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louise o’neill

Discussion

5 Bookish Snapchats You *NEED* To Be Following Immediately

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I’m just a teeny tiny bit obsessed with Snapchat – I love how personal it feels and also how less scary it is than other social media platforms because the numbers aren’t so glaringly obvious and I feel like I’m sitting down to have a chat with a good friend.

Louise O’Neill, author of Only Ever Yours and Asking For It – oneilllouise

I had to include Louise first on my list because she is the QUEEN of Snapchat. Often she is the reason I log in because I love scrolling through her Story each day and hearing her thoughts on things such as books, feminism and, of course, seeing her amazing writing uniform – a bear dressing gown.

The best thing about Louise’s Snapchat presence is how honest and unashamed she is – she isn’t afraid to talk about her books and sing her own praises, but she also talks about the things lots of us are too afraid to talk about or show. I think she’s a wonderful person and this really shows on her Snapchat.

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Photo credit to the-book-ferret.tumblr.com

Sanne, booktuber at booksandquills – booksandquills

As one of my favourite booktubers, I love getting a behind the scenes looks at Sanne’s life – as she navigates London talking about the books she’s read and exciting things she gets up to.

Whenever I see new additions to Sanne’s story, I rush to grab my headphones so I can watch them and hers was one of the first book-related Snapchat accounts I followed and really solidified my love of Snapchat, so it is a must-follow!

Meredith (and Quigley and Diggle) from The Book Ferret – bookferretsnaps

If you’ve never spent hours at a time looking through all the adorable pictures on The Book Ferret Tumblr, what are you doing with your life? Meredith runs one of my favourite blogs and has made me fall head over heels in love with her ferrets, Quigley and Diggle.

Meredith’s Snapchat has extremely cute ferret pictures with added books and sometimes sneak peeks at how she runs her Tumblr – taking the pictures and all about books.

Lucy, booktuber at The Book Belle – thebookbelle

Lucy is another one of my favourite booktubers whose videos I love watching and her Snapchat Story is no different. I found Lucy’s Snapchat again in my earlier days of getting into it properly for bookish purposes (and not taking stupid selfies to send to people) and I’ve loved seeing snippets from events and getting a look at her upcoming videos.

Also, if you haven’t watched any of Lucy’s YouTube videos yet, you definitely should! Her videos are the BEST.

Kate Ormand, author of Dark Days and The Wanderers

I’ve been a fan of Kate ever since I started reading her blog years ago, so I love that’s she jumped on board with Snapchat. We have quite similar tastes in books so it’s good to pick up new recommendations, as well as taking a peek behind the scenes of her writing process as she works on her next novel.

Kate is an all-round lovely person whose Snapchat Story brightens up my day – I love spotting books we’ve both read!

Which bookish Snapchats do you love following? Leave recommendations in the comments!

You can add me on Snapchat where I’ll be starting new daily book recommendations – lucythereader

Don’t forget to click the ‘heart’ button at the bottom of this post if you enjoyed it!

Book Review

REVIEW: All the Rage by Courtney Summers

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I have wanted to read something by Courtney Summers ever since I first heard Holly Bourne talk about how amazing her books are, but until now they haven’t been published in the UK, which is a crying shame. We’re really missing out!

All the Rage is a harrowing look at rape culture and the way we treat people who have been raped. Loosely inspired by the Steubenville case which was in the news at the time of Summers writing the book, protagonist Romy is bullied and thrown out of her social circle because nobody in the small, US town she lives in will believe that she has been raped by the “golden boy” of the town.

The plot line is extremely gripping and so unpredictable – I could have never guessed the massive twists. They had me gasping in shock because I couldn’t believe what had happened! I felt so connected to the story that the events really affected me as I was reading them and I had to read on to find out what happened.

It’s clear when reading All the Rage that Summers is a master of the writing craft. The way that she tells the story is perfect and I was hooked from beginning to end; I kept telling myself, “Just one more chapter!” and then it turned into five and six and then seven… I loved how natural it felt, as if you were in Romy’s town and witnessing the hate she received. Summers’ writing is perfect and works so well with the story; it has its own voice and comes alive with every word.

However, what Summers does best is include diverse characters that blend seamlessly into the story line. It doesn’t feel as if diverse characters are added so that they can be ticked off on a checklist, but because they’re real people too. I loved the secondary characters in this book and how they fitted in to Romy’s story – they had their own lives but also worked towards creating a bigger picture too.

All the Rage is definitely going to be my go-to recommendation for the future. I’d love to see more of Courtney Summers’ books published in the UK soon because the UK needs more Courtney Summers books! I know I’d be the first person to buy them if they were published.

You’ll Love This If…. 

25255576You’ve read Asking For It by Louise O’Neill! They tie in nicely together as they’re inspired by the same case, and the stories do overlap in places.

You’re looking for a thrilling read that you can’t put down.

You’re a feminist and want to read more YA books with feminist topics!

 

Have you read All the Rage? What did you think of it? If you haven’t read it, let me know if you’re going to!

Recommendations

5 Female Authors I Adore

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In the wider book industry, female authors often get overlooked so it is super important to support them as much as possible. I thought I would compile a list of some of my favourite female authors today. They all write books that feature either feminism or female characters who stand out as being realistic and passionate.

Louise O’Neill – Only Ever Yours and Asking For It

Louise is one of the biggest YA talents out there at the moment and with the recent announcement that she’s been signed to write two adult books for Quercus, I’m really excited to read her future books. Only Ever Yours has earned Louise comparisons to the likes of Margaret Atwood, which is no mean feat, and it is set in a dystopian future where girls are genetically engineered to be perfect. They are then raised to please the men of this fictional world, which leads you to question our own society and just how far away the world in Only Ever Yours is from ours.

Asking For it deals with the subject of rape and consent. It’s extremely harrowing and a must-read for people of all ages. It draws attention to what it’s like to be a woman in the digital age and, although I didn’t love every second of reading it, I came away knowing just how important the book is.

Holly Bourne – Soulmates, The Manifesto On How to Be Interesting, Am I Normal Yet?

I read Soulmates a few years ago and fell in love with it. Each page gripped me and I couldn’t put it down. Since then, I’ve become a huge fan of Holly’s and she is one of the loveliest people you could wish to meet. It makes me very happy to see her books doing so well!

The book that I could talk all day about is Am I Normal Yet?. The first in a new series, it tells the story of a girl recovering from OCD and anxiety, and her journey as she tries to fit in and be “normal”. The best part of it for me was the feminist group that Evie and her two friends set up. It allows younger readers to test the waters of feminism without it being forced on them and it’s a book that I’ll be recommending to everyone. Continue Reading

Guest Post

Top 5 Feminist YA by Holly Bourne, author of Am I Normal Yet?

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Am I Normal Yet? is the first book in a trilogy about a group of girls who set up their own feminist campaign group called ‘The Spinster Club’. I think YA gets a bad rep when it comes to feminism. So many people keep bleating out the dreaded words ‘Bella’ and ‘Swan’ – like Twilight isn’t a) TEN years old, and b) Not the only YA book out there. In fact, YA have LOADS of incredibly feminist books, and here are my top 5.

1) The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart

Most people know E C Lockhart for her haunting We Were Liars, but I have to say I actually preferred this book. Frankie is very much in love with her new boyfriend, but she can’t understand why she isn’t allowed into his secret boys-only club at their top private school. So she infiltrates it…

Why it rocks:
Frankie is the very definition of ‘kick-ass’ – you spend the entire book wishing you could be her. This book has incredible insight into the thirst of power, the complexities and contradictions of being a teen feminist who also wants a boyfriend. A top-notch quirky teen feminism manifesto!

Favourite quote: “It is better to be alone, she figures, than to be with someone who can’t see who you are. It is better to lead than to follow. It is better to speak up than stay silent. It is better to open doors than to shut them on people.”

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