WRAP-UP | August 2017

Today is the last day of August! I don’t normally feel like time slips away from me, but goodness that went by quickly! Anyway, that means it’s time for another reading wrap-up! Here you’ll find a list of the books I read this month, in order, with a favorite quote from and some quick thoughts on each.

 

“She wrinkled her nose, less out of actual distaste and more out of the knowledge that she was supposed to find spiders distasteful. She really found them rather endearing. They were sleek and clean and elegant, and when their webs got messed up, they ripped them down and started over again. People could learn a lot from spiders.”

 

 

 

 

 

This was a fantastic sequel! Personally, I liked it even better than the first book, which is saying something, because I so enjoyed Every Heart a Doorway. This was a little darker, but in a different way, if that makes sense? A bit creepier, but less gory than the first. It also presents a new world, so that could certainly be a part of what made it exciting. The second book in a trilogy often falls a little flat for me, so even without reading the last book in this one (which releases in January), I can already tell you I’m very impressed with the series as a whole!

 

 

“Now is the prime of Summer past,

Farewell she soon must say;

But yet my gold you may behold

By every grassy way.

 

And what though Autumn comes apace,

And brings a shorter day?

Shall stand I here, your eyes to cheer,

In gallant gold array.”

 

 

This tiny book of art and poetry is so charming! I’m not sure when I acquired them, but I’ve had these books, one for every season, by Cicely Mary Barker for practically as long as I can remember. I read them so often as a child, but it has been awhile, so I’m going to go through them as the seasons come. There are actually more in the collection, which I might have to track down.

 

 

“It is important that girls understand the obstacles that lie in front of them. It is just as important that they know these obstacles are not insurmountable. That not only can they find a way to overcome them, but that they can remove those obstacles for those who will come after them, just like these great women did.”

 

 

 

 

This was wonderful! I thoroughly enjoyed reading new things about people I was already familiar with and learning about those I hadn’t known of. The artwork, created by various female artists commissioned for the project, is gorgeous and diverse.

 

 

“It was too much, but Perri had borne it with the help of books. Books had saved her the way sharks had saved me.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

This book gave me allllll the feels. The setting was mostly what did it. Growing up, my grandparents had a home in Key Largo, and we just recently moved from the Fort Lauderdale area (about three hours north of the Keys) after living there for more than 15 years. So everything about the environment in this novel was nostalgic for me! Additionally, I saw a lot of myself in Mauve. There were moments when I thought I might actually put this down. Things were happening that I was not okay with, and my connection to Mauve was making it hard for me to deal! But I’m glad I pushed through that part, because goodness did I ever love this book by the end.

 

“With empathy comes self-awareness, of course. By discovering affinities between ourselves and characters we never imagined we’d be able to comprehend (like the accused murderer Dmitri Karamazov), we better understand who we are personally and politically; what we want to change; what we care about defending.”

 

 

 

 

If you are a reader, you MUST pick up this novelty of a book! It’s adorable, and the essays were magical to read, as they talk about the love and lifestyle of reading, from the perspective of fellow bibliophiles. The artwork is enjoyable too, of course! Do yourself a favor my friends, pick up this tiny treasure!

 

“This I have always known—that if I did not live my life immersed in the one activity which suits me, and which also, to tell the truth, keeps me utterly happy and intrigued, I would come someday to bitter and mortal regret.”

 

 

 

 

 

I sometimes write poetry for my own purposes (for fun or because it is therapeutic for me), but in general I just enjoy reading it. This guide claims to be for understanding and writing poetry, and it’s by one of my all-time favorite poets, so I thought I’d give it a try. I’m so glad I did! A lot of the info was stuff I had learned in school, so it was a nice refresher. The new content I got from it was Oliver’s perspective on the craft and lifestyle of being a poet. This would be useful and inspirational to readers and writers of any kind, not just poets!

 

“‘Exactly. Drugs come from somewhere, and they’re destroying our community,’ he says. ‘You got folks like Brenda, who think they need them to survive, and then you got the Khalils, who think they need to sell them to survive. The Brendas can’t get jobs unless they’re clean, and they can’t pay for rehab unless they got jobs. When the Khalils get arrested for selling drugs, they either spend most of their life in prison, another billion-dollar industry, or they have a hard time getting a real job and probably start selling drugs again. That’s the hate they’re giving us, baby, a system designed against us.'”

 

 

The Hate U Give tells an important story from an intimate perspective. The main event in this novel is an tragedy that is, unfortunately, a current (though also long-standing) issue in the United States. But many of us, myself included, have never experienced it personally. This means that while I acknowledge it as a problem, feel heartbroken for the individuals involved, and desperately wish we could figure out how to end this violence, I can’t claim to truly understand what it’s like to be close to it. I don’t fully grasp all of the factors involved in such circumstances. This novel brings me that much closer though. It really is incredible! I don’t say this about much of anything, because I appreciate people’s various tastes, but I think everyone should read this book.

 

“‘Ah,’ Kelsier said, ‘but being an annoyance is something that I am very good at. In fact, I’m far more than just a ‘mild’ annoyance—people tell me I can be downright frustrating. Might as well use this talent for the cause of good, eh?'”

 

 

 

 

 

I can’t believe I waited this long to pick up one of Sanderson’s books. Cue the “I-told-you-so’s” from half of my family and the rest of the global reading community! I knew I would like it, but truly, the characters, overarching plot, intricate details, balance between humor and gravity—everything is outstanding. Not to mention, Sanderson is an incredibly skilled writer, and there were even words I had to look up. Not to brag or anything, but I can’t remember the last time I had to look a word up while reading. It’s just. Ugh. So. Good. And now I have so many Sanderson novels in my future!!

 

 

 

Would you be interested in reading a review on any of my August 2017 reads? Let me know in the comments!