Bookish Christmas Gift Guide 2016

Buying books for book lovers is really hard because we already have ALL OF THE BOOKS! My family notoriously never know what books to buy me for Christmases and Birthdays unless I specifically ask for them because they never know what I already own, some even flat out refuse to buy me any books because I already have "too many" (as if there is such a thing!) So today I wanted to put together a list of alternative bookish gift ideas that aren't books for anyone wanting to buy something for the reader in their lives. There are always so many book blogger Secret Santa's going on at this time of year and the gifts in this guide would make perfect bookish presents with something to offer every reader.

Bookbandz

 
I absolutely love a good bookmark and these handmade Bookbandz have to be some of the prettiest bookmarks out there. The bandz are made to order with different charms and beads to suit any taste. There are some beautiful Christmas charms available at the moment including gingerbread men, Christmas trees, angels and more. The owner Karen can also make bookmarks in the style of your favourite book with a charm of the books cover taking pride of place in the center surrounded by matching beads. For a unique, handmade, bookish gift you really can't go wrong here. The bandz are priced at £5 each or 3 for £12 so they're perfect if you've got a few people to buy for. To see the full range visit Karen here.

 Klevercase

If the reader in your life prefers e-readers to psychical books then a gorgeous new e-reader case may be the way to go and Klevercase offers some of the best in my opinion. Their cases are designed to look like books and are made using traditional bookbinding techniques. There is a design to suit any reader although my personal favourite has to be the Book of Spells design inspired by Harry Potter. The cases are made to fit all of the popular e-readers and a really nice touch is that they can be personalized with a message for an extra cost. To see the whole Klevercase range visit them here. Prices vary depending on the e-reader.

Stack of Books Earrings

Another gift that I am absolutely loving are these bookish earrings. I think that they are so cute and make a really lovely gift if you'd like to give the reader in your life something other than books this year. There is so much bookish jewellery out there so it's worth shopping around to find the right style for the person you are buying for but for me personally it doesn't come much cuter than this. The earrings retail at £16.00 and can be bought at The Literary Gift Company.

 Bookish Mug

Another brilliant gift from The Literary Gift Company are their bookish mugs. I've given these as a gift before and they always go down a storm. Again there are many different mugs to choose from in this style ranging from reading, writing, blogging, tweeting etc so you can choose the best fit for the gift recipient. This mug costs £9.95 and is the perfect choice for anyone who doesn't like to be disturbed when they're reading (aka all of us!)

Bookstore Scented Candle

We all have that friend who can not get enough of the smell of books and at last that smell has been captured in candle form so that your room can smell like your favourite bookstore. Frostbeard are an Etsy seller that ship worldwide and some of their candle fragrances include Winterfell, Sherlock's Study and Pemberley Garden's to name a few. This would make the perfect gift for anyone who loves to burn candles whilst reading. To check out the full range visit Frostbeard's Etsy store here.

 Reading Journal

Another option that would be particularly perfect for book bloggers is a reading journal. I've kept a reading journal ever since I started blogging and I would be lost without it. They're a great way of keeping a record of what you've read and are great for jotting down thoughts about a book before reviewing. I particularly like this one from The Literary Gift Company selling at £9.95 I think this would make a nice, thoughtful gift for anyone who likes to keep track of their reading.

 Evie Seo Designs

My biggest recommendation for bookish gifts is for Evie Seo's designs over on Society6. Evie's artwork is so beautiful with a focus on books. Her designs can be printed on to t-shirts, mugs, phone cases, tote bags and pillows to name a few. Her range is extensive covering many different fandoms so if you're struggling to find the perfect gift you are guaranteed to find something here. I recently received the tote bag pictured as a gift and it's such good quality with thick handles and plenty of room inside. I can't see anyone disliking something by Evie and there are so many options depending on your budget. To view the complete range visit Evie here.

 I hope this gift guide helps make your Christmas shopping a little easier 

and that you find the perfect gift for your favourite book lover!

26 Bookish Facts About Me

Today is my 26th birthday and so I thought it would be fun to do a more personal post and share 26 bookish facts about me - one for every year of my life. I hope you enjoy finding out more about me!

1.) On average I read 50 pages in forty minutes.
2.) My Nan is the only family member who regularly reads my blog (Hi Nan!)
3.) I started book blogging because I wanted a place where I could keep my book reviews together (I posted reviews on Amazon for about a year before I started this blog) I had no idea that the UKYA community existed!
4.) The first author I ever met was John Green.
5.) It takes me an hour and a half to write and format a book review.
6.) I met my best friend Ray on a Twilight fan forum.
7.) My favourite genre changes constantly! If you were to ask me right now my favourite genre is Fantasy.
8.) One Christmas, when I was a teenager, I spent the entirety of Christmas day in bed reading the books that I got for Christmas.
9.) I often recommend books to strangers in bookshops if I see them pick up something I love.
10.) My reviews are quoted in 21 books to date.
11.) My favourite blog posts to write are reviews.
12.) My favourite female author is J.K. Rowling (obviously.)
13.) I've met all of my close friends through books be that through blogging or book events.
14.) I find it really hard to finish a series. If there's a long period between book releases I lose interest in the story.
15.) I once bought a book that I already owned by accident.
16.) I collect bookmarks and own over a hundred.
17.) My favourite male author is Brandon Sanderson.
18.) I love treating my friends to books, whether that is gifting them a book once I've finished reading it or buying them a book just because.
19.) Twice when I've been on holiday I've spent the entire day in our holiday rental so that I could finish up a book I was engrossed in. The first time was for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and the second time was last year for Queen of Shadows.
20.) My favourite place to read is outdoors.
21.) Some of my favourite childhood memories are of visiting the library.
22.) I only keep my absolute favourite books. The rest I gift to friends or donate to my local second hand bookshop.
23.) When we were kids my brother got a poem that he wrote published in a book. I was so jealous that I vowed that I'd have something that I wrote published in a book one day too and I did!
24.) My favourite reading snack is popcorn.
25.) I'm currently (trying) to write three books: a Middle Grade book about pirates, a gritty contemporary YA and an adult Christmas book!
26.) I'm considering getting a bookish tattoo.

A Bookish Christmas Q&A

Today I'm getting festive on the blog with A Bookish Christmas Q&A a fun little idea I had for a blog post way back in August. This Q&A combines two of my great loves books and Christmas and I had so much fun putting this post together. I hope you enjoy reading it and if you'd like to answer the questions yourself to add some festive fun to your own blog do feel free!

1.) Advent Calendar: what's the next big book release you're counting down to?
A book release that I'm counting down to is The Art of Being Normal by Lisa Williamson this book is out on the 1st January so I haven't got much longer to wait! All of my blogger friends who've been lucky enough to read this early have been raving about it and if I receive some money or a gift card for Christmas you can bet that this will be the first book I pre-order! The Art of Being Normal is a UKYA Contemporary about a boy who wants to be a girl and it sounds like it's going to be a really powerful and moving read.

2.) Snow Day: which best friends from a book could keep you entertained all day long?
I'm going to go with a recent favourite friendship of mine and that is Delia and Emma's from It's Not Me It's You by Mhairi McFarlane. These girls made me laugh out loud and I closed the book wanting to be their third BFF. I'm sure with these two around a day inside would fly by as we drink wine by the fire and chat with the Peshwari Naan online.

3.) The Nativity: which book/series would you most like to see adapted into a movie, TV show, play etc?
I'd actually really love to see Dash and Lily's Book of Dares translated into a Christmas movie. I think that the scavenger hunt across Manhattan and gorgeous bookish romance would make for the most perfect festive film.

4.) Carol Singing: which musical book character/s would you like to turn up on your doorstep caroling this Christmas? 
I've really thought about this one and I've decided that Mia and Adam from If I Stay would be perfect. Mia on her cello and Adam singing Silent Night would be so beautiful.

5.) The Perfect Gift: which book from your wish list would you most like to find under your tree on Christmas morning?
There's actually not a whole lot of books on my Christmas wish list this year - a lot of the ones I really want aren't out until next year now. Two that are on my wish list that I know have already been bought for me are Glory O'Brien's History of the Future by A.S. King and Girl Online by Zoe Sugg - I'm so looking forward to reading them both!

6.) Do You Want To Build a Snowman? What do you think are the key ingredients for a life like character?
I think that what makes a character feel real to me is when they feel like they've got a past and a future outside of the story that I'm reading, like I'm only getting a glimpse into a short time in their lives. I also like characters to not feel too perfect, I'm all for flaws and character growth.

7.) Tree, Tinsel, Fairy Lights: most decorative book cover of 2014?
One of my favourite covers of 2014 is for Winterspell by Claire Legrand. I'm a sucker for a purple cover and this looks beautiful and haunting all at once.

8.) Christmas Kisses: which book crush from this year would you most like to kiss underneath the mistletoe?
Choosing just one is hard! But I'm going to go with Ben from You're the One That I Want by Giovanna Fletcher. Ben stole my heart from the very beginning of this book. He's kind, selfless and loyal and is exactly my type.

9.) Snow Ball Fight: a book that you thought would be a lot of fun but left you feeling cold.
A book that comes to mind is Conversion by Katherine Howe. I was highly anticipating this book and it sounded like something I would love and so when I didn't end up enjoying this one I was pretty sad.

10.) Christmas Traditions: a book that you read over and over again.
With a massive TBR pile that never seems to go down I don't have much time for re-reading these days but a book series that I always return to and have re-read more times than I can count are the Harry Potter books. I can't see that ever changing!

11.) The Night Before Christmas: a book that kept you up reading late into the night.
The last book that did that for me was The Retribution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin. This is hands down one of the craziest books I've ever read and I could not put it down not only because I wanted to see how this series would end but because of the none stop action and revelations! This book completely gripped me and had my heart racing - definitely not one to pick up for some light bedtime reading!

12.) Rudolph: which book shone the brightest for you this year? 
There's still another month of this year to go so I don't want to commit to a favourite book of the year just yet but a book that always comes to mind when I think of my favourite books of 2014 is The One Plus One by Jojo Moyes. I fell in love with everything about this book and for me Jojo Moyes can do no wrong.

The Booking by Numbers Q&A

Today it’s time for something a little bit different... 

Randomly the other day an idea for a fun Q&A came to me. I love doing bookish surveys and tags and have been seeing different ones around the blogosphere lately so I decided it would be fun to share my own! It’s a book Q&A about the books on your bookshelves with a bit of a fun twist! Here’s how it works.

Put the number of books on your bookshelf (or if like me you have hundreds of books break it down to 50, 70, 100 - however many books you’d like to play with) into a random number generator this could be via Random Org or simply by pulling numbers out of a hat. For each question draw a number and apply that question to the selected book from your shelf (or wherever you like to store your books.) For example if you pulled the number 11 you’d count across your shelf to the 11th book. It’s as simple as that!

I figured this would be a fun way to get a sneak peak at people’s bookshelves and learn more about the stories behind the books. I’d love to be nosy at what you guys have on your bookshelves so feel free to take part on your own blogs!

Booking by Numbers Q&A 

Book Number: 48 Book: Dead Silence by Kimberly Derting
Q1.) Have you read this book? If so what did you think of it?
Not yet. I will hopefully be reading it soon though as part of my Halloween TBR. I love this series and I recently learned that this is the last book. A few people have said that the ending isn’t really satisfying so I think that’s why I’ve been nervous to pick it up!

Book Number: 3 Book: Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie
Q2.) Why did you buy this book? Were you recommended it? Was it a random purchase?

This book was actually a Christmas present from my Nan. Peter Pan is probably my favourite Children’s Classic and I’d been pining for this edition for ages so it was a really nice present. Definitely something I’ll have on my bookshelf for the rest of my life.

Book Number: 23 Book: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
Q3.) Based on what you know about this book which other book blogger would you recommend it to? 
EVERYBODY!!! I recently finished this book and I loved it so, so, much! To answer the question though I would recommend it to two bloggers Samantha from The Secret Life of a Bookworm because she recently read and loved Eleanor and Park and I think she’d love this one too. And Ellie from Musings of a Bookshop Girl because she really needs to read some Rainbow Rowell!

Book Number: 55 Book: The Essence by Kimberly Derting
Q4.) Who’s this books bookshelf neighbour?

Another Kimberly Derting book! The Essence is getting cosy with Everbound by Brodi Ashton and Scent of Magic by Maria V. Snyder. These books are on my TBR Sequel Shelf I really need to read them!

Book Number: 34 Book: Unspoken by Sarah Rees Brennan
Q5.) How many books have you read by this book’s author?
I have all of Sarah’s books but I have only read Unspoken and Untold. I really love this series so I want to get on to The Demon’s Lexicon series one day. I’ve also read The Bane Chronicles: What Really Happened in Peru by Sarah Rees Brennan and Cassandra Clare so including that my grand total is at three.

Book Number: 16 Book: Angel Fire by L.A. Weatherly
Q6.) Do you have any special memories attached to this book?

This is actually a very special book to me! Not only is it my favourite book from one of my favourite series but it was also the first book I was quoted in as a book blogger. It’s also signed and personalised by the author. I have all of these special memories with this book and every time I look at it I feel happy.

Book Number: 12 Book: The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith (aka J.K. Rowling)
 Q7.) Is this book part of a series? If it is are you up to date with the series?
It will be eventually when the next book comes out. Am I up to date with it? No, seems as I haven’t read this one although it is on my Halloween TBR so all in good time!

Book Number: 1 Book: Weird Things Customers Say in Bookshops by Jen Campbell
Q8.) Is this book something you’d typically read or is it out of your comfort zone?

This book is the first book on my bookshelf because it’s something that I like to dip in and out of every now and again. I’d say this is pretty out of my comfort zone, as the title suggests this is a collection of weird things that people have asked in bookshops and I don’t have anything else quite like it on my shelf!

Book Number: 26 Book: Dare You To by Katie McGarry
Q9.) Have you reviewed this book? If yes then share a link to it.
My review.

Book Number: 63 Book: The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
Q10.) Where did you buy this book from?
Okay, this is kind of creepy. I bought it from an independent book shop whilst I was on holiday in Cornwall. The creepy part is that it was roughly this time last year that I bought it! I also bought the sequel today. Weird.

Book Number: 76 Book: Brightly Woven by Alexandra Bracken
Q11.) Roughly how long have you owned this book for?
Years! Before I started book blogging, so it’s been sitting on my shelf for at least three years and I still haven’t read it! I read and loved The Darkest Minds earlier this year so I’ll have to get on to this one soon.

Book Number: 40 Book: Of Beast and Beauty by Stacey Jay
Q12.) Share the first sentence of this book.
“In the beginning was the darkness, and in the darkness was a girl, and in the girl was a secret.” Okay this definitely has me intrigued! Will have to pick this up soon!

Book Number: 60 Book: Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi
Q13.) What’s your opinion on this book’s cover?

*Sighs deeply.* It’s… okay. The dress is weird but I like the striked out lines. HOWEVER the new cover designs for this series with the eyes are gorgeous! I’d really like to replace this one at some point but it’s such a shame that the publishers released the new cover in paperback not hardcover.

Book Number: 87 Book: More Than This by Patrick Ness
Q14.) In a few sentences describe this book in your own words.
I haven’t read this one yet so this is going to be hard.

This guy dies, he remembers dying, yet he is still here. Is he a ghost? Is he really dead? Is he in the afterlife? The guy doesn’t have a clue what is going on. You probably won’t have a clue what’s going on. But in the end you will be amazed and in awe as one always is upon finishing a Patrick Ness book.

END

I hope you guys had fun reading this and don’t mind that I wanted to try something different today. It was so much fun to do!

The Books and Bookish Gifts I Got For Christmas!

Hey guys! I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! I know I said that my giveaway was going to be the last post of the year but I thought it might be cool to share with you some of the things I got for Christmas that are either books or books/blogging/reading/writing related in an informal chatty style vlog. I decided to separate them into parts. Part One is purely books and Part Two bookish gifts in case any of you are just interested in watching one or the other and to save it from being one long video. I personally love being nosey at stuff like this so hopefully you’ll enjoy being nosey too!

The Books I Got For Christmas (Part One) 

 Bookish Things I Got For Christmas (Part Two)

 

I hope you enjoyed the vlogs! Happy New Year everyone and I’ll see you in 2013!