How I Choose My Books Tag

It’s Friday. (Thank God!) Here’s a tag post.

It’s been a long, exhausting week and I’m tired and cold and grumpy. But hopefully I’ll feel better by day’s end because I have a coupon for the bookstore! 😀

Anyway, the tag.

It was created by Emma, the Bookish Underdog, who also tagged me for it. Gracias chica!

Find a book on your shelves or e-reader with a blue cover. What made you want to pick up this book?

The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness

I picked it up because I like the cover, but I bought it because I was curious about the story and the author. I read it in 2015 because everyone was raving about the author back then, so I got swept up in the hype.

The Rest of Us Just Live Here is a YA paranormal novel that focuses on the kids who are not the hero of the supernatural/fantasy story that occurs in the background. It’s an interesting concept and I like the structure of the book, but I wasn’t enthralled by it as I thought I would be.

Think of a book you didn’t expect to enjoy but did. Why did you read it in the first place?

The Way of Shadows by Brent Weeks

I read this fantasy novel about a month or so ago and totally didn’t expect to enjoy it as much as I did. It’s about a guild rat who becomes an apprentice to a notorious assassin called Durzo Blint (he’s freaking awesome!!!).

I read the book for the Tome Topple Readathon. I think I was out somewhere (probably getting my hair done) and needed a book to read for the readathon but didn’t have a tome on me so I chose The Way of Shadows because it was on my e-reader.

Stand in front of your bookshelf with your eyes closed and pick up a book at random. How did you discover this book? (I copied Emma and used the random option on Goodreads.)

Jane, the Fox, and Me by Fanny Britt, illus. by Isabelle Arsenault, trans. from French by Christelle Morelli and Susan Ouriou

This is a children’s picture book about a girl who is bullied at school and copes by reading books. I believe I first learned about it from a booktube channel. I can’t remember which, but it was probably Jean’s Bookish Thoughts or Jen Campbell’s channel. I believe I read Jane Eyre before learning of this book so since I heard that the classic is included in the story, I got curious and read it. It was okay.

Pick a book that someone personally recommended to you. What did you think of it?

Copperhead, Vol. 1 by Jay Faerber, illus. by Scott Godlewski

A sci-fi western comic book about a single mom who becomes the new sheriff of “a grimy mining town on the edge of a backwater planet.” This was recommended to me by a bookseller at my favorite comic book shop on Free Comic Book Day last year, I think. He was so excited about it that I was convinced to purchase and read it.

I didn’t like it at first, mostly because I didn’t like the art much, but they, both the story and art, grew on me. There’s a lot going on in the story and it touches on a variety of topics, like discrimination and colonization, and the art is pretty cool in some spots. I recommend you try it.

Pick a book that you discovered through YouTube/book blogs. Did it live up to the hype?

Caraval by Stephanie Garber

I discovered this YA fantasy novel through YouTube. It was hyped last year and often compared to Erin Morgenstern’s The Night Circus because of the magical carnival in it, but I was unimpressed and thought the book was overhyped. I didn’t like it at all.

It’s about a girl named Scarlet who must rescue her sister from the organizer of the Caraval, a once-a-year performance, before it’s too late.

Find a book on your shelves or e-reader with a one-word title. What drew you to this book?

Wytches, Vol. 1 by Scott Snyder, illus. by Jock with colors by Matt Hollingsworth

A horror comic book about a girl who moves to a new town with her parents after a horrific event with a bully at her old school.

I learned about this comic book on booktube and was drawn to it because many reviewers said it’s scary. I wanted to see if a comic book could scare me. Gratefully, this didn’t. However, I liked the story, especially how the narration alternates between the present and the past, and the illustrations.

What book did you discover through a film/TV adaptation?

Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

A YA paranormal novel about a boy who falls in love with a girl who’s the descendant of witches.

I really liked the movie adaptation and decided to read the book because I thought it would be better. I DNF’d it on my first read, but was hooked when I gave it another chance. I really liked the setting because it’s set in southern U.S. I tried to rewatch the movie after reading the book, but couldn’t bear to. I no longer liked it. And since completing the novel, I haven’t felt compelled to continue with the other books. It’s probably because I spoiled myself for them. And though I’ve since forgotten the spoilers, I still don’t feel like reading them. Oh well.

Think of your all-time favorite book(s). When did you read them and why did you pick them up in the first place?

Umm…wow! Let’s see:

The majority of books I love are fantasy novels. In the past, I either picked them because they were the only fantasy novels I could find at my library in Jamaica – i.e. The Neverending Story and The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe – or because they were stacked next to other books I’d read in the school library in the U.S. – Song of the Lioness quartet and the Harry Potter books.

As I got older, I’d just walk around libraries and bookstores until a book cover or title caught my eye and these days, I sometimes intentionally seek out a book recommended to me from booktube, a blog, or newsletter.

That’s it. I tag everyone who’s interested in doing the tag!