TBR Jar and 2015 Reading Challange

Today I was inspired by one of my favourite BookTubers to make a TBR jar (or in my case a TBR tin). TBR stands for To-be-read. The idea that you have a pile of books you really want to read but have not got round to yet. Like most people my To-be-read pile grows faster than I can actually read the books. 

As I am also terrible at deciding what books to read next I though the idea of picking them at random is a great idea. I have also made the paper different colours for the books I own and the books I still need to buy. Yellow for the books I already own and Pink for the books that are currently on my Amazon wish list. I thought that if I read two books I currently own then it is justified to buy a new book that way I don't end up owning hundreds of books I have never read. 

I am not sure if this is going to work for me for the whole year but it is worth giving it a go. It was fun writing down all the book titles anyway. I currently own 54 books that I haven't read so hopefully this will help me get though them. 

In 2015 I am also going to continue with me Goodreads Reading Challenge. Next year I am going to set my challenge to 30 books to read in a year and we will see how it goes. I am currently 1 book away from completing my 2014 challenge which was 20 books. I am confident I will be able to complete 30 next year unless something goes horribly wrong. 

My current TBR for next month is

Girl Online - Zoe Sugg
Never Fade - Alexandra Bracken
Paper Towns - John Green
An Abundance of Katherines - John Green
In the after Light - Alexandra Bracken
City of Bones - Cassandra Clare
The Long earth - Terry Pratchet
Entry Island - Peter May

Here is a link to my Goodreads profile
and my 2014 Reading Challenge

Do you have any idea of how to cut down your TBR?

Bookish Scenarios Tag

1. You have to get rid of all your books and you can only keep one from each of these genres - contemporary, fantasy, non-fiction and one other genre of your choosing. What books do you keep?

For my contemporary I would choose to keep if I Stay by Gayle Forman. It is a truly heart wrenching story and really makes you reflect on your own life and where your priorities are. I think everyone needs to do that once in a while.

 For fantasy I think I would go with the obvious choice. Harry Potter. It's just such a familiar journey. A story I have loved pretty much my whole life.

I don't really read a lot of none-fiction but I chose to go with Grace's Guide. It was a difficult choice between that and My Drunk Kitchen by Hannah Hart. I went with Grace's Guide because I don't think I have cry-laughed as a book so much.

For my other category I went with Death Note. I will never get bored of this book. There is just so much plot and even if I know the story back-to-front I can always appreciate the art work.

2. You're at the book shop and you hear a teenager telling their mum they don't like to read, but their mum insists they pick something. You walk over and recommend a book you think is great for people who aren't big on reading - what book is it?

I would choose The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. It is a book that everyone is talking about and this is the book that really got me properly into reading so hopefully it would do the same for others.

3. You're not feeling yourself and need a pick me up. Which book do you read to put yourself in a great mood?

Usually anything at all by John Green. You've just got to love his writing and his characters. 

4. You go back in time for a day to your teenage years. What book would you most likely have caught yourself reading?

I maybe was not reading this during my teenage years but particularity when I was younger I would read 'The Worst Witch'. I found it easy to relate to the character of Mildred Hubble trying to fit in and muddle through school with her two best friend whilst trying to stay out of trouble.

5. Your friend surprises you with a 4 day trip and you have 1 hour to pack. Which book do you bring to read on the way?

Usually I would just take with me whatever book I was reading at the time but if I had to choose of course I would go with Mr John Green.

6. Your house has been robbed! Don't worry - everyone is safe, but your bookshelf has been raided. What's the book you really hope is safe?

I have to say my signed copy of Looking For Alaska. It is by far my favourite John Green book and did I also mention it is signed?

7. Your friend borrows a book and returns it in awful condition. Do you a) Just pretend you haven't noticed b) Ask them to repurchase it or c) Secretly do the same to something of theirs

I am usually very careful about who I lend my books to. I am usually more worried about getting them back than what condition they are in. Though I am also very bad at returning books sometimes. I borrowed this copy of The Book Thief from my Aunt and Uncle about a year ago. I took a photo to prove it is in safe hands!

Feel free to answer any of the questions on your blog! I would be really interested to see the different answers.

Rachel xxx

Summer Reading List

Hello Blogger friends,

Sorry I've been away for a 70 million years. I have been a busy girl, I have rescued two princesses including Peach and Zelda so as you can imagine it is quite time consuming...

So summer is fast approaching (it may have already started for you)! To me summer can only mean one thing ! READING! I just love lying on a beach or beside the pool, while travelling, or even in the garden. I am usually super busy the rest of the year so summer is the perfect time to unwind and relax with an awesome book. My whole year is pretty much spent looking forward to the moment where I have all the time to relax and read. Today I thought I would share with you my summer reading list. Lets get started as there is a lot to get through!

First up is a re-read of these three Sherlock Holmes book. If anybody knows me they will know that I am obsessed with anything at all to do with Mr Holmes.

 Next is a book called, Talking about Jane Austen in Baghdad by Bee Rowlatt and May Witwit. I don't know anything at all about this book and I like to keep it that way. I love reading books where I know nothing about the story and you can just learn about the characters and story by yourself. My mum has told me to read this book about hundred times and I trust her opinion.  

 The Hobbit by J.R.R Tolkien. I love, love, love the film! I am about 10 pages in and I am hooked! I also have a bit of a thing for film covers. Some people really don't like film covers on books but I really do like them.

The things we did for love by Natasha Farrant. This is another book I know nothing about, I just picked it up in a shop one day and thought it looked really interesting so I bought it and now I am going to read it.

 Atonement by Ian McEwan. I very well crafted film. I just love a good tragic love story (that probably makes me sound weird). I have heard that the book is even better than the film so I am very excited.

 The Perks of being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky. Another re-read. This wasn't originally on my list but  the lovely 'Squares- bookworm and beauty enthusiast' wrote an amazing blog post on it which you can see 'HERE'. Obviously had to re-read the book after that.

Life of Pi by Yann Martel. I saw the film adaptation of the book at the cinema and really enjoyed it. I must say I didn't know anything about the story when I went to see it but I really enjoyed the pretty cinematic shots of the film but I felt there was not much depth. The whole film was about a boy was got stuck on a boat with a tiger and that was it. I want to read the book because I am told it is better and the themes are much clearer.

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. This is one of those all time classic romantic stories that everyone has heard about. I know the story inside out from watching lots of film adaptations, TV series and the famous web series -The Lizzie Bennett Diaries. Considering I am completely in love with Mr. Darcy it is shocking that I have never read the book.

Harry Potter. Obviously a re-read for me. I have re-read at least one of the books every summer for as long as I can remember. This year is the year of the Order of the Phoenix.

I want to get more into graphic novels this year and Scott Pilgrim is a good one to start with. It is completely hilarious and easy to follow which ticks all the boxes for me.

The twilight graphic novel. Though I have seen the Twilight films and read some of the books I have never really been into Twilight but it was the Art work in this book that made me want to pick it up. The art work is simply gorgeous and there is only about two words on each page. I wouldn't be surprised if I finished it in less than an hour.

Last but not least in Insurgent by Veronica Roth. An other re- read for me. I think I have actually re-read it about three times in the last three months. I just can't get enough! I am so unbelievably excited for the next book to come out this year and the film! Am just going to put this out there, in my opinion it is better an Hunger Games! Please don't kill me! I do love Hunger Games but this is just more than love, It's an obsession.

Thank you for managing to get through all that! Let me know if you have read any of these books and we can have a good chat about them. Also let me know if you have any recommendations! I love discovering new things from my lovely fellow bloggers!

xx