A Blind Date with A Book

Would you ever be brave enough to go on a blind date? The anxiety of not knowing if you’ll like your date, the awkward beginnings, the stomach butterflies…

Some of us would never venture so far as to do this with another person. However, would you be brave enough to go on a blind date with a book?

These days many book shops, coffee shops and even big book retailers like Barnes & Noble are wrapping up their books like it was Christmas Eve and putting them on to shelves either blank or with a brief description on the back. At first glance you might say “Oh how fun and whimsical!” But LO! There is a danger there.

Books are rather expensive. Even used books can get up there in price at times. So imagine if you were to choose your Blind Date Book, pay for it, bring it home, read it and hate it. What a waste of money right? For a person like me who does not have much means for book buying, something like this could really be detrimental. Of course, if you have a lot of money and don’t mind taking the chance then I say GO FOR IT!!!

Without turning this entry into a bitch session, I’d like to propose that this idea be better put to use in say… book clubs or perhaps reading challenges. I guess in some ways you are taking the same risks but in a group atmosphere you have to kind of expect a certain amount of disappointment.

Great idea? Scary adventure? What is a blind date with a book to you?

The Adventure In Books

Reading… ah what a great adventure. I know what you’re thinking. “It’s just a book, you don’t actually go anywhere”. I know, I know. But books are some of the most wonderful things that we as humans have created. “Why?” you may ask. Because they spark our imaginations!

When we read we work out our brains and get them really thinking. Its like a work out for your mind. Imagine books as weights for your brain. By stimulating the muscles in our brains when we read and use our imaginations, we are actually adding to the capability of our brains and enlarging our brain’s potential. This is the reason why smart people are also referred to as “well read”.

Scientific studies have also proven that reading before bed gives your brain such a nice little work out that it makes it easier to fall asleep. Imagine how you feel after a good workout and that nice rest afterwards. That’s what it’s like for your mind. So if you have trouble sleeping, I would definitely recommend picking up a book and making it a before bedtime ritual.

In short, we bibliophiles do not just live one simple life, we indeed live many through the books we read. Every chapter is the next step forward. Every character is a new persona. Every book is a new adventure!

My Fav of 2017

Well, 2017 is now over and done with and 2018 is here with a bang ( or… ball… depending on where you are). So let’s talk about what we read in 2017.

I am the type of eclectic reader that always likes to keep my attention in reading by choosing many books of many different genres. I don’t just read novels! I literally read everything!

In looking over my Goodreads page, I see that my most read authors last year were: Anne Rice, Julia Donaldson, Roald Dahl and Clive Barker.

I dove head first into The Vampire Chronicles last year. I made it all the way up to number 5 Memnoch the Devil before we had to move and the remaining books got shoved into a box and I lost track of them for a short time. I will definitely be finishing this series up this year.

My son and I love Julia Donaldson. She is the author of The Gruffalo series and we just LOVE her books! My son has an adorable starter boxed set but we check out any books not included in the set from the library every chance we get.

Along with some other books such as The Boxcar Children, Winnie the Pooh, The Wizard of Oz and Dinotopia, my son and I also delved into the world of Roald Dahl. Some of which we really liked and some which we really didn’t care for. We really liked James and the Giant Peach (my son’s name is James), along with Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. However we did not care for The Fantastic Mr. Fox and we just plain didn’t like The Witches. I fee very much that Dahl’s book are hit or miss cause when they hit, they hit big but when they miss they dive bomb!

And then there’s Mr. Clive Barker. He holds a very special place on my book shelves along with H.P. Lovecraft. I mean, being the horror freak that I am, the writer and creator of The Candyman, Nightbreed and Hellraiser is definitely most special to me. He has a way of telling his horror tales that is very unique from every other horror writer/creator. Most of his tales have a bit of eroticism to them which adds a nice little cherry on top for the reader. However his children’s books (like The Thief of Always) are amazingly told as well and deserve a special place on the shelf in their own right.

But with all these in mind and with all the other books I’ve read last year the question still remains: which was my favorite? As difficult as it is to choose a favorite amongst the many, the one book that truly sticks out to me is Stephen King’s IT. Let me explain… when I was a child (around 7 years of age) I happened upon my father watching the TV series on television and I decided to post myself at the end of the hall where he couldn’t see me but I could see the tv set. I watched the film in secret and now I wish I hadn’t. As captivating as it was, it really traumatized me as a young child. I decided last year that now I am an adult and it is time to put childish things behind me. In so doing I challenged myself to read the book and watch the TV series before going to see the new film just released late last year. It was a VERY emotional process. I laughed, I cried, I was too scared to sleep many nights but I was determined. And by the gods I did it! I succeeded in finishing the book and even rewatched the series that traumatized me so terribly when I was a child. I accomplished what I set out to do and faced one of my ultimate fears… my own childhood fears! For this reason, this book stands above the rest I’d read and has earned a permanent place on my book shelves (whether I read it again or not is inconsequential).

And so I would have to place Stephen King’s IT as my favorite read of 2017!

What was your favorite read of 2017? I’d love to hear about it in the Comments Section! 

Where To Buy Books

This is a silly question right? I mean, I’d go to a book store of course!

Ok for real now, let’s answer this question. So if I had to go to an actual store I would first go to my local used book store before a big chain like Barnes and Noble. I like to help out the privately owned shops and give them business before the big chains. I feel the privately owned stores are more willing to please their customers and their prices are much more affordable. The down side of this being that you can’t always find the new additions/new releases in these stores. So if you’re searching for the new addition of that text book you need for your history class, be prepared to buy new $$$ or… shop Amazon rentals.

However, if the parameters involve me being able to use and online store, I would DEFINELTY be on either Book Outlet or Thrift Books. Both of these sites are amazing for getting inexpensive and good quality used books. I will stand by them all the way! Their prices are more than reasonable and so is their shipping.

Another great book buying (sort of) site that I will stand by to the end is Paperback Swap. This site allows you to post books that you have available for swap. When someone requests one of your books you ship it out. When they receive the book, you receive a credit which allows you to choose your own book from a batch of thousands of books available from hundreds of other members just like you! It’s an amazing idea and it works great! If you haven’t already signed up (it’s free by the way) then I highly recommend that you do!

The last online spot I’d like to talk about would be Book of the Month. This site is extremely easy to navigate. How it works is, you pay a monthly fee to receive a credit. 1 credit = 1 book. You can pay the fees in advance to receive a half a year or a year’s worth of credits. These credits can be used any time. An example would be: You can one month use 3 credits to receive 3 books, then skip the next month and not use any credits, then the next month use one credit to order 1 book again. BOTM gives you the freedom to get the books you want when you want by having their credits roll over if not used. You also get first looks at brand new releases BEFORE they’re released for sale to the public in bookstores! That’s awesome! The only down side to BOTM is that it can get a bit pricey. The monthly fee for 1 book credit is just under $10 and a full year subscription (12 credits) is $150. Still, it may very well be worth it to get your hands on those coveted new releases. Yum!

All of these places are amazing spots to get books from and I would definitely recommend any of them. But getting back to the original question, needless-to-say, my answer would be books… yeah lots and lots of books LOL