November Wrap Up (2019)

Hey guys, this is Abi here,

And it seems like only yesterday it was Halloween. But, yet again, another month has rolled towards the end and it's time for another wrap up!

-BOOKS-

I read a total of 5 books this month. Going into December, I'm ahead of my goal, and I only have to read 2 books to achieve my Goodreads reading goal. My current count of unread books that I own is at 4, so hopefully I'll get to read all of those before December is up.

Here are all the books I read in November:

1. Pumpkin Heads, by Rainbow Rowell & Faith Erin Hicks

Pumpkin Heads takes place on Halloween, the last night of the season. Every season, Deja and Josiah have worked at the pumpkin patch since they were freshman. But now they are seniors, and this is their last night before heading off to Uni next year. What happens is fast-paced and funny, and it's definitely made me want to reach for more graphic novels in the upcoming year.

2. Four: A Divergent Collection (Divergent 0.1-0.4), by Veronica Roth

Previous to picking up this book, I'd been thinking about Divergent a lot. This seemed like the perfect pick. Aside from that, because this book is made up of short stories, I knew I'd be able to fly through it, having already known the story. Although it doesn't add a lot to the overall story, it was interesting to read from a different perspective.

3. With the Fire on High, by Elizabeth Acevedo

Having been interested in this novel for quite some time, I finally bought it. My overall thoughts on this novel are that there isn't loads of plot, but what makes this novel great is the writing and the description. Honestly, every recipe had my mouth watering. Aside from that, even the representation of a single mother, who lives with her grandmother, is a perspective that I haven't read from. Ever, I don't think.

4. Girl of Stone and Shadow (Girl of Paper and Fire #2), by Natasha Ngan

Even though it took me longer than it should have to finish the second novel in the series, I have to say that I rather enjoyed Girls of Storm and Shadow. I got to meet some new characters, read from the point of views of some of the characters from the first book. I also got to explore more of the world, as the crew of warriors travelled across the land to secure the alliance of different clans for the war. Highly recommend this series if you haven't picked it up yet.

5. Warcross (Warcross #1), by Marie Lu (Re-read)

I finished Warcross just yesterday. I decided to re-read it so I could refresh my memory on what happened, so I was up to date for when I pick up Wildcard (my next read.) Wildcard is the book that I've had the longest on my unread shelf, so I was definitely looking forward to picking this up again and emerging myself in the world of Warcross. Looking forward to adding another completed series to my list as well.

-FILMS-

I watched a fair amount of films in November. Because my partner and I didn't really get much into the Halloween spirit in October, we decided to carry it on into November.

1. Saw II          2. Saw III

3. Saw IV       4. Saw V

5. Saw VI          6. Saw VII

7. Jigsaw             8. Fast Girls

9. Coraline 

10. Kick-ass 2

11. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

12. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets  

13.  My Sister's Keeper

14. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

15. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (we'll most likely watch on Saturday, which is still technically November.)

-TV SHOWS-

1. Pokémon~ Season 1

2. The Next Step~ Season 1 & 2

3. Anne With An E- Season 2 (Finished)

4. Fawlty Towers~ Couple of episodes

Other than that, I haven't really got up to much this month. I've been working, and I've been writing and preparing for a half marathon, which I will run next Sunday (wish me luck!)

Oh! And I reached 100,000 views on here!

Thank-you everyone who has been on here, even just once.

I couldn't have got to this point without you!

(Also, I managed it before my 4 year anniversary of starting up this blog!)

So that's that! I hope you have a wonderful day, and I'll see you all next week, when it will officially be December!

Byeeeee!

-Abi xxxx

Events I'm Looking Forward to in 2020

Hey guys, this is Abi here,

And with just 5 weeks left until 2020, I thought it might be fun to post a list of events I'm looking forward to in the upcoming year: both bookish and personal.

Enjoy!

1. Getting my driving licence and first car.

Having passed my theory test on the 13th, I'm looking forward to getting my driving licence, hopefully in the next year. Only at that point can I stop taking the bus to work and back.

2. Going to York, London and Cyprus.

These are the places my boyfriend and I are planning to visit in the upcoming year. I'll make sure I'll work on some posts before I'm away on holiday, but York and Cyprus are places I've never seen, and I can't wait to visit them both!

3. Naseby 16.45

Naseby 16.45 is basically it's title. It's a 16.45 mile run in Naseby, inspired by The Battle of Naseby on 14th June, 1645. It takes place in February every year and this year, a number of my runner friends, myself included, will be participating. It's the longest distance I'll do to date, and a necessary step if I want to do a marathon in 2021. The only part I'm not looking forward to is the 3 mile hill at the end of the course!

4. "Everybody's Talking About Jamie the Musical"

This isn't until the 2nd July, but I'm really excited to see Layton Williams play Jamie in "Everybody's Talking About Jamie". So far I've seen Layton play Seaweed in "Hairspray" and Angel in "Rent" and he's been fabulous in both. Not to mention, I'm obsessed with the soundtrack and I can't wait to see this incredible show.

Bookish Releases

1. Heartstopper. Volume 3, by Alice Oseman- 6th February 2020 

2. This Vicious Cure (This Mortal Coil #3), by Emily Suvada- 21st January 2020

3. One of Us Is Next (One of Us Is Lying #2), by Karen McManus- 7th January 2020

Okay! I hope you enjoyed this post, and I hope you enjoyed reading about all the events and dates that I'm eagerly anticipating!

What book releases are you awaiting in the upcoming year? Let me know in the comments!

Right, that's it! I hope you have a wonderful day and I'll see all of you soon!

Byeeeeee!

-Abi xxxx

Musical Theatre Book Tag

Hey guys, this is Abi here,

And today I'm doing another tag; honestly I have no ideas at this point, so I'm just going to keep doing tags until I do!

So enjoy!

Because this is the Musical Theatre Book Tag!

1. Wicked- Favourite Fictional Friendship

This is actually harder than what I thought because, aside from Harry Potter, there aren't a whole lot of friendships that I've read about. But I love the chemistry that Leah and Simon have in Becki Albertalli's books. They're just so amazing when they're together, I love both of these characters separately, but more when they're together.

2. Sweeney Todd- Favourite Villain
You know, I've never really loved to hate the villains. I've always been the one rooting for the good guys, hoping the villains fall. Call me minority.

I'm just going to skip this one. But let me know what your favourite villains are!

3. Phantom of the Opera- Favourite Love Triangle

This. This love triangle shouldn't work but it just fits neatly in place with everything else going on in this series. I'm not saying that it isn't tough reading about this trio, but it's definitely the most well-written one to date. If you haven't read this trilogy, I highly suggest you do.

4. The Lion King- Favourite Side-kick

I usually end up liking the side characters more than the protagonists, so this is going to be hard. My favourite side character has to be Meggie from the Noughts and Crosses series. She didn't make an appearance in the latest book, Crossfire, but hopefully she will in the next book.

5. Grease- Least Favourite Ending

The ending to this book was so frustrating. I honestly wish I'd never picked the book up! I was desperately hoping May would change her mind or at least show a bit of a character arc towards the end, but the ending left me frustrated and unfulfilled.

6. Matilda: The Musical- Favourite Adaptation of a book

This is probably a popular one, but the casting was absolutely perfect. The book is one of my favourites, as is the film. Also, the chemistry between the actors was just right. Recommend both the film and the book, because they're both fantastic.

Okay! That was the Musical Theatre Book Tag! I hope you enjoyed it, and I'll see you all soon!

Byeeeee!

-Abi xxxxx