I may have gotten a little carried away this month. It was something of a perfect storm of circumstances that allowed me to get a lot of books for rather cheap.

Let’s see just how much I went overboard. Still, I could swear I’m forgetting one or two, can you believe it?

New Books.

The first thing you may notice about these two is the odd sheen to them. The reason is, they’re both former library books, still retaining the plastic covers to protect their dust jackets. I’ve decided to keep them on, because who doesn’t want handy protection like that? I got them at a local library book sale, where it was hard to pass up $1 per hardcover. Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir felt like a no-brainer, though I haven’t read any of the author’s work yet. Sea Monsters by Chloe Aridjis, on the other hand, was a complete shot in the dark. I decided I liked the look of the cover and because of its price just bought it as an exercise in stepping a little out of my comfort zone and just seeing what something a little random has to offer to me.

One Day the Animals Talked by Bernell MacDonald is the last book I bought from that library sale. I grabbed this book because of a distinct feeling that if I didn’t, it’s a book I would never come across again. I believe the author is semi-local and not very widely published (I’m going more on a hunch here). It’s fairly short, so I’ll maybe try to read it sometime soon too.

Woven by Joshua Barkman is the artist’s latest self-published book following his annual “Inktober” comic. This is his third year in a row doing it, and I was once again more than happy to pick up a copy from his website.

Scarborough by Catherine Hernandez I found at a thrift store, but it holds particular interest to me because the novel is distinctly about an area of Toronto that I grew up in. I don’t typically go for fiction that close to home, but with a substantial sale going on in the store I was at, I decided to cave and pick it up.

Study for Obedience by Sarah Bernstein is another book I bought while thrifting. As is common for me, this is one where I find the cover striking enough that it holds a place in my mind. Plus, it was shortlisted for the Booker Prize last year, so it doesn’t feel like I’m taking that much of a risk picking it up; it’s probably at least well written, even if I don’t end up caring for it all that much.

Metamorphosis and The Trial by Franz Kafka is a book I picked up at one of my favourite used bookstore chains in Toronto after having lunch with a friend. Though I’ve had my eyes on different editions of Kafka books, this copy specifically features the two stories I’m actually wanting to read, so it made no sense to pass up the opportunity.

The History of Britain by Richard Dargie I bought as something of a novelty, as I try to read more nonfiction but don’t particularly go for it on a regular basis. What I found most appealing about this one is its brevity despite its promise of covering “neolithic times to the present day”. I’m not looking for anything too exhaustive, so this sounds perfectly my speed.

I picked up this Darth Vader omnibus at a thrift store simply for collecting purposes. I have this series digitally already, and I’ve read it, but a good hardcover omnibus is hard to pass up for less than $10, especially when I enjoyed this series almost as much as the one by Kieron Gillen.

Novel Discoveries

I was surprised to learn about yet another graphic novel by Cullen Bunn in Bloodborne: The Bleak Domain; I’m still not sure if I’ll enjoy his work taking over this series, but I’m happy to learn there’s more than one new volume waiting for me. This game is nine years old now, I’m surprised these comics are still coming out. They must be selling rather well.

Divine Might by Natalie Haynes seems something of a sequel to her book Pandora’s Jar, which is about women in Greek myths. I still need to read that first book, but I’m excited to see she’s published another along those lines.

Clytemnestra by Costanza Casati is yet another novel that seems to be following the trend seemingly set by Madeline Miller. Normally, this wouldn’t stand out to me too much, especially since I’ve neglected checking out a lot of books covering some figure or another from Greek mythology, but a good friend of my highly recommended this one, so it’s jumped close to the front of the line.

I was excited to learn about Absolution by Jeff VanderMeer this past week; ten years after the release of the entire Southern Reach trilogy, we have here a sequel. I almost made a preorder right when I learned about it, but I think perhaps I will wait for a paperback release that will hopefully match with the rest of the novels I already own.

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Until next time, thank you for reading!