Category Archives: Award

The Book Fangirling Blog Award 

  

Hey everyone! 
It’s been ages since I’ve completed an award or tag, so I thought I would take part in this. Thanks so much for all the nominations. I promise I will try and get around to them all – they are written on post its! I was nominated for this award by Arec from Rainy Thursdays. Thank you so much for thinking of me. 

Anyway, the rules for this one: 

  • Create a post to accept your award.
  • Add the blog award button into your post and put it on the side of your blog as a widget. Visit fangirling for the award button.
  • Answer the questions I have below.
  • Nominate between 5-10 book bloggers who you think also deserve this award.
  • Come up with your own 5 questions for your nominees


Arec’s questions:

Is there anything that makes it impossible for you to read (i.e. background noise, poor writing, etc.)?

Not really. When I’m reading a good book I just tend to get lost in it and everything else around me fades to nothingness. However, if I’m not really interested in the book I’m reading, I have been known to fall asleep. I do willingly give up reading books if I can’t get into it. Life is too short to struggle though. You could be using the time to read an awesome book instead. 


What book would you buy 2 copies for (one copy to read, one copy to stay pretty)?

I don’t have two copies of any book actually, unless they’ve been released with new covers. To that means the Harry Potter series. So lovely. If I have two copies I always donate the second to a local charity shop. I’m so proud that my books raised £106.50 last quarter. 


Do your books look nice and pristine, or well read and handled?

I’m not really bothered to be fair. I have all sorts on my shelf. I like my favourite books, or books that have pretty covers to be pristine. At the same time I’ve got books from when I was at school and that are bend and battered. I do get a bit mad when the spines are all damaged and when the cover gets bent. There was a time when I would replace the books that were damaged. Then I gave up! 


What is your biggest reading pet peeve?

When people actively go out of their way to reveal spoilers. Err hello! How rude?! With the blogging community, it’s bounds to happen, but it’s not intentional. It’s when someone knows you’re reading something, but they finished it before you, so they feel the need to tell you what happens before you get there. It’s bad reading etiquette. 


Do you have book buddy (someone you share all your reading with regardless)?

My fabulous followers! Also my friends. My friends are all readers too which is great because we all recommend different books to each other. I talk about books a lot at work as well. I’m desperately trying to get more young people into reading for pleasure. 
Thanks again Arec. This was great and your questions were definitely interesting and different! 


Charley’s questions:

  1. Which is the best book you’ve read in 2015?
  2. Is there a genre that you tend to shy away from? Why is this and what would make you try it?
  3. E-reader or paper book?
  4. What makes you love a book?
  5. Do you have a favourite reading snack? 


My nominations:

Simon @ sfarnell

The Book Club Mom

Ember @ Literary Constellation

Matt @ Matt and His Cats

Jess @ Mud and Stars
Feel free to ignore if you’re busy guys! I don’t mind. Just know I was thinking of you! 

Big love to you all X

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18 Comments

Filed under Award, Reading

The Encouraging Thunder Award

 
Good evening everyone! 

Hope you’re all well! I’ve been nominated for the Encouraging Thunder Award by the lovely Laura at Lala’s Book Reviews. Thank you so much for thinking of me! 
I love these kinds of posts because you get to see how and why people got into blogging. Here’s my story! 

The Rules:

Thank the person who nominated you.

Post the Encouraging Thunder logo. It’s here.

Mention your purpose in blogging.

Nominate others for the award.

What is your purpose for blogging?

On May 25th 2015 my little blog was born. How did I get here? By a book of course. I found 60 Postcards by Rachael Chadwick in my local bookshop. For some reason it stood out to me. It may have something to do with my love for postcards and Paris. Nevertheless, I bought it and read it in a couple of hours. It moved me so much. I don’t want to ruin the plot, but I urge you all to read it. What I loved most, is how a blog in that novel brought people from around the world together. I feel the same with my own blog. I’ve met some amazing people from  all over the world. I feel so lucky to be a tiny part of this community. I’m learning something new through this every day. 

So, I knew why I wanted to blog, but wasn’t too sure what to blog about. I’m only really good at one thing: reading. I decided I would write about books I love and hopefully inspire people to reading them too. I was also baking a lot at this time. The school I was working in was about to close down, I had some amazing students and to cope with closure and exams I would make cakes every week for my class. It really helped both them and me. I decided I could easily blog about this too. Hence the name: booksandbakes1. 

I was really getting into this blogging malarkey, so I decided to blog about other things too, in particular, places I’ve visited and photos I’ve taken. I love how my blog has become almost like a memory book, but an online version. 

I couldn’t imagine my life without my little piece of the internet. I find it really therapeutic to blog about books I like and tags that I’m interesting in. But, I need to thank you all for your support. The blogging community has been so friendly and warm towards me. Thank you. It means a lot!


What’s your story? I nominate:

Erika @ Bookventureland

Joey @ Thoughts and Afterthoughts

Parneet @ The Enchanted Book

Analee @ Book Snacks

Liam @ Liam’s Library

Amy @ Curiouser and Curiouser

Nicola @ Literary Ramblings

Simon @ Sfarnell

Nicola @ Book Bunny

Calliope The Book Goddess

Please feel free to ignore of you’ve already done or if you’re too busy. But, if you could take part that would be excellent. I really enjoy learning about other blogs. 

Big love x

16 Comments

Filed under Award, Blog, Nomination

One Lovely Blog Award

 

Morning everyone!

Hope you’re all well and happy. I’m slowly but surely catching up on book tags and nominations. Thanks for your patience everyone. Today’s award comes from Travelling In My Bookcase. Thank you so much for thinking of me for this award! I urge you all to check out this brilliant blog.


The Rules:

  • You must thank the person who nominated you and include a link to their blog.
  • You must list the rules and display the award.
  • You must add 7 facts about yourself.
  • You must nominate 15 other bloggers and comment on one of their posts to let them know they have been nominated.



Here are my seven facts about me:

1. As Autumn is fast approaching, I’ve recently been quite excited about the leaves changing on the trees by my house. Living by a rather beautiful park means that I can see the daily change in the leaves. They are so beautiful. The change from green to orange and red, all at different times,  covering the whole tree as well is just lovely.

2. My blog celebrated its 4 month bloggerversary yesterday. How exciting! I’ve had a such a great time working on it and writing my posts. I still just write for me, and if others like it then that’s an added bonus. I’ve also met some amazing bloggers as well. What a community.

3. I’ve not baked anything for months and I really miss it. I need to make more time for it, but I still feel like the ‘newbie’ who is ‘finding their feet’ at my new job. It’s only been 3 weeks though. I’m sure I’ll be baking again soon enough.

4. Every winter I watch my box set of Friends. I’ve done that for as long as I can remember. What amazes me about Friends is, it’s been a long time since it was last aired, and it still manages to evoke a range of reactions and emotions from me. It’s a sign of a true classic.

5. I’d love to set up my own charity. It comes from my ‘mother hen’ instinct to look after everyone and make sure everyone is ok. I’m not sure it will ever happen, but it’s something that I would love to try and do.

6. I like sparkly things. Anything that sparkles is quite possibly in my house. I firmly believe we all need a little sparkle in our lives.

7. I like to surprise people. I like the look on their faces. It’s my Mum’s birthday next week and I can’t wait to see her reaction to her presents. We have an incredibly close relationship. Despite being miles apart she can tell when something is wrong and what I’m thinking. I think little surprises are wonderful things. It’s always lovely to surprise yourself as well.

I hope my fun facts didn’t bore anyone (too much at least!)


My nominations are: 

Meg @ Little Blog Of Books

CK & Ck’s Reading Corner

Ashley @ Dreaming Through Literature

Matt @ Matt and his Cats

Marje @ Kyrosmagica

Carolyn @ A Hundred Thousand Stories

Jessica @ Mud and Stars

Lynette @ Memoir Notes

Morgan @ The Secret Diary of a Computer Science Student

Claire @ Coffeeholic Bookworm

Amy @ The Literature Life

Lara @ Katnisspotterbooklover

Deanna @ A Novel Glimse

Trisha Ann @ The Bookgasm Blog

The Candid Cover

Please feel free to ignore if you’ve done this before or if you’re busy or if it just plainly doesn’t float your boat. I don’t mind! But, I wanted to nominate some of my new followers and people I’ve not nominated before. Hope that’s ok!

Big love xx

33 Comments

Filed under Award, Nomination

The Creative Blogger Award 

 

Hey guys! 

Another award, I’m genuinely so honoured. This one comes from one of my first blogger friends, Erika @ Bookventureland. She is so lovely and always really supportive. Her blog posts are some of the best I’ve seen. Thank you for thinking of me for this award lovely. 


The Rules

  • Thank the person who nominated you and include a link to their blog.
  • Share 5 facts about yourself.
  • Nominate some bloggers in return and notify them about their nomination.
  • Keep the rules in your post to make it easy for everyone to know what to do.



Fun (I hope) facts about me! 

1. When I read certain books, that may arguably contain scary parts, they give me nightmares. For example: Dracula, Before I Go To Sleep, Frankenstein, The Picture of Dorian Gray etc. 

2. I’m a little bit obsessed with Glee. I also love the whole principle of how there’s a place for everyone, despite what you like and who you are. Also, who doesn’t love singing a whole host of songs? We all belong somewhere. Sometimes we just need to remember that. 

3. Every Autumn/Winter I watch the Friends box set. I just love it. When it’s cold outside and dark, you just don’t want to go out. Well, I don’t anyway! So for me, it never gets old! I always laugh at the same bits though. In fact, it’s coming to the time to start watching this again! 

4. I’m ridiculously clumsy. I walk into things, trip up over my own feet and bruise like a peach. I wish this wasn’t true, but it is. Prime example: leaving the theatre at school today, I walk into the side of the next chair, despite having plenty of room around me. 

5. I live by the ethos of ‘treat others how you wish to be treated’. A little kindness goes a long way. I think so anyway. 

So, I thank you, my ever supportive followers. I’ve not been posting any reviews recently, because I’ve been writing a million schemes of work, so I apologise about that. I will get on it as soon as things calm down. And thanks to Erika again! 


My nominations: 

Liam @ Liam’s Library – Liam has been teaching me all about Australia in our daily chat. Thank you 🙂 

Lia @ BookLand – Today is Lia’s birthday, so I hope this makes you smile love! 

Lara @ katnisspotterbooklover – Lara has some amazing posts on book I’ve never read. She’s really useful in terms of finding books to go on your TBR list. 

Carolyn @ A Hundred Thousand Stories – The place where I gain my YA knowledge! 

The ladies @ What Will She Read Next? – They’ve recently posted a really interesting blog about books being tranformed to screen. 

Feel free to take part or ignore. It’s entirely up to you! 

Big love x

8 Comments

Filed under Award

The Real Neat Blog Award

  
Hey guys! 

Hope you’re all doing well. I’ve been tagged by the lovely Jessica at Mud and Stars for this award. Thank you so so much. She’s really friendly and has a great blog. Go check her out! 


The rules:

  • Put the award logo on your blog.
  • Answer 7 questions asked by the person who nominated you & create 7 new ones
  • Thank the people who nominated you, linking to their blog.
  • Nominate any number of bloggers you like, linking to their blogs.
  • Let them know you nominated them (by commenting on their blog, etc.)


Jessica’s Questions – My Answers

1. What would be the one book you’d recommend to someone who says they don’t like reading?

I would definitely pick something short and lighthearted. My natural reaction is of course Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. However, I also think classics like Of Mice and Men and The Great Gatsby are also a good way into reading. I love David Walliams books as well. I laugh my head off all the way through. He’s so talented. 

2. Are there any books which have been made into a film where you think the film is better than the book? (And also, because I’m curious, which film adaptation do you think completely butchered a book you love?)

Sadly, never. I’m really funny about this. I will always read the books first and I rarely see the films, unless I’m fairly confident they will be just as good. I just really hate the thought of something I love ring ruined. So this was a fairly useless answer! 

3. How many books have you read this year, and how many are you aiming to read by the end of 2015?

At New Year, I decided that the bog standard resolutions are no good to me, because I don’t care about them enough. So, I set myself a challenge of reading 100 books in 2015. So far, I’ve read 72. I’m really proud of that actually! Hopefully I will reach, and exceed my target. 

4. What’s a book that everyone else seems to love, but you were disappointed by?

This will be controversial, and I hope I don’t offend anyone, but Jane Austen is this massive legend in the literary world, and I really struggle to read her novels. I did enjoy Emma, but I wasn’t able to get into Pride and Prejudice. Therefore, I didn’t enjoy it much. I will try and read it again though. 

5. What do you think will be the next big trend in YA books (or books in general?)

I genuinely have no idea, but there’s always phases. I don’t think anything will be as big as Harry Potter though. There are so,e big writers out there at the minute. It just takes a spark to create something amazing. We’ll find out soon I guess! 

6. Which book on your shelf has the most beautiful cover?

I buy a lot of Folio society books and they are just so beautiful. They are all hardback and come in a slip case. The covers have designs that are individual to the plot of the novel, so there has been a lot of thought gone into the design of it. The Darling Buds of May is one of my favourites. 

  

7. Which main character from a book do you think is most similar to you?

I’ve absolutely no idea. I could sound really arrogant or really hard on myself here. Tricky question! I’ll accept any suggestions because I don’t know. They’d have to be: funny, organised, like lists, dislike rude drivers, cake and book obsessed. 


My questions: (I’ve picked things outside of reading too!)

  • What is the best book you’ve ever read?
  • Which season during the year do you prefer?
  • Do you prefer to read books then see the TV/film adaptation, or see the TV/film adaptations then read the book?
  • How would you describe yourself in three words? 
  • Early mornings or late nights?
  • What advice would you give to your former teenage self?
  • If you could pick any character, from any book, who would you pick to be your best friend and sidekick? 


Nominees:

Claire @ Art and Soul

Erika @ Bookventureland

Phoebe @ Feeling Bibliophilic

Laura @ Lala’s Book Reviews

Dreaming Through Literature

Katsmiao

Illeana @ Notyourmommasbookreviews

Lara @ Katnisspotterbooklover

Giselle @ Hardwork Boulevard

Nicola @ Literary Ramblings

Liam @ Liam’s Library

Amy @ Curiouser and Curiouser

The Literary Counsellor

The Blue Bore

Any anyone else who wishes to take part! If you’ve been nominated before, feel free to ignore! 

Big love x

15 Comments

Filed under Award

The Reading Habits Tag & 500 Likes

Firstly, I just wanted to say a massive thank you! I received this notification: 

  

I can’t believe it! Thanks for all the support guys. I really appreciate it and I’m not sure what I’ve done to deserve it, but it means a lot. Now onto the latest tag! 

 

I was tagged by the wonderful Calliope The Book Goddess to complete this tag. It’s a good one so thank you very much!!

Do you have a certain place at home for reading?

I usually read in bed. More often than not I read before I go to sleep. I find it really relaxing. Sometimes if I wake up really early I’ll read then as well. I also read on my sofa. It’s a bit of a posh one, a cream leather recliner. So, I associating reading with comfort. 

Bookmark or random piece of paper?

I have hundreds of bookmarks from all kinds of people and places. I try and collect them if I’ve been somewhere or if I see one that I thinks really pretty. Sometimes I use postcards as well, but these can be too big for my books. 

Can you just stop reading or do you have to stop at the end of a chapter/a certain amount of pages? 

I’m a bit funny about this actually… Don’t judge! I have to finish the chapter otherwise I get confused or forget what’s happened. I can’t just leave it, I can’t physically do it. I’m not too fussed about a certain amount of pages, but I do like to see how many I’ve got left and how much progress I’ve made as well. 

Do you eat or drink while reading?

Oh dear. I’m quite clumsy, so I try to keep this to a bare minimum. Sometimes you do get peckish though so that’s always a slight problem. I make sure the book is away from any food or drink. But, I read in coffee shops all the time and there’s food and drink near me. Hmmmm. I think I need to think about this more! I realise I sound crazy. 

Multitasking: music or TV whilst reading?

Nope, not really. I am good at blocking out sound though, so I could do it if I wanted to. But, I’d rather enjoy the book/music/TV individually rather than blurring them all together. 

One book at a time or several at once?

I can only concentrate on one book at a time. If not, I get the plot, characters and themes all mixed up and I don’t remember which goes with what story. Nightmare! 

Read at home or everywhere?

Anywhere and everywhere. I read at home, at work (perks of the English teacher job!) in cars, coffee shops, trains, parks etc. you get the gist! 

Read aloud or silently in your head?

I prefer to read in my head because I can read quicker that way. I’m actually not a fan of reading aloud because I tend to miss words out. I hated it at school. I read aloud at work as well (another perk of the job!?) but I much prefer it in my head. 

Do you read ahead or even skip pages?

Nope to both. Short and sweet answer for this one! 

Breaking the spine or keeping it new?

I’m funny about this as well. I try really hard to keep my spines as new. I understand that creases and marks show how well read and loved a book is, but for me I like to keep things as smart as possible. Books are there to be celebrated and loved, and for me keeping them as new is my way of showing my love and appreciation. However, the majority of my books are from second hand shops so they have all kinds of marks on them. I always wonder where they came from and what types of people owned them before. 

Do you write in books?

I used to write in my books when I was doing my A levels because it was easier, but never ever since then. Since then, I always write my notes on any extra bits of paper or a notebook. Then I put my notes in folders. Super organised! 

What are your reading habits? I tag:

Liam @ Liam’s Library

Erika @ Bookventureland

Amy @ Curiouser and Curiouser

Miss Quickly

Giovanna @ Book Coma Blog

Claire @ Art and Soul

Giselle @ Hardwork Boulevard

Lara @ Katnisspotterbooklover

If you’re too busy, or you’ve done this before don’t worry! Im really rubbish at keeping up with who has done what! Thanks again for this tag. 
BIG LOVE X

35 Comments

Filed under Award, Blog, Nomination, Tag

The Dragon Loyalty Award 

Hello everyone!! 

I’m sorry I’ve been so quiet for a few days, I went back to my old school for results day. I’m so proud of my Year 11s. Hard work pays off! Anyway, I’ve got some free time now so I’m back!

I was tagged by the lovely Sumana @ An Artsy Appetite for the Dragon’s Loyalty Award. Thank you so much! I need to apologise for the amount of time it’s taken me to do this. Thank you so much and I’m sorry!!

  

Here are the rules:

1) Display the award on your blog/website.

2) Announce your win and post the link and thank the person who nominated you.

3) Present/Pass on the award to deserving bloggers

4) Drop them a comment and let them know that you’ve nominated them.

5)Post 7 interesting things about yourself.


7 Interesting things about me!

1. I love a good thunderstorm. I genuinely think you can’t quite beat it. It clears the air and somehow, it just feels different after a storm, as if some of the pressure has been lifted. This has been brought back intomy consciousness because of the number of thunderstorms we’ve had in the past couple of days. 

2. I write a lot of lists. I can’t live without them. I have lists about lists. Of course, they are all written on pretty paper or colourful post it notes. The reminder to complete this blog post when I was back from work, was written on a list. 

3. I like to grow things. As a family we grow all kinds of fruit and vegetables. This summer we have had a brilliant crop of potatoes. I’m currently growing a lemon tree. He’s doubled in size since I bought him a couple of months ago, and I’ve had two lemons from him. He’s called Lionel. 

4. I’m a bit ‘OCD’ about things. I have to have things in their right places and in order or I don’t really function too well. My books and DVDs are in alphabetical order for example. As I always say: a tidy house is a tidy mind! 

5. When I was little, I had really long, straight hair that I could sit on. But, because I wouldn’t brush it, or let anyone else brush it, my mum took me to the hairdressers to have it cut into a bob. It took so long that I fell asleep and it was cut with a kink in it. I had to have it cut again the next day! I wasn’t a happy bunny. However, my hair did go on to make a nice wig. Also, I’ve never had naturally straight hair since then. 

6. Hay-on-Wye, Hereford, is one of my favourite places. It’s where I go on book pilgrimages with my dad. There’s so many quirky and interesting shops. I’ve attached a photo at the bottom of one of my favourites. It’s just so amazing there. I’ve genuinely never seen a place like it. 

7. I try to live life being a nice, honest, friendly person. I think you should always treat people as you wish to be treated back. The world would be a better place if we were all kind to one another. 

  

I hope my answers have been different again and acceptable! I nominate the following blogs for this award: 

Jesse @ Books at Dawn

Smiling Notes

Nicola @ Literary Ramblings

Mara @ Across the Books

Claire @ Coffee Bookworm

Please feel free to ignore if you’ve done this before or if you’re too busy. Having a couple of days away means I’ve no idea who has been nominated for what! 

Big love xx

9 Comments

Filed under Award, Nomination, Tag
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