Audio Interview

Hello everyone,

Writer and professor Jennifer Reimer joined me today to chat about her experience on writing poetry and short stories, make sure to check it out!

Top Five: Favorite Books of 2016

As 2016 wraps up, I decided to share with you my favorite 5 books I read this year. (No specific order)

        1. Across The Universe by Beth Revis

The cover of this book caught my attention, which made me grab the book and start reading it. Though I must mention it's a bit misleading as the book's main plot barely includes romance. This book is about Amy, a seventeen years old girl being transported with many people as a frozen cargo on a spaceship to a new planet, destined to arrive in 300 years from take-off. but, not everything goes to plan.  As a science-fiction fan I really enjoyed the dystopian space mystery in this book.

Favorite quotes:

"I never thought about how important the sky was until I didn't have one." 

"Maybe the secrets of the stars have nothing to do with being alone."

      2. Bird Box by Josh Malerman

The world is not safe anymore, something terrifying exists and must not be seen. No one knows what it is or where it came from. Malorie, is a survivor with her two children. Blind folded all their lives, living in an abandoned house near the river. They must escape to a place where they might be safe. In this horrifying book, we join Malorie's experience as she tries to move. The best thing about this book is that, it shows horror, not by describing images, but by describing sounds as the characters are being blindfolded most of the time. I find this a creative choice made by the author. 

Favorite quotes:

“How can she expect her children to dream as big as the stars if they can't lift their heads to gaze upon them?”

“It's better to face madness with a plan than to sit still and let it take you in pieces.”

3. Cinder by Marissa Meyer

This book is everything I ever wanted; it's a combination of fairy tale and science fiction. If you're interested in seeing wires sticking out of your disney princesses then this book is for you. It's offers a unique retelling of the story Cinderella. I love how Meyer painted vivid visions in my mind while reading it.

Favorite quotes:

"You can help me pick out a tiara when we're done saving the world."

“She was a cyborg, and she would never go to a ball.”

4. Quite Power by Susan Cain

5. The Night Circus

Reading Atmosphere// Winter Edition

Hello all!

Picking a good reading spot and atmosphere is an essential step to fully enjoy reading your books. I like to be perfectly comfortable when I read, surrounded by pillows in my cozy bed. Yet I still love reading outdoors, feeling the warm sun on my shoulders. However since winter is approaching, I can’t imagine a better way of reading than sitting down with a hot beverage- in coffee shops. By that, I decided to show you how to treat yourself to a long afternoon with a book.

Here are some items that you could carry to enhance your winter reading experience.

• A hot beverage: Stay hydrated and warm in this frosty weather and enjoy a hot cup o’ something tasty.

• A reading playlist: Find yourself playlists to listen to while reading books, you can find those on Youtube, Spotify. etc. Some of them were even compiled by authors themselves, that would make for pretty great companions to your daily reading habit.

• Highlighters: Whenever I come across a line that I like from a book, I highlight it as a way to remember.

• A bookmark: I love collecting bookmarks, and would never dog-ear a page or lay the book down. Here's a good tip "use a standard 3x5 index card as a bookmark. When you start a new book, grab an index card and write the book title on it. As you read, write the page numbers down of any particularly meaningful."

Four English Bookstores in Ankara

Hello book lovers,

Getting lost among shelves filled with piles of endless books, packed with words of knowledge, wisdom and tales; a trip to bookstores always felt like a huge present to me.  

Here’s my guide on where to purchase English books in Ankara:

(Click on the pictures to get more information about the bookstore by going to their website)

1. D&R Stores

Address: Mustafa Kemal, CEPA AVM, 06510 Çankaya/Ankara

D&R Store is the most popular bookstore in Ankara as it is located in almost all of the malls including CEPA, Armada, Ankuva, Ankamall, Next Level and Panora. Top selling books and magazines can be found there. The English novels are located at the back of the bookstore.

I was happy to find a manga section in the bookstore as well!

2. Arkadaş Kitabevi

Address: Kentpark Avm, Eskişehir Yolu 7.km. No: 164

Arkadaş is located at the top floor of Kentpark’s Mall. It is my favorite bookstore among all the ones in Ankara. There is a large English section that carries classics, bestsellers, mystery, science fiction and a teenage section, as well as several non-fiction books. There is also a small cafe, where you could read books, do your work or just relax. 

3. Remzi Kitabevi

Address: Söğütözü, Eskişehir Yolu Armada Alışveriş Ve İş Merkezi No:6 D:38, 06560

Remzi includes books ranging from bestsellers, classics and non-fiction. English books can be found on the left side of the store. They have a small section of travel guides, self-development, non-fiction books and magazines.

3. Dost Kitabevi

Kızılay, Karanfil Sk. No:11, 06420 Çankaya/Ankara

This is one of the biggest book stores in Ankara that many people consider their favorite. However, there are only a few English books.

Starting Off

 Hello fellow readers,

I've been wanting to start a book blog for a while now and I finally did it. Whenever I finish reading a good book I always wish I had someone to discuss it with so I thought it would be a great idea to share my passion with like-minded people by creating this blog.​

The way I see it, books aren't just papers with words filled over them; they are a way to travel to different worlds (within words) that you may never be able to reach in life. 

I love getting lost in them and they make me feel all sorts of emotions. ​Some people are very picky with what they read, but I like to experiment by reading different genres. However, my favorites are science fiction, fantasy, mystery and horror.I do not want to limit myself with the content of this blog, so you should expect several things from it.

 The blog will be a mixture of everything related to books. I will review, recommend and discuss novels from big and small presses —with a particular focus on authors/books based in Turkey as well as bookstores. I will also review adaptations, exploring how fiction can successfully be turned into something cinematic or staged. Moreover, I will interview authors, book fans and visit bookstores. Also, I would like to make use of the skills that I’m acquiring from my department by producing videos such as when conducting interviews.

I’m very excited to start this journey, I hope you will enjoy it as much!