]]>/2019/12/31/end-of-the-decade-favorite-book-tag/feed/0darkestwingsreads/2019/11/20/end-of-the-year-book-tag//2019/11/20/end-of-the-year-book-tag/#respondWed, 20 Nov 2019 15:28:09 +0000/?p=12618Continue reading End of the Year Book Tag!]]>Alright so Emily @ Embuhleeliest literally said: “If you’d like to do this tag, consider yourself tagged!” So this is me considering myself tagged! Let’s just jump right in.

Are there any books you started this year that you need to finish?

I had originally planned to finish the Sookie Stackhouse books by the end of the year as well, but I probably won’t because I’ve got so many other books I need to and I keep finding more. Also I’ve been reading Outlander for freaking months and I cannot finish it and I have no idea why!

Do you have an autumnal book to transition into the end of the year?

I mean…I don’t really read books seasonally? I always think it would be cool to do that, but I can’t just set aside other books in order to pick up seasonally appropriate books, that would be too much like self-control.

Is there a new release you’re still waiting for?

No not really. Or more accurately, there probably are, but I’m just not aware of when they drop. I’m so bad at keeping up with release dates… I’m always shocked when people are like “look my pre-order came!” and then I have to rush to block all the spoilers.

What are three books you want to read before the end of the year?

The aim is to get in one more dose of House of Night torture with Hunted, complete my Stephenie Meyer experiment with The Host, and hopefully I’ll get one more book to read this year through my discord groups Travelling Book Project.

Is there a book you think could still shock you and become your favorite book of the year?

I was going to say something sarcastic about a House of Night book becoming a favorite, but honestly just no, with what I’ve been looking at I don’t think my next favorite book is coming up this year.

Have you already started making reading plans for 2020?

I’m planning to finish the Sookie books (if I don’t break down and do it in December), obviously I’m going to reread my favorite series The Tales of the Kingdom by Cynthia Voigt (lol you thought I’d get through a whole post without mentioning them?)… Oh and I’m actually considering rereading Twilight on the premise that we’ve all been reading it wrongly (i.e. that it’s not really a grand romance, but an epic comedy).

I was going to tag a few specific people, but actually I’d rather leave this for everyone to do. So if you read this you’ve just been tagged; and let me know if you do it so I can read yours.

]]>/2019/11/11/micro-review-tag/feed/0darkestwingsreads/2019/09/24/shelf-history-tag//2019/09/24/shelf-history-tag/#respondWed, 25 Sep 2019 03:45:47 +0000/?p=12306Continue reading Shelf-History Tag!]]>I have been attempting to be more active in the book blogging community lately, but I’m pretty bad at talking to people (I get nervous lol) so I thought I’d do something fun, like make my own little book tag. Hence the Shelf-History Tag!

❀ This tag is for those books that came to you in an unusual, interesting, funny, or sweet way. Pick 5 (or more if you want) books from your shelf and tell us the story of how you came to own that book. If you’re a public library user and don’t really own any books, you can still participate. Just tell us the most interesting/funny/sweet ways you came to find a particular library book.

Tag your posts with #ShelfHistory so I can see them all!

When you’re finished, tag 5 (or more) readers whose Shelf-History you’d like to know about! This one can easily be done on any blogging/vlogging platform so feel free to tag cross-platform if you really want to. ❀

I’ll go first as an example and also just because I want to play too:

Book 1: Jane Austen: Seven Novels + Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

I received these two as a gift from the pastor’s secretary at the church I used to work at (but before I worked there). They are both beautiful volumes, but especially the gilded Seven Novels collection. I was in high school, so this was about 10 years ago) and had never read Jane Austen before and Ms. Judy highly recommended them. I wasn’t sold so she went out and bought them for me and asked only that I give them a chance. They have sweet little inscriptions in them and I will definitely cherish these for a long, long time.

Book 2: The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale

My copy of The Goose Girl was purchased from the Scholastic Book Fair back in middle school. I bought it because the cover was beautiful and the title was interesting. (And because I always bought tons of books from the book fair lol) I took it home and read it right away and it totally swept me up. It was my first fairytale retelling novel and I was totally hooked. At the time I wasn’t reading very much, I was really struggling with everything, and this book got me into reading again. The Goose Girl will always have a special place in my heart, and I hope I can hold on to this particular copy until it falls apart and then some.

Book 3: A Certain Slant of Light by Laura Whitcomb

Did you ever own a book that you had no idea how you got it or why you have it? One day I was rearranging my books and I found one that I didn’t remember reading (this was back when I had a lot less books). I read the back and it didn’t ring any bells at all. Despite this, it was clearly my book, since it was on my shelves. Over the years I have unhauled it at least twice, and yet somehow it always winds up back on my shelf. That’s not me being cute. I mean I literally don’t know how it winds up back on the shelf. I put it in the box of books to get rid of and it just doesn’t get rid. I guess I figure I’m supposed to own this book…

Book 4: The Tenth Power by Kate Constable

This is my only Advanced Reader Copy. Oh lucky me, I got an ARC, right? Wrong. I ordered the hardcover version of this book online and received the ARC anyway. It wasn’t a huge deal, but it bothered me slightly because hardbacks are expensive and because it didn’t match the others from the series that I had. So I wrote to the seller and they offered to send me the copy I actually ordered and I could do with the ARC whatever I wished. Well lo, and behold, two weeks later, here comes a book in the mail. But is it the hardback copy that I ordered? No, bitch, it’s ANOTHER ARC copy! At this point I just gave up. It was both too funny and too dumb to care about any longer.

Book 5: It Happened This Way

I don’t know where or how I got this book, but I’ve had it since I was about 2 years old. The thing that makes this book truly special to me is that it’s the book my mom used to teach me to read. The best I can figure, she found it at a garage sale or got it from one of the classrooms she used to interpret in before I was born. I don’t know how I’ve managed to hold on to it all these years, but I still look through it every so often and love it so much. My favorite story in it is the story of Mark Park (who the kids called Mark Park Walk in the Dark). It will probably always make me smile.

Alrighty those are my Shelf History picks. Not the most interesting stories, but I’m betting that some of y’all have some really fascinating ones!

I’m tagging: Purple Manatees, Lauren @ Northern Plunder, Amanda @ Between the Shelves, Sionna @ Books in her Eyes, & Words in the Rain. But feel free to do it even if you aren’t tagged!

I was tagged by the awesome Madge @ CaffeinatedBibliophile 

Rules:

• Answer the 11 questions you’ve been asked
• Nominate 11 other bloggers
• Ask your nominees 11 questions
• Let them know you’ve nominated them!

Madge’s Questions:

If you had to choose between getting on board a space ship or getting into a time machine, which would you choose?

I have a recurring fantasy of getting to do my life over. Like a time machine that just transfers my consciousness back and I get to do my life again, but better. I’d take that over space any day, no matter how much I do love space.

What’s your favorite book (or episode of a series, or movie) set around a holiday? (Any holiday!)

I literally can’t think of a single book I’ve read set around a holiday… Oops. I guess I’ll go with the movie It’s a Wonderful Life.

Have you ever received bookish gifts that weren’t books? (Ornaments, figurines, book-themed candles, jewelry, etc.)

Absolutely never, unfortunately. This is actually my family’s first year actually celebrating Christmas. So when I first typed up this post on Xmas Eve the answer was no, but this Xmas my mom got me this Book Bucket List scratch-off poster that is super cool. I’ll post it to the blogs soon.

There’s a lot of media about vampires, werewolves, ghosts, fairies, etc. out there. What underrepresented mythical creature do you think should get more attention?

I want books about sirens!! I need books about sirens!!

If you had the time/other resources, what hobby or skill would you love to pick up?

I would love to learn to play the cello…

Describe one of your favorite books briefly and vaguely, like you would if you were wrapping it up for a Blind Date With a Book.

My favorite books are a 4-book series so I’m going to proceed as if I wrapped up the whole set together:

• Fantasy doesn’t have to have dragons
• Adventure
• Find your own way in the world
• Stick it to the man

What do you think you would find in the Room of Requirement?

Oh let’s not pretend I would say anything other than an endless library with every book ever written.

What book/series has your favorite villain, antihero, or antagonist?

I’m going to say The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater. I am deeply entertained by all the magical item dealers who come out of the woodwork in the last two books.

If you could vacation with some of your closest friends/family (in the real world or a fictional universe), where would you go?

I’d love to visit the Underland from Suzanne Collins’ Underland Chronicles.

What is the first book you remember loving?

The first book I really loved was The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale. I bought it at the Scholastic book fair in 6th or 7th grade and it was my first fairytale retelling and my first YA fantasy novel and it really got me hooked!

What book did you read this year that you wish everyone would read?

Please just read the Tales of the Kingdom series by Cynthia Voigt!!! Please! I recommend them constantly to everyone. The descriptions on Goodreads aren’t great, they really don’t do the books justice, but I am MORE than happy to talk more in-depth about them. Oh also I have a review for the first one, Jackaroo.

My Questions:

1. Do you have any pets?
2. What is your favorite thing about winter?
3. What was the last book you read?
4. Talk about a fictional character who inspires you.
5. What is your number one pet peeve?
6. What is something you are proud of?
7. Share some good advice you have received.
8. What is the last thing you bought (not counting groceries)?
9. Share the most useless piece of trivia you know.
10. What was your first job?
11. What rating system do you use for books?

Tags:

Nev @ NeverandaDaily // Bethany @ BibliophilicWitch // @ WordsintheRain // Olivia Elizabeth @ FoxingFae // Jenna @ JennaBookish // @ PurpleManatees // Kelsie @ BilboBookins // Marina @ TheReviewMarina // Jenaca @ JenacideByBibliophile // Sumaya @ Sue’sReadingCorner // Sam @ RiverMoose-Reads