One Person Book Club

Okay so before I even START talking about this book, yes, it is as sad as it sounds. They Both Die at the End is a young adult fiction novel written by the one and only (our god) Adam Silvera. He is a pretty common name in my personal library. Adam is 20 years old and is from South Bronx, New Youk City and is famous for the books What if its Us and Infinity Son. He actually started writing when he was 10, yes it was fanfiction but that still counts! Today we will be discussing one of his books, They Both Die at the End.

I’m going to be honest. This book made me cry for a week straight and I’m not even lying. Also, I’m pretty excited to review this book because I can’t really spoil the ending, I mean its in the title. I, however, won’t be telling you how they die. I’ll let you live through that heartbreak on your own. I did. Also, there are a couple surprises in the book that I’m not going to go over 😉

So, before I tell you about the book I’m going to share with you my experience reading it. I don’t know if you know this but I’m a pretty sensitive and emotional person, so this story put me through pain (substitute for a stronger word). I bought this book because my friend Ava Epstein recommended it to me (of course she didn’t tell me what actually happened). And I can still remember the night I finished it. It was earlier this year and I stayed up pretty late to complete it. So imagine, it’s one o’clock and you hear literal sobbing coming from my room. So obviously you walk in to see what’s wrong and here I am. Laying on my bed over this book completely and utterly destroyed over the ending. Yet it’s still one of my favorite books of all time. So if you’re going to read it, be ready.

Let’s get into it! You live in a world where you could get a call at any point in your life at 12:00 AM telling you you are going to die in the next 24 hours. They don’t tell when exactly or how, just that you will, for sure, die. So keep that in mind when deciding to read the book or not. It gets really intense. Back to the plot. Mateo is a shy kid. He doesn’t talk at school and has little to no friends. Also, at the moment he lives alone because his dad is in the hospital. His life was completely and utterly uneventful.

Until he gets the call very late into the night. The woman on the phone tells 18-year-old Matao that he is going to die in the next 24 hours. He’s disappointed. Not because he was going to die, but because he hasn’t even got the chance to live. He was still in 18 years old for god’s sake! So to live a little before he dies, Mateo downloads an all called Last Friend. On this, you can talk to some random stranger and spend your last day with them. On the app Matero meets Rufus, a foster kid that gets in fights. A kid that got the same call. In They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera you follow Mateo and Rufus through their last day on earth (I started crying when I wrote that bit).

I’ve said this about a million times but I really do love this book. Even though I’m tearing up while thinking about it. Also, if you dot want to read the book because I’ve been saying how sad it is. Keep in mind I cry over literally everything. It’s honestly such a good book. It has a great plot, great and lovable characters, and it’s VERY well written. Also if you do want to read this book I have so just ask (if you damage my book I will murder you). So yeah. Read it.

Have a good day/night/whatever.

-Ashley

This looks a little different, doesn’t it? I’m really excited to be doing this new topic! You have probably already guessed (and if not I’m going to tell you) that this is going to be a book review blog! I know its basic or whatever, but this is no normal book review… I’m also going to be going really in-depth with the books I’ve read. This includes stuff about the author, any deep meanings I’ve picked up on (if there is any). And also my ships!!! And if you don’t know what that last thing is its basically just the characters I think would make a cute couple. I’m super excited about this and I hope you find some good books through me! So let’s get right into the first book!

Carry on is a book written by an author called Rainbow Rowell. She was born on February 24, 1973 (a Pisces) and she lives in Nebraska. Rowell’s first piece of writing was called Attachments and was listed as one of the “most outstanding deputies of the year” (2012). Then in 2013, she finished the first draft of one of her most famous books, fangirl. I’m reading that book right now and might do a post on it. Anyways, Later that year she published Fangirl and another young adult novel called Elanor and Park, both became VERY popular. And again she published another popular book called landline in 2014. Then again in 2105, and you guessed it, again in 2019. Each and everyone becoming very popular and well known. In this post I’ll be talking about her two most recent books, Carry on (2015) and Wayword son (2019).

Carry on is a book relating to her previous book Fangirl. It is about Simon Snow and the rest of his story. Because I want you to go read fangirl, I won’t talk about it too much. Carry on follows the final year of magical schooling for Simon Snow, the “Chosen One” of the Magickal world, prophesied to defeat the Insidious Humdrum, an evil force that has been wreaking havoc on the World of Mages for years. The book is told through several points of view (or POVs), including Simon, his roommate/enemy Baz, his best friend Penelope, and his ex-girlfriend Agatha (who I hate with a burning passion). That is just kind of the basic summary.

Now I’m going to be talking about each character (that is worth talking about). First, we can start with Simon Snow. Simone is the main character or the hero if you will. He’s very confident and sure of himself but also entirely clumsy, and this may sound contradictory but also really self-conscious. Because Simon is told that he is the most powerful wizard in all of the worlds he looks to be super confident but really he is super anxious about making mistakes and letting people down. Simon is actually an orphan and through most of the book, you don’t know who is parents are and if they were important or not (I won’t spoil that part hehe). Because this post is already kinda long and I’m only like halfway done, that’s all I’m going to say on Simon for now.

Next would be Baz A.K.A my favorite character. So, I like to think of the characters as Hogwarts houses, Penny (who I will talk about next) is a Ravenclaw, Simon is a Gryffindor, Agatha is a Hufflepuff (I’m also going to talk about her briefly), and Baz is DEFEDENTLY a Slithernen. And I really love him. In the book, Baz and Simon have a rival relationship. Its really complicated with their history and background and I honestly think if you just read the book it would make a lot more sense. Anyway, they are rivals because of their backgrounds and Baz’s family really doesn’t like Simon and who he stands with. So Baz is expected to kill him. Only this is where the good part is. Baz is totally and completely in love with Simon (literally crying). Because Baz’s family thinks the way they do and because of their history, Baz TRIES to push away his feelings (notice its capitalized tries). So yeah… let’s just say thing book is not only about fantasy. That’s all I’m going to say on Baz (for now)

So I’m just going to combine Penny and Agatha’s short description so I can try and wrap this book club up. Penny is Simon BEST friend and probably one of the smartest wizards. She is super strong and independent in the whole “She don’t need no man” kinda way. I really do love her but Penny can be REALLY stubborn sometimes and it FRUSTRATES me. And then Agatha. Oh, Agatha. She is so so so so so annoying. I really do hate her. Agatha is simons ex-girlfriend (I was so happy when they broke up). Let’s just say she is super whinny and thinks she’s better than literally anyone else. Also, she had a thing for Baz but we don’t talk about that because it was embarrassing for literally everyone. And that’s all I’m going to say on those two.

This book was literally so good. There was SUCH a thick plot that I was not able to even scratch the very surface in this post. I really do highly recommend reading this book because you will truly be amazed. It’s a definite 10/10 in my book (haha, get it). There were so many twists and turns that no one was expecting and also so many parts that made me feel very emotional. These books one hundred percent took my new number one favorite book position (which is REALLY saying a lot).

*WARNING WARNING SPOILERS*

Now to my favorite part. My ships!!! Basically, all I’m going to be talking about for this section on this book is Simon and Baz. Those two, oh my god. Literally the cutest. So my tiny (not really tiny) spoiler is that these two get together and oh my gosh. Usually, in these types of books I will think that a homosexual couple would be SOOO cute but it never actually happens. BUT THIS ONE PULLED THROUGH. I was so happy. You need to read the book for the part where they told each other. It was…great. I was going to talk about Wayword son in this post too (the second book in the Simon Snow series) but this is already long. So I won’t. A short little bit would be that it’s just the continuation of Baz, Simon, Penny, and Agatha and some trouble they get themselves in. Also, they face a lot of internal battles along with physical ones. IT’S ALSO REALLY GOOD, SO READ THAT ONE TOO.

I think I’m going to finish this book talk up with that. This was really fun to write and I hope you stated caught up (it was kinda all over the place). Anyways, I’m excited for the next post and I hope you are too! I hope you have a good night/day/whatever

-Ashley

(p.s if you need the book I have it and I know Mrs. Keller has a copy in her library)

So I got a new lens for my birthday!!! I’m super excited about it and very thankful. My old lens worked… fine but the zoom was only 14 to 12 feet and my new one is 45 to 150 feet!!! That’s so great right!?! I’m really excited to use it some more. I’ve only taken a couple pictures with it but I am planning a couple projects. Which will probably be my next post (not likely though).

This is one of the pictures I took with the lens, it was really dark out when I got it so the only thing the camera could pick up was the moon. The quality is pretty bad but that’s only because I was shaking really bad (it was freezing outside) I am really excited to take some better pictures in the future

Here another picture I took with the camera but this one I didn’t zoom in on. So you can kind of see the difference with the zoom and without. Again, it looks like trash but there will be higher quality stuff in the future.

So yeah I’m really happy about getting this. I don’t really understand all the details about the actual lens so it would really make sense for me to put it in here. I’m also really sorry if this post seems rushed or bad. This is my second time writing this because I’m really bad at saving stuff. Also, I’m just not all that passionate about writing about this anymore. Does that sound bad? I didn’t really mean it that way. I still love taking pictures and stuff, it’s just that I don’t really like writing about it. I’m thinking about actually changing my topic. I don’t really know what I might change it to but it will probably be pretty close to photography. Also, sorry Mrs. Keller that this is the first time you will be hearing about this.

So, plot twist! This post was not ONLY about my new lens but also about me telling you that I will probably be changing my topic! It will most likely be about books because THAT is a topic I could go on and on and on about. Thank you for actually reading this. How are you, Mrs. Keller? I hope you had a nice weekend. Have a good day/night/whatever.

-Ashley

Okay, so I’m going to be honest with you guys. This is my 3rd time writing this dang blog post. Why? The stupid thing won’t save. IT KEPT GETTING DELETED. Let’s just say its been a stressful week. Anyways let’s just get into the post! This one is going to be about my top three favorite pictures taken as of now. Obviously, my opinions will change as time goes on. So let’s just get right into it.

This was taken by @Antoinehenault on Instagram. They take a lot of pictures I really like and this is one of my favorites. The photographer doesn’t give you any information on the piece but I kind of like that. It gives it a sort of mystery. I would have preferred a little description though. I still really like the piece, very nicely shot. The way the smoke stuff (I don’t know) looks is really well captured and cool looking to me.

This was taken by @alberthbyang on Instagram. They take A LOT of amazing landscape photos and this one happens to one of my favorites. I love all of the colors in this picture and the reflection of the mountain in the pond. Also in the description, the photographer gave of the piece they say this mountain reminds them of home and it will always hold a special place in their heart. I really like that there is meaning behind this and it adds a little extra piece to it for me.

¨Inner bloom¨ Brendon North

This photo was taken by one of my favorites, Brendon North on Instagram. He is a really awesome photographer and I love his work. Anyways, this is Inner Bloom. In the description of this piece, it says, ¨Within each of us lies something beautiful; something true, something pure. It’s the real you, the unencumbered you, the you that’s bursting at the seams begging to show itself to the world. I call this piece ¨Inner Bloom¨ as a representation of that inner beauty coming to life…¨Again I really like it when not only the picture is nicely shot but there is also a cool meaning behind it. And this one has both. Also, I may or may not have tried drawing this piece but we don’t need to talk about that monstrosity.

So you probably have noticed that all of these have come from Instagram. Well, that’s because that’s where I find photographers I really like and then I see what some of there tricks are. This is a very useful resource when first getting into photography. I would link some pages but they would be blocked anyway. I do recommend finding the photography hashtag on Instagram and following that. You can find amazing photographers from all over the world on that.

Well, that is going to be it for this blog post. I know it was kinda short but I hope you got something out of it. Have a good day/night/whatever!

-Ashley

What is up my guys? Doing good? Well, I’m glad to hear that. So this is my first blog post like ever so if I turn out to be a famous blogger in the future you could be witnessing history… So this post is gonna be about the equipment I’m using and some information on some equipment I’ve learned about so far. I know it sounds boring but bear with me okay.

So by equipment I mean like cameras, lighting, tripods, etc. you know the stuff you don’t think about all that much when you see a really nicely shot picture. I’m gonna be honest with you guys. I knew like nothing earlier today and I still don’t know a whole lot about the supplies you should consider having… but that’s what this blog is about! Growth. So you guys are gonna learn with me!

What are some things I have and am using right now? A camera. That’s really all I have right now but I am planning on getting a couple other things in the future. So, what camera do I have you ask? A Lumix GF3 and it’s pretty good. I like the zoom and the quality is pretty darn nice in my opinion but what do I know?

I did look up some reviews that other people have made on the camera so you guys have a better opinion on it than just ¨its pretty darn nice¨. ¨The images were a little soft straight out of the camera at the default sharpening level and ideally require further sharpening in an application like Adobe Photoshop, or you can change the in-camera setting if you don’t like the default results.¨ is what Mark Goldstein says about the camera on his own (much more professional) photography blog! Basically, he’s just saying that the pictures my camera produces might not have a whole lot of definition right after a picture is taken but with a little photoshop or tweaking in the camera settings, it should look nice. 

Heres a link to that professional photography blog! Go check them out!

https://www.photographyblog.com

I would like to have the Nikon D3500 and its just a nice beginner camera that I high key want. It’s pretty cheap (for a camera) if you say 500 dollars as is cheap and it’s one of the lightest including the memory card and the battery which is nice because the heavier the camera is the more I shake because I’m WEAK! Also, I love it because it’s specifically made for newbies like myself with some dumbed-down controls that I can understand. PLUS it allows you to transfer pictures/videos to your phone and stuff which is nice because I don’t have a computer (YET).

Sensor: 24.2MP APS-C CMOS 4, 23.5 x 15.6mm
Image processor: EXPEED 4
AF points: 11-point AF, 1 cross-type
ISO range: 100 to 25,600
Max image size: 6,000 x 4,000px
Metering zones: 420-pixel RGB sensor
Video: 1920 x 1080 at 60p, 50p, 30p, 25p, 24p
Viewfinder: Optical pentamirror, 95% coverage
Memory card: SD/SDHC/SDXC UHS I
LCD: 3.0-inch fixed, 921K dots
Max burst: 5fps
Connectivity: Bluetooth
Size: 124 x 97 x 69.5mm (body only)
Weight: 415g (body only, with battery and memory card)Yeah, I really only have the camera right now but I’m hopefully going to get some other things like a tripod, and hopefully some backdrops! So what are these two things you might ask? 

Heres all the info about the camera itself but I’m not gonna pretend I know what all this is. Oh, also I got this info from ¨The Home of Digital Photogrphy¨ which is a cool website/blog that does camera reviews and stuff. I learned a lot about the camera from them so go check em out! 

https://www.digitalcameraworld.com/

Well, a tripod is basically just a stand to put your camera on. I would probably need one so the picture doesn’t come out shaky because I don’t know how to stand still and not fidget! High key I would want the Vanguard Alta Pro 263AP not only because it’s really nice and has GREAT reviews but also I low key want it because it would make me look super personal but also its like 160 some dollars so… I don’t think that’s happening anytime soon. I don’t have that much bank 😐.

To be more realistic I would want a simple JOBY GorillaPod SLR Zoom which is a little smaller but still really nice and flexible and this one is only about 70 dollars which is still a little pricy but it’s chill. The JOBY GorillaPod SLR Zoom has pretty okay reviews but some people are saying that one of the legs falls off which is kinda unsettling but a lot more people are giving 5 stars so I’m just going to go with the majority on this one.

But also I’m high key broke right now because I’m saving for Christmas presents so… I won’t be getting any of these things soon.

Anyways. A backdrop. These are really just the backgrounds to pictures that aren’t taken let’s say outside or something like that (just for an example). I really don’t know how to explain it. I think you guys get it though. I could honestly just make backdrops though so I’m not all that worried about them. I can just go to the dollar store and get a bunch of those BIG pieces of paper in whatever color I need. So we are chill in that department 👌. Also if you guys want to see a blog post on me making some Id be down with that.

OHHH, I did forget to tell you guys about my camera bag. I don’t really know what it is because my dad got it like I don’t even know how many years ago but it does say ¨Lowepro¨ on it so I’m gonna assume that’s the brand that made it. The bag itself is pretty small and has enough room for the camera and its charger. I like it though. Small and simple. 

Then about lighting. I’m not really going to worry about it all that much at this point in time considering my skill level hehe 😅. Later in the school year when I know a little more and am more experienced maybe I’ll dive into all of THAT. 

So I thought I could show you some of the pictures I’ve taken recently so you guys can kinda see where I’m at. Also if you guys have any feedback I’d gladly take it! Just be nice though. I’m sensitive.

So I think that’s gonna be it for this post. Its already a lot longer than I was originally planning haha but oh well. I hope you guys enjoyed. Have a good rest of your day/night/whatever 😉. 

See ya,

-Ashley

“Your first 10,000 photographs are your worst.”
– Henri Cartier-Bresson