How to get out of a reading slump || My tips

A reading slump is one of us bookworms' worst nightmares. Suddenly, you cannot read more than a couple of pages without getting tired, bored, or distracted. Up until recently, you could devour a whole book in one sitting and now you're struggling to get through 1 book in a year. I have been there and I have been through the struggle and I know how horrible it is and how much you hate it. I was in a reading slump that lasted about 2 years. In these two years, I must have read only a handful of books and even those with difficulty. I finally managed to get out of this slump 3 years ago and to get back on my reading track, with fewer books at first and more as time passes. Not only did I get back closer to my original reading rhythm - though not to its fullest, I'm not at my zenith, but at a very good point nevertheless - but the enjoyment also came back to me. My love for books never quite left, but I did lose some of the interest and enjoyment for the procedure, but since I got back to it, I have been enjoying it more every single day, maybe even more than before! So, my friends, I'm here to share with you my small tips to help you get out of this unpleasant situation you're facing... Let's go!

• Make reading a habit. Try to read a little bit every day even if it's just a couple of pages it's still good and you're still making progress! This is my number one tip because it has helped me a great deal a few times. I start by requiring myself to read 2 pages every day. It is a small and easy task and it doesn't feel like a stressful burden and soon I find myself reading 3-4 pages without realizing and soon even more.
• Try different places and ways to read. Go to your bedroom or to the sitting room, maybe you can try reading outside at a park or a Cafe. You can try reading with music while drinking a beverage or maybe you can read while on the bus or a train to try to make your usual daily trips to work or uni less boring. The options are endless! Try something new and shake things up from what you usually do.
• Try different kinds of books to get you out of your comfort zone or on the other hand you can reread one of the books that made you fall in love with reading in the first place! Either of the two could rekindle your love for reading depending on your preference and mood.
• Try to set daily or weekly goals for yourself and see if it works for you. Tracking your progress however small could encourage you to get back on track. I find that once I've made some progress and see it written down into numbers, this makes me feel proud of myself and keeps me going.
• On the other hand, if you have been setting reading goals in the past but now you find yourself stuck, you should probably refrain from it for a while and just read without stressing yourself out about your count.  So, maybe you don't work well under pressure, maybe constantly setting goals stresses you out and is counterproductive. Reading is a wonderful pastime and more than anything else it's supposed to be fun, so relax and just enjoy it, without stressing too much about goals and word counts. (I've been in both places in the past and I found that both of these tips worked depending on my overall mood and situation in life.)
• Try to find people to talk about books! It could be your friends, it could be a book club, it could be people from social media, whatever it is give it a try see if it works!
• Finally, if nothing else seems to help, just take a break from it, do other things that you like. Just enjoy yourself and don't feel guilty for not reading! There's nothing wrong with getting a break and enjoying other activities as well. When your brain will have had its rest, I believe it will just automatically want to get back and do some reading again.

Whatever you do in the end, and however you decide to tackle this situation, it's up to you and you don't need to get frustrated. If you have any other ideas to add, new tips to suggest, feel free to comment below, I would love to read your own opinions and experiences!

Thank you for reading! Until the next time!

"Brida" by Paolo Coelho || Book Review

Going into this book I suspected I probably wouldn't like it, since it's not my usual type of book, but I still read it. Finally it's over! Now, why did I keep reading even though I disliked it from the first paragraphs? I honestly have no idea, maybe it's because I wanted to torture myself, maybe I felt guilty of DNFing a book, whatever it was I just felt I had to go through with it once I started.

And the conclusion is... I didn't like it! It gave me a hard time, I didn't enjoy it and I had to speed-read it at multiple occasions, because I desperately needed it to be over. It was mind-numbingly boring, repetitive, predictable and generally disappointing. But thankfully it's finally over and I can move on... Before I move on however, here are some of my thoughts on it...

First of all, the book is too big for its story! It needed far fewer pages to make sense, about half of it was generic and pointless rumbling that should have been cut out and leave the actual important parts do their work.

This book is the proof that a collection of beautiful and meaningful quotes - which is the only nice thing I thought this book had and that I actually enjoyed - are not enough to make a book good. The meaning of any book cannot get through to the reader simply by inspirational quotes, the story and characters have to carry it forward as well. I understand that this is not supposed to be your typical novel, but it still needs some basic elements of storytelling to work. 

Moving on, what was all this rumbling about God, why all the prayers, all the talking about Adam and Eve and what on earth where they doing in a story about witches, rituals, magical visions, reincarnation and pagan rituals??? Do they believe in a deity and which one? Does it have anything to do with their "Gifts"? Is this supposed to be the writer's attempt to say that there is only one universal higher power for everyone despite how each culture interprets it depending on their civilization and traditions? Maybe.... I cannot really tell... It tries to discuss certain philosophical matters, but I don't think it does it successfully. On the contrary, it kind of leaves you with several wtf's hanging over you...

I found myself wondering would this book even be published if it wasn't Coelho's? I doubt it. It's weak and pointless. I feel I didn't gain anything out of it and I wouldn't have missed anything if I had never read it. If anything I felt relief to finally be over with it. For all the reasons I mentioned I cannot give this book more than 1* and if I want to be honest even that feels a bit much - I would give it half a star if that was possible. 

Thanks for reading!

"Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" || Book Review & Book to Movie Comparison

The "Prisoner of Azkaban" hooked me and the "Goblet of Fire" grabbed me tight and took me for a wild ride!

If you'd  like to read what I thought of the "Prisoner of Azkaban", before reading my review of "The Goblet of Fire" you can find my full review here.

I've finally read the fourth book in the series and I have to admit that it feels like a little bit of an accomplishment to finally be able to finish such a big book again. This was the largest book I have read in a while and it feels nice to finally be back and it makes me feel happy and proud of myself! Getting into this series I did not fully realize how much of a commitment it is to get into a big series like this and how much time it would take, but I realize it every day more and more. However, I have also discovered how much of an enjoyable and entertaining process it is to merge into this magical world and be able to experience it for a long time. The story itself is more engaging than I imagined and it improves with time. It is a great journey a fascinating world and I really want to get on with it.

So, anyway, to the book itself now... You've heard this phrase from me about the previous books as well, but I'm going to say it once more because it's true; this book is my favorite one from the series so far. I absolutely loved it and I'm having a tough time thinking of details and little things I didn't like about it or I did not enjoy as much. It was a great read and I liked it more than the previous books. 

Having seen the movies I already knew what this book was about and I knew that it has one of my favorite premises in the series and definitely my favorite premise so far compared to the previous books. Reading it I discovered that I indeed loved the story as much as I expected, but I also discovered that the book does a great work unraveling the story and it handles it perfectly. The pacing is perfect the rhythm of the story is great it never stops, it never gets boring, it never ties you, it keeps you turning the pages not wanting to stop. The writing is superb great as it always has been and even better.

***POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD***

First of all, this book has the best beginning! The opening scenes were all funny and crazy and generally so very much fun to read. I loved reading about Dudley's diet, about the Weasleys coming to get Harry, about the twins' pranks, and about the time they all spent together and their interactions with each other. I kept laughing and it made me eager to get into the book and read it with even more appetite! At the same time, as much as these moments were funny they were also sweet and wholesome.

Still, even though the majority of the beginning of the book was funny, playful, and keeps a generally more positive and happy tone, the actual opening scene, the very first scene is one of great suspense and mystery! The book immediately sets the tone for the whole story perfectly! You know that this is going to be a mysterious, suspenseful, and dark story. Then the lighter chapters are in their turn followed by others that are darker and this continuous alternation of scenes not only manages to change the mood accordingly but it also enhances the whole experience. 

My favorite new character in this book most definitely has to be Moody - even though it was not really him, it's actually Barty Crouch, so in the end, I'm not really sure which one of them I actually like - either way it was I still really enjoyed his existence in the story and every moment he appeared into! His lessons seemed intimidating but also epic, like I really wanted to attend them, I loved reading about his lessons, his eccentric style, and overall impressive skills but also about his general agenda and whole perspective on the other characters in the story and his overall morals. As a matter of fact, him not being Moody made him better and more interesting, if anything because it added so much depth and layer. I did feel bad though about the real Moody in the end.

I loved how they try wizard tournament was described everything was so much better in the book than in the movies and everything made more sense. The only thing I liked better in the movie was that Neville gave Harry the gillyweed, while in the book it was Dody. In my opinion, Neville giving it to Harry made more sense, since he had the book that Moody gave him and he would easily and very willingly help him. This detail also gave a little more detail to a character who later on becomes much more interesting and vital to the plot. It was a nice change in the movie. 

The part that had to do with the Yule ball I loved much more in the book than in the movie, it included more scenes, and all these scenes that lead to the actual bowl were very interesting what with all the teenage angst and love interests! I loved them and the actual bowl was also very good and very well described and I preferred the book version. It was funny, sweet, and exasperating all at the same time.

This book was the first one in the series to make me cry. Sure there were touching moments in the previous books as well, but I can't remember myself actually tearing up like I did in this one on multiple occasions. One of the scenes that shook me more than I expected was Cedric's death, it was a heart-wrenching scene and it was written perfectly. I found myself in need to pause reading because I just couldn't go on after it. Even though I knew what was coming, I was still overcome with feelings when it actually happened and in the way that it happened. It was a very powerful scene! There were many more moments that touched me both positively and negatively as well. I also cried afterward when Mrs. Weasley tried to comfort Harry, I thought it was so touching... I cried when Dumbledore spoke to Harry telling him he is brave and all that... I cried again when Dumbledore spoke in front of the school about Cedric... Starting to learn more about Neville's life was sad too... Generally, there were many scenes full of emotions that touched me in different ways, and the book as a whole had more of a sentimental impact on me than the other three before it.

I really enjoyed the scene of Voldemort coming back to life! It was creepy, scary, mysterious and it was described so vividly that it made my hair stand on edge. It was a very powerful and suspenseful scene. I also found that it was very precisely and carefully in the movie. It had to be one of my favorite scenes both in the book and the movie!

My least favorite parts of the book were Hermione with the S.P.E.W. thing; I had zero interest in it but, thankfully, overall it didn't take much time or space in the story so I could get over it and it didn't bother me really it was still one of my least favorite parts and I'm happy it wasn't included in the movie as it was unnecessary and boring. I also didn't like the character of Winky as she really annoyed me the whole time and again I was glad she wasn't included in the movie. Rita Skeeter was so much nastier in the book! In the movie, she is just there being annoying, but in the book, she is straight-up horrible! I have to admit I like seeing less of her in the movie, even though I have to admit her book version makes more sense plot-wise.

*** END OF SPOILER SECTION***

The "Goblet of Fire" is my favorite book in the series so far and I liked it even better than the third one that I already liked quite a lot. I am certain that this book deserves 5* and I'm going to give it this rating, but because I feel that the previous were not as good as this one, even if they were good individually, I will have to go back and change my rating of the previous books. I'll give the third book 4* and then the first and second books 3*, because even though I feel that they all deserve between 4* and 5* ratings I still want to rate them in correlation to each other as well as individually because this makes sense for me. When rating I want to take into account each book, but also the story as a whole, since this is a series.

So, these are my thoughts... I hope you liked my huge review!

Thanks for reading!

  

Reader Problems Book Tag

Hello friends! It's been a while since I last posted on the blog and all this time I've been reading a lot, but unfortunately I didn't really have the time for the blog. So I was looking for a fun and different post idea and I found this book tag over at ZEEZEE WITH BOOKS BLOG and decided to do it.

So here we go!

YOU HAVE 20,000 BOOKS ON YOUR TBR. HOW IN THE WORLD DO YOU DECIDE WHAT TO READ NEXT?

I usually decide what to read based on my mood. Do I feel like reading something light and fun or something heavy and serious? Do I feel like I can devote much time for a bigger series or do I feel like I'll be unable to commit? That's all there is about me really. Sometimes I try to at least read the ones that have been sitting on my tbr for a longer time, but I can't always do it. I also like to alternate between my reads for example if I read a heavier book now with a darker theme then I will definitely pick something lighter for my next read, etc.

YOU’RE HALFWAY THROUGH A BOOK AND YOU’RE JUST NOT LOVING IT. DO YOU QUIT OR ARE YOU COMMITTED?

I quit! I don't have time to spend on things I do not enjoy! I'll go to the next and spend my time on something I actually like rather than pressure myself into something I find unpleasant.

THE END OF THE YEAR IS COMING AND YOU’RE SO CLOSE, BUT SO FAR AWAY, ON YOUR GOODREADS READING CHALLENGE. DO YOU TRY TO CATCH UP AND HOW?

I try to catch up by reading comic books or audio books which take significantly less time and are still just as enjoyable. However, if even then I don't make it, I don't really mind. It's nice to catch up on my reading challenge, but I don't beat myself too much over it.

THE COVERS OF A SERIES YOU LOVE DO. NOT. MATCH. HOW DO YOU COPE?

As much as I hate this I would probably just let them be. 

EVERY ONE AND THEIR MOTHER LOVES A BOOK YOU REALLY DON’T LIKE. WHO DO YOU BOND WITH OVER SHARED FEELINGS?

Probably just random people in the reading community on social media. I have plenty of pages and groups that I follow, YouTube channels and all that jazz that are followed by fellow Book Lovers and generally people from the same fandoms or similar tastes as me, so this is probably where I would feel more comfortable talking about my thoughts and discussing whatever came to mind. I would also probably rant about it on my blog.

YOU’RE READING A BOOK AND YOU ARE ABOUT TO START CRYING IN PUBLIC. HOW DO YOU DEAL?

If there is a place or a room close by that I can go for a moment and just sit alone I will do this but if I cannot do that I will probably try to not tear up or wipe the tears immediately and hide it. Or maybe I would just pause reading just before it got too heavy and continue reading when I get home.

A SEQUEL OF A BOOK YOU LOVED JUST CAME OUT, BUT YOU’VE FORGOTTEN A LOT FROM THE PRIOR NOVEL. WILL YOU RE-READ THE BOOK?

Definitely. No way I am getting into a sequel if I cannot remember what happened before.

YOU DO NOT WANT ANYONE. ANYONE. BORROWING YOUR BOOKS. HOW DO YOU POLITELY TELL PEOPLE NOPE WHEN THEY ASK?

I try to avoid it most of the times. I sometimes use excuses or little lies which I don't feel entirely great about but still... But if it is a friend of mine or someone that I really trust I won't be able to tell them no so just give it to them.

READING ADD. YOU’VE PICKED UP AND PUT DOWN 5 BOOKS IN THE LAST MONTH. HOW DO YOU GET OVER YOUR READING SLUMP?

I try to do something else something other than reading. I probably watch some of my favorite movies or a new series on Netflix. I listen to some music and just give myself time. I know I will eventually get back to it.

THERE ARE SO MANY NEW BOOKS COMING OUT THAT YOU’RE DYING TO READ! HOW MANY DO YOU ACTUALLY BUY?

I never bought many books to begin with but the last years I tend to buy even fewer. I usually prefer to borrow, buy second-hand, or download. Nowadays I just buy only a handful of books per year.

AFTER YOU’VE BOUGHT THE NEW BOOKS YOU CAN’T WAIT TO GET TO, HOW LONG DO THEY SIT ON YOUR SHELF BEFORE YOU GET TO THEM?

Again it depends on my mood just like I said before. There are books that I will read straight away because I was just in the right moment feeling the right way and then there are books that I will keep until I feel is the right time for me to read them. 

***

I hope you enjoyed this tag as much as I did feel free to do it as well if you like it I would love to see all your answers and thoughts if you want to share them with me.

Until the next time... 😉

"Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" || Book Review & Discussion

 

I finally moved on to the third book in the series and I can safely say that it was my favorite one so far! But, before you go on and read this review, feel free to check my last one on the "Chamber of Secrets" which you can find here. Now, let's move on with the review...

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I enjoyed it much more than the previous two and I thought it was objectively better than the other two in many aspects. It was generally a much more solid, much more interesting story, and an overall much stronger read. The story was suspenseful and exciting and you just can't help but keep reading, you don't want to stop! It may have taken me a while longer to finish than I initially expected, but that wasn't because I wasn't enjoying it - quite the contrary really - it was only because life has been relentless the past couple of months and I really needed to adult rather than indulge in my favorite activities. That was the main reason why it took me such a long time to finish a book I was otherwise enjoying and I felt sad for it. So, other than reality grabbing me away from this fantasy world, the rest of the time that I spent reading the book, it actually went by easily and I never got bored or tired, not even for a page, and this was a happy surprise since this wasn't the case for me with the two previous books.

Rowling's writing, even though it is already top-notch in the other books as well - and there is no denying she is generally an excellent writer - is evidently improved in this one and this makes for a stronger story and reading experience. There is not one redundant scene, every chapter is important, and every scene is essential to the overall plot and they all work perfectly together. Every chapter and every scene leads perfectly to the next one in an excellent chain of events. Each bit of the story is inseparable from the previous or the next and the story as a whole cannot possibly work without one of these important bits. This is what makes the difference between good writing and exceptional writing. Even though Rowling is already skilled enough and possessed a high writing level, you can really tell that she took the extra step here and stepped her game up. This is one of the main reasons that set this book apart from the other two in my mind and preference.

Another one of the reasons that set this book apart is its different, mysterious feeling and darker atmosphere. The story is undoubtedly darker and this book is heavier than the others before and deals with more serious subjects. This book deals with heavier, darker themes - which I am absolutely sucker for -and when they do they are very well done too. Friendship, faith, betrayal, trust, honesty, deception, justice, death, and many others are some of the themes that this story deals with. This story is also more engaging and rich with emotions.

***POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD***

Another great thing about this book is the cast and all the new characters we get to see! Sirius was probably my favorite addition and I really loved his character even if his role was relatively small. I felt very sorry and sad for him and everything that happened to him and when he finally got to bond with Harry it was so sweet and wholesome! Lupin was my second favorite and I really enjoyed him throughout the story. He was the sweetest, greatest teacher, always so supportive and understanding, but also a very strong and skilled wizard! Trelawny was just so funny and even though I didn't love some of the scenes of her lessons, I really enjoyed her character! Peter Pettigrew was even more disgusting and horrible than in the movie and made for an excellent villain!

One part I seriously disliked and thought that the movie did much better was the scene in the Shrieking Shack. In the book, the scene dragged on and on, they kept saying that they would explain, reveal the truth and they just mumbled about it and it took so long for them to actually get to the point! When they actually got into the explaining bit it took blocks of dialogue to reach the final conclusion and not only the revelation but also the acceptance of the truth. I mean, we were at this scene, one of the most climactic and important, suspenseful scenes in the story and we had to have pages upon pages of anti-climactic, dragging dialogue/explaining. It wasn't even that necessary, because we already had it figured out by that moment, but even if she wanted to add it in, she could have definitely made it more compact. This scene should have been shorter and more compact like it was in the movie where it was so much more powerful, suspenseful, exciting, and attention-grabbing. In the movie, this scene was fast, shocking, took advantage of the moment, and had good pacing. As a result, the scene in the movie added to the whole made the story better and worked perfectly with the flow. While in the book, it took from the greatness of the rest of the story, the pacing was a bit off and it didn't help the flow of the story or the particular moment. It's also kind of a pattern I've noticed with Rowling; she just loves to dialogue dump/info dump during the most crucial scenes! I mean, it would have been way better if some of this information was conveyed right before or after this particular scene, especially since there are already existing scenes of bonding and talking between Lupin and Harry, or Harry and Serious, leaving only the most important details to be told during that scene. I feel that this would have been more effective and impactful.

The book had many funny moments and I laughed a lot during many scenes. I laughed during the final Quidditch match and I also got very passionate about it, by the end of it I was so excited and happy! I laughed during many of the cat-rat scenes and the whole thing between Ron and Hermione about their pets and it was hilarious how in the end Ron came around to trust the cat and accept it.

The time-turning is not one of my favorite concepts in general and I rarely enjoy it, but it was done well enough here and it didn't bother me. It was probably for the best that it didn't take up a big part of the story as well.

This book also has the worst Snape we've seen so far. He was really horrible at many points and I can see why he's been getting so much more hate from book readers. In the movie, he is more likable and he is portrayed in a much softer tone, all that combined with Rickman's great acting makes it only reasonable that he would be much more accepted and liked by the movie audience.

Now, the nerd in me did notice an important plot hole (Start of giant parenthesis... about how Sirius bought the Firebolt, sent a cat to order it, took money from his own vault in the bank, and neither got caught nor got in any kind of trouble, like getting discovered or traced, whatsoever! I mean Harry had more trouble getting his own money to buy school books than Sirius who was a convicted murderer and nobody even blinked an eye?! It would have made more sense if he had some of his money hidden in a secret, secure place. Maybe wizards decided to remove money from the bank in fear of Voldemort taking over the bank and stealing precious things from their vaults to achieve his evil goals. And then he could have ordered the broom namelessly through owl-mail and have it delivered to Hogwarts. I believe that Rowling created herself a problem that she only saw afterward and tried to patch it up however she could, yet this didn't quite work. Even I came up with a better idea without even giving it much thought and there could probably be an even better solution than that. End of giant parenthesis...) but I decided to try and not pay attention to it, since I really enjoyed the rest of the book. It exists, but I'm not going to take points from the book because of it, I'm just going to pretend I didn't see it.

***END OF SPOILER SECTION***

So, for the time being, I have rated this book 5*, even though it feels more like a 4,5*. I would also like to come back and maybe re-rate the HP books after I've finished with the series because I would also like to consider how much I liked them compared to each other, so there is a slight possibility my rating may change after I've read the other books and gained more perspective. Overall, it was a great read, a very enjoyable book, and interesting story, and easily the best one so far!

Thank you for reading once again!

20 Questions Book Tag

 I found this book tag over on Book Coffe Happy blog and I really wanted to do it, so here we go...

1) How many books are too many books in a series?

I don't think there is such a thing as too many or too few books in a series. It all depends on the genre, the story, the structure, and of course the author. As long as it is done well it can be one book or it can be 50. I only care if it is a good story and I believe a story should have as many books as it needs to be told nicely. 

2) How do you feel about cliffhangers?

I love them! I love reading them, I love writing them, they're great! 😍💙😢

3) Hardback or paperback?

I'd love to have a combination of both. They both have pros and cons. But I guess ideally the answer would be: hardbacks for the bookshelves, because they look incredibly pretty, but paperbacks for the actual reading because they are lighter and softer to hold.

4) Favourite book?

I have many, but "The Hunger Games" series is one of my favorites and has remained on the top of my rankings for a long time.

5) Least favourite book?

"50 shades of grey"... Goodness I despise this book! 

6) Love triangles, yes or no?

I usually do not prefer them, but I'm not completely negative about them too. If it is done well and written in an interesting way, it could work and I could like it.

7) The most recent book you just couldn't finish?

It's been a long time since I DNF'd a book, but maybe it was "City of Bones"...

8) A book you're currently reading?

I'm currently reading "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban".

9) Last book you recommended to someone?

"Living, Loving and Learning by Leo Buscaglia. I recommended it to one of my colleagues. I also have a post talking about it if you want to check it out click here.

10) Oldest book I've read?

Does the "Odyssey" by Homer count? If it does, then that's probably the one. It's surely the oldest one I can think of.

11) Newest book you've read?

I have no idea, I don't really keep track of how recent the books are and I'm definitely not one to chase the newest releases every year.

12) Favourite author?

So far I don't have one and I couldn't pick just one if my life depended on it... 😜

13) Buying books or borrowing books?

Ideally, I would love to be able to buy all the books I want and have a beautiful library in my home. Unfortunately, I cannot afford this right now so I settle for a combination of borrowing, exchanging, and downloading books. Borrowing is fine and I could go on exclusively borrowing books if the situation in my country was different. Sadly, in my country, we have very few libraries which have a limited variety of books (especially the ones I'm interested in) and the conditions are not the greatest in them. Also, due to this lack of libraries and borrowing mentality, sadly, most people also lack civilization and respect for borrowed books.

14) A book you dislike that everyone else seems to love?

The TMI series by Cassandra Clare. Her - and her books' - fanbase seems huge, so many people love those books and the author. All I can say is that I cannot see what they find in them and I'm surely not one of them.

15) Bookmarks or dogears?

Definitely bookmarks. I hate dog-earring. I don't mind writing on books, taking notes, or underlining, but I can't stand or understand dogears. (At least in novels, because I love dog-earring school and uni books, it really helped me back in the day)

16) A book you can always re-read?

Any one of my favourite books. But I have found that each time I re-read "Living, Loving and Learning I feel like a different person and probably even become a bit of a better person after I'm done.

17) Can you read while listening to music?

No, I prefer to have absolute silence while I read.

18) One POV or multiple POV's?

I love them both as long as they are done well and they complement and fit the story. They both have a place in different kinds of stories and I love to see them both as long as they are the right choice for the respective story.

19) Do you read a book in one sitting or over multiple days?

Though I have finished books in one sitting quite a few times, I'm generally a slow reader both because of circumstances like limited time and heavy schedule and because of preference and choice. 

20) Who do you tag?

Anyone who wants to participate is welcome to do so and feel free to share their answers with me!

"Sense and Sensibility" by Jane Austen || Book Review

 

It is always strange to talk about classic books because these works of art have been around for such a long time and not only have they been read by plenty of people, but they've also been widely and deeply adored by various audiences. A book like this doesn't really need one more review, it has a lot of recognition and feedback already and it also feels weird when what you have to say is not entirely positive. You know that a negative opinion doesn't really affect a book like this or its audience and, as a matter of fact, you even feel like there is something you haven't gotten, something you read wrong, or you missed and that's why you didn't enjoy it as much as everyone else. But, anyway, this is my blog, a place for my opinions and my experience with each book and this is what I sincerely share and if you don't agree or think I'm crazy then that's fine and you're welcome to share your opinions.

I read this a while ago, right after I had read "Pride and Prejudice" which I loved and really enjoyed, so I started reading this one with high expectations. I hoped that it would be as good as "Pride and Prejudice" but in my opinion, it didn't even come close. As a matter of fact, I was kind of glad when it was finally over.

Don't get me wrong, Austen's writing was still technically flawless and it always feels like an English lesson, I feel I learn more with each book of hers that I read. However, I thought that the story didn't have a very nice flow and pacing. The beginning was promising, the ending was satisfying but the whole middle part was long and tedious. I found myself tempted to give it up quite a few times, but stuck with it mostly out of spite.

The 2 main characters were beautifully portrayed, but the rest weren't nearly as memorable or interesting and felt kind of meh. I found myself forgetting their names or confusing this character with that character and I had to take a second to remind myself who was who. So in regards to those secondary characters, I couldn't care less what happened to them or how they ended up. Then there were some characters that showed potential but were then not given the attention they deserved.

Overall, it was an okay book but I didn't love it, it didn't manage to capture my attention and stay in my mind, so I reluctantly gave it 3* out of 5. I will probably read some more of Austen's works in the future, but this one was not for me.

Thank you for reading one more time!