Bellisima..

Stella Maria. Spring 1994. College student at Seton Hall University, NJ. Book and inspiration purposes only.

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THIS IS NOT OKAY

This is not okay. It breaks my heart that the book community can be so hurtful and ignorant.

It breaks my heart that the book community can be so hurtful. Ever since I got back into reading a few years ago, reading books and sharing my thoughts on books has always been a safe place. However recently, there have been not one or two, but several instances where authors and bloggers are being attacked online. We live in a society where now more than ever, words can be hurtful. For those of…

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Mental Health Awareness Week: PTSD

Mental Health Awareness Week: PTSD

Hello darlings! I’m going to keep this short because I have a case study due in about 4 hours and I’m still editing. Wanna take a guess what the topic of it is? The Neurological Symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. PTSD is often associated as a war wound, but it is also present in many adolescents. It can be a result of sexual trauma, child abuse, etc. Scientists today use the Functional…

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Mental Health Awareness Week Twenty17: Autism

Mental Health Awareness Week Twenty17: Autism

One of my classes next semester focuses on the clinical persepctives of autism. However as I chose to register for the class, I realized that I didn’t really know anything about autism except that it’s a developmental disorder. Was autism spectrum disorder the same thing? Is there a single explanation that causes autism? But more importantly, what is it like to live with autism? Truth is if it…

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Mental Health Awareness Week Twenty 17

Mental Health Awareness Week Twenty 17

Some people deal with mental health everyday. Sometimes the monsters that we deal with are invisible. They are inside our head, infiltrating our thoughts. Mental health has always fascinated me from a biological and psychological aspect. However, I’ve recently come to find out about young adult books with a focus on mental health from a character’s perspective – sometimes the book being an Own…

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My thoughts on the first 52 min of Thirteen Reasons Why

Surprisingly good and strangely addictive! Binge watching this after studying tonight

Compared to The Series of Unfortunate Events Netflix series that released a few months ago and even the first episode of the Shadowhunters TV show on Freeform, Thirteen Reasons Why is surprisingly but gladly skeptical and addictive. As someone who’s read the book years ago, I recommend reading the book then watching the series afterwards. And here’s why: (more…)

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Less than 6 months! {BookCon Edition}

BookCon 2017. Wow, that looks weird. I can’t believe that I’ve been to them every year so far, which probably explains why I have a separate pile for unhauled books. If you don’t already know, BookCon is similar to ComicCon and LeakyCon but with BOOKS OF ALL GENRES. I call it DisneyWorld for booklovers. (more…)

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Thank you 2016 (A Life & Book Edition)

Thank you 2016 (A Life & Book Edition)

So many people can’t wait for the year to end, but how could it be such a terrible year if I’ve read some of the best books by far. Thank you to the authors, the readers. But mainly, my biggest accomplishments were simple.   To prioritize and raise my GPA To listen carefully and be strong To meeting some of the best book friends ever To starting every year with a good book in hand (more…)

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24 Days of Mostly Books: Love & Hate

24 Days of Mostly Books: Love & Hate

Writing is a love/hate relationship. (more…)

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24 Days of Mostly Books: Thoughts Pause you who read this, and think for a moment of the long chain of iron or gold, of thorns or flowers, that would never have bound you, but for the formation of the first link on one memorable day. - Charles Dickens

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24 Days of Mostly Books: My Christmas Gift to Myself

24 Days of Mostly Books: My Christmas Gift to Myself

Okay guys, listen up. For those of you unaware, I am currently swamped in finals: translating to portfolio deadlines, presentations, data research, research papers, and 2 big upcoming exams. So I won’t get much reading done which sucks, but that’s why I’ve decided to share what books I will be reading after finals! I can’t think of a better way to get all of my work done, because then I’ll have…

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24 Days of Mostly Books: Christmas season in the city

24 Days of Mostly Books: Christmas season in the city

Christmas time in New York City seems like the perfect idea when watching the movie Eloise at Christmastime. (more…)

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Here’s a weird fact about me: I like candles.

I’m not particularly sure why, but I truly admire the idea of candles in my room. If you think about it, candles have been a source of light and heat from early history. To me, it’s about the smell, the sense of mood lighting, and the calm atmosphere it radiates. My favorite is the smell of the sea/ocean. Not the lavender one that almost everyone I know is obsessed with. I’ve always known that candles can be collectibles, like the ones on display at the Yankee Candle store, but I never once thought that people would cater to making them for the book community. When my friend Katya first told me about it, I recognized it as the ones on Etsy that I’ve occasionally scrolled past. They’re pretty and perfect for readers, especially the ones with the quotes or fan art on them! Somehow, it seems like a better and better idea of getting one for myself.

24 Days of Mostly Books: Christmas Candles Here’s a weird fact about me: I like candles.

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24 Days of Mostly Books: My 10 year old Holiday Playlist

24 Days of Mostly Books: My 10 year old Holiday Playlist

Elvis Presley | Blue Christmas Frank Sinatra | Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas Ella Fitzgerald | Sleigh Ride Bing Crosby & David Bowie | Little Drummer Boy/Peace on Earth Bruce Springsteen | Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town Gloria Estefan | Love on Layaway The Big Yard Family | All We Need is Love NSync | You Don’t Have to be Alone On Christmas Luther Vandross | O Come All Ye Faithful Boyz II…

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24 Days of Mostly Books: Remembering Pearl Harbor

24 Days of Mostly Books: Remembering Pearl Harbor

7:55am December 7th 1941 | Japanese planes bombed US Naval base Pearl Harbor, killing more than 2,000 Americans and leading to World War II (more…)

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24 Days of Mostly Books: Christmas (Book Mail) Insanity

24 Days of Mostly Books: Christmas (Book Mail) Insanity

It’s that time of the year again: when finals week and the holiday season is in full motion. I usually forget that Christmas is approaching, because I’m so busy studying. But this year, it feels strangely different – in a good way. For once, all of the Christmas decorations are up.. props to my dad and my little brother! It’s nothing extravagant, but it feels good to come home and see the window…

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Bookmark set / book clippers: which is the best thing ever, especially if you read multiple books at the same time! My favorite is the one that my friend Kat gave me of The Infernal Devices and yes, I cried when I received it because I love anything TID.

Bookmark pad: um so I’ve never used these but they seem nifty

Vinyl stickers: to put on your light switch or car windows

Tattoos: because they look freaking awesome! 

Starbucks $10 gift card: because coffee/tea is a must when reading

Book socks: maybe like the Windwitch preorder socks?!

Necklaces: because if it has anything to do with my favorite character, I don’t care about shipping and handling. I need to have it! No excuses.

Mugs: from Society6. Holy crap! I’ve heard about them for so long but have never actually visited their site, because I’m a broke college student, but when I saw the link for 20% off last night until midnight.. I was mesmerized!

Candles: from Etsy. Oh sweet baby Jesus, this is literally perfect for me, because I’m slightly obsessed with candles. My friend told me about them a while back and ever since I have the website permanently bookmarked. HINT HINT MOM ;)

Mystery book: for 20 bonus points because this is an entire physical book & as a certified bookworm, I would adore you forever! Oh & you gotta wrapped it 3 times because mwahahahaha

    24 Days of Mostly Books: Must Have Stocking Stuffers for Every Bookworm Bookmark set / book clippers: which is the best thing ever, especially if you read multiple books at the same time!

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24 Days of Mostly Books: My Weird Sentimentality during the Christmas Season

24 Days of Mostly Books: My Weird Sentimentality during the Christmas Season

This past summer I went through a few boxes in the basement to check on my stuff and came across a box of cards. Yep, I mean a box of old Christmas cards! (more…)

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