About the Blog
Welcome to By Golly, Ollie! (formerly known as Books & Tea). I launched this website back in 2011 as a way to share my love of…well, books and tea, with the world. (Pssst! You can still read my first, cringey book review here.) I was (am!) a slow and distracted reader, so posts were sporadic at best.
After an unintended hiatus or two (and a baby!), I tried to dive back into the blogosphere but mostly just ended up flailing about. I tried a few new blog names that didn’t quite fit until I came up with By Golly, Ollie! in 2019 (a nod to my kiddo).
This space has been in flux ever since. The tagline for the last few years has been good reads & tasty teas & geekery, and yes I will continue to write about that. But, I hail from the Geocities Era of personal blogs, so staying within the confines of a marketable niche has always felt stifling. As of 2024, I’m giving myself the permission to write whatever I want at BGO– however fleeting the interest.
About the Blogger
Hello, my name is Jackie. I’m a millennial, a mother, a Michigander. When I’m not wrangling the kiddo, I’m seeking refuge from life’s most chaotic moments in a cup of hot tea. I also love getting lost in stories—both in books and virtually. I enjoy speculative fiction, graphic novels, and nonfiction. When I’m feeling especially indulgent (usually after everyone in the house has gone to sleep), I like to dive into video games and explore the sprawling worlds in Fallout, Elder Scrolls, Dragon Age, and Mass Effect.