top ten tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

One of my goals for the new year was to venture out and discover new book blogs, and that's exactly what I did! I've discovered The Broke and the Bookish and I would highly suggest you go and check them out as well, there are really great posts and features- I really like their Bookish Jobs for Bookish People and Student of the Month (I've linked the most recent posts I could find). Exploring the blog I found that they had an original feature called Top Ten Tuesday and knew I had to participate. It's now or never. 

This week's Top Ten list is centered around "ten books I'd love to read with my book club/If I had a book club (or you could pick a specific kind of book club- like if you had a YA book club or an adult book club, etc)." I had to think about this one for a while, but then I went on my Goodreads and it didn't take long to decide. If I had a book club, and a very specific one at that, it would definitely be a Graphic Novels one! I have been wanting to read more comics, graphic novels and I'll even add manga in there because I feel as though they're all under the same collective group. 



1. Deadly Class by Rick Remender 
Centered around the 80's with an ancient group of assassins and teenagers in high school. Yeah, right up my alley.


2. Lumberjanes by Noelle Stevenson
"It's Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Gravity Falls and features five butt-kicking, rad teenage girls, wailing on monsters and solving a mystery with the whole world at stake." UM. Does this need further explanation?


3. The Sandman: The Doll's House by Neil Gaiman
I'm going to cheat a little bit with this one because I've already read Volume 1 and really liked it, but haven't managed to pick up Volume 2. Either way, this series is really interesting. A bit weird but I hear it gets better as you go. 


4. Runaways by Brian K. Vaughan 
Kids who discover their parents are super-powered villains and by the same author of Saga? It just seems natural to start this.


5. Y: The Last Man by Brian K. Vaughan
I know another Vaughan graphic novel, but I mean I can't resist the ratings on Goodreads and recommendations from other readers! It seems a bit gorey and violent, so probably not the best for those with a weak stomach.


6. The Wicked + The Divine by Kieron Gillen
I don't know much about this one except that it has to with powerful gods taking over human bodies, 12 to be exact. 


7. Soulless: The Manga by Gail Carriger
You have Victorian London and a woman who connects the gap between the natural and supernatural worlds. And there are forces conspiring against said person! What more can you ask for?


8. Locke & Key by Joe Hill 
I have heard about this all over Booktube and Goodreads, so it's about time my fictional graphic novel book club got its act together and around to reading it! 


9. The Encyclopedia of Early Earth by Isabel Greenberg
I feel as though this is one of those graphic novels that are just so pretty to open up and look at in general. I've heard the illustrations are beautiful and so is the storyline.


10. American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang
I can't tell you how many times I've seen this on BookOutlet and put it in my cart. Yet, it has never made it past that (then again neither have a lot of others). But there's just something about this story! 

So there you have it! I feel like I've just knocked it out of the ballpark with keeping with my 2015 goals. I wanted to find new blogs and get into more graphic novels. With this imaginary book club I feel as though I'm progressing towards finishing more graphic novels! What do you think? Have you read any of this or plan to? Let me know! 

-Alex

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Mini-Weekend Roadtrip

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

Tuesday's are the new Monday's for me, does anyone else feel that way? I had a 3-day weekend this past week and it was great! It's just a bit of a downer coming back to schoolwork and responsibilities :( I had the chance to do a bit of traveling though, which I was very grateful and excited for. I went to Savannah, Georgia which is about 4 hours from where I go to school. I had been wanting to go to Savannah for a while now because I've heard it has great places to eat, drink, dine and just walk around in general. Plus, the city is historically rich and full of stories so I couldn't wait to see the past/present mixed together. When my friend's birthday came around and she asked me if I wanted to come I could not resist!


I will post some pictures down below of what I did and saw, oh and what I ate, because I had some really amazing food. I only stayed for a night in Savannah, but I really liked it! I find myself relating a lot of cities to New Orleans (I went there last summer), so I would say that Savannah is a more toned down version of Nola. There is definitely night life because of the universities surrounding the city, but it's not quite as rambunctious. The port area where the market was situated, was not like New Orleans at all though. The architecture and the cobble stones really set it apart, as well as it's wide streets and foliage everywhere. Without further ado, my mini-weekend roadtrip! 

My friend's dog joined us for the ride, so I had to take a funny selfie with him :P

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Being a College Student

Wednesday, January 14, 2015

I'm trying to be more consistent on here (aka not disappear), and also expand my horizon on my posts. That is why I wanted to talk about being a college student. I know there are probably a lot of people out there who have been in my situation (perhaps recently), or that are currently still in school. I'm a senior graduating in May, so this will be my last semester. And this has been a long time coming, trust me!


I did not do the typical 4-year degree, nor did I do the 3-year program, instead I'm part of the select and special 5-year group. I have indeed taken the long and tedious route, and it has been a marathon not a sprint. It's crazy to look back but I can clearly remember the very first day that my parents dropped me off, and now seeing where I am and how much things change I'm in awe. Time really does fly and still find myself grappling with that fact. 


I have always been very dedicated about school, that one girl who cried if I got anything lower than an A. But transitioning into college was completely different than what I had been accustomed to in middle and high school. Jumping into classes and realizing how much studying I would have to put in, kind of disoriented me. I would say that I began my first 2 years, right and steady, trying to pick the "right" major and still discovering all the things I had at my disposable; for example, organizations to join, people to meet, things to do. I wanted to do it all. But picking a major was always really difficult for me. I just couldn't seem to choose one that I thought was "good" enough- something that was going to set me up for both happiness and stability. I was looking for a career that I could see myself doing for the rest of my life and never regret picking; at least those are the only things I ever thought about when trying to decide. 

It honestly was not until this past year, that I definitively settled on something. It's definitely out there, and when I tell people they look at me like I'm crazy, but I've gotten used to it. My official major is English Literature with a minor in Biology. I have taken about all the science classes you can name, with exceptions of a few, because for a while there I was gun-ho about medical school. My mind has changed since then, because I decided to be honest and truthful with myself about things I passionately enjoy and wouldn't mind doing everyday. You know that saying that you should wake up each day doing something you love? Well, I was waking up each day dreading what was to come and looking forward to the end of the day when I could sleep.


I think the whole picking a major process and all the "mile stones" and requirements that come with one, are ridiculous. They cause more stress and bring about more tension and unnecessary emotions in your life. Trust me, this whole college thing isn't easy. You will go through highs, some very good ones, but some really bad lows. I have been there and experienced a lot of it. I wish the college I go to offered more "liberal" degrees, and accommodating programs for the interests each person has. Instead of cornering you into one set thing. Also, I would love if the misconceptions on what majors or minors "go with each other" could be thrown out the window. I am a girl who loves her books and writing, but am still fascinated by science and computer things. The fact that one doesn't compliment the other is nonsense in my opinion. 

I'm really happy to be graduating but also really scared. I'm about to stop doing something that I've been accustomed to for the last 5 years. Weirdly enough I'm not necessarily nervous about leaving this school environment, but I am skeptical about what next thing I'm going to jump into. I'm still thinking about that. Let me know what your college experience was/is like. What's your major? What was your path like? Hang in there, we're half-way through the week! 
-Alex

weekly wrap up

Weekly Wrap Up

Monday, January 12, 2015

First week of school is over (even though it started on a Wednesday), nevertheless my first last day of my undergrad semester has gone and passed. Now to just kick butt for the rest of the year, which is easier said than done. I have been getting some reading done but nothing that has led me to writing a review about it. And not because the books I've picked up are bad, on the contrary they're really good, but because they're part of a big series. With that being said, let me just say that I may have found a new favorite author- Patricia Briggs. Man, her books are awesome!

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book review

Rebel Belle Review

Wednesday, January 07, 2015

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I don't know whats been going on the last couple of days but I have completely gotten out of the reading slump I was in and jumped right back into reading. *cue reunited and it feels so good*
There's nothing better than feeling fully refreshed and energized to pick something new up. And that's exactly what I've been up to. A couple of nights ago (or days? guilty of staying up until 4AM) I finished Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins. Now I wish I could day I don't judge books based on their covers, but who am I kidding? I completely do that. Nice covers entice me, they pull my eyes their way screaming *LOOK AT ME* So, when I glanced at Rebel Belle, the cover did nothing for me. But I had heard such good things about it that I thought why not? I needed a fluffy read to get back into things, and that's exactly what it did.

book survey

2014 End of Year Book Survey

Saturday, January 03, 2015

Created by Jamie at The Perpetual Page Turner

2014 Reading Stats

Number of Books You've Read: 90
Number of Re-Reads: Honestly I could not say because I don't keep track of my re-reads and don't really re-read entire books just skip to all my favorite passages/scenes but if I had to estimate it would be 3-5
Genre You Read The Most From: YA

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Hi 2015!

Saturday, January 03, 2015


I take full responsibility for completely disappearing since the end of November. As soon as I came back from Thanksgiving break it was GO TIME with tests, finals and last minute projects. Then December came and went! I got a chance to go to New York for my very first time and it was amazing. I'm so incredibly lucky to have an amazing friend who was generous enough to allow me to spend a week with her and roam the city. I will post some pictures down below of some of the things I did and saw!

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