ABOUT

meet rin, my fliptopus, and yes i wish i had that many tentacles to do stuff at once.
Hello friends, welcome to my book blog!

I’m Cherelle, a Singaporean-Chinese bookdragon whom, as you’ve probably noticed, has a soft spot for all things pink. I started this blog in September 2020, with this little corner of the Internet being the place where I intend to share my thoughts on the books I’ve read. Through A Bolt out of the Book, I’ve expanded and diversified my reading tastes, though I dabble mostly in historical fiction, literary fiction, fantasy and the occasional science fiction.

I love seeing Asian representation in the books I read, following antiheroes, and stories entrenched in history, lore and political intrigue! I’m also a devout believer in “judging a book by its title” – if the title ends up being an important metaphor in the book, or word play, I’ll be reading asap. Also reflecting my love for puns would be the title of my blog, the name “A Bolt out of the Book” comes from the idiom “like a bolt out of the blue, which highlights the surprising nature of books, and also gives me the liberty to make lightning puns. Yes, I’m sure the meaning has struck you by now.

some facts about myself

  • I really love characters from childhood shows, particularly Cookie Monster and Pluto, the former whom I collect tote bags of, and the latter of whom I still feel a deep sense of injustice towards its removal from the list of planets.
  • I’m an ISTJ.
  • I can speak decent Mandarin (I’m getting there), and get consistently scolded for sticking my chopsticks directly into my rice bowl (which is said to bring bad luck due to it looking like incense at funerals for Chinese).
  • I’m fond of parentheses, ellipses and have a penchant for long-windedness, ah verbosity is my burden to bear.

some of my favourite books

  • The Poppy War series and Babel by R.F. Kuang
  • Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
  • Do Not Say We Have Nothing by Madeline Thien
  • The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy
  • Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson
  • The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
  • If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio
  • All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
  • Villains duology by V.E. Schwab
  • Educated by Tara Westover

Thank you for dropping by and I hope you enjoy your time around! You can also find me on Instagram, Twitter and Goodreads, or even reach out by email!

29 thoughts on “ABOUT”

  2. Oooo…I also loved The Nightingale and All the Light We Cannot See! I have The Book Thief on my shelf waiting for me to read. I have been excited to read it but haven’t had a chance to dive into it yet. So many books I want to read…..

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  7. OMG I love your blog!! Plus, I see you like reading World War II novels too, which the same with me and they never fail to break my heart! Amazing work 💖

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    1. Maeve, hello! Thank you for your kind words! YES ANOTHER HAMILTON FAN, what’s your favourite song?? Ooh I’m truly glad to hear that, war novels are my favs despite them making me cry like crazy haha, if you need recs let me know okay! Thank you so much for dropping by! 💖

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      1. Hi!! Oooh I would love some recs thanks so much!! AAAH I WOULD HAVE TO SAY… dear theodosia or guns and ships, but that’s a super hard question, there all so good!! What ’bout you??

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        2. I would go with my all time favourite Lovely War (ww1 narrated by Greek Gods) and All the Light We Cannot See, as well as The Book Thief. Those are admittedly slow paced so if you want a war novel with more action, I highly recommend Kate Quinn’s books, especially The Alice Network or The Huntress! 🤗

          I KNOW, it is near IMPOSSIBLE to pick between so many incredible songs. I love The Schuyler Sisters as well, and ahh Non-Stop reverberates in my head every single day haha. 🥰

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  9. I just discovered your blog and LOVE the design! I’m also excited to find another book blogger who loves musicals and Disney movies 😍 (Mushu is the best.)

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      1. I still haven’t watch the live action yet, but I was disappointed to hear Mushu and grandma weren’t in it 😞 but yes, the cartoon is special 😍

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  10. AHH HI I just stumbled upon your blog and it’s so cool 😍 I love reading historical fiction too and WW2 novels always make me cry 😭 and found family trope owns my heart!! I hope to see more of your awesome content! 💖

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  12. hello from malaysia, cherelle!! ahh your name is so beautiful ❤ love your blog, the pink SPEAKS to me. definitely going to add your recs to my tbr. and me too, i sometimes stick my chopsticks into the food </3 it's just easier that way sometimes, isn't it?? do you perhaps enjoy reading greek myth fiction? i've been dabbling in that genre lately, though there's not much recommendations for the genre.

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    1. hi dahlia!! I’m so sorry I missed your comment, hello from across the causeway! thank you for such kind words, I’m glad to find another who loves pink AND relates to the chopstick problem… AGREED. honestly, my biggest greek mythology phase was Percy Jackson when I was younger HAHA… but I have been meaning to get to Jennifer Saint’s books about that! have you read any compelling ones?

      thanks so much for dropping by, hope you’ve been keeping well! 💘

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