September Reads (2019 Edition)

psg on October 3, 2019

I dabbled in reading a bit of this and a bit of that during September. As expected, I flitted around looking for something to capture my attention after the intensity of all the In Death books. I did get my eager hands on a copy of Margaret Atwood’s new book, and enjoyed every moment of reading.

September Reading List

  1. Broken Places & Outer Spaces: Finding Creativity in the Unexpected by Nnedi Okorafor
  2. Brand, Meet Story: How to Create Engaging Content to Win Business and Influence Your Audience by Heather Pemberton Levy
  3. Burning Water (Diana Tregarde #1) by Mercedes Lackey
  4. The Witch Who Came In From The Cold: Season One★ by Lindsay Smith et al
  5. Computational Thinking. by Peter J. Denning,; Matti Tedre
  6. Writing voice : the complete guide to creating a presence on the page & engaging readers by Writer’s Digest Books
  7. The Queen’s Gambit (Rogue Queen #1) by Jessie Mihalik
  8. The Queen’s Advantage (Rogue Queen, #2) by Jessie Mihalik
  9. An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon
  10. Remember When by JD Robb & Nora Roberts
  11. The Essential Garden Design Workbook: Completely Revised and Expanded ★ by Rosemary Alexander, Rachel Myers
  12. Folk Fashion: Understanding Homedmade Clothes by Amy Twigger Holyroyd
  13. The Testaments (The Handmaid’s Tale #2) by Margaret Atwood
  14. In Pursuit of Inspiration: Trust Your Instincts and Make More Art (Creativity Exercises, Art Book for Artists Techniques) by Rae Dunn
  15. Sketch Your Stuff: 200 Things to Draw and How to Draw Them by Jon Stich
  16. The Travelling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa, Philip Gabriel (Translator)
  17. The Book of Phoenix (Who Fears Death 0.1) by Nnedi Okorafor

List of Book Covers for titles read in September 2019

Recommendations

NetGalley Reviews

A ★ indicates I received the title through Netgalley, the FTC wants you to know.

  • The Witch Who Came In From The Cold: Season One★ by Lindsay Smith et al
    There is a good deal of world building needed to tell a story of this depth with twists from both magic and the Cold War. It’s difficult when the tale is told through multiple authors and through serial episodes. Much of it works, some of it left gaps bigger than Gabe’s memory loss in Cairo. It started slow with fumbling as characters settle into their roles.
    See my complete review at Goodreads »
  • The Essential Garden Design Workbook: Completely Revised and Expanded ★ by Rosemary Alexander, Rachel Myers
    While this workbook is geared more toward a budding professional landscaper than most home gardeners, it provides useful information for the entire spectrum of garden design and designers. See my complete review at Goodreads »
Other Recommendations
  • The Travelling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa, Philip Gabriel (Translator)
    The blurb caught me: “Nana the cat is on a road trip. He is not sure where he’s going or why, but it means that he gets to sit in the front seat of a silver van with his beloved owner, Satoru. Side by side, they cruise around Japan through the changing seasons, visiting Satoru’s old friends.”. This is a moving, haunting, and beautiful tale of friendship, love, family, and cats.
  • The Testaments (The Handmaid’s Tale #2) by Margaret Atwood
    I had no idea what to expect as I purposely ignored reviews and articles. This deserves a long savory reread before I offer any concrete thoughts. That’s probably the best recommendation I can give — I look forward to rereading! It’s also one of the few (first?) titles on the Booker short list that I’ve enjoyed.
  • Folk Fashion: Understanding Homedmade Clothes by Amy Twigger Holyroyd
    I’d heard about this book and was curious. It’s definitely interesting and I most enjoyed the parts that were likely adapted direct from her PhD thesis.
  • The Queen’s Gambit (Rogue Queen #1) & The Queen’s Advantage (Rogue Queen, #2) by Jessie Mihalik
    Space Opera fun and quick reads. Her newest book for her Consortium Rebellion series, Aurora Blazing just came out.
  • The Book of Phoenix & Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor
    I’m 3/4 of the way through Who Fears Death and I know I want to recommend it. You don’t have to read these in chronological order. If you’d like to learn more about Okorafor, her memoir Broken Places & Outer Spaces: Finding Creativity in the Unexpected is a very good read.
  • Remember When by JD Robb & Nora Roberts
    Not sure why this one grabbed me so completely but it was fully developed and enjoyable.
  • An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon
    Read this. Now. Read for the characters and how they are shaped by expectations of race and gender. The plot is a bit thin at times, but the characters kept me reading long past my bedtime.

Next reads

Finishing a reread The Handmaid’s Tale is on my list, but we’ll see, there are many other books I need to read! I didn’t do so great at reading all the NetGalley books I had planned, I’ve renewed them as much as my library allows so I need to read fast! Clara Parkes‘ new book Vanished Fleece is out now and while I couldn’t wait to finish The Testaments, I am reading this as slowly as possible because I want to enjoy it as long as possible. It makes my reading life challenging as I need to write its review! Yesterday at the library I took out the doorstop, The Priory of the Orange Tree, mostly because I keep seeing the cover and my curiosity got the better of me. We’ll see how October goes!
10 library books piled on desk.