Thursday, January 4, 2018

2017 in books!

I've had a fairly average reading year. If you look at my Goodreads, my reading has been going down year after year so this year I'm really trying to spend more time reading. Last year, I managed to read a whole of 20 books (from a goal of 52!) and I did enjoy quite a lot of the books I read. I also DNF-ed a couple books which is a good thing for me because I used to be that person who could not leave a book unread. 

Here are some of my favourite books that I read in 2017, in no particular order. 
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Animal Farm by George Orwell
I did watch the movie sometime ago and enjoyed it, and the book definitely added to that. What a wonderfuly written book ad what an insightfula nd thought provoking message it was  giving. I did not enoy 1984's prose but this book was definitely easier to read and I enjoyed it much more. 
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The Princess Saves Herself in This One by Amanda Lovelace
I really love poetry and especially this kind, the one that doesn't necessarily rhyme. I know a lot of people really dislike it but this book was so beautifula nd I could realte to so many of the poems, it was so very overwhelmingly good.
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The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein
What a short but a heauntingly beautiful book with a very deep, prfound message. I really enjoyed this book and it kept me wondering for days about the message of the book. I think everyone should read this book at least once in their lifetime.
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The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Steig Larsson
I cannot believe I haven't read this series yet because I really love thrillers like this and I cannot wait to see the movie of this one. I immensely enjoyed the book, it's twists and turns and the writing. 
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Sofia Khan is Not Obliged by Ayesha Malik
Can I just say I am LOVING that muslim fiction and South Asian fiction is having a moment on mainstream bookish stuff and I am here for all of it. This book was a bit cheesy but I enjoyed it a lot. The writing can be a bit flowery sometimes but overall, it was a nice, quick read and I LOVED seeing a hijabi main character.
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Milk and Honey by Rupi Kaur
Another poetry book. I really love Kaur's words, she is able to just convey everything through her words. I also adore her artworks and I already have her new book and I'm hopefully gonna get into it this year. 
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Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon 
I liked this book as well. It was nice, and a very quick read. I enjoyed it for what it was. I don't really remember much of it which sounds crazy haha, again, waiting to see the movie soon. 
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The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri
This is one of the best books I've read. It is so beautifully written and it's extremely detailed into the lives of the characters and the setting in 60's India is just perfect. I enjoyed this book so veyr much. I've added everything Lahiri has written into by TBR because this book had that amazing quality that ust draws you in. 
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Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult
This is another heavy book but Picoult has written so well about it. I enjoyed reading the eprspective it was written in and even sympathized with the characters. It doen't necessarily end on a good ntoe but overall, the reading experince was quite marvelous. 
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Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom
I really liked Albom's books and this is his most critically acclaimed work so I had to get into it and I did enjoy it for what it was. It's one of the few non-fics I have read last year and I do like sappy life books so it was nice. 

While I'm at it, I'll also post some books I did not enjoy as much as I hoped I would. 
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The Astronaut Wives Club by Lily Koppel
I started it in 2015 and sort of forgot about it ebcause it was foscing too much on things that doesnt really matter when they were in the midst of the space travel but I did manage to finish it this year and while I am greteful to know more about the golen space years and the women behind the scenes at home, it doesn't necessarily give me any more about them and it was written very superficically. 
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Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card 
Apparantly this book is very well known and I had no idea. I did enjoy the premise of the book but I could not relate to any character and writing seemed so very preach-e and some of the ideas in in were so backward. I definitely did not enjoy some parts of the book. 

What were the books you enjoyed reading last year?

Wednesday, January 3, 2018

2017 Highlights

2017 was definitely my best year so far. So much happened and I am so very grateful for all the good and the bad. It was a year of laughter and learning and I managed to do so much within the space of a year and grow (hopefully into a better person). Above are some highlights of my year. The best parts were the ones spent in good company and the ones where there were lots of laughter. 
The year started with quite possibly the largest trip I've ever taken, with 17 people to Thulusdhoo. There were lots of stuff going on haha. 
We also participated in this scavenger hunt which was really fun, eventho we didn't win. We were The Red Five. 
My friends threw me a pre-birthday party which was Stranger Things themed and they even made a video. It was so overwhelmingly amazing. I mean look at that card! Here is the video. 
My birthday trip was one of my favourite trips on 2017. There were just a few friends and we had the best time at Huraa. 
The trip to Himmafushi with family is always a highlight because I freaking love that island, and my aunt makes the best food. 
I also filmed a lots of reviews and read a couple book. I'll be doing a bookish year in review soon. I also successfully finished #Booktubeathon which was great. 
We all stayed over at Starshell and it was pretty great. We had the best food and went moodh-ing and played gandu fillaa. 
We celebrated a lot of birthdays. A LOT. There were so much cake and laughter, I loved every single one of them. 
Velidhoo trip was another favourite. So many moodhu days, I really love moodhu and that's where I rejuvenate. 
We also had lots of food outings and lunches and generally I feel like 2017 was spend mostly eating, which is always great.
I also had my very own show on an actual TV network which is freaking amazing. I got to talk about books over at IceTV on Between The Lines and that was just so awesome.  
Eid trip this year was to Ihavandhoo and we had a nice time watching Eid celebrations and moodh-ing as usual. 
On the way and back from Ihavandhoo, we went over to Kulhudhuffushi, which was so very beautiful. We met up with friends from there. 
For the Fitr Eid, we went back to Bodufolhudhoo which was another really wonderful trip filled with too much Werewolf games and Iava baazee. 
And ofcourse no Bodufolhudhoo trip would be complete without a trip to Mathiveri finolhu which is honestly one of the best places in Maldives! The beach is just beauty. 
I also won a trip to Summer Island and took my sisters for a day which turned out to be pretty nice. It was a very chill weekend. 
We celebrated Mens Day with all the guys and gave them succulents, haha. 
I turned my guest room into an airbnb and we hosted a number of people which was so great. Got to find so many friends from around the world. 
I spent a lot of time working on my bullet journal and creativity and crafting, all of which were nice unwinding time. 
We went and supported our girls playing Twitsal! What a blast. 
DYM turned 5 years! I can't believe it's been that long to our little baby and it seems like it was only yesterday. 
I wrote a lot of letters. I was going to write 365 of them but only managed to write 131. Humadh helped me by leaving a couple of them in India!
I also got a MASTER'S DEGREE. Sometimes I still can't believe it because it all sounds like someone else's life. It was so much hard work but I'm here and it's just so great. As always, my family has been there with me all the way. 
And ofcourse, my friends are the best, they threw me me own graduation party! Cpomplete with Munshi (whom I adore so much!) as a guest of honour and it was so heartwarming I still cannot believe I am so lucky. 
We ended the year with a blast. a BBQ, lots of good food and quality time with the best of friends.  

It was also a year of sadness in a way because I lost two people that meant very much to me. The murder of Yaamyn is still fresh in our minds and it doesn't make sense, still. It keeps me up at nights and keeps me wondering who is next, is it me? you? 

I also lost my Thitha, who was like a second mother to me, but I like to think that she's in a better place now. May the losses teach us valuable life lessons and loving. 
and it was a year filled with more love than I know what to do with. What a year it has been.
I hope you guys had a good year too, and may 2018 be kind to us all.