Today, I'm happy to have Ara, a book blogger and reviewer, visit from My Book and My Coffee Blog
I met Ara on Twitter, of all places, and clicked to her
website. I was immediately struck by the wonderful and cozy décor she had, all pink
and pretty with beautiful silvery curlicue hearts and vines. So I asked her to chat
with us today on Rachelle’s Window.
Ara, it’s great to have you here. A lot of my blog readers are authors so I'm sure they would like to get to know you, especially since you also do book reviews. Tell us a little bit about how you got started book blogging.
Hi Rachelle. First of all, I’m really
honored to be one of the first book bloggers that you’ll be interviewing. And hello to
all your blog followers ;) *waves*
I’ve wanted to start a book blog
since I got married, and that was 4 years ago. But I’ve been reading a lot
since I was 18 years old. After getting married, we got ‘busy’ and had our first
and (so far) only child. He’s now 2.5 years old. ;) So, in short, I didn’t
really have time to do work or blogging, or even reading. But then, when my son
turned two, I kinda had the rhythm that made me realize that I can now allot
some hours for reading and book blogging/reviewing. So, here I am.
Well, Dylan is a real cute distraction from reading and blogging. He even has an article at About.com about him! Glad that he's giving you a bit of time to get back into reading. Are you in any book clubs? Online or offline?
Not at the moment. But I love
the idea of an online book club.
What do you like most about book blogging?
A lot actually. If I have to
choose, of course, it will be the fact that I can freely discuss and share my
honest opinions about the books that I’ve read.
That's what it's about, right? You finish a book and look around and it's like amazing and you want to talk about it to others. Tell us your most memorable moment with a book.
Memorable moment… Hmmm. I think
I’ll share what I’ve experienced while reading “Breakneck” by Erica Spindler.
It is a thriller novel. I was pregnant when I bought this book, and since I
wasn’t working during my pregnancy, I decided to read it at night time before
going to bed. I figured, I’ll just read two to three chapters and just continue
it in the morning. Well, that didn’t happen, or at least, I tried to make it
happen but failed. For me, the plot is really appealing, and maybe it was the
hormones, but I was non-stop. I can’t put it down. I tried to sleep, but all I
can think of was the book and the chapter that I was at. I finally gave in and
read the whole book. I ended up sleeping at five in the morning, which was
really not a good thing for any pregnant woman. But I felt satisfied and amazed
after reading that book. That was a worthy all-nighter. Haha. It was a good read,
and the plot is really good, and very much interesting.
Yes, don't you sometimes hate those books you can't put down? But then I really love them because I still think about them. I love your website. Did you design it yourself? How did you find the time
to keep it up to date?
Keeping my blog’s design up to
date is one of my priorities at the moment. So I really find time, I schedule
it, actually. As you know, I’m a mother and a freelancer, so I really have to
schedule things, otherwise, goodbye designing :)
How do you decide which books to read and review?
It depends on my mood but I only
read fiction novels. So that’s a start already. ;) My favorite genres / sub-genres
are murder mystery/thriller/suspense and romance. And although I read other genres
under fiction, I know that if I have to choose a book to read and review, it
will be from one of those genres / sub-genres first.
Do you belong to any groups of book bloggers? What are some
tips you might have for a reader who might want to start blogging and
reviewing?
Yes, I do.
Well, if you’re a reader and you
want to start blogging and reviewing, my advice is to just be yourself. When
designing your blog, be creative. It’s your blog, go nuts! Your readers will
love you for it.
When reviewing a book, just be
honest. You owe it to your readers to be sincere, and not be misleading. The
authors and readers will respect you for that.
I love your review of Wash
and Die. Not only is the cover cute, but I, too, love mysteries that aren’t
easy to solve and keep me guessing. Was Agatha Christie one of your favorite
mystery authors? Are there new authors you’d recommend whose mysteries ‘aren’t
obvious’?
You may find this hard to
believe, but I haven’t read any novels of Agatha Christie. I know, I know.
That’s embarrassing. I should’ve listened to my husband when we were shopping
for books a long time ago and he wanted me to try an Agatha Christie’s novel
which I just made a pass. He was also recommending
Erle Stanley Gardner for the Perry Mason novels, telling me that these two
authors started him with mystery and crime-fiction novels. But now I definitely
intend to read some of their books in the near future. I’ll let you know when I
grab a hold of one and publish my review.
I would definitely recommend Amy
Metz. I have read her first murder mystery novel (to be released this August),
and was really impressed. I’ve actually posted a review already - Murder And Mayhem In Goose Pimple Junction.
I just love that title! Okay, now for some fun questions.
Does your husband share the same book interests? Do you swap
books or maintain a “his” and “hers” section on the bookshelf?
Yes, my husband is a book lover
as well. He is a Ludlum fanatic, actually, with Rice, Brown, King and Koontz on
the side. He has an entirely different taste when it comes to the types of
story that he reads; he prefers a more masculine way of storytelling with
lesser subtleties and if there’s one thing I’m sure of, he’s not that much into
romance and love stories. These, I think, are some of the reasons why we don’t
swap books; so yes, we have our “his” and “hers” section on the bookshelf =)
Think of all the libraries and museums of the world. If you
could spend a day lost in a library or museum, which one would it be?
Love this question! :D I would
choose Chateau de Chantilly Library in Chantilly, France. From the pictures, it
just looks so serene and lovely, and well, it’s in France. Haha.
What was a childhood accomplishment that you are especially
proud of?
Aside from maintaining good
grades along the way, I was able to write a really short story (fiction), as in
maybe 1,000 to 1,500 words, when I was in high school. This story was published
in our school newspaper. I don’t have any copy of it now, but I’m sure my school
has one. It’s such a great feeling, even though it’s just for our school
newspaper.
Cool! Once you get that writing bug, who knows, you might be putting together a book, too. If you were to receive an invite to a major talk show, who
would be the host and what would you talk about?
The Ellen DeGeneres show. Absolutely!
Oh! I love her. It’s very ambitious of me, really. But yes, I would love to
meet Ellen. And we can talk about life, books, and a lot more.
Sounds like a riot of an interview. :) Thanks a lot, Ara, for being on Rachelle’s Window. Is there
anything else you’d like to say to any authors out there who’d like to send in
their books for you to review?
Thank you, too, Rachelle, for
having me on Rachelle’s Window. Gosh, I am very much honored to be here.
To all the authors out there who
would like to send their books to me for review, I would really be honored, and
would love to read and review your books but please check my review policy so
you’ll have an idea of the other genres I am accepting. I am pretty forward, I
will tell you if I will be able to read it immediately or if I have other books
on my queue. ;)
Short bio:
I’m Ara, a mother to a
toddler (Dylan) and wife to most loving and supportive husband. I love to read
and read, when the time permits.
I’m a book blogger and
reviewer. I believe in reading and reviewing books. Reading books is one way
for me to appreciate different kinds of possibilities and scenarios, a way for
me to enter unusual worlds that I may never have imagined, and a way for me to
have the indescribable happiness that a good book provides.
For me, reading books
opens a lot of real life probabilities with lessons learned not just to keep,
but to be shared to everyone...
Please contact Ara and friend or follow her here:
Pinterest: http://www. pinterest.com/mybooknmycoffee
Goodreads: http://www. goodreads.com/ mybookandmycoffee
Hi Ara, thanks for being on my blog and sharing a bit about yourself and your interests! Love your quote: “If things get any better, I may have to hire someone to help me enjoy it.” ;)
ReplyDeleteAnd I do love a nice juicy review, even though I know you can't spill the mystery on "Murder and Mayhem In Goose Pimple Junction." Will watch for its release.
Hi Rachelle! Thank you ;) Thank you for having me here. I'm glad you liked the quote. It's a famous one (kinda), and really describes how much I enjoyed the novel. :D
DeleteWhat a wonderful interview. Your blog is lovely and the little bird was very cute. Dylan of course is far cuter!
ReplyDeleteHi there! Thanks so much for visiting Rachelle's blog and this interview ~ and I'm really glad you liked it :D Aww. Yes, he is reallllly cute. Sometimes, I can't help it but shower him with kisses. Hahaha. He likes it now. But I know in a few years, he will hate me if I still do that. :))
DeleteHi A.D. Hello there! Oh, thank you! :D I'm glad you liked the interview. Thanks for visiting. Thanks again, Rachelle, for this opportunity ;)
ReplyDeleteGreat interview, Rachelle and Ara! Thank you so much for recommending my book. I'm honored to be mentioned and so happy you liked it. Rachelle's right--Ara's website is awesome. Thanks for interviewing her here and letting us get to know her a little better.
ReplyDeleteDylan is a cutie patootie! Never stop with the kisses! My 24-year-old and 16-year-old still let me shower them with kisses. It's a mama's right!
Hi Amy! :D Yes, I really did. Aww. Thanks. I'm glad you both liked my website. This is sooo cool!
DeleteYes, he is a cutie patootie, isn't he? Aww. I will remember that. Never stop with the kisses! :D Thank you!