#yeeeee ty simon!!

[manchestereyes]

3, 4, and 25 for the book asks!

3. what were your top five books of the year?

ooooh this is gonna be so hard because i give out 5 stars like they’re candy lol but the ones that stuck with me the most (and that i’m already dying to reread) would have to be cemetery boys by aiden thomas, the house in the cerulean sea by tj klune, honey girl by morgan rogers, one last stop by casey mcquiston, and boyfriend material by alexis hall! (with honorary mentions to heartstopper, perfect on paper, and if this gets out because again—soooo hard to choose!!)

4. did you discover any new authors that you love this year?

ooooh yeah! aiden thomas immediately comes to mind, as i picked up cemetery boys early in the year to see what all the hype was about and was FLOORED by how much i loved it. it’s so fun but hits all the best queer notes too—found family, feeling like an outcast and desperately wanting to prove yourself, and an absolutely off the charts romance. while his second book was a bit too scary for me, i still can’t wait to see what he does next, as i really love his world building and infusion of latinx culture. and while i technically read only mostly devastated last year, that was in december so sophie gonzales absolutely deserves a shout out here too, since i freaking devoured perfect on paper and if this gets out. i really love how she puts her psychology background into her characters since it helps me see why they are the way that they are. and some of those flaws hit so deep (hello insecure attachment) but in the best way because some of us really need to read about that and see that things will turn out alright for someone like us, you know?

25. what reading goals do you have for next year?

considering that i’ll be student teaching the first half of the year (which is basically as much work as being a teacher, just without the pay) and potentially starting my first year of teaching in the fall (although it’s not looking likely right now, as i’m thinking i’d rather be a librarian), i’ll be happy if i can get through 2 books a month lol. beyond that, i’m always trying to read more diversely and i think i’m gonna try being a mood reader once i finish all my library books. i’m hoping that by choosing what i feel like reading/am most excited to dive into rather than having a set order of things to read will help prevent reading slumps. oh and i’m almost done with schitt’s creek and will absolutely be reading fic as soon as i finish because i’m not ready to say goodbye to these characters yet 🥺 (so if anyone seeing this has any recs, pls send them over!) i also really wanna be more active on my bookstagram since i kinda gave up on it this fall (yay seasonal depression) and i miss connecting with the community on there, even if photography is hard af hahaha. idk what that’ll look like yet—maybe posting once or twice a week to start, but i’ll just have to see how i can squeeze it in. you can follow me at @a.lifelongreader over there though if you want to join the fun!

book asks!