Jan/Feb 2022 Haul Retrospective & 2023 Purchases

Since I mean to be curbing my book purchasing a bit this year, I thought it would be a good idea to look at last year’s additions to my shelves and whether my purchases back then have been read and whether they were worth it. After that I will list the books I bought so far this year and how I am feeling about those.

2022 HAUL RETROSPECTIVE

I tend to buy quite a few books in January and February. Probably because a lot of people online on Book blogs and BookTube post their Favourites and there are always books that sound good!

So, in January/February last year I brought 21 new books into my house. So, let’s look at the books and see whether I am still interested and whether I have read them:

• Selected Poems (Pablo Neruda) – Yes, read and really enjoyed!
• Notes From Underground (Fyodor Dostoevsky) – Read and kind of enjoyed.
• The Collected Works (Kahlil Gibran) – I have read two of his works and loved them both, so I got myself this one. It is not really one I want to finish in one go. I want to savour it over time, so I don’t really think I will count this one as a normal book. I love Gibran’s writing. There’s something magical about it.
• The Overcoat and Other Short Stories (Nikolai Gogol) – Read! This one really surprised me. I really enjoyed Gogol’s writing and I want to read more.
• The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating (Elisabeth Tova Bailey) – Read and absolutely loved!
• A Ghost in the Throat (Doireann Ni Ghriofa) – Read recently, but unfortunately I did not enjoy it as much as expected and it’s on my unhaul pile. Disappointed.
• Almond Blossoms and Beyond (Mahmoud Darwish) – Read – I think I pretty much love everything Darwish has written that I have read so far and this one is no exception.
• Love in the Time of Cholera (Gabriel Garcia Marquez) – Still on my TBR, but it’s on my 2023 TBR, so will get read this year.
• Anna Karenina (Leo Tolstoy) – Read and loved this Russian classic more than I expected! I listened to this one on audio and it was a great listen.
• The Silence that Remains (Ghassan Zaqtan) – I haven’t read this one yet! I really want to! I think this is a Palestinian poet and I think it’s a translated work.
• Samarkand (Amin Maalouf) – Read and enjoyed. I want to read more by the author. Translated from French.
• My Damascus (Suad Amiry) – Read and loved. Really nice mix of fiction and non-fiction.
• House of Leaves (Mark Z Danielewski) – This was on my TBR several times last year, but just never got round to it. Hopefully this year!
• Spain, Take This Chalice From Me and Other Poems (Cesar Vallejo) – A poetry recommendation from my Peruvian friend. I haven’t got round to it yet. Fingers crossed I will read it it this year, as I am reading quite a bit of South American literature.
• Wintering Out (Seamus Heaney) – Read, but not my favourite poetry collection. I have another by him to read and I hope I will do better with that one.
• Dead Souls (Nikolai Gogol) – I am in no rush to read this Russian classic, but I’d like to read it, as I loved the short stories I read by this author.
• Gold Dust (Ibrahim Al-Koni) – I did not quite love this as much as I had hoped but it was an interesting read and I have kept it on my shelf. Translated from Arabic.
• Migrations (Charlotte McConaghy) – Read this year and enjoyed it, but I may unhaul, as I don’t think I will read it again.
• The Enchanted Wanderer and Other Stories (Nikolai Leskov) – This was a recommendation by a Russian friend. This is her favourite classic Russian author. I will get to it, but it’s big!
• The Making of a Marchioness (Francis Hodgson Burnett) – Have not read it yet, but hopefully soon! This was one of two Persephone books I purchased via eBay.
• Still Missing (Beth Gutcheon) – This is the other Persephone book, but I haven’t yet picked this one up either.

CONCLUSION

I read 12 of the 21 books, leaving 9 unread, one of which is a complete works. I am quite happy with that. The ones I haven’t read yet I found that just typing out the titles made me excited about them again!

The type of books I bought a year ago is quite interesting. I bought a lot of translated fiction, mostly Russian (5), Spanish (3) and Arabic (4). There were four poetry books, three translated. Quite a few of these are classics of some sort or another.

I know I picked A Ghost in the Throat, Migrations and House of Leaves up because I had seen other people talk about those.

COMPARED TO 2023

These were my purchases so far this year:

• The Beggar/The Thief and the Dogs/Autumn Quail (Naguib Mahfouz) – this is a combined volume of three of the author’s novels. I ordered this one in 2022, but it took a while to arrive. Translated from Arabic.
• Specters (Radwa Ashour) – This was an interesting read – mostly non-fiction with some fiction thrown in. I liked it. Translated from Arabic.
• Pedro Páramo (Juan Rulfo) – This one is on my 2023 TBR and I have put it on my March TBR. Translated from Spanish.
• Sound Mind (T J Singh) – I did read this poetry book. It was just ok, but I will keep it on my shelf for now.
• A Little Larger than the Entire Universe (Fernando Pessoa) – I read a small book of poetry by this poet last year and loved it. I do hope to read this soon. Translated from Portuguese.
• Near to the Wild Heart (Clarice Lispector) – Read. The author’s debut novel and I enjoyed it, even if it left me baffled sometimes. I will definitely be reading more. Translated from Portuguese. Part of my South America project this year.
• Go Ahead in the Rain (Hanif Abdurraqib) – I decided I needed a Abdurraqib book on my shelf ready to read when I feel the need for one! I adore his writing. This one is all centered on A Tribe Called Quest. How niche!
• Adrift in a Sea of M&Ms (Marcel ‘Fable the Poet’ Price) – I read this poetry collection. It was good, but did not blow me away. Nonetheless it lives on my poetry shelf.
• The Tea Dragon Society (Kay O’Neill) – I read the three graphic novel volumes in this boxset. It was a joy!
• The Hurting Kind (Ada Limón) – Read and loved!
• Skyward/Starsight/Cytonic (Brandon Sanderson) – Skyward is on my March TBR.
• Alone With You in the Ether (Olivie Blake) – on my March TBR
• A Fortune For Your Disaster (Hanif Abdurraqib) – The second poetry collection by this dude.

I was supposed to only buy 5 books this January/February. That did not quite work out and I ended up buying 10 books in January and I have 5 more in February. The five I bought this month include all three of the Skyward series by Brandon Sanderson. I have the urge to read some Sanderson and I don’t feel quite ready for either Stormlight Archive or to start the next Mistborn series, so I decided to pick this series up. Book 1 (Skyward) is on my March TBR. The fourth book is Alone with You in the Ether by Olivie Blake. That one just really appealed to me and I was buying a book for my daughter and the special edition of this one caught my eye. It has lovely sprayed edges. The synopsis already appealed to me greatly. Finally, after six weeks of waiting on Book Depository, my copy of A Fortune for Your Disaster came in. I am reading that one at the moment, but I am taking my time, as it is poetry.

I have read six of 10 books I bought in January so far and Pedro Parámo is on my March TBR, as are Skyward and Alone with You in the Ether. I think that is the reason I feel happy about buying these books at the moment. Because I am planning my TBRs, I try and put them on there as soon as I can, so they actually get read quickly.

There are definitely similarities with the books I bought in 2022. Back then I was doing a project of reading some Russian literature (which turned out to be bad timing – though none of the authors were at fault!) and this year I am reading some South American and translated Spanish/Portuguese classics, which is reflected in the books I purchased.

I am also enjoying poetry at the moment, so that is also reflected in my book purchases. I have read three of the five poetry books I bought, with another the 4th being read at the moment.

The thing I have not done this year was buy books because I watched other people talk about them. I have found that usually I end up not liking hyped books, so I am finding it easier to not be seduced by a review or a pretty cover – most of the time. The Olivie Blake book is kind of in that category, but it also really sounds like my kind of book. In general I am more likely to wait for those kind of books to be in the 99p Kindle sale and prefer to read them that way, exactly because I am not sure whether I will like them.

Fact is, I did buy almost three times the books I meant to. However, hopefully by the end of March I should have read at least 10 of those 15 books. More would be nice, but I would be very happy with that.

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Used Book Haul (October 2022)

Yes, I made the mistake of going to a charity shop with my good old bestie. Unfortunately I came home with ten books. Oh dear.

I guess on the positive side I only spent EUR 8.50 on those ten books and I am actually excited to read all of these, now or in the future.

I got myself four classics:

1. Women in Love (D H Lawrence) – This is the third book by D H Lawrence I have bought. I own Sons and Lovers in the same Wordsworth Classics edition, so I couldn’t leave this one.
2. The Art of Rhetoric (Aristotle) – I really like these Oxford World’s Classics and I am definitely interested in exploring some Aristotle.
3. Les Miserables (Victor Hugo) – These small Collector’s Library editions are so cute. This one is abridged, but I don’t mind. I am not planning to read it any time soon, but I have a few of these editions and it just makes a nice addition.
4. The Origin of Species (Charles Darwin) – I have been meaning to get this one, so when I came across a brand new looking Penguin Classics edition of this one I did not hesitate.

And then a bunch of more random books:

5. Clear Light of Day (Anita Desai) – I have another book by this author on my shelves, but haven’t read it yet. This one just appealed to me and it is quite small. This one is set in India by an Indian author.

6. Possession (A S Byatt) – This one has some great reviews and the cover appealed to me. I have never heard of it though!

7. A Thousand Splendid Suns (Khaled Hosseini) – I read The Kite Runner many years ago and I was not sure about that one. This one has been on the edge of my radar, so when I found this 50 cent mass market paperback I decided it was time to pick it up. I would actually really like to read it.

8. The Crimson Petal and the White (Michel Faber) – I was so glad to find this book. It’s been on my radar for ages! This is a gorgeous hardback edition. It’s huge!!! It was my most expensive buy at 2 euros.

9. The Map of Love (Ahdaf Soueif) – This is a novel by a female Egyptian author. The synopsis really appealed and the reviews are good. Looking forward to this one.

10. House of Chains (Steven Erikson) – This is the fourth book in The Malazan Book of the Fallen series. I have book one on my Kindle, but I don’t have the others, so I don’t expect to read this one any time soon. However, it was 50 cents and I am sure I want to get into this series at some point, so I picked it up anyway.

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What do you think of this haul? Have you read any of these? Let me know!

Used Book Haul (August 2022)

It’s been a while since I did a good charity bookshop, but ‘unfortunately’ my friend asked me to accompany her to some charity shops. She has recently had a breast reconstruction following a double mastectomy due to breast cancer. She’s very well, but is not allowed to drive yet. So, good soul that I am, I offered to drive her around. Well, and nose through the books whilst I was at it of course. Such sacrifice.

Of course I now remember why I have been avoiding the charity shops, as I always come back with books I have never heard of that I may not read any time soon. Still… I never learn my lesson and I do the same thing every time. *sigh*

So, since I had two days of charity shop bookshopping, this is the result:

• The Satanic Verses (Salman Rushdie) – I bought this one a day before the attack on Salman Rushdie took place and I feel weird about it. It’s a book that has always interested me, maybe partly because of the controversy that surrounds it. I am glad to hear that he is conscious and doing as well as he can be.
• Eleanor of Aquitaine (Alison Weir) – I have never read an Alison Weir book, but I have eyed up her books several times. I like the gold spine!
• The Turn of the Screw and Other Stories (Henry James) – I love little hardbacks like this. They take up little space and I did not own a copy of this classic. No idea whether it is any good.
• My Name is Light (Elsa Osorio) – That’s the English title for this one. I have the Dutch translation and it’s called Luz. It’s translated from the Spanish. The author is Argentinian.

And this is haul number two, a couple of days later…

• Across the River and into the Trees (Ernest Hemingway) – When I looked up the reviews later I learned that it’s supposed to be terrible, but I will give it a go and if I don’t like it can disappear from my house again.
• The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet (David Mitchell) – I’ve never read a David Mitchell book, but this cute mass market paperback called my name. Plus the title intrigued me.
• Justice (Michael J Sandel) – This is kind of a philosophy book about ‘the right thing to do’ – it sounds super interesting and the reviews are great. Plus I love these penguin editions – so elegant!
• The Book Thief (Markus Zusak) – This one was on the Goodreads 100 years of popular books list that I went through the other day. The next day I found it for 2 euro on the shelf in a charity shop. Obviously it came home with me.
• Blues Lessons (Robert Hellenga) This just seemed like a random interesting book that may well talk about interesting subjects, like music and race. We’ll see.
• Before the Birth of the Moon (V Y Mudimbe)– This takes place in Zaire, which was reason enough for me to get it. I’ve never read a book set there. It only has 5 reviews on Goodreads, so who know if it’s any good?
• The Vanishing Point (Louise Hawes) – An historical novel about art? Italian renaissance? Yes please!
• Cockroach (Rawi Hage) – This is one I was not that sure about. The synopsis sounded interesting, but I have discovered the reviews are not very good. Still, I’d like to try it for sure.
• Come Back to Afghanistan (Said Hyder Akbar & Susan Burton) – Non-fiction, a memoir, talking about Afghanistan and finding connection with the country. Unfortunately things have changed for the worse in the past year. Still, I want to read this.
• Driving Over Lemons (Chris Stewart) – Apparently this man was a founding member of Genesis. Imagine that! This one is about life on a farm in Andalucia though. Sounds like my kind of read!
• Apocalypse Postponed (Umberto Eco) – An essay collection

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So yeah, 15 new books in a space of a week. That’s… a lot… Too much? I think I spent about 16 or 17 euros on this lot

Used books are a dangerous entity.

A Little Book Haul – July 2022

It’s been a little while since I did a book haul, but I had a few books coming in this week; four yesterday and one today.

Let’s start with yesterday:

• Ariadne (Jennifer Saint) – I do love stories like this and I keep eyeing it. I will read it soon I am sure!
• The Makioka Sisters (Junichiro Tanizaki) – After reading a small non-fiction work by this author that I loved, I really wanted to try some of his fiction. I went for this one.

• Big Panda and Tiny Dragon (James Norbury) – My eye was caught by some of the illustrations from this. I leafed through it and it reminds of The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse by Charlie Mackesy. Whether that is a good thing or not remains to be seen, because I adored that book.
• The Final Strife (Saara El-Arifi) – This one keeps catching my eye and I have heard such great things! I really need to read this one as soon as I can!

And finally, I was about to post this one when another book arrived and I may as well include it!

• Waterlog (Roger Deakin) – I listened to Wildwood by the same author on audio and absolutely loved it. Obviously, I want to read more and this one was the one that sounded the most interesting! I think it’s about wild swimming all over England – in lakes, seas and streams and stuff. I am so curious!

That’s it, these are my five new books! I am excited about all of these, but now watch them sit on my shelf for far too long! 🤣

Have you read any of these?

Charity Shop Book Haul

I went to my local charity shop to find some wine glasses. Big mistake – they have books. I have not been much these past two years and his helped keep my shelves in check. This time… not as much restraint as I would have liked. However, I am very pleased with the books I bought. I only spent €4 on six books, so clearly I am happy!

First of all some classics. I picked up two Tolstoy short story collections, both in little Oxford University Press hardback editions from the 50s/60s. One is The Kreutzer Sonata, The Devil and Other Tales and the other is The Death of Ivan Ilych and Other Stories. In the same edition they had The Duke’s Children by Anthony Trollope, so I picked that one up as well. Only Ivan Ilych had a dust jacket, but I am not sure whether the other ones would have had one originally or not.

Then I noticed a little blue book which turned out to be The Saga of Gisli, which is an Icelandic story written around the thirteenth century. It sounded interesting, so I picked that one up. I also found a non-fiction book, which is Khul-Khaa: Five Egyptian Women Tell Their Stories by Nayra Atiya. It sounds like an interesting read.

Finally, I picked up a beautiful hardback of Stoner by John Williams. It’s a Vintage Classics naked hardback edition and it looks brand new. This is a book that was on my radar, so I was very happy to pick it up.

All in all I am very pleased with this bunch of books, even if it pushes my TBR up for this month. Oops!

February 2018/19 Haul Review

A double haul review today! Which two books will I end up reading this month?

2018

Number of Books Hauled: 12 

New: 3 (all sent by author)
Used: 9

Unhauled: 1

Books read: 4

I read all three of the books sent to me by authors and I enjoyed all of them.

• Little Maryam (Hamid Baig) ★★★★★☆☆
• Times New Roman (Martha Miller) ★★★★★★☆
• The Things We Do (Kay Pfaltz) ★★★★★☆☆
• Vogel (The Bird) (Oh Jung-Hee) ★★☆☆☆☆☆ (UNHAULED)

Books Unread: 8

• Vixen (Rosie Garland)
• The Lady Chapel (Candace Robb)
• A Gift of Sanctuary (Candace Robb)
• A Nun’s Tale (Candace Robb)
• Wintersong (S Jae-Jones)
• Max Havelaar (Multatulli)
• Het Beloofde Land (Adriaan van Dis) – The Promised Land
• The Mystery Book (collection – not quite an anthology)

BOOK PICK FOR FEBRUARY 2020:

The Candace Robb books are part of the Owen Archer series, which I would like to start reading again this year, but these are not the first books in the series. It will be a while before I get to them. I am not in the mood for Wintersong or either of the Dutch books. I don’t really see The Mystery Book as a book I will ever just pick up and read. So that leaves, Vixen by Rosie Garland, which I have been wanting to read ever since I got it, but somehow never did! The cover is stunning! I believe it’s historical fiction. I am curious about this one.

So, Vixen is the first book on my February TBR.

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2019

Number of Books Hauled: 4 (That’s more like it!)

New: 0
Used: 4

All bought during a single trip to the charity shop.

Books unread: 4

• Shattered (Dick Francis)
• In The Frame (Dick Francis)
• Frenchman’s Creek (Daphne Du Maurier)
• The Secret History (Donna Tartt)

BOOK PICK FOR FEBRUARY 2020:

I may pick up a Dick Francis later in the month, but they are not really books you put on a TBR, but more for reading on a whim. So it’s between the other two. I already have a couple of bigger books on my TBR and it’s about time I read some Daphne Du Maurier, so I will go for Frenchman’s Creek! It is one I really have not heard much about, but I am excited.

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So, those are the first two books on my February TBR. I hope to post a complete TBR tomorrow. It’s not going to be huge, but it should be a good one!

Book Haul Review: January 2019

I was not going to do January 2019, but I raced through my last book, so I ended up having time for a random book – yay! That has not happened for a while!

So, let’s take a look at the books I acquired in January 2019. There were quite a few! In my defence, there were months in 2019 I did not buy any!

Number of Books Hauled: 26 (!!!)

New: 14
Used: 12

Books read: 5

Yeah, not great, is it? Loved all of these though, even the children’s book that I read with my daughter.

• The Gifts of Reading (Robert Macfarlane) ★★★★★★☆
• Dress Codes for Small Towns (Courtney Stevens) ★★★★★★☆
• The Truth Pixie (Matt Haig) ★★★★★★☆
• A Black Fox Running (Brian Carter) ★★★★★★☆
• The Winter of the Witch (Katherine Arden) ★★★★★★☆

Books Unread:

There are many – for some reason I decided to buy a lot of Agatha Christies! I thought I was going to go on a mystery binge, which kind of did not happen… Oh, well!

• Lab Girl (Hope Jahren) on 2020 TBR
• Rain (Melissa Harrison)
• Thinking on my Feet (Kate Humble)
• Picnic at Hanging Rock (Joan Lindsay)
• Den of Wolves (Juliet Marillier) on 2020 TBR
• Tower of Thorns (Juliet Marillier) on 2020 TBR
• Mr Darley’s Arabian (Christopher McGrath)
• In The Days of Rain (Rebecca Stott)
• This is Going to Hurt (Adam Kay)
• Johannesburg (Fiona Melrose)
• Murder is Easy (Agatha Christie)
• Cat Among The Pigeons (Agatha Christie)
• Sparkling Cyanide (Agatha Christie)
• Dumb Witness (Agatha Christie)
• A Caribbean Mystery (Agatha Christie)
• N or M? (Agatha Christie)
• By The Pricking of my Thumbs (Agatha Christie)
• Appointment with Death (Agatha Christie)
• Decider (Dick Francis)
• Wild Horses (Dick Francis)
• The Golden Fool (Robin Hobb)

BOOK PICK FOR JANUARY 2020:

First I thought ought to go for an Agatha Christie, but I don’t feel in the mood. Then I wanted to choose one of the non-fiction titles, but I have just finished reading a non-fiction and have another one to start, so not a good idea either.

I figured reading about summer in winter (but set at this time of year as it is the Southern Hemisphere), would be good fun, so I have decided to read Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay, which I have been wanting to read for ages!

If I have time (unlikely, but you never know), I may read one of those Agatha Christies as well!

Book Haul Review: January 2018

Let’s do another haul review! I will try and read one of these books if my reading continues the way it is right now (which would mean I am well and truly out of my slump!). I am only doing January 2018, as I don’t want to put too much pressure on myself!

Let’s start by looking at the books I bought in January 2018.

Number of Books Hauled: 13

New: 4
Used: 9

Books read: 6

I am ok with this, especially since a few more are on my 2020 TBR and should get read this year.

• Delivering Virtue (Brian Kindall) ★★★★★☆☆
• The Snow Child (Eowyn Ivey) ★★★★★☆☆
• Dreamer’s Pool (Juliet Marillier) ★★★★★☆☆
• The Humans (Matt Haig) ★★★★★★☆
• A Study in Scarlet & The Sign of the Four (Sir Athur Conan Doyle) ★★★★★★☆
• Centaur (Declan Murphy & Ami Rao) ★★★★★★★

I read four of those in 2018 and 2 in 2019. In fact, Centaur was my non-fiction book of the year in 2019!

Books Unread:

• Life After Life (Kate Atkinson)
• The Count of Monte Cristo (Alexandre Dumas)
• The Book of Lost Things (John Connolly)
• Botswana Time (Will Randall)
• Holland Mania (Anette Stott)
• Tom Jones (Henry Fielding)
• Moby Dick (Herman Melville)
• Collected Ghost Stories (M R James)

Book Pick for January 2020:

Botswana Time (Will Randall)

I really am not in the mood for a classic. Though Life After Life and The Book of Lost Things are both on my 2020 TBR, I have already read two books of that TBR  this month and I know I will get those read this year. However, I have not picked up any non-fiction yet this month, so I have decided to go with Botswana Time.

Book Haul Review: October 2017 & 2018

So, a double whammy this time. Let’s have a look at which books I purchased one year ago and two years ago and add a book from each to my October 2019 TBR!

Let’s start by looking at 2017:

OCTOBER 2017

Number of Books Hauled: 12

New: 7
Used: 5

Books read: 4

So that’s about a third, after two years…. Ermm…. Could be worse?

 

• The Last Unicorn (Peter S Beagle)
• A Cottage by the Sea (Carole Matthews)
• The Racehorse Who Wouldn’t Gallop (Clare Balding)
• Assassin’s Apprentice (Robin Hobb)

Books unread: 8

• Het Tuinhuis (Hella S Haasse)
• The Middle East (Bernard Lewis)
• Rode Sneeuw in December (Simone vd Vlught)
• The Handmaid’s Tale (Margaret Atwood)
• A Language of Thorns (Leigh Bardugo)
• Forest of Thousand Lanterns (Julie C Dao)
• Maigret Travels South (Simenon)
• The Racehorse That Disappeared (Clare Balding)

⇒ Book pick for October 2019: The Handmaid’s Tale ⇐

Yep, hopefully it’s finally happening!

OCTOBER 2018

Number of Books Hauled: 18

New: 8
Used: 10

Books read: 5

So, somewhere between a third and a quarter. Not that pleased with that number, but not too unhappy either. Curiously, I read two of those just this September. The Curious Incident I read ages ago and is due a re-read, but though I did not read it whilst I have had this blog, I have read it! I just finally got myself a copy.

 

• Quartet in Autumn (Barbara Pym)
• Ramona Blue (Julie Murphy)
• A Long Way Down (Nick Hornby)
• The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (Mark Haddon)
• Dark Banquet (Bill Schutt)

Books Unread: 13

• Moonlit (Jadie Jones)
• The Corset (Laura Purcell)
• Nevermoor (Jessica Townsend)
• Mythos (Stephen Fry)
• The Summer Queen (Elizabeth Chadwick)
• Girl With A Pearl Earring (Tracy Chevalier)
• A Little Learning (Evelyn Waugh)
• Jane and Prudence (Barbara Pym)
• The Sweet Dove Died (Barbara Pym)
• Excellent Women (Barbara Pym)
• Lord Savile’s Crime and Other Stories (Oscar Wilde)
• Don’t Look Now (Daphne Du Maurier)
• Wildwood (Roger Deakin)

⇒ Book pick for October 2019: The Corset ⇐

This one sounds a bit gothic and should be perfect for October!

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So, The Handmaid’s Tale and The Corset will be start off my October TBR, which I will be putting together and posting tomorrow if nothing comes up.

A Weekend Used Book Haul

I managed to pop into a couple of charity shops on Friday and Saturday and I ended up with a small book haul that I might as well tell you about!

I will start off with the most exciting find, a 1st edition of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon. I love that book! I first read it when I borrowed it from a friend. I have since seen the stage adaptation in London, which is absolutely wonderful. Earlier this year I picked up a mass market paperback copy from a charity shop, fully intending to re-read it. But on Friday, my hands found this love hardback edition for a measly €1.25, so well, what’s a girl to do? Duh, buy it of course!

I also picked up a couple of classics, a Wordworth Classics edition of Sons and Lovers by D H Lawerence and The Tell-Tale Heart and Other Writings by Edgar Allan Poe, who I have been keen to try for a while.

On Saturday, after doing my usual grocery shop, I decided to pop by my usual charity shop as I needed a new pair of wellies (which I found!). Sometimes they have really good stuff there and sometimes it’s a bit meh… This time, I ended up with an eclectic bunch of books…

I think this bunch of books ended up costing me somewhere in the region of €1.75. I already have another book by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala on my shelves, in the same edition, and like that one A Backward Place is set in India and these just sound like books I would like. I just need to read them! Fire on the Mountain by Anita Desai is also set in India. Elizabeth Is Missing by Emma Healey sounded like a book I would enjoy as well. I never read anything by Marian Keyes, but I liked the colour of the cover of Last Chance Saloon and figured I would give it a go. The final, absolutely random, book is Daughter of Prophecy by Anne Kelleher Bush, which as far as I can tell is a fantasy/sci-fi type of book. I love those random fantasy mass market paperbacks!

As if my shelves are not full enough already… I will try and read one of these this month or definitely in September! Which one should I read first?