Weekly Wrap-Up: 3/27 – 4/2/17

Happy Sunday bookworms!

Did everyone have a good weekend?  Mine was low key, as my kids are now on spring break.  I think I look forward to school breaks just as much as my kids because it means I am not chauffeuring my two humans around all day to and from school and extracurricular activities.

Anyways!  My wrap-up this week is a pretty long one, but filled with lots of good stuff (at least I think so).  I talk about some upcoming projects on Cover2CoverMom and pose a few questions to my fellow book bloggers.  So pull up a chair and grab a cup of coffee/tea/wine (I won’t judge if you go with the wine) and let’s see what I had going on this past week, shall we?

*Weekly Wrap-Up is a weekly post where I feature what posts were published on the blog for the past week, any bookish/blog happenings, what I recently finished reading, what I am currently reading, what I will be reading next, noteworthy posts around the bookish blogosphere, and any interesting bookish articles I came across.

This week on the blog:

Tuesday 3/28

Top Ten Tuesday: Authors I’ve Met & A Few I’d Like to Meet

Wednesday 3/29

Kids’ Corner: Diverse Children’s Picture Books in Review (March 2017)

Friday 3/30

March 2017 Wrap-Up + Book Haul

Bookish/Blog happenings:

» I have been working on a little project and I need some help from you all !  What I need from you all is book blogger recs for bloggers who read & review predominantly within a certain genre. 

For example, bloggers who read & review mostly…

• Young Adult • Middle Grade/Children’s Books • Diverse Books • Graphic Novels • Historical Fiction • Fantasy/Science Fiction • Contemporary • Thriller/Suspense • Romance • Horror

You get the idea.  Keep in mind I said bloggers who read & review predominantly within these categories/genres.  They do not need to review 100% within these categories/genres, but a good majority.  So a blogger like myself would not fit into any of these categories because I read & review all types of books.

*Does this make any sense?  Or have I lost everyone?

If you know of a book blogger who fits into any of these (or a different category/genre not listed) please leave them in the comments down below!  Thanks in advance.

*I would also like to mention they won’t have to do anything, this is going to be more like a feature project 🙂

» I have been wanting to redesign my blog and graphics for a while now, but it is a hot mess.  Basically I have no idea what I am doing.  What I am struggling with the most is the graphics department.  How did you all do your headers/logos and graphics?  Is there some free graphics site that I do not know about?!  Do you draw/design them yourselves?!  Did you pay someone to do it?  I wish I had the money to pay someone to do all this for me, but I can’t justify spending money on my blog when we are a one income family while I am at home with the kids.  Any advice, suggestions, or direction in this would be much appreciated.

» I realized this weekend that I really need to step up my bookstagram game.  I posted a picture that got over 140 likes, which hadn’t happened to me before.  I know this is probably not a big deal to those of you who are used to getting hundreds (or thousands) of likes every time you post a picture, but I had never gotten over 70 likes before on a picture before.  So what I want to know is, how do you juggle being active on bookstagram if you also have a book blog?

» This week I will be marathon reading to get ready for the Ohioana Book Festival that is taking place in Columbus Ohio on Saturday, April 8th.  I may be a little MIA this week around the blogosphere, but fear not, I’ll be back.

What have I been reading?

*Book titles link to Goodreads

Recently finished reading:

» The Girls in the Garden by Lisa Jewell

Summary of feelings: No one is more shocked then me that I actually really enjoyed this book.  If you have followed me for a while, you know that thriller novels are not my go-to books, but I kept throwing them into the mix.  Girls in the Garden is one of those books where you learn about “the incident” first, then go back in time leading up to the incident.  I thought the author did a great job of holding my attention the entire time.  I really liked how Jewell introduced all kinds of characters/scenarios to thrown the reader off the trail.  The conclusion wasn’t exactly a huge shocker, BUT it was definitely more involved and complicated then I was anticipating.  Typically I don’t like when the author leaves things unresolved, but Jewell does leave a few things up in the air.  I think it worked here.

*Full review to come

» The Animators by Kayla Rae Whitaker

Summary of feelings:  I am going to venture to say that The Animators is going to be the biggest surprise of 2017 for me.  This book is so much more than I was anticipating.  I was anticipating a light hearted contemporary novel with friendship being a central theme.  While friendship is a major theme, The Animators is NOT a light hearted read.  It is very gritty and raw… definitely more of a darker novel.

I also thought this book was young adult, and it turns out that this book is very much an adult book.  I think it was because the cover gave off a YA vibe to me?  Anyways, The Animators has a lot of adult content that is not suitable for a young audience.

*Part of my SOKY Book Fest TBR

» Loving Vs. Virginia: A Documentary Novel of the Landmark Civil Rights Case by Patricia Hruby Powell (Illustrated by Shadra Strickland)

Summary of feelings:   Loving Vs. Virginia is the Supreme Court case that legalized marriage between races.  In this book, we learn about Richard & Mildred Loving, the couple behind this infamous case.  Told in verse, Loving Vs. Virginia is very much the love story of Richard Loving, a white man, and Mildred, a biracial woman.   I was anticipating a little more historical content, but overall, this was a very well done YA book.  I must admit, I have never really read a book about interracial marriage before.  The challenges that the Lovings faced was heartbreaking to read about.

I listened to the audiobook version, but I am waiting for a copy from my library to see the illustrations.

*I am definitely interested in reading a book that goes a little deeper into the history of interracial marriage, as well as challenges that interracial couples face in today’s society.  If anyone has any recommendations, please let me know.

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Currently reading:

» Every Single Second by Tricia Springstubb

*Part of my Ohioana Book Fest TBR

» The Magician’s Assistant by Ann Patchett

*SOKY Book Fest TBR

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On deck:

» The Seventh Most Important Thing by Shelley Pearsall

*Part of my Ohioana Book Fest TBR

» Fates and Traitors: A Novel of John Wilkes Booth by Jennifer Chiaverini

*Part of my Ohioana Book Fest TBR

Around the bookish blogosphere:

» Cait @PaperFury talks about how to come up with discussion posts for your book blog → How To Think Up Discussion Post Ideas For Your Book Blog

» Ashleigh @A Frolic Through Fiction shares her favorite underrated characters →Favourite underrated characters | Some characters just aren’t appreciated enough

» Marie @Drizzle & Hurricane Books talks about the trend of series and novellas →The series and novellas trend

» Fadwa @WordWonders asks if relating to characters is a must to enjoy a book →Relating to Characters: Is it necessary to Enjoy a Book?

» Kirsty @Kirsty and the Cat Read discusses audiobooks →Discussion: What Makes A Good Audio-Book

» Drew @The Tattooed Book Geek talks about some of the downsides to book blogging →Jaded by Blogging

» Stephanie @TeacherofYA hosts her first giveaway →TeacherofYA’s Very First GIVEAWAY! (::cheers::)

*U.S Only*

» Megan @bookslayer Reads talks about book review layout →Reading & Writing Reviews // Does the layout of a review determine whether or not you’ll read it?

» Amy @NovelGossip is hosting a giveaway →Giveaway: The Breakdown by B. A. Paris #giveaway

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Interesting bookish articles:

» Quiz: Which Character Are You Based On Your Astrological Sign?

*I’m an Aries, and got Elizabeth Bennett from P&P.  Very fitting.

» 20 Best Books To Pick Up This April

» The World’s Highest Paid Authors

*I was actually shocked at #2… especially being paid more than J.K. Rowling?!?  Was also surprised who was at the bottom of this list… Happy to see so many female authors (6 out of 14)

» Twice the fun: 9 Books featuring twins

*One of my favorite books, East of Eden, is on this list 🙂

» Series About the Brontë Sisters Coming Soon

*Um, yes please!

» The 50 Best Books for 11- and 12-Year-Olds

*I’ve only read 5 of these books?!?! I just added 45 books to the ole TBR

» 5 Children’s Stories That Really Freaked Us Out

*I read Coraline this past October… It definitely gave me an unsettled feeling.

» Quiz: Who’s Your Author BFF

*J.K. Rowling and I would make the bestest of friends 🙂

» 9 Imaginative Fairy-Tale Retellings

» 12 Images All Bookworms Can Relate To

*Yup

Whoa.  That was ridiculously long.  If you have reached this point, go ahead and give yourself a pat on the back.

What are you currently reading?

What will you read next?

Have a wonderful week, and happy reading