BIG HUGE ANNOUNCEMENT: Announcing "Lit Up Review!"

Hello everyone!

I'm popping in today from our "mini blog hiatus" to let you all know about something I am so so super duper incredibly excited about! This idea has been in the works for a VERY long time, and the result is finally here! Today we are officially announcing Lit Up Review! EEEEP!

Erin and I's very good friend, Willa, has been working so hard these last months to create a new Young Adult Lit reviewing site written entirely by young adults! I feel so very privileged to get to be a part of this stunning new website and I hope you all will enjoy it! Here is the LINK or you can find it by typing litup-review.com into your browser.

Also, the website has been designed by the lovely, Anna Marie Moore, and is absolutely gorgeous, so if you like the design, please check out Anna Marie Moore and her stuff- she is completely brilliant! You can also check out the other reviewers at Lit Up Review (besides Erin and myself), Emily, and Willa.

Again, I am so excited to get this started and please, while you're over on the site, do not forget to subscribe so that you'll be updated on what's going on! (the site officially launches June 7th)

Blogging Break and Cloudy Days

Hello lovely Mint Tea and A Good Book readers!

As some of you may have noticed, we haven't been posting much lately here on the blog, and we apologize for that. Unfortunately, school seems to be in full swing right now as we take far too many standardized tests and prepare for (gulp) finals. The end of the school year is like the nice weather that follows the looming dark clouds and thunderstorms (cough, finals, cough). Once this mess of standardized tests and finals is over, we should be back to blue skies and sunshine. And hot weather as summer tends to announce along with it's arrival.

source

So once again, we do apologize for the lack of posting lately, and unfortunately what will probably be some sporadic posting for the next month and a half as we're stuck under these ominous dark clouds. However, on a positive note, I very much believe that dark clouds give you a greater appreciation for those sunny days. I can't wait for that sunshine!

xx

Spring is So Lovely

Hello there, everyone!

Today's post strays from the usual literary related topics, and instead focuses on my favorite season, Spring! A couple days ago, I included this lovely picture (above) of a wildflower from my backyard, and I wanted to share a few more "spring things" with you all. xx

oh hello little ladybug

I really love how alive everything is in the spring. After the sort of abandonment of winter, everything comes back to life in the spring and it's so refreshing and beautiful!

Queen Anne's Lace accompanied by a seed wisp

The weather in spring is also very pleasant, because it's comfortable. It's not unbearable like sometimes winter and summer can be. I even enjoy the spring rain.

little red flower

I also love flowers, especially spring wildflowers so much. Our backyard is covered with them right now and I can't help but take dozens of photos and embrace them while they last!

During spring, I often feel jittery and can't sit still because I NEED TO GO OUTSIDE and enjoy the lovely weather and the flowers!

pink flowers and rusty clothesline pole 

Embrace spring, before summer pushes it away and takes over. Don't get me wrong, I love summer, but I just don't find it quite as lovely as spring.

It's not summer yet, little flower!

I hope you all are having a very agreeable spring, and don't forget to spend some time outdoors with a good book! 

xx

Social Media Break

Hello everyone!

I hope you enjoyed the blog design tutorial from Saturday, and hopefully I'll be able to do more posts like that in the future. However, today I wanted to let you all know that I will be taking a break from major social media (except Pinterest) for a while.

Some of you may remember my post from November titled "A Superabundance of Social Media." Sometimes I feel like a slave to social media, like if I don't post anything, I'll lose followers or whatever, depending on the social media site. And so school + social media slavery are a very BAD combination, and I know that choosing between the two, school is definitely more important.

So I will be taking a break from all social media, except Pinterest (for a multitude of reasons, mainly because I use Pinterest to relax), for the entirety of April and possibly a good chunk of May. I will still be blogging, just not tumblring or tweeting or any of that.

Wildflower in the backyard

I hope you all understand, it's not that I don't love connecting you, I just need a break to focus on school and embrace the lovely spring weather.

xx

VIDEO TUTORIAL: The Easiest Way to Design A Blog Without Photoshop

Hello everyone!

Today I am finally going to address probably the number one question I get asked- how do you design a blog? This is going to be tutorial on how to make the absolute easiest blog banner. It's seriously so easy, I feel like it's cheating.

Our ultimate goal here is a blog banned that looks like this:

I'll also teach you how you can make a simplified version and give tips on making one a bit more complex. Let's watch!

In case the video isn't working you can also use this link- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKP2FJMfNVQ and paste it into your browser. If you have any questions about the video please leave a comment on the blog or on the video, or you can email me- mintteaandagoodbook@gmail.com.

Side Note: This is not the method I used to create my blog header, but it is still a simple and easy way to make a GREAT looking blog header. :)

If you enjoyed the video please don't forget to give it a thumbs up on Youtube. And I apologize for not posting much this week. School has been crazy lately as we get into standardized testing mode (sigh) and it also took me a couple days to make the video, so not much time was left over for blogging. But in my opinion, today's post is pretty great and I hope pretty helpful as well! xx

New VS Used Books

Hello!

Today I thought I'd share with you guys something that I constantly wonder about- New VS Used books. What's better? What books should you buy used? What are the benefits of buying new? Etc.

Benefits of Buying NEW Books

1. Cleanliness- I don't know about you guys, but I love buying a brand new book with a crisp jacket and that magical new book scent. It's a very satisfying feeling that you just don't get the same way with used books.

2. Condition- This goes along with cleanliness a bit, but with new books you're pretty much guaranteed a book in good condition. No torn pages or writing between the margins, it's all new and beautiful.

3. Supporting Indie Bookstores- There are definitely indie bookstores that carry used books, but a lot of indie bookstores carry primarily or exclusively "new books," meaning that when you buy a new book, you're supporting your local indie bookstore! An added bonus!


Benefits of Buying USED Books

1. Personality/History of Book- I love when you buy a used book and there's sort of a mystery to the book itself. Why are some words on this page crossed out? What does this note mean in the margin? Why did the previous owner highlight this sentence? In my copy of The Great Gatsby, which I purchased from Half Price Books, the previous owner wrote dark or light on the bottom of each page, which definitely intrigued me. You don't usually get that same "history" with a new book.

2. Price- Used books are cheaper than new books! This is why some people prefer used books- you can usually get better deals than a new book! I've seen books on sale for literally about $2 at used bookstores. And because of the low price, I often feel more compelled to try a book because it's not a big deal if I end up not liking the book since I didn't pay much for it.

3. Go Green- Used books are better for the environment than new books because you're essentially recycling/reusing a book!


Honestly, I can't really say whether I prefer new books or used books as they each have their ups and downs. No matter what, it's a book, and for me personally, that's what matters the most. Do any of you have preferences towards new or used books? Let me know in the comments! :)

Motivational Monday: Love Yourself!

Hello everyone! 

Today's post is not really book related (well, sort of, ok not really), but it is inspired by one of my all time most favoritest blogs ever, Sprinkle of Glitter. Recently, Louise, (who runs Sprinkle of Glitter) has been posting some sort of inspirational quote or motif to help her readers start their week- because lets face it, Mondays can be hard. And, in enjoying Louise's Motivational Mondays, I've decided to do my own Motivational Monday today on Mint Tea and A Good Book!

So, I poked around on my Pinterest and pulled out some inspirational words of wisdom to share with you all!

The theme of today is LOVE YOURSELF!












When I was small, I actually thought that you shouldn't think about "loving yourself," and things like that because no one around me was ever saying positive things about themselves. All I heard were things like "my hair is ugly," and "I hate my artwork,"and "I'm horrible at math." I rarely heard and still hear people say things like "I'm great at math," and "I love my hair."

But since I was small, I have learned how important it is to love yourself! It's important to love others and it's important not to be too arrogant as well, but I think that most of us, including myself, could learn to love ourselves a bit more.









When you love yourself, you're happier! And being happier makes you healthier and leads you to do more positive things!

So give yourself a great big bear hug and don't forget to

LOVE YOURSELF!

And with that, I hope you all have a splendid week! 

xx

PS: If you would like to see more motivation from me, you can find more than you'll ever want on My Pinterest Page. :)

The Ruby Oliver Series

The Ruby Oliver Series by E. Lockhart:

1. The Boyfriend List: 15 Guys, 11 Shrink Appointments, 4 Ceramic Frogs and Me, Ruby Oliver
2. The Boy Book: A Study of Habits and Behaviors, Plus Techniques for Taming Them
3. The Treasure Map of Boys: Noel, Jackson, Finn, Hutch, Gideon—and me, Ruby Oliver
4. Real Live Boyfriends: Yes. Boyfriends, Plural. If My Life Weren't Complicated, I Wouldn't Be Ruby Oliver. 

Warning: this review may contain excessive fan-girling, sporadic virtual squealing, and an extreme amount of GIFs. It's only necessary, because I'm talking about the Ruby Oliver series. 

Ruby Oliver is the most brilliantly crafted, frustrating, lovable, amazing, magnificent, fabulous character to ever exist. Ever. At some points in these novels I wanted to slap Ruby to bring her back to her senses. Sometimes I wanted to give her a chocolate chip cookie. Sometimes I wished I was her friend. Sometimes I was perfectly fine not being her friend. But 99% of the time I adored her. I not only loved her, I loved the siege of characters that were in these novels: Ruby, Nora, Meghan, Cricket, Kim, Jackson, Finn, Hutch, Gideon, Elaine Oliver, Kevin Oliver, Juana, Doctor Z, the posse of siblings that came with the siege of characters, the zoo animals (don't forget Robespierre the goat), Polka-Dot the great dane and, of course, Noel. E. Lockhart is a genius because she was able to include all of these characters that I loved and hated without making me think, "Wait, who was that guy again?"

Now, a list of reasons why the Ruby Oliver Series is possibly the most amazing series ever:

1. The words "debacle" and "neurotic" appear every other word.
2.  Right when the book is about to end and you think Ruby's situation is an absolute mess, everything is resolved. 
3. They made me laugh out loud, swoon, and want to endlessly read.
4. An overly calm poncho-wearing shrink named Doctor Z is involved. 
5. Icky words like "puberty" are replaced with "mocha latte." 
6. The titles are ridiculously long and humorous.
7. There are an indefinite amount of foot notes. 
8. Even though there are four novels, each is entertaining and each novel is better than the last. 
9. They are witty, romantic, and the most lovable things on earth.
10. The main character's name is Ruby Oliver. That is probably the best main-character name in the world. 

It is impossible to be sad while reading these books. I love these books so, so much. It doesn't matter where you are or when, if you like to laugh and are in for a good chick-flick, then read the Ruby Oliver Series. 

Other benefits of the Ruby Oliver Series (just in case the first ten weren't enough):

Ruby's shrink makes her write her issues
down and flush them in the toilet!

There are penguins and
Xs and Os involved!

There are cute guys and baking involved!

In the third book a bake sale is
a major part of the plot!