Thoughts of a Bookworm #2: I am a book addict

Throughout my reading life, there has always been something that has made me happy beyond measure. It's the feeling which I get from buying and collecting and placing new books on my shelf. It is even that great excitement when I have gone into my favourite bookshop and be able to walk around to buying that book that I've been eying up after half an hour browsing.

But then the pandemic happened and my reading habits changed for the worst.

At first, when the lockdown was first announced, everything was fine. I still had my last year studies at university, which were coming to a close and I had my sister with me. So, I would say I was pretty lucky compared to some of the other people that were facing the same problem of the pandemic. It is only when I finished my degree and began looking for a new job it seems my life took a little spiral and I have only come to realise this in the last few months.

Then the book requests started to enter my inbox. The inbox that I haven't looked at in over a year due to being so busy. And it was amazing at first, I was back in my element among all the things that I truly love. I had this outlet to take away some of the troubles of the present and the future.

It is only then that I had discovered Netgalley. If you don't know what NetGalley is, it is this amazing platform that reviewers, booksellers etc. can use to get early eARCS of upcoming releases for a review. As you probably will have noticed this has become one of my go-to places to get upcoming releases for blog content. That was when my love became an obsession. It wasn't just about reading books to provide reviews but having one leg up in reading the newest releases before they even came out. But the difference is that it's digital and all backed up to my phone and ereader. The real problem was Twitter.

I love Book Twitter with all my heart. It is a great community and allows for you to jump in and out, as well as keeping up with the latest book content from the publishing world. I truly love some of the people with who I follow and interact. They are amazing people and I look up to them and admire what they have done for the community. The only problem is that they tend to showcase physical books. And if any true reader understands, once you have your heart set on it, that is all your money gone without a second thought. I think I might have spent hundreds of pounds since I first entered this book space. I know what you're thinking, ouch.

So, I bet you're starting to think what happens now? How should I go about recovering from this form of shopping addiction even though it is the only thing that is keeping me sane right now? For one, I need to think about what I already have. Currently, as it stands, I have counted 247 books on my TBR pile. Most of these have been bought in the last year as a way to curb my boredom. But things are changing in little ways and looking up and I've decided that instead of buying books I will be adding a pound to my savings for every book I have read off my TBR pile. I know that this is not a way of recovering the money that I have spent, but it is a motivation to use what is already in front of me.

Are you an addict? Do you love books so much that it has taken over your life like mine? You are not alone.

Comments

Just the Two of Us (Book 1) by Ryu Hyang

SYNOPSIS 'Soohyuk: a paediatric emergency medicine specialist. A man who never eats something someone else gives him. Soohyuk, the tyrant who rules S University Hospital's paediatric emergency room. He only cares about treating sick children, whether or not that gets in the way of advancing his career. He, a grouch to everyone aside from the patients, suddenly starts noticing a woman: the woman who feeds him. Yuna: a chef who makes boxed lunches. A woman who panics and collapses whenever she meets a man, due to trauma from her past. Wanting to do what she likes rather than going off to college, Yuna opens up her own business that specialises in boxed lunches. A Tasty Meal. She gets scared when one day she sees the tall Soohyuk standing outside her restaurant, but she soon learns he is only drawn to the delicious smell. And, somehow, she comes to be in charge of his everyday meals. When Soohyuk meets Yuna, a confident, surefooted woman who gets startled and scared when he co...

Archibald Lox and the Bridge Between Worlds by Darren Shan

It's been a while since Darren Shan has written a children's book. Focusing more on his adult audience these last few years it seemed like this was the avenue he would have stayed in. However, I'm glad he made the transition back. I can't believe how much I have missed him doing a children's book until now. Covid-19 is at least good for one thing. I get to start on a new series that I can't wait to read. This first book in the serial seems different from previous children's books that he has written in the past. Almost mysterious and part of a realm that is more metaphysical rather than anything. Yet still enchanting in a way that makes look at the world in a new-found way In some ways it kind of reminds me of Plato's cave in the sense that there is something more to reality than what most people let on. Something that can be seen to be incomprehensible to the person that has not experienced The Merge and will never understand the importance of it. Once ...

An Astronaut's Guide To Life On Earth: Life Lessons From Space by Chris Hadfield

I usually hate non-fiction so very much. I tend to find it utterly boring as well as depressing. But with this book it is completely different. It stands on it's own two feet by being irregular and unique in my eyes. It's inspirational. He's a role model to anyone who has met him, read him or seen him on YouTube singing 'Space Oddity'. Here is the YouTube that he recorded on the ISS of Space Oddity if you haven't already seen it. But seriously who hasn't? Anyway if you have seen it, why not see it again? It is really good. Anyway, the book itself, is a very good example with motivating people to aspire to what they really want to do. Rather than just simply dreaming of their dream, he is saying to put those words into actions and finally into reality. But not only that, if you don't exactly get to the place as to which you really want to strive to be, that's ok. It doesn't mean that you are a failure. No one is a true failure, unless you ...

2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke

What can we truly know of the universe? Is the universe simply beyond our comprehension or are we just too ignorant to see what is actually in front of us? What if there is life beyond Earth? What if we can discover it for ourselves? What if, our curiosity gets the better of us all? This book seems to pose many questions to what knowledge we already possess yet, are we looking at life in the right way and how we come to use the environment of Earth around us. It takes us through the story of the human race and how we have expanded our skills and knowledge to become a race which is both rational and intelligent enough to discover the final frontier, space. But what comes after all of this? This is just as an important question as the one in which we ask of how we all got here in the first place. The great thing about this book is that I feel like if you read it before watching the film, you would probably have a better appreciation for Kubrick's vision. In fact, it could be believed...

Blog Tour: The Ghost of Villa Winter by Isobel Blackthorn

SYNOPSIS English psychic Clarissa Wilkinson is holidaying in the Canary Islands. Hoping to have an adventure, she boards a tour bus bound for Villa Winter, a secret Nazi base on the idyllic island of Fuerteventura. Instead, she discovers a body in a chest and finds herself teamed up with hapless crime writer Richard Parry. What unfolds is an edge of seat mystery brimming with intrigue, as they try to unravel the clues together, and find the killer. Setting rich with a colourful cast of characters, The Ghost of Villa Winter is a delightfully gripping read with plenty of twists and turns that will appeal to all good mystery lovers.