Month: January 2015

Cristina’s Close Look: Marginalized Identities and Intersectionality in Eleanor & Park

Posted January 16, 2015 in Cristina's Close Look, Discussions / 22 Comments

I’m really excited to launch this new feature! Cristina’s Close Look is a more specific type of discussion here at Girl in the Pages, where I find a trope, topic, or theme and explore the topics more in depth with a little bit of analysis and a lot of enthusiasm. Feel free to join into the discussion in the comments! Topic: Marginalized Identities and Intersectionality in Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell *Warning: This post will contain spoilers for the novel Eleanor & Park. Just a heads up if you haven’t read it yet! I picked up Eleanor & Park […]

Wish by Grier Cooper- Blog Tour & Review!

Posted January 14, 2015 in Reviews / 8 Comments

I spent a good 7 years of my adolescence dancing. The performing, the athleticism, the costumes, the music- I loved it all. Though ballet wasn’t my main focus, I took enough classes to appreciate the extreme talent and dedication it breeds, and how it becomes a lifestyle for many. My dance background, along with the stunningly gorgeous cover is what drew me to Wish, although aside from that I had no idea what to expect, having never read a dance based book. What Wish provided wasn’t just a book about dance, but a gutting, heart-wrenching account of alcoholism, emotional abuse, […]

Top Ten 2014 Releases I Meant to Read But Didn’t Get To

Posted January 12, 2015 in Top Ten Tuesday, Weekly Features/Memes / 32 Comments

As usual, Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by the fantastic blog The Broke and The Bookish. This week is all about looking back at the 2014 releases I meant to read, had every intention of reading, and in some cases even purchased, but just never found the time to pick up! 1) Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater– I know, I know. There’s not much else to say aside from the fact that I did a Wolves of Mercy Falls Reread toward the end of the year which distracted me from The Raven Cycle. 2) Lailah by Nikki Kelly– […]

The One by Kiera Cass- Review

Posted January 12, 2015 in Books, Reviews / 16 Comments

“Mistakes mean it’s real.” I have a very conflicted relationship with The Selection Series. I love the concept of mixing society’s obsession with reality tv, especially that focuses on relationships, with a dystopian, futuristic, post World War 4 America. I think the caste division is so interesting. I liked the idea of the ruler of Illéa marrying one of the people as a show of support to the country. Yet at the same time there’s something about these books that prevents me from really losing myself in them, at sometimes grow bored with them toward the middle. I feel […]

Sunday Funday: Birthday Edition!

Posted January 11, 2015 in Sunday Funday, Weekly Features/Memes / 16 Comments

Sunday Funday is a weekly(ish) feature that I started to share the bookish and not-so-bookish happenings in my life over the course of the past week. This week I’m also linking up with Stacking the Shelves as well as showcasing my birthday book haul! Feel free to participate, just link back! January 5-11, 2015 Life This week I celebrated my birthday! It was the first one since I moved in May and unfortunately most of my friends from college live 400+ miles away from me now so I wasn’t sure how it would be celebrating with just immediate family and […]

The TBR Tag!

Posted January 9, 2015 in Fun Stuff / 10 Comments

The lovely Nirvana over at Nirvana’s Pocketful tagged me last month to do the TBR Tag. Although I’m just now getting around to it, it works out perfectly because with the beginning of the new year I’ve been doing more of an inventory of my TBR! How do you keep track of your TBR pile? Goodreads is the easiest way to keep track of everything! Of the physical books I own but need to read, I place them horizontally on my bookshelf so I know that they haven’t been read yet! Is your TBR mostly print or e-books? Mostly print! […]

Bookish Bingo: 2015 New Year Edition

Posted January 6, 2015 in Blog Awards / 12 Comments

I’m excited to announce that I’ll be participating in Bookish Bingo hosted by Great Imaginations for the second time! I did pretty decently with Holiday Bingo and I’m so excited to participate again! The rules are pretty simple: This bingo will run from January to the end of March. -You may include one DNF. -Remember, one square per book. It’s really fun to see how other people are participating and which books they’re using to cover each square! I’ll be keeping my progress updated on this post as well as on my 2015 Challenges Page. Progress: “Pretty Dress Cover”: The One by […]

10 Lessons in Decorum and Dystopian from The Selection by Kiera Cass

Posted January 5, 2015 in Books, Reviews / 17 Comments

Having a copy of The One waiting for me on my bookshelf and it having been over two years since I read The Selection, I decided a re-read of the first book in the series was in order. I bring you my unorthodox re-read review of Kiera Cass’ The Selection in list format, detailing the top ten lessons this reality-show-dystopian-hybrid conveys. 1) Pay your debt, lest you be taken over by wealthier countries. This was an aspect of the book I really found interesting, perhaps because the fate of America (now known as Illéa in this series) isn’t too unbelievable… […]

Bookish Bingo Holiday Edition Wrap Up Post

Posted January 4, 2015 in Blog Awards / 6 Comments

This fall I participated in Bookish Bingo: Holiday Edition hosted by Great Imaginations. It was my first time participating in Bingo and I had a lot of fun despite not filling up the card or getting a true bingo (I was so close, if I had just gotten around to read one that was “Set in Space”!) Here are the categories I finished (the titles link to my reviews): Green Cover: Linger by Maggie Stiefvater “Ice/Snow/Frost” in Title: Let It Snow– John Green, Maureen Johnson, Lauren Myracle Creature on Cover: Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater Red Cover: Forever by Maggie Stiefvater […]

Month in Review & Yearly Recap: December 2014

Posted January 4, 2015 in Month In Review / 0 Comments

Month in Review is a monthly recap where I review my bookish and not so bookish happenings in the past 30 days. This month I’m bundling in some stats and wrap up info from 2014 in its entirety as well! Books I Read This Month Reviews: Linger (3 Stars) Let it Snow (2 Stars) The Truth About Alice (4 Stars) Forever (3 Stars) Belzhar (2.5 Stars) My True Love Gave to Me (5 Stars) The Selection Stories (3 Stars) Stats Total Books Read: 7 Rereads: 2 (Linger and Forever by Maggie Stiefvater) Goodreads 2014 Reading Challenge Progress: 67/50 Books […]