Exploring Children's Literature #2 - Wonder by R.J. Palacio

Exploring Children's Literature #2 - Wonder by R.J. Palacio

Saturday 30 December 2017

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I’ve really started to pick back up and get back on track with my blogging towards the end of the year so I thought I’d round up the year with a review of my most recent read: Wonder by R.J. Palacio. I thought I’d already read this one, having made my way through quite a few YA fiction contributions, but I had a bit of a surprise when I started ‘re-reading’ my copy so I could go and see the film and found that it wasn’t what I was expecting at all. That said, I really enjoyed reading Wonder and am happy to have added it to my list of books I’ve enjoyed over the course of 2017.

Wonder is a story about a young boy who just doesn’t fit in with the rest of his peers through absolutely no fault of his own. August, or Auggie as he is affectionately referred to as, has a genetic condition that means his face is deformed and countless surgeries haven’t been able to rectify his difficulties. He lives his life just as any other child his age does, except for the fact he can’t walk down the street without people staring and pointing and acknowledging his every insecurity. His parents decide that, at the ripe old age of 10, it is time for Auggie to go to a ‘real school’ and stop his homeschooling, enrolling him in the local private school. He’s told to ‘try it out’ and if he doesn’t like it, he can stop. But it’s really not as simple as that.

Wonder is heartwarming and saddening in equal breaths. It tells the tale of someone who was born to be different finally being allowed to fit in but it also raises the question of why life and people are so fixated on appearance over actual, genuine human qualities. Auggie, a caring, thoughtful and funny child is isolated because he doesn’t LOOK the way that society expects him to and Palacio highlights this issue in a thoughtful and thought provoking way. It highlights how we are quick to judge before we get to know someone and is inspiring in the sense that the good qualities in people are exemplified.

I loved the flip between characters’ perspectives, particularly the section focusing on August’s sister, Via. It was interesting to hear the story from the perspective of the character who was so loving and so caring towards her brother, and yet acknowledge that it’s natural to feel resentful towards people who you actually love. The section from Summer, one of August’s friends perspectives was equally as lovely- when asked why she was friends with August, she merely explains how she was taught to be kind and that August was funny and caring. No ulterior motive, no nastiness underlying her intentions, just pure and innocent kindness.

I’d definitely recommend that this book is taught within UKS2 in schools- the language is very accessible and the story definitely appeals to all types of backgrounds. Even as an adult, I enjoyed the story and I can’t wait to go and see the film after New Year with a good friend of mine!

Travel: (Re)Exploring Liverpool In Pictures

Travel: (Re)Exploring Liverpool In Pictures

Monday 25 December 2017

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Goodreads: My top 10 books of 2017

Goodreads: My top 10 books of 2017

Saturday 23 December 2017

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I honestly cannot believe that we are at this point of the year already! Wrapping up my books of the year is always my favourite thing to do, and this year has been a bit of a cracker for books. Having started my new job in September, the amount of books read this year started to trail off towards the end of the year but I still managed (as of the 23^rd December) to read 47 books this year. Narrowing the list town to a ‘best of’ was tricky, but I’m really happy with the ones I’ve chosen for my Top 10! These books are by no means ranked from best to worst, just a collection of books that I would recommend to anyone looking for a decent read. 

One of the first books I read this year was a translation from the German, The Trap (Die Falle) by Malanie Raabe. It was a book that had been recommended to me by a work colleague and I felt very lucky to have read it. The story follows a German author who witnessed the escape of her sister’s murderer, seeing the perpetrator’s face as a result. When she sees the man presenting on the news, she finds herself eager to arrange an interview with him to finally avenge her sister’s death. 

The Reader on the 6.27 follows a Frenchman, Guylain Vignolles, who catches the same train to work every day. Every day, he reads aloud to his fellow commuters. When he finds a pendrive, full to the brim with romantic musings, he makes it his task to find their writer.  A joyful, happy story full of beautiful language. 

Arguably my favourite read of 2017, and definitely the one that evoked the most emotion-wise, was When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi. Written autobiographically in the last days of his life, the story follows Paul, a surgeon, as he suffers from lung cancer. There are no words to describe the book other than devastating and if you do anything in 2018, I would recommend getting a copy of this book. 

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas has been a popular choice for a lot of people and I really enjoyed reading the book. It is particularly relevant nowadays, with all the trouble worldwide involving police brutality and maltreatment towards people of colour. It was a poignant read and one that I’d happily read over and over. Angie Thomas’ debut has impressed beyond words, to the extent that filming has already commenced for the film adaptation. 

If you know me at all, you’ll know that I love a good old fashioned contemporary romance as much (possibly more) than the next person and Miss You by Kate Eberlen satisfied all of my sop cravings. It reminded me a little of One Day, following two characters around as they ‘missed’ one another, over and over, until one day, they don’t. It’s beautifully romantic and was quite rightly included on the Richard and Judy booklist for Summer 2017. A must read. Another beautiful contemporary that I read in 2017 was The Keeper of Lost Things by Ruth Hogan. 

When I was sunning it up in Barcelona, the only book on my reading list was How to Stop Time by Matt Haig and it wouldn’t be right if I didn’t include it on this list. There’s something about Matt’s writing style that pulls me in from the word go and How to Stop Time did exactly the same that. It follows a man who has lived through centuries worth of adventures and experiences, aging at a minute scale. The story is heart warming and exciting and one for readers of all genres. 

A bit of a strange inclusion on the list is Nina LaCour’s We Are Okay. Not my usual type of book, I was pleasantly surprised to find that it was probably one of the best books I’ve read in a very long time. It’s a really easy read and perfect for the YA lover. 

Another book I read whilst traveling was the much acclaimed We Have Always Lived in The Castle by Shirley Jackson. I think this book is a bit like marmite- either you love it or you hate it- and I definitely loved it. It was creepy and mysterious and kept me guessing right until the very end. A fantastic read that really ought to get more recognition.

One of my more recent (and loved) reads is of course, Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie. The mystery kept me guessing right until the very end and I was really disappointed in myself for not having read it before! 

Which books have you read this year? What do I need to be adding to my TBR pile for 2018? Let me know!  

Life: Saving the pennies to reap the rewards

Life: Saving the pennies to reap the rewards

Monday 11 December 2017

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As this year comes to a close, finances are probably the most popular thing on most peoples’ minds. With Christmas presents bought and boxed off (and hopefully wrapped up) and bank accounts feeling that little bit tighter round about now, thoughts are turning to the New Year and the ‘things we need to save up for!’ With a potential house move in store for mid-year, a trip to London and a summer holiday to book and save for, thinking about money and how to put good habits into practice is something that I’ve been doing a lot of lately.

Generally speaking, I’m pretty good with money. I’ve saved for multiple trips abroad, I’ve managed to live independently for the last 6 years with not –too much- assistance from my parents and I have enough money in the bank to get myself through unexpected disasters if need be. However, I am by no means the best at saving and I know for a fact that I could do a lot of things that would mean that I’d have more money in my savings account and would hit my savings goals much more quickly.

NON-ESSENTIAL SPLURGES

The thing I spend the most money on, with the exception of bills and food, are most definitely clothes. I own a LOT of clothes- my addiction to Topshop, Zara and ASOS is slightly out of hand and one of my goals for 2018 is to spend less money on clothes that I don’t need. I’m not going to be completely stingy and stop myself buying clothes completely, but I am going to be a lot stricter over what I purchase and how much I spend on it. As a teacher, I spend most of my time wearing smart casual work clothes and fluffy pyjamas in the evenings and on weekends so it’s fair to say that I don’t need another going out dress- I have plenty in my wardrobes and I can wear them again- it’s not going to kill me and to be quite honest, no one will notice anyway!

I also spend a LOT of money on books – usually, this comes at an advantage as buying books = more reviews = more blog views = more invitations to blog tours = more books sent as ARCs for FREE. However, I now have such a large collection of ARCs that I’m yet to read that, to be frank, means I don’t actually need to buy myself any more books for a VERY long time. I can see 5 of these books sat on my bedside table, for example. That’s an entire month’s worth of reading freely available. I also have a kindle full of Netgalley galleys to read so being more controlled in bookstores will definitely aid in my quest to save those extra £££s.

USING TECHNOLOGY TO HELP ME SAVE

Over the last few months, I’ve been using a savings app to help me put away the spare pennies to quickly build them up into pounds. Let me start by saying that this part of my post is by no means sponsored- I have just found that this app has helped me save up and I haven’t had to scrimp to do it.

Oval is a mobile app that connects to your bank account- every time you spend using your debit card, it rounds the amount up to the nearest pound and transfers those extra pennies over to your account. So, for example: if you buy a coffee in Costa that costs £2.85, it would round the amount up to £3.00 and transfer 15p into your Oval savings account. 15p definitely won’t break the bank, right? You can set all sorts of different savings goals; I have one set up that transfers £1 for every £20 I spend on eating out. I usually save about £8 a week using this app, and have around £70 in my account after using it for the last few months. I’m planning on continuing on with this savings tactic over the course of the New Year and using the money I save to fund a lovely shopping trip when me and my boyfriend go down to London for Valentine’s Day this year.

The App takes £1 from your savings when you do finally decide to withdraw your money so it’s a hassle free, cheap and easy way to save money. You can withdraw your money at any point- there is no minimum amount that you can withdraw and you also get £5 credit if you encourage other people to sign up to the app using your promotional code. If you fancy trying to app out, my referral code is HB599VEU.

It’s completely free to download and to try out and if you don’t like it, you can withdraw your money easily with no love lost. Couple this with the piggy bank that I put 1, 2, 5, 10 and 20 pence pieces in and I’ll be rolling in the £££ by February!

COOKING IN BULK AND SCRAPPING ‘PRACTICALITY’

This is something that I’ve definitely been lacking in over the last few months, with practicality taking preference over sensible spending but in the New Year I’ll be getting back on track with this and making sure that I am spending my money wisely. I’ve also made a promise to myself to be more economical over where I buy my fruit, vegetables and meat from – I am fully aware that buying locally and using markets as opposed to supermarkets is better for my bank balance but also better for those people living around me. Being less wasteful is a target of mine as well- I find myself throwing food away much more regularly than I would like to. I am going to limit myself to a single takeaway each month and if I eat out, I’ll make sure that not only do I choose reasonably priced restaurants, but that I take cash out with me rather than my debit card, making sure that I don’t have ‘just one more cocktail’ when I definitely don’t need to.

These are just a few steps that I’m planning on putting in place over the next few months with the end goal of being more savvy and yet, not scrimping to the point where I’m having absolutely no fun whatsoever. My savings goals are realistic and the goals I’ve put in place have end results that I really, really want to meet so sticking to them should be a piece of cake- I hope!  

Exploring children’s literature #1 – THE CHRISTMAS MIRACLE OF JONATHAN TOOMEY by Susan Wojciechowski

Exploring children’s literature #1 – THE CHRISTMAS MIRACLE OF JONATHAN TOOMEY by Susan Wojciechowski

Saturday 9 December 2017

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If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you’ll know that teaching and education has played a massive part of my life for the last 4 years. I have taught English in two countries abroad and I am now a qualified primary school teacher, with a ‘specialism’ in English. One of the targets I’ve set myself within my role as teacher is to ignite a love of reading within my classroom.

I’ve noticed, whilst getting to know my new class over the last term, that reading does not play a positive or important role in the vast majority of my pupils lives. Obviously, reading is something that is of immense importance to me. I built this entire basis of Hollie in Wanderlust around my love of literature and books and I feel like I’d be letting myself down completely if I didn’t try to use this blog to its advantage and as a platform for introducing my English groups to good quality pieces of literature. I’ve spent the last few weeks, in the build up to Christmas, building up a repertoire of Christmas based literature to explore within my classroom. I started off with an absolute cracker: The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey by Susan Wojciechowski.

This is a book that, somehow, I haven’t come across before. I came across it by pure chance and bought myself a copy at the start of this week, with the hope of introducing it to my class next week, just in time for Christmas. There are honestly no words more appropriate than ‘beautiful’ to describe this book- and I feel privileged to have had the opportunity to have read it. The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey is the charming tale of Mr Jonathan Toomey, a wood-carver who has suffered loss so great he found himself settling in a brand new place, away from the prying eyes of his past. Unexpectedly, a widowed mother and her son arrive in the valley and knock on Mr Toomey’s door one cold, wintery day. Reluctantly, Jonathan allows them into his home and slowly starts to understand the true meaning of Christmas, with a little help from an unexpected source.

The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey is a deeply moving and heart-warming tale, depicting the formation of a relationship of the most unlikely sort. The language used is emotive and clear in its intention, and the entire story is accompanied by the most intricate and beautiful illustrations. It is a tale of helping others, and how helping others can often result in helping yourself. It is a tale of family and togetherness. It is a tale of unexpected friendships and new beginnings. It eludes to different themes and leaves lots to the imagination and many things open to interpretation. I am not ashamed to say that I finished the story with a tear in my eye and a warmth in my stomach that definitely wasn’t there before I started.

4.5/5