December 2016 Books!

December, as a month, has been really hectic and so I haven't had much time to read at the moment. I finally finished the reading for lit theory at the start of this month (thank god)! I also managed to read a couple of books for pleasure and re-read a short story for my assignment.

I Was Here - Gayle Forman
23rd Nov - 4th Dec

I have read a couple of Gayle Forman books before and really enjoyed both of them. This book is similar in the way that death is a major theme as it had been in If I Stay. However, it was a completely different story with a new set of characters. It was quite refreshing to read two novels from an author and it not feel like they were regurgitating the same storyline with different characters. It was also nice that, although If I Stay and I Was Here were so different, I still enjoyed both of them just as much. If I had to liken it to a different book, I would say that it was kind of like Paper Towns by John Green. It had a similar mystery element, with both protagonists trying to find out what happened to their friend.

The Shape of the Signifier - Walter Benn Michaels
1st Dec

I won't bang on too much about lit theory, because honestly I can't really remember what this was about.

The Singularity of Literature - Derek Altridge
1st Dec

Similarly, unfortunately, I can't really remember much about this one either (oops!).

Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption - Stephen King
5th Dec

I re-read this for my assignment. Read more about it in last months blogpost here.

The Jubilee Express - Maureen Johnson
3rd Dec - 11th Dec

This is the first of three stories in the book Let It Snow. I didn't have the chance to read the third one, so that will have to wait until next year. I like this one the most out of the two that I read. I loved the relationship between Jubilee and Jeb. To be honest, I really liked the way how all of the characters were developed and the fact that they were all not just what they seemed.

A Cheertastic Christmas Miracle - John Green
11th Dec - 23rd Dec

In all honesty, I brought Let It Snow in the first place, because there was a story by John Green. I normally really like his stories, but to be honest I didn't particularly like this one. I don't really know why, but I just didn't. I did, however, like the friendship between Tobin and the Duke.

Thanks for Stopping By! :)

Christmas Shortbread!

A lot of my family this year will be receiving shortbread for Christmas. It makes a great gift as it's really easy to bake and everyone tends to love it. The recipe is from the Mary Berry Baking Bible.

Ingredients

175g Self-Raising Flour
75g Caster Sugar
100g Butter

Steps

Step 1

Preheat oven to 140 degrees and line 2 baking trays with baking paper.

Step 2

Mix the flour and sugar together.

Step 3

Rub the butter in. It will go to a breadcrumb consistency, but will eventually become a ball of dough.

Step 4

Roll out the dough and use the cutters to make them into different shapes.

Step 5 

Transfer them onto the baking trays and bake for 10-15 minutes, until they are golden brown.

Step 6

Allow to them to cool and then either pop into a presentation bag or enjoy with your friends and family.

Thanks For Stopping By! :)

November 2016 Books!

Sorry there was no blogpost last week, I literally couldn't think of anything to write about and uni and work are both so busy at the moment!

Anyway, this month I haven't really read much other than lots of lit theory and the rest of my reading for uni.

Northern Lights - Phillip Pullman
28th Oct - 3rd Nov

I read this one for my childhood module at uni and i have to say that I didn't really enjoy it that much. I found it a bit too fantasy for my liking and the topic wasn't something that particularly interested. I was definitely happy when I finished read it as I found it kind of boring!

Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption - Stephen King
4th Nov - 6th Nov

This is short story by Stephen that I read for my adaptations module. I actually really enjoyed this one and I definitely wasn't expecting that I have to say. I actually liked it so much that I am using it as the text for my final assignment.

Kindred Spirits - Rainbow Rowell
8th Nov - 8th Nov

I was going through the Kindle store on the way home from uni, because I had just finished reading Shawshank and I didn't have another book with me, and I stumbled across this. I have read some of Rowell's books and I have loved them, especially fangirl! I really liked this one and it was only 95p, which I thought was quite good.

Free Four - Veronica Roth
9th Nov - 9th Nov

This was another one that I stumbled across at the same time as Kindred Spirits and I have to say I enjoyed this one too. I loved the divergent books and I jump at the opportunity of anything extra that I can read on it.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time - Mark Haddon
12th Nov - 22nd Nov

I didn't quite know what to expect from this one as I knew literally nothing about the plot before I read it. I wouldn't probably be something that I would normally read, but I was definitely thoroughly surprised. It was an interesting book and a very quick read.

Lit theory 

• The Postmodern Condition - Jean-Francis Lyotard
• Simulacra and Simulations - Jean Baudrillard
• Epistemology of the Closet - Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick
• New Ethnicities - Stuart Hall
• Postmodern Blackness - Bell Hooks
• Bodies that Matter - Judith Butler
• Black Skin, White Masks - Frantz Fanon
• Orientalism - Edward Said
• The Location of Culture - Homi Bhabha
• The Postcolonial Unconscious - Neil Lazarus

Again this month I have read A LOT of theory! Seriously, I am so glad that I now have read everything off the reading list now. I find a lot of it quite baffling to be honest, but I did like the week that we did on the postcolonial as I found it the both straight forward to understand this month!

My semester at uni is coming to an end, I only have one more week left. Therefore, next months books blogpost should be a lot more interesting. Also there will be a blogpost rounding up the 1st semester of 2nd year in the next couple of weeks.

Thanks For Stopping By! :)