You are browsing the Blog for books.

← Previous Entries

What Do You Do to Relax?

May 8, 2013 in Books, Entertainment, Film & TV, Health, Lifestyle, Mental Health

What sort of stuff do you do when you need to relax? As I was pulling together my thoughts for this article I started thinking about things I do in my spare time or what I do for fun, but they’re not exactly the same thing, are they? In my spare time I might do housework (not relaxing for me) or go on social media (which is fun, but not relaxing). I find playing Dungeons & Dragons great fun, but not relaxing, as it’s a fairly intense creative experience. So what I’m asking is not what you do for fun, [...]

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
4 Comments »

My Favourite Podcasts

February 21, 2013 in Books, Celebrity, Entertainment, Film & TV, Stories, Technology

When travelling on public transport now it’s common to see more people with headphones than without. While I’m sure most are listening to their favourite tunes, I suspect a few, like me, would be indulging in podcasts. For those who are not familiar, a podcast is generally a series audio or video files you subscribe to and can download to a mobile phone, tablet, iPod or computer. You can find a podcast on almost topic and many TV and radio programs now release their show as a podcast. Since discovering them I have become addicted. I probably listen to podcasts [...]

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,
3 Comments »

Sméagol And Gollum: The Two JJs

February 14, 2013 in Books, Film & TV, Friendship, People, Relationships, Self, Society

I’d like to introduce you to my two selves: Sméagol-JJ and Gollum-JJ. Sméagol-JJ is probably the JJ you guys are most familiar with. He’s the bloke who writes fun web-serials like Dumped! and The Last Slice. He’s the bloke who makes funny comments and teases people. He’s charming and witty and friendly – he’s the bloke who’s writing this post. Maybe some of you would like to meet him, or even be friends with him. He’s the bloke you want to follow on Twitter. But there’s another JJ - Gollum-JJ.  He’s the bloke who writes those angry rants on KK&T. The bloke who sometimes makes sarcastic comments, or disagrees with [...]

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
3 Comments »

In defence of Elizabeth Wurtzel

January 11, 2013 in Books, Celebrity, Current Affairs, Mental Health, News, People

I have a battered-up copy of Prozac Nation stowed with a small but beloved collection of other books underneath my bed. It’s been with me since I was 15 years old and it’s never been far from my bedroom ever since. It never lived in the family bookshelf, where most of my other books end up gathering dust. For a while I even carefully hid it, fearing that a family member would find it and be upset, because when I was a teenager I felt that my depression always served to make everyone upset and was best stowed away like that, under [...]

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
9 Comments »

Optimism is not a Cure for Depression

December 7, 2012 in Books, Children, Health, Mental Health, Parenting

What’s wrong with this picture? Nothing, you might say. Certainly, this book has a lot of good reviews smattered around the Internet. It’s written by qualified psychologists. I’m sure it has some good advice. I wouldn’t actually know; I haven’t read it. But when I stumbled upon it recently, I was infuriated – and all because of the title. Raising an Optimistic Child: A Proven Plan for Depression-Proofing Young Children – For Life. Well, ain’t that lovely. Apparently a debilitating illness that attacks one million Australian adults each year (1) could have been waved away, magic wand-like, if only their parents [...]

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,
4 Comments »

Holiday Gift Guide: Men

November 22, 2012 in Body, Books, Entertainment, Film & TV, Food & Recipes, Lifestyle, Style, Technology, Work

When it comes to buying Christmas presents, a lot of people get stuck on what to get. Especially when it comes to men. So I thought I’d lend a hand with a bit of a gift guide. Most people can think of DVDs and books themselves, so I’ve tried to go a little outside the box with my suggestions. If in doubt, get a book voucher . Keep checking back for my guides for women & kids. Under $50 Avengers: Without a doubt one of the most popular movies of the year was The Avengers and with only having come [...]

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
13 Comments »

Book Review: Looking for Alaska

November 20, 2012 in Books, Dating, Entertainment, Friendship, People, Relationships, Sex, Sexuality

Like The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Looking for Alaska is a young adult novel that can easily be enjoyed by adults. In fact, any of John Green’s novels make for good adult reads. He is a fan of exploring his character’s inner most desires and writes intellectually satisfying prose. The main character is Pudge (Miles), a fifteen-year-old who manages to go through life mostly unnoticed. He is scrawny, smart, and studious and stays out of trouble. His one quirk is memorising people’s last words. It’s this pastime that leads him to pack up and move to boarding school in [...]

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
No Comments »

Book Review: The Perks of Being a Wallflower

November 15, 2012 in Books, Dating, Entertainment, Friendship, Sex, Sexuality

The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a young adult novel, but it certainly falls into the category of YA fiction that adults would love. The story is told through letters from fifteen-year-old Charlie to an unnamed friend. Charlie is apprehensive about starting high school after his only friend committed suicide a few months prior. He feels like no one understands him and that he is destined to go through life alone. This is a coming-of-age story that explores the importance of friendship and the need for us all to feel accepted. Charlie feels disconnected from his family and doesn’t [...]

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
6 Comments »

Kyle Sandilands: Most Hated Man or Misunderstood?

November 7, 2012 in Books, Celebrity, Entertainment

I’m just going to come out and say it. I like Kyle Sandilands. Which is why I was probably one of the first women in Australia to buy his memoir, Scandalands, which went on sale last month. If you were to make a list of the most hated men in Australia, Kyle Sandilands would probably top that list. Or perhaps Alan Jones has taken over that spot after his recent on-air comments about Julia Gillard’s father “dying of shame”. Whichever way you look at it there seems to be a lot of hate for Kyle. One such example would be [...]

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
9 Comments »

Books I Just Can’t Finish

October 22, 2012 in Books, Entertainment

Someone once told me ‘life is too short to read books you don’t enjoy.’ In recent years I think I’ve taken this idea a little too seriously. I buy a lot of books. The Book Depository was the first website I bookmarked when I got a new computer and since getting a Kindle my Amazon account has been getting quite the workout. This abundance of choice has meant I’m more likely to give something the flick fifty pages in if I’m not enjoying it. But I go back. I almost always go back. I do this because the enormous number [...]

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
14 Comments »

← Previous Entries