Favourite part of blogging?
There are so many things that I love about blogging but two that really stand out are the interaction with authors; they’re like celebrities to me, so when they communicate with me I feel so privileged!
I also really enjoy when my blog readers comment and follow me; every new follower and comment on Twitter, Facebook and my blog makes me smile.
Which current reading trends have you been drawn to (dystopian, post apocalyptic etc).
My favourite genre is YA but my favourite sub-genre are paranormal and dystopian.
What is your favorite meme or post write up on your blog?
My most favorite post to date are my interviews with Marianne de Pierres (Interview and Australian Fun Quiz) and with Rhiannon Hart (Interview part 1, part 2 and Australian Fun Quiz) which was part of an Australia Day month-long Feature that I hosted.
Regarding weekly features/memes…I participate in a few memes, but my favourite memes are:- Top Ten Tuesday by The Broke & The Bookish and a newly created meme, Know Me Better by I Am A Reader Not A Writer. Weekly Kathy from I Am A Reader Not A Writer selects 5 questions from her author Question database and personally answers them. Everyone participating then links to their posts with their answers. I love this meme, as it lets fellow bloggers and your readers get to know you a little bit better through your answers.
I’m also creating my own blog feature; spotlighting other bloggers so please stay tuned for those.
Do you tend to like the hero/heroine/protagonist or thevillain/antagonist
Most of the time the protagonist, but every so often the antagonist has more of a personality than the protagonist and I go for them, but rarely.
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Hello fellow book geeks, we are David and Kelly. One rainy day when we had nothing better to do, we decided to start up our own site about the thing we love most – reading books. Here you will find reviews on the latest and best YA and fantasy books around as well as some favourites that never grow old. Because Books Matter.
How often do you blog?
We blog around four times a week, generally trying to include two book reviews, a ‘Must Have Monday’ meme and a ‘Top Ten Tuesday’. Sometimes it differs if we are part of a blog tour or if we’re running a feature, things like that, but generally four posts per week.
How did you come up with the name for your blog?
When we were starting the blog, we knew that we wanted to focus on young adult books. We love books that fall under that category and it’s what we read most. So, we knew that we definitely wanted to include YA in the title. Eventually we decided to keep it simple and call ourselves YA Book Reads, as that it what we’d be talking about. =)
Favorite part of blogging?
David: Mine would definitely have to be the people. Blogging and vlogging allows you to come into contact with people that you would otherwise have
never met or spoken to. It’s great to speak with people from all over the world about books. It’s like this universal thing that brings us all together and the reading community, especially the YA community, has so many wonderful people.
Kelly: Yeah again, I have to agree with David. The friendships I’ve made through blogging will last a lifetime and I’m lucky to have met some really awesome people. I also love when we get to interview some of our favourite authors and ask them questions we’ve been dying to know. That’s always awesome.
Which current reading trends have you been drawn to (dystopian, post apocalyptic etc)
David: I generally try to avoid trends, personally. I try to mix up my reading so that I don’t get bored with any particular genre. I do however really enjoy steampunk, so I’m glad see it as a trend. My main love is for fantasy and it’s been awesome to see this becoming more and more popular as the years go on. That being said, if the book sounds good, I’ll pick it up. I’ll even read vampire books to this day.
Kelly: I’m definitely a fantasy girl all the way. I have given contemporary novels a go more recently but to be honest – they’re not for me. Fantasy all the way. I must say recently I have read a lot of dystopian work and the more I read of it the more I want.
What is your favorite meme or post write up on your blog?
David: I like doing ‘Top Ten Tuesdays’. We have a lot of reviewers on our site and it’s so interesting to see how different each person’s answers are to the same questions. It’s a great way of finding out about new books, plus the geek in me loves writing out lists! =P
Kelly: I have to agree with David for this. I love doing the Top Ten Tuesday posts and pretty much for the same reasons as him. It is defiantly the one way I pick up on books that I hadn’t heard about and I love that they get me thinking about my top ten and usually cause an internal debate on which ones to choose.
Do you tend to like the hero/heroine/protagonist or the villain/antagonist?
David: I grew up on a healthy diet of Disney movies, Harry Potter books and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. As a result I’m a sucker for a book with magic, a kick ass heroine, and a happy ending.
Kelly: Yeah I’m a huge Harry Potter fan and so love books with a worthy hero in them. Anything kick ass packed full of action has me going!
Where can you find them?
David: YouTube, Good Reads and www.davidpurse.com
Twitter @yabookreads @DavidPurse @TheKellyMartin
Kelly: Goodreads
Thanks so much for inviting me on today! I’m very excited to answer the questions and share a bit of myself with you all!
Do you have a favorite book you read over and over throughout the years?
Yes! Jacqueline Carey writes adult books (warning, VERY adult books!) and I am a HUGE fan of her Kushiel’s books. These are three different trilogies but they start with Kushiel’s Dart. The second book is my most favorite though. It’s called Kushiel’s Chosen and is an AMAZING fantasy book with epic travel, pirates (who doesn’t love pirates!), romance that will sweep you off your feet and a world that will totally blow your mind! You can find the first book, Kushiel’s Dart, on goodreads HERE. Just be warned that the beginning is slow, but it’s SO worth sticking with it! Aw, I just want to reread them right now!
What is your favorite new trend in YA? (Dystopian, Angels, Vampires etc)?
Fantasy. It seems like high fantasy is becoming more and more popular in YA and I love it! I have found it to be my current favorite genre. But I’m an
eclectic reader, that may change. 🙂
If another blogger from another country visited you, where would you take them to visit first?
First of all, Powell’s bookstore. At least if they are reader. Well, probably even if they aren’t 😉 I’m just over the bridge from Portland Oregon and Powell’s is downtown so we can also hit up Voodoo donuts (if we don’t mind standing in a long line) and the waterfront. I don’t have any pictures of those places, sorry! But the next place is the Columbia River Gorge, Oregon side. From the Vista house you can see down in the valley of the Gorge and it’s GORGEOUS. There’s also a ton of waterfalls you can stop and visit, including Multnomah Falls, which is the most famous. *The picture included is just one of the many smaller falls.* I’m lucky to live in such a beautiful part of the US!
Tell us about a local author you enjoy reading.
I’m very active with the local author scene and try to attend as many events as possible. I even run a blog (a different one called Novels, News and Notes From Your Northwest Readers) that features authors in the Pacific Northwest. One of my all time favorites is Lisa Schroeder. Her newest book, Falling for You was just released and is stunning, you must read it! While this newest one is not in verse, her other YA books are. She also writes adorable middle grade books and even children’s books. We love them all! Lisa is just one of many amazing authors from the Portland Oregon area though!
Thanks so much and I hope you’ll take the time to stop by my blog, Candace’s Book Blog, where I blog about a very mixed bag of books. I read mostly YA but there’s some MG and adult books mixed in with an occasional children’s book as well. I also run CBB Book Promotions where I do blog tours and other book publicity (cover reveals, find reviewers, pretty much anything…).
Candace
Candace’s Book Blog & CBB Book Promotions
http://www.candacesbookblog.com
Twitter: candacemom2two
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/CandacesBookBlog
Also co-founder of: http://novelsnewsandnotes.blogspot.com/
