Balancing the Books – August 2023

janetemson

Sep 1

It's over. The longest month of the year. No not January but August. Well it seems like the longest month of the year to me, whilst I wait 237 weeks for school to start again. The hourly refrain of "I'm bored" and "I'm hungry" will soon die down to a barely discernible rumble. My days may become shorter as they wrap themselves around a 6 hour school day but, if I dare say it, I may get a little of that treasured peace and quiet. I may even celebrate by booking some time off to just sit in silence on the first week back.

As for the books, well I thought it was quieter on the incoming and on the outgoing. I was wrong on both counts (though nothing will beat the dizzy heights of July's incoming I think).

Here's what came to gather dust on the bookshelves:

The Trials of Lila Dalton by L J Shepherd, sent for review by Pushkin Vertigo.
Wild Hope by Donna Ashworth, sent for review by Black and White.
One Summer in Sicily by Nancy Barone, sent for review by Head of Zeus.
The House of Broken Bricks by Fiona Williams, sent for review by Faber.
Past Lying by Val McDermid.
Still Life by Val McDermid. Both of these were sent for review by Laura Sherlock.
The House Hunt by C M Ewan, sent for review by Pan Macmillan.
The Singularities by John Banville, sent for review by Swift Press.
Introduction to Sally by Elizabeth von Arnim, sent for review by the British Library.
The Hundred Loves of Juliet by Evelyn Skye, sent for review by Headline.
Comfort Eating by Grace Dent, sent for review by Faber.
The Play Ground by Michelle Frances, sent for review by Pan Macmillan.
Over My Dead Body by Maz Evans, a gift from book pal Jules Swain.
The Pit by Peter Papathanasiou, sent for review by MacLehose.
Shot in the Dark by Anna Britton.
A Frightfully Fatal Affair by Hannah Hendy.
Nowhere to Run by Max Luther. These were sent for review by Canelo.
The Blame by Charlotte Langley, sent for review by No Exit Press.
The Knowing by Emma Hinds, sent for review by Bedford Square.
Joe Nuthin's Guide to Life by Helen Fisher, sent for review by Simon & Schuster.
Bad Men by Julie Cohen, August's book featured in the crime My Chronicle Box subscription.
Harlem After Midnight by Louise Hare, sent for review by HQ.
The Lost Bookshop by Evie Woods, a purchase.
The Wisdom of Sheep & Other Animals by Rosamund Young, sent for review by Faber.
Loot by Tania James, sent for review by Harvill Secker.

Here's what I managed to read:

West Heart Kill by Dann McDorman.
Wild Hope : Healing Words to Find Light on Dark Days by Donna Ashworth.
Welcome to the Hyunam-Dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-Reum.
She Shall Have Murder by Delano Ames.
Comfort Eating by Grace Dent.
Still Life by Val McDermid.
North Woods by Daniel Mason.

I also gave away two books so that's 25 in and 9 out. Not balanced but I did do a partial sort out of the bookshelves in August and I have some books to rehome. It's just they've not made them out of the house yet. Let's see if they are still here at the end of September. I hope you enjoyed whatever you read in August.