Plan With Me: May 2019 Bullet Journal Setup (Palm Trees)

Greetings bookish friends! Here is my May Plan With Me blog post. In eager anticipation for summer, I decided to do a palm tree theme. I hope you enjoy!

Supplies:

• Bullet Journal: Archer and Olive
• Calligraphy Pen: Tombow Dual Brush Pens
• Markers: Crayola Supertips
• Highlighters: Zebra Midliners
• Fineliners: Sakura Pigma Microns
• White pen: Gelly Roll White Gel Pen

Here’s my cover page! I doodled some palm trees and did a quote in calligraphy. I can’t wait for summer!

Next is mymonthly log. I did a huge calligrahy piece of the word “May” and think it turned out really cool! I used both my tombow dual brush pens and crayola supertips to create this blending affect. I used my zebra midliners and white gelly roll pen to finish it off and  added some black and grey shadows to make it pop!

This is my mood tracker and reading tracker! I decided to make my mood tracker simple and just drew in some plain square boxes. But formy reading tracker, I drew a big palm tree in the middle and put in a little box to show my reading goals for that month.

And lastly, here is my first weekly spread. The only day that is filled in is Sunday, which is unusual because usually everything in my bullet journal is completely filled out! On the bottom right-hand corner I have an events section and a small palm tree doodle.

Thank you for reading this post. Please follow my blog to receive email updates whenever I post.

Did you like this month’s theme? What’s your favorite calligraphy pen? What bullet journal do you have? Let me know in the comments.

Keep On Booking,

⭐︎ Katie K ⭐︎

 

Fish in a Tree | Book Review (Spoiler free) + NaNoWriMo Update with Synoposis of Story

Hello! Here is my spoiler free book review of Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt. *Radio talk show voice* Stay tuned for a NaNoWriMo Update at the end with an official synopsis of the book I am writing. I haven’t even talked about it once. So, today is that day!

• Title: Fish in a Tree
• Author: Lynda Mullaly Hunt
• Publisher: Puffin
• AR Level: 3.7

Ally has been smart enough to fool a lot of smart people. Every time she lands in a new school, she’s able to hide her inability to read by creating clever yet disruptive distractions. She’s afraid to ask for help; after all, how can you cure dumb?

However, Ally’s newest teacher sees the bright, creative kid beneath the troublemaker and helps to shine a light on her gifts. As her confidence grows, Ally feels free to be herself and meet other kids who break the mold. When the outsiders start to fit in, suprising things start happening inside Ally’s classroom that show’s her there’s a lot more to her — and to everyone — than a label.

I had medium expectations for this book. I picked it up while it I was browsing Barnes and Noble and it looked interesting so I decided to buy it.

The character development was incredible. Through the storyline and plot, all of the characters grow in some way or another. All of them had their own unique struggles and all overcame them in different ways. Multiple characters *cough cough Albert and Shea* started off stereotypical and basic, but then ended up being complex, original characters with life, motivation, and struggles.

This book had a great message, too with some awesome quotes: “If you judge a fish on its ability to climb a tree, it will spend its whole life thinking it’s stupid.”

Also, I thought the “Sketchbook of Impossible Things” that was included in the back of the book added another element to the story. It was cool to read a certain scenario/thing that happened to Ally and then see her drawing for it.

The end of the book felt a little anti-climatic, which was disappointing. I was hoping for a fuller ending to wrap the book up better. The pacing is nothing special, but it’s not bad. I can’t put my finger on it, but I felt like something was missing from this story. It felt a little bit incomplete (and no, there isn’t a sequel). Except for the things that I mentioned in the likes section, this book is average.

I liked this book, but there wasn’t really anything about it that stood out and made a lasting impression on me. Yes, the character development was really good and the book had a great message, but other than that, there isn’t a lot of things that stand out. If you like non-fiction, then I recommend it, if you don’t like non-fiction, then I don’t recommend it.

Even though there were some things that I would have definitely changed in this book, all in all I liked it and it told a great story, with a good message and a strong protagonist.

Story and plot: 💖💖💖💖

Pacing: 💖💖💖

Character development: 💖💖💖💖💖

Writing quality: 💖💖💖½

Enjoyment: 💖💖💖💖

Overall: 💖💖💖💖

hey..not too bad

NaNoWriMo Update

OK, I’m pushing through! So far, I haven’t gone a day without writing, but I did have a writer’s block just yesterday. I was able to form some random words together that I will probably have to edit it later and completely redo it.

Please note: As I am in the process of creating a memorable story, some aspects/details that were mentioned below may not be present in my final draft.

Julianna Evergreen’s life is normal. Well, at least it used to be. Ever since her mother died, her favorite person in the entire world, things have been hard. Her Dad has one unpaid bill before they lose their house. She has a hard time in school. But one day, everything changes. While walking to school, she meets a boy named Jack with a strange symbol on his left hand, the same one that Julianna has on hers.

Soon, the two embark on a journey across a magical world called Pie Land — to meet princesses, dragons, unicorns, and more.

But Pie Land is in terrible danger.

It is being overthrown by a vicious tyrant named Newt that pledges to destroy a peaceful dynasty that has successfully ruled  Pie Land for over a thousand years.

Julianna doesn’t know what’s going on, but whatever it is, she’s going to find out.

So there it is! An official synopsis of my in the works novel.

What did you think of Fish in a Tree? Are you going to read it now because of my positive review? What do you think about my story? Have you done NaNoWriMo before? Let me know down in the comments section below. Also don’t forget to follow this blog!

Keep on Booking,-Katie K