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?



56 comments

  1. Meeting favorite authors is such a special thing! I feel like they're the bookish equivalent to rock stars for us. So sad you had do leave those bookshelves! You've had a lot of great moments over the years!

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  2. Aren't author signings great? I've only been to a few but yes they are memorable. And what a wonderful memory of your bookshelves. It is sad you had to leave them but awesome pic.

    Glad you got to meet Colleen Hoover as well finally! Thanks for sharing these!

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  3. Awww, the one about your hubby and the gift cards just made me smile. That's so sweet. I also love that your Dad designed a custom bookshelf for you. I would have been heartbroken to have to leave that behind as well.

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    1. It really was hard to leave that bookcase behind. And I think my sister was even more upset than I was.

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  4. These are lovely, lovely memories! I'm so glad you started your blog, and I hope you keep writing and reading and reviewing for many years to come.

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  5. It's so much fun to see all these pictures, Tanya! How awesome that you got to meet Colleen Hoover :) Do you have an absolute favorite book by her?

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    1. I find it impossible to pick one favorite by Colleen Hoover. But if I had to narrow it down to three (LOL), I would pick: It Ends With Us, Ugly Love, and Maybe Someday.

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  6. That bookcase is gorgeous! And I hope to make it to a book convention someday. :)

    My post is here— https://fiftytwo.blog/2021/11/30/ttt-bookish-confessions/

    Happy TTT!
    Lori
    https://fiftytwo.blog

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  7. This post is so sweet! I love that your husband got those gift cards signed by your favorite characters!!! Love is real! <3

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    1. I'm pretty sure I still have those gift card holders in a drawer somewhere. :) It was such a cute thing to do!

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  8. What great memories! I love that your husband did that. So sweet! I didn't do this topic, but now you're making me wish I did.

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  9. The book case is so pretty! It's so cool you've meet Colleen Hoover and Diana Gabaldon!

    Genesis @ Whispering Chapters

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    1. Author events are definitely something I miss these days!

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  10. That custom made book case made by your dad is so nice, I definitely see how you'd be heartbroken to leave that behind. So cool you got to meet so many favorite authors though!

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  11. Those are all so wonderful! But I love the bookcase and gift cards signed by characters.

    Karen @For What It's Worth

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  12. I love this post! You've got some great bookish memories! My favorite one has been going to the office of the Little Brown Book Group in London, and being able to pick all the books I wanted from their shelves.

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  13. You've gotten to meet so many authors! Fun. And that bookcase your dad built you is so beautiful. How sad you couldn't take it with you when you moved.

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  14. I would love to go to a book con.

    Pam @ Read! Bake! Create!
    https://readbakecreate.com/unusual-books-i-read-in-high-school/

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    1. I sure miss book cons! Hopefully one day I'll feel comfortable going again.

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  15. These are all such wonderful memories! I especially love your story about your bookshelves.

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  16. This is such a beautiful post. I have tears in my eyes seeing the beautiful shelves your dad made and those precious signed gift cards. Too sweet! We missed each other by one year at YallFest. I went in 2015

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  17. That bookcase from your dad is so gorgeous, that must have been gutting to have to leave behind.
    My TTT: https://jjbookblog.wordpress.com/2021/11/30/top-ten-tuesday-344/

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  18. I love #4. So sweet! I remember when my in-laws gave me a $100 book gift card for my birthday. I thought I had died and gone to heaven! It was so fun to have a guilt-free book shopping spree.

    Happy TTT!

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  19. I just love seeing all of your bookish memories. I think all of us that started blogging, we had no idea what we were doing. Thank you for sharing all of these here, so fun seeing your bookish memories and what they mean to you.

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    1. Thanks Renee! It was fun looking back through photos and deciding what to include.

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  20. Those bookshelves are gorgeous! And you can never forget your first bookish convention. Thank you for sharing these memories!

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  21. OMG these are amazing memories!! I met Jennifer at RARE Paris! She is so sweet!

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    1. I think the world of Jennifer. Somehow she remembers me every time I see her and always asks about my husband if he's not with me. Amazing.

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  22. I love these! Those bookshelves are beautiful. I love the Amazon cards your husband gave you and how he signed them from characters. That's a fantastic idea for any book lover, and so easy to do, right?? And yay for finally meeting Colleen Hoover since you're such a huge fan!

    Lauren @ www.shootingstarsmag.net

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    1. I loved that my husband thought to do that with the gift cards. It was so thoughtful and creative!

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  23. Aww, these are awesome memories! I'm the same way with blogging. I used to have a strict schedule and stay up all night to get posts done. Now I only post when I have time. I try not to stress about it.

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  24. I've met a few author's at signings and of course BookCon and Book Bonanza.

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  25. What a wonderful post! Thank you for sharing these memories with us. I love that bookcase that your father made. I would have bee sad to leave it too. I must say that I am somewhat jealous that you met Diana Gabaldon!

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    1. It's been more than 15 years since I met Diana Gabaldon and is still such a cool memory. :)

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  26. Tanya, you have such great bookish memories!! Thank you for sharing them so we could live vicariously through your author-meets. ;) Your hubby's gift was so sweet, and it would be so hard to leave those beautiful book shelves your father made. <3

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    1. Thanks Dedra! It was hard to leave that bookcase behind. I wish I still had that piece of my father.

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  27. OMG you got to meet the author of Outlander?! I'm insanely jealous! I bet that was awesome!

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    1. That’s been so many years ago (15-16 years, I think?) but it was such a cool experience!

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  28. Awww you have so many fabulous memories! I love reading all of them! I didn't realize all of the different authors you had met, I'm so happy for you! One of my favorite memories was meeting Jennifer L Armentrout in San Francisco at a small signing years ago. I thought I was going to embarrass myself but had a blast chatting with her!
    Jen @ Star-Crossed Book Blog

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    1. Funnily enough, Jennifer is the author that I’ve met the most. Four or five times, I think. And she is always so kind and friendly. Love her!! :) So awesome that you’ve met her too!

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