Why I'm here and what to expect

Hi there! This might be one of the most boring posts you'll see here but I just wanted to explain what I plan to do with this space.

I initially wanted to create a book page on Instagram to post pictures of the books I'm reading or have read and reviews or my thoughts on them. However, the pressure of gaining followers and whether or not people would appreciate my posts kept hindering me from actually creating the page. I'm a little shy and I felt like Instagram would have me too exposed. Plus, there's already way too many bookstagram pages with lovely photos, it feels more like a trend I'd be following and I also just was not up to the challenge of creating awesome content. I'd always be wondering if my posts were good enough and would probably not be too happy with the lack of likes. Anyhow, a blog feels more personal and private, and I can write as much as I want. I hardly ever read long captions on Instagram so I can't imagine why anyone would take the time to read my reviews on a picture's caption.

Having said that, I plan to post reviews of the books I'll be reading from now on. They may not be as detailed or in depth as professional reviewers but I'm not here to get popular anyway, I simply wanted an outlet that was not a diary or journal to write about what I think about the books I've been reading. If somehow I'm able to help someone decide on whether or not they should pick up a particular book I've reviewed, then great!

That's actually happened recently and may be also one of the reasons I was encouraged to start this. I recently finished reading 'In the eye of the sun' by Ahdaf Soueif and whilst I was reading it, I posted a story on Instagram about me reading it and about how long it was taking me. A friend responded to the post asking how it was so far and I asked her if she was asking because she was considering getting the book herself. She said I was right and so I told her I'd get back to her once I was done reading the book. The book is 785 pages long and it took me a month to get through it, not because I'm a slow reader but because it just was not the kind of book I would usually read and hence was not motivated to read it. In fact, I'm sorry to Ahdaf Soueif but the only thing that motivated me to get through the book was actually being able to finish it and get started on a new book. My excitement for reading another book is what got me through it! Since this post is not meant to be a review, I'm not going to go off track and write a review about the book. When I was finally done reading the book though, I told my friend not to bother buying the book simply because I did not enjoy it and she trusted my opinion. Again, I'm sorry Ahdaf Soueif - not like you'll ever see this post anyway. Teehee.

So I guess that's it, you'll probably see a lot of posts about why I hate or love a book. I haven't quite decided if I want to write about anything else like my personal life, we shall see.

For now, my current read is 'Under rose-tainted skies' by Louise Gornall. You can probably expect a review on it in a few days. :)

I hope everyone's safe and keeping safe during this awful time. I won't even remind you to stay home because I'm pretty sure you're just as tired as I am of hearing it. Please do pray that it all ends soon. I lost my job because of the pandemic and one of the only good things about it is that it gives me more time to read. Literally, when my ex-boss was firing me and saying sorry, I told him, "Oh well, at least I can catch up on my reading now". I was always so exhausted after work that I'd only get time to read during the weekend. It was an internship and in the beginning, I'd carry a book with me to read whenever I'd have idle time but my manager said the big boss wouldn't have approved of it so I stopped.

Anyhow, this post is quite long now. If you've gotten this far, please comment about whether or not you've read 'Under rose-tainted skies'. If you have, please let me know what you thought about it. If you haven't, let me know what you're currently reading!

Ma'assalama!

Till the next post,

Mia '',)

P.S. for those in the UAE, if you like the book mark you see in the video, you can grab your own from https://www.thecraftstudio.online/. They've got loads of other pretty bookmarks and bookish merchandise like candles and customizable stickers at super affordable prices! Enjoy shopping :p