How Klever(Case): My New Kindle Cover!

Sometimes, a new thing comes into your life, and all you want to do is talk about this new wonderful thing, and it consumes you with its perfection and you keep wanting to work it into new conversations, and basically, what I'm trying to say here, is that I'm fully obsessed with the new cover for my Kindle Paperwhite, which I bought from KleverCase! 

 Reminder: I will always disclose when I've been gifted an item - whether it's a book or otherwise - but this was 100% a purchase I made myself! If it seems like I'm a little effusive, its just because I have a lot of feelings. 

Isn't it just stunning? KleverCase has so many incredible options - and I'm pretty sure most people would know them best for their mock-book cases, like their Harry Potter and To Kill a Mockingbird options - and I very nearly got the Pride and Prejudice version, but in the end, I just couldn't say no to this stunning turquoise color. 

The gorgeous factor is also bumped up significantly by the incredible, golden embossed monogram initials, which I chose to put into both the inner and outer sections of the front cover. You're given plenty of options for personalization, too, and the cover is basically guaranteed to look lovely!

At first, upon opening the package, I had a little trepidation about the size, because it seemed like it would be a bit of a tight squeeze for my Paperwhite. In truth, it absolutely was... but that's also the point! By making sure the fit is as snug as possible, your tech is left completely protected. It also allows it to handle better than a bigger, burlier e-reader case, and still kind of preserves that feel of reading a real book.

It took a little bit longer for shipping - because it traveled here all the way from the UK - and the expense of it all is definitely not a purchasing decision to take lightly, but in the end, I think it's all totally worth it! Hope y'all look forward to seeing it on my Instagram at least once a week. ;)

What does your e-reader look like? Would you ever think of purchasing a KleverCase? Let me know, in the comments below! 

Powells and Portland Haul!

What a beautiful, crisp Thursday afternoon we have upon us here in Seattle! 

We've been experiencing our regulated Seattle Spring weather aberration - the annual, unseasonably sunny and cool week in February that tricks us into thinking good weather is is on its way, before mercilessly flinging us back into the rainy gray that lasts until April - and its the kind of weather that makes me want to go adventuring. 

Or, maybe its just the holdover from this past three-day weekend, where we celebrated my second younger sister's birthday with a trip down to Portland! 

Seen in the OMSI giftshop: I wasn't
able to buy it then, but you can bet I'll
be picking up a copy soon! 

The excursion was filled with plenty of tourist traps and forms of entertainment... Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, Blue Star Donuts (because Voodoo is passe nowadays, apparently), and, of course, the bookish behemoth and labyrinth for the linguistically-inclined, Powell's Books! 

For those not of the PNW persuasion, Powell's City of Books is a massive secondhand bookstore found in the Downtown Portland area, and it is a beauty. With most of its books sold at significantly cheaper prices, and almost always guaranteed to be in almost-new condition, Powell's is hands-down one of my favorite places to purchase, 

Thank God my 2015 Resolution is finally over, because holy cow, would I have lost my mind if I had stepped foot inside this monolith of wordiness without being able to take anything home with me. And by "anything," I mean "everything"... 

POWELL'S HAUL

for me 

tbh, I think one of my favorite #bookstagram poses will always be the "cradled in the lap, on the way home from the bookstore" look

In case you're wondering how I prepared for this particular excursion, I've been keeping a list in the "Notes" section of my iPhone for the past two months with all of the books I was on the lookout for. Then, I printed out a copy of the store's expansive layout at home, and filled in titles into the margins of their appropriately-shelved areas! 

I made sure to plot out a route to follow, as well, entering through Couch Street, an easy walk after brunch at the Zeus Cafe, at McMenamin's Crystal Hotel (for the love of bread, please try the french toast). 

If you think all of that prep work is adorable, then you're just like the delighted cashier who found the wrinkled and abused paper map after it had gotten crushed into the bottom of my shopping bag. (If you think it borders on the obsessive, you're more like my mom). 

Anyways, it served its purpose well, because even though they didn't carry all of the titles I'd been looking for, I found quite a spectacular assortment of books, nonetheless. 

Sabriel, Garth Nix

American Gods, Neil Gaiman

One of Our Thursdays is Missing and The Woman Who Died Alot, Jasper Fforde

Why We Write About Ourselves, Meredith Maran

The Age of the Image: Redefining Literacy in a World of Screens, Stephen Apkon

Hark! A Vagrant, Kate Beaton

A Game of Thrones, George R.R. Martin

Dragondrums, Anne McCaffrey

Not pictured: a pretty dope pencil pouch that says "Be Bold, or Italic. Never Regular." Because even as a 22-year-old, I'm still all about those school supplies. 

for fam

Adorable hedgehog pic, just because.

We snagged a super-cute hedgehog tote bag for my younger brother - whose hedgehog, Beignet, is one of my favorite things on this planet - and picked up a copy of Stan Lee's comic memoirs, Amazing Fantastic Incredible, for my Dad, for Valentine's Day presents. 

Only later did we realize that the KtBB
cover perfectly matched one of her other
presents from me, Tarte's tarteist lip cream
in "Adorbs"!

My younger sister and all of her friends got matching Powell's tee shirts, while I took a few moments out of my own frantic book browsing to grab a few titles for belated bday presents, as well. 

Kill the Boy Band, by Goldy Moldavsky, was an impulse purchase that speaks a lot to the power of book cover marketing, and whose plot sounds a lot like some teenage girls had Niall Horan stuffed in a hotel closet, while Audrey, Wait!, by Robin Benway, has been on my buy-list for Madeline since Christmas, because it seems like the best book I could ever recommend for someone who's five months into a relationship with a lead vocalist. I was ecstatic to find both in hardcover, and reasonably good condition! 

Overall, I'm immensely happy with my Powell's purchases, and look forward to returning once again... sometime this summer sounds nice! 

Have you ever been to Powell's? What's your favorite secondhand bookstore? Let me know, in the comments below! 

My Random Bookish Valentine 9: Authors, Novels, Series, and More Things that I Love!

Well, prep for Valentine's Day is well underway for me... I've got my valentines for my 5 family members all drawn and ready for delivery, just like I do every year, and a box of 34 Good Dinosaur valentines was cheerfully distributed into the in-house mailboxes of our sorority house just this afternoon, after class.

However, there's so much in my life that I'm so in love with, that I'll never be able to give a valentine. How, exactly, does one inform their favorite tea mug, exactly how much they mean to you? So, I've gathered together a superfine, valentine list, of NINE of my favorite bookish things, that give me the honeyglows. 

Tea and Cookies

No better accompaniment to a cozy day of reading than something that warms your hands and something that warms your soul. Bonus points if the tea is Twinings - with two lumps of sugar and way too much milk, like my Cuppatea Grandma used to make - and if the cookies are homebaked. The only kind of homeyness I think could ever compare might be...

Lots of Pillows

My bed has usually stayed pretty Spartan for most of my life, but I've come to the conclusion, in college, that if your bed is as cozy as it should be, then you should never want to leave it. Two extra-plush sleepers, a sorority present, my trusty UW pillow pet, and a mattress switch-up later, and I'm well on my way to being lazy forever.

My College Bookshelf

I'm seriously kicking myself for not having a picture of them handy for you guys, because I really don't want you getting the wrong ideas of things: while I do have a full - in fact, far overly full - bookcase at home, I've also managed to snag a smaller, foldable bookshelf to stow away at college, completely packed with entirely new books, which I've purchased some time in the past month and a half. It's not much, but it's more than enough to me.

Homemade Bookmarks

Recently, I unearthed a stack of slightly-worn bookmarks my Big and GBig had made for me, in the midst of our sorority's Big-Little Reveal celebration, back during my freshman year (Mine had been Beauty and the Beast themed, for obvious reasons). Thus, bookmarks have become a part of my regular reading routine again... but only because they were made with so much love!

Funny Female Memoirs

There isn't a glance at my shelf where a handful of poppy, printed names don't jump off of their covers at me, and they're usually ones you'd find familiar, too. From the zany Amy Poehler, to the elegant and sedate Julie Andrews, reading accounts of the lives of other women - especially when graced with a dash or a dollop of comedic self-reflection - makes me feel like it's okay that I don't have it all sorted out just yet. Who knows what my story may end up looking like!

Modern Day Jane Austen

Basically to the good folks and content creators over at Pemberley Digital - the teams in charge of The Lizzie Bennett Diaries and Emma Approved - I'm in love with all of you. Let's get group-married.

Paranormal YA that Isn't Hot Monsters

Maggie Stiefvater's The Raven Boys works the mystical and magical residue of Welsh myth and history, into a world where a happy house filled with assorted female psychics read tarot cards for small town Virginians. Libba Bray's The Diviners roar through '20s era New York City with a diverse, gender-balanced crew, that takes out grumbling ghosts, voodoo spirits, zombies, and other spooktastic specters with period-appropriate panache. These things don't go bump in the night so much as crash and bellow, and for that, we thank you.

Highlighting my Books

I'm an annotator by nature; any time a college professor or peer has an aneurysm about people dog ear-ing pages or writing in the margins instead of using bookmarks and post-it notes, I can't help but roll my eyes. They're your books, do what you want! And years from now, when you're re-reading, you can see in real time exactly what you thought was so important.

Reading Marathons

No, not reading about marathons. Basically, while wallowing in the interim of time that was alotted to pass before I went home for Winter Break, I decided to pass the time by dealing my 2015 Goodreads Challenge a decisive blow, in the form of mini reading marathons, consuming 2 or 3 books in a day. It was truly a beautiful thing.



But here's one last bookish valentine I feel like I need to thank: you! Thank you to all of the amazing friends, family, and fellow bloggers who read the scribblings I jot down here. If I could buy all of you books and chocolates for Sunday's celebrations, I would.

What people, places, things, and more, do you wish you could give a valentine? Let me know, in the comments below! 

How I Use My 2016 Planner : Planner-ed Out Perfect, Part Four

You have seen everything from my experiences picking out an academic planner last year, to updating that planner purchase for 2015, to checking in at the mid-year mark! Now, since we're more than a month into 2016, I figured it's about time to see what kind of planner situation I'm working with this year...

First things first: I'm still absolutely loving my trusty Day Designers, by Whitney English!

This year, I've traded in my 2015 Aqua Shell for a 2016 Belle and Blush exclusive edition in Pink Painterly Stripes. The exterior is a little girlier than last year's, but I love how soft and feminine my 2016 edition looks... and so, in fact, did my sister! Delaney - the (ex-)Cheerleader - recently was elected to serve as current president of her sorority, here at UW, and she liked the look of my new planner so much she requested a matching one for Christmas. (I'm clearly the real trendsetter of the family!)

I still love filling my planner with colorful stickers, to punch up my daily agenda with a little color and whimsy. There are quite a few that I bought during the Spring - when I had my regularly-scheduled Finals Week distraction attack - that I used over the summer, and am still using; however, I've also beefed out my collection with the new year, stocking up on things with gold foil accents, inspirational quotes, cutesy symbols, and, of course, lots of flowers.

My personal favorite stickers are a remnant of a fascination I've held since I was in elementary school. I've always been infatuated with the historical significance and symbolism of bees... and yes, I'm very aware of how strange that sentence sounds. But think of it this way: bees are synonymous with royalty ("queen bee" ;) ), sweet things (honey), and flowers, and, of course, hard work. No matter if my planner's daily page is packed or completely blank, you can bet that there's a bee settled somewhere, reminding me of all the things I need to "bee" today. 

When it comes to organizing the contents of each page of my planner, I don't have to do a ton of work: The Day Designer is honestly one of my favorite planners because it allows you to schedule out and reflect on every single part of your day! There are so many fun features, including...

• "Due," "Dinner," "Dollars," and "Don't Forget" spaces at the top of every page make it easy to track the little parts of your day, which might otherwise get caught up in the shuffle. 
• The "Daily Gratitude" block down at the bottom of the page reminds you to reflect on the little things in life, (So far, this year, I've been thankful for everything from "toast" to "hair straighteners," to "working with great people" to my roommate's "triumphant return to Seattle after battling an infected bug bite wound.") 
•  and the entire page is dominated by two columns, of your Daily Schedule and your To-Do list, ready and available to be divided up however you wish. What I typically try to do it consolidate like items on my To-Do list into individual, discrete sections, so I can have them all in one place, and give better focus to what areas of my life need more attention that day. 

There are plenty of other fun elements, too, like the Quote of the Day at the top of each page. I burst out laughing as soon as I opened mine on January first, and had to point out the quote to my mother, as it was one of my favorites. Clearly, 2016 is going to be my year!

So, that's how I'm still working my planner this year. I feel like I've covered quite a bit of ground with my planner journey to this point... y'all have seen everything, from the selection and refinement process, to the experiences of my first year, to how I love to decorate it! Maybe next time we chat about this kind of activity, we can take a glance through my extensive sticker collection... I'll make sure to jot it down somewhere. ;) 

What planner do you carry? How do you accessorize your planner? Let me know, in the comments below! 

Bits of Books: Murder Girls

"Bits of Books" is a recurring series, full of summarized book reviews, for titles I just can't invest as much time in!

Here's my problem... some of the final books that rounded out my 2015 reading have been stuck in my head. It's a new year and a new reading pool, and yet, I still couldn't let them go without a couple of quick comments. After thinking about them just last night, I decided to dig through the memory banks a little bit, and put together a Bits of Books review for some very similar - yet distinctly unique - books that I soared through over a month ago.

What do they have in common? They're all relatively recent YA releases, with leading lady characters, who sometimes make a habit of killing people. Like, a lot of people. That isn't to say these fearsome females are all alike, though: we've got a trained assassin, saved from an abusive marriage and trained in a convent; a rough-and-tumbleweed Westerner who's looking to take out the gang that killed her father; and a guardswoman, seeking atonement for the covenant she made years ago with a creature of the night, which resulted in the death of her mentor.

Distinct, but still similar enough to make me ponder over these plot choices more than a month after I finished reading them. Do you detect the theme? 

Grave Mercy, Robin LaFevers

Ismae has been marked by Death since the day she was born, and no domineering father nor abusive arranged marriage will ever change that. Spirited away from her confining existence in her village into the welcoming convent of St. Mortain, run by women who still serve the old gods of Brittany, Ismae quickly excels in their tutelage of the arts of an assassin. Soon enough, her skills are needed at play in one of the most dangerous arenas she's ever encountered: deciphering the intrigue and deception of nobility, in the high court of Brittany. 

I heard quite a bit about this book when it first came out from quite a few of the bloggers whose reviews I really trust, but hadn't felt compelled to read it until I was looking to make a quick catch up on my Goodreads goal for 2015. When it comes to the scope of period-set YA, it did a good job building the time setting as a cohesive world, and excelled in fast-paced action; however, I felt the characterizations were fairly two-dimensional, especially in the form of the weak-tea romance. Overall, I gave  this book a solid three stars. 

Vengeance Road, Erin Bowman

Westerns aren't typically found in the YA canon; however, Kate Thompson is just the kind of girl to fix that. After finding her father brutally murdered and her house gutted by fire, Kate rides to the tune of revenge, swearing retribution on the gang that killed him in order to get the map to a secret gold mine. Disguised as a boy to be safer on the trail, Kate is joined by two meddling brothers, and a young Apache girl, and together, they discover secrets that might be best left to die in the Arizona Territory dust. 

I'd heard this novel described by more than one person as being more akin to True Grit than typical YA, and I have to agree: this book is bloody, with more than one significant death, and plenty more gruesomeness mentioned offhand. The West was a wild place, and Bowman definitely doesn't hold back. There are issues discussed in here that might turn people off - for instance, I get my hackles up whenever Native American stereotypes play their part - and I did have some problems with the plot resolution at the novel's climax, but this was honestly one of my favorite YAs that I read in the past year. 4.25 stars. 

Crimson Bound, Rosamund Hodge

A guard on behalf of the realm, after being exiled from her home village due to an act of bitter betrayal against her mentor, Rachelle serves the king as a force against the evil creatures of the night. After being appointed guard of the king's heir, Armand, Rachelle is drawn into a quest for an ancient power that is the only thing that stands between their world, and the world of the Forest. What she might not realize, is that their search has a deadline... and will bring consequences she has no way of predicting. 

After being disappointed by Rosamund Hodge's other fairy tale-inspired standalone, Cruel Beauty, I was a little hesitant to take up this title; however, my good friend Callie already had a copy, and kept me from having to purchase it myself. I was shocked to find that I actually really enjoyed the plot, which had just enough twists to keep me from predicting too much, and the enthralling world that our characters occupied. Additional points awarded for integration of a disabled character, and for not glossing over any of Rachelle's imperfections. 4 stars. 

THE TREND

But like I mentioned before, these books didn't leave an impression on me just by action, world-building or plot alone; it was the cohesive characterizations of each of their female leads, as someone capable of killing - and good at it, too - which made me take pause. 

I'm curious to what kind of social constructions support this recurring theme, as a trend in fantasy and hero-genre novels. We find it everywhere from YA - like Celaena Sardothien, from S. J. Maas' Throne of Glass series - to fantasy - like the lovely ladies of G. R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series. The fact that these kinds of female characters are not just so popular, but so well-written, must stand for some moment of greater cultural consciousness in how feminism plays a part in the ways we write our young women. 

What are we, as murder girls, fighting against, or standing for? Why does it lend itself so well to fiction? 

Can you think of any other cool Murder Girls in YA, or general fiction? Have you read any of the books in this list? Let me know, in the comments below! 

The Novel and the Movie: Wild

I hope you've got your popcorn ready, because here's another match up of best-selling books, and their movie adaptation counterparts! (Check out my past posts in this series, with The Maltese Falcon, and Bridget Jones' Diary!)

Today, we're doing something a little different... simply because the book we're discussing ISN'T A NOVEL. (So all of you who are tempted to leave that comment down below, don't worry: I'm already well aware!) Why should only fiction have all the fun?

Wild, by Cheryl Strayed, follows one woman's account of her journey - emotional and spiritual, as much as physical - while hiking the Pacific Crest Trail from California to Oregon, as well as the events in her life that lead her to that point. It's a favorite of my sister, Delaney - the kid who worked in Yellowstone National Park the whole summer - and she had been begging me to read it for quite some time, so I finally tackled the tome while home for Winter Break. Of course, we had to follow up immediately with the movie (unsurprisingly, another one of her favorites).

Which left me to ponder, which medium - the book or the movie - really depicted Cheryl's journey at its most raw and realistic? 

THE BOOK

Filled with descriptions of luscious nature scenes, interactions with wildlife and fellow hikers, and the struggles that had pushed Strayed into such an extreme situation, the book has been highly rated on Goodreads and touted by the likes of Oprah for the past couple of years. It was actually a Goodreads Choice Winner way back in 2012, the year it was published!

To be honest, I didn't really love it. I ended up giving it 3 stars on GR, and even reflecting on it, I'm still left feeling like it was a little lackluster.

The way Strayed told her story was incredibly emotional, but also came off as somewhat self-aggrandizing, which raised the question for me as to whether she padded any of her experiences for the sake of a good story.

It was also a bit of a bummer for visualization's sake: I couldn't picture the scope of what this kind of undertaking would entail, because I couldn't really see it. And descriptions of the beauty of nature are all well and good, and appropriately given some space in book form; however, there was still a feeling of disconnect.

What I will say about the book, was that it gave a lot of context to her personal experiences and just how far she'd sunk from who she wanted to be. It really served as a great example of finding power by putting things into your own words, and owning the story.

Notes from the Field

• Ew. Ew. Ew. 
• God, and I think it's bad when I go camping for a three-day weekend. 
• Not testing out equipment beforehand seems unsafe. 
• Doing all of this alone seems unsafe. 
• Unsafe, unsafe, unsafe!!! 
• EWWWWW... 

THE MOVIE

The movie, both starring Reese Witherspoon as Strayed - both as a teen and as a twenty-something, throughout the chronological course of the book - as well as utilizing her as a producer, premiered to positive reviews by both viewers and critics alike back in 2014. The Rotten Tomatoes score for this movie stands at 90%, with audiences reporting 75% approval ratings as well!

The movie, in my opinion, did a much better job at demonstrating the emotional core and physical exertion of the book. Overall, I think it just gave better representation to the story, because even though the book allows the author to express things in their own words, Witherspoon really brought her acting A-game to this role: seeing the tragedy of Strayed's life, and the temerity she displayed in attempting this feat, was just better represented.

Besides, you can't beat the vastness of a blissfully filtered panorama shot with a paragraph of description. A lot of it comes down to the intensely visual nature of depicting such physical acts and surroundings: It's one thing to read about the places within the novel, and quite another to actually visualize the beauty of it.

Additionally, the artsy editing and exceptional soundtrack options helped lend more translatable emotional meaning, too. I definitely cried, multiple times. It was gross.

Notes from the Field

• God, Reese Witherspoon is just so gorgeous. Also, potentially immortal. 
• Hey, Laura Dern!
• I want to know what Instagram filter they filmed all this footage in. 
• So, they just got rid of the sister? 
• I think I'm going to hate this song by the time this movie is over. 

THE VERDICT

Shock and awe! For the first time in this blog series, I have to say that I thought the movie was much better than the book! I still wasn't 100% on board with the story, and definitely can't quite measure up to the kind of love my sister has for it, but the movie just did a better job at conveying the emotional distress, physical stress, and grandiose surroundings that much more effectively. (Also, I love Reese Witherspoon.) 

Have you seen or read Wild? Which would you say was better? What book and movie team should I tackle next? Let me know, in the comments below! 

You Know You're an English Major When...

It was to my great excitement at the beginning of this Quarter, two weeks ago, when I realized that for the first time ever, I had a fellow sorority sister in one of my English classes! Whereas you might have bought into the stereotype that every in the Greek Community is a Business or Humanities major, my sorority is practically full to bursting with predominantly STEM ladies... which makes it kind of a pain when you're looking for someone to peer edit a paper.

This serendipitous occasion made me reflect on some of the awesome friends I had made in other English classes throughout my undergrad here at the University of Washington... in particular, a conversation I had with one back last Quarter, where our comedic genius knew no bounds. We had joked about making a list of "You Know You're an English Major When..."s, and I thought, why not turn it into a blog post?

Yes, the beautiful Reading Room in Suzzallo Library on campus. I've studied here maybe twice, 'cause it's always packed!

• You have very specific opinions about Ernest Hemingway as a person, and can argue the point thoroughly using multiple details from his life that you never learned in a class.
• And in conjunction with that, you've had a lot of time to think over the whole authors-as-authors versus authors-as-people thing. (Here's looking at you, Johnathan Franzen.) 
• Not only do you have a favorite Shakespearean work, but you have a favorite adaptation of that work too... same with Jane Austen and Charles Dickens. 
• There's been a time where you've gone through an entire assignment misspelling a tricky minor character's name. 
• You are the de facto editing expert of your friend group, and sometimes spend more time editing other people's papers during Finals Week than your own. 
• You could never understand why people think plagiarism is okay. Ever. Same with illegally pirating ebooks off of the Internet. 
• Your classmates' taste interests can be easily sorted into "pretentious" and "proletariat," and depending on the ratios of such, usually leads to how much fun discussion in your class can get.
• Your teacher is able to get derailed by cultural commentary easily enough to forget the main point of the entire lecture. That's a regular Tuesday for you. 
• Sometimes they get derailed by the notes on the board left by an earlier, completely unrelated class, too. That's also normal. 
• They've not only given book recommendations to the class before, but you and your classmates have likely returned the favor. Especially if your prof. has young kids. 
• Characters from either Harry Potter or The Lord of the Rings have most likely been brought into completely unrelated class discussions before. Those are also probably the discussions you've liked best. 
• You've had more than 200 pages of reading and 50 pages of articles assigned in a week before. And that was just during midterms. 
• Someone has actually told you that "Gosh, I haven't read in forever!" (As if it's something to brag about? Like, we all have heavy workloads, and we're not begrudging you for it. But why do you feel like it's something you need to declare?) 
• People have asked if you write fanfiction before. to be honest, you're pretty sure a lot of your classmates do. 
• And, of course, more recently - because I'm graduating - "Do you ever regret it?" Yes, there have been times where the terror of my impending graduation and the stagnation and decline of the job market for people like me has stressed me out beyond belief. But I try to never regret pursuing the things that make my life unbelievably happy. 

Are you in the major? Have you had any of the above experiences? Let me know, in the comments below!