What are YOU thinking?

just a photo I had on my phone that seemed good to post along
I’ve been locked up in my apartment for the past 4 days, studying and studying and studying. But amidst all my studying, I’ve been also thinking. Thinking about how evil and unfair the world is. You do good, you are kind, you help people, your motives are right and pure, but sometimes the world still hates you. (and no, this is not coming from any experience I have at the moment, just…thinking).
And so I decided to make this post.
Yes, the world may seem evil and well, terrible things do happen everyday. One day you can be rich and famous, and the next you find yourself broke and beaten up. I recently read Yemen, a country so deep in famine and in the middle of war was once upon a time known as sophisticated and rich.
My point is, we go up, we go down, “life is a rollercoaster” as Ronan Keatings sang. Being treated unfairly and failures can happen all the time. Injustice is cruel. We naturally get sad and depressed. But we must pick ourself up again and ask “am I happy?”. Well, that’s actually a stupid question if you are actually sad and depressed because it means the answer is you are not happy. However! How do you get happy again?
In whatever circumstance you might find yourself in, retrace yourself babe and find your inner calm. Ask yourself “what is it I really want?”. Find your purpose. Yes! Find your ‘why’ and from that pick up the pen and start writing. Write down a list of things you want to accomplish. Those dreams you’ve always had since you were a little child. Draft and edit your resume if you have to. But remember! Before that, answer the question- ‘what is my WHY’ first.
Aah, thinking is a dangerous past time I must say. Because all of these thoughts got birthed from thinking.
I wanna know, how about you? What are you thinking?

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Books and Empathy.

People often tell me that I am kind and understanding. I am not denying both but honestly I’m not perfect. One thing I want to share though is that there was something that actually helped me become more understanding and empathic. It’s reading.
I have always loved reading out of leisure. However, six years ago it changed. I started reading like there was no tomorrow. My time was consumed by reading. It’s crazy to think back how saturated I was by reading one book after another. One year I read around 150 books. Another year I read close to 200. Some of those books were 600-pages bound. You’d think I was not doing anything else in my life, but I actually still worked then…
When I read, I let myself be the character. The protagonist, the antagonist, the narrator. The kind, the jealous, the vain, the villain, the child, the daughter, the mother, the neighbor, the killer, the queen, the pauper. It was as if I was them and them me. I lived their life. In a mansion, a palace, a trailer, a wooden box, the streets, the trees. With every book I finished, a life I lived. All ’70 years’ of them.
I get to be the kind of person I am not in real life. I get to be a mean evil person, killing and stealing. Adventurous and taking risks. Bad ass and unafraid. Vulnerable and bare. Drama queen. Spoiled. Vain. It was fun. Every time I closed the book, I was back to my own self. Best of both worlds?
In the end, my English got better, but one thing I did not expect to gain from all those readings was born out of me. My empathy grew even larger.
I guess you could say it still depends on the person how they approach reading. I’m not saying go read now so your empathic senses deepen. You could try that if you want. It worked for me, unplanned but welcomed.
Maybe, the next time you pick up a book, choose to be the character, understand their flaws, live their lives. Learn from their mistakes and successes. You never know, maybe as you finish and close the book, you’ll find yourself more understanding. A bigger and a better person.
To choose the ‘benefit of the doubt’ with every person that come your way. Choose kind. Always.

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book talks

People often tell me that I am kind and understanding. I am not denying both but honestly I’m not perfect. One thing I want to share though is that there was something that actually helped me become more understanding and empathic. It’s reading. I have always loved reading out of leisure. However, six years […]
Hey guys! Today I’m starting to call my video book reviews “book talk”. Because I’m talking about the book, and I’m pretty sure it’s the equivalent of “book reviewing” (written) to the booktubing world. Anyway, I’m probably confusing you so let’s just stick to me talking about a book, hence “Book talk”. Today, I’ll […]

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LESS is MORE

Hi guys. If anyone is actually out there reading my blogs, hello to you!
The beginning of this year has been challenging in so many ways already. In my quiet times with the Lord, I have come to realize one life defining revelation. For the sake of personal reasons, I will not share that revelation at the moment, but I will at the end of the year.
I will share one thing that is a result of that revelation. Few weeks ago, I decided ‘NO SHOPPING for clothes and makeup’ for myself this year. I know it sounds like a ‘first world country’ problem, and personally, I can’t believe I’ve arrived at this moment where that is needed? I put a question mark because I don’t really consider myself too much of a materialistic girl. HAHA. Yes, I do buy occasional clothes, but very seldom in a year. The past 4 years though, I’ve bought so much makeup for a regular ‘one makeup bag’ girl. In my defense, it is not as huge as those you see from fashion bloggers or beauty gurus on Youtube.
BUT anyway, this doesn’t have anything to do with them (in a way yeah, but not yet). This is about me ultimately finding that ultimate control not to spend money on something that doesn’t even matter. I have clothes, tons of them, and I don’t need more, unless they’re all broken or worn out. I have bags, tons of them, and I surely don’t need more than I have, I surely don’t need branded luxury ones (though they are really high quality). I have makeup, oh so many of them. 10 or so kinds of foundation, 10 or so eyeshadow palettes (I really love them!), 10+ lipsticks, few for every color, I can go on and on. The point is, I wouldn’t finish them all in a year and so why do I find myself buying a new different one almost every month? Society and our environment really does affect ones daily decisions, and I want to be different.
Since that day I took on the challenge, I began to watch more videos and read more on Minimalism. I didn’t realize until later that my reasons were quite related to that of the gist of minimalism. I don’t quite know much yet about that and I don’t want to label myself as a minimalist, because I am not. (not yet anyway). But I get the principle, and I am inspired to do better.
So this year, instead of spending stuff on myself (particularly clothes & makeup; I still haven’t quite decided what about if I buy gifts for others, but I am still convincing myself that’s included, we’ll see, lol), I will put aside that money to save, or invest on sponsoring someone else who may need it. (example, on more child for Compassion, World Vision, Mission Australia, etc.) One dollar can help another person so much. I can go on and on about that, but I’ll leave it for another blog post.
I will try to blog my journey, more so to keep myself accountable (to myself lol). It’s been okay so far, and I’ve held off buying unnecessary items like this organizer tray I found earlier at Muji store. ha! I’m reading and watching a lot of minimalism tips that are actually helping me navigate this season. I’ve decluttered so much makeup and clothes too, so they can go to people who will use them more than me.
I have come across this thing called “project pan” in the makeup world, where makeup lovers are challenging themselves to finish off certain amount of makeup items at a certain time. I might embark on that as well. We’ll see.
Anyway, if you’ve reached this point of the post, thank you! I have something to give to you, I have books, LOTS of them. Email me at jenna@coffeebooksandme and I can send you a picture of what books I have and if you like any, I’ll send it to you for free. You’re welcome!
’til next post. bye!

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books

Let us know what you think of the cover for Unraveled (Perfected, #3) by Kate Jarvik Birch, which releases April 3, 2018! This cover reveal is brought to you by Entangled Teen. About Unraveled: Ella isn’t anyone’s pet anymore, but she’s certainly not free. After exposing the dark secrets about NuPet’s breeding program, forcing them to repeal the law that […]
[If you haven’t read any of the previous books, you should before you read this 5th book. And NO, you won’t understand this book if you skip even one of the previous ones. ?) …………….MY GOODNESS. I AM SO SPEECHLESS. THIS BOOK. ————-……………………………… …………………………………………………………………………..?? …………….I just honestly didn’t see that coming. I actually didn’t even know […]
Top Ten Reasons You Should Read Roald Dahl’s Books . 10 His books are in every childhood! 9 They will inspire you for a love for READING. 8 Even adults read them. 7 Read and Watch. Many of his books were made into movies! Matilda, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and James and the Giant Peach! 6 Creative. […]
What did I think of this book? I think this is the most emotional, honest and heartbreaking book Colleen Hoover has ever written yet. There’s too much emotion I could feel at the same time: fear, elation, hope, expectancy, sadness, empathy… that I did not even cry a single tear. And I always […]
The Pretty App is a companion novel of The Boyfriend App by Katie Sise. Though this books is not as amazing as the first one, but it still put in some honest society perspective that I believe we should all look into as well. I do love these kinds of book though- light […]
Magonia is an extremely never before read kind of book, and that made all the difference. Yes, it’s enchanting and captivating and all nice things! Though Magonia is all good stuff for me, I fully understand not everyone is happy dancey with it. (I don’t understand why not but everyone has different tastes so…) I […]
Hey guys! It has been ages, like literally ages! Since I last posted a cover reveal! I don’t even remember when that was. Anyway, here we are. Sourcebooks invited me to be part of Renee Collins’ Until WE Meet Again cover reveal, and I said yes! This is how they dubbed the book: “Love, murder, […]
It’s been about four months since I read this book, and it’s awesomeness still reverberates in my bones. I’m not exaggerating! The first thing that ever captivated me with the book is the title itself- “Red Queen”. It made me wonder who is this Red Queen? And another female MC? Yes please. […]
Becky Brandon is probably one my most favorite book characters of all time. like ALL time. She’s the best. And she doesn’t fail to ALWAYS make me laugh, and whenever she does embarrassing, I am embarrassed for her as well. I’ve been reading the Shopaholic series for forever. And I love the Shopaholic movie so […]
[Review written on January 15, 2015] JUST finished the book a few hours ago. I’m having some withdrawal. Just to answer my “pre-book publication date” anticipation/expectations- I did get me some more of Blue+Gansey. Not enough not enough though. BUT the cover is really gorgeous and every time I read the book and pause […]

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Cover Reveal: Unraveled by Kate Jarvik Birch

Published by Entangled Publishing, Entangled Teen
Let us know what you think of the cover for Unraveled (Perfected, #3) by Kate Jarvik Birch, which releases April 3, 2018!
This cover reveal is brought to you by Entangled Teen.
About Unraveled:
Ella isn’t anyone’s pet anymore, but she’s certainly not free.
After exposing the dark secrets about NuPet’s breeding program, forcing them to repeal the law that allowed genetically modified girls to be kept as pets, she thought girls like her would finally be free. She never dreamed that it would backfire. NuPet may have convinced the public of their intentions to assimilate pets back into society, but Ella knows it’s a lie.
They aren’t planning mass rehabilitation…they’re planning a mass extermination.
Now, with the help of a small group of rebels, Ella and Penn, the boy she’d give up her life for, set out to bring down NuPet for good. But when her group gets implicated in a string of bombings, no one is safe. If she can’t untangle the web of blackmail and lies that extends far beyond NuPet’s reach, she won’t just lose her chance at freedom, she’ll lose everyone she loves.
Want to read more? Pre-order your copy of Unraveled (Perfected, #3) by Kate Jarvik Birch today!
Amazon | B&N | iBooks | Kobo | Entangled Publishing
About Kate Jarvik Birch:
Kate Jarvik Birch is a visual artist, author, playwright, daydreamer, and professional procrastinator. As a child, she wanted to grow up to be either a unicorn or mermaid. Luckily, being a writer turned out to be just as magical. Her essays and short stories have been published in literary journals, including: Indiana Review and Saint Ann’s Review. She lives in Salt Lake City, Utah with her husband and three kids.
Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Amazon

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The Light Shines in the Darkness…

The following are my thoughts from a month ago…
July 15, 2017.
I’ve been so sick this week (physically) and lonely (emotionally) and am overcome by this utter sense of unfinished unsettling feeling… I couldn’t pinpoint what is it. Have you ever experienced this? It’s like being hit by an arrow but you don’t know where it exactly hit you but you feel it sicken and numb and you feel decay starting to proliferate to every cell in your body…? Because that’s what I felt. So weird.
It was physical at first, I’ve never been this sick since 2008. Then it became emotional. I thought I was just PMS-ing. But not the time of the month yet, I just had it. Then it became spiritual. In the end, I was just frustrated with myself because I. don’t. understand. And I’m being very melodramatic.
I am an optimistic person that’s why this feeling didn’t make sense. I tried to fight over the darkness that was slowly swallowing me alive. It didn’t belong here. But everything I know. Who I am. What I am. I am a daughter of the Most High King. It doesn’t seem to matter. The darkness doesn’t care. It just seeks to steal, kill, destroy everything standing in it’s way. It was a battle I was trying to win, but every weapon I was forging immediately disappears as soon as I conjure it.
So I was there, at home, lying in my own misery and depression. I read the Bible. Flipped through different social media or internet websites that I rely almost on the daily basis to distract me from reality. Instagram. Facebook. Twitter. Netflix. Youtube. I even opened Pinterest. Nothing worked. Ugh. seriously.
Later, I got myself into watching a TV series I loved and haven’t seen in a while. (a year or so) It’s funny how God used that TV show to speak to me. Really really ridiculous… yet sooo very like God. One of the characters recited a phrase I thought was a poem. Almost as soon as he started saying the words, imagine me slowly perking up from my lazy position on the couch, life coming back to my eyes as I digested to what he said.
“The Light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness has not overcome it.”
I remembered. Not in my mind. But my heart, my soul, my spirit– my whole being remembered. My “WHY”. I didn’t forget it, heck I was speaking it over myself the past days but it wasn’t getting inside. Until now. Until this character said it.
I could cry.
I actually did cry. Ha! Finally, I was free! I know in the deepest part of me I was not bound. I’m free already.
But it was almost as if God allowed me to experience those grief, the darkness,.. to remind me what the rest of the world is experiencing, and my mission here is not finished yet. I have more things to do. WE have a lot to do. We know WHO wins in the end, but for NOW, this is not over yet.

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book-related news

Let us know what you think of the cover for Unraveled (Perfected, #3) by Kate Jarvik Birch, which releases April 3, 2018! This cover reveal is brought to you by Entangled Teen. About Unraveled: Ella isn’t anyone’s pet anymore, but she’s certainly not free. After exposing the dark secrets about NuPet’s breeding program, forcing them to repeal the law that […]
Top Ten Reasons You Should Read Roald Dahl’s Books . 10 His books are in every childhood! 9 They will inspire you for a love for READING. 8 Even adults read them. 7 Read and Watch. Many of his books were made into movies! Matilda, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and James and the Giant Peach! 6 Creative. […]
Hey there! A few weeks ago, or was it just last week? I posted about Mitchell Kriegman’s Being Audrey Hepburn. And now it’s available on audiobook! So if you’re not much of a reader and more of a “listener”, audiobooks are perfect for you. I myself am not much of a “listener” but every now […]
Hey there guys! Just wanted to share an exciting, exclusive news to everyone. Alloy Entertainment launches its new digital-first imprint with Amazon Publishing and it’ll be called still “Alloy Entertainment”. If you’re not aware, as I was before, they are responsible for The Vampire Diaries, Pretty Little Liars, Gossip Girl, etc. So that about sums […]
Hey lovelies! So. Last May 29, an unexpected novella from the Just One Day series by Gayle Forman was published in ebook! It was an answered plea from most of the fans that FINALLY encouraged the author and the publisher to publish JUST ONE MORE story for the series. And I bet ya it was […]
It’s here! Today is the day you can get the beautiful new bindups of Jennifer L. Armentrout’s LUX Series! Are you as excited as we are? I got a copy of THIS from Book Expo America. And my eyes just about BUGGED out of my EYES when I saw how SPARKLY it is! If you […]
HEY THERE! Just some exciting news from Zondervan Publishing. BLINK TOUR MAY 12 – 17, 2014 This May, Zondervan’s YA imprint Blink launches THE BLINK TOUR, a cross-country book tour featuring a wide array of speculative fiction with unique perspectives on magical fantasy worlds and bleak dystopian futures. Each stop on the five-city tour will feature a combination of seven prolific […]
Hey guys! I don’t know about you, but I remember being left hanging from Endless, the book 4 of the Violet Eden series by Jessica Shirvington. I personally personally love this series and have always participated in all kinds of promo for the books. I even remember interviewing Jessica once in a blog […]
Hi guys! If you haven’t already read the news somewhere on the bookosphere, Cosmopolitan (yes, the magazine) and Harlequin have banded together to form “Cosmo Red Hot Reads from Harlequin”. Dubbed as the “Fiction for the fun and fearless female”, geared toward the females of the ages 18 to 35, and oh yeah, the books […]
I’m so excited!!!!!! It’s finally here! Over the last couple of weeks, you’ve heard us talking about the upcoming #daemoninvasion and we’re so excited to finally share with you what is going on. Really excited. The beautiful and uber cool models, Pepe Toth and Sztella Tziotziosz, who grace the Lux covers, will be joining […]
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After time.

If you asked me 4 years ago if I can imagine myself having a close relationship with my mom again, I would have sternly answered you a “NO, not really.” (long story behind this)
But GOD is a GOD of miracles and restoration. He truly makes impossible things possible. Not even a year later, we were talking again. Every year since then I planned to make a post about how God’s restorative hands has healed this part of our family, but I still felt a “not yet” answer.
This time however was different. We are not completely “there yet” but my relationship with my mother has never reached this deep. We not merely talk about random girly topics, but we talk about Jesus and His Kingdom, how we can help more people and strategize for the Church.
I have to pinch myself everytime we have conversations like this. It’s unreal to me still!
I guess once you’ve hit that level of ‘I can’t keep doing this Lord!’ and yet choose to repeatedly having to choose to love and forgive someone who constantly makes choices that hurt me and this family. Until forgiving becomes easier and loving becomes you. Once you’ve gone past that, a deeper revelation and understanding of God’s love and forgiveness takes home in your whole being- mind, soul, spirit.
And so you grow. And continously pray. And you both grow. With maturity comes wisdom, with time comes healing. Old wounds leave a scar, yes, but it’s possible to be healed. You just have to choose to want it, receive it and embrace it. Cry and let it all out, choose to hate even. But never linger, let it go. Choose to let it go.
Some of you might believe what I say and some won’t, but as I can personally testify, all of these are not possible without the Lord Jesus. His love overwhelms and envelopes me. How He kept me company all the time, constantly encouraging and urging me throughout. To love even when I hate, to forgive even when it hurts, to give even when I completely ran empty.
At the end of the day, the choice is ours. Linger or let it go.

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updates

Beginning of last year (2018), I was compelled to challenge myself to a ‘Less is More’ mission. One year is done, I made it you guys! I moved to a new flat, have my own bedroom (hallelujah! as it’s impossible to pay for something cheap when you live in Sydney). Apart from buying a […]
For my birthday this year, I went to Hunter Valley, here in Sydney Australia. They call it the ‘wine country’ of Australia. Even if they only supply about 3% of the wine market in AU (one of the wine tour guides said). It’s quite a small percentage, but the source is local and the number of vineyard […]
Hey there lovely people! How are you all doing? I hope you’re all good. I cannot believe we’re halfway thru the year!!! Honestly, where have the days gone by? I really meant to blog more frequently than this haha! But I overestimated my dedication to blog. Honestly, it’s just not one of my priorities the […]
NOVELLA READING CHALLENGE UPDATE! Hi guys! Whew! I was finally able to finish the pictured novellas (above) this week! And I am so happy! *happy dance* The novella I loved the most is…ugh, I can’t pick! I loved them all! They were all good! And each had a different story and sub genre… Anyway, here’s a […]
A bit late for a blog’s “new year resolution” right? Good thing it’s not-a new year’s resolution for me. Rather, just another realization of improving my love for blogging by blogging more. Does that make any sense? Well, anyway, I plan on wanting to blog everyday, or almost everyday, so I decided to weekly join […]

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