Change For The Better & A Book Tag

A few months ago I had an epiphany of sorts.

Me and Adeel had been disagreeing a lot or arguing, whatever you want to call it, and things were getting tense and frustrating.

But we came through the other side.

And you know what I learned?

Don't try to change others, change yourself for the better instead.

So instead of getting frustrated at the little things he does or says, I've tried becoming more understanding and calm-headed so I don't flip out.

Of course there are still times where I get grouchy, but he's so persistent most of the time that he always manages to make me smile again.

This is definitely something I need to work on because I don't want to grow up to be a consistently negative and moody cow, I want a positive mindset and I want to be kind and forgiving quickly.

What a great time of year to set this new goal, huh?

Anyways, I've also got another book tag below (again I got it from Lindsay's blog, check her blog out here).

Question 1:
Hardback or paperback?

Paperback, they're way easier to hold whilst reading! Although some hardbacks can be really pretty - The Miniaturist is one memorable one with a lovely binding and endpapers.

Question 2:
Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings?

I hate this question. I've been asked it a few times and I never know how to answer. I feel so guilty for choosing! Harry Potter was my childhood so I will forever love it, but, there's just something about Lord of the Rings...

Question 3:
The smell of an old book or the smell of a new one?

The smell of a new one. I've smelt some of the old ones before and some are alright but others can just smell fusty and damp? Maybe it's just however you store them!

Question 4:
Stephen King ot RL Stine?

Okay so I literally just had to google RL Stine as I'd never heard of him, but he wrote Goosebumps! Didn't think I would've read anything of his if I didn't know his name, but I've definitely read at least one Goosebumps book. I've also only read one of Stephen King's books - Carrie. I preferred Carrie to Goosebumps although there's about ten years age difference in when I read them, but I've heard a lot of good things about King's works so I may pick up a few more of his in due time!

Question 5:
Sci-fi or Fantasy?

Fantasy all the way. That's pretty much all I read.

Question 6:
Reading indoors or outdoors?

Depends on the weather really. Indoors mostly though I think. The sun can get so bright sometimes when you're reading outside that it makes me so sleepy and then I'm getting all hot and bothered too. Reading in bed is the best for me I think.

Question 7:
Twilight or 50 Shades of Grey?

Twilight. Although they're both basically the same thing. Hello, 50 Shades is fan-fiction of Twilight. Ahaha, sorry to say I've read all of both. I like the way Stephenie Meyer writes, it's just the storyline of Twilight obviously isn't great, but another of her novels I've read is brilliant. 50 Shades looks like it was written by a teenager.

Question 8:
Shop online or from a local bookstore?

Bookstore. Any chance I get and I'll be in a Foyles or Waterstones, rifling through their many shelves. It's pure heaven. I don't really have any local, independent bookstores in East London though. However, it's great when I visit my dad in Faversham because they have a good handful of old, musty, crooked bookstores.

Question 9:
The Great Gatsby or Catcher in the Rye?

I've only read The Great Gatsby so that one I guess, although I actually didn't think much of it even though everyone raves about it. I will read Catcher in the Rye at some point, added to my ever-growing list of to be reads...

Question 10:
Fiction or Non-fiction?

Fiction. I rarely pick up non-fiction. A great one I've actually read this year, that's non-fiction, was Unbroken. Mind-blowing.

Question 11:
Bookmarks or dog-earing?

I actually do both. I bookmark my position in the book, obviously, but I dog-ear the points of 25%, 50% and 75% because I like to know how far through the book I am. Strange, I know! Aha.

Question 12:
Dr Seuss or Roald Dahl?

I've not really read either? Like I have a little Roald Dahl collection from my childhood on my bookshelves back home but I don't remember reading them very much. And Dr Seuss I think I've only read snippets of. I'll pick Roald Dahl though because I prefer his stories.

Question 13:
eBook or Audiobook?

Audiobook after this year. A new love was found when my friend suggested Audible to me. I like eBooks too, I must dust off my kindle this year!

Hope you've all had a wonderful Christmas
x



☆

The Great Gatsby

I'd heard a lot about this story, especially in the past few years, and with so many good reviews on the novel and the film, how could I pass on the opportunity to read it as well? 

I'm pleased to say I thoroughly enjoyed it too!

[Young, handsome and fabulously rich, Jay Gatsby is the bright
star of the Jazz Age, but as writer Nick Carraway is drawn into
the decadent orbit of his Long Island mansion, where the party
never seems to end, he finds himself faced with the mystery of
Gatsby's origins and desires. Beneath the shimmering surface of
his life, Gatsby is hiding a secret: a silent longing that can never
be fulfilled. And soon, this destructive obsession will force his
world to unravel.]

I loveeeeee the way Fitzgerald writes - all of that detailed description and the time period he often sets his novels in is just perfectttt. The plot was great, but having seen the film first, all I could do was picture Leonardo DiCaprio saying "old sport" with a martini glass in hand. Not that that was a bad thing. But I evidently saw the end coming the entire time, making it somewhat less dramatic.

It got a little confusing at times, the writing seemingly jumping ahead or trailing off and never filling in the details or picking back up from where it left off. Maybe that was the effect he was going for as the narrator himself was writing the events down as he remembered them, causing the skimming over of particular details that he himself may have had trouble remembering?

I didn't like Tom at all, especially that he could get away with having an affair and Daisy couldn't - maybe this just portrays the time the novel was set in well. But still, hypocritical much? Also, where on Earth was Daisy for the entire end of the novel?? She just disappeared, not even fazed by the events that occurred.

Even though I did know the ending because of the film, it still left me feeling a bit deflated and bad for poor old Gatsby. Did no one really care for him at all but just for his fabulous parties? It's just too sad.

Although, I guess it was actually nice to see a love story not end with the typical 'happy ever after' for a change! If you can even call it a love story with Daisy being so all over the place.

✌