Top Twelve Books I Re-read Constantly

This week's Top Ten Tuesday is actually "Books I Could Re-read Forever," but I decided to put a little bit of a spin on it (not much, mind you). There are a handful of books that I regularly flip through and read passages of over and over, and it is these ones that I want to share with you this week. Thanks as always to the host That Artsy Reader Girl for this topic. Of course since this really is a list of tried and true favourites of mine, I'm sure you will have heard me mention most (if not all) of them previously. Here we go!

1) Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine
2) The Island by Gary Paulsen
3) Persuasion by Jane Austen
4) The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
5) Rose in Bloom by Louisa May Alcott
6) The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen

Black Panther (Spoiler Free Review)

Once again I have decided to review a movie that I've watched in theatres, so maybe I'm breaking my rule of reviewing these...we'll see. This review will essentially be spoiler free, but please be advised that little plot details may be mentioned in order to explain a point. If you don't wish to know even the littlest things about the movie, I would recommend returning after you've seen it. Otherwise, you should be good to continue reading.

marvel.com

What It's About:

T'Challa, son of recently deceased king T'Chaka is now the heir to the throne of Wakanda. After being accepted by the tribes he will then be crowned king and gain the powers of the Black Panther - a secret to those outside of Wakanda. Yet this African nation has a much bigger secret, vibranium. Built on a mountain of the strongest metal in the world, vibranium powers their cities, weapons, technology and more - but on the surface, Wakanda is an impoverished country only known for farming. Their only struggle here is hiding this invaluable treasure from the rest of the world. But what T'Challa did not count on is that he must now atone for the mistakes of  the past kings - the fate of his entire country depends on it.

Why You'll Love It:

All About Me

This is a follow-up to my recent post about Clockwork Bibliotheca turning one year old, which you can see here. Thanks so much to everyone who sent me questions - I really appreciate them all! Apparently some people are having problems posting anonymous comments, so if you have noticed that issue I recommend trying out another browser (specifically try Chrome perhaps) and see if that helps. I have taken a look at things on my end and it says that they should be allowed, so fingers crossed. Otherwise, the comment form on the right side of the page doesn't seem to be having any problems.

Now that all of the business stuff is out of the way, on to the questions!

Blog Questions

What made you think of starting this blog?
The library that I work at once had a series of blogs regarding different topics, and I was hoping to be able to become a writer for those. They ended up shutting them down (for a variety of reasons), but I still had the desire to blog. So eventually I just took it upon myself to start the Clockwork Bibliotheca.

Where did the name Clockwork Bibliotheca come from?
Well, there are a few reasons for it. First off, I really like Latin, so that was definitely a big influence for me. I also really enjoy the Steampunk aesthetic, and gears and clocks and that sort of thing. So, not only was I able to combine these elements together, but I also wanted something that to me really exemplified the feeling of a library, which is this multitude of little pieces that work together to make something function quite beautifully. There were a few other little influences here and there, but essentially, that was it.

How often do you spend working on the blog?
It definitely varies from day to day, but I spend at least a few minutes on here at minimum every day just to check comments and such. Usually every few days I spend an hour or so on here either starting a new post, or slowly plugging away at posts I am stuck on. I also spend time on Goodreads and looking up posts from bloggers that I follow at least once a week.

How long do you think you'll keep at blogging?
I'm hoping for a few years at least! I don't entirely know what direction this blog will take, or what the frequency of posts will be like, but I do hope to maintain it. As I am making my work in libraries into my career, it should be something not too difficult for me to keep up with for several years...fingers crossed.

Top Twelve Tortured Romances

This week's Top Ten Tuesday from That Artsy Reader Girl is a Love Freebie in honour of Valentine's Day tomorrow, so I decided to do a bit of a bummer spin on it for kicks. I am a huge sucker for angsty and tortured romances, so that's my choice for today. Although most of these are from books, I threw in a few that I have only watched the shows of.

Tortured/Angsty Romances

1) Jace and Clary (The Mortal Instruments - Cassandra Clare)

2) Heathcliff and Cathy (Wuthering Heights - Emily Brontё)

3) Will and Tessa (The Infernal Devices - Cassandra Clare)

4) Sookie and Eric (The Southern Vampire Mysteries/True Blood - Charlaine Harris)

5) Maxim and the second Mrs. de Winter (Rebecca - Daphne du Maurier)

6) Jane Eyre and Mr. Rochester (Jane Eyre - Charlotte Brontё)

7) Elide and Lorcan (Empire of Storms - Sarah J. Maas)

Mini Reviews: Before I Fall, Dear Fahrenheit 451

Working on one of my goals for this year, I wanted to try and get a brief review out for those things that I was having a hard time writing about (whether because I was uninspired, had tons going on, or whatever other reason). It's definitely more important to share a brief review (in my opinion!) than it is to struggle through one that you are having a hard time with and making your work sub par and/or not an accurate picture of how you feel about something. Anyway, here we go!

Before I Fall (2017)
I haven't read the book this movie was based on (by Lauren Oliver), so I can't say how accurate it is, but I did enjoy the film. Although it involves a lot of repetition, it was well done so that it doesn't feel like it goes on forever. I thought the cast was good and everyone felt like they fit the role they were given. The ending had me feeling a bit funny, but glad I watched it.

thefilmstage.com

Happy 1st Birthday to Clockwork Bibliotheca!

We made it! The first post on Clockwork Bibliotheca was officially one year ago, and man has the time ever flown by! In all honesty I didn't know the exact date that I started this blog, but I knew it was coming up soon. So when I checked today, it was a nice surprise to find out that the milestone day was already here!

Top Ten Books That Have Been On My TBR the Longest

As you might know, I'm doing a challenge this year to work on items from my TBR, however I have decided to choose items for this TTT that do not already appear on there. There's a tiny bit of an overlap from last week's TTT where I did Ten Books I Can't Believe I Read...and Haven't Read, but I tried to mostly pick new ones. Anyway, thanks are in order for That Artsy Reader Girl for yet again another fun Top Ten Tuesday list.

1. The Golden Compass by Phillip Pullman
2. Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery
3. The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux
4. Emma by Jane Austen
5. The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau

Blog-Along: Ever After

If you haven't read any of my previous blog-alongs, it's exactly what it sounds like: while I'm watching a movie, mini-series, etc. I detail my thoughts as they come. Now, I do edit them a bit afterwards to avoid too much repetition, and I try to be careful to not have anything more than minimal spoilers, but otherwise it is my reactions of the moment. For the ultimate experience, pop the movie on and follow along with me!

Today's movie is...

Ever After: A Cinderella Story

radiotimes.com

Although I watched this movie several times as a child, it's been quite a while since I have seen it, and was I excited to give it a revisit. Drew Barrymore plays Danielle, the orphaned child who is forced to work for her new stepmother. This interesting take on the classic Cinderella tale (as the story claims, this is what really happened) keeps true to the beloved fairytale, but introduces a kick-butt, independent heroine that all ages can appreciate.

           Play by Play

• Ah yes, the costuming. Some of it's beautiful, and some of it always makes me laugh. The hairstyles however, are fantastic.
• Reading Thomas More's Utopia, eh? Next, a bit of light reading...
• A true lady knows how to pelt a man with apples. Good aim girl, good aim.
• I love how they all have French names...as one of the original versions is in French
• Danielle's (Drew Barrymore) accent is pretty bad though