Ruler of Books tag
To all who are reading this,
What a surprise - I'm back with another tag post about books! I've seen this tag floating around on YouTube, but I also found it on the blog, Hit or Miss Books, which you can check out here! I thought it was such a good idea for a tag! The irony is that I've had nicknames like Queen of Shelves from friends when I'm browsing my own books, or when I'm at the library, or plain old shopping.
The idea of this tag is that it kind of creates a world of books, the rules that you would set out for your loyal subjects and such like. A bit of harmless fun, but there would be lots of books, cats, chocolate and cups of tea if I was a Queen!
1. What book would you make everyone read?
Louise O'Neill's Asking For It (2015). This is such an important book, that has the power to change minds, bodies and souls for anyone who reads it. A powerful read, it hits your emotions in such a hard way. I read it in one sitting, I was so fascinated and captivated by the story. The novel is set in Ireland, and follows teenager Emma O'Donovan as she comes to terms with the horrendous acts that have happened to her at a house party. Waking up to a bruised body with pictures of her circulating the Internet, the image she has built around herself has gone. Now, she's nothing but a slut. A slut who was asking for it.
2. What would you abolish in book construction?
I'm definitely guilty of this as a writer... Female heroines that take inspiration from every other fantasy genre going out there. There's a image I found circulating Facebook, and it definitely sums up something that needs to be abolished. Readers don't need all of these tropes shoved into one series, or one character. I want to read books with fresh new characters that break the mould, break the stereotypes. That have new thoughts and feelings about the world they inhabit, the things they do, the people they love.
3. What author would you commission to write you any book?
There's a few authors I would like to have here, but I can only have one! I'm going for Robin Hobb, a fantasy author! She creates such amazing characters that you can connect to, even though they are in a mystical world. The world building is great - it makes you feel like you belong there, that you could maybe get on a plane and go and visit these worlds and places that she's talking about. The dialogue is always well written, not too stiff, and most definitely human. I devoured The Rain Wild Chronicles series (2009-2013) recently, which shows the interactions between humans with differences, and the serpents which journey up the Rain Wild River to become true dragons. I have another series by Hobb on my shelves, as well as a standalone, but I'd still like her to write me more books!
4. What book would you demote to the library basement to make room for new books?
When I rehaul my shelves, I usually give books away to charity shops or ask if family/friends would like any. When I moved out of my parents house, I culled loads of books, and I felt awful doing that. Books from my current shelves I would demote though would be the Uglies series by Scott Westerfield (2005-2007). I bought the first three books when they were on offer in Asda a few years ago, and since then I have tried to read the first book, Uglies, multiple times. I can't get past the writing style, I'm not especially keen on the characters, and every time I start to read it, I feel like part of me (my confidence, my self-worth) starts to diminish, like I'm not good enough. Sounds strange, but that's me in a nutshell!
5. What cover artist would you commission to make a mural?
Beyond the DeepwoodsI really love the art style of Chris Riddell - it's quite edgy, fantastical and Gothic. It really appeals to me, and has done ever since reading The Edge Chronicles (1998-ongoing) as a child. These books were in partnership with Paul Stewart, and I have fond memories of these weird, wonderful tales. I also like how he partners with Neil Gaiman to illustrate for him as well! On my shelves at the moment, I have his Goth Girl series (2014-ongoing), and they're a fun, quick and quirky read! His work is primarily for children, but I think his mural for my throne room would be fantastic!
6. What character's face would you put on a coin?
He loved treasure. He was a scaled monster. I could only be talking about Smaug from J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit (1937). If you don't know the tale, it follows hobbit, Bilbo Baggins, as he goes on an adventure with wizard Gandalf and a gang of dwarves to win back treasure. I really liked Smaug as a character, and I think Benedict Cumberbatch did an amazing job bringing him to life on the big screen for the film adaptations (2012-2014). He's the perfect choice to go on a coin - his large body could circulate the coin, with his head going into the centre. And on the other side, how much the coin would be worth! I imagine it would have to be a high amount, as Smaug loves his treasure. Perfect, I think!
7. What book would you award the 'Ruler of Books' 2016 Prize to?
It's only August, so awards should be given at the end of the year, shouldn't they? That being said, there's been some great books published this year, including Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard and A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas, both of which have been reviewed on this blog. There's still more to come with the next Sarah J. Maas book being Empire of Storms, the fifth book in the Throne of Glass series - and yes, I've pre-ordered it for release in September! That being said, the award is going to Irish author, Julieanne Lynch for her contemporary romance novel, Unbreak Me. Unbreak Me follows the lives of two very different, but broken hearted characters, Molly Rice and Connor Ellison. There's tension, there's drama, there's, of course, love. There is real talent at work here, and I can't wait to see what she comes up with next.
What's going to happen in the world of books when you're the ruler?
Yours, with eternal ink,
Zoe
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Currently reading: White Horse by Alex Adams
What a surprise - I'm back with another tag post about books! I've seen this tag floating around on YouTube, but I also found it on the blog, Hit or Miss Books, which you can check out here! I thought it was such a good idea for a tag! The irony is that I've had nicknames like Queen of Shelves from friends when I'm browsing my own books, or when I'm at the library, or plain old shopping.
The idea of this tag is that it kind of creates a world of books, the rules that you would set out for your loyal subjects and such like. A bit of harmless fun, but there would be lots of books, cats, chocolate and cups of tea if I was a Queen!
1. What book would you make everyone read? Louise O'Neill's Asking For It (2015). This is such an important book, that has the power to change minds, bodies and souls for anyone who reads it. A powerful read, it hits your emotions in such a hard way. I read it in one sitting, I was so fascinated and captivated by the story. The novel is set in Ireland, and follows teenager Emma O'Donovan as she comes to terms with the horrendous acts that have happened to her at a house party. Waking up to a bruised body with pictures of her circulating the Internet, the image she has built around herself has gone. Now, she's nothing but a slut. A slut who was asking for it.
2. What would you abolish in book construction?
I'm definitely guilty of this as a writer... Female heroines that take inspiration from every other fantasy genre going out there. There's a image I found circulating Facebook, and it definitely sums up something that needs to be abolished. Readers don't need all of these tropes shoved into one series, or one character. I want to read books with fresh new characters that break the mould, break the stereotypes. That have new thoughts and feelings about the world they inhabit, the things they do, the people they love. 3. What author would you commission to write you any book?
There's a few authors I would like to have here, but I can only have one! I'm going for Robin Hobb, a fantasy author! She creates such amazing characters that you can connect to, even though they are in a mystical world. The world building is great - it makes you feel like you belong there, that you could maybe get on a plane and go and visit these worlds and places that she's talking about. The dialogue is always well written, not too stiff, and most definitely human. I devoured The Rain Wild Chronicles series (2009-2013) recently, which shows the interactions between humans with differences, and the serpents which journey up the Rain Wild River to become true dragons. I have another series by Hobb on my shelves, as well as a standalone, but I'd still like her to write me more books!4. What book would you demote to the library basement to make room for new books?
When I rehaul my shelves, I usually give books away to charity shops or ask if family/friends would like any. When I moved out of my parents house, I culled loads of books, and I felt awful doing that. Books from my current shelves I would demote though would be the Uglies series by Scott Westerfield (2005-2007). I bought the first three books when they were on offer in Asda a few years ago, and since then I have tried to read the first book, Uglies, multiple times. I can't get past the writing style, I'm not especially keen on the characters, and every time I start to read it, I feel like part of me (my confidence, my self-worth) starts to diminish, like I'm not good enough. Sounds strange, but that's me in a nutshell! 5. What cover artist would you commission to make a mural?
Beyond the DeepwoodsI really love the art style of Chris Riddell - it's quite edgy, fantastical and Gothic. It really appeals to me, and has done ever since reading The Edge Chronicles (1998-ongoing) as a child. These books were in partnership with Paul Stewart, and I have fond memories of these weird, wonderful tales. I also like how he partners with Neil Gaiman to illustrate for him as well! On my shelves at the moment, I have his Goth Girl series (2014-ongoing), and they're a fun, quick and quirky read! His work is primarily for children, but I think his mural for my throne room would be fantastic! 6. What character's face would you put on a coin?
He loved treasure. He was a scaled monster. I could only be talking about Smaug from J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit (1937). If you don't know the tale, it follows hobbit, Bilbo Baggins, as he goes on an adventure with wizard Gandalf and a gang of dwarves to win back treasure. I really liked Smaug as a character, and I think Benedict Cumberbatch did an amazing job bringing him to life on the big screen for the film adaptations (2012-2014). He's the perfect choice to go on a coin - his large body could circulate the coin, with his head going into the centre. And on the other side, how much the coin would be worth! I imagine it would have to be a high amount, as Smaug loves his treasure. Perfect, I think! 7. What book would you award the 'Ruler of Books' 2016 Prize to?
It's only August, so awards should be given at the end of the year, shouldn't they? That being said, there's been some great books published this year, including Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard and A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas, both of which have been reviewed on this blog. There's still more to come with the next Sarah J. Maas book being Empire of Storms, the fifth book in the Throne of Glass series - and yes, I've pre-ordered it for release in September! That being said, the award is going to Irish author, Julieanne Lynch for her contemporary romance novel, Unbreak Me. Unbreak Me follows the lives of two very different, but broken hearted characters, Molly Rice and Connor Ellison. There's tension, there's drama, there's, of course, love. There is real talent at work here, and I can't wait to see what she comes up with next. What's going to happen in the world of books when you're the ruler?
Yours, with eternal ink,
Zoe
---
Currently reading: White Horse by Alex Adams
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