Book and a Beverage [24] – Shae from Shae Has Left the Room

Welcome back to BOOK AND A BEVERAGE!

In case you don’t know the deal about Book and a Beverage, it’s a very simple yet fun feature: We read books, we drink beverages, we take pictures of them and then I share your photos and a little about you to the blogging world!

Give a big welcome to Shae from Shae Has Left the Room!

Name & Blog Name: Shae at Shae Has Left The Room
Tell us a little about your blog! It’s a happy place full of bookish things. I started my blog (originally Bookshelvers Anonymous) back in January 2012 as a way to talk about books and my work at a chain bookstore. I chose to blog anonymously so that I could say whatever I wished to about work, and it was tons of fun! However, a few months ago, I quit my job and met a bunch of fellow bloggers and authors in real life at BEA, making me neither a bookshelver nor anonymous anymore. So I changed the blog name, moved to WordPress, and here I am!
What’s been your favorite post you’ve written so far? (Link us up!) Oh gosh. Can I pick more than one? I did a two-fer on author/blogger interactions. The author side is here, and the blogger side is here. I’m also embarrassingly proud of my Rose Under Fire review just because it was so difficult to write.
Got anything special coming up we should know about? Sort of. I’ve never read the Harry Potter books and was stubbornly proud of my refusal to give in, but I’ve always said that if someone gave them to me, I would read them. Well, a blogger friend called me on my bluff and gave me the first two books, so now I have to read them! I’ll probably write posts about my experience. Being a YA/MG reviewer who’s never read Harry Potter is a bit like being a unicorn, and who wouldn’t want to read a post written by a unicorn?

Whatcha reading? The Extra by Kathryn Lasky (though notice my favorite series of all time – Megan Whalen Turner’s The Queen’s Thief series – lurking in the background)
Where did it come from? (Library, purchased, publisher, etc) From the publisher via BEA
Any special reason you chose to feature this book? It’s what I’m reading right now, and it totally fits my tastes. I love WWII and I love any book that can tell me about a point in history that I know little about.
What’s important that we should know about this book? Would you recommend it? It’s about a gypsy girl and her family who are rounded up by Nazis during WWII and forced to act as extras in Nazi propaganda films. Lilo isn’t a real person, but the setup, the film, and the director in charge (Leni Riefenstahl) are. I had no idea. Ms. Lasky is also responsible for several volumes in the Dear America series that I adored as a kid. I’d recommend it so far, but I’ll let you know for sure when I’m done.

Whatcha drinking? Good ol’ H2O 🙂
What’s your favorite thing to drink while reading? Again, water. It’s not my favorite drink, per se, but I’m chronically dehydrated, and caffeine makes me feel sick, so…
Favorite beverage of all time. Go! In a perfect world, cookie crumble mocha frappuccinos from Starbucks. Heaven in my mouth!

What are your top three books you would recommend to other people? Oh my gosh. Um. Okay, forever at the top of the list is The Queen’s Thief series by Megan Whalen Turner. These books are everything books should be. I have literally read them a half dozen times and find something new to marvel at each time. As for the other two… I try to tailor my recommendations to whoever I’m talking to, but I’m a big fan of Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers (nun assassins!) and Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein (gorgeous prose and ALL THE TEARS!)
What’s your proudest blogging/reading/writing moment? Oh gosh, I don’t know about proudest. But every single time an author bothers to drop by my blog or any time a reader tells me that something I did helped them out, my head grows five sizes!
Anything else you’d like to share? I’d love to work in publishing someday, so I devour all the information I can find about working in the industry. I’m also consistently nerdy in my entertainment (Doctor Who, Sherlock, LOTR, Star Wars, Fringe, etc.), so I welcome anyone willing to geek out with me. 🙂

Thanks, Shae! It was awesome meeting you at BEA and I love the new look of Shae Has Left the Room!
LOVE the geeking out — And I will definitely have to check out The Queen’s Thief series!  

You can find out more about Shae at her blog, Shae Has Left the Room, on Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr, Goodreads, and LibraryThing!

Are you interested in being featured on BOOK AND A BEVERAGE? Head on over to this feature’s page for the sign-up form!

And don’t forget! You can participate in Book and a Beverage at any time! Got a book? Got a beverage? Just tweet or post your photo on Instagram using the hashtag #bookandabeverage and I’ll retweet that photo and share it in my weekly round up post!