Eyes On Stage: book review

Showing posts with label book review. Show all posts

An Interview With Hannah Begbie

Monday, 29 October 2018

When I worked as a bookseller, my favourite thing was when authors would come into our store. Not only so I could meet them and get my book signed, but also so I could ask them those questions that I had been dying to ask. From plot twists to why they wrote their book, the whole process interests me completely!

So when I had the opportunity to interview Hannah Begbie, author of the latest Mumsnet book club book Mother, I jumped at the chance. It took me so long to whittle down my questions and I can honestly say that I loved reading Hannah's answers. She's definitely inspired me to pick up the pen and start writing again.

Mother - Hannah Begbie Review

Monday, 1 October 2018

When I was told that this month's Mumsnet Book of the Month was going to be Mother by Hannah Begbie I was quite excited. For it was a book that I had started tentatively and cast aside to read something else. It was one that had been on my to be read pile since I grabbed it at the HarperCollins Big Book event in May, and it was one I raced to finish.

What I Read In August

Saturday, 8 September 2018

A large part of August was spent both on holiday or looking after Max, so reading was sparse and I was gutted I didn't get more time to read whilst we were away. Having said that, I gave my Kindle a good workout and managed to get through more than I expected. I'm still not convinced on my Kindle, and I still prefer real books to e-books. But it was great to get reading and discovering books I'd not thought to buy before.

Fierce - Gin Phillips Review

Saturday, 1 September 2018

With autumn upon us, it's time to get stuck into one of my favourite book genre's.. Thrillers. There's nothing I love more than an edge of your seat, page turner of a book that keeps you hooked from start to finish. Mumsnet have been knocking it out of the park with their Book Club selections, and this month's was no exception.

Fierce by Gin Phillips is a small but mighty book that will literally leave you holding your breath as the story unfolds. It's one that was every ounce tense as it was scary and thrilling. And a book that left me hooked and wanting more.

July Book Round Up

Sunday, 5 August 2018

July was a bumper month of reading for me. I don't know if it was the procrastination or the trying to set time aside, but I managed to get through 6 books and started a 7th! After heading to the HarperCollins Big Book 18 event in June, I wanted to read through some of those books as my collection is now piled up in our lounge and Scott is getting a tad annoyed with my hoard!

I have to say that I was blown away with pretty much everything I read this month. I was also expecting them to be good as nearly everything is by an author I've already read and enjoyed.

Lullaby - Leila Slimani Review

Wednesday, 1 August 2018

When the summer comes around the only thing that I really want to read is thrillers. There's something about the sun that brings out the detective in me and I absolutely can't get enough of them. It's halfway through the year of reading with Mumsnet as part of their Mumsnet Book Club and I am absolutely adoring the mix of books that we have read. I've honestly had my eyes opened to new authors and genres that I would never have read before!

Lullaby by Leila Slimani is August's Book Club book and my was it a good one! A French thriller based around who you really trust with your baby, why I couldn't put it down!

Why Mummy Swears - Gill Sims Review

Friday, 13 July 2018

Why Mummy Drinks was one of my favourite books of last year. I spent the whole time laughing and relating to the story of Ellen and her delightful children Peter and Jane so much that I essentially forced all my friends to read it! So when I found out that the July Mumsnet Book Club book was going to be the follow up, Why Mummy Swears, I couldn't wait to get stuck in! And stuck in I did, in fact, I barely even put it down.

June Reads: Exciting Events

Monday, 2 July 2018

June was a month of travelling. I felt like I spent more time commuting to places than I did sitting down. But whilst I normally sit and read whilst I'm travelling, with Max in tow or when I was driving, those plans were out the window. Instead I decided that I would start going to bed earlier and setting myself a regular lunch during the day so I could focus.

One highlight of my month was heading to the HarperCollins Big Book 18 event, an event set to show booksellers and influencers what the top upcoming titles are. I've already started reading some of the haul I brought home, and I'm loving some of the stuff out soon!

May Book Round Up

Friday, 8 June 2018

I have to put my hands up and say my reading in May was shocking. I don't know if it was the fact I had a bit of a whirlwind month, or I was stressed about big changes that were happening within our family unit. But I just found it really hard to sit down and read a book and instead opted to read things on my Kindle, which really surprised me. I'm glad to say I've turned that around for June already. But here's the round up of things that I read in May.

Little Fires Everywhere - Celeste Ng Review

Friday, 1 June 2018

I have to say that Mumsnet are absolutely smashing it with their book club choices each month. Each of the books have either been ones that I had heard loads about or ones that were out of my comfort zone, but had a great blurb. Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng is one of those books that I had heard so much about, I was a tad apprehensive about reading. Not because it had bad reviews, perhaps the opposite, so many good things were said about it that it's almost hard to believe it can be such a brilliant read.

The Language of Kindness - Christie Watson Review

Monday, 14 May 2018

I am not a non-fiction type of reader. Memoirs and factual books tend to be tedious reads for me and I find that I get switched off. But this year I am pushing myself to try and read new things, expand my horizons and learn more through reading. I was invited to read and review The Language Of Kindness by Christie Watson recently and as you can guess, I was fairly apprehensive. Would I like it, would it be tricky? But with a topic that is fairly close to my heart, I wanted to read the story of nursing, of one woman's twenty year journey through the NHS. And I'm so glad I read it.

April Books - Getting Back Into Reading

Thursday, 3 May 2018

April was a month where I took time to read. I made time most days where I would sit for hours just to read a book. When working from home I can find that I get overwhelmed with thinking about clients and workloads, so I'm trying to take regular breaks and unplug from technology. It seems to be working as I've read 5 books in the month of April and feel like I'm back in the swing of things.

The Awkward Age - Francesca Segal Review

Tuesday, 1 May 2018

I have to hold my hands up and say that joining in with the Mumsnet Book Club has been eye opening and enlightening. I never actually realised how great the books would be. How a bit of diversity in my reading would have me so enthused. And that's coming from someone that literally spent a whole year reading kids books and teen fiction.

Dear Simon, Evan and Max

Tuesday, 10 April 2018

I recently went to see the movie Love, Simon on my own. It’s one that’s based on a book I read many moons ago about a boy that is revealed as being gay before he is ready to do it himself. It's a YA book that opened my eyes to the struggles of some of the LGBT community and also highlighted the struggles that teens face when it comes to revealing their true selves in a society where everyone is put under the microscope.

March Books Reading List.

Sunday, 8 April 2018

March was a month of struggles for me. Between losing my grandma and having work worries (Scott not me), reading was the last thing that I wanted to do. I did however have a fantastic Mother's Day and was generously given a Kindle to allow me to read some books I had been approved for on NetGalley. I have to say, I'm still not convinced by the kindle and I think it's never going to overtake books. But it's definitely going to help when I head to Bulgaria this summer for a family holiday. Let's face it, I think Scott would be angry if I filled the whole suitcase with books!

The Cows by Dawn O'Porter

Thursday, 29 March 2018

I'm someone that doesn't like to read a book that's been hyped about so much. I normally find that theres an immense amount of disappointment once I've read it and it never really lives up to the expectations. But a fair amount of the time I'm surprised and I love the book just as much as the rest of the world. Before I read The Cows by Dawn O'Porter, I had heard SO many things about it that I was fairly excited to start reading it. This book is the April book for the Mumsnet Book club who I have partnered with to give an honest review of each of their books of the month.

A Delayed World Book Day

Friday, 16 March 2018

I am one of those parents that absolutely loves World Book Day. The idea of creating a costume out of nothing that represents a book that my child loves. It helps that my years of bookselling have given me the edge for quirky characters that don't require much work too! Max is an avid reader and since hitting year two has absorbed any book given to him. I find him sat in bed with a torch way past his bedtime and engrossed in everything from Diary Of A Wimpy Kid to Who Let The Gods Out.

February Book Round Up.

Saturday, 10 March 2018

February was a weird month for me. I had lots going on and not enough time to read as what I had hoped. I also found that whatever I started really didn't seem to be what I wanted to read at that time. I was in a complete reading funk and it took a whole month to get out of it. I did however really enjoy the books I did finish in the month.

Stay With Me

Thursday, 1 March 2018

There's something daunting yet brilliant about reading books that are out of my comfort zone. The satisfaction of knowing I have read it and the disbelief that I hadn't read it already. It's one of the reasons that I am loving reading the Mumsnet Book Club titles, there's so much variety.

Stay With Me by Ayobami Adebayo is one of those books that I was definitely daunted by reading. A harrowing subject matter, location that was miles away from my comfort zone and a host of award accolades held to it's name. But as soon as I started reading it, I was transported and hooked. I couldn't put it down.

January Reads - All The Books!

Monday, 5 February 2018

This year I wanted to go into reading with a positive attitude. After no longer being chained to the bookshop, I can now read anything and everything and delve into old and new books. I've also challenged myself to try something new and am reading for pleasure rather than for work. I've fallen in love with using the library and definitely going through my TBR pile at an astonishing speed!

Having said that, I'm also working with Mumsnet on their book club where I am reviewing each of their titles and of course I am working with some of my favourite authors and publishers on their new releases.