Monday, 29 April 2019

Month in Review: April



This girl is done school and is ready than ever for summer! 2nd year... well it wasn't fun both mentally and physically, so I am excited to have a break. Here's what happened in April:

What I Read: 

My Lady Jane by: Cynthia Hand, Brodie Ashton and Jodi Meadows: 5/5 stars
To All the Boy's I've Loved Before by: Jenny Han: 5/5 stars
There's Something About Sweetie by: Sandhya Menon: 4/5 stars
P.S. I Still Love You by: Jenny Han: 5/5 stars

Favourite Book: Besides my re-read of To All the Boy's, I very much enjoyed My Lady Jane! It was hilarious, cleverly written, and satisfied by history-loving heart. (Though to call it a historical retelling is a little wrong.)

What I Blogged: 

I continue to suck at blogging and didn't post much this month, however my favourite post was my wrap-up on the Twilight series with Breaking Dawn. It was fun sharing my insight and having a great discussion with other bloggers.

Favourite Blog Posts: 

Ruzaika talks about Muslim Rep in YA

Lais discusses High School in Brazil

Noel reveals that She's Publishing a Book!

Life Stuff: 

Like I said before, school is over and I am really happy about that. I am now going to be working full time to gain some money for the new car I will be getting soon! I am so excited to finally being able to get around on my own.

This month I went to see one of my all-time favourite musicals, Dear Evan Hansen, in Toronto. It was an incredible show and I really want to see it again. I may have cried.

My month was also consumed with watching the new season of Game of Thrones. *sobs* Let me know what you thought of the first few episodes!

I hope May will bring a lot more sunshine, and that my summer will be fun. God knows I need it.

How was your April?

Emily @ Paperback Princess




Friday, 12 April 2019

My Thoughts on the To All the Boy's Sequel So Far


As most of you probably know, I am quite obsessed with the To All the Boy's series by: Jenny Han. It is my pick me up series, and I re-read it a solid three times a year. You all also probably know that it was turned into a pretty successful movie last August, and the sequel is in the works. I, for one, have a lot of opinions on how things are looking, and I need to get them off my chest. However, if you couldn't care less about this series, then this post is not for you. But, I hope some of you would like to share your opinions with me.

First off, people need to stop calling it "To All the Boy's 2." The name of the sequel is P.S. I STILL LOVE YOU. I think that people often forget that the movie sequel will be following the book sequel, and that is the title of the second book. Now this is no shade to people who are only fans of the movie and haven't read the series. Honestly, I am way past the point of caring whether people read books or watch movies, however, I do hope the movies stay semi-consistent with the books.

Now let's go to the main chunk: the casting. Jordan Fisher will be playing my all-time favourite character, John-Ambrose McClaren. I'll admit, when I first heard this news, I didn't know how to feel. I LOVE Jordan Fisher, I think he's brilliant, and I did enjoy the thought of having an often white fan-casted character being a POC. However, I'm not sure if I picture Jordan as John in my head. For context, Jordan just played Mark in Rent Live, and I think I just see him as more of a strong stage actor than a dreamy boy-next door type in a teen movie. I understand he has done teen movies before, but I'm not sure if he's past that point in his career. I think I will have to see the first look of him actually in character in order to make my final decision.

They casted Ross Butler from Thirteen Reason's Why as Trevor Pike. Now, I've got some things to say. I don't know why Netflix recycles the same teen movie/tv actors to be in everything. Butler was in Riverdale, then Thirteen Reason's Why, now this. Noah Centineo was in TATBILB, then Sierra Burgess, and now in a new rom-com The Perfect Date with Camila Mendes, who also stars in Riverdale. You see the cycle?! I'm just sick of seeing the same five actors in everything I watch, and I think if they had casted Cole Sprouse as John- Ambrose, which was an actual rumour, it would've been the last straw. I just need some fresh faces please!

Some more positive news, I am so happy that Madeline Arthur is returning as Chris, I think she did an amazing job. Also, Holland Taylor is playing Stormy! This is incredible news because I really thought that they might have omitted Stormy for some reason. I'm really happy that the retirement residence will still be playing a role. Also, Sarayu Blue is playing Trina! She is exactly how I imagined her to be and I'm so glad Trina is getting a significant-enough part as well.

Another big news moment: Susan Johnson, the director of To All the Boy's, will not be returning. Now this worries me, because she did such a good job on the first movie and I'm not sure if a new director will mean a new vision? Still, I am remaining optimistic that the new director will still keep the brilliance of the first movie. I really don't want this sequel to bomb.

This was a long post for something that may seem insignificant to a lot of people. However, I am a firm believer that if you are interested in something and you've got something to say: say it! If you are as obsessed with this series as I am, I would love to hear your thoughts. What do you think of all this news?

Emily @ Paperback Princess

Friday, 5 April 2019

Month in Review: March


April is officially underway and it is my last week of school! I'm so happy to be rid of the absolute HELL that second year was, and hopefully have a relaxing summer. Here's what I got up to in March:

What I Read:

That Time I Loved You by: Carrianne Leung: 5/5 stars
Hecuba by: Euripides: 4/5 stars
Insurgent by: Veronica Roth: 3/5 stars
Medea by: Euripides: 3.5/5 stars
Nervous Conditions by: Tsitsi Dangarembga: 3/5 stars

My reading was once again dominated by books read for school, but I still did enjoy some of them! My favourite was That Time I Loved You by: Carrianne Leung. You can read my review for it here.

What I Blogged:

I put up a post this month that I was quite proud of! It was my discussion, Why I Don't Want to Get Published. This post was really the first time I admitted to myself my true feelings about publishing, and I'm glad I wrote it.

Favourite Blog Posts of the Month:

Noel discusses Beta Readers and Author's Advice 

Clockwork Bibliotheca shares Songs that Tell Incredible Stories 

Lais discusses Sexual Content in YA 

Life Stuff:

Nothing new, really, just work, school, and therapy. Hopefully my summer will be a lot more interesting! This Sunday I am going to see one of my favourite musicals, Dear Evan Hansen, for the first time on stage. To say I am excited, is an understatement.

That was my March! How was yours?

Emily @ Paperback Princess