My 5⭐ Reading Drought is Over!! 🥳
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- čas přidán 5. 08. 2024
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0:00 favourite things
3:55 library haul
5:40 the husbands
12:57 haunting of velkwood
21:58 husbands again
28:09 spear cuts through water
40:10 nothing but the rain
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Yayyyyyyy!!! Happy Mother’s Day Kayla 🎉
Thank you thank you!! 💞
You inspired me to buy myself a bike! 😂 I watched your past video where you were riding your bike and instantly realized that was a childhood activity that I LOVED. It’s been so nice to spend some time outside, doing such a simple activity. Thanks for sharing 🫶🏾
"They've got this goddess... in the back of their... vehicle?" I LOVED The Spear Cuts Through Water and this made me laugh so hard. Also, "I'm a third of the way through and I do not know what's going on."
Love seeing the pure joy of discovering a 5 star 🥰
Kayla!!! I have been feeling like I'm going mad because I read The Haunting of Velkwood as soon as it came out and gave it a glowing 5 stars but everyone else I've seen mention it has been so lukewarm or negative so seeing you gush about this amazing book just made my day! ❤
The way I gasped when I saw the title! 🎉 YAY!! 💐🫶🏼
That title is what I like to see! 🥳🥳
Happy Mother's Day Kayla! Any time I hear you say "I wouldn't recommend this to just anyone," I immediately reserve it at the library.
I think you would love if on a winter's night a traveler by Italo Calvino. It's a book about reading as well as a book about books.
SAY LESS with haunting of velkwood!!!!!!! you said our wives under the sea and i grabbed my phone to go to libby, THEN you said other words for smoke and I nearly threw my laptop out the window, i LOVE that book!!!!! i cannot wait!!!!!!!!
I loved The Husbands! I read it in a day and gave it 5 stars. The ending didn’t bother me. It made sense. To me it felt like a commentary on the current app dating culture. Where you are presented with endless opportunities to connect and people keep swiping to find the next best thing.
I don't know if you've read it already or not, but when you were talking about nothing but the rain it reminded me of The Lathe of Heaven by Ursula K Le Guin. Short novella, plays with dreams/memory, there's an altered world/post apocalypse feel to it and the writing is so gorgeous.
My favorite non-urgent/soft dystopian books that usually no one has heard of are The Blue Book of Nebo by Manon Steffan Ros and Here Lies by Olivia Clare Friedman. They both remind a bit of Leave The World Behind, where you get into the daily rhythm in these messed up/possibly end of the world situations and it feels kinda cozy, in a weird way. Always looking for more books like this--I must get to the rest of the books you put into that category!
Thank you for the rec!!
I absolutely devoured and loved The Husbands. I'm so glad you gave it a 5 because I totally agree.
Oh how fun! And happy Mother's Day!!🩷
The Haunting of Velkwood sounds so up my alley! I paused the video to request it from my library and I'm super excited for it
Happy Mother’s Day, Kayla!! 🩷💐 here’s to more five stars, fresh flowers, and family memories in your future ✨
Thank you so much anjali 💐🤗
ahhhhh I feel so sad! I read The Spear Cuts Through Water twice, for two separate book clubs and it's one of my fave books ever now. I have been actively telling people not to pick the audiobook version, because a lot of the people at book club who didn't like it that much listened to the audiobook - meanwhile the physical copy is formatted in such a way that it makes clear when and where the narrative jumps, plus a bunch of stuff in Italics that the audiobook cannot render properly. So I am pretty sad about this now haha.
I'm glad you love it!! I thought the audiobook was done very well 😊
I think it would be interesting to see if you made a list like this again with the books you gave a 1 star and what tropes those books have and then try, and read books that fit into your one star and five star categories and see which group they fall into
If you loved Velkwood, you should try her first novel, The Rust Maidens. I loved both of those, but didn't like Reluctant Immortals very much.
I was gonna recommend this as well.
I gave The Haunting of Velkwood Street 3.5 stars because I kept thinking "this would be better as a movie". The horrorific imagery, some of the side characters, the strange time difference... I don't usually like horror movies but I'd watch this one
Perfect timing! I read The Husbands and I really wanted to talk to someone about it. I gave it a 2.5 but I also think it would make a great book club pick for the conversations it can spark. That said, I found it so boring and repetitive. I couldn't figure out what the point was and apparently the humor was lost on me. I never felt like I got to know the MC, and when I did think I knew something she would go completely off the rails. I actually quite liked the ending though.
I am rewatching this again to simply watch your joy in reading books you ended up LOVING (for the most part)
The Spear Cuts Through Water was one of my top 10 books last year, but all your critiques of it make sense (or rather, what didn't work for you specifically). I wonder how much the audiobook format impacted your experience of it because you said at times the interwoven nature of the narrative made you lose the thread, and it's definitely a very confusing experience even in print, at times haha.
I bought The Husbands after seeing it on the website of an independent online bookshop, I'm so glad I did buy it, I absolutely loved it. Along with The List of Suspicious Things, I think it's going to be one of my favourite reads of 2024. I really liked the premise and although it did drag slightly towards the end, I really enjoyed going along with the character of Lauren in discovering her different husbands. It chimed a lot with me in terms of societal expectations of people’s personal relationships.
Girl, your hair is GORGEOUS!! ✨
I always get so much more excited when you gush over books i haven't heard of (than, say a BOM pick) - i feel an unwarranted sense of discovery, lol. Congrats on all your five star picks!!!
Happy Mothers Day! What a way to celebrate! Glad that you got two 5 stars! I got to check them out, too.
Velkwood sounds like a perfect book for me omfg thank you so much for sharing!!! And I totes get that great book vibe where you want to force a reading break because whatever you read next just won't hit, so rating will be unnecessarily harsh in comparison rather than deliberating on the book by itself. "How to Become a Dark Lord" was a really fun book that doesn't take itself seriously, I read the digital ARC recently 😊 alsk hope your allergist can help you find your sensitivities and the life fixes you have to make aren't too strenuous!!
Perfect morning for kayaking.. love that you are enjoying your beautiful views and your books…
Me. I am who The Husbands is for! I LOVED it! 5⭐️
Happy Mother's Day! Glad you're out of the 5-star funk, I feel like I've been too giving on my 5-stars this year. 💗 The tie-dye hoodie is perfect!
Yes!! So glad you finally got a 5 star! And Happy Mother's Day ❤
Congrats on the 5 stars!! The worst allergic reactions I’ve ever had were from wearing new clothes before washing them- the factories they come from are full of toxins and chemicals
so happy you liked haunting of velkwood! i gave reluctant immortals a 3 also and considered picking this one up but i didn’t hear the best things. we usually have similar tastes so i’ll def be checking it out!! happy mother’s day kayla :)
kayla i LOVE that orange jumpsuit. the color looks phenomenal with your hair, you're gorgeous
Just finished The Husbands. Holy moly that ending knocked my socks off!
The Haunting of Velkwood sounds great. From what Kayla is describing, is it like a literary horror? Those are usually big hits for me.
Love seeing you just gushing about a book
Oh I absolutely loved The Haunting of Velkwood!! So happy to see you gush about it. :)
Happy to hear your take on The Spear Cuts Through Water. I literally finished it just as I was watching your video and felt the same. I was a little confused by the high ratings but recognize that it is very well written. I just chalked it up to this not being a book for me although I am a 5th Season STAN lol but this didn’t give me the emotional investment that the 5th season did.
Happy belated Mother’s Day! 🎉
I’m so excited to read the husbands after your review! Mines in the mail right now
Nothing But the Rain is one of my fav novellas, but I don't know anyone else who has read it, so I was really excited to see it here! I also really enjoyed The Husbands. As much as I enjoy you reading silly things, it was really nice to see you read a bunch of books you liked!
haven't gotten to it yet in the video but I saw The Spear Cuts Through Water in the thumbnail... I LOVE that book!! What an intricately woven tapestry of a tale.. one of kind. All time favorite!! Can't wait to read The Vanished Birds. Hope he writes a Horror book next!
Happy Mother’s Day Kayla! Hope you have more 5 stars in your future!
Yay! So glad you found some good books you enjoyed
I hope your allergy calmed down and the doctor is going to help!
I can’t wait to read some of these books! I hope you feel better soon.
For your organized/lists category the ultimate book might be A Tidy Armageddon by B.H. Panhuyzen (a Canadian author, I think). I don’t know if you’ll like it. It’s bit of a strange reading experience, but all in all it’s a (mostly) quiet, weird, speculative apocalypse book. I had a mixed reading experience with it, but a year later I still think about it and feel quite fond of it now.
i am kind of heartbroken you didn't love the spear cuts through water because it is one of my favorite books of all time. i read it physically and honestly don't know how the audiobook would have impacted my enjoyment. structurally it's quite complex so i feel like physical reading it helps put the pieces together! but i'm glad your five-star drought is over! i just had my first 5 star in over a month so i love that feeling for us both!
I need a spooky book in June and now I’m going to pick up “Haunting of Velkwood” because although it’s very different to what I usually read you have sold me! Husbands also sounds so good! Also go canucks 🎉
Living for these bracket updates! If the Stars don't go all the way for my bracket I hope it's one of the Canadian teams for your fam.
every time you talk about books you like i get more and more excited for you to read harrow the ninth 🤭
I'm glad you found two new faves! I think I need to check out The Haunting of Velkwood. It sounds super intriguing.
I would be interested to see you read the Host by Stephanie Meyer because it is shared consciousness, has a futuristic sci-fi feel, a dash of romance, and a post apocalyptic vibe! Oldie but a goodie!
I also gave the Husbands five stars, I’m so glad you enjoyed it too!! I haven’t really heard anyone talk about it/enjoyed it too much, but the ending is what made me give it five stars. Such a fun time!
happy mother’s day to you!
I’ve been on the fence about Velkwood, but you convinced me. I grabbed it from my library this morning. 😂
Go Canucks Go!!!! I also gave The Husbands 5 stars - I understand the criticism towards this book, but I just loved getting to learn about each different husband and their relationship. It kept me engaged from beginning to end!
Happy for you!!! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Ok, I’m going to recommend you a book (again) that I really think (?!) you’ll love! The Wall by Marlen Hauhofer is non urgent apocalypse, rambly, obsessive and weird. It’s the perfect length too.
So glad you found some 5* 🎉
I met Gwendolyn Kiste and bought the haunting of velkwood in April! I can’t wait to read it now 👻
I love that you enjoyed The Haunting of Velkwood! Gwendolyn Kiste lives in Pittsburgh and I had the opportunity to meet her this weekend at our local book festival - I finished this one just in time to chat with her about it and I loved it!
omg LOVE the olive tie dye hoodie! 😍
I read The Husbands and liked it a lot--and immediately thought, "Kayla would love this!" and I feel so validated. The other two books that--in my head--you will 100% give 5 stars are Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin and NK Jemison's short story collection, How Long 'Til Black Future Month. I'm half convinced you've already read them and I just missed it somehow.
My TBR really grows everytime I watch a video of yours 🤭
Love it!!
Great vlog ❤ I’ve been looking at the husbands for a while and on the fence as to whether it’s my vibe or not haha😂
I feel you with the allergies I have severe pollen/ outdoor allergies, dust also… airborne things mostly and it’s such a pain in the arse. It affects my eyes mostly and they swell so I look like a goldfish half the time. 😢 it can be so debilitating sometimes! X
Kayla, you must live in a beautiful area, your bike ride the scenery was really lovely and your walk, just incredible place to walk. Whatever is causing your allergy is not nice, that looks very painful! I hope you find out what caused it, my sister often has reactions like this with some foods she consumes and my mum gets reactions to plants in her garden sometimes, so it could be caused by a number of things including internal body reactions. Good luck with it.
I'm so happy you enjoyed Velkwood! I got that one from Saga a month or two ago and enjoyed it a lot! It really sticks to you, I've thought about it several times since I read it.
So good!
I'll need to pick up The Husbands. That one sounds so interesting and fun!
OMG! You may not like Dark Lord but I LOVED it! It's crude, gross, and has some real ridiculous humor, but it's so fun.
I’m happy about your 5 stars! I am shocked and awed that you gave The Husbands 5 stars
Ooh, I've been on the fence about trying The Husbands, but now I think I'll go for it!
I'm definitely adding The Husbands to my wishlist. It sounds so good!
If you haven't read it, I wanted to recommend you *Dance On My Grave* by Aidan Chambers because if fits in the "Mixed Media" and "Releated To Death" category.
Yaayy for 5 stars!! You convinced me to pick up The Husbands!
since you just made it into a 5 star category i'd like to recommend you a book with a collective voice that i read and enjoyed recently:) brown girls by daphne palasi andreades it's about the lives of many differnet brown girls in queens and their collective experience. it reminded me of you when i read because i knew you we're really into that element in we ride upon sticks, and it works really well here too like it's not just a gimmick it feels really powerful
I feel like the astonishing color of after would also fit nicely in the dreams meet reality category.
That's a perfect pick up video for having a cold 💜 Thank you!
Feel better soon
I hope you feel better soon!! 💞
Thank you!! CZcams is all I can focus on now and I'm even more grateful than usual to creators 😅
I didn't realize that you live in the Okanagan! (Or at least it looks very similar to that in your clips) Cool to see a successful CZcamsr from the Interior. Loving all the hockey side-content! Go Canucks. :)
She lives in Kelowna if I'm not mistaken!
The quote you read of The Haunting of Velkwood reminds me of the chorus from Noah Kahan song Halloween! Now I really want to read this book for the vibes alone!
I know I have a book with a, sort of, similar premise to Nothing But the Rain on my tbr.
The main character is a soldier who's been cursed to forget everything when he goes to sleep, so he's writing everything down on a scroll(?) so he can try and keep track of what's happening.
Found it. Soldier of the Mist, by Gene Wolfe.
Happy Mother’s Day 💐💐💐
We share similar thoughts on The Spear Cuts Through Water! I was expecting it to be a favorite as well. I have a feeling you might enjoy The Vanished Birds more. You have me wanting to check out Haunting of Velkwood!
it's probably easier to understand the three different story-telling aspects in The Spear Cuts Through Water if it's read physically .. there are cues on page for the switches (and also the thoughts of others are italicized).
I work at aerie and I love when you do little hauls 😭
I just finished The Husbands, also a 5 star for me. I loved the ending, for me it was perfect. I also loved Oona Out of Order. 😊
Just wanna thank you for mentioning and reading knock knock open wide months ago im reading it for 2 days now and oh my god i think it might be one of my fave books of all time
Omg YAY!! 💞 I'm so glad!!
You made my day with that comment
I can’t wait for the husbands to come into my library - you’ve just turned my excitement for it up to an 11
I’ve been so on the fence about Velkwood but now I neeeeeddddd it
I haven't had a 5 star since February so I immediately started The Husbands after seeing this
I loved The Husbands and gave it 5 stars (my first 5 star review ever)!!! It was my BOTM pick and I was so happy with it! My typical go-to genre is thriller/horror/mystery but BOTM has given me the opportunity to find things outside of my comfort zone and I've enjoyed them all. That being said, I would highly recommend Annie Bot by Sierra Greer and The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley :)
I don't recall every hearing you talk about The Atlas Six so idk what you did and didn't like about it buuuut I think you should try to 2nd book in that series because I liked it a lot more than the first and I feel like it hits a lot of boxes for you. I might be biased cause I read it pretty recently and loved it haha but it seems like a good fit for you in theory!
I don't even feel bored when me and my wife are around eachother doing nothing or doing our own thing or doing mundane things, I just feel content. She's my comfort person, just being around her makes me feel good. Other people might see it as boring but I don't feel bored myself.
Haunting of Velkwood was a five star for me too. I normally never agree with you on ratings 🤣 but I ABSOLUTELY loved it and sobbed my eyes out. I did give The Husbands a 3 because I didn't love where it ended up going in the end, but I loved the idea and writing of the book.
I loved The Husbands so much. I feel like so many of my favorite books I have no one to recommend them too!
I desperately want to read The Husbands, it sounds so odd and so good!! Fake dating is my favourite romance trope, some that I've loved that weren't on your graphic are Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall (only read if you like British humour because it is thick with British humour), Stars in Your Eyes by Kacen Callender, Written in the Stars by Alexandria Bellefleur, and If I Never Met You by Mhairi McFarlane. Just in case you get in a romance mood again 😂❤
Happy mother's day fellow Kayla!
I just got a new bike! Happy belated Mother’s Day ! 💐
I think for that existential slow apocolypse I would recommend Pink Slime by Fernanda Trias, it's so good and i don't usually like dystopia/apocolypse
I felt the same way about The Spear Cuts Through Water. I think you would love Dawn by Octavia E Butler. Definately a weird one. ✨✨
I think the apocalyptic subgenre you're looking for might be what's known as soft apocalypse (or alternatively cozy catastrophe). It's the type of story where the world as we know it has ended and the people are kinda just vibing and continuing to live on in the post-apocalyptic environment but are also forced to reckon with what it is they actually find important. I sadly don't have any book recs for this, as it's much more common in manga I feel like, but might be a good buzzword to check out.
I loved your bike-ride music
I’ve never heard of The Husbands, but it sounds so good omg???