Bookshelf Tag

Time for another book tag! I got this one from Cait at Paper Fury, although I know she wasn't the original blogger to do this.

Describe your bookshelf and where it came from:

Well, I have five... 

Those three are from IKEA; the middle one is my most recent acquisition.

I have no clue where my parents got this one from.

And this one's from Target. It partially serves as my nightstand; that's why the top left shelf is so empty. It holds the books I'm currently reading and planning to read very soon, plus my bookmarks.

How do you organize your books?

Since I have so many differently-sized bookcases, my system is a little weird. The first two bookcases hold all my YA books in alphabetical order by author's last name (and then chronological publishing order), plus the ARCs I keep. The third bookcase (the black one) holds my Heather Vogel Frederick books, Harry Potter books, library books, ARCs I have yet to read and some I'm holding onto for a giveaway, and then coffee table books. The fourth bookcase holds my special Word Cloud Classics editions, middle grade books, classics, and French editions. And then the fifth one holds books by authors I really like (or have a lot of books by). You can see my Ally Carter, Emery Lord, Sarah J. Maas, Marissa Meyer, and Jennifer E. Smith collections. In a perfect world, though, most of these books would be on my main bookcases, but I'm trying to conserve space.

What's the thickest/biggest book on your shelves?

It's a close competition between The Complete Works of William Shakespeare and Les Miserables.

What's the thinnest book on your shelves?

Betsy-Tacy, although another book I own is shorter (but they must've used thicker paper).

Is there a birthday gift book on your shelves?

Yup! I beg my parents for books as gifts. Here's some I received last year (since I'm scheduling this post before my birthday this year), also featuring a lovely notebook one of my dearest friends gifted me.

Is there a book from a friend on your shelves?

You'd be surprised how few books my friends give me (mostly because they have no clue what I own, and they're nervous about giving me something I already have - true story, courtesy of Mary-Courtney), but here's one Kate gave me for Christmas a few years ago.

Most expensive book?

My first instinct was one of the books I bought from France (by themselves, they were a little cheaper than normal YA books in the U.S., but shipping was insane), but then I remembered my giant history of fashion book was expensive. I bought it for a project, and it proved useful, so I guess it was worth it.

The last book I read on my shelf?

Well, this isn't gonna be super accurate to when the post actually goes up, but the most recent physical copy of a book I read from my own shelves when writing this post was...

Do you have more than one copy of a book?

In a few cases. I have two copies of Sense and Sensibility. I have foreign editions for several of my books. I have tons of ARCs and finished copies. But here are three books I have an ARC, a hardback, and a paperback for (and if they ever publish these in French, you'd better believe I'll acquire those copies, too): 

Do you have a complete series?

A few! I have a lot of complete trilogies, but here are two longer series: 

Newest addition to your shelves:

Once again, this won't be super accurate, but as of writing this post, it was Saints and Misfits by S.K. Ali!

Most recently published book on your shelves:

I can kind of cheat with this one, haha. I have an ARC of The Authentics, which comes out today!

The oldest book on your shelves:

Most of my books are new copies or fairly new at least. But I found a copy of Little House on the Prairie from the 1970s at a library sale; it's actually on a bookcase downstairs, but I say it counts.

A book you won?

I've been fortunate to win a few. I won A Study in Charlotte from the author, so it's personalized. ^.^

A book you'd hate to let out of your sight?

Considering I'm separated from 2/3 of my book collection for 9 months of the year, I get by a little better than you'd expect. But my copy of The Only Thing Worse Than Me Is You is always at school or home with me.

A book that doesn't belong to you?

Hello, current library stack:

A book with a special/different cover?

My French copy of Heist Society is SPARKLY.

A book that is your favorite color?

I have a few different favorite colors, but as a loyal Slytherin, I'm going to show off some mostly-green covers:

A signed book?

I'm lucky to have a lot of signed books, but here's one of my favorite personalizations:

(Jasmine says I'm the best, but, really, she is.)

If you want to do this book tag, go for it! 

So You Like... #55

Today I'm giving y'all some more book recommendations, based on one of my auto-buy authors. So you like...

MORGAN MATSON'S BOOKS.

If you like...

try...

(For the road trips, romances, and adventures.)

If you like...

try...

(for the family relationships and the pain)

If you like...

try...

(for the lists and the friendships)

If you like...

try...

(because summer and unexpected happenings)

Is Morgan Matson one of your favorite authors, too? What other books would you recommend for fans of her writing?

If you have a topic suggestion for So You Like..., I'm always open to ideas!

Quebec Travels, Part Two

Hello, all! If you remember, I said in this post that I'd continue my recount of my trip to Quebec. In this post, I'll cover our two and a half days in Quebec City, which I ended up loving even more than Montreal. I loved the feel of the old part of the city, and I loved the restaurants and shops and the weather (although I would not want to live there in the winter).

July 19th

We took a train from Montreal to QC, which was fun. Then we headed down to the Musee de la civilisation before coming back up to Rue Saint-Jean for dinner. Every night, they close down a good stretch of the rue to cars, so it made the crowds much more manageable. QC already felt like a city in Europe, and I loved that feel.

Train ride views.

Technically this was a street, but it felt almost like an alleyway, lol. 

An art piece at the museum themed around First Nations people.

Not sure you can see it, but the hill down to (and back up from) the lower part of the city was STEEP.

Rue Saint-Jean.

July 20th

We got breakfast at a crepe place just around the corner from our hotel and then headed to Chateau Frontenac, a big hotel right on the cliffside overlooking the lower city. Along the boardwalk, though, are stairs down to Forts-Saint-Louis, an archaeological site. We opted for a guided tour, which was informative and fun. After that, we went back to the hotel to rest for a couple hours because that afternoon, we were going on...a 2.5-hour food tour. :D Our guide was a hoot, and thanks to her, I now have an idea for a YA historical fiction novel that I'm filing away for later. We had a late dinner at an Italian place and strolled around Rue Saint-Jean for a bit, although it rained, dampening the experience. (Pun unintentional.)

It was very cloudy in the morning, which made for dreary pictures of the river. D:

Chateau Frontenac.

The sign says "First Chateau Saint Louis Wall - 1648." It was surreal to stand by walls that were hundreds of years old.

Pretty sure our tour guide said this was the oldest house in QC.

The oldest grocery store in QC.

I liked this poutine better than the plate we had in Montreal.

Of course we tried maple syrup and other maple goodies.

July 21st

Last day in QC. D: We started the morning right, with breakfast at Paillard. I got chocolat chaud, a brioche au chocolat, and a sugar flower, and let me tell you - I would eat Paillard brioche au chocolat every morning for breakfast if I could. It was SO GOOD. Then we slowly made our way up to the Citadelle, which is still an active military base (and it's also where the queen of England would stay, if she came to visit Quebec). The governor-general of Canada made an unannounced visit to his residence there, which caused for some excitement. Then in the afternoon, we took the funicular down to the lower city. The Petit-Champlain district is charming (although a bit overrun with tourists). Then we returned to Rue Saint-Jean for our last dinner in QC. :(

Yes, who do I need to contact to get a Paillard boulangerie/cafe in Virginia, because I need my brioche and pastries every morning?

I can't stop thinking about that brioche.

Views from the Citadelle.

More knives/daggers because wow, they're beautiful.

View from the funicular.

Those crowds though. :P

This lady stood there for, like, five minutes and I just wanted a picture of the pretty building, but now she's in it too.

One of two gorgeous murals we saw painted on the sides of buildings.

Isn't it lovely?

I'm ready to go back to QC already. I wish we'd had one more day there, just to thoroughly explore the old part of the city, get more poutine at the snack bar, and visit Montmorency Falls outside of the city. We also intended to go to the Maison de la litterature while we were in QC, but we rearranged parts of the schedule and then forgot to go on Friday in our free time. :( But overall, it was a great trip, despite me struggling with the language...even though I've had four years of French. Hopefully the next time I go, I'll be more fluent!

DNF Review: The Authentics

The Authentics by Abdi Nazemian
Grade: DNF
Release date: August 8, 2017
An ARC was passed along in exchange for the promise of an honest review.
Summary: Daria Esfandyar is Iranian-American and proud of her heritage, unlike some of the “Nose Jobs” in the clique led by her former best friend, Heidi Javadi. Daria and her friends call themselves the Authentics, because they pride themselves on always keeping it real.

But in the course of researching a school project, Daria learns something shocking about her past, which launches her on a journey of self-discovery. It seems everyone is keeping secrets. And it’s getting harder to know who she even is any longer.

With infighting among the Authentics, her mother planning an over-the-top sweet sixteen party, and a romance that should be totally off limits, Daria doesn’t have time for this identity crisis. With everything in her life changing—can she figure out how to stay true to herself?

When did I stop reading?: About four chapters in.
Why did I stop reading?: Too much pettiness.

The Longer Review: Maybe teens will enjoy this more, but I didn't enjoy the judginess and teenage drama and cattiness. I'm so tired of that in any form of media (movies, TV shows, and books), not to mention real life. It also very much read like a male voice instead of female first person narration.
Wanted to love this one but just couldn't get into it.

Random Friday: What Books Would You Save?

Want to participate in Random Fridays? Just do the following: 

• Include the above image in your post and link back to my post.
• Blog about this week's topic.
• Add the link to your Random Friday at the bottom of this post.

I'm using this week's Random Friday to ask a question: if you could safely save a tote bag full of books if your home was on fire/you had to suddenly go on the run/etc., what books would you include in the tote bag?

For answering this question myself, I took what is probably my largest tote bag and filled it with the books I value most (and it was pretty heavy and technically overflowing).

(Top of the bag. You can see how Second Chance Summer isn't fully in the bag, lol.)

Since you can't see all the books I fit, I'll list them below:

My ARCs of Cress, The Girl from Everywhere, and The Only Thing Worse Than Me Is You;

the Heist Society trilogy;

Second Chance Summer and Since You've Been Gone;

The Start of Me and You and The Names They Gave Us;

this edition of Anne of Green Gables;

Tash Hearts Tolstoy, Don't Touch, Eliza and Her Monsters, and My Heart and Other Black Holes.

When checking my shelves for what I'd include, I completely forgot about my foreign editions! I so wish I could've fit some of those... Ah, well. Let's just hope I never have to deal with a house fire.

Review: The League of American Traitors

The League of American Traitors by Matthew Landis
Grade: D
Release date: August 8, 2017
An e-galley was provided by the publisher via Edelweiss in exchange for review consideration.
Summary: Those who don’t know history are destined to repeat it. . . .

When seventeen year-old Jasper is approached at the funeral of his deadbeat father by a man claiming to be an associate of his deceased parents, he’s thrust into a world of secrets tied to America’s history—and he’s right at the heart of it.

First, Jasper finds out he is the sole surviving descendant of Benedict Arnold, the most notorious traitor in American history. Then he learns that his father’s death was no accident. Jasper is at the center of a war that has been going on for centuries, in which the descendants of the heroes and traitors of the American Revolution still duel to the death for the sake of their honor.

His only hope to escape his dangerous fate on his eighteenth birthday? Take up the research his father was pursuing at the time of his death, to clear Arnold’s name.

Whisked off to a boarding school populated by other descendants of notorious American traitors, it’s a race to discover the truth. But if Jasper doesn’t find a way to uncover the evidence his father was hunting for, he may end up paying for the sins of his forefathers with his own life.

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: It's a shame how disappointing this title was, because it was pitched for fans of National Treasure and Hamilton, and while those are big shoes to fill, I figured this book at least had to be fairly good. How wrong I was...
All the characters felt very surface level. Both Jasper and Nora had emotional moments, but I didn't feel bad for them at all, nor did I understand why they were being emotional. Character descriptions were very amateurishly written and only contributed to the feeling that I didn't know these characters well at all. The boarding school is pretty much a giant cliche, between the ridiculously strict headmistress and the cliques. The whole premise of the book, unfortunately, borders on highly improbable, just because the Libertines, the descendants of the good guys, are holding century-long grudges just because apparently being a traitor is hereditary. I found myself rolling my eyes a lot every time that came up. The mystery of Jasper's dad's research was just a little too confusing, and by about halfway through, readers aren't given enough information to care about it. I found myself continually putting off finishing the book. Finally, the prose did nothing for me either.
There's a fair amount of foul language. Smoking and violence, too.

The Verdict: Sky Pony Press titles have a history of letting me down, so I'm not terribly surprised, but I am sad The League of American Traitors wasn't better.

Buy: Read Between the Lynes  Barnes & Noble

Will I be adding this book to my library?: Nope.