August Book Haul

I did a little better this month!

I actually don't know if that's a good thing. As my last post states I was kind of in a slump in the beginning of the month. It kind of went away mid-month but now it's kind of back...

I still love books, I still want to read, but I'm a little burnt out. I don't want to stereo type artists by saying it's an "artist thing" but I'll be more specific and say it's just a me thing. I get really into something for a weird length of time, then can totally ignore it for months at a time. I'll eventually come back to it.

Anyway, this month I got 10 books, which isn't too bad, especially compared to last month.

The first I got at my local book store Northtown Books, with the intention of getting this one in particular, I had intended on getting it in July but thought that would be a bit excessive for my July haul and so told myself if it's still there when I go back I'd get it, and behold, it's now mine.

Get it Together, Delilah! by Erin Gough

So this book was first published in February 2015 in Australia originally as The Flywheel but then was re-published for the states, Canada and UK as this cover in 2017

First off cover love. The contrast and playful-ness of the cover is what attracted me to this book and kept making me think about it. I had read the first chapter when I first saw it in store, this book is about Delilah, a girl who knows her sexuality and is perfectly fine with it, however no one else seems to be, she's teased and bullied at her high school and she feels as though her long time friend doesn't accept her identity as a lesbian. When Delilah's dad goes on a trip around the world to try to get over Delilah's mother who left them a little over a year ago, Delilah takes over managing the family Cafe, while juggling highschool, and now, dealing with her long time crush coming in to the cafe. With her best friend Charlie, Delilah figures out her strengths and weaknesses and how to manage everything all at once.

I've already read this. I gave it two stars. The story as a whole was a bit of a let down, I'll leave a better review of it in my August wrap up.

Another book I got the same time and same place as this one was

Scythe by Neil Shusterman

Published November 2016 by Simon and Schuster books for young readers

I have been meaning to get this for the last year, it's one that not only I'm interested in but my boyfriend is as well, in which he immediately picked up as soon as a brought it home.

From what I've heard this book is about a world that has gotten rid of disease, illnesses, ultimately there are no more natural deaths that happen with in the world, but due to population control there is a job titles Scythes where these two young adults are recruited to be trained in, enable to kill others to keep population from getting out of control.

I have read the synopsis but have forgotten what else goes into this, but I almost don't want to know because I'm finding synopsi? synopseses? either say to much or can be misleading. I'll read them once to make sure I'd actually be interested in reading it, but aside from that...meh

The next two books I got from the Book of the Month club. I recently signed up for this once again. I don't believe I got one in July...so hopefully this is news to you. I was subscribed to them before and about the same time I unsubscribed to Owlcrate I unsubscribed just because I felt like I was mostly just skipping a month pretty regularly but then I started to notice that when I went to my local book store I was buying the books that were offered on Book of the Month for that month, but I was paying full price... for instance American War and Chemistry were both offered in June and July (not both at the same time but one after the other) and so I recently decided to sign back up and do a bit more research in the books before skipping the month or choosing a book. Book of the Month is another subscription box, but instead of getting hints or clues or themes for the month you have 5 books to choose from. Book of the Month has a variety of judges in which five give recommendations of new releases for that month. These book I believe are $14.99 and for a new release hard back, that's a pretty good deal, if you want more than one it's an extra $9.99 which again is a great deal for a new release hard back. They have a variety of genre's, it's different every month and if you aren't interested in that month you can skip and wait til next month. They ship pretty quickly too. With Uppercase or Owlcrate they tend not to ship until mid month, while Book of the Month ships as soon as you choose a book or books and tell them to ship your box. There are a couple of little extra goodies that go into this, a note from the judge explaining why they recomended the book (sometimes it's the author themselves) occasionally they'll put in Book of the Month swag, but it's not near as much as Uppercase or Owlcrate.

So for August I got two the first being one of the five options:

Little and Lion by Brandy Colbert

Published August 2017, by Little Brown

I've heard a couple people talk about this and love it, it sounds interesting, and with Book of the Month that tends to be why I pick books, is just one that sounds interesting, but what's also great about Book of the month is that if you felt like you picked the "wrong book" or there was a there was a month you missed that had a book you had wanted to read, if it's not sold out, you can add it to your box for $9.99. Not that I feel with that with this one, but I have picked books before thinking I picked the most interesting one, only to then hear and be interested by another with in that same month.

From what I understand this book is about this Suzette who I believe is bi-sexual, she comes home because her brother is dealing with bi-polar disorder and want her support. When coming back she finds herself falling for a girl her brother has fallen for as well. The issue, aside from her brother liking the same girl, is that this girl is not a person that should be around her brother as he's trying to get a hang on bi-polar disorder. Suzette will have to face her past mistakes in order to help her brother presently before he hurts himself, or worse.

The book I got in addition to this one was an "extra" that Book of the Month offered, in which they do on occasion, and that's:

The Clockwork Dynasty by Daniel H. Wilson

Published August 2017, by Doubleday Books

Ok so admittedly...I bought just for the cover. I have a soft spot for steampunk. Not really sure what this book is about, there seems to be time travel involved it's supposed to be a pretty good thriller as an anthropologist named June tries unravel the secrets of ancient technology but not to unravel time.

The next two I got were from Book Outlet, again if you haven't heard of them, it's like a thrift store online, new-ish books for a decent price, I haven't seen anything on there for over $10

The first being a graphic novel actually, and with fall coming I thought this would be perfect:

Anya's Ghost by Vera Brosgol

Published June 2011 by First Second

I've heard nothing but good things, the cover attracted me as well. Those who know me know I really picky in terms of art style, and so far this reminds me of Soppy or Sarah's Scribbles.

Anya wants a friend, she's self conscious about her body, embarrassed by her family, and has given up trying to fit in at school, so when she falls down a well one day, that last thing she expected was a friend, let alone one who's been dead for years.

The next book I was able to get was

The One and Only Ivan by Kathrine Applegate Illustrated by Patricia Castelao

Published January 2012, by Harpercollins

So honestly, I love the cover, and I thought it'd be a cute book for my niece. I wasn't sure what it was about, I just bought it and was able to get some kind of collectors edition. However when it arrived I was surprised as all hell because instead of a small children's book like I had expected to get, I got a massive 2 pound book approximately 11x14 inches. My niece and I had tried to read this, but she's still a bit young to try to sit through a book that didn't have illustrations on every page. But from what I gathered it's about Ivan, who is the only gorilla in a circus and his best friend who is a small elephant.

The next one I got was from August's Uppercase box and that was:

Everything All at Once by Katrina Leno

Published July 2017, by Harperteen

I had heard a bout this book a couple times, but it wasn't really on my radar, but that's one thing that I like about subscription boxes is that you get something you might not have picked up on your own.

This book is about Lottie Reaves. Lottie plays it safe in life, she doesn't take unnecessary risks, she likes to avoid the possibility of getting hurt, that is until her beloved aunt Helen dies of cancer. Aunt Helen wasn't a typical aunt. She was the author of a magical series where two brother find the elixir of life. This series inspired an entire generation of readers, and Helen knew how writing could inspire people to see things differently. In her will Helen leaves a writing project for Lottie, a series of letters each containing instructions that are supposed to get Lottie to take the leap, and for once in her life, live her. But when the letters start revealing secrets about Helen's beloved series, Lottie finds herself faced with an impossible choice, one that will force her to confront her greatest fears once and for all.

These last three books were I again got at Northtown Books, I ended up special ordering:

Walk on Earth A Stranger by Rae Carson

Published September 2015 by Greenwillow Books

This is the first in the Gold Seer Trilogy, and this wasn't on my radar at first, but then this last semester my mom got a package in the mail and she got a signed copy of the second book in this series which is Like a River Glorious. Apparently my mom had helped critique the manuscript, we're thinking because one of my mom's friends had wrote a review about Walk on Earth a Stranger. The reason why it wasn't really on my radar, despite having seen this book here and there was because it's about the gold rush, and I knew I was going to be mad if it didn't include Native Americans, and I was most likely going to be mad if it did include Native Americans. The reason being, if a writer isn't Native American, or they don't do their research in the right places (because there are definitely wrong places) they tend to get the representation of Native American's wrong. I guess Walk on Earth a Stranger did just that, hence why my mom's friend wrote quite a low review letter to the author and this is why, I'm guessing, my mom got to critique Like a River Glorious. So when she got a signed copy as thanks for critiquing the manuscript, she had recommended I read it because she actually enjoyed it, however she didn't know it was the second book in a series, hence why I got this book.

So like I kind of mentioned, this book is about Lee Westfall, a girl with a loving family, a loyal steed and a best friend who may want something more. But Lee has a secret, she can sense gold around her. From the veins deep with in the ground, to the nuggets in the streams, to the dust under someones nails. She has been able to support her family even through the harshest of winters, but what would someone due enable to control a girl who can sense gold? Murder? Perhaps. So when everything Lee holds dear is ripped away from her she flees to California. A place where gold was just discovered, and somewhere, she hopes, she can be herself, if she survives the journey.

So the reason I special ordered this from my local book store is because I don't trust online shopping for certain things, bras, pants, shoes and books. The reason being, which I wasn't aware of until I tried getting Winter by Marissa Meyers, the fourth book of the Lunar Chronicles. I ordered this online, trying to get a paper back, because I'm one of those people who needs the books in a series to be matching otherwise it bugs me....Winter came to me and as I went to put it on my shelf with the rest of its series, I was horrified to find out, that despite it being paper back, it was shorter than the rest of the books. Because despite, waiting a year for the paper back to come out, apparently other more than one publisher decided to publish this paper back, and there for altering how it fit in with the rest of the series.

My boyfriend thinks I get to wrapped up in this, that it's the same story, why does it matter if it doesn't match. While I full on just got rid of that copy of Winter because it really did bug the hell out of me. Not wanting the same thing to happen with the Gold Seer Trilogy, I made sure that I got the hard back by the same publishing company for Walk on Earth a Stranger from my local book store.

And when I went to go pick it up I also picked up two other books, one I had seen before and told myself it it was still there I'd get it, and it was! And that was:

The Space Between the Stars by Anne Corlet

Published June 2017, by Berkley

First off, cover love. Secondly, after listening to Hitchhiker's Guide Through the Galaxy I was wanting more space type books and so this sounded really interesting.

This book is a dystopian following Jamie Allenby who just wants her space. She wasn't forced to emigrate from Earth, she was happy to leave the overpopulated and claustrophobic planet. When a long relationship devolved into silence and and suffocating silence she found work on a frontier world on the edges of civilization. Then the virus hit... Now Jamie finds herself dreadfully alone, with all that's left of the dead. Until a garbled message from Earth gives her hope that someone from her past may still be alive. Soon Jamie finds other survivors, who combined, make a ragtag group bent on traveling the expanses of space for the hope of a new beginning on Earth. But their dream will pit them against those desperately clinging to the old ways. And Jamie's own journey will help her close the distance between who she was and who she is meant to be.

And finally my last book was an impulse by, It sounded interesting, why not?

The Little French Bistro by Nina George

Published June 2017, by Crown

Marianne is stuck in a loveless, unhappy marriage. After forty-one years she decides to take action. After a dramatic even happens in the Seine, Marianne decides to travel to Brittany, also known as the Edge of the World. Where she meets colorful, unforgettable locals who surprise her with their warm welcome and natural ease they live their day to day lives in. Enjoying the smaller things in life Parts of Marianne start to reveal them selves after years of being forgotten, and Marianne soon discovers it's not too late to search for what life should have been all along.

Alright that's my August Haul, let me know if you've read any of these, and what your thoughts were

otherwise, I'll talk to you later!

Until next time!

Litta