We need to talk about books! #15
This week I
have the pleasure of catching up with Beth from BooksNest, where she writes
about her bookish thoughts, mental health, travel and anything that gives her
inspiration!
Are your bookshelves a ‘work in progress’ like mine or are
they clearly and systematically organised?
My bookshelves are pretty well organised, I have them in genre order where I can, for example I have a Harry Potter shelf, a history shelf, a Victoria Schwab shelf. I’d love to attempt a rainbow bookshelf, but I think it would be rather dominated by a sea of blue books!
Apart from books, what is to be found on your bookshelves?
I have a few little bits and bobs on my bookshelves, a little bookworm pixie keeps my TBR shelves company. There’s also a few of my favourite bookmarks, a light up B and my funkos from the different fandoms I love: Star Trek, Sherlock, Once Upon a Time!
What is the prettiest book to be found in your current TBR pile?
I think my Penguin leather bound books have to be the prettiest on my TBR, I have both The Brothers Grimm and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, they’re beautifully designed.
What do you do with books once you’ve read them?
I definitely keep my books after I’ve read them, the ones I enjoyed the most sit on the shelves in my bedroom. The ones that weren’t quite as good are currently in boxes in my garage ready to join my personal library when I move out.
Do you tend to re-read books?
I have so many books on my TBR that I don’t tend to re-read books, excluding the Harry Potter series. If I was waiting a long time for the next book in a series to come out then I may re-read the last one, if I was really strapped for what to read.
Have you ever read or started reading a book only to realise that you had already read it?
I haven’t, I like to think I can remember all of the books I’ve read –- or at least the name of them, if not the plot.
How do you feel about lending books to friends?
I will begrudgingly lend my beautiful copies to friends if I have to, but to be honest I think I would rather just buy them their own copy. I have a Bookstagram account, so I like my books to be very neat and tidy, which not every friend would stick by. If the book is already in a bit of a state (usually a charity shop buy), then it doesn’t bother me so much.
Are you a ‘spine bender’ or do you like your spines to be pristine?
If you couldn’t tell from my last answer, I am not a spine bender. I used to read my books to death and let my love for them be evident in their wear, but since I really got into my blog and Bookstagram, I prefer to try and keep my books in as good condition as I can.
Do you write in books, do you use sticky notes for your comments or something like that?
I mark my pages with little sticky tabs and sometimes put a sticky note inside the book itself, but mainly I’ll make my notes and page number references on my phone.
If you take physical books on holiday with you, how do you choose them?
If I have enough room in my suitcase I will bring some physical books, usually I’ll take a range of the ones I fancy most at the time. If I’m trying to pack light though I’ll just download some new releases onto my Kindle and take that. I went to Canada last year and as someone from the UK, I got very excited by the vast amount of different covers and hardbacks, I went a bit book buying mad (definitely didn’t have to buy another small suitcase to take them all home…)!
Do you take a book with you whenever you go out, just in case?
If I can fit it in my bag then a book will definitely go everywhere with me! I tend to always have a book going on my kindle as well, which is easier to slip into my bag, so I’m never without a fictional world to fall into.
If you have a partner, do they love reading too?
My partner loves to read, but he reads completely different books to me. He prefers historical non-fiction, but he isn’t averse to some high fantasy reads. He’s a big Lord of the Rings fan so I can usually pull him into the world of non-fiction with some Tolkien. I recently bought him Strange the Dreamer and he didn’t give it too bad of a rating, so I consider that a win for fiction!
Have you ever met an author?
I’ve met quite a few authors; my favourite has to be Victoria Schwab who I’ve met twice now. The first time we had a really long chat about book writing and she filmed a little piece for me when I was filming regular YouTube videos. She was on her way to London and had stopped in a small shop in a city near me, it wasn’t very busy so it was really easy to chat to her. I was at YALC last year and met a lot of authors there and will be going again this year, which I can’t wait for!
If you were to write a book, what genre would it be?
I actually took part in NaNoWriMo in 2016 and did write a book, however since then I have done nothing with it because I really didn’t end up being a big fan of it. It was a sort of dystopian, where you have to declare your chosen partner in front of a government, they will then test your match and if you fail you are to be alone, if you pass then you marry. It was about someone who found her match, but then realised that she loved another man. Looking back on it now I cringe at the romance side of it and stereotypical storyline, but we write and we learn!
My bookshelves are pretty well organised, I have them in genre order where I can, for example I have a Harry Potter shelf, a history shelf, a Victoria Schwab shelf. I’d love to attempt a rainbow bookshelf, but I think it would be rather dominated by a sea of blue books!
Apart from books, what is to be found on your bookshelves?
I have a few little bits and bobs on my bookshelves, a little bookworm pixie keeps my TBR shelves company. There’s also a few of my favourite bookmarks, a light up B and my funkos from the different fandoms I love: Star Trek, Sherlock, Once Upon a Time!
What is the prettiest book to be found in your current TBR pile?
I think my Penguin leather bound books have to be the prettiest on my TBR, I have both The Brothers Grimm and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, they’re beautifully designed.
What do you do with books once you’ve read them?
I definitely keep my books after I’ve read them, the ones I enjoyed the most sit on the shelves in my bedroom. The ones that weren’t quite as good are currently in boxes in my garage ready to join my personal library when I move out.
I have so many books on my TBR that I don’t tend to re-read books, excluding the Harry Potter series. If I was waiting a long time for the next book in a series to come out then I may re-read the last one, if I was really strapped for what to read.
Have you ever read or started reading a book only to realise that you had already read it?
I haven’t, I like to think I can remember all of the books I’ve read –- or at least the name of them, if not the plot.
How do you feel about lending books to friends?
I will begrudgingly lend my beautiful copies to friends if I have to, but to be honest I think I would rather just buy them their own copy. I have a Bookstagram account, so I like my books to be very neat and tidy, which not every friend would stick by. If the book is already in a bit of a state (usually a charity shop buy), then it doesn’t bother me so much.
Are you a ‘spine bender’ or do you like your spines to be pristine?
If you couldn’t tell from my last answer, I am not a spine bender. I used to read my books to death and let my love for them be evident in their wear, but since I really got into my blog and Bookstagram, I prefer to try and keep my books in as good condition as I can.
Do you write in books, do you use sticky notes for your comments or something like that?
I mark my pages with little sticky tabs and sometimes put a sticky note inside the book itself, but mainly I’ll make my notes and page number references on my phone.
If you take physical books on holiday with you, how do you choose them?
If I have enough room in my suitcase I will bring some physical books, usually I’ll take a range of the ones I fancy most at the time. If I’m trying to pack light though I’ll just download some new releases onto my Kindle and take that. I went to Canada last year and as someone from the UK, I got very excited by the vast amount of different covers and hardbacks, I went a bit book buying mad (definitely didn’t have to buy another small suitcase to take them all home…)!
Do you take a book with you whenever you go out, just in case?
If I can fit it in my bag then a book will definitely go everywhere with me! I tend to always have a book going on my kindle as well, which is easier to slip into my bag, so I’m never without a fictional world to fall into.
If you have a partner, do they love reading too?
My partner loves to read, but he reads completely different books to me. He prefers historical non-fiction, but he isn’t averse to some high fantasy reads. He’s a big Lord of the Rings fan so I can usually pull him into the world of non-fiction with some Tolkien. I recently bought him Strange the Dreamer and he didn’t give it too bad of a rating, so I consider that a win for fiction!
Have you ever met an author?
I’ve met quite a few authors; my favourite has to be Victoria Schwab who I’ve met twice now. The first time we had a really long chat about book writing and she filmed a little piece for me when I was filming regular YouTube videos. She was on her way to London and had stopped in a small shop in a city near me, it wasn’t very busy so it was really easy to chat to her. I was at YALC last year and met a lot of authors there and will be going again this year, which I can’t wait for!
If you were to write a book, what genre would it be?
I actually took part in NaNoWriMo in 2016 and did write a book, however since then I have done nothing with it because I really didn’t end up being a big fan of it. It was a sort of dystopian, where you have to declare your chosen partner in front of a government, they will then test your match and if you fail you are to be alone, if you pass then you marry. It was about someone who found her match, but then realised that she loved another man. Looking back on it now I cringe at the romance side of it and stereotypical storyline, but we write and we learn!
And that was my last question for you. Thank you so much for joining me today!
If you'd like to stay in touch with Beth, you can find her on all the usual channels:
Blog: https://www.booksnest.co.uk/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BooksNest
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/booksnest/
Please share some love below in the comments or head over to Twitter to let me know what you thought.
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