August Wrap-Up and September Goals

Ah, yes. We’ve come to a close of yet another month. This one was actually okay with me, because my birthday is the last day of August (aka yesterday if you’re reading this the day of posting), so I’m always excited for the end of this month. It also means I am FINALLY back at school with all of my wonderful friends and teammates, who I’ve missed dearly all summer. Before I get too sappy, let’s get on with the reading stuff.

I managed a total of 10 (!!) books this month, which is quite good for me, especially considering some of these were monsters (*cough War Storm cough*). Anyway, here is what I got to this month:

1. Uprooted by Naomi Novik (started in July)
2. The Female of the Species by Mindy McGinnis (review)
3. A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
4. Passenger by Alexandra Bracken
5. Wayfarer by Alexandra Bracken
6. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
7. Legendary by Stephanie Garber (review)
8. War Storm by Victoria Aveyard (review to come)
9. If We Were Villains by M. L. Rio
10. Let’s Talk About Love by Claire Kann (review to come)

Surprisingly, most of these were 4 star reads for me, which is probably the best average I’ve had all summer. On the flip side of that, however, I didn’t especially feel the need to review many of these, which stinks. I don’t force myself to write a review for every book I read, only ones I feel like I have something to say about, and most of these were just books I really loved but don’t really have anything interesting to say about (maybe I should start doing mini reviews. Thoughts?). Anyway, I’m so glad I finally got to both Legendary and War Storm, since I’ve been meaning to read them since they came out at the beginning of the summer.

So I got a little crazy with book purchases this month. I did some damage. I went to the Strand in New York like I wanted to, although, I’ll admit, I was a little underwhelmed. I have to say, I think I prefer the Book Loft in Columbus. Anyway, I also went on a run to 2 used bookstores, as well as Barnes and Noble.

1. Tash Hearts Tolstoy by Kathryn Ormsbee: This was a Strand purchase, and if you read my review for it, then you’ll know this book has a special place in my heart.
2. Lifelik3 by Jay Kristoff: I actually almost didn’t get this one, because I bought it at the Strand and it was on the top shelf, and I really was unsure if I was allowed to use the ladder to get it or not. Obviously, I ultimately sucked it up and used the ladder, but really it almost made me skip it this time around.
3. Legendary by Stephanie Garber: The final Strand purchase, I just really wanted to get my hands on this one and decided I had to just get it or else I would never pick it up.
4. The Once and Future King by T. H. White: The first of several used books, I bought this because I saw a production of Camelot a couple of months ago and figured I’d buy a copy of the book it was based on.
5. Walden by Henry David Thoreau: I feel like I can’t be an English-Environmental Studies double major without owning this book.
6. I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak: The Book Thief might be my favorite book of all time, and I was always looking for a used copy of Zusak’s other book to see what it’s like, and I finally found one. (I also almost nabbed a third copy of The Book Thief, this time the original paperback, but it was a bit too damaged.)
7. Silent Spring by Rachel Carson: Again, I don’t think I’m a real Environmental major until I’ve read this front to back.
8. Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy: I’ve heard a lot about this book, so I grabbed a copy when I saw it in the used bookstore.
9. The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon: A lot of people say this is one of their favorite books, so, again, I saw a used copy and bought it.
10. Grace and Fury by Tracy Banghart: This was the book in the August OwlCrate, and I was so excited to get it. I am absolutely in love with the exclusive cover.
11. War Storm by Victoria Aveyard: As I’ve said before, I’ve been dying to pick this up and just said screw it one day while at Target.
12. Gemina by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff: The first of my Barnes and Noble books. I read Illuminae earlier this summer and really enjoyed it, but I hadn’t felt the need to pick up the next one until I was at the store and saw it on the shelf.
13. The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang: I have heard so many amazing things about this book, I just had to get it.
14. The City of Brass by S. A. Chakraborty: Again, I’ve heard so much about this one, I had to nab it.

See? Damage was done, especially considering I also had to buy my books for classes. I’m kind of morbidly curious to see how much I spent on books this month, but I don’t have enough of a spine for that.

Speaking of damage, I also bought myself an iPad Mini this month. I’ve had an LG tablet for 3 years, but it finally started to give out on me. I wish it would’ve lasted just a little longer, but it stopped charging, so I had to replace it. The main reason I went for the iPad is that I did a lot of my class reading on my old tablet, rather than printing out readings that were assigned online, but it was really hard to take notes on. So far, the iPad seems like it’ll be a lot better for that. I also do a lot of my fun reading via OverDrive, so it’s going to be used for that a lot as well, which is why I mention it at all.

Once again, I’m a little disappointed in myself for not taking enough time to look at what everyone else is posting about, but I did see some amazing reviews for books I really want to read that made me even more excited to read them.

• Elise at The Bookish Actress wrote a stunning review of Somaiya Daud’s Mirage, which is like the millionth amazing review I’ve seen for it, so needless to say I’ll be reading that. Elise does a great job explaining why she loved the characters and the story and really made me pumped to read it. I’ve since seen so many more glowing reviews of it, but this is the first one that stuck with me.
• Malanie Loves Fiction was lucky enough to receive and review an arc of The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy by Mackenzi Lee, which is definitely up there on my list of fall releases I’m most excited for, and, let me tell you, I was even more excited for it after reading Malanie’s review (if that was possible).
• Another arc review, LaRonda from Flying Paperbacks wrote a raving review of Summer Bird Blue by Akemi Dawn Bowman, which I didn’t know a lot about before clicking on her review, but let me tell you, I know I’ll be reading it now.
• Claire from BooksCoffeeandRepeat’s review of Radio Silence by Alice Oseman was amazing. I’ve been trying to get this book for a while but haven’t been able to find it anywhere except online, and now I’m even more desperate to get it.

(Are we sensing a theme here for which books I’m most excited for with those last 3?)

As I mentioned briefly above, I’ve just gotten back to school for my junior year. All that being said, I’m about to be very busy very soon. While I’m hoping to still find time to read for fun, I’m also aware that my time to do so will be very limited. I managed to make it work last semester, but I do think my courseload is heavier this semester than it was last time, so I’m not setting my expectations too high. I hope to read at least 2 books for fun this month (and finish the one I’m halfway through now), which I think should be manageable. Once I get into the swing of things, I’m hoping I can find more time and can up that number, but we’re starting slow and working our way up for now.

This also means I may not be as active as I would like to be. I currently have all of my September posts scheduled, so as of right now, there won’t be a drop in my own posts, but it may mean I read fewer of all of yours. I am really going to make an effort to work time in alongside books, but I am fully aware it will not be as easy as it was over the summer. I apologize for it, but it really can’t be helped.

As promised, I am going to keep sharing these in my wrap-up posts because I really enjoy doing them. I know that they’re still mostly blank, although I swear I do actually have stuff written in and will have more to put in later. However, I took all my pictures in advance, so they’re all from before I had my schedule and assignments. I’m not just making a planner and then not actually using it.

That is was August was like for me, and what I think September has in store! August was a great month, and I’m really excited to be back at school.

What was your favorite August read? Any recommendations for reading with a busy schedule? What are you excited to read in September?

Keep reading,