BEDJ #8 | The Liebster Award Tag!

Hey lovely people! I have a tag for you today. The lovely Bernadette from The Bumbling Bookworm tagged me, and so here I am. Also, a thank you to her for tagging me. :)

So, what is the Liebster Award, you ask? It's basically a tag used to promote lesser-known bloggers, and to just generally spread the love around. Pretty neat, I think. Ok, let's get started.

First off, the rules:
1. Link/thank the blogger that tagged you
2. Answer the 11 questions your nominator gives you
3. Tag 11 other bloggers who have 200 or less followers
4. Ask the 11 bloggers you nominated 11 questions (and let them know you nominated them)

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Note: This has been in my drafts folder for at least two months. So, some of the information is a little outdated.

Number 1: When did you start blogging and why?
    I probably technically started blogging back in 2008 or 2009 when I was living in Canada, but I didn't use this URL. The Mother was keeping a blog so the rest of the family could keep up with us, and it was my first real introduction to blogging.

With this blog, I started it back in 2010. It was mainly used as a platform to showcase some long gone YouTube videos. Since then, I've expanded it (obviously). I guess I started doing it, because I enjoyed writing (still do!) and felt like blogging would help me improve my skills? Honestly, it was so long ago, I don't really remember why I decided to do it. It seemed like fun, so I did it.

Number 2: What book have you been wanting to read for a while but haven't yet read?

       I chose two books: A fiction and non-fiction. My fiction choice is: Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche. To be honest, I've been kinda keen to read all of her books. It just so happens that Purple Hibiscus was the one that really caught my eye. Ever since I watched her TedX speech, I've really wanted to read her books. She seems intelligent and gracious and yes.

My non-fiction choice is Quiet by Susan Cain. I've been told that this is also based on TedX talk, but I didn't realise that was a thing until I'd already bought the book. I've had my eye on this one since it first came out. As an introvert, I thought this was really interesting. So, here we are.

Number 3: Has a book ever made you want to travel somewhere, and if so, where?

       This will come as no surprise to anyone ever, but Just One Day by Gayle Forman. This book sort of owns my forever-wandering heart. It captures all the elements of Europe I adore. I didn't know whether to include Just One Year as well, given there's just as much travel in it.

Number 4: How do you choose which book to read next: are you a mood reader or do you stick to a schedule?
       I'm largely a mood reader. This sometimes works in my favour, because if I'm feeling a particular way I'll know exactly what books I want to read next. More often than not, though, it's a little difficult because I'll be at uni and not have all my TBR-books on hand. Not for long though! Holidays soon! (Read: Now)

Number 5: Where is your favourite place to read?
        I have two favourite places to read. The more obvious one is my bedroom. It's just the best atmosphere ever for reading a book. The other is my local Gloria Jeans. It's just got a really nice vibe, and they've also memorised my coffee order. I'm ridiculously proud of that fact, so don't harsh my mellow.

Number 6: Which do you prefer: reading the book before watching the movie adaptation, vice versa, or neither?
        I usually like to try and read the book before I watch the movie. It really just depends on whether I've got time to read it before hand, if I'm reading another book, etc. etc.

Number 7: What's your favourite book cover?

       Choosing one book is not fair. It's too difficult. I've tried to narrow it down to two but please know that there are so many others. Soooo many others. The two I decided to select were both classics. The first one is Middlemarch by George Eliot. It is kind of sitting there as a placeholder for the entire Penguin Clothbound Classics series.

Another favvie of mine is The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. I think this one is apart of the Penguin F. Scott Fitzgerald Anniversary Collection? It's just gorgeous in it's simplicity.

Number 8: When was the last time a book made you cry?
       Oh dear. I'm not a huge cryer when it comes to books? Give me a sad movie any day, and I will ball my eyes out (I'm serious, I was watching Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants 2 the other day and I nearly started crying towards the end. The Brother was in the vicinity though and I didn't want him judging me). Books though? Not so much. My immediate response is to go with The Fault In Our Stars, but I'm not 100% sure on that one. I very nearly cried at the end of Falling Into Place by Amy Zhang. Does that count?

Number 9: What was your favourite book and author as a child?

        Now, when you say 'as a child,' I'm going to take that as literally as possible and I'm showing you my copy from when I was like, five or six. I adored this book. It's very well-loved (as I'm sure you can see). I would read it and re-read it, over and over. The story mixed with the illustrations just caught my attention like nothing else.

There was another children's book I adored, but I can't seem to find it. It was about the desert and how it was so deserted (funnily enough) and ugly, and how, after it storms, it becomes a field of poppies. Or something like that. I was just fascinated by it.

Number 10: Do you prefer to read e-books or physical books?
        Physical books, easily. I really can't stand e-books. Don't get my wrong, I've tried. I do see the advantages in using them when travelling. I just really do not like them.

Number 11: If you have to recommend one book for me (Bernadette) to read, what would it be?
        *coughs* Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas. I recommend it to everyone. I honestly cannot stop myself. A customer came into work the other day and asked me for a book recommendation and I was going to say Throne of Glass and then she said she only wanted a book with a happy ending. I was totally floored and had so much trouble thinking of another suitable book.

Throne of Glass, or The Winner's Curse by Marie Rutkoski. Both are pretty impeccable. If you want a  contemporary book, Falling Into Place is pretty raw/amazing/heartbreaking. If you want a classic, I've been obsessing over The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood recently.

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So, there are my answers! Hope they were at least halfway decent.

Next step: Nominate some bloggers!

      + Jess from Jess Reads Things
      + Zoe from The Brit In Aus
      + Iona from Where Is Wallis
      + Julia from JulyeyCamille
      + Candice from Sense and Sensibility
      + Lauren from Lauren Reads YA
      + Anyone else who wants to do it

I'll be real with you guys, I'm cheating a little bit here. Some of these lovely people might have more than 200 followers. Also, I couldn't think of more than six people. Sorryyyyyyyy. But seriously, you should check these people out. They're the loveliest.

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Next section: the new questions!

1. Tea or coffee when reading?
2. What book surprised you?
3. What is the place you most want to visit?
4. What are your ideal reading conditions?
5. What's your favourite quote?
6. Who's your style crush?
7. Is there a TV or film adaptation you prefer over the book?
8. Notebook or computer?
9. What's your classic red lip of choice? (Like, brand/name, that sort of thing)
10. What song could you listen to endlessly?
11. How would you describe your style?

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And we're done! Hope you guys enjoyed the tag. And sorry to Bernadette for me taking so long to actually post this up.