In My Life
This week I was reminded how much of a price difference there is between buying books in local bookstores and ordering them online. I happened to pass by an outlet of a local bookstore chain, which had a 1-for-1 sale on most books. Of course I couldn’t pass up on such a great bargain, or so I thought.
Obviously the charges were on the most expensive books while the cheaper books had to be the freeloaders. After picking out five books, I wasn’t sure if I wanted a sixth book, so I did what any savvy consumer does: compare prices. To my surprise, even with such a huge sale, I could get the books I had on me at lower prices online. Had they had Cinder in stock, then that book could’ve been cheaper coupled with Scarlet but that didn’t work out. There were no copies of Cinder left, and I had no desire to buy the second book in the series without getting the first as well.
In the end, I only walked out with The Great Gatsby and This Song Will Save Your Life. These two books combined saved me something like two to three dollars a book plus waiting time thanks to shipping. All my other possible combinations would’ve resulted in spending more. I left the store a little disappointed but at least I did walk out with two pretty books!
On the Blog
REVIEW
Blog Posts
- [30 May] Epic Recs: May 2014
- [30 May] Negative Book Reviews Minus the Negativity
- [1 Jun] Retrospect #22: June 1st
Around the Blogosphere
Bloggers & Blogging
- Miranda @ Tempest Books considers the place of swearing on blogs and in book reviews.
- Rachel @ Parajunkee highlights several social networking faux pas.
- Amber @ The Mile Long Bookshelf eloquently sums up book bloggers’ responses to the panel at BEA (Book Expo America) entitled The Publishing Process: How Bloggers Have Changed the Game, where there was a booktuber on the panel but not a single blogger.
- Nikki @ The Paper Sea shares her blog organising schedule.
- Jennifer @ Boricuan Bookworms talks about the ups and downs of being a blogger and reviewer.
Rating & Reviewing
- Cait @ Notebook Sisters insists that being diverse is not a good justification in itself for highly rating a book. If a book isn’t well-written, then all the diversity in the world doesn’t make up for it.
Reading
- Kelly @ Effortlessly Reading notes when book previews aren’t necessarily a good thing.
- Stephanie @ These Paper Hearts is curious if you prefer new or old books.
- Kayla @ The Thousand Lives identifies 9 faces you make while reading in public.
- Kristilyn @ Reading in Winter asks if you go for quality or quantity when it comes to reading.
Quote of the Week
Vincent stretched out his long lean legs. “You know, we’re going to have to get used to this.” “To what?” “To us going out with other people.” “I know.” “It can’t always be us two.” “I know.” I looked up at the winter sky. “Do you think it’s weird that we’re not in love with each other?” “No. I think it’s perfect.” “Me too.” I scooted closer and rested my head on his chlorine-scented shoulder.
—Katrina, Coffeehouse Angel by Suzanne SelforsWhile I read this book last December, I still can’t describe how much I love that passage. Platonic friendships this strong can be so complicated yet so wonderful. People keep expecting that you’re dating, their partners can get weirdly jealous, but there’s this special bond that is incomparable. And I’m so glad Suzanne Selfors captured this in her book because I’m tired of reading about best friends who end up together as a couple. What about lasting friendships? Well, there is one right here, which makes me very happy.
How do you feel about platonic friendships? Doesn’t matter if in books or in life. I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments down below!
There is so much information that I come across each day, I sometimes find it hard to process it all. This is why I decided to post a weekly recap post of what’s been going on here on my blog and with me in general, in the blogosphere and also about books as a whole. Retrospect has been inspired by none other than the lovely Asti @ Oh, the Books! when she used to do her weekly Bookish Recaps on her original blog, A Bookish Heart.Comments
Isn’t Asti just amazing? She’s really shaped the way I blog ever since I stumbled on A Bookish Heart early last year. Glad to see that she’s still inspiring people left, right and center. :D
I have to say you made a great choice buing THIS SONG WILL SAVE YOUR LIFE. It was one of my favorite reads last year, which is surprising because I don’t usually fall in love with contemporaries. But Leila Sales had me pleasantly surprised. I really hope you like it as much as I did! TBH, I don’t really understand all the fuss surrounding THE GREAT GATSBY. Then again, I read it like two or three years ago and could hardly understand what was going on, lol. The movie does look interesting, though, and I love the Roaring Twenties. Maybe I should re-read it…
Platonic friendships — sigh. I know how you feel. And being a highly reserved and shy person, it’s hard for me to make friends, especially with the opposite gender. While I do think that best friends becoming couples are cute, I agree, seeing longlasting, non-romantic friendships in books would definitely be refreshing! But ugh, it makes me wish I had a kind of friendship like that. Oh well. :/
Anyway, hope you have a great week, Josephine! Even though I’m commenting halfway through the week already T_T xP
Indeed, Asti is amazing :)
Ooh. I’m glad to hear praises for This Song Will Save Your Life. I love books that involve music, so the cover totally grabbed my attention. I’ve never read The Great Gatsby because I didn’t take Literature at A Levels, but I know it’s a favourite for some of my friends, so I’ve been wanting to find out why. Haven’t watched the movie either though I intend to after I’ve read the book.
I’ve always had guys for best friends, and the idea of dating them has almost always been way too ridiculous. Once a mother of a friend asked the two of us if we were dating. If we hadn’t been in a car, we would’ve been rolling on the ground, laughing. So yeah, I’m always happy when platonic friendships are acknowledged and not always made to be something romantic.
It’s never too late to have a great week! You too have a great one! ;)
I love online book shopping!! It’s like shopaholic + bookworm heaven. My local bookstores take months after the book’s release to actually ship in copies, and it’s so much cheaper on TBD + free delivery, what’s more to ask? Heard amazing things for This Song Will Save Your Life and The Great Gatsby is a classic, clearly. A classic favourite <3
Yesss! I was over the moon when I discovered TBD a few years ago. I think it’s safe to say that the bulk of my online shopping is for books. Heh. I’ve never read Gatsby but I’ve been wanting to for a while now.
Platonic friendships are the reason I wake up every morning <3 I have never read or seen a romantic relationship that beats out any sibling or non-romantic relationship. There's just something that seems a bit more eternal to me; romance is so volatile and fragile. And maybe that's personal experience coming out but give me a BROTP over an OTP any day!
By the way, that is a REALLY cool cover for Gatsby. Mine has the usual blue eye thing on the front. A bit more recognizable, but not nearly as cool as the green :D
Yay to solid friendships! :D
Yes, such a pretty green! Although I think that swept up hair makes it look kinda eerie.