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A Review on “How To Write A Letter” by Chelsea Shukov & Jamie Grobecker

Publisher: Clarkson Potter
Published: 19th October 2021
Length: 139 pages
Genre: How-to Book
Price: 11,99€ on Amazon

What is it about?

The go-to resource for creative ideas and helpful tips for writing thank you notes, addressing envelopes, cover letters, and everything in between, from the creators of Sugar Paper

Feeling like sending a little love in the mail but not sure how to get started? Along with letter-writing golden rules, How to Write a Letter will make it easier to:

• select the perfect stationery for any occasion
• find the best salutation and sign off
• choose the right words for any situation, from congratulations to condolences
• properly address an envelope in style

With this book, you’ll discover how hand-writing your thoughts and feelings have the magic to turn a card, letter, or even scrap of paper into a treasure.

Review:

You might think to yourself: What an odd name for a review! But as you can see, today’s review is not about me telling you how to write a letter, but reviewing a book about that topic! As someone who loves writing letters and sending cards for festive occasions, I really wanted to know what a book like that would be about exactly. If I could agree or disagree with the points mentioned and if it might help me up to my game or bore me a lot. So if you had the same thought or are like my husband and can’t get past the greeting in a card alone hoping this book might help you out, this post is for you!

It’s a fairly small book, which was what surprised me at first. I was expecting a guide of some sort and ruffling through the first few pages, I was a bit disappointed seeing every first page only being half-filled and every second page filled with an illustration. Don’t get me wrong, those Ilustartions fit the style of the book and look great, but I thought I paid for tips, not nice aesthetics. It gets somewhat better after the initial pages, but there are sections like that in the book till the end. Was that necessary or could more information have been added?

I like the topics they have chosen to talk about like “thank you” notes, professional pursuits, or loss. There is something in here for every important occasion you would want to write a letter about. They all come with example letters, that might kickstart your own ideas or help you understand what writing a letter about loss, for example, is really about. I could really see how someone like my husband, could use this to come up with ideas, especially with their section called “finding the right words”. But it does not give you much, if you need to write multiple letters about one topic, you will either have many similar ones or don’t get past the first. I would have loved some more pages, with some more examples.

The authors Chelsea Shukov & Jamie Grobecker seem to know what they are talking about since they have successfully started the company sugar paper which focuses on gifting something substantial in a digitalized world. They produce their own stationery from paper, over notebooks to their own pencils. Their company really tries to make writing letters in modern times a luxurious thing, everyone should do one in a while. And I really love that idea, but I have to say I am not so satisfied with the book they have created.

Final Verdict:
I really want to say something good about this book, but when I read it, one question was on my mind: Who is this book for? Because letter enthusiasts like me might already know about most of the things listed here, how to find the right words and what the right stationery is for you. And people who can’t find the right words on their own, only find some small prompts and less guidance than you would hope for. Actually, you would get about as many or even more by googling for free. So I would not recommend it for them either. But somehow… I guess I still enjoyed it. I liked reading about something I am passionate about and knowing who wrote it was passionate about it too. I like the design and I got it as a gift, so it might be something someone else would be happy to get gifted too. Maybe it can be an acknowledgement of their passion or can start the passion in someone else. But if you want to buy it for yourself, you might be disappointed or at least have to think about what you want it for.

Greetings and good wishes (and a happy new year!!)
The Mad Hattress

December 1

Other Books in the Grishaverse (as possible Christmas presents?)

I had some trouble recently, which is why I was not able to upload any posts for some weeks. I do not only want to apologize for that, but also inform you that this post was meant to be uploaded at the beginning of the month xD But I guess if you still need to find a last-minute Christmas present, it could be a cool idea or just to plan any presents for the future, an upcoming birthday perhaps 😉 Enjoy!

It’s December and 2021 is ALMOST OVER! That does not only mean we have soon successfully lived through another year with Covid but also that Christmas is coming. And even though I am not the biggest fan of Christmas tradition and celebration, of course, I love the gift-giving part 😉 In this post, I not only want to talk about some books I bought but also why they might be the perfect Christmas presents for some of your loved ones! The books I will be focusing on are all written by Leigh Bardugo the famous author of the books on which the Netflix Series “Shadow and Bone” is based on. If you are following my blog for at least some months, you know that I have recently reviewed the series on Netflix and the books and then compared them. That’s why I won’t be talking about them in detail, but of course, if someone has neither seen the Web series nor read the books, those are the ones you should start with, to introduce someone into the story. So they alone make a great present. But if you know someone loved the show or read the first books already, here are some more they will love <3 (Spoiler-free!)

The Demon in the Wood
This is a rather small book, thus not even published as a paperback but available as an eBook everywhere online! With around 50cts this is one of the most affordable out of all the gifts and it’s about the biggest Villan of the Series! Basically, it is a short story about how he became the man we got to know in the books and the Netflix series. I really look forward to reading it myself and actually, when I heard there was a book about him, I had hoped for a 400-page long one, but I will take the 60 pages with little remorse. I am sure they are interesting still, just finished very quickly :/ But beware, this story will hold big spoilers for people who have never seen the series or read the books(especially book 1), everyone else should be able to enjoy this story spoilerfree^^

The Tailor
Same as “The Demon in the Wood” this one is a short story as well, roughly around the same price point and with the same amount of Spoiler alert! But instead of being about the main villain of the series, this story is about a character who is highly debated upon by fans, whether she was a good or bad character. Some say that this eBook helped them understand her and her actions better. Also for completion, every fan of the series will LOVE to have this in their hands 😉

The Six of Crows
The Duology of the Crows chronologically takes place before the Grishaverses original trilogy, but it’s technically not a prequel because it’s not about Alina and Mal from the books, but rather about the band of thieves you get to meet and love in the Netflix Series. Netflix actually took the characters from these books and wove them into the Sun Summoners Story, which for me personally was a great choice. I was actually a bit disappointed to not read about them when I picked up the first books. So if your friend or partner was as excited to see the group on screen as I was, they will love to read these books about their origin story. Some even say they prefer these over the main story books because of their amazing writing and narrative, but I let you or the person receiving it as a gift decide on that 😉

The Lives of the Saints
This one is actually not a storybook, in the sense that it does not bring something new to the table if you have already read the OG trilogy. But rather it’s a book that is mentioned in that story and has a big significance for the characters and their goals. I am sure everybody who loves the series, would love to keep something like this as a collector’s item maybe or to feel even more immersed into the story than before, by holding the book in their hands, which Alina holds in her own. It’s beautifully illustrated on the cover, but also on the inside. Every new chapter begins with a piece of artwork and I can see how this resembles some form of holy text for some in the Grishverse, it certainly looks like it 😉

The Language of the Thornes
Similar to “The Lives of the Saints” this book could be found in Ravka, but as far as I can remember it was not really mentioned in the Trilogy. It’s less significant than the other book is, but you could kinda compare it to the fairytale books published by J.K. Rowling as a kind of add-on to the Harry Potter series. It’s said to be a collection of folklore told in the world of the series, some more insights into peoples lives, and some further information for fans to better understand the world, one of their favourite stories takes place in 🙂 Like “The Lives of the Saints” stories are fully illustrated too and the way they did it is really cool and kinda magical!

The Severed Moon
This one is especially gift-worthy because it’s actually a diary! You might have heard about the new diaries which have writing prompts in them, said to motivate people more to actually write something down daily. “The Served Moon” is such a book, created by the author of the Grishaverse books for fans of the series. It holds some magical writing prompts and quotes from the books, with beautiful illustrations on the out and on the inside. And it’s said to last for a year, what great gift to give on Christmas for a friend or a loved one to start the new year with 🙂 We all need some magic in 2022 I believe xD

Kings of Scars & Rule of Wolves
This Duology I have saved for last, because technically to avoid all kinds of spoilers you should read these books last. They take place after the story of Alina and Mal ends one way or the other with the third book of the original trilogy. And they may or may not(really trying not to say anything wrong here xD) lead on some stories of characters we have already gotten to know, but they most likely will point to events that have already happened. So to be safe, I would only gift this to someone who I know has already finished or at least bought all the other books, so that they can read them in the correct, spoiler-free order. But if you are very generous this Christmas and want to gift all of the Grishaverse books to someone(who will be very thankful, I am sure) then these books should not be missing, because as far as I know, they will conclude all of the stories Leigh Bardugo told in her magical series.

I hope you have gotten some gift ideas now and I guess I wish you all a Merry Christmas already! Celebrate if that’s your thing or try to get through the time like I do and look forward to next years Halloween again xD

Greetings and good wishes
The Mad Hattress

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