Everyone who knows me knows that I love reading (the overflowing shelves and stacks of books on the floor in my room should be evident enough). So it only makes sense that I would go to book events. Reading is often thought of as a solitary activity, something that someone does sitting at home all by themselves. In recent years, thanks to the internet, it's become easier to connect with fellow book lovers across the globe. But nothing beats being in the same room as a bunch of book lovers.

You know when you meet a stranger on a bus and you have this insane instant connection because you both discover that you both love something like "Game of Thrones" or "the Office." Going to book events is like that, only multiplied by a lot since there are so many people there.

But just like concerts and snow flakes, no two book events are ever the same. In the past year I've gone to three book events (I think, unless there's one I'm forgetting), and all of them were different from each other. The only things that all three had in common were that the author was there, and I walked away with a signed copy of their book.

The first event I went to was for Hank Green's debut novel "An Absolutely Remarkable Thing." The event took place at a theater in downtown Boston. Instead of a standard panel and q & a, Hank and his brother John did an interesting show, including a bit where they were blindfolded and hit each other with a bat when the other answered a question wrong as a metaphor for the internet. We all walked away with a signed copy of the book, but they were pre signed and handed to us at the door. If you wanted an individual meet and greet, it was something you had to pay for ahead of time. Even though I didn't get to meet the Hank and John Green, I still got to meet a ton of other nerds who were just as excited about the book as I was.

The next event I went to was was Boston Book Festival. Instead of on focused event, there were multiple events and panels going on, sometimes at once. Most of the panels I went to involved multiple authors talking about a specific topic that relates to their book. The events were all at different locations. One I went to was in a library basement, one in a cafe and another in a church (where we were ironically talking about a gay book). Unlike the Hank Green event, I could get into these ones for free. The drawback was that I wasn't provided with a book that I could get singed. at most of the events I was able to get the author to sign my books, but you either had to bring your own copy of the book, or buy one at the event. While it was nice knowing I could buy books to get singed, there was also the risk of them running out of copies. So for Boston Book Festival, I planned ahead what events I'd be going to and brought the books I wanted to get signed.

The last event I went to this year was for Cassandra Clare's latest book in the Shadowhunter Chronicles. I've been reading her books and following the characters in the Shadowhunter world since I was fifteen, so if you told me then that I was going to meet Cassandra Clare I probably would have screamed. That event took place in a theater and had a standard panel talking about the book as well as a q & a from the audience. Afterward we went across the street for the signing, where we were given a book to sign, plus we could get one of her other books signed that we brought. Now this limit made sense, because if there wasn't one, I would've very easily brought all fourteen of my Shadowhunter books. The thing I will complain about is the fact that I had to wait in line for the signing for nearly two hours outside in the freezing cold.

I've been lucky to go to all these events. If you're going to a book event, be prepared for anything. Hopefully this gives you an idea of what to expect.