What’s on your book shelf? With #BookBlogger Jessica at Minimacreviews @MinimacReviews

Today What’s on your bookshelf? is going international and  I’m thrilled to welcome Jessica who blogs at http://minimacreviews.wordpress.com/. Jessica has so many bookshelves, that I must admit looking at her photos I had serious bookshelf envy🙈

How many bookcases do you have?

Currently, just two. Though to be fair one of them does take up an entire side of my office, the other is a small press above my reading chair (Ha! Whenever I step into the office it is immediately occupied by Loki) that houses my TBR. Naturally, my attempts to control the TBR through giving it a limited amount of space fail on a regular basis and I end up with stacks of books around the house – in the office, beside my bed, on the coffee and end tables… You know, battles worth fighting and battles worth winning and all that jazz.

Approximately how many books are on your book case? 

Right now I am just shy of 700 physical items with close another 100 on my eReader. Though, before we moved last year I rang in at over 1200 books. It was the joy of packing and moving everything that spurred my present minimalist (double ha!) approach where I try to give away or donate physical copies after I finish reviewing them, but there’s always a few I hang onto because they either blew my mind or found a home in my heart.

What genre does your bookcase mainly comprise of?

I mostly have Fantasy (predominantly YA with some Adult titles in there), WWII/ Historical Fiction, and Psychological Thrillers. I call it the trifecta of happiness. My rare and antiquarian books on the other hand are way off in left field as I have an odd obsession with old dictionaries and textbooks, these are supplemented by a healthy dose of what we now call classical literature but even those titles lean towards historical fiction and stories with a strong mystery/ suspense element. At least I’m consistent.

Which book on your bookcase are you desperate to read?

Just one? How about three, I can do that without dissolving into extreme anxiety: Twisted by Steve Cavanagh, The Whisper Man by Alex North, and We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal.

Which book has been sat on your bookcase the longest and you haven’t yet got around to reading?

The Bookman’s Tale by Charlie Lovett – I bought it on publication day in 2013 and haven’t touched it since.

Which books are you desperate to add to your bookcase over the next few months?

Ooooh, so many! But isn’t that always the case? Right now I’m really feeling:

– Good Samaritans and Nothing Important Happened Today by Will Carver

– The Other People by C.J. Tudor

– The Blossom Twins and The Chosen Ones by Carol Wyer

– Dark Skies by Danielle L. Jensen

– We Free the Stars by Hafsah Faizal

– The Hocus Girl by Chris Nickson

– The Paris Library by Janet Skeslien Charles

If you could only keep one book from your bookcase, which one would you choose? And why? 

I am assuming this is a ‘your house is on fire and you only time to grab one thing scenario’ so I am going to go with one of my oldies. I have a 1742 edition of the Decisions of the Court of Session by John Edgar from the original print run of 100 (there was a second larger printing in 1749). It’s pretty rare and I was dumbfounded to come across it at a car-boot sale in Stirling.

But, if I had to pick something current it would be Jay Kristoff’s Nevernight, because I can read it over and over again and my love for Mia and Tric never dies. #StabStabStab

Last question if you could have one author come to your house to borrow a book who would it be and why? 

Danielle L. Jensen, because she is a genuinely amazing human being who gives the best YA Fantasy recommendations. To have something on my shelves that she hasn’t read already would be a rare day indeed. And, if I didn’t have anything to borrow I’d like to think this visit would morph into drinks and board games, which is fine by me!

About Jessica

Reader, blogger, librarian. Fur momma, coffee addict, budding gardener, and fully developed mountain wanderer.

I started blogging on MinimacReviews.Wordpress.com back in 2017 and haven’t looked back since. I hold three honours degrees in English Literature (BA), Material Cultures and History of the Book (MSc), and Library and Information Sciences (MLIS) and currently work as an Acquisitions Librarian for a small academic institution. In the past I have worked in public libraries, primary schools, special collections, and at other academic libraries with a healthy dose of other jobs (bartending, back country guiding, roofing, executive assistant, etc.) that allowed me to pay the bills while pursuing the career that I love. To say that I am obsessed with books and how people interact with them is a bit of an understatement!

I hail from the beautiful Calgary, Alberta but have lived in Edinburgh, London, Berlin and out of a backpack for extended periods of time. After years on the move the fellow and I decided that it was time to set down some roots and we found ourselves a little piece of land with heavenly views, a wood stove to read by, and enough space to take up permaculture in the quest to become self-sustainable. When my nose isn’t in a book I can be found on a mountain trail (preferably on horseback), with my hands in the dirt, or trolling junk shops for antiquarian books.

 

Blog: MinimacReviews.Wordpress.com

Twitter: @MinimacReviews