Book Haul!

Hello guys!! Today, I am going to share with you the collection of books I have recently purchased, as I'm really starting to get back into the whole reading and shopping for books thing, it's fun!! 

I am aware that one of my most recent posts is also about books, and features some of the same books, but this is slightly different, and much more recent, so enjoy!!

SO, I have two books by Jonas Jonasson - The Hundred Year Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared (thank you Emma!!), and Hitman Anders and the Meaning of It All... First impressions - this author likes long titles. I was curious about these because I saw someone I follow on Instagram post one, and it looked interesting. Since then, I've been wanting to read them. And now I can. Read the synopsis of Hitman Anders here, and The Hundred Year Old Man here. 

When I was book shopping after an interview, I came across The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time (author - Mark Haddon), which I am currently reading. The synopsis is here, and I strongly recommend it to fans of The Perks of Being a Wallflower, and Looking For Alaska. 

What's A Girl Gotta Do by Holly Bourne is another recent purchase, and I have to say, it's mighty good! I didn't realise that it's actually the third in a series, as it works so well as a stand-alone book. It's all about feminism, growing up, and coping with the stress of school and college life. (Full synopsis here). I flew through this book, and really enjoyed it, I loved that it touched on some pretty interesting feminism issues, and it's definitely worth checking out, especially if you enjoyed Paper Towns or Catlin Moran's How to Be a Woman/How to Build a Girl. 

A bit of a stab-in-the-dark book for me is The Rest of Us Just Live Here, by Patrick Ness. It sparked my interest, and as it was buy one, get one half price in Waterstones, I couldn't say no!! Read the synopsis by clicking here. 

One of the new books that I've had for a while is Inferno, by Dan Brown. With extracts of Dante's Inferno, this is the fourth book following Professor Robert Langdon, as he solves crimes and investigates various murders, etc. I've read quite a few Dan Brown books, and while they are a bit tricky to follow sometimes, they are really good, so I couldn't not buy this one! You can read what it's about here. 

Finally, my last new book is the script edition of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. All I can say is wow. The story was incredible, so interesting and fast-paced, I really loved it! I can definitely recommend it for any Harry Potter fan. It's what we've all been waiting for!! Synopsis here... Not that you need it if you're a Harry Potter fan!! 

And that concludes my book haul, I hope you enjoyed it!

Bye!

- Dottie x

Peaceful Moments and Perfect Days...

I don't know if you've ever had such a lovely, carefree day that you go to sleep feeling so relaxing, and completely at peace with yourself, and you wake up the next day feeling oh so happy... But those days happen every so often for me. It's usually when I get out of the house, and spend time with people that matter. Those people could be my parents, my boyfriend, my sisters, or my best friends, it doesn't matter. What matters is the time that I'm spending with them, and how happy they make me. 

A few times now, I've gone for walks with my boyfriend, and it's so lovely to walk along in the beautiful sunshine (because going outside in the rain is gross), and to know that this wonderful human exists, and he's mine, and I'm his, and we love each other... I love those days... And then there's being able to mess around and laugh until I cry with my amazing best friends... Those people know how to cheer me up, even if no one else does! 

Yesterday, I went for a walk with my parents, and we took the dogs. We ended up at the most beautiful place, bathed in evening sunlight and surrounded by beautiful green trees... We saw a few wild boar, and hear birds and insects. The dogs were running around, and they looked so happy. It was so lovely, blissful and serene. We walked up a huge hill, and at the top, there were some big rocks that overlooked a quarry. Of course, I had to climb on them to get a photo! (see above!)

Then we were walking back to the car, and I was just taking photos of the sky, and the sunset, and it was so lovely. I felt genuinely happy, and at peace, and that's a beautiful feeling. Then, when we got home, we made mugs of tea, got snuggly sweaters, and sat outside around a fire, watching the stars. My older sister, her boyfriend, and my younger sister joined us, and we were all sat outside, stargazing, and talking. I cannot explain why moments like these mean so much to me, but I really, truly appreciate them. 
I feel like the world shows me these beautiful moments to remind me that it's not all bad. 

I hope you're all having a nice day/evening/night/whatever, and that peaceful, serene moments find you soon. 

Dottie x

The MUSIC Tag!

Hello there! Today I am going to be doing the music tag! Yay! This means I will actually be completing a tag post from someone!! You should be proud of me! 

So, I was tagged by the simply wonderful Erin over at The Vinyl Notebook, and you should most definitely read what she wrote here. (It's GIF central, but her music taste is impeccable, so go see her for a m a z i n g recommendations!)   

As with all tag posts, there are certain rules, and I'm going to just borrow these from Erin, because she wrote them wonderfully! 
So, the rules are as follows: 

1. Thank the dude or dudette who tagged you in this radical post and link back to their blog. 
2. Answer the questions below. 
3. Tag some bloggers! 
4. Add your own question to the tag for your nominees to answer.
5. Include these rules in your post. 

SO, thank you so much for tagging me Erin, because this has made me super excited to blog!! 

Question One: Do you play any instruments? 

Well, funny you should ask this... I own three guitars, a bass, and a ukulele... I can play three guitars to an alright standard... Bass, I play less than mediocre, and ukulele... Hah, I can play a C chord... 

You see, I play instruments when I remember that I do so... Which, thanks to Netflix, and books, and internet, and seeing people... That doesn't happen very often. But, I am trying to get back into it, and am learning Slaves' song The Hunter and Biffy Clyro's There's No Such Thing As A Jaggy Snake... They're pretty snazzy songs! 

Question Two: What is your favourite music genre? 

Okay, so this is difficult. I listen to anything from Enter Shikari to Johnny Cash to Blondie to Twenty One Pilots. My favourite genre is probably rock, as there are so many different sub-genres, that it pretty much covers everything I listen to... 

Question Three: Is there a music genre you absolutely cannot stand? 

Not really. I guess I'm not a fan of the more typical Top 40s charts stuff, like Rita Ora, Rhianna, etc. Sorry, pals. Not my thing. 

Question Four: What is your favourite way to listen to music? (CD, vinyl, MP3, radio, etc.) 

Each of these formats has their own advantages and disadvantages, which I'm going to write about... CDs are hard-wearing, compact, and pretty cheap. Most cars have CD players, so that's convenient, but CDs also take up a lot of space (I should know, my house is filled with them!), and they can get damaged... Vinyl is just so awesome, but more expensive, even bigger and easier to damage than CDs and you need to get up to turn over the disc... MP3 is so great, it means you can transport so much music on such a small device, but buying digital music just feels so weird. Radio has presenters, which is annoying, but hearing your favourite song or band on the radio is so epic... But, in answer to the question posed, my favourite way of listening to music is live, as you feel the emotion, and it's an experience unlike any other. 

Question Five: Top three favourite bands/singers?

1. Biffy Clyro. Without a doubt. Scottish (prog?) rock? Yes please!! 
2. Less Than Jake, because they're a brilliant, funny live band, and it's just fun to listen to ska punk. 
3. Dead! because they're some of the loveliest guys I've had the pleasure of meeting, and they're definitely going somewhere pretty fast!

Then there is also Blondie, Twin Atlantic, Fort Hope, Twenty One Pilots, Johnny Cash, Jack Cookson, Ben Howard, Royal Blood, Marmozets, Enter Shikari, Foreign Affairs, George Ezra, Gorillaz, Nirvana, and about a million others... 

Question Six: What are your favourite chords? 

Em7, Dsus4, Cadd9, and G, because combined, they create my favourite Biffy Clyro song, Machines. 

Erin's Question: If you had to pick one song to sum up your entire life, youur very essence, the core of your being, which song would you pick? 

This is incredibly difficult to answer... My life has had both highs and lows, and the only song I can think to represent this is Life Is  A Rollercoaster by Ronan Keating. Listen here.  

For this post, I tag... Sam Denby at The Wonderful World of Denby! Sara at Her Electric Ocean! and Lauryn at Life of a Blonde! 

The question I'd like you guys to answer is who influenced your music taste, and shaped it to become what it is today? 

Thank you for taking the time to read my little post! Until next time!

Dottie x

Things I Should Be Doing Instead of Reading Harry Potter and the Cursed Child...

It's here. It's finally here! The eighth instalment in the Harry Potter series.The book we all thought would never exist... And it's here. I purchased it yesterday. Started it when I got home... Finished it around an hour ago... (If I hadn't had work today, it would have taken less than twelve hours... No way would I have slept...) 

And, as every book lover does, I put off things of importance because this book was just too good not to read... And now for a #relatable (cringe!) post, for all of those who, like I, have put off anything important... 

So, whilst I was reading, I should have been:

• Tidying my room. It's a mess..
• Looking online for interview tips, and generally preparing for my interview that is tomorrow... Eep! 
• Getting a decent night's sleep, for work. 
• Sorting out my nails, as they're kinda too long, and the polish was really chipped...
• Eating. 
• Playing guitar. 
• Writing. 
• Reading A Game of Thrones because I'm halfway through it, and now I'll have to start it again. 
• Going for a walk. 
• Talking to my family. 
• Looking after my poorly boyfriend. 
• Cuddling my dogs. 
• Cleaning my Docs. 
• Not spending money on books...

There is so much more that I should have done, but hey, at least I didn't call into work to say I'm sick! 

If you haven't started reading this book yet, get on it, it really is incredible! 

Okay. Now I actually have stuff to be getting on with. And so do you... Go read!!

Bye!

- Dottie x

Five Things About My Life Right Now...

Hello all! It's been a while since I wrote anything interesting, or worthwhile, and I figured if you're all as nosy as me, you'd be interested to know what I've been up to.
So, here are five things about my life right now... 

1. I have been working twice a week since the start of July. I almost quit after my second shift, but now I'm not finding it as bad. 
2. I am still learning to drive, after around nine months of weekly lessons. But I'm getting there slowly! 
3. Currently, I am reading A Game of Thrones, and it's extremely good; George R. R. Martin writes incredibly well, and the characters are so well crafted! 
4. I spent my first paycheck on makeup, and intend to buy a NYX lipstick next time I'm in town... 
5. I'm trying to be more organised and write blog posts, but I've been caught up in watching both Pretty Little Liars (season six!!!), and Sherlock... Ooops!

So there we are, a quick little list post filled with very uninteresting updates on my life! I hope you guys enjoyed this, hahah! 

Bye for now, 

Dottie x

The World is a Confusing Place...

The world is huge. I know so many people will say "oh, it's a small world!" and I suspect this is with a hint of irony. 
I am someone who has never travelled, never left the UK, and I would love to. There are so many people in this world, with different thoughts and emotions, different lives and different stories. Isn't that amazing? Each person has a different story to tell, different things that keep them getting up each morning... 

The world is huge, and the world is beautiful. There are some truly awful things happening around it right now, which I won't go into detail on, as that's not the point of this post, but I believe that despite all of the bad, the fear, and the hatred, people are predominantly good. I try to mostly associate myself with wonderful, kind people, and this works. All those around me that I love are the most wonderful, caring human beings that I would in no way wish to change, or replace. And there are people like that everywhere, if you know where to look, and what to look out for. 
I see so much scapegoating, and finger-pointing, trying to find blame for the state of the world right now. We are protecting ourselves against ourselves... We are all humans, on a planet that is fragile, and I don't understand how people haven't realised this yet... I don't understand how the world works, or the thirst for power that some have... 

I want to explore, and know more about the planet that I call 'home'. There are vast, endless deserts out there, and harsh, violent tundras... Complex, magical rainforests and cities that are bustling with people from the four corners of the earth... It's incredible, and I want to know so much more than I do about the world... 

I don't really know where I'm going with this. I guess I am trying to say that one person is but a minuscule dot on a map; in the grand scheme of things, I am insignificant, as is what I do. But that doesn't mean I shouldn't try to do something great. That is no excuse for being a bad person. Like I said, I believe people to be primarily good, yet some see their awful actions as justified... If everyone did, the world would end up in even more chaos.. But, we are good. We know what is right. And little things add up... 

If each of us do our part to be good people, it helps. You'll make someone's day. Smile at them. Be a wonderful human. 

Dottie x

Why Do I Write?

When I was younger, I would spend hours sitting at the computer, in the little 'office' room in my house, and write stories... These stories weren't particularly original, or well written, but I enjoyed it, taking these thoughts in my head, and putting them into little black squiggles that made some sort of sense... I loved to create new people, and these other worlds that I could take myself... Much like reading, I used it as an escape... 
And now, today? I still write. I write my blog, on the odd occasion, I write in my journal things too personal, or complicated to blog, and I write album and gig reviews for Jurassic Press. Each of these things, I enjoy. 

I like journaling, as it is an outlet for all of these thoughts and emotions that get too complicated and tangled inside the cramped space in my own head. Writing everything out on paper helps more than you can imagine. Just focusing on the pen in my hand, and turning the blank page into one filled with these confusing feelings, and expectations, and conclusions is incredibly therapeutic, and something that I need to do more often. 

The enjoyment I find in writing music reviews is so immense that I am definitely considering this as a future university course, and maybe eventually a career path... I did always say that I wanted to be a writer... I feel a sense of pride when my review gets published online, and finding out new ways to describe a band, and summarise a gig, or an album makes me appreciate myself, for finding the words to portray how I experienced a song, or a gig, particularly because sometimes, it can be difficult, and each person experiences things differently.. The second live review I wrote was of Enter Shikari's gig in February. I spent hours in front of my laptop screen, using an online thesaurus, and notes that I'd hastily scribbled down before I fell into bed, exhausted from a day at college, and then standing for hours... (You can check it out by clicking here). I'm particularly proud of those last few sentences that summarise the gig.. 

And finally, this place. My little corner of the Internet, the land of the Teenage Dirtbags, who had punk phases and emo phases, and have no where else to put their thoughts. I write this blog because it gives me a platform, it's essentially my own little soap box, where I can voice the things I don't really know how to talk about. I am so not a talker.. I like seeing how each post I make reaches people in different places, different corners of the world. I like seeing this little place grow, and each comment people make warms my heart and makes me smile, even if I never get round to replying and thanking you. This blog gives me a place where I can show my intelligence (hopefully) and create content that I can be proud of. I've been blogging for a while now, I mean, this place has been going since around December 2014, and I had a different blog for around a year before that. There are still so many things that I don't know, but I hope to learn them, and get somewhere from this tiny little place. 
I enjoy what I do, I love literature, and words, and language. I like to share, and discuss, and see progress. I made this blog, I designed the header, and took photographs, and am starting to see something that I can be proud of. 

I love that. And if you're reading this, I love you; you've taken time out to check out what I do, and see who I am, and read the thoughts in my head. That means a lot, and I am incredibly grateful. 

Thank you. 
- Dottie x