Booklover of the Week presents… YA book blogger The Book Butterfly!

It’s time for another Booklover feature! WordPress thwarted me at every turn yesterday, as some of you saw me tweet, so this week we’re doing the Booklover series on Thursday instead of Wednesday. Ah, technology.

My Booklover of the Week guest this week is incredibly sweet, charming, and full of life. Please join me in welcoming the wonderful…

Kim Pickett
(aka The Book Butterfly)

Glad to have you aboard, Kim!

Booklover Basics

Name:   Kim Pickett

Blog Name:   The Book Butterfly

Blog URL:   butterflybookreviews.blogspot.com

Country:   USA

Teen or Adult?   Adult

Short Bio:

Hello everyone! My name is Kim and I’m a business professional who also happens to love escaping into the world of young adult books! I’m married to the love of my life and we happily reside in Florida with our two mischievous dogs, Henry and Charlie. I’m a New England girl at heart though, and I miss my hometown in New Hampshire with the changing seasons and green mountains. As a passionate reader, my blog is a much needed outlet for my book addiction and I enjoy running it not only for my own entertainment, but for the entertainment of others as well. When not blogging, I enjoy spending time with my family, taking in Broadway shows and operas, running in charity marathons, nature hiking with my dogs, and of course- reading!


Questions About You 2.0

The You 2.0 blog is about becoming everything you’re meant to be. It’s about pursuing your dreams, changing your world, showing gratitude, and paying it forward. Here’s a chance for our Booklovers to share what You 2.0 means to them.

1.   PURSUING YOUR DREAMS: Everyone has the ability to be extraordinary, they just have to embrace what makes them unique and special and pursue their dreams with passion and confidence! Tell us a little about a dream you’ve achieved or are pursuing right now. If you’ve achieved it already, how does it feel to know you’ve made your dream a reality?

Running is very important in my life and I’ve recently set the goal of completing a 10K for myself within the next year. I have participated in a few 5K races, but never a 10K. Charity races are such great events to get involved with. You can help support worthwhile causes, get great exercise and also mingle with some really positive, fun individuals. Running doesn’t come easy for me though, (and sometimes feels like torture) but seeing that finish line at the end of a race is such a great feeling!

2.   CHANGING YOUR WORLD: Changing the world doesn’t have to mean finding a cure for cancer or creating lasting world peace (though it definitely can!). It just means finding a way that you can make the world a little better off for having lived here, whether it’s making a difference to one person or a million, to the earth, to animals… whatever is important to you. What is one way you would personally like to make the world a better place?

As a strict vegetarian, I’m naturally very concerned with animal rights and welfare causes. I do what I can by supporting events for local animal shelters and making donations for items in need like towels, food, cat litter, etc. I refuse to buy my pets from breeders and more importantly, from pet stores—which often acquire animals from inhumane “mills” where they are neglected and abused. Both of my dogs were rescued from animal control, and I try to educate people about the importance of adopting as opposed to buying. Why buy when you can save a life instead?

3.   GRATITUDE: Gratitude is a huge part of the You 2.0 life. Taking a moment to count our blessings is the best way to remember what’s truly important (especially when life is hectic and crazy!). What are you grateful for?

I’m grateful for my husband. He supports every new adventure I undertake and keeps me motivated with his enthusiasm and positive attitude. My book blog takes up a great deal of time but he never complains – in fact, he is my biggest fan and will keep up with my feeds even though he doesn’t normally read the types of books I enjoy! I’m also grateful to all the bloggers out there who follow my blog and have been so helpful and encouraging with their comments and emails. When I first started, I worried that no one would even read my blog!

4.   PAYING IT FORWARD: If everyone took a moment to pay it forward, even just once, the world would be changed in ways we can’t even imagine. What is one thing you’ve done (or plan to do) to “pay it forward” in some way?

I am a recycling fiend! I have bins all over the house for paper, plastic, cans, foam trays, egg cartons, newspaper, etc and I’m a bit of a control freak about it. I’ll even take my empty bottles home from restaurants or sporting events just to make sure they will really be recycled! It’s amazing how much material accumulates by the end of the week when you pay attention to it. I love knowing I am doing my part to stop needlessly filling up already overflowing landfills with materials that could’ve easily been recycled. In my own small way, I feel like I’m doing my part to “pay it forward” to our environment!


Questions About You, The Book Blogger

5.   Why did you decide to start blogging about books?

Before I became a blogger, I didn’t really have a forum where I could talk to other people who felt as fervent about books as I did. So starting a book blog was such a great outlet for me! I never realized either how MANY great people out there are truly impassioned about books and are just as eager to converse about them as you are.

6.   What do you love most (and least) about being a YA book blogger?

I love seeing what new books are on the horizon and often times they are ones I probably wouldn’t have known about if it weren’t for other bloggers. I also enjoy reading reviews for books I plan to read and writing reviews for my own site.

What I love the least about blogging is the limited time I have to devote to it due to my “real” job. If I could somehow translate my love of reading and reviewing books into a career within the book industry, I would be the happiest person in the world! (I’m sure many bloggers feel this way too!)

7.   What do you love most about the YA and middle grades genres right now?

To me, the YA genre exists in a space where magical elements from children’s fiction can successfully intertwine with the more serious, thought provoking issues of adult novels. I love how characters in YA novels are often on the edge of a discovery, or are about to make decisions that will shape the type of lives they will end up leading. In addition, I find it refreshing how YA novels often tend to be more character based and less reliant on sexuality than books in some adult genres.

8.   What makes you fall in love with a book?

Lately I’ve really been drawn to YA novels with paranormal elements. My newest addiction is the House of Night series by PC and Kristin Cast. I devoured all of them within one week. Anything with a good love triangle in it will usually draw me in as well. I love getting hooked at the beginning of a book and being so intrigued, that I can’t stop thinking about it, or reading it. One time my alarm clock actually went off while I was still sitting up in bed reading!

9.   Which books have inspired you most?

Jane Austen’s works are my all time favorite novels. She saw through people’s polite facades and into what their true motivations were. The way she managed to call out her characters on their inconsistencies without ever having to really come out and say so was so brilliant to me. It made her writing twice as witty and exceedingly humorous to boot!

10.   Are you also a writer yourself? If so, what do you like to write?

I wish, but sadly no I’m not!

11.   What advice would you give to other avid readers who want to launch their own book blog?

There are many bloggers out there who have great posts on the nuts and bolts of getting started. I’d urge anyone interested in starting a blog to research these posts prior to doing so. Two posts in particular were crucial to me—check out Presenting Lenore and the Story Siren for great entries with a wide variety of topics covered.


Will the Real You 2.0 Please Stand Up?

12.   I love the game Three Truths and a Lie because there are so many unexpected and interesting things about people that we never get a chance to learn about them. What are three truths and a lie that our blog readers can guess about you?

– I’m something of a speed reader who can tear through 100 pages or more an hour!
– I once auditioned for American Idol in Orlando, Florida but didn’t make the cut.
**UPDATE: Here’s the lie! (The formatting looks funny here, but it’s the above tidbit about American Idol.)**
– I have extreme Insectophobia—I can’t stand anything creepy crawly buzzing around my face or on my clothing/skin. Needless to say, my husband is the pest exterminator in our home!
– I’ve been known to stay up all evening after rushing out to get whatever Harry Potter book was released at midnight!

(Readers: Your guess gets you an entry into the You 2.0 monthly contest for an ARC of The Cinderella Society or a prize dive in the awesome You 2.0 Prize Basket. Guess correctly and you get a bonus entry! I’ll update the post tomorrow to spill the big lie, so get guessing and have fun!)

Thanks to Kim for a fabulous interview!

Entry Filed under: Booklover - YA Bloggers,Gratitude