booktube thoughts, books that make me angry, and more ft. new glasses
The Art of Reading: A Personal Perspective
As I sit here reflecting on my own reading habits and experiences, I am reminded that I don't always listen to my own advice when it comes to reading. It's ironic, isn't it? Despite knowing that reading is an act of personal growth and self-improvement, I often find myself getting lost in the entertainment value of a book without taking the time to truly engage with its literary merit. However, as I've grown older, I've come to realize that reading is not just about escapism or mere enjoyment – it's also about learning how others think, react to situations, and navigate life's complexities.
Reading has taught me so much about empathy and understanding, allowing me to see the world through different perspectives and appreciate the diversity of human experience. When I read fantasy novels, for instance, I'm often thrown into absurdly fantastical scenarios that challenge my own assumptions and broaden my understanding of what's possible in the world. Similarly, when I encounter books that tackle difficult subjects like grief or trauma, I'm forced to confront my own emotions and reactions, leading me to become a more compassionate and open-minded person.
However, becoming a critical reader is not something I've always excelled at. In fact, for most of my life, I've approached reading with a more superficial mindset, prioritizing entertainment value over deeper analysis. I'd often find myself saying things like "I liked it" or "I didn't like it," without really stopping to consider the author's craft, themes, or literary devices. It wasn't until recently, when I began writing more myself and started paying attention to how stories are constructed, that I began to appreciate the art of reading in a more nuanced way.
One resource that has been particularly helpful in my development as a critical reader is Christy Anne Jones, an intelligent and insightful individual who has shared her expertise on this topic. Her recent video, which I've referenced here, offers some excellent advice on how to approach reading with a more analytical mindset. By examining the narrative structure of a book, considering character development, and thinking critically about themes and motifs, readers can gain a deeper understanding of what makes a story tick.
As I continue to grow as a writer and reader, I'm committed to developing my critical reading skills further. This involves being more intentional in my approach to reading, taking the time to consider multiple perspectives and interpretations, and engaging with texts on a more meaningful level. It's not always easy, but I know it will enrich my reading experience – and perhaps even help me become a better writer.
In conclusion, my journey as a reader has been one of discovery and growth. From appreciating the power of fantasy to developing a critical mindset, I've come to realize that reading is an act of self-discovery and personal evolution. By embracing this journey and being open to new experiences, ideas, and perspectives, readers can become better versions of themselves – not just as individuals but also as members of their communities.
Finally, I'd like to take a moment to thank Glassesusa for sponsoring this video. Their support means the world to me, and I'm grateful for the opportunity to share my passion for reading with all of you. If you're interested in learning more about how to become a critical reader or simply want to explore new books and ideas, be sure to check out the links provided in the description box below.
Until next time, when I'll be sharing some exciting new book ideas and video projects, thank you for joining me on this journey. Don't forget to subscribe and hit that notification bell, and I'll see you all in the next video.
"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enHave you read From Blood and Ash?Okay now we're ready. Ah! Maybe not. Okay.Okay we're ready. Hi. How are you? My name is Cari. There are a lot of new faces,so I thought I'd do another little Q&A. I get a lot of the same questions so if I answer the same ones from my last Q&A, I apologize. Thank you for having a fantastic memory and for watching my videos. But the one that Iacross the board - I got not only in this but inmy comment section, in my messages, all the time is -number one: how do I read my books? And number two:how are you okay with reading the way that you do? And so in case you're curious I do in fact read on an iPad, yes I do. And I'm gonna go into how I get my books, but yeah for those who ask - this is me and my dog who lives in America, I don't. This is the iPad 10 and a half inch. I won it in a contest. It is the best gift I've ever received. So second question, when I'm reading so often on ebooks, people ask 'why don't my eyes hurt?' and for that question I'm actually gonna send it over - we have a we have an agent in the field - Cari, are you there?Hi, yes, so this video is actually sponsored by Glassesusa.com which is a service that I have been using since 2018. It's been a while. Glassesusa.com is an online source for eyeglasses and sunglasses. What's really interesting about them is that they will do prescription on both eyeglasses but also sunglasses. If you know me, you know that I actually have pretty much perfect vision but in 2018 I started having difficulty seeing. I went to an eye doctor everything and it turns out that my eyes were just tired and stressed and strained and dry. And so I started looking into blue light blocking lenses and so that is when Glassesusa.com came in clutch because along with prescription, they can also apply blue light blocking science onto all of their frames. So that is how I actually read on my iPad - I can see such a difference as far as, especially when I'm reading right before bed, if Idon't wear a blue light blocker even if I have the nighttime setting on, it's so much more difficult for me to fall asleep. Even if you don't - you've never thought about needing glasses, I would highly recommend getting yourself a pair of blue light blocking lenses. So I have this pair - these are my two new glasses. I have a ton. But I also got some sunglasses for this summer. And so they have over 9,000 frames online so I'm sure that you can find one that you like and if you're unsure like me, you've never dealt with eyeglasses prior to this, they have an online try-on feature where you can upload a picture of yourself or take a picture with your webcam and try on glasses and if you do get them and they aren't exactly what you want, there is free shipping and returns, 100% money back guarantee, full refund within 14 days no questions asked, and a 365 day product warranty. So definitely check them out, there will be a link in the description box leading you to Glassesusa.com.I highly recommend, like I said, I kick myself when I don't use them, so definitely check them out.Back to you in the studio Cari. Thanks Cari. So yeah that is how I do things and so adding on to that, as far as how I actually get my books, really quickly, I talk about it all the time butI use two different apps - one is called Overdrive and one is called Libby and they are tied to your library card and you can borrow ebooks and audio books. So yeah that is what I use and that kind of leads me into a couple other questions which are pertaining to 'will I ever do a bookshelf -' What's going on with the light? How am I so white?So yeah there were a lot of questions asking me about 'will I do a bookshelf tour?' 'let's see those bookshelves!' So you can see these piles here... This is a mixture of myself and my husband. This is almost 50/50 now, I used to have all the books but now it's 50/50. The reason that I probably won't do a bookshelf tour is because this is it, this is, this is it. But also I don't really buy physical books anymore. If I do buy a book, I will actually buy an ebook which, if you told me this up to like four years ago I would have thought you were crazy because I love physical books so much.But because I live in a small one-room apartment with another human, and also I am probably going to be moving, like I don't, I don't feel any sense of permanence in my life right now, so I could be moving probably abroad so I would either be moving back to America or maybe to Europe or somewhere so the idea of packing up and moving books....ah! I've done that once for college and for moving here and it is no fun. No fun at all. Sountil I'm in a more permanent space, I will not be buying a whole lot of physical books and one day I hope to do a bookshelf tour. I do hope to have a lot of books but that is just not my, not my reality right now. So now I'm just going to kind of go in order because I thought that those were the only ones that kind of went together so we're just gonna slide through your questions, I'm very excited. Who was your favorite child in House on the Cerulean Sea? That is such a hard question! But I think I feel like I have to go with Lucy or what's his name, the bellhop, Chauncy? Is that his name?When they introduced the character of Lucy, that was the first time when I like actually belly laughed out loud. Like I literally was reading it and I went like HA (in public, it was embarrassing) but yeah I would say those too but I've gotta read it again I feel like it needs a reread soon. Shadow and Bone need Six of Crows but Six of Crows doesn't need Shadow and Bone.The book that you have reread the most? So here's the thing, I had - I'm sure you guys have these too so I'm not embarrassed - but I used to have just like books that I would put in the bathroom and like they were your bathroom reading books so those ended up being the ones that I would just reread constantly so I would say probably like honestly Haruki Murakami short story collections. Probably 'After the Quake' honestly, not my fave, but I've read it so many times. I've definitely reread the Harry Potters a lot and maybe Twilight?! Because that was another one where it was like I just want to read something and Twilight worked. But there is a book - I'm gonna find it because I know that I found it on goodreads once -but I thought it was a fever dream. And it's called Beauty and it's like I think maybe Snow White inspired? I don't know, I just remember that there was a crazy stepmother trying to - or maybe mom, it was just her mom? - like trying to kill this girl because her daughter was becoming more beautiful than her? I don't know, I just know that I read that book a bazillion times and I still think that I kind of dreamt it up but I did find it on goodreads so I'll link it down below if I remember it. There's that. Okay, a lot of people asked 'what is a book that is a good recommendation to start getting into the fantasy genre?' That's an interest- that's a hard one, because I feel like fantasy is so wide and people love so many different parts of it. Maybe I'll do a separate video but think about what you already like in content. I didn't really understand this about myself until I had like a moment of clarity after reading Six of Crows, but I really like heist movies. I really like spy and action movies. I loved the Jason Bourne movies when I was a kid, like I don't know. Anyway, so that's why, for me, getting into Ahadow and Bone or getting into Six of Crows was so seamless because it was like 'yes heist/action, love it.' If you're really interested in romance, there are definitely a lot of fantasy romance for you to go into. If you really want to know, in the comments maybe leave things that you're already interested in and then hopefully myself and our lovely community can give you some recommendations because I do think that fantasy is very very wide. Also just read Howl's Moving Castle because you should. Have you read From Blood and Ash?Have you read Haemin Sunim books? Yes! I actually have it on my shelf, or do I have it here - would that be - that would be too easy. Anyway, fantastic book, very good if you are feeling anxious or any kind of negative emotions - read this book. It's all like tiny little blurbs, I recommend. What is your opinion on self-help/ self-developing books? I have yet to really read a self-help book that is like actually sold and marketed as self-help I think that I've talked about the Book of Joy which I think is more of a philosophy book and that actually ended up being kind of a self-help book. But for books that are straight up like out here 'I'm self-help!' - they're a little cheesy for me. I don't, I have not met a self-help book that I have liked. If you have self-help books that you want me to read, I could make a video about that, but I have not, I'm not enthusiastic about the genre, no. What book brings up the strongest memories because of the time you read it in? I can't say like a specific book but I do underline lines in my books (which some people drive some crazy, but they're my books!) so I have had instances where I will be rereading a book and I will see an underlined passage or an underlying line and I will know, I'll remember what I was feeling at the time when I underlined it. Oh one weird thing though is that there's such a huge difference between reading a book on the ground and reading a book in an airplane. For some reason, I distinctly remember every book that I've ever read on an airplane. I read Wilder Girls - that was actually god, kind of probably a bad choice. That was right when the pandemic kind of started. This was in January and I live in Korea so we were kind of, very beginning of it, we saw a lot of stuff going on. And so I was flying to Japan and I remember that we had to wear masks and it was really when we first started wearing them, it just felt very strange - looking back on it now like I would feel weird without a mask but like at that time I felt really kind of odd and then I ended up reading Wilder Girls which is - it's not about, well it kind of is about like a disease and so it wasn't my greatest choice but I have a very strong memory of that reading that on an airplane. So there it is. What do you use as a bookmark? Do you annotate books? Okay is anyone else triggered by all of the TikTok content that is going around right now of like 'these book habits that drive people crazy' Oh! One of them came up on my Instagram and I was like laughing but also like so uncomfortable. I don't, like do you with your books, I don't really care but at the same time this girl was like 'yeah instead of dog-earing the page I just rip out part of the corner' and I was just like ah!!!!! So what do I use as a bookmark? I use nothing honestly. Sometimes I just remember the page number, if it is a physical book. Which is a weird trait to have, it's like a flex, but you know, I do - I can remember numbers really well. Or I'll just use a receipt. Usually it's a receipt. Bookstores that give you a free bookmark with your purchase...keep going, I love you. And then, do you annotate your books? Not really. Like I said, I will underline a line if I just find that it's interesting. As far as like actually annotating - no. Sometimes I feel like I should but...Okay a ton of you guys were asking about erotic books. I don't know if you saw my reaction to From Blood and Ash but...it's not my style. Soerotica is not not on my bookshelf unfortunately, I'm sorry darling. What book made you laugh hard that you had to keep put the book down and collect yourself? The Shadows Between Us most recently, but definitely House in the Cerulean Sea had me just like hard cackling, honestly like it was a lovely lovely book that - like The Shadows Between Us, I was laughing because I was like 'this cannot be real, this is so ridiculous' but House in the Cerulean Seawas actually like funny and meant to be funny. So yeah if you're looking for a good, a good laugh I will recommend House in the Cerulean Sea until Idie, so please read it. Reading ebooks is hard and slow for me but I can't afford to buy actual books, what should I do? Okay, I had a really really hard time getting into ebooks, I'm not gonna lie and I only read them because of that like access to books for me wasn't as easy as it was back home and I didn't have the m- I wasn't gonna start buying a ton of books, so it was a thing that I had to honestly read books that I already loved. Ihad to read a really good book that drew me in so that no matter what I was gonna finish it. So I would recommend trying that if you can maybe going into your library and finding ebooks that are, you know, true to you. You know that you're going to read them. Te-read an old favorite, whatever, and then slowly hopefully you will kind of get into it and now actually I find that it's easier for me to read an ebook than it is to read a physical book which, again, tell past Cari this she would call you a liar but it is true. I have joined the ebook crew. Someone asked what is the first book you remember reading? And I know that Iread before this but the book that I remember was like my transition book was honestly Harry Potter. I remember my mom read the first one out loud to me and then by the time the second one came out or perhaps maybe it was the third one, that's when I was like I transitioned and I was able to read a chapter book all by myself, like of that length. So I don't remember like the first book that I ever read. I do have a strangely strong memory of reading the children's illustrated classics version of Robinson Crusoe. I remember sitting in my driveway out front reading that. Best and worst film show adaptations of novels? Okay so for the best, there are so many and I actually want to make a video about it so I'm gonna save those for later but for the worst I'm gonna, I'm gonna, I'm gonna rant for a second about this. I know that Dan Brown is like a joke author at this point. He's like the Nickelback of literature I would say. But I already told you, I like a good mystery, thrille,r heist kind of thing. I don't care what people think, all right? I have, I've read most of his books. I remember reading Inferno and Inferno was also made into a film- they did the Da Vinci Code, Angels and Demons, and then they they did Inferno. And Inferno is actually one that I thought was the most interesting and the one that he kind of took a bigger risk on because the ending was very shocking to me. And if you don't want spoilers for it, you can skip - there will be a time whatever here do your thing.If you aren't interested in reading Dan Brown's Inferno, it kind of revolves around this mad scientist who is like 'we have a population problem and in order to save eventual lives I've invented this' - ooh maybe not a good time to talk about this Cari? 'I invented this disease and it's gonna kill a third of the population' The whole book is Tom Hanks (whoever his name is) trying to find like through all of these clues, trying to get to the release point of this disease and take it before it gets released into the world. The ending - and here's where the, here's where the spoiler comes in -The ending is that in fact the date that they were given as the day that it was going to be released onto the world, was actually the incubation period. So by the time that they found it, that meant that a third of the world was already infected. And instead of like killing people, it made a third of the world's females infertile. So I, you know, in his brain he's like 'okay a third of the population can't reproduce so we're gonna have a cut in the population by a third' Anyway and so that's how it ended. Like that's how it ended. They didn't get there in time and a third of the world, sure they didn't die, but like a third of the world doesn't get to choose if they want to have children or not, you know? I don't know like I have mixed feelings about it in general but like what a way to end a book, right? And so in Inferno, the film, I was like 'how are they gonna do this?'This is so - are they really gonna put this in? And no, of course they blame it all on the girl and they make her into this like lovesick - there's obviously like a girl character, right? It's like James Bond - and so this particular girl ends up just being like this love sick puppy who makes bad decisions even though she's a brilliant scientist. I don't even remember but basically they pinned it all on this girl and like Tom Hanks saves the day and they made this little female scientist, like this brilliant mind, boiled her down into just being like in love and I hated it. I remember watching it on an airplane I think and I was just like pissed. So that's the worst film adaptation. Are you an emotional reader? Basically have you ever cried while reading? I cry all the time. I laugh, I cry, I make the facial expressions of the characters. I'm a very active - I'm a participant in the books that I read. Okay, a book that you hate so much it literally made you throw it out of your window? So I didn't throw this out of my window. One of my favorite books is actually The Alienist by Caleb Carr and I'm not gonna talk about that book but it is and so I thought it was safe to assume that I would like other books written by my, by the author of my favorite book, one of my favorite books. And so I read Surrender New York by Caleb Carr and let me tell you - it was so bad. Like it was - I think I ranted about it maybe in another video but it was just like, I felt caleb Carr writing it and feeling like he was the and I hated it. And the main character was so obviously like Caleb was writing it as if it were him. And he was like this badass guy, all the chicks love him, he has a pet leopard or like a pet cheetah or something. It was just so bad. And I was so angry that - I was like h'ow did this man write such a good book and then such a bad book?' And I was just very upset so yeah if it wasn't housed in my iPad, I would have thrown it out the window. Surrender New York. Do you feel pressured to read popular stuff now that you have a bookstagram and a booktube? Actually no but I do, I wouldn't say it's pressure, but I definitely feel inspiration. It's like once you see a book about a million times it makes me want to know why, you know? What is the hype? So yeah I don't, I don't feel pressure but it's definitely like maybe a little bit of fomo? It's not even fomo, it's like I'm genuinely like 'people are saying it's good, I want to read it!' You know? And that brings me to - what's it called? Red White and Royal Blue, is it? That is a - it's a romance and it's a contemporary, I have no interest in either of those genres, like they're just not ones that I'm ever really drawn to, but so many of you guys have told me to read it, so many people have said it's lovely and wonderful and great and I'm feeling like I should read it?But I don't know, so that's like that's the amount of pressure I feel, but it's not a bad thing, I don't have any negative feelings. Do you find it hard to focus while you are reading? Yes. I have a video about how to read more and I'll link it above and below - I have some tips for that but do I listen to my own advice? Not all the time. So yes Ido have issues focusing. The biggest thing you've learned because of reading - textbooks don't count.I think more than like a specific fact, I think that reading really teaches you how other people can think and how other people can react to situations. I think especially with fantasy, you get people thrown into these really ridiculous larger than life situations that you're never going to be in and to see them deal with that or like even how people deal with grief like how people digest and express certain emotions and certain things that they've been through - I think that it's so important to read it because I've become a much more understanding person, I've become a much more open-minded person in understanding that other people can feel differently than I feel - have different values and have different priorities and just being reminded of that and being shown it so obviously in books, I think that's like a really important takeaway that people should talk about when they talk about reading - it's not just like a fact it's learning to be a better human. And this might be my last one but how do you become a critical reader able to give all the points and criticism of books? Because I feel like I read and I'm like 'ah I liked it' or 'I didn't like it' but I don't read with a literary mind if that makes sense, how? Yeah so I don't, I don't really read critically. I, 100% my first, the first thing I want out of reading is entertainment and so I honestly don't think critically about things and then sometimes I will go back and and think about things deeper but for the most part no I actually don't. But if you are interested, I know that Christy Anne Jones, my girl, she has a recent video about that- like how you can look into a book and kind of look at the narrative - I don't know, words! Words that I don't know! She's a very intelligent human being and she knows what she's talking about so go look at her video. And I have though been noticing now as I'm trying to write more myself I'm definitely paying more attention into how a story is actually constructed like how we are introduced to the characters, how it's actually mapped out. I've been paying more attention to that just because of my writing but I really like reading for entertainment so a lot of times no I'm not, I'm not a critical reader either. So yeah okay I think that that is sort of it, that's all I have time for. I feel like if I answer another one this video is going to be an hour long so thank you for all of your questions!Thank you for joining me, I mentioned this I think in my like community tab but I have a lot of book ideas or video ideas that I'm really excited for, for the upcoming weeks so I'm, yeah, I'm really excited to try some new things and I will see you guys then. So thanks again to Glassesusa for sponsoring this - Cari, do you have anything to add? Just a little reminder to check the description box for the link to Glassesusa.com, thank you again for sponsoring this video - blue light lockers, I'm telling you, get on it! Back to you. And yeah I will see you guys then. I hope you are reading something great. Please don't leave erotica recommendations in my comment section, I don't even want to be tempted. You can start that discussion elsewhere. I hope you guys are doing good and I will see you guys next time so thank you always! Bye!\n"