As expected, this was a much more subdued month than January. Gone are all my precious gift cards, so it’s back to getting books the old fashioned way: budgeting them in if I can after life’s expenses are seen to. I haven’t really felt compelled to go out and get more either, which is probably for the better. Half of the books I picked up this month I’ve already read, so I’m not just needlessly stockpiling.

Anyway, on to said books!

New Books

Berserk Volumes 20 & 21 by Kentaro Miura are, perhaps unsurprisingly, the books I have read already. Manga reads very quickly, so if you’re into the series the volumes can be quite moreish. Fortunately, these were on sale online, so I was able to get the two for $30, when normally they’re $20 each. Vol. 21 marked the end of the current story arc too, so I may give the series a rest for a little bit to catch up on other things.

The Dinosaur Lords by Victor Milán I picked up with a promotional card for $10 off I got from my final gift card splurge last month. I’ve been meaning to check out the series for a while, honestly just because it’s fantasy that involves dinosaurs. George R. R. Martin’s little quote helps too, though I’m not sure what he says actually makes sense if you think about it too much.

Lastly, I got Thrawn: Alliances by Timothy Zahn in the mail this morning. This paperback edition actually just came out on the 26th and I decided to pick it up since shipping was free for a limited time. This book is on my scrappy list of books to read this year, so I decided to pick it up now. I still have to read the first book, but I don’t foresee any problems getting through them both before the year is out.

Novel Discoveries

Koschei the Deathless by Mike Mignola is a comic book I want to pick up for its connections to the Hellboy comics. Hellboy had a memorable showdown with the immortal lich in Darkness Falls and I love the idea of the pair meeting again in a bar in Hell, with Koschei regaling Hellboy with tales of his life.

I believe I heard about Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore from the Silver Button Books blog. This book mainly appeals to me because I like the idea of a 24-hour bookstore being a front for something mysterious, perhaps mystifying.

The Complete Cosmicomics I added to my to-read shelf because it is by Italo Calvino. Having just read If on a winter’s night a traveler, I decided to look up some other books by the author. This book jumped out at me most, collecting short stories spanning the galaxy with an ageless narrator named Qfwfq as the reader’s guide. It sounds like a lot of eccentric, scientific fun.

Out There by Michael Wall I read about in another blog’s WWW post. It’s added to my virtual stack of scientific nonfiction, with this one focused on space and extraterrestrial life. I’ve no idea how accessible I’ll find it, but it sounds interesting enough.

Lastly, I added Planting Gardens in Graves by R. H. Sin because I’ve been wanting to read some more poetry lately and I’ve seen this book in stores a few times. There’s something evocative about the cover and title to me that makes me want to check it out.

Closing Thoughts

I don’t know what it is about my desire to pick up a poetry book. Other than epic poetry like the works of Homer, I’ve never really been that inclined toward poems. I like them just fine, but they don’t usually speak to me in a profound way. I did used to read a fair amount of them in university though. I wonder if my gravitation has something to do with that. It can’t hurt to check it out, in any case. Are there any types of books that have a similar effect on you?

Until next time, thank you for reading.