How To Deal: Book Buying Bans

I have come to the recent conclusion that I own too many books.

Actually, that isn't possible. Let me rephrase. I own too many books that I haven't read. With this conclusion comes the sad fact that my book buying habits have to change. So, with the support of my roommate (who acknowledged my book buying problem about three years ago), I have placed myself on a Book Buying Ban for the foreseeable future. This isn't my first rodeo with the Ban, and I've got it down to a science, now.

So, I thought I would walk you all through my 5 Steps to Book Buying Bans:

1) Accept That You Have a Problem

This can stem from the sudden realization that you're bookshelf is full of unread books. It could stem from an empty bank account and you wondering where all of your money has gone only to notice the stack of new books on your bedside table. If either of these have happened to you or if you return home from the bookstore with shame instead of joy, it is time to make the harsh decision to go on a Ban.

If you're still in denial, see the infograph to the right. If this is your bookshelf, accept the Ban.

2) Decide the Severity of Your Ban 

All of us have varying degrees of problems with our book buying habits, and so each and every Ban is different. You can decide the severity of your Ban in a number of ways. Some will quit cold-turkey. I do not suggest this. It makes it easier to fall off of the wagon if you have nothing to look forward to. I like the perhaps easier route of deciding that you are allowed one book every now and then. What is everyone now and then? Well, the first option is choosing to not buy any books for say a month, allowing yourself one book, then back to another month without books. The second option is to set a goal, so for every five books you read, you can buy one book. I usually prefer the second option. Currently, I can only buy one book every ten that I read. (Yes. I have that many books to get through.)

3) Decide How Long Your Ban Will Last

You also have a couple of options here. A) Set an amount of time to be on the Ban. How much time do you need to get through your TBR? Three months? A year? Go ahead and start small. This can always be reassessed if you feel like you still haven't gotten through much of your bookshelf. Then B) Decide as you go. Now, I know this can seem unrealistic to the Type A's out there, but sometimes you just got to go with your gut. You've been on your Ban for months and you feel like you have successfully lowered your TBR? Go ahead and end the Ban. Just be cautious with this option. You can not be weak, here. Your decision to end the Ban can not just be because you are tired of not buying books. It has to be legitimate.

4) Survive

Deep breaths. You can do it. I know it will be hard. It will suck, in all honesty. You're going to see all of the newest releases every time you go online. You're going to tear up every time you pass a library. Your friends may think you're insane, your parents may ask if they can buy a book for you, and worst of all, you may be offered a free book during this time. Do not allow them to change your mind. Stick with your Ban. Stay strong, readers, stay strong.

5) Keep Your New Habits

At one point or another, you will stop your Ban. This can feel like the greatest moment of your life. Forget your wedding day, forget graduation, forget all of that. From today on, you can go to the bookstore whenever you want and buy a book, heck you could buy two books! "Wait," your friends say, "won't your bookshelf just get packed again?" Do not ignore your friends when they ask you this. Consider it. Decide to limit yourself and not fall back into your old habits. You don't have to be on a Ban to show some will in a bookstore.

If you would like to go on a Ban, I wish you all the best. If not, carry on. I wish you all the happiness buying all the books I currently can't.

Your Pemberley Reader,
Acacia

Author Spotlight: Ally Carter

    Today, I wanted to introduce a new section to my blog: Author Spotlights. I want to try and do these at least once a month. Basically, I'll be talking about specific authors that I love, whether recently discovered or having read their books for years.

    I will be starting off with one of my favorite authors in YA literature today, Ally Carter. 

    Carter is the author of three separate YA series: the Gallagher Girls series, the Heist Society series, and the Embassy Row series. I began reading Carter's books in late 2008 or so, and ever since I have loved each and every one. I was thirteen at the time and going through a CIA and FBI loving stage. I wanted anything having to do with spies or anyone undercover, and I found exactly that in Carter's books. 

    Her first series, Gallagher Girls, is all about a school that trains teenage girls to become the next generation of spies and world leaders. When I thought I couldn't love Carter's books anymore, she came out with Heist Society, which follows a team of teen thieves who, in Robin Hood-esque style, thieve for good. It's amazing. Then, this past year, she came out with the first in a new series, Embassy Row, which is about a young girl living on Embassy Row among ambassadors and children from all around the world. 

 

    The first books I read by Carter were the Gallagher Girl books. I read the first two quickly, and I remember waiting for the third to come out. Here's the thing about Carter's books, though: I binge read them. They are fairly short novels, and after waiting over a year for each new installment, I always manage to read through the new book within a day or two. This means waiting prolonged periods of time, reading for a day or two, and then waiting even more prolonged periods of times. For years I did this, as I followed the Gallagher Girls series. The Heist Society allowed for a bit less waiting, however, because even though it wasn't the same characters or story, it still meant more amazing characters and plots from Carter. 

    I love the Heist Society and Embassy Row books nearly as much as I love the Gallagher Girls series, but I don't think anything will ever replace the amazing feeling I get while reading the Gallagher Girls series. I grew up with them. I literally shared my junior high and high school experience with these characters. It was a heart-breaking moment when this series ended, especially since the last book, which chronicles the girls' last semester of senior year, came out just after I had graduated high school and was about to move to Seattle for my first year of college. It seemed fitting that their last chronicled adventure happened the same year I graduated. It felt like the perfect ending to the series and to my high school years. 

    These books are the perfect mix of light and dark, funny and serious, fun and dangerous. I highly recommend them for anyone who wants a book to fly through on a weekend off, for anyone who loves spies, thieves, or foreign affairs, and for anyone who loves books with widely diverse and eclectic groups of characters. 

    These books are also, in my opinion, the perfect books for those between the ages of 11-13 who are wanting to start reading outside of the kid's section. I know that these books made my transition from kid's book to YA books much easier, and they hold a very special place in my heart for that exact reason. 

    Have you read any of Ally Carter's books? Do you have a favorite? Let me know in the comments below! 

    If you haven't read any of her books, I highly recommend any of them. Read them all. Go splurge and buy yourselves one of these 10 amazing books. I promise you won't be disappointed. 

        Your Pemberley Reader,

              Acacia

Review: The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness

    Synopsis: Todd Hewitt is a month away from leaving boyhood behind in a town made up entirely of men. The women were all killed, years ago, by a virus that also cursed the men with what the town calls Noise. Plagued by this Noise, which makes every thought you think an audible one for the rest of the world to hear, the silence Todd finds in the woods outside of town is kind of a big deal. When the secret of the silence comes out, as everything eventually does with Noise, Todd is forced to run away as the town comes for him. Running for their lives, Todd, a new friend, and his dog find a world that will make Todd question everything he has ever been told.

    Review: I have mixed feelings about this one. I've heard such good things about this series, and so I was excited to pick it up. However, I’m afraid it may have been over-hyped for me.

    First, it took me some time to get into this world. The language threw me off at first, because it wasn’t what I was expecting. Todd is uneducated, and this comes across in his narration. Words are misspelled often, and the narration reads like how you would expect a young uneducated boy to speak. Once I got used to this, it was fine, but I think it made the story a bit hard to get into at first.

    Second, once I did get into this world, I was quickly disappointed by the lack of knowledge given to the reader. There were times in which Todd would find things out, things that were crucial to the story, but that he would not share with the reader. This annoyed me to no end. If you’re going to put readers into an unknown world, please do not keep relevant information longer than you have to. It perhaps would not have been that bad, except for when readers are told the truth of things, it seems so anticlimactic. When I was told the big “plot twist” at one of the final confrontations, I was unimpressed. Why was this something I could not have been told earlier? This was a problem multiple times throughout the book.

    Third, you may have noticed I said “one of the final confrontations.” Towards the end of the book, it seems like the characters just can't catch a break. By the end, you're left with a feeling of horror, because literally nothing good comes out of the last 50 pages or so of the book. It was one thing after another, and though I’m all for putting your characters through horrible situations, this was just excessive.

    Fourth, there is a character, that no matter how many encounters, no matter how many fights, and no matter how badly he seems to be hurt, will simply not die. It’s ridiculous. I swear, the amount of times this dude came back into the story after being nearly slaughtered was just plain absurd.

    With all of this being said, I did find myself enjoying parts of the book. I wanted to know more about the world and the characters. Finding out the truth of the situation is the driving force that kept me reading. This will probably be what leads me to buy the next book, as so much of what was set up to be answered in this book was not answered.

    I give points for the story idea, which was not what I expected when I started, and that actually had some underlying conflicts that I hope will be explored further in the rest of the series.

    It was worth the read, though some of the major aspects of the book annoyed me. I plan on eventually getting the second book, but if many of my complaints are still present in the second, I don’t know if I will be picking up the third.

I would recommend this book for those who like science fiction or thrillers.

Rating:

2.5 out of 5 Cups of Tea

        Your Pemberley Reader,
              Acacia