12.21.2016

On My Shelf: Short Story Collections [Vlogmas Day 18]





The best part about short story collections is that you can spread them out as long as your want and pick it up a story at a time. And now that I've got visual proof of how many collections I own, I want to read them all right now!

Books Mentioned:
Interpreter of Maladies / Jhumpa Lahiri
Unaccustomed Earth / Jhumpa Lahiri
Teach Us to Outgrow Our Madness / Kenzaburo Oe
Where We Go When All We Were Is Gone / Sequoia Nagamatsu
In Our Time / Ernest Hemingway
The Things They Carried / Tim O'Brien
Sightseeing / Rattawut Lapcharoensap
Battleborn / Claire Vaye Watkins
Welcome to the Monkey House / Kurt Vonnegut
Don't Bet on the Prince / Jack Zipes
The Garden Party & Other Stories / Katherine Mansfield
Families Among Us / Blake Kimzey
How to Breathe Underwater / Julie Orringer

12.20.2016

The Tale of the Princess Kaguya [#YearofMiyazaki & Vlogmas Day 17]





The Tale of the Princess Kaguya
directed by Isao Takahata
written by Isao Takahata & Riko Sakaguchi
originally release in 2013 as Kaguya-Hime no Monogatari

Classics to Read in the New Year [Vlogmas Day 16]



I used to read classics all the time, both for school and for fun. So next year, I'm really going to make an active effort to make time for some classics alongside all my other reading!

Books Mentioned:
Little Women / Louisa May Alcott
Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass / Lewis Carroll
Anne of Green Gables / L.M. Montgomery
Northanger Abbey / Jane Austen
The Tenant of Wildfell Hall / Anne Brontë
Wuthering Heights / Emily Brontë
The Scarlet Letter / Nathaniel Hawthorne
Our Mutual Friend / Charles Dickens

12.19.2016

A Very Mini December Wrap Up [Vlogmas Day 15]



I really was hoping to have more to share in this wrap up, but like I say in the video, this month has been all about filming and editing! At least I know that I need to do way more prep if I decide to do this again next year!

Books Read:
Love Will Voltaire Us Apart / Julia Edelman
Sarong Party Girls / Cheryl Lu-Lien Tan

12.18.2016

My Tolkien Collection [Vlogmas Day 14]



So, I might have a bit of a problem when it comes to The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien. Seriously, who needs four different copies and lusts over a fifth? But I guess that's what we do with our favorite authors and stories, hoard them for a rainy day when all we want to do is escape the real world for a little bit.

Are there any authors whose novels you collect?

Books Mentioned:
Harper Collins / The Hobbit Pocket Edition
HarperCollins / The Hobbit 75th Anniversary Paperback Edition
Mariner Books / The Hobbit
Houghton Mifflin / Lord of the Rings Box Set featuring art by Allen Lee
Houghton Mifflin / The Silmarillion
HarperCollins / The Children of Hurin
Random House / Unfinished Tales of Numenor and Middle-Earth
Tom Shippey / J.R.R. Tolkien: Author of the Century

Miscellaneous Collection Mentioned:
Sting Letter Opener
The Hobbit Moleskine
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Extended Edition
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Extended Edition
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies Extended Edition

12.17.2016

5 Podcast Recommendations [Vlogmas Day 13]



The great thing about listening to podcasts is that there are so many to choose from. There's something for every interest, topic, fan, and perpetual student. However, this wide variety can also be a bit overwhelming; where do you even start? In the interest of helping you guys narrow down some podcasts that are actually worth listening to, I thought I'd share five shows that make my must-listen list.

Podcasts Mentioned





Podcast: Stuff Mom Never Told You
Topic: Gender & Feminism
> StuffMomNeverToldYou.com







Podcast: Myths & Legends
Topic: Folklore, Legends, and Mythical Creatures
> MythPodcast.com









Podcast: BBC Radio 4 Books and Authors
Topic: Publishing, Books, Author Interviews
> Books and Authors on BBC 5.







Podcast: Vintage Books
Topic: Publishing, Books, Author Interviews, Bookish Events
> Vintage Books on Soundcloud






Podcast: The Man Booker Prize
Topic: Books, Literary Prize, Author Interviews
> ManBookerPrize.com 

12.15.2016

The Vlogmas Vlog [Vlogmas Day 11]




Maybe it wasn't the most exciting week and a half of my life, but the more I vlog the more I seem to really love capturing the little things. I hope you guys enjoyed this brief look at life in Southern California!

12.12.2016

Project for Awesome 2016: Homeboy Industries [Vlogmas Day 10]



I know a lot of people use the Project for Awesome to talk about big charities and organizations reaching around the world. Personally, I am a big believer in "Fix yourself before you try and fix others," which is why I chose to highlight an amazing organization operating right here in Southern California.

I was first introduced to Homeboy Industries when I was in college and I remain a huge believer in their mission of love and rehabilitation. Unfortunately, voting for P4A videos has ended, but you can still:
> Donate to the P4A Indiegogo campaign,
> Check out Homeboy Industries and consider supporting them directly, or
> Watch more Project for Awesome videos and get inspired to make a difference!

12.09.2016

Big Books on My TBR [Vlogmas Day 9]



I like big books and I cannot lie... Sorry, but it had to be said! And honestly, although I have quite a few unread, really big books on my to be read list, I seem to be really good at finding reasons to keep putting them off.

Books Mentioned
All Over Creation / Ruth Ozeki
The Casual Vacancy / J.K. Rowling
Tom Cringle's Log / Michael Scott
Middlesex / Jeffrey Eugenides
Deja Dead / Kathy Reichs
Outlander / Diana Gabaldon
The Bronze Horseman / Paullina Simons
The Crimson Petal and the White / Michel Faber
Hawaii / James Michener

From Up on Poppy Hill [#YearofMiyazaki & Vlogmas Day 8]




From Up on Poppy Hill
written by Hayao Miyazaki and Keiko Niwa
directed by Goro Miyazaki
originally released in 2011 as Kokuriko-zaka Kara

12.08.2016

BookTube Shout Outs II [Vlogmas Day 7]



Time for another installment of BookTube Shout Outs! This time around I'm sharing three lovely ladies with strong discussion and review skills and who I really think you should check out.

1. Amanda / Amanda Center
> Recommended: one of her Angsty-Me Reads videos

2. Bree / Bree Hill
> Recommended: Ruler of Books Tag video

3. Victoria / Eve's Alexandria
> Recommended: Victoria's Winter TBR

12.06.2016

My Bookmark Collection [Vlogmas Day 6]


After one failed attempt at uploading, I'm pretty happy with how this fun little video turned out. It's crazy how much editing goes into something so short! Clearly, I need to stop accepting free bookmarks.

Arrietty [#YearofMiyazaki & Vlogmas Day 5]


It was really only a matter of time before I missed a day. At least I managed to get the video up on time!

Arrietty
written by Hayao Miyazaki and Keiko Niwa
directed by Hiromasa Yonebayashi
originally released in 2010 as Kari-gurashi no Arietti

12.04.2016

On My Shelf: Poetry Edition [Vlogmas Day 4]


I'm really excited about today's video because it kind of marks a turning point in terms of my relationship with poetry. When I was younger, I never distinguished between prose fiction and poetry; they were just two different ways of telling a story. Like I mention in the video, I really lost my enthusiasm for the medium when it became just another thing to study and, unfortunately, I think this is an experience that a lot of people will relate to.

There are so many people who will tell you that you're wasting your time or rotting your brain spending time on the Internet. But I would completely reject that and say that it is through my time on the Internet in this amazing bookish community that I have discovered new interests, inspirations, and people who I can share all this with. Which is really just a grandiose, possibly overly dramatic way of saying that the Internet reintroduced me to poetry and I am so excited to further explore this new avenue of storytelling.

Richard Cabral's poetry
"Out the Box"
"Fighting Shadows"

Books Mentioned
Flower Fairies of the Spring / Cecily Mary Barton
A Light in the Attic / Shel Silverstein
Falling Up / Shel Silverstein
Robert Frost Everyman's Pocket Library Edition
The Poems of Emily Dickinson
The Penguin Book of Romantic Poetry
Song of Myself / Walt Whitman
The Palace of Contemplating Departure / Brynn Saito
Words for Empty Words for Full / Bob Hicock

12.03.2016

#NonfictionNovember Wrap Up [Vlogmas Day 3]



I'm happy to report that I had a pretty great reading month in November. I just didn't end up making much of a dent in my nonfiction stack!

Books Read
The Sellout / Paul Beatty
One Hundred Shadows / Hwang Jungeun, translated by Jung Yewon
 > read the review
The Devil Within / Brian P. Levack

Currently Reading
American Exorcism / Michael W. Cuneo
Howl's Moving Castle / Diana Wynne Jones
Our Mutual Friend / Charles Dickens
Wives and Daughters / Elizabeth Gaskell

12.02.2016