My Favorite Time related Books and TV Shows

I am absolutely obsessed with anything that has to do with time. Preferably time travel but parallel universes or anything that discusses the complexities of time is also fair game. So I thought that I’d write a post that rounds up all my favorite media about time.

BOOKS

1. The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenger

This book is so brilliant!  I love how the story is told and the different elements to this particular type of time travelingThere are some aspects that irk me like the fact that there’s a romance between an 18 year old and a 45 year old( even if it’s his future wife it’s still weird) but other than that it’s such an interesting and tragic novel! There’s supposed to be  a sequel following the daughter but I don’t know if it will ever happen. Also apparently Stephen Moffat is going to make a T.V show based off of it which is very exciting!!

2.Life After Life by Kate Atkinson

This isn’t really about time travel or time per se but I’m going to include it because it’s technically like time travel. It follows a girl named Ursula who when she dies, gets to restart her life over again and this novel kind of explores the different lives that she lives. It’s really good and super interesting and it’s also set during World War 2 which makes it all the more amazing. There’s the inevitable killing Hitler which comes with time travel books set during World War 2 which I’m always here for.

3.Pathfinder by Orson Scott Card

Okay so  I know that Orson Scott Card is a horrible horrible person and I don’t condone his appalling bigoted behavior but  I believe in separating the art from the artist and Pathfinder is one of the best books I’ve ever read so I can’t not include it. Pathfinder is this super interesting fantasy sci-fi that I can’t really explain but is fascinating and no matter how many times I read it, I am always amazed by it. I don’t believe in supporting him but if you’re ever able to find it used or at your library, I’d highly recommend it.

4.11/22/63 by Stephen King

This book is so good!!!! It was my first King book and boy was it a good one.  It’s so interesting and it’s a really good introduction to King’s books. It has the fucked up elements of a King novel but it isn’t horror so it’s a great read for everyone.  Everytime I think about the ending I get really sad.

5.The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August by Claire North

I just read this a couple of days ago but it’s soo good and a great time travel novel with some really unique concepts. If you’re interested, you can read my review where I go into more depth.

TV Shows

          12 Monkeys

So I havent watched the original movie because I really don’t like old sci fi movies but the TV is so good. There are so many twists and turns and the characters are all super great. I really need to finish this one

         Continuum

So this one is this pretty obscure canadian show that my mom found when looking for time travel shows but it’s really good! it’s a little cheesy at times and the special effects are pretty bad but it’s a really interesting concept and plus it’s set in Vancouver so yay for Canadian settings!

          Timeless

One of my favorite teachers recommended this to me because she thought that I’d like it and she was  right! I love how though there’s an overall plot, each episode brings us to a different part in history. I always learn a lot. The characters are also super great.I can’t believe I haven’t finished season two yet.

         Doctor Who

After Brooklyn 99 this is my favorite TV show. I love everything about it: the plot, the villains, the doctors, the companions, everything is wonderful. I admit that there are some pretty corny elements to it, but it’s just such a beautiful and hopeful show. I love the episodes where they go back in time and also I love seeing all the different futuristic ideas.

What About You? What Are Your Favorite Books And TV Shows About Time? Do You Have Any Recommendations. Let Me Know In The Comments Down Below!

The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August by Claire North Book Review

Goodreads Summary:

SOME STORIES CANNOT BE TOLD IN JUST ONE LIFETIME.
Harry August is on his deathbed. Again.
No matter what he does or the decisions he makes, when death comes, Harry always returns to where he began, a child with all the knowledge of a life he has already lived a dozen times before. Nothing ever changes.
Until now.
As Harry nears the end of his eleventh life, a little girl appears at his bedside. “I nearly missed you, Doctor August,” she says. “I need to send a message.”
This is the story of what Harry does next, and what he did before, and how he tries to save a past he cannot change and a future he cannot allow.

 

My Rating:5/5 Stars

My Thoughts:

If there is one thing that I love in fiction more than anything, it’s stories  that deal with time in some way.  Whether it be time travel, parallel universes  basically  anything that discusses time in any way.,if time plays a factor  a book, T.V show or movie I will most likely love it. Time is honestly one of the most interesting parts about this universe and I love thinking about all the possibilities that we have yet to unlock. I took  an English class last semester that was all about time travel and it was the most interesting class I’ve ever taken.  Saying a book, TV show or movie involves time is the quickest way to get me to read it.

So when I read the synopsis of this book and saw that it was about a man who when he dies, he is reborn as the same person with all his previous knowledge intact, I knew that I had to read it. And I was not disappointed. This book was so interesting and unique and I loved every single second of it. It kind of reminds me of Life After Life but just a much more intense version.

While it took me a while to really get into it, once I did I was hooked. As the name suggests, we follow the first fifteen lives of Harry August and boy are his lives interesting. The novel is told in this very interesting non-linear manner so we are constantly jumping around from life to life which I found was an excellent choice. I loved seeing how each life was different and seeing how he changed as his life progressed. The plot was super duper fascinating and I loved all of the elements that were brought together especially towards the second half of the book. Time was being played with a lot more and it was so interesting to watch it unfold. It definitely made me think a lot about the multiverse. It also made me speculate about our own world.  I admit that there were times when I was reading it where I was like “what if people like this actually exist?” and “what if I’m on those and I’m just living my first life”. This is one of those books that I definitely will be thinking for many months to come.

I do have one minor qualm with the book which is that I feel as though the characters weren’t as strong as they could have been.  Honestly it’s more of a personal preference as I’m someone who loves characters and this is the type of book where it’s hard to have a super strong feeling for the characters but I would have liked to have just a little bit more development in order to just slightly improve the novel.

Have You Read This Book? Do You Want To? What Are Your Favorite Books Involving Time? Let Me Know In The Comments Down Below!

 

 

Literary Book Gifts: Website Review

About a week ago I received an email from Melissa, owner of a company called Literary Book Gifts which she described as bringing as a site that ” specializes in bringing books to life on t-shirts and bags.” She asked if I would be willing to do a review of her site and I jumped at the chance to do so. Firstly because I love book merch and secondly because I think that’s it’s super duper important to promote small businesses. They usually have the best quality products.  While I was unable to purchase a product from this shop myself, I was hoping that in writing this mini review, it could potentially inspire some of my readers to check out this lovely website.

Literary Book Gifts offers  all their designs on t-shirts, v-necks, tank tops, hoodies, tote bags, and backpacks.  All of these products feature gorgeous designs from a variety of classic books from Little Women to The Illiad.  For sizing, the Women’s shirts are available in sizes up to 3XL, and Men’s up to 5XL.  While the tote bags are available in one color, the clothing have a bunch of different color options which are all really pretty and work well with the design..  Personally if I were to buy a product here I would probably purchase a t-shirt just because I love graphic tees and really like being able to show my nerdiness to the world.  To give you an idea of some of the products they offer, I picked my top five favorite ones.

 

1.Book End Tote Bag

I absolutely adore the design of this tote bag and the contrast  between the white folliage around the box  and the background color. I can totally imagine myself putting all my books in there.

2. Peter Pan T-Shirt

Now I’m not the biggest fan of the Peter Pan novel though I do really like the  general story but this design is absolutely gorgeous.  The yellow is the perfect color for this design and everything fits together so well.

3. Typewriter T-Shirt

There’s nothing that is more aesthetically pleasing than a typwriter. My dream is to one day have one of my own so I can be the aesthetic queen but if that can’t happen then I guess having a typewriter shirt will have to do.

4. Anne Of Green Gables Hoodie

Anne of Green  Gables is my childhood so I couldn’t not include this beautiful hoodie. They also have t-shirts with a similar design but I feel like Anne Of Green gables deserves to be on a hoodie. It’s just a hoodie type of book (if that makes any sense)

5. Picture Of Dorian Gray T-Shirt

There are honestly much more aesthetically pleasing designs that could have been number five but the picture of dorian gray is the best classic of all time and deserves to be on a t-shirt.

 

I hope that this post pushed you to check out this lovely website but if you need another reason to check it out Melissa created a special promotion code just for my readers which is good for 20% off anything in the store, no minimum, and can be used unlimited times. The promo code is thebookthiefwithoutwords20!

 

When Life Gives You Demons by Jennifer Honeyburn

 

Goodreads Summary:Sixteen-year-old Shelby Black has spent the past year training to be an exorcist. Her great-uncle Roy—a Catholic priest and Shelby’s guardian—believes she has a gift for expelling demons, and he’s put her through exorcist boot camp hell, but he still doesn’t trust her to do an exorcism on her own.

High school is hard enough without having to explain that you fight demons for a living, so Shelby keeps her extracurricular activity quiet, especially from Spencer, her cute math tutor. Secrets run in Shelby’s family, though: her mother has been missing ever since an exorcism went horribly wrong, and Uncle Roy is tight-lipped about it. But Shelby’s hell-bent on finding her mom, no matter what—even if what it ends up costing her her soul AND a date with Spencer.

My Rating:4/5 Stars

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

My Thoughts:

The minute I read the tagline on the ARC, I knew that I was in for a wild treat. I mean how could you not be intrigued by “Some people have school spirit. Shelby Black has real ones.” Combined with a interesting summary and a stellar opening, I knew that I would have a fun time reading this. And I really did! I wasn’t quite as impressed with it as I had hoped to be but I didn’t have any major qualms with it.

I’m a huge fan of contemporary books that feature some unusual element which is what initially drew me into this and that aspect of the book was really great. How could you not  enjoy reading about a teenage exorcist juggling training to expel demons, her schoolwork and first love? From the first line, I was widely smiling as I learned about Shelby Black’s wild life. While it was definitely a fun read and it was a book that I flew through quite quickly, I feel that the unique aspect of this book could have been amplified substantially. There is so much that we don’t know about exorcism in this novel and I would’ve really liked much more insight into what type of role exorcism plays in their society and how exactly Shelby feels about it.  By the time the book was finished, it was still unclear to me if being an exorcists was something that was acceptable and known about the society. While obviously this is primarily a contemporary novel so  I shouldn’t expect as much world building as I would like but a tad bit more would’ve been nice.

One thing that I always appreciate in YA novels is strong female friendships and this book had them and I’m so happy! I love how Shelby upkept her friendship with Vanessa throughout the entire book.  In so many books like these, the MC drops her best friend because she’s too busy so I’m really glad that that didn’t happen.

No Swoonreads contemporary is completely with a swoon worthy  romance and I really liked the Love interest! Spencer was a super sweet character with some secrets of his own which definitely kept things interesting. I think there could’ve been just a bit more development of their chemistry and relationship because it was just a bit too fast for my taste.

Have You Read When Life Gives You Demons? What Did You Think? Do You Want To Read It If You Haven’t? Let Me Know In The Comments Down Bellow!

 

The #NotAll Book Tag

#NotAll Cover Changes
A cover change you liked

I’m so glad that they changed the cover for this. The original covers were so ugly and they just didn’t represent the books well enough which initially made me not want to read it. The new covers are much more appealing to the eye and I think that they draw people in much more.

 

 

#NotAll Adaptations
An adaptation you love more than the book

I honestly can’t stand the book version of The Perks of Being a Wallflower but the movie version is one of my favorite movies. I just feel as though the plot can be more easily expressed in a movie format and it was a lot more touching and impactful

 

#NotAll Tropes
A trope you’ll never get tired of seeing

Friends to Lovers. Personally I love all tropes but Friends to lovers is my favorite one of them all. I love seeing friendships going beyond that.

 

#NotAll  Insta-love
You insta-loved this insta-couple

I never thought that I’d fall in love with this book because I didn’t see how two people falling in love in one day would work but  somehow Yoon managed to do it. Natasha and Daniel have the best chemistry

 

#NotAll Love Triangles
An example of a love triangle done well

I honestly can’t stand love triangles but the one between Tessa, Jem and Will in The Infernal Devices is bearable

#NotAll Parents
Bookish parents that, you know, parent!

Simon’s parents in Simon Vs The Homo Sapiens Agenda are so great, I love them so much! They’re supportive and care about their children and are actually present. Albertalli is really great at creating complex parental characters.

 

#NotAll Villains
A villain you love

I honestly couldn’t think of that many books with obvious villains in them but I really love Levanna in The Lunar Chronicles. I think that we especially get to know

 

#NotAll Chosen Ones
A chosen one you can get behind

 

I’m not a huge fantasy reader so I couldn’ t really think of any other books besides HP. I personally don’t mind the chosen one trope that much. I think especially since HP was really one of the first major books to do it, it worked pretty well.

#NotAll Hyped Books
A book that lived up to the acclaim

I honestly thought that since everyone was raving about this book, I wouldn’t like it that much but it was amazing. It deserves all the hype it gets and one of my top books of 2018.

#NotAll *Insert Favourite Genre*
A book you’re not keen on from your favourite genre

This is my least favorite book of all time and I will never get tired of talking about how bad it is. I love YA contemporaries especially when they discuss pertinent issues like depression and suicide but this book is trash and doesn’t deserve any recognition whatsoever.

#NotAll *Insert Least Favourite Genre*
A book you liked from a genre you don’t often read

I’m not a huge paranormal romance reader but this book was so much fun! It’s not amazingly written and it doesn’t have that great of a plot but it’s still a really fun read. I need to read The Luxe series now!!

Have You Done This Tag? If Not What Would You Answer For Any Of These Questions? Let Me Know In The Comments Down Below!