Yesterday I arrived back in the family house from uni for a short week. It is Carnival in the Netherlands and that can get overwhelming for a small introvert with crowd anxiety such as myself. Usually, the first thing I do when I come back to France (after eating way too much bread and butter) is look at my shelves and decide what I want to read next.
That's when I started craving re-reading my Middle Grade favorites. I picked up a book that means a ton to me - Stravaganza: City of Masks, by Mary Hoffman - and realized: I have never heard other people on blogs or Instagram talk about these books. Reviews for it on Goodreads are generally pretty decent. So, after I sent an email to the author, I got to thinking.
As much as I have always loved reading, I started noticing a trend in my reading patterns since I started reviewing books and being a part of 'the book community'. So today, I wanted to take half an hour or so to go over what I noticed changed.
1. Book Selection
Before
I remember spending countless lunchtimes in the school library, looking for new titles and reading the blurb of every book I could get my hands on, before carefully selecting 4 books I had to bring back in a month's time. Some books simply didn't stick with me, while others brought a bookish love upon me that still sticks around. I _still_ squeal like an 11 year old when Rick Riordan says he will publish a new book soon! I also remember scrolling through the teen's books on amazon, looking for something that sounded promising. Mom ordered so many random books for me that, sure, were either hit or miss, but I made the decisions myself.
After
Since involving myself in the book community, I have been introduced to some fantastical word, known as hype. Certain books were talked about by EVERYONE, while some books I knew and loved seemed to hardly be mentioned anywhere at all. I've realized that I no longer reach out to books I have not seen anyone mention, but rather end up buying the books that have been mentioned everywhere - there is a hype for a reason, right? This has certainly lead me to some amazing books, that I most likely would not have discovered otherwise.
2. My pickiness about books
Before
A book is a story written on pages bound between two covers. I don't care if my spine is broken in or if I dog ear pages or if the entire series is made up of different covers. I want the story and I want it now.
After
Uuuugh I kind of wish I paid more attention to having similar covers... And I kinda wish I didn't dog ear some of my all time favorites... And the broken spines annoy me... But I won't replace my old copies for the world
3. Series
Before
I used to be a series junkie - I would usually find the first 2-3 books in my school's library, and the time of year when the next book would come out was more exciting than Christmas. Some stand-alones were fine, but there was a certain thrill to series!
After
Gimme the stand alones. I do have some favorite series, but for some reason it has become incredibly difficult to find YA stand alones that aren't contemporary. I live for a good high fantasy but most of those come in HUGE series! And while I enjoy a good trilogy, I get emotionally attached to books strongly enough to just lose patience when waiting a year for a next book to come out, oops!
But that's why you gotta learn to wait out the series's publication, then 1, 2, 3 BINGE!
4. Caring about Opinions
Before
I used to not really care if people liked the same books I did or not, or if I liked books recommended to me. I would read and absorb a story, weather I liked it or not was simply a personal choice.
After
Now, it is easy to _say_ I don't care, but it is difficult to enact. Seeing someone with influence tear apart at a book I loved on goodreads just because they can always breaks my heart a little, and I am always a little afraid to admit that I didn't like a very hyped book.
However, this also works the other way around! I cannot express how happy it makes me to see a message from someone - stranger or friend - saying that they saw me recommend a book and that they loved it as well. I also love the feeling of reading a super-hyped book after a while, and completely understanding why it was so loved!
All in all, I don't think that before or after was better for me, reading-wise. They both have their value, and have both built me to the kind of reader I am today. However, I will be trying to implement some of my past reader philosophies into my current reading and blogging habits! I'm definitely going to be exploring the books I don't see being mentioned as much once again!
I would love to hear your opinions on the subject!
Stay Bookish!
