Hi, my name is Becky and I’m a bookaholic…

Surprise! It’s another book tag! I found this one on the fantastic ChocolatenWaffles Blog.  This tag addresses severe bookaholism, so this one might even be good for my health. For any of you who have ever been in doubt of my book addiction, I welcome you to my world:

What do you like about buying new books?
My favourite thing about buying new books is the anticipation. Finding new stories and new characters to love and adore? Sign me up immediately. Then there’s the fact that book plots are the only ones left that routinely surprise me. Unfortunately, I watch so much TV that I’ve started to learn which camera tricks signify what the next scene will entail. But this doesn’t happen in books. I have a lot more “WTF?!” moments- both ecstatic and terrifying –  in books than in TV or movies.

How often do you buy new books?
Not as often as I’d like. If I had my way, I’d have new books each week. But I don’t have the funds and, more importantly, I don’t have the time. At the moment I have a lot more free time than I usually do to read, but when uni goes back in February? Goodbye coming home from work and reading for hours before making dinner. Hello catching up on lectures, studying, and doing assignments.
Right now? I think I average a new book once every two weeks. But that’s an average. Sometimes I can go weeks (months is impossible) without buying new books and other times, I buy three new books at once a few weeks in a row. I’m not the most consistent of bookaholics.

Which do you prefer, buying books online or in-store?
I much prefer buying books in-store. I find a lot of hidden gems when I walk into bookshops and pick up a book that calls to me. Hell, I never would’ve discovered Neil Gaiman if American Gods hadn’t been following me around from bookshop to bookshop for about a year.
Though I do love that I can buy books that I desperately want online when I can’t find them anywhere in my local brick-and-mortar shops. For example, I’m currently buying each BBC reissue of the Sherlock Holmes stories. Now, a logical person would buy the complete set of these stories in one volume, saving a lot of money. But I’m a fangirl, which is basically the antithesis to logic. So I’ve been slowly hunting down each book. Unfortunately, I have to buy these from Amazon or directly from the BBC. I’m only missing a few now, though! #fangirldedication

Do you have a favourite bookshop?
As much as I would love to give you the name of an independent bookshop that I go to every week, I can’t. As a uni student, I find independent bookshops too expensive for me. So, my favourite bookshop is the Dymocks in Brisbane City. It’s two storeys, with the first storey holding gorgeous stationery and unique “who-thought-of-this-for-a-gift-idea?-I-must-own-it” bookish presents. The second story is the most well-stocked bookshop I’ve ever had the pleasure of walking into. And, not only this, Dymocks Brisbane City often hosts bookish events down the back among the reference and money-handling books. You know, the books people only buy when they have been told to by a higher-up.
I love the plush red carpet and the pine bookshelves of Dymocks. But, most of all, I love that there are armchairs and ottomans placed sporadically throughout the store so you can settle in and start to read for a bit before you buy a book that’s caught your fancy. This place is a bookworm’s paradise.

Do you preorder books?
Yes. If it is the latest instalment in a favourite series, or if it’s a specific release, like limited edition signed copies. There usually has to be a very good reason for me to preorder a book.

Do you have a monthly book buying limit?
My book-buying budget is planned like this:
Me-to-my-conscience: “If I buy this, can I eat for the rest of this month?”
Conscience-to-me: “No. Put the book down.”
Me-to-my-conscience: “Are you suuuurrrrreeeee?”
Conscience-to-me: “Yes. For the love of God, put the book down and walk away.”
Me-to-my-conscience: “But—”
Conscience-to-me: “No. Now.”

Book buying bans – are they something for you?
In a sense. If, after a while, I realise that my TBR list is out of hand, I limit myself to only buying books that belong to any of the series that happen to be on that list. At present, I can only buy books from the Rivers of London, Lunar Chronicles, and Sherlock Holmes series. That way, I can still get my retail therapy, but I’m not being overly fiscally irresponsible.

How big is your wish list?
Immeasurable. And I do mean that literally. I can’t measure how many books I wish for because I don’t know all of the books that are out there, now and books that will be out there in the future. My wish list grows every time I go into a bookshop, every time I go online, and every time I open my inbox and read blog reviews by all of you lovely people. My wish list is ever-expanding.

Which three books from your wish list do you want to own now?
Honestly? It would be The Last Hours trilogy by Cassandra Clare. This series follows the children of the characters in The Infernal Devices trilogy. So, you know what that means, right? More Will Herondale!

….

Well, that’s it! My bookish confessions. How many of these resonate with you? Anything that you do differently to me? Let me know!

And, as always, if this tag has tickled your fancy, feel free to give it a go!

Advertisement