Book Review: Girl Online: Going Solo by Zoe Sugg

 This is the third book in the Girl Online series written by Zoe Sugg, also known as Zoella. The 27-year-old who started out as a YouTuber soon became a household name and has now turned her hand to writing books. Girl Online, the first book in the series, was released on 25th November 2014, followed by Girl Online: On Tour on 20th October 2015 and now Girl Online: Going Solo, on 17th November 2016.

 Before reading any more of this review, I suggest you may want to read the first two books first, as this review may contain spoilers for the first two!

 However, for those of you who have already read the first two: Let's begin!

 The book is set in Penny's hometown of Brighton, just like the first two. In an attempt to resolve the problems in her and Megan's rocky friendship, Penny travels up to London to visit Megan at her prestigious Performing Arts School, the Madame Laplage School for the Arts. Whilst there, she uncovers some interesting truths about what Megan is up to, as well as making some new friends- Posey, a talented performer with awful stage fright, and Callum, a charming photographer from Scotland. However, when Penny tries to help Posey with overcoming her stage fright, things go from bad to worse...

 Meanwhile, everyone's favourite couple, Alexiot, are still together! However, Elliot is going through a rough time with his family. Read the book to find out what happens as things get tough...

 Of course, Penny is still busy with her photography! She needs to find something that is "uniquely Penny" for an assignment, something she is struggling with. Her anxiety issues also come to light again as she attends a Halloween party Megan puts on.

 And of course, there is Noah. Noah Flynn, worldwide superstar. After quitting the tour, no-one has heard from him in ages. This worries Sadie-Lee and Bella and when they turn up on Penny's doorstep, Penny has no idea what is going on with him!

 I really enjoyed this book, albeit targeted to a slightly younger audience than many of the books I read. I would say this book would be most enjoyed by children aged between 11 and 16, although it has great messages for people of all ages.

 Although I wasn't particularly a fan of Zoella when I first started reading the series, what drew me to the books was the beautiful covers as well as the photography aspect of the books, as photography happens to be a hobby of mine! These days, however, I am also a firm fan of Zoë, especially her vlog-style videos. I started my own YouTube channel, applepip, a while back, however, I have struggled to find time to make videos- the same goes with writing content for this blog! Never mind, once my GCSEs are over, I'll have loads of free time (over summer, at least)!

 One slight criticism would be the writing style in some areas of the book, specifically where direct speech is involved, for example:

""Noooo! I love that you talk like a New Yorker." I attempt an American drawl for that, but it comes out a terrible mix, somewhere between Irish, Indian and French."

 In my opinion, this sounds rather cheesy and fake- not something you would actually say in a conversation... However, the book has some gems, too, such as:

 "One thing I've learnt recently is that blowing out someone else's candle doesn't make yours shine any brighter" 

and 

"There's enough room for everyone to do the thing they're good at". 

 Overall, I think this is a great feel-good book or one to cosy up with on the sofa or in bed. Although the writing style feels cheesy to me in places, I appreciate that the target audience is probably people slightly younger than me (I would say about 11-13). In order to appeal to a wider demographic, my one suggestion would be to look again at the writing style. However, I still really enjoyed the book and am actually going to read this again once I have finished writing this blog post!

 Score: 7/10

Thanks for reading!

Pip

ISBN: 978-0-141-37217-4

Pages: 324

Price: £12.99

World Book Day 2017

 Welcome back!


Recently, it was World Book Day 2017, an event which my school loves to celebrate every year. Last year, I dressed up as Isabelle Lightwood from The Mortal Instruments, complete with runes, stele and even a (plastic) sword! Yes, I know, Izzy uses her awesome electrum whip in the books, but I just couldn't find one for sale anywhere!! My friend Amber also dressed up as Izzy that year, so that was fun- we decided in the end that she could be Maia instead to avoid confusion! I love the Mortal Instruments so much- I almost went as Magnus Bane this year!




 In the end, however, I decided to do my most simple costume ever! I dug my pig onesie out of my wardrobe and went as Wilbur the pig, from Charlotte's Web! I actually haven't read this book in years, despite my best efforts to find it in both the school library and the town library. However, it still stands as one of my favourite books from my childhood.




 The first problem occurred when I realised I would have to travel on the school bus in my costume. It would have been fine if it was just students from my school on the bus, however, there are students from other local schools on it, as well as people travelling into town. I decided to wear a black top and leggings to the bus stop and whilst on the bus, and then put my onesie on when I got to school.


 This decision, however, meant that the people from my school at the bus stop/ on the bus kept asking "What's your costume supposed to be?" as our school has a uniform, so they assumed this must be my costume- I had my onesie stuffed into my bag.


 Once I got to school, I rushed to form and put my onesie on over my clothes, before any teachers stopped me to question me on my costume! Some of my friends thought my choice of costume was crazy, but that's kind of what I was going for! One of the reasons I love World Book Day is because we have the freedom to dress up as whoever/ whatever we like (within reason!) No-one else in my friendship group dressed up this year, however, plenty of other people did! I even found myself a Fern to go with my Wilbur! Some of the teachers made a great effort, too- my Geography teacher came as Madame Hooch from Harry Potter (the Quidditch coach)- the resemblance was actually uncanny! The entire English department decided to follow a Jane Eyre theme this year, as this is one of the book we are studying for GCSE English. My English teacher was Jane, whilst others included Bertha, Mr Brocklehurst and St. John.


 It was a great day overall, and our form even almost won the WBD Quiz, thanks to my superior Harry Potter knowledge, of course... ;)


 Did you celebrate World Book Day? Or do you have any childhood World Book Day memories you'd like to share? Feel free to comment down below!


Pip x

Book Review: The Rule of Thirds by Chantel Guertin

The Rule of Thirds is the first in a series by Chantel Guertin. It was published by ECW Press, an independently owned Canadian publisher, in 2013.

 I was immediately drawn to this book, because of the fact that I share the same nickname, Pippa, with the protagonist! I think this is the first time I have ever come across a character sharing my name in a book!

 Straight away, I assumed that the book would be about photography, because of the title (the rule of thirds is an important element of photography) and the front cover of the book, which features someone with multiple cameras:

 The book is written in first person, from the point of view of sixteen-year-old Philadelphia "Pippa" Greene, a talented photographer who is determined to win the photography competition, Vantage Point, as the prize is an invitation to a summer camp at Tisch, an arts school in New York. It is a realistic, witty and irresistible story about navigating life as a teenager, in the genre of YA fiction/realistic fiction. 

From the first page, the book is full of humour:

 ""Can you Photoshop this?" Dace asks. She strides into the school's photocopy room and tosses a paper at me. "Algebra test.""

 Those first lines really captured me and from then on I could hardly put the book down! I think I saw myself in Pippa's caring nature and sarcastic thoughts, which is why I loved this book so much.

 My favourite character is Dylan McCutter, one of Pippa's love interests in the book, because all he ever wants is to please Pippa and plus, their encounters are sometimes hilarious! (No spoilers, but the plot twist at the end will make you love him even more...). The characters feel so real and 3D, because over the course of the book, you get to know all their dreams, quirks and personalities. I really didn't like the character of Ben Baxter, but I can't tell you why without spoiling the story for you! You'll have to read it to find out... 

 My favourite part of the book is the end, when everything ends okay for Pippa, and although there are questions still to be resolved, I loved the ending and can't wait to read the rest of the series!

 I think that the book improves as it proceeds, with the characters becoming more developed and the plot thickening. We come to realise why previous events in the book occurred, and little hints are dropped here and there that point towards the ending, even if you don't realise at the time (I know I didn't- when looking back, I realised that I missed a lot of clues, specifically about Dylan's predicament...).

 In my opinion, this book is suited to teenagers and young adults, especially those with an interest in photography! If you have read and liked John Green's books, I think you will like The Rule of Thirds.

 To conclude, I liked this book a lot and I definitely want to read the rest of the series, because there were a few unanswered questions that need addressing. It is set in a genre that I like and the characters are relatable and varied- everyone finds a bit of themselves in a book like this.

 I hope you have found this book review useful. Also, a big thanks to ECW Press for sending the book for me to review!

Score: 9/10

Thanks for reading!
Pip


ISBN: 978-1-77041-159-3
Pages: 187
Price: $9.95 U.S./CDN (£6.93)

Book Review: The Humans by Matt Haig

 Published by Canongate Books in 2013, this is the 7th novel by British novelist and journalist Matt Haig. This review is of the paperback edition first published in 2014.

 The first line of a book is often the most important- it is your first impression and sets the tone for the rest of the book. In this case, the first line is:

"I  know that some of you reading this are convinced humans are a myth, but I am here to state that they do actually exist."

 Just what the title suggests, really; that this is written from the point of view of someone, or something, that isn't human. This first line definitely  intrigued me...

 As well as a preface, the book is split into Part I, Part II and Part III. Part I introduces us to the characters, the story and the background. Part I is, in my opinion, the funniest part- "Andrew" is so new to everything human, so the mistakes he makes are pretty hilarious! Having said that, it's not all fun and games- there are some rather sombre moments. Generally, the further the book progresses, the more distressing the characters' plights become. Part II is definitely where the book gets more grown up. You get to know the characters better in this part... Finally, Part III. I'm not going to say much about this part, because I don't want to spoil it for you, but I will say that it will probably be the ending that you are hoping for.

 The author, Matt Haig, said, about the book, that "it is a love story and a murder story and a what-are-we-here-for? story". It is classified as contemporary fiction, but that is defined as stories set in modern-day times that don't have an element of fiction. However, without giving away any spoilers, depending on your stance regarding the debate on extra-terrestrial life, you might not agree with this genre. The book is written from a first person point of view. A main reason for writing from this perspective is for an immediate connection with the protagonist. I think this is effective in "The Humans", because we see the gradual change in the narrator and emotions and thoughts are not lost or filtered through a third-person narrator.

 The characters in this book are so varied, which makes it interesting, but I think sometimes they are a bit 2D- I want to know more about their past, which isn't delved deep enough into, in my opinion. My favourite character is "Andrew" (if you read the book, you will find out why I have put his name in quotation marks), because it is a rarity to find a protagonist whose view of our world is so distinctive. 

 In conclusion, I did like this book, because it takes a fascinating stance on humans and our fragile society. The ending was the one that I was hoping for, which I was incredibly thankful for, because it would have broken my heart if things hadn't have gone the way that I wanted them to! 

 I would recommend this book to people of a curious nature who want to explore different perspectives of our Earth. I think readers must have a mature mind, therefore I would suggest it for ages 14+. It is not categorised as a children's or teen novel. 

Thank you for reading my first book review. I hope you found this useful. Also, a massive thank you to Canongate for sending me the book to review!

Score: 8/10

Thanks for reading!
Pip


ISBN: 978 0 85786 878 7
Pages: 291
Price: £8.99

Hello!

Hello, fellow bookworms! Actually, I don't like the word bookworm, because I'm not a worm! So let's go with bookdragons instead! I have decided to start a book blog, because I want to share my obsession with reading with other people. I have loved to read for as far back as I can remember, and my love for books has never wavered. I think a good way to begin this blog would be with some bookish facts about me!

1) My all-time favourite book series is definitely Harry Potter.

2) I am a Gryffindor, a Daughter of Athena and I am Divergent!

3) My other favourite book series include Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Heroes of Olympus, The Mortal Instruments, The Hunger Games and Divergent.

4) Percabeth is one of my OTPs (NOT Perachel! Though I won't criticise anyone else's OTPs.)

5) Still waiting for my Hogwarts letter... It must have got lost in the mail...

6) I firmly believe that Draco could have been a good guy... (Click this link for a deleted HP7 scene that backs this up)

7) Saddest death? Sirius Black.

8) I will be cosplaying Bellatrix Lestrange for World Book Day 2016, which is in March! I will definitely be blogging about that!

9) In summer, I went to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Universal Studios Orlando! It was so magical and amazing! It was a dream come true and it was all so realistic! I will do another post on this because there is too much to write about right here!

10) I don't have a favourite book character- there are too many amazing people to choose from! But... my favourites include Fred and George Weasley, Draco Malfoy, Sirius Black, Tris Prior, Johanna Mason, Finnick Odair, Nico di Angelo, Reyna Avila Ramirez Arellano, Annabeth Chase and Percy Jackson.

 One last thing... As of now, I don't have a specific schedule for this blog, but I will aim to post several times a week. Content will include book reviews and book-related things I do (such as World Book Day). If you have any ideas for things I could include, please comment below (or on any of my future posts)!

Thanks for reading!
Pip