We would just love to say THANK YOU SO MUCH to Jenna over at Bookmark Your Thoughts for nominating us. She’s been so incredibly kind and and supportive of us during our start as newbie bloggers! We love reading her reviews and ADORE her blog’s aesthetic.

While this is our first award (EVER) we’ve seen it going around quite a lot and just wanted to say a big THANK YOU to the book blogging community (or just those of you reading this haha). You’ve all been so incredibly kind to read our posts and comment over this last month. Not just to our blog but to so many others. When we first started out we weren’t sure what the community was like and were a bit nervous. It’s turned out to be such a supportive, kind and friendly place. We’re glad to have become a small part of it!

What is the Sunshine Blogger Award?

The Sunshine Blogger Award is given to those who are creative, positive and inspiring while spreading sunshine to the blogging community.

The Rules

↠ Thank the blogger who nominated you and link back to their blog.
↠ Answer the 11 questions the blogger asked you.
↠ Nominate 11 new blogs to receive the award and write them 11 new questions.
↠ List the rules and display the Sunshine Blogger Award in your post/or on your blog.

One. What was the last book you strongly disliked?

Nen: I try not to dislike books, but I’ll definitely rant about improvements (sorry, Jen!). They all have potential at the end of the day! But if I had to pick one I really didn’t like it would be Strange Objects by Gary Crew. I had to read it in school and it has stuck with me for all the wrong reasons!

Jen: I don’t generally tend to dislike many books either but there have been two in the last month that were really bad. They were Evvie Drake Starts Over and Our Stop. They both were just so SLOW and I didn’t connect with the characters at all. It’s a shame since their premises sounded so good!

Two. How does your star rating system work for your reviews (if you use one)?

Due to there being two of us, we try very hard to keep our review process consistent and honest. Our rating system is:

★ ★ ★ ★ ★    It was amazing! Perfect in almost every way.

★ ★ ★ ★       We really liked it! There were only a few things we did not like.

★ ★ ★          We liked it! There were things we disliked, but the book was good overall.

★ ★             It was okay. There were more things we disliked than liked.

★                We did not like it. It was problematic, offensive or un-relatable.

Three. What are your favorite pizza toppings?

Nen: Ah, pizza, the greatest of all Italian inventions (you can’t convince me otherwise). I’ll avoid seafood and pineapple when I can. You can’t go wrong with a good pepperoni pizza, but I do like veg too! 

Jen: Can you ever really go wrong with pizza? I’m a margherita gal at heart. Simple, delicious and cheesy. Man, I could die happily for cheese!

Four. Would you rather read a great plot with mediocre characters, or a boring plot with amazing characters?

Nen: I’d take the boring plot with amazing characters any day of the week! I can stick with a story if the characters win me over, but following a mediocre character that makes questionable life choices the whole way through can get very frustrating.

Jen: Exactly the same as Nen! I’m pretty sure we’ve had this conversation together half a million times. Especially after reading a book with SUPER DULL characters that made us mad. We take it kind of personally if a book has so much potential (great plot, world-building etc)… and then just had a cruddy excuse for characters or their developments.

Five. How many books are you currently reading, and which one is your favorite so far?

Nen: I haven’t had the chance to read any recently. It sucks, but I know I have plenty on my list when I get back home so I’m looking forward to that! And Melbourne Breakfast tea…boy, have I missed my fav tea.

Jen: I’m currently reading A Lie for a Lie by Helena Hunting and A Curse so Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer. They’re actually not too bad. I keep swapping between them when I get bored though… so that says a bit about how they’re going haha.

Six. What was the last book review you posted?

Nen: It was an ARC on Goodreads for a book called ‘The Dawnvel Druids’ by William Collins (see our review). One of those books with potential I mentioned earlier!

Jen: I posted a review on Everything, Everything. This was a book I was expecting so much more from. I mean… it was a quick and easy read that had some enjoyable moments but overall was just a miss for me. It’s not one I’ll be re-reading.

Seven. Do you prefer MG, YA, NA, or adult books?

Nen: Oh, that’s tough. There are books in each that I really love. Anything I read and adored as a child has that sentimental value that’ll keep me coming back when I’m 80. But as I get older I do lean towards older characters and (if I’m feeling brave) darker themes.

Jen: This is definitely a hard one to answer! It generally depends on my mood. I’d say I read the most from YA and NA so it would have to be a toss up between them depending on how much patience I have for YA’s angst on the day!

Eight. Is there a popular author you’re NOT interested in reading anything by? (Elaborate if you’re comfortable doing so!)

Nen: This question threw me back into the Twilight era haha! I avoided those like the plague if I’m being honest. I think there are a few authors I’ll avoid. Don’t get me wrong, they’re all incredibly talented, but they’ll usually write for a genre I’m not interested in. John Green and Nicholas Sparks, for example – I just can’t deal with the tear-jerkers!

Jen: Oh man, I remember the day I made Nen binge watch the Twilight films for the first time. Her look of annoyed frustration every time Bella did something stupid or Edward sparkled… It was hilarious! I don’t generally avoid many authors but one that comes to mind is Suzanne Collins. I just don’t like her writing style. Me and The Hunger Games will never be friends!

Nine. What marginalized rep would you most strongly like to see more of in books?

Nen and Jen: We have pretty much the same thoughts on this. We both love all rep for marginalised groups of individuals. We’ve read some great stories lately that refuse to ignore or patronise marginalised characters and rather show their strengths without hiding or ignoring the bigger issues. We’ve been waiting a long time to see this become mainstream.

We love that representation, especially well-written and positive rep, is increasing in books. The only stipulation to this is that authors authentically and respectfully tell people’s stories. Raising awareness of issues and portraying a more realistic representation of characters in accordance to world around us is important. To pick only one marginalised group to improve takes away from others. No one book should be the advocate, rather they all should. Equal rep and respect shouldn’t be limited!

Ten. Do you listen to music while reading?

Nen: It depends on what I’m reading. If I do, the volume has to be quite low and I’ll avoid lyrics if I can. I do love listening to music when I write though, even if it crushes my productivity.

Jen: I generally prefer to read in silence but I’m partial to some light instrumental music. Especially cello covers. They’re my happy place!

Eleven. Do you prefer book twitter or bookstagram?

Nen: I actually don’t use Instagram all that much. Jen’s the pro where insta is involved, but I’ve always liked Twitter more for keeping up with sports and books!

Jen: I’m a sucker for pretty book covers so checking out other Bookstagrammer’s posts is my daily indulgence! I’m warming up to Twitter though. I think I tend to be more interactive on there than on Insta. But in terms of preference… nothing beats a stunning book cover and autumnal tones!

We’ve decided to nominate these bloggers because they’ve been so supportive of us on our blogging journey so far. Also… we love reading their posts and ADORE their blog aesthetics!

• The Bookish Romantic
• Stacy, Justin and Nikole at A Court of Coffee and Books
• Elysa at WordsWordsWords
• Holly at Holly Reads A Lot
• Leah at One More Chapter Book Blog
• TJ Fox at Sharing the Experience
• Reading Tonic
• Lilyfae at Lily and the Fae
• Kirsty at Kirsty’s Book Buying Addiction
• Lisa at Lisas Books Gems and Tarot
• Robin LeeAnn

Questions:

We actually really loved the questions Jenna used, so we’re going to continue them!

• What was the last book you strongly disliked?
• How does your star rating system work for your reviews (if you use one)?
• What are your favorite pizza toppings?
• Would you rather read a great plot with mediocre characters, or a boring plot with amazing characters?
• How many books are you currently reading, and which one is your favorite so far?
• What was the last book review you posted?
• Do you prefer MG, YA, NA, or adult books?
• Is there a popular author you’re NOT interested in reading anything by? (Elaborate if you’re comfortable doing so!)
• What marginalized rep would you most strongly like to see more of in books?
• Do you listen to music while reading?
• Do you prefer book twitter or bookstagram?

Nen & Jen