#BookXcess is just like that

[sanpape]

fucked up severely and accidentally picked up dreadful company cause I had no Idea it was the second book in the series.

[quitefair]

this country has no good bookstores anymore (except kino)

[spaceraccoon02]

A Bookish Date Adventure

It was a bright Saturday morning when I woke up with a sense of excitement buzzing in my chest. Today was the day I had planned a special date with my girlfriend at BookXcess in MyTown. We both loved books, and I couldn’t wait to explore the shelves together.

After a quick breakfast, I met her at the MRT station. The moment I saw her, my heart skipped a beat. She looked radiant, her eyes sparkling with anticipation. “Ready for an adventure?” I asked, grinning.

“Absolutely!” she replied, her smile contagious.

We hopped onto the MRT, the train rumbling to life as we settled into our seats. We chatted about our week, sharing stories and laughter, the city whizzing by outside the window. It felt so good to be together, and the excitement of our destination only added to the thrill.

Arriving at the MyTown station, we stepped out and walked hand in hand toward BookXcess. The moment we entered, the familiar scent of new books enveloped us. The store was beautifully designed, with colorful displays and cozy nooks inviting us to explore.

“Let’s see who can find the quirkiest book!” I suggested playfully. She raised an eyebrow, game for the challenge. We split up, diving into the aisles filled with stories waiting to be discovered.

I browsed through various sections, finding a humorous book titled *“The Art of Not Giving a F*ck.”* I chuckled to myself, imagining her reaction. Meanwhile, she was lost in the fantasy section, her face lighting up as she discovered a stunning hardcover of a series we both loved.

After a while, we regrouped at the reading nook, our arms full of books. “Look what I found!” I said, holding up my quirky find. She burst into laughter, and I couldn’t help but smile at how much joy it brought us.

“I think mine wins,” she said, revealing the beautiful fantasy book with a cover that sparkled in the light. We both agreed to add our picks to our reading lists, excited to share them with each other later.

Next, we decided to take a break at the café inside the bookstore. We ordered lattes and a slice of rich chocolate cake to share. As we sat down, the cozy atmosphere wrapped around us like a warm hug. We talked about our favorite childhood books, reminiscing about stories that had shaped us.

“I still can’t believe you were obsessed with *Harry Potter*,” I teased. She playfully rolled her eyes, but her smile showed she didn’t mind.

After finishing our snacks, we explored the local author section. I picked up a debut novel by a writer from Johor, intrigued by the cover and the blurb. “Let’s support local talent!” I said, and she nodded enthusiastically.

With our new treasures in hand, we decided to browse through the stationery section, admiring beautiful notebooks and pens. We both loved to write, and it felt special to share that passion together.

As we wrapped up our day, the sun began to set outside, casting a warm glow through the bookstore windows. We made our way back to the MRT station, talking about what we’d read first and planning our next adventure.

Once inside the MRT, we squeezed into a corner, laughter and chatter filling the air as we shared our plans for the day. As we approached our stop, I realized that this date had been more than just about books; it was about connection, laughter, and shared moments.

As we stepped off the train, I knew that days like this, filled with simple joys and love, were what made our relationship truly special.

[hocusbogus]

Journal Entry: 12 June 2023

4:12 PM

I haven’t cried since Friday. But I cried on Friday night because of Queen Charlotte the Netflix series, the final episode’s ending scene was just so heartwarming. I’ve been triggered like that from time to time.

I wouldn’t say that I am completely okay now, but I do see some progress, and I know that progress is not linear and I can go up and down, but today as of this moment I am okay and I am optimistic. I am looking forward to a lot of things, although tomorrow is never guaranteed but it helps to look forward to things, at least for me.

It’s not even huge things sometimes, this week I am looking forward to the lunches I am having with my ex colleagues, and then I am seeing Jasmine on Sunday. I’m also not beating myself up for not being “productive”, I just do what I can and be gentler to myself. I am however trying to focus more on improving my diet and physical activity, especially now that I’ve had covid twice, I need to work extra to maintain my health, not just maintain but also improve my health.

I wanted to plan some personal time for my birthday, I haven’t thought of anything yet, I haven’t decided on whether I want company or I wanted to be alone. I just want a change of scenery.

I really enjoyed my alone time last Saturday, after dropping off my car at the service centre I head to Starling and bought an astrology book at BookXcess, I then proceeded to the book cafe and had breakfast while reading a book and listening to music. It feels so good, I haven’t felt that in awhile. 

The contentment you get from being around people you love versus the contentment you get from being alone are totally different. It felt slightly like cosplaying when I first do it, but eventually it just feels so satisfying. I am planning to have some quality alone time this Saturday as well.

We’ll see!

[yugtostudio]

He soared through the sky with his trusty book by his side. As he turned each page, his travels went out far and wide. . We showed this to one of the guys from BookXcess and his comment was, “Oooh, how about we stretch his arm out all the way up!". While I was hoping that he’d look like Superman, he became Mr. Fantastic with a cape instead and it worked out really, really well. I’m still more of a DC fanboy than a Marvel one but just shows how important it is to keep an open mind when it comes to, well... life really. . To people at home, hang in there guys. I found picking up a book the best way to pass the time and to keep my head occupied. We’ll all get through this soon. Keep staying safe! . #mural #superhero #flying #imagination #reading #books #covid19 #stayhome #story #cafe #bookstore #wayfinding #BookXcess #Johor #JohorBahru #Sunway #SunwayBigBox #design #graphicdesign #illustration #digitalillustration #digitalart #illustrationage #illustrationartists #artistsoninstagram #yugtostudio (at Sunway Big Box) https://www.instagram.com/p/B-JBJTRpLu0/?igshid=1v4817qkkeqxi

[dustypromises]

Malaysia Day 3: Of Temples & Towers

Photo by JNVQ

On our third day in Malaysia, the places on our list in the morning are the Thean Hou Temple and the Sri Mahamariamman Temple. As I've mentioned in my previous post, I wasn't really into this before this trip, but having been able to visit and see different kinds of temples, I found myself getting more curious about each of its history.

In Sri Mahamariamman Temple, I was once again asked to wrap a cloth around my waist because I was wearing a skirt. What amazes me about Hindu temples are the detailed design of the structures and it also had me thinking why most of their temples are colorful (which I researched on when we got back from our trip). 

Anyway, the Sri Mahamariamman Temple is located inside Kuala Lumpur's Chinatown, so after visiting the temple, we walked around Kuala Lumpur's Chinatown, which, well, was pretty much like the one in the Philippines. We found a KFC branch there and had our lunch there just so we could try what their chicken tastes like.

Our next stop for the day was Masjid Jamek, where women are asked to wear a hooded dress (I'm sorry, but I don't know what it's called). It was all fun, until I realized that it was so hot and that I have sensitive skin and wearing it might trigger my allergies.

And then we went to see St. John’s Cathedral, which I sort of forgot to take a photo of, so the only photo from there that I got is this:

After the church visit, we went to this mall called Fahrenheit88 to visit BookXcess. This bookstore has an amazing wall!

back to our hotel to take advantage of our pool access at Mercu Summer Suites. They have this glass pool that is just so amazing.

Photo by JNVQ

Then at around 7-ish in the evening, we went out again to eat a light dinner at Dunkin Donuts, their all-day breakfast sandwiches are so yummy (at least, for me).

After dinner, we went to our second to the last stop for the day which is the Menara KL Tower. The view from up there was quite astonishing and what I liked more about it was the telescopes which, I swear, I can see even the insides of the other buildings. I wasn't able to get a good photo of the view from atop the tower, so here's another selfie:

For our last stop, we went to see the famous Petronas Tower because would a Malaysia trip be complete without being able to see it, right?

Photo by JNVQ

[pryngols]

It has been weeks since the Big Bad Wolf packed up their magical book wonderland, but I know a lot of Filipino bookworms are still on a book hoarding high from the recently held Big Bad Wolf Book Sale Manila 2020.

I decided to divide my haul in two parts because I don’t want this post to be too lengthy, and also because I honestly haven’t had the chance to take photos of the second batch of books that I got. Ha. And yes, I went back again and again because one can never go to BBW just once! 😅

  FICTION PICKS

First up are my fiction picks! I love how diverse the selection is, and every year I find new titles to love. Most of these have been on my wish list for some time now, like Goodbye Vitamin, The Forgotten Garden, Dracula, Elevation, and Once Upon a River. I got The Language of Dying because I love Sarah Pinborough’s writing in Behind Her Eyes and the premise is really intriguing/heartbreaking. ⁣ ⁣ In Praise of the Stepmother is one of my all time favorites. I’ve read a library copy back when I was still in university, reread it in e-book form, and now I finally have my own copy. 💗 The writing is brilliant, and there are gorgeous artworks in this edition, too. I’m just so happy and can’t wait to reread it for the third time. ⁣⁣

  NONFICTION PICKS

I was really impressed by the nonfiction books available at BBW. My usual nonfic picks are history or memoirs, and I got these for my friend who loves reading business/self-help books. These are all such great finds that I’m glad my friend always lets me borrow from her shelves! ⁣

  CHILDREN’S BOOKS ⁣

Do you still remember the very first book that hooked you into reading? ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ I don’t! But I know it was a series featuring young girls in a boarding school, they had blue covers, and the title may have had a St.—something on it 😅 The reason I don’t remember anymore is because most of the books I loved when I was a kid were only borrowed. My son is almost 4 years old and I’m helping him build his own library as early as now. He picked out all of these, plus others we had to leave behind because he just wanted too many. I wonder where he got that from!? 😂 ⁣ ⁣

ART BOOK

⁣I have a lot of favorite series and movies, and one of them is Mad Max: Fury Road (2015). It has really good writing, awesome characters + bad-ass females. That’s why I was so glad my husband was able to catch this one. It’s filled with Mad Max inspired art made by various artists and they are simply gorgeous. It’s a wonderful addition to our collection of art books. ⁣⁣

___________

That’s it for now for the first part of my BBW haul. I will share the second one as soon as my son lets me take photos in peace. 😁 Have you read any of these or did you see any title you like? ⁣Let’s chat in the comments!

If you enjoyed this post and would like to see my BBW 2019 haul, I talked about them here.

Happy place. My husband and son browsing thousands of books!

  About Big Bad Wolf Books

The Big Bad Wolf Book Sale first started in Malaysia in 2009 at Dataran Hamodal, as the brainchild of BookXcess’ founders, Andrew Yap and Jacqueline Ng. More than a Sale, the World’s Biggest Book Sale is a global reading advocacy effort. Since its inception, the Sale has evolved tremendously; going global and touring cities in Thailand, Taiwan, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Myanmar, South Korea, the Philippines, and United Arab Emirates.

The Sale offers books at amazing discounts — as high as 95%! — with the mission to cultivate reading habits around the world and to build a new generation of readers by making books more affordable and accessible to everyone.

My Big Bad Wolf Haul 2020 (Part 1) It has been weeks since the Big Bad Wolf packed up their magical book wonderland, but I know a lot of Filipino bookworms are still on a book hoarding high from the recently held…

[thehungrykat1]

Two Million Books on Sale at The Big Bad Wolf Book Fair

The biggest and baddest book sale in the world has just arrived in Manila! The Big Bad Wolf Book Sale opens its doors today starting 9:00am at the World Trade Center Manila and it brings with it over two million books at incredible 60-80% discounts! This is the first time this traveling international book fair is coming to the Philippines and I had the opportunity to get an exclusive preview pass yesterday to get my hands first on all these fantastic books and items.

The Big Bad Wolf Book Sale is a Malaysian book fair frequently held in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and Sri Lanka. Its books are primarily taken from the stocks of BookXcess, a book store dealing in excess or remaindered books from international distributors. If you love books, magazines, collectibles, and other novelty items, then head over to the World Trade Center from February 16-25, 2018 and experience a gigantic book sale like no other. By the way, the book fair will be open 24 HOURS a day. Yes, you read that right. It will be operating for 231 straight hours until midnight of February 25 to serve all its book-hungry customers, and best of all, admission is FREE.

The entire ground floor exhibit area of the World Trade Center has been transformed into a warehouse accommodating over two million books of all kinds and for all age groups. It can be a bit confusing at first because I just didn’t know where to start or how to organize my book hunting. It is advised to wear comfortable clothes and shoes because you will be doing a lot of walking and your fitbits will be very happy. Shopping carts are provided which you will need to haul your book finds.

The first book I actually saw was this Special Rehearsal Edition of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (P580). I do remember wanting to buy all the Harry Potter books when I was still young, and those wanting to complete their collections can add this to their portfolio. Most of the books I saw are priced at around P200 only, like the Hunger Games (P190) series. 

The book fair sells all kind of books covering all genres including fiction, non-fiction, novels, literature, children's literature and young adult fiction. The sections are clearly marked, but do expect to see big crowds looking and searching at the shelves during the event. This was just the preview day but there were already a lot of customers.

I thought I was just going to look around for an hour or so, but I ended up staying much longer because there were just so many beautiful and interesting items to get. Make sure to bring your credit cards or lots of cash because you will end up buying more than you initially planned.

I actually screamed (just a little bit) when I saw this Paulo Coelho Deluxe Collection Boxed Set (P1950). I have already read some of these books, so it was really difficult deciding if I should get this collector’s set. 

Two inspirational and admirable men I wanted to read about also had their biography books here, both for just around P200+ each. That’s a great bargain price for these men who pretty much shaped our civilization today.

There are also books covering Crime and Suspense, Science Fiction, Religion, Cooking, Sports, Art, and uhm... Motion Picture books as well.

I actually spent a lot of time hovering around the Fashion and Beauty sections because I wanted to have all these fabulous reference and coffee table books for myself. Most of the books you will find are in good condition and sealed in plastic, but there are sample copies of each book so you can check what’s in between the covers.

This one is quite interesting, a book about whiskeys and shaped like a whiskey bottle. I know someone who will be happy to get this as a gift.

Graphic Novels and Comic Book Trade Paperbacks are also available from Marvel, DC Comics, and other publishers. These are offered at discounted prices compared to their counterparts in comic shops.

Young teens and children will also be so happy to visit the Big Bad Wolf Book Sale because there are just dozens of sections to cater to the kids. In fact, the children’s sections occupy the biggest areas among all genres. 

There are many activity books to find like board books, coloring books and Pop-Up books. Your kids will be delirious and jumping all around the book fair so make sure to keep watch over them.

I bought a few colorful books for my nephews and nieces. Some of their birthdays are coming up so I also got some advanced birthday presents for them.

There are so many choices at the Big Bad Wolf Book Sale, so you might find your shopping cart full of books and items even before you finish. Don’t worry, there is a Customer Storage area where you can leave your carts before paying so you can go back and get another shopping cart to load with books. The Customer Sorting area also comes in handy when you find yourself to excited and getting more than you can handle. The cashiers and exits are located on the other side of the area and do expect to see some lines as well.

Here are just some of the items I ended up bringing home with me. I got a lot of Fashion books to help me on my next possible career path, and these really had great bargain prices. It’s better to bring your own sturdy shopping bags because these books are quite heavy, but they also offer their own plastic bags. Try to visit the fair during off peak hours because the crowd will definitely be maddening. Anyway, it’s open 24 hours a day for ten straight days, so there’s no excuse not to go. The Big Bad Wolf Book Sale will be an annual event from here on out, and they are hoping to bring it to other parts of the Philippines as well. I’ll definitely be looking forward to next year’s edition.

Big Bad Wolf Book Sale

World Trade Center, Pasay

February 16-25, 2018 (24 Hours a Day)

www.facebook.com/bbwbooksphilippines/

Instagram: @bbwbooksph

[azhanitim]

There are adventures we like to go on, there are adventures we like to read about, and then there are the adventures in the form of beautiful tales by Khaled Hosseini. I love the way he tried to revive the stories and culture of the Afghans diminished by wars and kept them alive in his books, just as the way Shakespeare tried to keep his love alive in Sonnet 18 masterpiece we learned in high school. I do not know enough about literature and arts but reading this was a beautiful experience. It's like reading your favourite book for the first time. (at BookXcess)