought out by Marie. The order she has chosen to sort things out is based on what she feels it the easiest to let go of first and then the hardest last. This is what she suggests: Clothes - Books - Papers - Miscellaneous - Sentimental
I did stick with this order however I havn't yet tackled sentimental items as I know this will take the longest. I found that each category brought up hurdles as I will later talk about but I did find Books easier to sort out than clothes.
If you take one thing from this book it to always ask yourself "Does this spark joy?" This is a phrase that Marie really emphasises and I agree is extremely helpful especially when sorting through clothes. When you hold up a top or a pair of shoes you should get that tingly feeling or want to wear that item everyday if you could, that to me is what that phrase means. This is something I since apply now when I'm out buying clothes.
Another game changing point Marie makes is to change the way you fold your clothes. Again if you take anything away from this book this is one of those points. For me I struggle for space despite some might saying I have a lot. But I just wasn't using my dresser to its fullest. Well the KonMari way of folding has really helped and you can see this in the picture below. Before I stacked all my T-shirts and jumpers however now I fold them into rectangles and store vertically and am now able to see everything I own. I will point out that it can be a little difficult to put T-shirts back in once the method is in place and if the width of the draw in filled they tend to slide down.
One thing I didn't agree on with Marie and that was her opinion of what you should wear around the house. She says you should dress up and wear feminine clothes even if your not setting foot outside. Well I say wear what you want! I'll let you into a little secret, as i'm writing this I'm currently in sweats and a Jersey Boys t-shirt, no shame there.
Overall I liked the book and gave it 4/5 on Goodreads, after reading it I was really excited to start clearing and I'll share that experience with you now.
To see my book review on YouTube click below.
Clothes
Overall I found sorting out my clothes fairly easy however despite getting rid of a lot I expected to be able to get rid of more. I feel I probably kept more than I should of especially if it was something I was undecided on and I just kept it rather than getting rid of it. Like I said the folding method has given me a tone more space however it can be difficult at times to put your clothes back in place after washing them. As the day went on I did pluck a few pieces off of my to get rid of pile and cheekily put them back in my wardrobe, again I shouldn't of done this and once somethings in the pile it should stay there. But hey no ones going to shoot me over it!
Overall I found basics, hoodies, cardies and tops easy to sort through however jeans and shorts brought up issues. For me jeans last a while therefore I have some pairs that I once used to love but my style has since changed and I don't wear as much. I had to make the decision to let go on some brighter coloured jeans despite once really loving them. Shorts also were an issue as I'm not currently wearing them due to the weather and therefore havn't worn any in months, I think I only got rid of 1 pair out of 10... oops.
Marie also has an order to which clothes you sort out first however I didn't really stick to this and just went with what I felt like.
Shoes were quite an Issue as I have quite a few pairs of Dr.Martens which to me are an investment and I don't want to currently get rid of them as my shoes styles change.
One thing I continuously try to do with my wardrobe which
Marie mentions to do is to keep certain items together for example all dresses together all trousers together etc. This really helps to know exactly where things are and make dressing quicker in the mornings.
To see the process in full check out my video below.
Books
Going into this section I thought it would be very hard as I love collecting books however it was the complete opposite! I found it quite easy to get rid of a lot of books and think I could even get rid of more. I had a lot of books that I knew I wouldn't read again and were just keeping for the sake of adding to my collection. I got rid of a few that were on my TBR shelf as the moment of wanting to read that book had long passed. In this section I also sorted through coffee table books and photography books which you can see in the video below.
I still need to tackle magazines and personal items however for now I'm happy with the progress I have made.
Be sure to check out the videos linked to see the entire process and I will also leave a video below in which I vlogged my process.
Ask Elizabeth is a survival guide for what is primarily aimed at girls but I believe is relatable for any teenager struggling to well... be a teenager. Elizabeth Berkley is most well known for her role as Jessie is Saved By The Bell.
This book is comprised of anecdotes, facts from experts and stories from Elizabeth herself. It focuses on a wide range of topics such as bullying, body confidence and dealing with death.
Overall I feel this book would benefit most from teens who are at school such as 12-16 as I feel this is the time you most struggle with your feelings and dealing with stress as a teenager. I felt despite the fact that there were stories from girls my age (18) I didn't benefit from some of the topics as I have already gone through school and the experiences that come with it.
As you can see from these pictures the book is laid out like a scrapbook and really gives the feeling of opening a diary or girls survival guide. As novel as this is at times it did make it hard to read some of the stories due to the fonts used which were made to look like handwriting. In the picture above and below you can see pink writing which is Elizabeths on notes and opinions on a subject or story which was a nice personal touch. However due to the ever changing fonts it made it hard to know when Elizabeth was speaking and I feel it would of been easier for all her text to be in one font or colour.
Despite feeling that I couldn't relate to certain subjects anymore such as loosing friends and dealing with bullies I did feel that there was advice on subjects that I could use in years to come. No doubt there will be a breakup that I'll need to get over or a passing of a family member that I'll have to grieve for and I know that I can come to this book to see how other girls have dealt with these situations.
I feel that this book really reminds you that you're not alone in what you're feeling and that many other girls and even boys share the same experiences. I feel this would be a lovely book to give a niece, daughter or younger sister to help them with the struggles of puberty and ultimately being a teenager in such a modern society.
Over on my YouTube page I've filmed a review on Ask Elizabeth which you can see below.
So recently I finished reading the Divergent series by Veronica Roth. In this post I will be reviewing the four books but more specifically Allegiant and Four as those are the two I have recently read rather than reread.
Divergent
When I first read Divergent I was hooked! I loved the new dystopian world that Roth created and at the time I hadn't read many dystopian set books. The book centres around a girl called Beatrice/Tris who at 16 is put into a choosing ceremony in which she has to choose which faction to live in and wether she will stay with her family in Abnegation. Tris decides to leave her family and chooses Dauntless as her new home. We then follow her as she goes through the initiation process and how she copes in such brutal surroundings. I don't know of many people who haven't either read the book or seen the film but it is well worth a read!
Now if you intend to read the trilogy I suggest you stop reading here as it will contain spoilers to each book.
Insurgent
So like I said I really enjoyed Divergent and for me its the best out of the 3 books.
I recently reread Insurgent in preparation to see the film and second time around the book just didn't excite me as much or have as much impact as I remembered. I felt like you were constantly waiting for something to happen however we did learn a lot about the factionless and the factions themselves.
In Inurgent I feel that Tris mades some reckless decisions that she didn't properly think about what the consequences would be for other people. I was annoyed when she handed herself over to Erudite and Jeanine and it made her seem as if she thought she was invincible just because she was Divergent.
After now watching the first film and seeing who they have cast for the characters I've only just realised how much older they casted as Tris is only 16 and Four is supposed to be 18 however they look much older on screen.
I recently just watched Insurgent at the cinema and was really please with the result as it really gave us a look at some of the other factions! Who knew those in Candor were so fashionable?! I also liked Peter's character a lot more as you were able to pick up his sarcasm which I couldn't in the book. Dare I say the film was better than the book? However I did notice that they didn't mention that the woman on the film at the end was Tris' and Caleb's ancestor and I wonder if this is something they'll include later in Allegiant.
Allegiant
The big difference about Allegiant is that it is told from both Tris' and Fours point of view. At first this made it a little hard to read as I would forget who I was reading as but after a few chapters it became second nature.
In Allegiant we find out what is beyond the fence and fields of Amity and that the city the factions lie in is actually an experiment based in Chicago. In the book I felt as if Tris and the rest of the group just stepped outside the fence and within minutes came across an abandoned town and the bureaux whereas in the films we can see the extensive forest and land that it beyond the fence.
One of the biggest pieces of information we learn is what Divergent actually means. It was extremely satisfying to finally learn that people who are Divergent have had all their genes and characteristics fully restored after many were destroyed due to the setup of the factions. This area is slightly hazy to me as to how it happened however Divergent people are seen as being genetically pure rather than genetically damaged which is what we learn Four is and that he isn't actually Divergent he just shows signs of it.
The way the bureaux can constantly watch the city and the fact that its all an experiment really reminded me of the Maze Runner series especially as they get to meet people from the outside world who created the factions.
In Allegiant you realise how much Tris' parents hid from their children and how much they knew of the outside world due to their mother coming from another city outside of Chicago and being placed into the new experiment.
Overall I really wasn't that interested in the first three quarters of the book and it wasn't until the last few chapters that I became really gripped. Towards the end of the book Tris decided to take her brother's place to stop the release of the memory serum as she knew he wasn't sacrificing himself out of love but for his previous bad actions. Tris managed to get through the death serum that protected David's lab however in reaching for the memory serum David shoots Tris who subsequently dies. (In the film I can see this being a really emotional ending). After reading that bit I really understood why people were so conflicted on the ending. Yes it's sad she died but I felt the ending that followed was really beautiful.
We go on to read about Four repairing his relationship with his mother and Chicago now being at peace with its people and factions.
Four tries to use the memory serum on himself so he doesn't have to live a life without Tris however Christina stops him and the book ends with Four riding the infamous zip wire to spread Tris' ashes. Cue major waterworks when I see this at the cinema!
In hindsight I can see why Roth included Tobias' perspective in Allegiant as we were able to see what happened to Tobias and Chicago past Tris' death.
Overall I really was underwhelmed with this final book and the ending only just managed to somewhat save it.
Four
Four is a novella that is comprised of 5 short stories. When Veronica Roth was writing Divergent she originally started writing it from Tobias' point of view and then later scrapped it for Tris' character. The first three stories are what she wrote in that time. I'm so glad Roth decided to put all these stories together in a book as it made for a really nice round up of the series. As we ended Allegiant from Four's perspective it made the book "Four" seem like he was having a flashback to before he met Tris and her initiation process.
This book takes us through Tobias' life in Abnegation and having to live with his father. We also follow him as he takes part in his choosing ceremony and ultimately chooses Dauntless. I felt that Tobias' ceremony was very similar to Tris as they both wanted to get out of their former lives, however they don't quite realise what they're about to get themselves into when they choose Dauntless.
Overall I found this book to be a really quick and pleasant read, so much so I gave it 5 stars on Goodreads. It ties with Divergent as my favourite books in the series (probably because they both focus somewhat on Tris' initiation and the time surrounding it).
I filmed a review of Allegiant and Four over on my YouTube page which you can see below.
Moloka'i is centered around a Hawaiian seven year old girl called Rachel who lives in Honolulu. However whilst living there she contracts leprosy ( also known as Hansen's disease). Rachel is forced to be sent to the island Molokai within Hawaii to a leprosy settlement camp in Kalaupapa. There the only person she knows is her Uncle who was sent there before her also diagnosed with leprosy. This book is fiction however it is based off of true events. Between 1866 and 1969 Kalaupapa did have a settlement camp and people still live there today but there are no active cases of the disease.
Throughout this book we see Rachel grow up on Molokai from the age of 7 all the way up to old age. I really enjoyed this aspect of the book as you really connected and grew up with the character. This book follows Rachel as she comes to terms with her condition, how she deals with it and even how she tries to cure it.
When Rachel first moves to Molokai' she is forced to stay in a convent with other underage girls rather than with her uncle. This infuriates Rachel as he is the only familiar person to her on the island and she even risks her life one night to go and visit him.
One main theme for me in this book is death as it heavily features throughout. Her uncle is just one of many people she has to say goodbye to throughout her life. The other theme that stuck out for me was family, not only does Rachel leave all her family behind but she learns to create friendships with people on Molokai that then become family to her despite not being blood relatives.
One relationship that grew throughout the book and became more valued was that of Rachel and Sister Catherine who she first met aged seven at the convent. They started out not on the best of terms but as Rachel grows older they start to become friends and Rachel even saves her from committing suicide.
Due to the long time span of this book we see the introduction of a lot of technology, for example: planes, moving pictures and electricity in homes. We also get an inside view of what it was like for Hawaiians during the Pearl Harbour attack.
At times I did find it a little hard to take in all the native Hawaiian words and I think it would of been really helpful for there to of been a dictionary at the back for if you forget what a word means.
If you haven't read the book or are intending to then DON'T read on as the rest of the post contains spoilers.
Rachel meets a man called Kenji and they end up getting married and having a baby girl called Ruth. However to prevent their baby from contacting leprosy they have to give her up for adoption within hours of being birthed.
Rachel had to be tested 6 negative times for leprosy in order to be able to leave the island. When this eventually did happen late in life Rachel went in search for her family. She first found one of her aunts who basically shuts the door in her face and doesn't want to know her or to be reminded of what happened to their family.
She then found her sister Sarah who was more than happy to see her. Sadly one of her brothers also contracted leprosy at a young age and died quickly, therefore they thought Rachel would of also shared the same fate.
However what Rachel wants most is to find her daughter who she finds living in California. Her daughter Ruth was shocked when she heard her birth mother had Leprosy but was also pleased to learn her mother really had no other option but to give her up as the government forced Rachel and Kenji to.
The book ends with Ruth and her daughter attending her mother's funeral in Honolulu. It was nice that Ruth was able to see where her Mother grew up and too see how different it is to the United States.
Overall I was really pleased with this book and I feel a lot more educated on what went on at that time in Hawaii and how people had to deal with leprosy and all the prejudice families faced when a member of their family contracted it. I found it really refreshing to read as it's like nothing I've ever read before.
Below is the review I filmed over on my Youtube page:
I hope you enjoyed this recap and review of the book.
Hi guys to todays book review is on "The Bane Chronicles" but Cassandra Clare (and two other authors). It follows the Warlock Magnus Bane who features in both the Mortal Instruments and the Infernal Devices series. I really love the shadowhunter world that Clare has created therefore I knew I wanted to read this book no matter who it was about.
This book contains lots of short stories all about 40 pages each which weave in and out with Cassandra's existing two series. Personally I think I would of preferred it as one story however I can see why it would appeal to those who prefer short stories.
This book is definitely worth reading AFTER you've read both of Cassandra's series as The Bane Chronicles touches on events that happened in both series and we once again meet the same characters and even their descendants.
So let's touch on some of the stories. In one Magnus meets James Herondale who turns out to be Will's son and it's nice to see how the plot line continued from "The Clockwork Princess".
In the story "The Midnight Heir" we even get a recap of what happened in "The Infernal Devices" which I found nice as its been a year since I read them. In another story we go into the Hotel Durmot and read how it got into the state its in which was a cool backstory as you read about it a lot in "The Mortal Instruments".
I gave this book 3/5 stars as I found that I enjoyed certain stories more than others. Overall I don't think I would read it again but it was nice to get those backstories and that little bit extra to Cassandra's stories. Once again I think if it was one continuous story with chapters I would of enjoyed the flow more rather that broken up stories.
I still haven't read the final three books in "The Mortal Instruments" series and that is something I may get to reading later this year.
Below is the review I filmed over on my Youtube channel.
