Work of Sunshine: Requested Post Wednesdays & My Personal Book Reviews

I gave it some quick consideration and decided, in order to connect more to my blog readers, I am going to ask for requests on what you guys want to read about every Wednesday. I may not blog every Wednesday but I will be accepting the requests that day and get to it the next time I decide to write!
And with that being said, I am going to kick it off with the first request I got from a much loved and adored woman who is very close to my family, Kimmy, Kimberly for long. She wants to know all about what books I would and would not recommend. I'm really excited so I'm going to jump right in! (Please excuse my hair. It's ten at night and I haven't removed my makeup yet but I have thrown my hair out of the way and I didn't feel the need to get pretty for a book post.)
If you know me you know that I have an undying obsession with Harry Potter novels and it wouldn't be right to not kick off with my utmost favorite book of the series.

J.K. Rolling is one of the sole reasons why I love Harry Potter so much. It's because of her back story about her struggles with life and depression and her ability to use writing as an outlet to cope that I relate to so much. I love the story and its depth too. Everything about the world folds into itself and is more complex than most realize which is my main inspiration while I'm on my journey to write my first novel (hopefully series.) Of them all I completely adore the perfection of The Half Blood Prince. This one specifically felt, to me, like the true opening of all the danger and excitement that Harry Potter and his friends were facing. The previous books all had their troubles too but I feel like this one really allowed me to dive into the strong feelings I got while reading the rest of the series. I frequently pick up this book and just read it without reading the others. I could go on and on complaining about the film adaption of some of my favorite parts in this book just like a lot of other Harry Potter readers could, but I honestly don't think I can say anything that hasn't already been said so I'll stick with the positive. I got the entire hardback set last year as my first anniversary present from my husband. One of my most favorite things about hard backs? The way they smell.

While this is my favorite book of this series, this is not my favorite book of all time. So lets get down to business now. (Did anyone else have the Mulan "Make A Man Out of You" song pop into their head after reading that last sentence? I did while writing it.)

The Eternal Ones by Kristen Miller, I die. I wish this book went on forever. The concept of this book is something I just find a connection with: reincarnation. The book isn't based off of what the actual definition of reincarnation is though, it's more adapted to a love story so it won't bore you with the details of religion. In fact it's not religious at all. The story revolves around two main characters who are tied to the earth because of their love for each other and how they always come back as new people in the world and struggle to find each other and remember that they have lived past lives and are in love. The reason there's no book cover on this book is because I read it so much that it's pointless to keep it on. I'm not one of those people that can just watch a movie I love once and so I'm also not one of those people that can just read a book they love once either. I've read this one probably around fifteen times since I got it three years ago. Yeah, Obsessed. At the end of this book they give you a website that correlates with the story and you can find out if you too have lived a past life. The probability for me having lived any past lives: very high. How fun is that?!

Time for a book I did not enjoy

That's not a smile, that's a rather disgusted look on my face even though it's hard to tell. I bought this book not to long ago because I was looking for another captivating love story to inspire me. Fail. While I'm all for the concept of relating music to a memory or to a person you love/like or even hate (cue Taylor Swift), I don't feel like this book did it well. It was very sad and sort of droned on. The main character is a man who recalls the dead love of his life in mix tapes they made for each other. He talks about each song on each tape and the memory he had of it. The songs aren't even that great honestly. Love is A Mix Tape by Rob Sheffield is a book I'd throw in a garage sale. Maybe make something off of it to go buy a better book.

Life lesson: You don't lend books to your boyfriends. You will break up. They won't give your shit back. Two books I loved and lost:

The Kid & The CEO by Tom Pace was gifted to me by my grandmother when I was going through a rough adolescent stage. She thought it would teach me some valuable life lessons that I wasn't absorbing at the time. It did, it really did just that. I learned so much about life and the challenges that we all inevitably face and how to deal. I also learned the value of different relationships in your life, learning how to let go of what or who is toxic, and improving your relationship with yourself. You could read this book at any age and learn from it. I thought that a boyfriend could do the same evidently. If I ever plan to read this book again, it's going to have to come out of my own pocket. My grandmother had even written a sweet sentimental note in the cover. Lets all take a moment to hate on our exes.
Secondly, Scar Tissue. Do you guys recognize that guys face or name at all? Maybe a few of you will. Anthony Kiedis is the lead singer of the band Red Hot Chili Peppers. They became my all time favorite band after reading this autobiography, (the fact that their music is pretty great doesn't hurt either.) This book took me by the hands and pulled out an immense amount of emotions and memories that I sometimes forget I have by choice. A lot of Anthony's past is tragic and regrettable and really shows how a person survives that. I have to confess that this book was lent to me by an ex first, read by me many times, kept after a break up, and re-lent to one of my exes. Who would have known books would play such a role in my love life?

I've read the book A Child Called It several times and I know many, many others have too. One book that's lesser known but has the same feel is Sickened.

This was a purchase made earlier this year when I was looking for inspiration for writing since I thought I had enough of a life story to start writing an autobiography of my own. Sadly and happily, I don't. Sickened is a true story about a girls life with a mother who does a bizarre form of abuse to her. This book had lots of feels. Initially when I read it I found myself relating to it so much that I thought I had made a life discovery. I was mistaken, but it did force me to open up my own wounds and past and fit some pieces together. It took me a while to get through this book even though it's only 244 pages long. The truth is sometimes it was hard to pick up. It was hard to read about what this girl had been put through and why. And it was hard to deal with my own issues that opened up with it. I finally did finish it right before fall started this year. I can't say I hated this book for what it made me feel. Namely, depressed. But I appreciate what I took from it so greatly. If you did enjoy reading A Child Called It, I think you would enjoy this book as well.

On a lighter note, here's my guilty pleasure!

This is a young readers series that I feel like is seriously overlooked and understated. I've read all the Gossip Girl books and all the spin off books from GG. I've read The A List books. I've read the Pretty Little Liars books. Any many other series that are basically the same. But this. The Private Novels by Kate Brian (I just got shivers.) We all love those guilty pleasure book turned TV show, superficial, dramatic, girly books, well at least girls do, and this is my favorite of them all. Sadly I don't think this will turn into a CW or even a ABC Family show because it's been made into a [crappy] web series that destroys the books even more than a TV show would. The books are about your well known, over privileged teens who are at an exclusive private boarding school. At this school they have formed some what of an elite "sorority" that girls would kill to be in. Literally. This book is about girls killing each other. I mean, that's a lot more blunt than it actually is but that's the gist of it. It's a suspense series. (I'm jumping up and down thinking about how thrilling it is to read.) It also has a spin off that I've read as well. Towards the end of this series, the last book and later released prequel, it takes a turn for more of a supernatural type story, which didn't make much sense to me but since the other novels are so wonderful, I'm forgiving. This series has ended but that doesn't stop me from rereading all fourteen of them. Kate Brian is a wonderful writer for girls around my age, give or take ten years. She has lots of other great books that my mother and I have read together in the past.

And that about wraps it up for right now even though there is a hundred more books I could pour my soul over. It is hard for me to find books I don't like just because I'm typically a person who loves to absorb all kinds of knowledge even if it has no real benefit for me. If you guys liked this post and want more recommendations let me know! If you want to know what books I read to Liv let me know also. She's becoming an avid reader just like her mommy. Links to all the books (even the one I don't recommend) are below.