Detour from the Usual: V-Day Edition

So I have this problem. Every single holiday I tell my husband not to get me a gift. Birthdays, Valentine's Day, Christmas, etc. And I always say this so I don't come off as materialistic or demanding. When really, I am both. I want the gift. So then when the day comes around & I am gift less, I am pissed. And sad. And don't understand why he would do such a thing. It doesn't help that I (and probably every other girl in the world) compare my life to romantic comedies/ the books I read. Writers get it. They make these men just wonderfully fantastic leaving the real men poor schmucks in life. 

We have worked through this "issue" & I now just say, "Hey! Get me something!" & all is right with the world. But for those who have this issue or for guys who have no idea what to get their ladies, here is my list of gifts that I think would be nice to get on a holiday, or any day really. Because sometimes you just want a present to feel nice. 

1. Flowers- I get it, not every girl likes flowers. They're wasteful. They don't have a purpose. And depending on the flower (or holiday) can be pretty expensive. BUT. They're pretty! Especially getting just because flowers can turn a crappy day into a wonderful day. 

2. Jewelry- cliche, I know. But I am also not talking super expensive jewelry. Just a small token to show you care, plus it's something she can wear daily & see it and be reminded of it. Sometimes we need to be reminded that our significant others are not terrible all the time. Only some of the time. 

3. A small personalized item- If your girl likes to read, get her a book. If she likes fashion & makeup, surprise her with the latest Vogue & a sephora gift card.  Show her that you pay attention to what she likes. 

I realize this entire article seems superficial, materialistic, vain, etc. & if you think that I'm really not sure why you're still reading. But I'm telling you I don't want it to come off that way. Showing the person you love how much you care with gifts does not have to be a bad thing. Now if that's the only way you show them, well that's none of my business. But I think a small gift every now and then or on a holiday is a nice token of affection!

And I agree 100% that ladies should buy gifts for their men. I LOVE buying for my husband. He is one of my best friends and I love knowing that he is going to enjoy whatever I get him. 

So as we approach on Valentine's Day let us remember, it's not the amount you spend on the gift but the amount of thought that goes into the gift that counts. Tis the (Valentine) season, & all that jazz. 

Book Review: Eleanor & Park

Title: Eleanor & Park

Author: Rainbow Rowell

Page Length: 328

Summary from Goodreads:

Two misfits.
One extraordinary love.

Eleanor... Red hair, wrong clothes. Standing behind him until he turns his head. Lying beside him until he wakes up. Making everyone else seem drabber and flatter and never good enough...Eleanor.

Park... He knows she'll love a song before he plays it for her. He laughs at her jokes before she ever gets to the punch line. There's a place on his chest, just below his throat, that makes her want to keep promises...Park.

Set over the course of one school year, this is the story of two star-crossed sixteen-year-olds—smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try.

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Holy heart strings. All the feels inside me right now. I'm almost not sure I can even wrap up my thoughts on this book. The book is told in alternating points of view. I liked this because you get to see how Eleanor & Park’s story unfolds for both of them. They always say there's more than one side to every story and I really enjoyed getting to see it. The story itself was so sweet. I know. How cliché. But seriously. The characters are 16. That's 8 years younger than me. Not to mention I did not have boyfriends in high school. Hell I barely had boyfriends in college. So how could I possibly relate to this young love story? Excellent writing of course. This author gets it. I love when books make me talk out loud to myself. Does it make me look batty? Well yeah, but I'm okay with that. Again, nothing that happened in either character’s lives in the book has ever happened to me & I was still so emotionally invested in their lives. The first time they held hands I literally said yay out loud.

So yay for happiness. However. & I know, how sad. Why must there always be a however? However, like most young love it had to end. Granted in this story the ending was one that was appropriate and necessary even if does still make you want to curl up in a ball and pretend like it didn't happen.

Some of Park’s last entries were hard for me. It just made me so sad. I think this was another good life lesson. It’s good to do the right thing, but even the right thing can still suck majorly.

As for the very end, I thought it was great. To end on such a way to let each reader interpret their own ending was very unique to me. I know what three words I chose. But someone else could choose three other words and that's okay. I appreciate the author letting me have the ability to imagine their future how I wanted to instead of forcing an ending I might not like on me.

Book Review: The Dive From Clausen's Pier

Title: The Dive From Clausen's Pier

Author: Ann Packer

Page Length: 432

Summary from Goodreads: How much do we owe the people we love? Is it a sign of strength or weakness to walk away from someone in need? These questions lie at the heart of Ann Packer’s intimate and emotionally thrilling new novel, which has won its author comparisons with Jane Hamilton and Sue Miller. 

At the age of twenty-three Carrie Bell has spent her entire life in Wisconsin, with the same best friend and the same dependable, easygoing, high school sweetheart. Now to her dismay she has begun to find this life suffocating and is considering leaving it–and Mike–behind. But when Mike is paralyzed in a diving accident, leaving seems unforgivable and yet more necessary than ever. The Dive from Clausen’s Pier animates this dilemma–and Carrie’s startling response to it–with the narrative assurance, exacting realism, and moral complexity we expect from the very best fiction.

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I really like the characters of this book. Unfortunately, there is not a whole lot I can say without giving too much away. Basically Carrie's fiancé has a horrible accident and she has to decide if she wants to stay by his side, or leave. I know I know, that sounds terrible, who leaves? But in her defense they had been having problems for awhile so that is why she is even considering it. 

The entire book is told through Carrie's eyes, all the emotions are hers. Normally when that happens I feel like you don't get a good grasp on other characters, but I was just as invested in the secondary characters lives as I was Carrie's. 

What disappointed me about the book was the ending, even though I liked it! To me, there was more to be developed. I would love if there was a sequel (I do not think there will be) because I still have so many questions about what happened to the rest of the characters! I guess I could write an epilogue in my head and finish it up to settle down all the voices in my head, but we will see. 

I would recommend this book, with the understanding it will leave you wanting more. not in the terrible horrible way Allegiant made you want more, but just more in general. 

TGIF

Thank goodness it's Friday! I feel like I've never been more excited to say that (I say that every week)!

First things first I'm the realest....

Just kidding. Sorta. No, but really, the first thing is I finally finished a book for the year! So that puts me at 1/100 for my main goal & 1/50 for my book list, but more on all that in a bit. 

I feel like I've been neglecting my blog a little lately & that makes me sad. I love writing whatever pops into my brain & sharing all my book loves with the world. However, I guess if I wanted to do that all the time I'd have to quit my day job..... hahaha yeah right.

Speaking of my day job, as I've mentioned before, I work at a University & this was the first week with students back which made this week a super crazy busy one. So that was fun. Add in that I was finally convinced to go to the doctor yesterday after being sick for the past month & you get a glimpse into the fun packed week I had. But it is over now (I took a sick day today since I got no sleep & feel like my body hates the bajillion medications I'm on), work should begin to let up some (haha in my dreams at least), I should be on the mend health wise, & I have a super awesome three day weekend ahead of me. And by super awesome I mean filled with reading & catching up on some tv shows of course! 

So now that I am through whining, why don't I get back to the actual reason for the blog, books, & the fact that I finally found time to finish one! Go me! I just finished The Dive From Clausen's Pier by Ann Packer. On my book list it is also known as #17 A book a friend recommended. Said friend was my coworker, Debbie! I love working with people who also love to read. Sharing books is the best. I never would have even thought about reading The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare if my other reading buddy/coworker Mistie hadn't convinced me to, & now it is easily one of my favorite series ever. 

The Dive From Clausen's Pier was a good book. It started out kind of slow for me so the reading dragged out a little longer than I would have liked. Also, it was an actual book as opposed to an ebook which made it harder for me to read as often as I would have liked. But overall I liked the characters and was interested in the main character's (Carrie)

struggle. I think I will post a book review of it sometime during my three day weekend. I may not do a review of every book from my book goals or my book list this year but I am gonna try to do as many as possible. After all, that's half the point of having the blog! 

So please stay tuned as I hope to become more diligent in my blog posting soon. I hope everyone has a great three day weekend (if you get one) & that if you've set any New Year's Resolutions that your are still going strong! Happy Friday, y'all. :)

2015 Book Goals

Yay! It is 2015! Which means for the next 3-5 months I will continue to put 2014 on everything. But whatever, I will get it eventually. Today I am sharing my book goals for this new year! I have never had book goals before, but I am a pretty competitive person so I figure this is a way to combine that with my love of reading. While on Pinterest the other day, I stumbled upon this picture:

I've decided to make this list my goal for this year. As well as I want to challenge myself to read 100 books for the entire year. Even just writing that I'm thinking I'm crazy. 100 books is a lot of books! I do have a job, go to school, & have a personal life (sorta). So it is definitely going to be a challenge, but I look forward to seeing if I achieve it. I also want to challenge myself to do more book reviews. To date I have only done one. Granted I've only been in this whole blog game for two months now, but it is something I need to become more diligent in. However, I do also enjoy posting about my personal life as well. So there will be more of that in 2015 too. I hope everyone had a fun & safe New Year's Eve and that 2015 becomes one of the best years yet :)