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Books to gift

A new favourite children’s book!

November 4, 2018 / varsharavi / Leave a comment

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Earlier in October, I read Jessica Townsend’s Nevermoor and I really enjoyed it. Middle-grade can be a hit or miss with me and to be fair I haven’t read much of the genre as an adult. This was refreshingly inventive, and though it is meant for a younger audience, I never felt it talking down or being overly simplistic. Continue reading →

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  • Once Upon A River by Diane Setterfield
  • Red Clocks by Leni Zumas (a rave than a review)
  • Normal People by Sally Rooney
  • A realist collection on girlhood and growing up
  • A new favourite children’s book!

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For #booksandhotdrinkstuesday with @katha_logisch we’re talking about our experience reading classics so it seemed apt to share picture with some of my PELs. I’ve been so pumped to read classics this year and one of my goals for 2019 is to read at least 1 classic a month. Till a year and a half ago, I barely used to read any classics. I was very apprehensive of the language, had a mental block that classics were way too slow and they were just not for me. How I was mistaken. Yes, the language and pacing do take a while to get accustomed to, but the entire experience is so rewarding. I also feel like reading classics are like a reminder to slow down in this mechanical, fast-paced world, observe the little things and the simpler life of bygone times and I usually find it very calming. This wouldn’t apply to all classics, there are duds just like any other genre, but I’ve mostly had a really good experience with the classics I have read. This month, I’m nearly done reading Thomas Hardy’s critically acclaimed tragedy, Tess of the D’Ubervilles. This was my first Hardy and is certainly not going to be my last. - Some of the classics I'm keen to get to later this year are Lolita by Vladimir Nabakov, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte, Return of the Native by Thomas Hardy, Mill on the Floss by George Eliot, at least one of Elizabeth Gaskell and Edith Wharton's works, O'Pioneers by Willa Cather, Howard's End by E M Forster, Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison and possibly re-read Jane Eyre. I'm sure this list might change and is quite ambitious, but these are ones I'd really like to read this year. I'm not including any of Austen's work as I've read 3 of hers (Emma, Persuasion and Pride & Prejudice) and would like to try other authors. - What are your thoughts on reading classics? Do you enjoy them? Are any of these classics on your TBR? I'd love to know! - #classics #penguinenglishlibrary #bookstack #bookpile #bookphoto #bookphotography #bookish #bookishrestorative #readingclassics #alwaysreading #readmore #readeveryday #booksofinstagram #unitedbookstagram #booksandflowers
'Soon she is at full tilt, flooding across the moorland. Within moments there is a large white wolf alongside her. The pair veer away from the gorse-covered hillside, divide and make for the nearest cover – a gathering of thorn woods on the hill, spindled and bent by the wind. They cover the open moor in less than a minute. One dark, one light, stellar and obverse, their hind muscles working sumptuously under their coats. The months of docile quarantine are shaken off in seconds; power always lay just underneath. They climb the gradient of the hill opposite without slowing, then disappear from sight in the broken terrain.’ The Wolf Border, Sarah Hall - Let me start by saying this book was utterly phenomenal and for certain has secured a spot on my favourites of 2019. Sarah Hall’s thought provoking masterpiece is an intensely gratifying exploration of borders, physiological and psychological, natural and man-made, and borders that transcend the matters of heart. Rachel Caine is a 40 something wildlife biologist, specialising in the study of the grey wolves, an undisputed veteran in her field. As the novel opens, she is working in a Native American reservation in rural Idaho. - Right from the start of the novel, you are made aware that Rachel’s mother, Binny, is dying in an old age home in England. Rachel’s relationship with her mother is largely fractured and is held by a very tenuous sense of obligation a daughter has towards her mother. Her, rather unconventional childhood has made her very emotionally stunted as an adult. She has also, over the years lost touch with her step-brother, Lawrence, and the way she navigates their dysfunctional family dynamics is a crucial layer to the story. Binny’s death (not a spoiler as it happens within the first few chapters), ignites a re-connection between the brother and sister, and lends an integral emotional awakening to Rachel’s character. - Rachel is approached by an eccentric, rich Earl, Thomas Pennington, to spearhead a project to re-wild/re-introduce the grey wolves to an enclosed area in Cumbria, a forested, mountainous region that extends to the border of Scotland. Review continues in comment ->
Happy weekend! I’m planning on picking up Conversations with Friends next for a quick weekend read. I found Normal People just okay, a middling 3 star read but I’m still curious to try this one. The premise of this sounds a little more interesting to me, so let’s see how it pans out. - My last read was my first 5 star read of the year, The Wolf Border by Sarah Hall. It was absolutely stellar! A detailed review to come. ☺️ - What are you reading this weekend? - #conversationswithfriends #sallyrooney #bookcoverdesign #faberbooks #bookish #booksandmore #alwaysreading #instabook #booksofinstagram #booksofig #instareads #booksofinsta #readersofinstagram
Finding new editions of Anne of Green Gables always brings a smile. This lovely chapter book edition meant to introduce Anne to young readers is simply wonderful. The story has been simplified to cover just the initial part about Anne arriving at Green Gables. It’s accompanied by stunning illustrations which a young reader would find very enticing and older fans of Anne would rejoice alike! - #annearrives #bookcoverdesign #childhoodfavorites #kalliegeorge #abigailhalpin #illustratedbooks #childrensbooks #beautifulbooks #bookishrestorative #booksandflowers #booksofinstagram
“The beauty or ugliness of a character lay not only in its achievements, but in its aims and impulses; its true history lay, not among things done, but among things willed.” Thomas Hardy, Tess of the D’Ubervilles - I’m more than halfway through Tess and though it is a bleak read, I’m loving how gritty and realistic Hardy’s storytelling is. After the more light hearted Austen novels (I read Persuasion in Dec and Emma in Jan), Hardy’s novels are far more grounded and tragic, focussing more on the harsher realities of life. Not that I don’t love Austen, I adore her dramas and social commentary of the time, but it’s also refreshing to read a story of a 19th century young woman who doesn’t belong to a privileged class with a different lifestyle. With Tess in particular, I think Hardy presents a fascinating exploration of unhealthy relationships. Not just with what the atrocious Alec D’Uberville does, but the more nuanced and complex relationship with Angel Clare. The story was slow to start, but at the moment I find it utterly compelling. I find myself fixated on the same moral dilemma that Tess is caught in, and it’s long since I’ve felt so invested in a character. - Have you read Thomas Hardy’s work? Which would you recommend that I pick up next? What’s your favourite Hardy novel? - #thomashardy #classics #readingclassics #tessofthedubervilles #tragedies #literature #vintageclassics #vintageredspine #vintageinthewild #readmoreclassics #readeveryday #bookishrestorative #bookish #booksandflowers #bookphoto #bookphotography #alwaysreading
*CLOSED* INTERNATIONAL GIVEAWAY - I ended up receiving two copies of Sea Monsters by Chloe Aridjis, a very recent release, so I’ve decided to giveaway one of them. It’s a unique, beautifully written, coming-of-age story set in Mexico. I’ve done a detailed review that I’ll link in my highlights. I wanted to do a giveaway for one lucky winner to win a copy of your choice. The one on the left is the UK edition, it’s a paperback ARC. It’s got a nice buttery finish and really well published though it’s an ARC. The one the right is the finished US Hardcover edition, which is equally stunning. Both editions are in pristine condition. This giveaway is international and the rules to enter are very simple! - To enter the giveaway: 💛Follow my account 💛Like this picture In a comment: 💛Tag 2 bookish friends 💛Tell me your favourite read so far in 2019 💛And which edition you’d like to win (UK or US) - This giveaway is not affiliated to any company and is open only to public bookish accounts. It will be open till 15th February 2019 midnight. A winner will be picked using a random number generator. May the odds be in your favour! - #giveaway #bookgiveaway #bookish #bookishrestorative #newrelease #seamonsters #chloearidjis #beautifulbooks #bookcoverdesign #freegiveaway #freebooks

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Book Reviews Contemporary Fiction Epic Fantasy Fabulist Fiction Favourite Reads Graphic Novels Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Miscellaneous Musings Non Fiction & Memoirs Reading Lists Science Fiction Short Story Collections Translated Fiction Uncategorized
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