January Wrap Up…

Welcome to my January Wrap Up. I had a good reading month in January, finishing 6 books (3 books off my TBR). I also received 2 ARC’s this month. I have reviews up or coming up for these books so as usual this is just going to be a brief rundown on each book I read.

Without further ado, let’s get into my January Wrap Up:

The Blunders by David Walliams: This book was everything I have come to expect from a David Walliams book. The story was weird and wacky and a little bit naughty. The characters weird strange yet loveable and the writing was fast and funny. A must have for all middle grade readers.

Dear Mum by Samuel Johnson: I adored this book. I have read a few of these collections so I knew what I was getting when I went into it. I laughed and I cried in equal measure while reading this book. I am so glad to now own this book and I al looking forward to rereading it many times in the future.

The Golden Egg Book by Margaret Wise Brown: This book was beautiful. I grew up reading Little Golden Books so as soon as I saw this book I knew I had to have it. It was sweet and entertaining and the illustrations were stunning. I am so glad that I now have this book for my Easter Books collection.

The Paper & Hearts Society – Bookishly Ever After by Lucy Powrie: I loved this book. While I am sad that this is the last book in this series I think it was the perfect conclusion. The story was interesting and really well written, and the characters are like old friends to me now. This is a series that I know I will re-read again many times in the future,

Hamlet Is Not Ok by R.A. Spratt: I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I love Shakespeare so reading a book that involves his plays is always a treat for me. I loved the story and how it played out and I thought the characters were really well written and relatable. I am so glad that I read this book and I will definitely be reading it again in the future.

The Lost Library by Rebecca Stead and Wendy Mass: I loved this book. Any book that features a library is my kind of book and this one also included a mystery. The story had heart and the characters were sweet and entertaining. This is one of those books that I am glad to have on my bookshelf.

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That’s it for my January Wrap Up. I hope you all had a great reading month. Let me know what you guys read this month in the comments section.

Happy Reading…

GEM

Hamlet Is Not Ok by R.A Spratt

‘Shelby hates homework.

She would rather watch TV – anything to escape the tedium of school, her parents’ bookshop and small-town busybodies.

So Selby didn’t plan to read Hamlet. She certainly never planned to meet him.’

I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

As a fan of Shakespeare I love to read books that are set around his plays, so as soon as I saw this book I knew I had to have it. I went into this book with high hopes and I am happy to say this book was everything I wanted and so much more.

I loved how Shakespeare’s play was integral to the plot and how it was used both to move the story forward and as a way for readers to learn more about the characters. This allowed the characters to develop more naturally at the story unfolded.

The characters in this book were interesting. I loved the ‘real’ characters for their relatability. I could understand their motives and choices which made it easy for me to like them and want them to succeed.

As for the ‘fictional’ characters, I loved how funny their interactions with the ‘real’ characters were. I had some genuine laugh out loud moments as the two different worlds collided and had to adapt to the different times and places.

The actual plot of this story was really well written. I loved the setting and I loved the honest and believable dialog between the ‘real’ characters. This kept the story grounded in reality while the more ‘mystical’ elements occurred.

R.A. Spratt has done a great job with this book. The writing was easy to read and fast paced which made for a nice quick read without feeling rushed or unfinished in anyway. I am glad that I decided to read this book and I look forward to re-reading it many times in the future.

Hamlet Is Not Ok by R.A. Spratt is a quick and entertaining read.

Pointless Facts 44!

As I am really enjoying compiling Pointless Facts, I am going to stick with my plan of posting a new list every month; at least until it stops being fun for me. So I hope you all enjoy this month’s installment of Pointless Facts.

In Australia swimming on public beaches was illegal for more than 60 years.

Teeny Ted from Turnip Town is the smallest book in the world.

Alice in Wonderland was based on a real 10-year-old girl named Alice Liddell.

Fraser Island in Australia is the largest sand island in the world.

There is a tradition in Iceland where people exchange books as Christmas presents.

The Australian national anthem was changed in 1984 from “God Save the Queen” to “Advance Australia Fair”.

The largest book in the world is 5 meters x 8.06 meters.

Melbourne’s original name was Batmania which was named after the politician John Batman.  

It is possible to make up to 50 books from 1 tree.

The name Australia comes from the Latin word ‘Australis’ which means southern.

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I hope you all enjoyed today’s pointless facts. Let me know in the comments if these pointless facts were new to you or if you had already come across them.

GEM

The Paper & Hearts Society: Bookishly Ever After by Lucy Powrie

‘Ed is excited. He’s landed his dream job at Woolf and Wilde, the beautiful independent bookshop in town.

On his first day, his colleague Hannah doesn’t hold back from telling him exactly how to do things. Although Ed is intimidated, he soon finds himself wanting to impress her …

Then, Ed discovers his mum is dating for the first time since splitting up with his dad. It feels like a huge change, much too fast.

But with the help of his friends, and embracing Hannah’s way of seeing the world … Can Ed let his guard down for the love of books?’

I loved this book.

After reading the first two books in this series I was so excited to get my hands on this book. I went into this book with high hopes and I am happy to say it well and truly exceeded my expectations.

I loved getting to catch up with the characters that I have grown to love over the course of the three books. Their relationships are so beautiful and reading this book was like hanging out with old friends.

I also loved the new characters that were introduced in this book. The way they fitted into to storyline and interacted with the other characters felt really natural which made it easy for me to fall in love with and want to learn more about them.

Lucy Powrie has done a wonderful job with this book. It was fun, exciting and at times emotional. On top of that the writing was fast paced and kept me engaged from the very first page until the very last.

I am glad that I finally read this book but I am sad that it is the final book in the series. I think I am going to have to reread all three books again very soon.

The Paper & Hearts Society: Bookishly Ever After by Lucy Powrie is the perfect conclusion to a wonderful series.

Life’s A Beach Book Tag 2024…

Welcome one and all to another Wacky Wednesday post. Today I am partaking in the Life’s A Beach Book Tag 2024. I hope you all enjoy this quick little tag.

So without further ado, let’s jump straight in:

THE SAND
A BOOK THAT STUCK WITH YOU LONG AFTER YOU FINISHED READING

Forgotten Warriors by Sarah Percy

THE SUN
A BOOK THAT BURNED YOU

The Librarian of Burned Books by Brianna Labuskes

THE WAVES
A BOOK THAT CALMS YOU DOWN AFTER A LONG DAY

The World’s Worst Monsters by David Walliams

THE BATHING SUIT
A BOOK WITH A PRETTY, SUMMER-Y COVER

The Bay by Allie Reynolds

THE BIRDS
A BOOK THAT IS EVERYWHERE

Robodog by David Walliams

THE COMPANY
A BOOK WITH WONDERFUL CHARACTERS

The Air Raid Book Club by Annie Lyons

THE ICE-COLD DRINKS
A BOOK YOU ABSOLUTELY GULPED DOWN

The Stable Boy of Auschwitz by Henry Oster and Dexter Ford

THE FUN MEMORIES
A BOOK YOU CAN’T WAIT TO RETURN TO

The Wrong Sister by Fiona Palmer

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Well, that’s it for me. I hope you guys enjoyed this tag. As usual, hit me up with your answers in the comment section.

Until next time…

Happy Reading… 

GEM

Dear Mum by Samuel Johnson

‘From the team who gave you the bestselling Dear Santa, Dear Dad, and Heroes Next Door comes an honest, moving, emotionally memorable collection of letters to their mothers from some of Australia’s most notable notables. The perfect gift for the mum (or mum figure) in your life!

If you could tell your mum anything, what would it be?

Samuel Johnson, Amanda Keller, Vika and Linda Bull, Guy Pearce, Elizabeth Tan, Rebecca Gibney, Peter Helliar, Clare Wright, Hilde Hinton, Gillian O’Shaughnessy, Adam Spencer, Brooke Davis, Lawrence Mooney, Patti Newton, Shane Jacobson, Julie Koh, Susie Youssef, Lehmo, Favel Parrett, Matilda Brown and many more …

A heartfelt, honest and very human book of letters that will make you smile and make you cry. It is the perfect gift for the mum in your life. And a reminder to tell her how you feel before it is too late.’

I adored this book.

Having read and loved a couple of these collections before I went into this book with high hopes and I am happy to say this book not only lived up to my high expectations and well and truly surpassed them.

This book made me laugh and cry in equal measures which was something that I hadn’t expected. The emotion and love radiated off the pages and made for a really moving reading experience.

I also loved that all of the letters were donated free of charge so that more money could be raised for cancer research. Knowing that these letters were written for a good cause and not for profit made me feel a lot of respect for the authors.

I honestly don’t have a bad word to say about this book. It was filled with beautiful stories that were both moving and funny and I am so glad that I now own this book and can reread it many times in the future.

Dear Mum by Samuel Johnson is a must read for everyone.

Aussie Summer Animal Facts!

As I am really enjoying compiling Pointless Facts each month, I have decided to put together an Aussie Summer Animal Facts post. I hope you all enjoy these Aussie Summer Animal Facts.

Let’s jump in, shall we?

We have giant flying cockroaches.

Mosquitos love the hot season.

Box Jellyfish are more prevalent.

Native Australian animals have adapted to survive the Australian heat.

Koalas stay still in the shade of a tree and wait for the heat to pass.

Sugar gliders are nocturnal so they are active during the cooler nights. During the day, they curl up in the shade of the tree.

Kangaroos do not sweat so, instead, they lick themselves to keep cool.

Snakes are most active in summer because they are coldblooded and they need the heat to warm their bodies.

You can’t go swimming in the Northern Territory because of the saltwater crocodiles.

Summer is turtle nesting season so you can witness it in various driving spots around Australia.

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I hope you all enjoyed today’s Aussie Summer Animal. Let me know in the comments if these facts were new to you or if you have already come across them.

GEM

The Blunders by David Walliams

‘Meet the Bertie, Betsy, their children, Brutus and Bunny, along with their beloved grandma Old Lady Blunder, and their pet ostrich, Cedric. An ostrich is not a sensible pet, but then the Blunders are not sensible people. This family of upper-class twits lives in a crumbling country house named Blunder Hall. When their home comes under threat, they must embark on a series of comic misadventures to save it.’

This book was thoroughly entertaining.

I am a massive fan of David Walliams’ books so as soon as I saw this book I knew I had to have it. I am happy to say this book was everything I hoped it would be and so much more.

Since this is a David Walliams book the characters are wacky and wonderful making it exciting to follow their journey throughout the story.

The story was both silly and sweet which made for some laugh out loud moments as well as some aww moments. This combination made for a really lovely reading experience.

As with all David Walliams Middle-Grade books, the story was fast paced and action packed. On top of this there is the fact that the story and the writing both feel a naughty which I am sure is something that young readers will absolutely adore.

Adding to David Walliams wonderful story were to brilliant illustrations by Adam Stower. Adam Stower’s illustrations perfectly compliment the story being told and elevate this book to a whole new level.

The Blunders by David Walliams is a must have for all Middle-Grade readers.

Summer 2024 Bucket List Book Tag…

Welcome one and all to another Wacky Wednesday post. Today I am partaking in the Summer 2024 Bucket List Book Tag. I hope you all enjoy this quick little tag.

So without further ado, let’s jump straight in:

Mim and the Woeful Wedding by Katrina Nannestad

Psyche and Eros by Luna McNamara

The Stable Boy of Auschwitz by Henry Oster and Dexter Ford

Honey, Baby, Mine by Laura Dern and Diane Ladd

The Air Raid Book Club by Annie Lyons

The Lost Song of Paris by Sarah Steele

The Book of Wondrous Possibilities by Deborah Abela

The Librarian of Burned Books by Brianna Labuskes

Heartless by Marissa Meyer

Forgotten Warriors by Sarah Percy

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Well, that’s it for me. I hope you guys enjoyed this tag. As usual, hit me up with your answers in the comment section.

Until next time…

Happy Reading… 

GEM

Splendiferous Quiz Book by Roald Dahl

‘Roald Dahl is the world’s number one storyteller.  Are you the world’s number-one Roald Dahl fan?

Do you know what George saw when Grandma opened her small wrinkled mouth?  Or what Badgers use cider for, or what Matilda put in her dad’s hair oil?

Inside you’ll discover over three hundred questions about your favourite Roald Dahl stories and characters – every fan should own this book!’

This book was great.

When I started my Roald Dahl read-a-thon I decided to make this my final read and now that I have finally gotten to it I am glad I made that choice.

I loved that this book forced me to think about all the Roald Dahl books; this brought up some really wonderful memories about the joy I have gotten from reading Roald Dahl’s books recently.

Roald Dahl has done a great job with this book. The questions were fun and not that difficult given that this book is aimed at younger readers. Even though this is a quiz book it is still full of Roald Dahl’s wit and humour which makes for a really entertaining read.

As with all of the Roald Dahl books I have read recently, this book was illustrated by Quentin Blake. The illustrations in this book perfectly compliment to questions being asked and add an extra layer of awesomeness to this little book.

Splendiferous Quiz Book by Roald Dahl is a must have for all Roald Dahl fans.