Friends, Book Shopping and A Good Catch Up

Today I met up with a fantastic friend of mine, the lovely Kayla who some of you may know from her youtube channel, Mrs Bookaholic. It had been six months since we had last seen each other, and though that had been an equally dreary day in terms of weather, it was another day full of laughter, friendship and advice.

As usual, when the two of us get together we are lethal. We bought several books each, visited several different bookshops around Nottingham, and grabbed a bite to eat at the delightful Fox Cafe, that offers an extensive range of veggie and vegan sandwiches. Following that we went on a little trip to Lush and Boots, where we spent too much time admiring blue lipsticks and browsing the Nyx counter.

I'm sure it's the books that you're most interested in hearing about so let me tell you a little about that.

We started our adventure where all great book lovers begin: Waterstone's. Even though it has been two years since I have worked there, I am still greeted by Pete as though we only spoke yesterday. He is also quiet acquainted with Kayla, which was great because as we walked in together, he thrust a book into our hands, told us it was one of his favourites of last year and that we should buy it. He then walked off. Thanks Pete! We both of course bought this books, Five Rivers Met on a Wooded Plain by Barry Norris. I don't believe either of us really knew what the book was about, but we wandered around and looked at other books too, before deciding that yes, we would certainly take it home with such a recommendation... and a few bullying tactics.

Following this we had a little wander into The Works which ended in us each getting a copy of Wishful Drinking by Carrie Fisher. As I'm sure you're aware, I've been finding it very difficult to get my hands on Carrie Fisher's books, and I was astounded to find it for £3 in The Works, of all places! I am so excited to finally have my hands on this and so I will be reading it super soon, although I don't want to exhaust the material as there is now, sadly, a finite amount to read. I managed to convince Kayla to indulge in this book too, despite her having never seen Star Wars, by explaining just how important Carrie's work has been for mental health and drug awareness.

Next we had a little wander around the rest of Nottingham's bookshops, including Page 45, Fopp and Book Bargains. It was however in Oxfam that I found my final purchase of the day, which was a book that I am sure I have stumbled upon on youtube, and that is Wetlands by Charlotte Roche. Another book I'm not quite sure what it's about but hey, there's an avocado on the cover so how could I not purchase it? And for £1 and in hardcover and for charity, how could I possibly refuse?

And when I got home, I found a lovely little parcel all for me, containing my very own copy of The Princess Diarist, also by the magnificent Carrie Fisher. I ordered this book shortly after her death and have been waiting for it ever since. It is such a surreal thing to be holding a book I yearned for before her death and that she was promoting when she passed, and to be excited to read this book that was never intended to be her last. I will definitely be reading this with sadness and wonder.

I was so happy with my purchases, managing to scrounge 3 books for only £5 which was incredible for me. I spent more on a jar of hot chocolate as a treat for myself! Today has been a wonderful day and I am so grateful to have a friend I can have so many wonderful conversations with and to truly be myself.

As usual, I am awful at taking pictures throughout the day. I just have too much fun being involved in the moment. But I can assure you that both myself and Kayla looked FIERCE. This woman is a wonderful force in my life. I had an amazing time and I can't wait until we do it again.

Have you bought any exciting books lately? Please do let me know in the comments!

Read More

My Top Books to Read in 2017

I figure people must be sick of these by now and to be honest I know I am. I feel like a new year is such a mundane time for content, with everyone rushing to post their faves of the previous year and their hopes for the future one. I can't complain about that because it's exactly what I'm doing now. I love doing this but I think it works more in blog form than in video as it's much less clunky.

There are books I of course want to read this year. They are not necessarily new releases as I am rubbish at keeping track these days, but they are some hugely popular books I can't wait to get around to!

Without further ado!

1. The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien
I have never had much love for this fan favourite. I do love to delve into an epic fantasy every now and then but I have never been able to endure The Lord of the Rings... until now. After pretty much forcing me to watch Fellowship of the Ring nearly two years ago, and me falling asleep at least four times before I could finish it, I recently watched the other two films after my sister bought Fraser the box set of blu-rays for Christmas. Now I'm hooked and definitely want to read the books!

2. The Scarecrow Queen by Melinda Salisbury
I adore this series. The first two books have managed to land themselves in the top 3 books I have read in the past two years. They were insanely gripping and so unique in a cluttered world of young adult fantasy. I absolutely cannot wait to get my hands on this final installation in the trilogy. If it follows the general pattern of improvement this series is on, it's going to be magnificent.

3. The Princess Diarist and Wishful Drinking by Carrie Fisher
I love Carrie, that much is clear if you look at my tweets and posts in the last few weeks. After reading/listening to Shockoholic I am so excited to get my hands on the rest of her memoirs. Eventually I will read her novels but right now, these are what I desire. Her wit and humour and raw emotion is so poignant and intriguing. And I can't wait to learn about her naughty affair!

4. The Demon Cycle by Peter V. Brett
Last Christmas one of my very dear friends gifted me the first three books in this epic series. I adored the first book but was deep into my final year of university when I stopped. I wanted to take a break and then devour these when I had the chance. Since then I've been putting them off and putting them off. There are more books out in the series now and I can't wait to emerge myself back into this world!

5. The Optician of Lampedusa by Emma Jane Kirby
This non-fiction book was sent to me on behalf of Oxfam and I have been anxiously waiting to read it. The harrowing tale of the refugee crisis when one of the boats toppled, I'm quiet obviously preparing myself for this one. With so much cruelty in the world, it's important to open our hearts to love and compassion and time to welcome these refugees. Their homes have been devastated, let us show some humanity. I really hope this book opens my eyes and I can pass it on to many others.


Those are just a few of the books I'm anticipating reading this year. Most have already been released but there are a couple which will be coming this year or are relatively new releases. I'm really excited for what this year brings to my reading. Already it's been much better than the last few months and so I couldn't be happier.

Let me know what books you're most looking forward to reading this year and come talk to me in the comments!

Read More

Shockoholic by Carrie Fisher

This post comes in memory of Carrie Fisher, who sadly passed on December 27th 2016. This book was chosen as my first read of 2017 in respect and admiration of this strong and powerful woman.

I grew up watching Star Wars. Those films are the first ones I remember having any significant impact on my life. My father and step-mother are two of the biggest geeks I know and so, they instilled that in me. Princess Leia was my first icon. I remember putting my hair in two buns growing up and thinking I was so cool. Seeing Leia on screen, the only female amongst many male heroes, she stood out to me as the feisty and strong woman who I could perhaps become.

It wasn't until years later, when I was in my late teens, suffering my own mental health issues, that I discovered Carrie Fisher. Now, of course I knew that Leia was a character, and I knew that she was played by Carrie, but by discovering her, I mean I learned about her background. I learned about her drug and alcohol abuse. I learned about her own struggles with bipolar disorder, and I learned she was an intelligent, creative and witty individual. And so very strong. She became a symbol to me, of someone who had been through all these trials and come out the other side.

Add this to my admiration of Leia, and I had a role model to look up to.

When I heard of Carrie's heart attack, I had just returned from seeing Rogue One in the cinema with my family, after which I watched her interview on The Graham Norton Show that my father had recorded for me. I had retreated to bed and, after doing my nightly Facebook scroll... what was this? I could scarcely believe it. I hoped and prayed for her swift recovery.

When I heard  of Carrie's passing, I was on the train home from visiting my family for Christmas. I barely kept it together. Tears filled my eyes and there was a pain in my chest that sting pangs whenever I remember that Carrie is no longer with us. I saw all the memes and heartfelt messages left by those who knew her and those whose lives she touched and I smiled through the tears. And then, I see the obituary she wrote for herself in Wishful Drinking, 'drowned in moonlight, strangled by her own bra' and I laugh at the wit and humour that for so many was so special about Carrie. Perhaps selfishly, I wonder about what this means for Star Wars IX.

Carrie's books were the only ones on my Christmas wishlist this year. Usually I have a long list of new releases and recommendations from friends that I want to received. This year, hers were the only ones I wanted to read. To hear her own words. I didn't get them, but as I quickly went to Amazon to rectify that, I was both disheartened (for myself) and delighted to find that they were all sold out.

That night I came home and had my own Christmas with Fraser. Over the last year we had both been more that a little obsessed with Star Wars and so the majority of his gifts were of that ilk. An annual that we flicked through and found pictures of Carrie as Leia; a chess set of vintage carved Star Wars characters, Leia carefully positioned next to Han. It raised the emotions in us.

I spent the next few days checking to see if anywhere had her books in stock, but nowhere did. Then I realised that I had an audible credit, and the books were all narrated by her! So I decided to download one. I had ordered The Princess Diarist (her latest release) a few days after her passing. Wishful Drinking was the cheapest on audible and so I decided to go with perhaps her least well known memoir, Shockoholic, a book that focuses on her experience of Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT, more commonly known as Shock Therapy), and some shocking stories pertaining to herself, her family and, perhaps most crudely, Michael Jackson. As 2016 turned to 2017, I stayed up late, preparing to listen to the audibook whilst I ran the final twitter sprint of the Holiday Booktubeathon (thank you again for inviting me, Ariel!). As January 1st came to a close, I completed the book.

Here are some thoughts I have about Shockoholic:

1. Carrie's wit and humour continues in text as it does on camera. I suppose that means the same could be true of her in reality. She does not give a flying monkey about what people think of her, or what she has to say. Her stories are often crude, shocking and her language foul- but that's what people love about her!

2. Though the narrative is completely disjointed, which seems to be one of the main criticisms of the book, for me it worked. Carrie's life has been chaotic and difficult. It is only right that the stories she tell reflect this. It also keeps you on your toes- you never know what story she will tell you next. Going quickly from a story about her Dentist's accusations about Michael Jackson, to her recreative drug use with her father, it is interested and random.

3. There is something wonderful about audiobooks- particularly memoirs- where the author reads their own work. Listening to Carrie's words through Carrie's voice is both soothing and hilarious. The inflections and the punchlines are delivered with such precision, there were several times I laughed out loud of gasped. I was enthralled by this familiar voice tell such dismal and emphatic tales.

4. I was expected much more about her treatment for mental health, and therefore more about her struggles with mental health. However, I am sure that this is covered more in other books by her. With such an array, I'm confident there'll be more in Wishful Drinking and even the semi-autobiographical novel, Postcards from the Edge, to satiate that desire.

5. Hearing Carrie discuss the mortality of celebrity, how we feel when celebrities die, and how she things she will be remembered was such a poignant part of the book that it was surreal to think I was learning about it so soon after her own death. I kind of cried, though not a sobbing, wailing cry, but more the cry where a single tear rolls down your face.

This gave me a real taste for Carrie's writing and I will definitely be reading/listening to many more of her works from now on.

Recently I have become interested in learning  more about alcoholism, drug addiction and mental health, and so in 2017 I made it a goal to read more non-fiction books about people who had been through these things. I am very glad to have started with this one. I had intended to read it as part of a small book club I had organised, but I couldn't wait to get into it, and so I will be endeavouring to make Wishful Drinking the Carrie book I read for this.

It is always important to remember that there is a person behind the addiction. Since her death, Carrie has been vilified for her past, with many opting to criticise her in her passing, rather than celebrate her. Those that talk of addiction and mental health as something someone brought upon themselves don't understand these struggles, and it is imperative that these misconceptions and cruel prejudices are overcome. I am sure that Carrie's influence and work as an advocate and campaigner for mental health and addiction will certainly be prevalent in coming months, and that perhaps there can be some more understanding amongst our communities.

If you are a Carrie Fisher fan, I highly recommend Shockoholic. It was an interesting and surreal entrance to 2017 for me, but one that I can very much recommend. This book was, for me, a solid 4 star read.

Rest in peace, Carrie. May the force be with you. Always

Read More