The Bookish Pearl – Page 5 – A Place for Bibliophiles

Sarah J. Maas Author Event for Tower of Dawn’s Release

September 8, 2017 , Fri | Events | or add your thoughts!

This past Wednesday, my mom and I went to the Tower of Dawn event held by Little Shop of Stories, and I lived a dream! Throne of Glass is one of my absolute favorite book series. Seriously, it’s up there with Harry Potter for me. So, as you might imagine, there are few people I have wanted to meet more than Sarah J. Maas. And, guess what? I MET HER.

Since she is so popular, they had to put a limit on how many people could actually meet her and get their signed copy personalized. As part of the event, you got a pre-signed copy and entry into a raffle. There was an auditorium full of people (over 400) there, and only 50 would be picked from the raffle to meet her. My family has never been lucky when it comes to stuff like this. BUT ONE OF OUR NUMBERS WON.

To be honest, I’m still on cloud nine. It was surreal to see her that close, and to talk to her and her husband (who apparently comes to all of these events with her—how sweet?!), after immersing myself, time and again, in the worlds she has created. read more

AJC Decatur Book Festival 2017

September 4, 2017 , Mon | Events | or add your thoughts!

This past weekend, I attended the AJC Decatur Book Festival, and IT WAS AWESOME. I always love these things, but this was my first time going to this one. It was well organized, filled with like-minded book lovers, and had a ton of tents overflowing with books, many of which were collectible and/or rare. Needless to say, I was in heaven! In this post, I’ll share photos and recap a little about the weekend.

On Saturday, my dad and I went to the Superheroes Redefined panel and signing with Gwenda Bond (author of the Lois Lane series and the moderator), Leigh Bardugo (on tour for Wonder Woman: Warbringer), and Jason Reynolds (on tour for Miles Morales: Spider-Man). It was SO COOL. The three of them are such intelligent, fascinating people. Listening to them was an unreal experience. As someone who loves to read, I know that the people who write the books I’m reading are uncommonly smart. Of course they are. They wrote a book. But hearing them speak in person, not just about their own novels, but about how they were striving to interweave important themes, was incredible! Bond, Bardugo, and Reynolds touched specifically on the influence superhero stories can have on today’s youth, especially in a political climate where very few real-life examples of moral good exist anymore. I have never read anything by Bond or Reynolds yet, but after this panel I am definitely going to pick up their work. read more

WRAP-UP | August 2017

August 31, 2017 , Thu | Wrap-Ups | or add your thoughts!

Today is the last day of August! I don’t normally feel like time slips away from me, but goodness that went by quickly! Anyway, that means it’s time for another reading wrap-up! Here you’ll find a list of the books I read this month, in order, with a favorite quote from and some quick thoughts on each.

“She wrinkled her nose, less out of actual distaste and more out of the knowledge that she was supposed to find spiders distasteful. She really found them rather endearing. They were sleek and clean and elegant, and when their webs got messed up, they ripped them down and started over again. People could learn a lot from spiders.”

This was a fantastic sequel! Personally, I liked it even better than the first book, which is saying something, because I so enjoyed Every Heart a Doorway. This was a little darker, but in a different way, if that makes sense? A bit creepier, but less gory than the first. It also presents a new world, so that could certainly be a part of what made it exciting. The second book in a trilogy often falls a little flat for me, so even without reading the last book in this one (which releases in January), I can already tell you I’m very impressed with the series as a whole! read more

REVIEW | A Wolf Called Romeo by Nick Jans

August 22, 2017 , Tue | Reviews | or add your thoughts!

“Years from now, we’ll tell this story: Once upon a time, there was a wolf called Romeo. Together, we watch him trot across the lake and fade into twilight. And we remember.”

Themes:

Human perception of top predators
Conservation and environmental politics
Evolutionary relationship between wolves and dogs

Wolves, dogs, interspecies communication, the wilderness, conservation—if you enjoy any of these topics, A Wolf Called Romeo will enthrall you. I expected this to be one of those “food-conditioned wild animal acts friendly sometimes and we got great photos” scenarios. Far from it, and Jans condemns food conditioning throughout the book. He has a real understanding of and respect for Romeo as a wild animal, and even hopes throughout the novel that the wolf will move on, live his natural life, and keep out of harm’s—aka humanity’s—way.

Environmental politics are central in this story, and I think Jans does an excellent job of staying as unbiased as possible despite his obvious love for animals, wolves in particular. I deeply appreciated Jans’s levelheaded, far-from-dramatic approach to each event and the community’s various reactions. I came away with a detailed understanding of the beliefs, historical perspectives, and emotions involved on both sides. read more

RECOMMENDATIONS | Oceanic Nonfiction

August 13, 2017 , Sun | Recommendations | or add your thoughts!

I’ve loved the ocean since childhood, and my desire to read nonfiction on the subject has been renewed over the last few years. Today, I’m sharing my recommendations!

The Devil’s Teeth: A True Story of Obsession and Survival Among America’s Great White Sharks by Susan Casey

Killer Whales of the World by Robin W. Baird

Voices in the Ocean: A Journey into the Wild and Haunting World of Dolphins by Susan Casey

War of the Whales: A True Story by Joshua Horwitz

Shark by Brian Skerry

Swimming with Orca: My Life with New Zealand’s Killer Whales by Ingrid Visser

Seahorses: A Life-Size Guide to Every Species by Sara Lourie

Beneath the Surface: Killer Whales, SeaWorld, and the Truth Beyond Blackfish by John Hargrove

The Soul of an Octopus: A Surprising Exploration into the Wonder of Consciousness by Sy Montgomery

Have you read any of these? Are you planning to? Let me know in the comments below!

WISDOM WEDNESDAY | Sappho

August 9, 2017 , Wed | Wisdom Wednesdays | or add your thoughts!

“Although they are

Only breath, words
which I command
are immortal”

Classical Greek texts are one of the areas of literature I most enjoy, but it wasn’t until last year that I discovered this female poet. Plato and Aristotle argued that all humans are equal by nature, which presumably had some effect on the collective view of women’s equality in ancient Greece, but this was after Sappho’s time. So, the success she found as a poet, a category in which greats the likes of Homer were already revered, is pretty cool and speaks to her mastery. Though much of her poetry is lost, ancient accounts laud her compositions as remarkable, and those pieces we do have left certainly warrant such praise. The subject of much debate, in regard to both her work and her personal life, Sappho makes for a fascinating study. I’m featuring her today because, as is true of much classical literature, her poems exude a timeless wisdom and provoke deep thought. A few of them seem to include a humorous attitude as well, though it’s hard to know if she intended it. The one below made me laugh! I suppose it’s quite true! read more

WRAP-UP | July 2017

July 31, 2017 , Mon | Wrap-Ups | or add your thoughts!

July ends today, which means it’s time for a wrap-up! I’ve shared my reads for the month, along with a favorite quote from each, below!

“‘This world is unforgiving and cruel to those it judges as even the slightest bit outside the norm. If anyone should be kind, understanding, accepting, loving to their fellow outcasts, it’s you. All of you. You are the guardians of the secrets of the universe, beloved of worlds that most will never dream of, much less see . . . can’t you see where you owe it to yourselves to be kind? To care for one another?'”

“‘I cannot speak for every girl, but most people’s eyes are drawn to other things. Many want power.’ Nigel drew a finger, inked with a dagger, over the dragon on his abdomen. ‘Others want pleasure.’ He ran a hand over the wild circus on his thighs, along with a few more tattoos. ‘Your eyes passed over all these.'” read more

REVIEW | And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer by Fredrik Backman

July 25, 2017 , Tue | Reviews | or add your thoughts!

“Noah holds the old man’s hand, the man who taught him to fish and to never be afraid of big thoughts and to look at the night’s sky and understand that it’s made of numbers. Mathematics blessed the boy in that sense, because he’s no longer afraid of the thing almost everyone else is terrified of: infinity. Noah loves space because it never ends. It never dies. It’s the one thing in his life which won’t ever leave him.”

Themes:

Familial structures, particularly the difference between parent-child and grandparent-grandchild relationships
The idea of a life well spent
Mathematics, the universe, and how intellect looks different in every individual

I’m beginning to think of Fredrik Backman as an all-time favorite, auto-buy author. Before now, I had only read A Man Called Ove, which I loved. But after reading this novella, I think I can safely say I will adore all of his work.

In Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer, Backman explores the toll Alzheimer’s disease takes on both the person experiencing it and those around them. Through Grandpa, Ted, and Noah, the reader is given an intimate glimpse into an illness that is, unfortunately, prominent in our lives today. read more

Hello!

July 22, 2017 , Sat | Uncategorized | or add your thoughts!

I’m Greta, and I love to read! I’ve found many of my best book recommendations through connecting with other bibliophiles online, and bookish content—reviews, blurbs, photos, hauls, etc.—brings me such joy on a daily basis! So, I purchased this domain, discovered an awesome web designer (shout-out to peachberry.site), and got started! I’m thrilled to have this platform and can’t wait to share all things related to my favorite subject—books.