Supermarket sweep: Waterstones edition

Between shops being closed because of lockdown and feeling a need to save money where I can because the future feels more uncertain than ever, I'm practically dreaming of a time where I can stroll back into a bookshop and pick up something I've been lusting after.

Spring (pre-lockdown) book haul

A few weeks before coronavirus and then lockdown really kicked off in the UK, I helped organise a charity book sale where I work and I'm SO glad I did because what else is there to do indoors everyday other than read? I've got a whole bunch of books to take me to the other side of lockdown, and I'm just not sure what to read first out of these (although a lot of people have raved about The Cactus).

Massive Winter book haul

We've reached that point in Winter where it's just dragging now. I would like a bit of warmth, less rain and maybe to wake up to daylight? Phwoar. However, this time of year has one positive: I hibernate and read for months, which is slow bliss. I've managed to amass quite a few new books over the past few months either as Christmas gifts, charity shop purchases or from publishers to talk about on Instagram (I'm living my very own dream). So buckle up, and maybe grab a cuppa because I think this is going to be a long one. I'm going to go straight in now so let's get cracking:

2019 Spring book haul!

I haven't done a big ol' book haul roundup this year yet! It was an absolute staple of my blog over the last couple of years but I just hadn't worked my way up to gathering everything together, and I've also been buying a lot fewer books. 

Last book haul from 2018 - everything I got in November/December

I almost got through Christmas without getting a single book and it all felt very weird, but never fear - the sales and a strange addiction to the sweet smell of used books in charity shops had my back. I hope you're all having a fab start to 2019, and I can't wait to share this first bookish post of the year with you!

May book haul

I've been on a bit of a book-buying ban over the past couple of months, which came to a very abrupt end. I found a new (super beautiful) charity book shop to scour, I got paid and things got out of control. But, my shelves look extra colourful (and heavy) now, so all's well that ends well, right?!

February book haul

I don't know if you can tell from the picture, but things got a *little* out of hand last month. Between a big ol charity book shop with a friend, being sent a couple of books and coming across so many that I needed, this is going to be the biggest book haul I've ever done on here. So grab a tea, and let's chat books.

January book haul

January has (finally) been and gone. I am so glad to see the back of it, and this post is a little overdue because I've been feeling too down to write. But I'm back (for the weekend at least). 
I've moved away from YA fiction this month to explore more adult fiction. It's something that I don't read masses of, but at the moment I'm absolutely devouring The House of Special Purpose by John Boyne and it's opened my eyes to the fact that there is some amazing adult fiction out there. 
A lot of the books this month are ones I picked #fortheaesthetic because oh my gosh these covers are beautiful. I'm hoping that their contents are just as pleasing.

The Hen Who Dreamed She Could Fly by Sun-Mi Hwang. After gaining massive success in Korea, this book has come to the UK. The cover is one of my favourites I think I've ever come across. The novel (or novella - it looks like a v. quick read) is all about a hen who's sick of laying eggs. She sees the other animals roaming freely and wants to do it herself. I imagine this has an Animal Farm-esque quality about it. 
The Flame Alphabet by Ben Marcus. I haven't picked up a good dystopian novel in a long time. I'm ready to start reading more, so please pass on any recommendations if you have any! The Flame Alphabet is all about a virus that spreads through the speech of children. The words of children have become lethal, and this book tests how far we will go to stay with the people we love, even if they're a danger to us.
Birds Art Life Death by Kyo Maclear. This is the book I got in January's Reading in Heels subscription box (which you can read here). The book takes you through each season, examining the small and significant in life. It follows the path of a birdwatcher, and explores how taking notice of the birds can impact everything. 

The Good People by Hannah Kent. This novel is another one with a dreamy cover. Nora Leahy lost her husband and daughter, and is left with a grandson with a terrible illness. Terrified that others in her village might take his inability to speak and walk as sign of a hidden evil, Nora covers up his existence. But she wants him to be better, and the only wait to make him better is to get in touch with the Good People ...
Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. I picked up A Man of the People by the same author a couple of months ago, and I'm keen to expand my collection. This book is actually the first book in a trilogy ending in A Man of the People, so I basically need to get the middle book now too! The novel is set in Nigeria, and follows the life of a local wrestling champion, Okonkwo, and examines the impact of British colonialism.
The Best of Adam Sharp by Graeme Simsion. Graeme Simsion is an author I fell in love with when I read The Rosie Project. I pretty much want to read everything he's ever written (or will ever write) now because that was just such a sweet story. The main character is a pianist, about to turn fifty, who's been married for over twenty years. But when an ex-lover comes into the foray, Adam's head is turned, and he has a tough decision to make.

The Wonder by Emma Donoghue. A lot of the books I bought this month are ones that I've never read by authors I know and love. Donoghue is the author of ROOM, which is one of my favourite books that I read last year. The Wonder is all about an eleven-year-old girl called Anna living in Ireland who hasn't eaten in months. With tourists flocking to visit the child surviving off manna from heaven, a nurse is sent to her bedside to attempt to keep her alive.
The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena. I've heard so many rave reviews about this thriller. Anna and Marco are a young couple with a friendly relationship with their neighbours. But after a crime is committed, suspicions arise, and everybody realises that they may not know each other as well as they previously thought.
So Much for That by Lionel Shriver. This author wrote my favourite contemporary novel, We Need to Talk About Kevin, so I leapt at the chance to read another book by Shriver. This one promises to be just as heart-wrenching as WNTTAK. Shep Knacker has been saving a nest egg to travel to a retreat with his wife in their old age. When he lets his wife knows he's finally ready, she tells him she's sick, and he spends his nest egg on her treatment. I imagine that this is going to be v. harrowing, but so heartwarming at the same time.
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December book haul

This is the most excited I've been about a book haul in so long because there are books I've been absolutely lusting over for months and months in here. I was lucky to receive a couple for Christmas, and my local book charity shop has just had some absolutely incredible pieces in recently. I'm going to try to keep this post short and sweet, so let's get cracking.

No Filter by Grace Victory. This was absolutely top of my Christmas list this year. I'm not someone who buys into the whole Youtuber autobiography thang, but Grace inspires me pretty much on a daily basis. I feel as though reading her book won't just give me an insight into her background, but will more importantly teach me some key life lessons. 
Wonder by R.J. Palacio. I've heard this book being discussed time and time again by book bloggers over the last few months, and I've been desperate to give it a try. It's all about a ten year old boy with a facial deformity that goes to school for the first time. I'm ready to be inspired, and to see how the author handles this subject.
Holding up the Universe by Jennifer Niven. I'm feeling beyond lucky to say that I actually found a signed copy of this in my local charity shop(!). This is a young adult book all about a girl once dubbed 'America's fattest teen' who loses her mum and somehow still needs to navigate her way through high school. I'm already pretty sure this might make me cry. 

Yesterday I Was the Moon by Noor Unnahar. This is the first poetry book I've bought (or was gifted) in a long time, but I'm blown away by the fact that it's even better than I ever imagined. Noor is an incredible artist and poet and I'd snap up any future poetry books from her in a heartbeat because it's just incredible.
The Little Shop of Happy Ever After by Jenny Colgan. Colgan's an author that I've heard a lot of good things about, but I've never got my hands on one of her books. It's a book about a book lover written for book lovers. The main character moves to Scotland to take over a tiny bookshop and fulfill her dreams, but she finds out that it's a little harder than she ever imagined.
Zero K by Don DeLillo. White Noise was one of my favourite books I read on my whole English Lit course, but I haven't picked up any DeLillo books since. The aging main characters elect to preserve their bodies to head into the future. I find this whole idea SO fascinating, and I'm excited to see what questions are posed about the whole idea.

The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle. This was totally a 'judging the book by its cover' kinda purchase because it's like nothing I've seen on a classic recently. I was shocked last year to find how easy it was to read a Sherlock Holmes novel, and how much I enjoyed it. So now I'm ready to read some more adventures of Holmes and Watson. 
A Man of the People by Chinua Achebe. I've not read a book that links so closely to post-colonial Nigeria, and I'm ready to have my eyes opened. The main character is a school teacher in a fictional country, that gets involved with the very corrupt Minister of Culture. The latter is supposed to be a 'man of the people', but uses his power for evil, not good.
Middlemarch by George Eliot. This is another book with a beautiful cover. I've never read anything by George Eliot, but I was 100% supposed to as part of my uni course. Buying this was kind of my guilty conscience coming through on that. It's a bit of a tome, but it'll be nice to get back into Victorian fiction this year. 
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October Book Haul

I'm finally starting to catch up on my blog schedule, so this isn't halfway through the month like my last few 'end of the month' book hauls have been. It feels hella strange, but I'm here and ready to chat books. I've forced myself way out of my comfort zone this month: I mean, there's not even any YA fiction on here. A whole load of these are books that I've been meaning to read for years, so I was beyond happy when they cropped up in my local British Heart Foundation charity book shop.

The Red-House Mystery by A. A. Milne. I had NO idea that the author of Winnie-the-Pooh wrote a detective novel. How epic is that?! It's a pretty short book, but I'm looking forward to seeing how Milne wrote with adults as his intended audience.
What Was Lost by Catherine O'Flynn. This debut novel is a mystery one. It's all about a little girl who goes missing in a shopping centre, and how empty consumerism is. Flash forward twenty years, and a security guard in the shopping centre is convinced he sees a little girl wandering around at night ... This sounds a little creepy, but it's the social commentary that I'm really intrigued by.
Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen. I'm not an Austen fan. There, I said it. I am however a massive fan of classic Gothic texts. In Northanger Abbey, Austen subverts her normal narrative style to expose the darker side of life.
Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella. This is going to be such a light-hearted read, which we definitely all need every so often. The film is one of my sister's favourite films in the world, and I really wanted to give the book a go to see if I enjoy Kinsella's writing enough to go after another of her books. 

The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry is a book that everyone seemed to be talking about last year, so I'm a little late to the party on this one. It's a modern Gothic text set in the Victorian era. It has everything you want in a Gothic book in it: suspicious characters, the supernatural, a questioning of what really *is* good or bad and a widow. 
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. I held off of watching the recent series of this on TV because I wanted to read the book first, but I've heard incredible things about both. It's been a long time since I've read a dystopian novel, but one with a feminist twist seems like the perfect book to reintroduce me to the genre.
The Teacher by Katerina Diamond. I picked up The Secret by the same author a few months ago and read it in October. It was everything a crime thriller should be: gripping, gruesome and with a hint of mistrust at the UK's police force. The Teacher sounds as though it's going to be just as shocking and disturbing, and forms an earlier part of the series that both books are in.

A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini. A few months ago I also picked up The Kite Runner. At the time it was a close call between the two books, so this month I grabbed A Thousand Splendid Suns off the shelf too. It focuses on two women from different generations: Mariam and Laila. Mariam comes from an unfavourable family and is forced into a marriage she doesn't want to commit to. Things only get worse when Mariam's husband makes a marriage proposal to Laila ... I haven't read many (if any) books by an Afghan-born author, so I'm excited to expand my reading horizons with this and The Kite Runner.
Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden. This is a book that I've heard so much about (probably because it was made into a film in 2005). Golden explores the world of a geisha working in Kyoto before, during and after World War II. I'll be the first to admit that I don't know masses about this aspect of Japanese culture, so it'll be interesting to discover more about it, albeit through the lens of an American author.
Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. Just after I bought this, I found out that my work's book club is reading another of Ishiguro's novels, The Buried Giant, so I actually picked that up too. This is a dystopian novel in which the children at a boarding school are there to develop in a healthy way so that their organs can be donated. It sounds hella creepy, but also super interesting. 
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August and September book haul

I'm fairly sure I say this every single time I write one of these posts, but this book haul has some full on GEMS in it. After starting my new job, I've been loving sitting down with a book to relax in the evening and it's inspired me to pick up some new reads. All of these books came from my local charity shop and come in at £2 or under, so take this post as a friendly reminder to check out your local charity shop whenever you want to get a new book!

July book haul

We all know I love love LOVE a good book haul. I genuinely feel so blessed by the fact that there's an amazing British Heart Foundation charity book shop in my town, and it sells some absolute gems for a fraction of their OG price. 

February and March book haul

I love book hauls: I love reading them, writing them, stocking up for them, everything. My last one was a December and January book haul and you can read it here. But, as it's 2017 now and environmental concerns are getting ever pressing, I've been thinking more about my impact on the planet. So, one of my goals for 2017 is not to buy any brand new books. From now on (unless temptation gets to me and I fail), all of the books featured in my book hauls will be second hand. And once they're read, all of my books will be going on to a new owner, either via Depop or a charity shop. I'm not someone who really keeps up with new book trends religiously, and so it seems like a good way to be a little more friendly to the environment by re-using things. 

The first three books in this massive little haul are all young adult fiction books. I've started to get back into the genre a little bit recently, so I picked up some new reads to help me continue with it. 

Every Day by David Levithan is something that I've seen in book stores a zillion times, but have never picked up. Now that I've read the blurb I am SO gutted I ignored it. It's all about a kid called A who wakes up in the body of somebody new every day. His one rule is not to get attached to the people he meets. But one day he meets a girl that changes everything - he now knows who he wants to spend every day with. 

All Fall Down by Sally Nicholls is a historical novel all about the Black Death. I'm a big fan of historical books but I haven't read a young adult one in what feels like forever, so I'm excited to see how the topic of the plague in England is dealt with. The title is also a reminder that the nursery rhyme 'Ring a Ring of Roses' was actually about the Black Death.

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater is the first Gothic novel that I've bought in ages. It's all about a small town called Mercy Falls, in which a girl called Grace meets a pack of wolves who seem a little human. One has piercing yellow eyes that seem almost too similar to the yellow eyes of the new boy in town ...

Breakfast at Tiffany's by Truman Capote. I've honestly had the 'and I said, what about breakfast at Tiffany's / She said I think I remember that film' Deep Blue Something song stuck in my head since I picked this book up, ffs. But, it's such a big part of American culture that I really want to see the book that inspired the film and the song. 

The Rules of Attraction by Bret Easton Ellis. I'm looking into the list of '1001 books you should read before you die' (way to procrastinate packing for holiday Steph, I know) and this author's name kept popping up, so I've decided to see what the fuss is all about. The novel was written in the 1980s and is based around a uni student in America who is sexually promiscuous and indecisive about her university career. It also features her relationship with a bisexual man, and I'm intrigued to see how the author discusses this.

The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco is a novel by another author that kept cropping up on the 1001 books list. This is a murder mystery novel set in an Italian monastery in the 1300s. As I mentioned before, I love historical fiction, but I don't know much about Italian history during this period, so it'll be interesting to see what I can learn. 

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hossini is a novel that I've been hearing about for a good decade. I was told to wait until I was a little older to read it when I was in my teens, to understand everything fully, so when I spied a copy in my local charity shop I knew I had to have it. I'm fully prepared to have my heart broken by this novel, and to learn more about the history of Afghanistan.
More Than This by Patrick Ness. I was a massive Patrick Ness fan as a teen. The Knife of Never Letting Go trilogy was something I was obsessed with, and would recommend to anybody that asked. I'm so excited to see what he offers in this standalone novel about a boy who dies ... and then lives.
Room by Emma Donoghue. This has been on my mental TBR list for about five years. No joke. It's been recommended to me time and time again and I just kept forgetting to buy a copy. Room is all about a five year old boy named Jack who lives in Room with his mother. Those four walls are his home, his world. Jack has no idea there's a world outside of Room, until one day Door opens.
The Secret by Katerina Diamond is the final novel on my list, and the only thriller. I've been loving thrillers over the past year or so, and this has got me hooked from just the blurb. DS Imogen Grey, the novel's protagonist, is on a search for a missing girl. As she gets deeper into the mystery she uncovers a terrifying trail of murder and abuse, and she ends up delving into secrets from her own past as well as the victim's.
So there it is, my book haul from the last two months. *This post contains affiliate links* Follow me on Bloglovin | Twitter | Instagram | Youtube | Facebook

December and January Book Haul

It's official. I've fallen back in love with reading. A total head-over-heels, can't put things down kind of love. And it's the best. In November I posted my first ever book haul on Nourish ME, and I spoke all about how I want to start doing more bookish posts in 2017. So here we are with round two of the book hauls. In December I didn't pick up that many books, as Christmas was keeping my spirits up, and I wasn't popping into my local charity shop to peruse the shelves as often. But, the January blues hit me hard, so I've now got quite a collection from the past two months to share with you.