Top Ten Tuesday: Bookish Memories

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

This week's Top Ten Tuesday topic:

Bookish Memories

No preamble this week, I'm just jumping right in...

 

1. The first book that made a lasting impression. I was 10 or 12 when I read A Candle in Her Room the first time. It's the first book I remember that made a huge impression on me. I was utterly captivated by the characters and the way the story spanned almost three generations. I checked it out of library again and again. Several years ago I tracked down a copy and it has a special place on my bookshelves.

2. My first author signing. I think my first author meeting/signing was with Diana Gabaldon in 2005. It was in conjunction with the release of The Fiery Cross (Outlander #5) and Diana was giving a reading and signing at a local bookstore. Definitely memorable.

3. Meeting Tracey Garvis Graves. I met Tracey in 2013 when she was on a book tour promoting the release of Covet. My sister and I went to the local indie bookstore at the beach and it was a rather small crowd. We got there early, chatted with Tracey, and had a great evening. Surprisingly (well, surprising to me), I've kind of stayed in touch with Tracey over the years and she never fails to ask about my sister and talk about getting together the next time she's in town. Such a down to earth lady.

 

4. A bookish gift from The Husband. Back in 2014 The Husband surprised me with two hefty Amazon gift cards. (The man knows the way to my heart.) What made it even better? He "signed" each one from book characters that I was rather obsessed with at the time: Jamie Fraser (the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon) and Daemon Black (the Lux series by Jennifer L. Armentrout). He's pretty awesome like that. ♥

5. My first book con. November 2014 had me travelling to Charleston, South Carolina for YallFest. It was my first book con and it was a perfect way to be introduced to author meetings and signings. Such a low-key event. It's where I met Jennifer L. Armentrout for the first time, along with Gayle Forman, Lauren Oliver, Kiera Cass and many others.

  

6. My first Colleen Hoover book. 2014 was also the year I discovered Colleen Hoover. I remember being drawn to the cover when I saw it in a bookstore. I practically inhaled Maybe Someday and immediately dove into Colleen's backlist. Colleen became one of those unicorn authors for me and I read everything she writes. But it all started with Maybe Someday.

7. My first Bookworm Box. Speaking of Colleen Hoover, I have a vivid memory of ordering the very first Bookworm Box. It launched in May 2015 and was expected to sell out. It so happened that I was on vacation the day of the launch so I was sitting poolside, iPad in my lap, refreshing the page furiously so I could get my box. What made it even more special was that when I received my box it just happened to include a beautiful copy of one of my favorite books ever, The Bronze Horseman. I continued my subscription to the Bookworm Box for several years.

8. Girl Plus Books was born. Back in March 2015 I took the leap and started Girl Plus Books. I had no idea what I was doing and muddled my way through those first posts. But six and a half years later I'm still here. My approach to blogging has changed over the years and now I have a much more laid back attitude about it. I post when I feel like it, I don't post when I'm busy or can't be bothered, and I'm fine with that. Hopefully I'll be singing the same tune in another six years.

 

9. The bookcase my father built. When The Husband and I moved into our first home in 2003 I knew I wanted to use one room as a library. My father, who was a master carpenter, designed and built us a custom-made bookcase and it immediately became my favorite thing in my home. Fifteen years later, in 2018, my father passed away and a few months after that we bought a new home. The one thing I was sad to leave behind? The beautiful bookcase made for me by my father. (Because they were custom made to fit a niche in the wall, they would not have fit in the new house.) It was truly a keepsake.

10. Meeting Colleen Hoover... finally! My love for Colleen Hoover is strong. And over the years I have missed out on several opportunities to attend her signings. Colleen was totally giving me the slip! But in 2018 that came to an end when The Husband, my mom, and I drove six hours to Atlanta in order to meet Colleen. She was touring for the release of All Your Perfects and Atlanta was the closest she was coming. It was such an experience to listen to her talk about her writing, to appreciate her offbeat humor, and have the chance to tell her what her storytelling has meant to me over the years.

DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL BOOKISH MEMORY?