I won't let the spooky times go

I haven't posted much at all this year, but I felt like writing about some bookish things I've been thinking and feeling ever since Halloween, so here I am!

We didn't get to celebrate Halloween the way we usually do --I mostly just had a car ride in a cutesy summery-french-river-picnic-inspired witch outfit and a naked face and then ended the day with Jack and ginger ale, but it was what it was. So when Halloween ended and November came in and everyone with their peppermints and their reds and greens --I refused to let go of the spooky autumn vibe that I felt I hadn't really had the time to enjoy (it also didn't help that I had just finished watching the new season of Castlevania on Netflix, and it made me feel a little nostalgic and inspired).

So! Of course I had to research Gothic literature, and I've got myself a lineup of things to read to keep the creepy cold feeling alive! There are some novels and some short stories, and even some poetry, I think..but these are the tales that appealed to me, and so here is my November mood reading/tbr:

The desire to pick up Carmilla is 100% inspired by Castlevania, and looking into it, the story is older than Dracula, so of course I have to read it. And then Dracula is going to be a reread, but I was skimming through it earlier this spring (a friend was writing a paper on it), and there's so much more in it than I remember, so this is the perfect time to venture and rediscover. And the last novel is Radcliffe's The Italian, which I am picking up simply because there may be a villainous religious man and a love story, I don't know.

The list of short stories & poems consists of:

• A Terrible Vengeance, by Gogol
• Viy, by Gogol
• "Demon" by Lermontov
• "The Bridegroom" by Pushkin
• The Queen of Spades, by Pushkin

This list also encourages me to give Gogol another chance --he's always described to me as a surrealist who writes about class differences (which doesn't appeal to me much) --but if you sell him to me as a fantastic & Gothic type of writer, then maybe that will hit me much harder, yes?

And seeing Lermontov's name, I wonder if I ought to include a reread of A Hero of Our Time. That has a strange atmosphere to it as well.

On a completely different note, there's another novel, Putney, that has caught my eye that seems to be Nabokov-inspired, but it focuses mostly on a person's agency, which interests me. So if I end up purchasing it, I may use it as a little breather from all the Gothic lit (Also, the colors on the cover are just perfect?).


Although, I should also still try to find comfy-cozy reads for Christmas, too..It's all a mess, really..

Okay, well I suppose that's it for now, I don't know when the next time I'll write (this old laptop is actually really terrible to write with now..), but I'll try to find the patience for it again sometime soon, I hope! Bye. x

Love, Lizzie. x

Kissing the new year, hello --but first, goodbyes

I feel like there's too much to write about 2017, so I think I'm just gonna keep it anchored on books for a good chunk of this post.

I read 24 books last year, which meant I reached my goodreads reading challenge!

(Most of my reads were graphic novels, though, which will play into my reading goals for this year..).

So here are the books that stuck with me through the year, the ones that my head kept thinking about and the ones that taught me something (whether that thing was a lesson or a feeling).

We have The Bell Jar, 1Q84, Lolita, and The Girl from the Other Side vol. 1.

I could only come up with four "favorites" (if we want to call them that) for the year, but I'm still really proud of it --considering I haven't been able to read much since 2014/15.

But I have a couple goals! Obviously in list form:

• Reading goal of 22 books this year, but still aiming for 2 books a month if I can (I felt a little pressured last year and I don't want this to be an anxiety-inducing hobby)
• Read more women authors (I have a habit of gravitating towards older, white men)
• Read more novels vs. graphic novels (but still get my graphic novel fix)
• Find more modern day authors to love, instead of just the classics
• Have some rereads this year! Some books are way overdue for a revisit :)
• Post more bookish things on insta!
• And give audiobooks a go

It's a bit of a list, but I've already got two books under my belt this year and it's just the first week of January! My first read (and reread) was Peter Pan, and it's the best way to start a year, I think.

2018 is going to be full of change, and I can only hope for happiness :)

Well that's it for now, goodbye and good luck. x

Love, Lizzie.