Bout of Books 13 | Bookish Survey Challenge!

It's the first day of Bout of Books 13, and Lori @ Writing My Own Fairy Tale is hosting the very first challenge, complete with a giveaway! I've never taken part in any of the Bout of Books challenges before, but this survey seemed like too much fun to pass up - I love getting the chance to talk about books I love and recommend them to people!

Thanks, Lori, for hosting this challenge!

The Questions

1) How do you organise your shelves?

I don't, really. I try to have some semblance of organisation, but as I'm pretty much entirely out of room I stick my books where there's room for them, although I do have spaces of organisation. I have one shelf dedicated entirely to my classics, and I always keep my series together, and, if I can, I'll keep books written by the same author together, too. One day I'd love to have a big house with a huge library room where I can organise them to my heart's content, either alphabetically or by genre.

2) What is one of your favourite books that's not in one of your favourite genres?

This is a great question. I think I'll have to go with Things I Want My Daughters to Know by Elizabeth Noble, which I really, really enjoyed when I read it a couple of years ago. I don't dislike contemporary, but it's certainly not a genre I tend to read a lot of.

3) What is the last 5 star book you read?

Well-Read Women: Portraits of Fiction's Most Beloved Heroines by Samantha Hahn. It's a beautiful book, and I'm really glad to have it on my shelf.

4) What book are you most excited to read during the read-a-thon?

Probably Lolly Willowes by Sylvia Townsend Warner, which is a modern classic from the mid '2os about a spinster who dabbles in witchcraft.

5) What book do you recommend the most?

It has to be my favourite book of 2015 so far, and one of my all-time favourites now, Signal to Noise by Silvia Moreno-Garcia. It's exquisite and you should read it. You can check out my review here!

Happy reading!

Bout of Books 13!

Bout of Books 13 is on its way, which is great because I've been in the mood for a readathon!

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, May 11th and runs through Sunday, May 17th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 13 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

I have a tentative TBR. I'm rubbish at sticking to TBRs, but I always like to make them - just in case! I know I won't read all of these, but if I could get through one or two of them I'll be a happy bunny, and if I don't I'm sure I'll enjoy whatever else it is I read.

Lolly Willowes by Sylvia Townsend Warner: This is a relatively new find - I saw Lesley @ Words of a Reader talking about this book on her channel and I was immediately intrigued. Ever since I started reading Daphne du Maurier and Shirley Jackson I've been getting into modern classics more and more, especially modern classics written by women, and this one sounds right up my alley!

Tooth and Claw by Jo Walton: I own three of Jo Walton's books now - Tooth and Claw, Among Others and My Real Children - and I've heard such great things about her writing that it's about time I read something of hers. This sounds bizarre but brilliant, and I'd like to cross it off my TBR soon!

Fingersmith by Sarah Waters: I really want to finish this. I haven't picked it up for a couple of weeks, not because I wasn't enjoying it but simply because it surprised me so much I've needed time to recuperate. I think I'm ready to return to it now!

Where She Went by Gayle Forman: I always like to toss a short, contemporary read into my TBRs whenever I take part in a readathon - sometimes they can be just what I need to stop me from falling into a slump. I really enjoyed If I Stay, so it's about time I read this one.

Persuasion by Jane Austen: There's a teeny tiny chance I might use this readathon to give Austen another try. Maybe.

Are you taking part in Bout of Books? What are you planning to read?