An Abundance of Books

Now that Christmas break is practically upon us, I have been hard at work planning and stocking my personal and virtual shelves with plenty of books to read over break. I am a big fan of all kinds of literature -- new and old -- and I love discovering new favorites and filling my bookshelves with them!

Probably one of my favorite places to learn about books, new and old, is Goodreads! This social site allows literature lovers to unite through their favorite thing, literature. I go to the pages I follow and just scroll through all of the books on their "Read" bookshelf just so I can see what kind of books my friends enjoy and then add them to my virtual shelves. I also love the fact that Goodreads has free ebooks, making reading really simple. I have the app and I just download plenty of books from Goodreads so that I can read them wherever, whenever (I am currently reading The Beautiful and the Damned by F. Scott Fitzgerald and I am LOVING it!) and it is so convenient -- definitely a novelty for literature enthusiasts! I love going through and reading reviews written by ordinary people on books that I have heard about and interested in! Goodreads is such an amazing community and I am proud to say that I spend the majority of my free time there (feel free to follow or friend me on Goodreads)!

As much as I love books, buying books can get pretty expensive. My Barnes and Noble Membership card has cut down on the cost a bit, but I have started buying a lot of my books from Half. Half is connected to Ebay and is a place where people can sell books and textbooks, new and used, for cheap prices. I have bought many a book from this website that were $9.00 new at B&N for $3.50, used and new, on Half! I love Half because I can find almost any book I want on there. The only downside is the time spent waiting between clicking "order" and the book hitting your doorstep (I can't think of a more anticipating feeling) because, if you are anything like me, you are going to want to start your book the moment you purchase it. I also enjoy stopping by my local library on my way home from school (it's a bit out of the way but what do I care?) to check out the selections there and see if they have anything new! As much as I love the prices of Half and the wonder that is a library, I am still partial to the convenience and selection of my local B&N and BAM.

Books are wonderful things. I can not think of anything more relaxing than just sitting down with a good book, it is by far my favorite activity and one that I don't get to do enough. I can't wait to spend next week at my local B&N and BAM picking out the books to fill my shelves for the new year!

"There is no friend as loyal as a book" - Ernest Hemingway