Meet our Bookstagrammer of the Month: @neverwithoutmybook
We’re back with our Bookstagrammer of the Month feature this month! Since we can’t see as many people in the shop, we decided we ought to get to know a few bookish folks a little bit better, and hopefully put some follow-worthy accounts on your radar to fill your feed with wonderful reads, reviews, and recommendations.
For May, we’re learning more about Micki, the person behind the account @neverwithoutmybook. Be sure to follow her — and us! @pagesontheave — on Instagram.
When did you start your account and why?
I started my account in January 2019. I had set a goal to read 100 books that year and knew I needed some way to make myself accountable. Enter Bookstagram! I figured if I put it out in the Bookstagram world, I couldn’t give up! I read 120 books that year and made so many new bookish friends!
How would you describe your feed’s style and what can people expect from following you?
Hmmm, I don’t know if I could identify a style, but I do like soft muted tones in my pictures. Many of the photos are curated (because I like a pretty picture), but some are spontaneous. Expect to see 99% bookish content. Our grandbaby, Teddy, or dog, Toto, may show up, but usually near a book! I prefer to read historical fiction so you will find a lot of that. If you are looking for historical fiction recommendations, reach out! I would love to help you find your next book! I also sprinkle in some thrillers, some contemporary and literary fiction, and a tiny bit of romance. You will find book reviews, book features, stacks of books I want to read, fun challenges, book giveaways, a sneak peek into my reading life, and if you scroll way back before the pandemic you can see my Seattle adventure with Where the Crawdads Sing, an all time favorite! My stories are a random stream of consciousness! You never know what you might find in there! I love to engage with other Bookstagrammers, so if you comment on a post or a story I will respond!!
What are a few of your favorite Bookstagram accounts?
It’s so hard to narrow it down but here are a just a few:
@hooked.by.books — Indre is such a good friend! She is so supportive, kind, and generous and my best source for thriller recommendations! She is also one of my favorite people to swap books with! I love the updates she shares about her kids!
@doesthedogbark — Kristen makes me laugh so hard I nearly pee my pants! She writes great book reviews, but her stories are where it’s at!!! I love to hear her stories about teaching high school English! And watching her bake bread is meditative.
@bluntscissorsbookreviews — This was one of those accounts I found early on and thought “I want to be her friend!” So I took a chance and now Jennifer and I chat frequently about the perils of being short, golf, and the fuzzy Birkenstock! She also introduced me to Nordic Noir!
@snappshelfbooks — This was a classic example of “what a small Bookstaworld”! Erin and I realized oh we both live in Metro Detroit, oh we both live in Dearborn, oh we live 7 minutes away from each other!!! I love checking out what book she is currently reading, and she is kind enough to take books off of my hands when I clean out my shelves!
What are you currently reading?
I usually have a physical book and an audiobook going at the same time. I am currently listening to The Only Plane in the Sky by Garrett M. Graff (audiobook). If you are of a certain age and experienced the terror of 9/11, I can’t recommend this enough! It’s an oral history of that day, including the actual cockpit recordings and phone calls. It has had me sobbing on more than one occasion. Even if you do not remember 9/11, it provides great insight into that day. I am physically reading Her Three Lives by Cate Holahan. It’s a thriller and I am only 100 pages in, but things are starting to develop! I love a good thriller, because it always keeps me engaged and thinking ahead about what might happen.
Who are a few of your favorite authors?
Fiona Davis, Chanel Cleeton, Fredrik Backman, Kristin Hannah, Elin Hilderbrand, Taylor Jenkins Reid, Jennifer Weiner, Lisa See, William Kent Krueger, Curtis Sittenfeld, Emma Straub, Therese Anne Fowler, Katherine Center, Melanie Benjamin
Any tips for Bookstagrammers just starting out?
I think the most important advice for new Bookstagrammers is that there are no rules or expectations! You make your Bookstagram experience what you want it to be. If you want to post pretty pictures about books, great! If you don’t want to put a lot of effort into taking pictures or planning your feed, also great! If you want to write in depth book reviews, wonderful! If you want to just share your key takeaways from a book, no problem! Bookstagram should be fun! Do what you think is fun! Don’t get hung up on followers, if you are sharing your authentic self followers will find you.
Be brave! Send out that first book request to a publisher. (If you don’t know where to start, message me and I will help you!) But also, don’t feel like that is something you have to do. Join a buddy read or readathon! It’s a great way to meet other people. Branch out and follow accounts that highlight different genres or follow people who have different views and experiences than you. It’s amazing what we can learn from others and the rich discussions we have that aren’t always about books. Show your face in your posts or your stories (I probably don’t do this enough!). Everyone likes to put a face to a name and it can help to make more personal connections. Post to your stories! This is probably how I find out the most about my Bookstagram friends. Stories are usually snapshots of someone’s day, or random thoughts about their pets, or plants, or food. Don’t be shy, jump in and comment about something that catches your attention. I love comments and messages! Engage! Engage! Engage! That’s why we are here, to talk about books!!
Books are an exploration. At Pages, we provide a place for you to become comfortably lost within our curated selection of literary fiction, nonfiction, and children’s literature. Come make yourself at home.
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