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Binged It: To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before Trilogy

Posted on August 9, 2018August 9, 2018 by Zakiya N. Jamal in Binged It, Books to Buy

The first year I went to BookCon in 2016 I met Jenny Han for the first time and she personally signed a copy of To All the Boys I’ve Before for me, which I bought onsite. And then I went home, put the book on my book case, and never read it. Well now that the film has been adapted into a Netflix movie, I decided maybe it was time I finally gave the book a read. In addition, over the years I’ve also acquired the entire trilogy so I figured why not just binge the whole trilogy. And binge it I did.

According to my handy planner, I went through this entire trilogy from July 27 to 31. In sum, I binged it in a weekend. What can I say, I was pretty hooked on Lara Jean’s story from the start, and I just couldn’t put these books down, not even for sleep. I crashed after I finished the last one, in case you were wondering.

If you’re unfamiliar with the series, it follows Lara Jean, who writes a letter every time she’s done with a crush. She pretty much pours her heart out, saying what she loved about the guy, and then puts it in an envelope and even addresses it, but never sends it. Honestly, this was my one major issue with this whole concept. If Lara Jean never planned on sending the letters, why even write their address? But I get that it was for the plot, since the person who ends up sending them out, most likely wouldn’t have put in the effort to track down all these guys’ addresses.

Moving right along, Lara Jean’s letters do get sent out, which is a shock to her, especially when one of her crushes, now popular guy Peter K, confronts her about it. At the same time, Lara Jean’s most recent crush, Josh Sanderson, also got his letter. Only problem is Josh, until very recently, was dating Lara Jean’s older sister, Margot. Awkward. In order to cover up the fact that she has serious feelings for Josh, Lara Jean kisses Peter in a most dramatic fashion, and they begin a fake relationship to trick Josh and Peter’s ex/Lara Jean’s ex-best friend, Genevieve, into believing they’ve moved on.

I love a good fake relationship story and that’s exactly what book one gave me. Book two gave me a great love triangle where I would’ve been happy if Lara Jean ended up with either guy (though I thoroughly approve of her final choice). And then finally, the last book just gave me all the feels because it was all about graduating from high school and not being sure about how your relationships in high school would transcend to your new life in college. While I graduated high school almost a decade ago (wait what?), those feelings still felt very real to me.

Overall, I obviously loved all these books. They were romantic and heartwarming, and I love the relationships Lara Jean had with her sisters, Margot and Kitty. Plus, as I said, I just couldn’t put them down. I highly recommend reading this book before the movie comes out and then checking out the film, which drops on Netflix on August 17. I plan on baking cookies, just like Lara Jean would, for the occasion. I can’t wait!

Number of Books: 3

Borrow or Buy: Buy!

Overall Rating:

P.S. I made a BuzzFeed quiz for you to find out which Song girl (Lara Jean and her sisters) you are if you’re into that kind of thing.

P.P.S. Here’s the trailer if you haven’t watched it 100 times like I have.

From Page to Screen: A Series of Unfortunate Events

Posted on January 24, 2017January 24, 2017 by Zakiya N. Jamal in From Page to Screen

rehost%2F2016%2F11%2F17%2F033bcd5b-ec06-4b11-aabe-6ac0571c6520.jpg — Source: Netflix

Honestly I’m not 100 percent certain I’ve ever read A Series of Unfortunate Events. There’s a part of me that thinks I read a few of the books but not the whole series. The point is this review won’t be so much a comparison between the books and the show and instead just a review of the show.

First of all, I loved it. At the start, I wasn’t sure how I felt about the theme song but I liked how it changed each episode to fit the plot. I thought that was really cool and I really enjoyed Neil Patrick Harris as Count Olaf. I thought he was sinister but also funny. The cast in general was fantastic and I liked that it was so diverse. I also really liked the kids that were casted to play Klaus and Violet. In particular, Klaus’ level of sass (mostly directed Mr. Poe) was great.

Speaking of Mr. Poe, he was incredibly irritating and although I know he’s supposed to be I just find him very irksome and somewhat distracting. His character was what I liked least about the show, but again I believe that’s how it was supposed to be.

I also really enjoyed Patrick Warburton as Lemony Snicket, although as I discussed with my friends, I couldn’t help but hear him as Kronk from The Emperor’s New Groove. Despite that though, I thought he was great.

My favorite part about the series was definitely the twists. Even if you read the books there’s some things that’ll definitely take you by surprise, mainly because of how the show sets up the story.

If you haven’t watched the series I implore you to give it a chance. I know most people didn’t like the movie but I think the show is really great and I already can’t wait for Season 2.

10 Ways to Enjoy Your Snow Day

Posted on January 21, 2014 by Zakiya N. Jamal in Blog

In honor of the first snow day of the semester here’s my top 10 favorite ways to enjoy the unexpected day off.

1. Drink hot chocolate

Nothing feels better than sitting indoors, wrapped in a warm blanket, drinking some hot chocolate while watching the snow fall. Delicious!

2. Binge watch your favorite TV show

Another wonderful activity you can do in the safety of your own home (and bed) is catch up on your favorite shows. What’s better than comfortably watching Fitz “earn” Olivia while wrapped in some blankets (and drinking that hot chocolate).

3. Read a book

I know this one isn’t for everyone but really if you haven’t tried reading a book by the fire place (even if it’s a fake one) you don’t know what you’re missing. Nothing is better than getting lost in a good book on a snowy, wintery day.

4. Cuddling

There’s no better time to invest in a cuddle buddy then on a snowy, winter day. If you don’t have an actual cuddle buddy (it’s okay don’t be ashamed) there is now an easy solution for your problem: a cuddle pillow! However, if this sounds as weird to you as it did to me you could always just keep it old school and cuddle with your teddy bear. No shame in my game.

5. Movie Night (or day really)

Missed Frozen last weekend? Still haven’t seen all The Fast and Furious movies (RIP Paul Walker)? Or just want to see some Disney classics for the fifth time? Well lucky for you we live in the 21st century where almost every movie you could think of is available at your disposable via the Internet. Enjoy!

6. Build a snowman

do you want to build a snowman? — Source: Tumblr

If you’re more daring than I and actually want to go outside in this whether there’s many things you can do, the first of which is building a snowman. So grab anyone that’s crazy enough to join you, get a carrot, some sticks, and maybe some accessories you don’t plan on using anytime soon and get to work.

7. Snowball Fight

Source: www.georgetownvoice.com — Source: The Georgetown Voice

This is the best way anyone could voluntarily get me to go outside in the snow. Nothing is better than getting your team together and facing off with another team for a snowball fight. Definitely a fun time in the snow.

8. Snow Angels

I’m never one to voluntarily lay down in the snow and get all wet. However, something about making a snow angel just makes you feel like you five years old again. Plus, you can always change into some dry, warm clothes after you’re done.

9. Igloo

I have never successfully made one of these but I would love to be able to. I think this would be so cool (literally). It’d be a little house made of snow to play in. Maybe one day. *sighs*

10. Sledding

I’ve never actually gone sledding but I have gone snow tubbing and I think it’s kind of the same thing. Either way I love it. It’s really fun and doesn’t take much skill unlike skiing or snowboarding. Definitely one of my favorite winter activities.

Happy Snow Day Everyone!