To Read November 2014

This month is full of assignments and exams and the end of uni, so who knows how many books I'll get through. But I just thought I'd share some books I hope I'll get through.

My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Holiday Stories by Stephanie Perkins (Editor) and many other YA authors including Rainbow Rowell, Jenny Han, David Levithan, Gayle Forman etc. 

I'm so excited to read this! Some of my favourite YA authors (Rainbow Rowell, Stephanie Perkins, among others) have written for this anthology of holiday stories. I couldn't wait for this book to be published/in stock in Australia, so I purchased it online. This is another example of how frustrating the America/Australia divide is, I need these books ASAP, and at an affordable price, and preferably paperback. Okay, thanks. [GOODREADS]

Afterworlds by Scott Westerfeld

So excited to read this. This book is a dual narrative following a real life girl writing a novel (my dream) and the character she is writing in the novel. I don't know much else, but I've heard positive reviews for it. I've read Uglies and Pretties by Scott Westerfeld, and wasn't super impressed, but I can't wait to start reading this. I purchased this copy from Big W for $14, a total bargain. This paperback is also so much nicer than the hardback I saw while I Was in America. That was so expensive and SO HEAVY. [GOODREADS]

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

This is a must read ASAP. The hype around this book and the movie that was just released is incredible, and I need to get to this book. [GOODREADS]

US & Canada Book Haul 2014

I went to America and Canada for three weeks! It was such an awesome trip, and of course I came home with many books. So I thought I'd run through them for you!

Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

I purchased this really pretty children's classic edition from the New York Public Library gift shop. Such a lovely shop for book lovers. 

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling

Purchased from Strand Books (12th St & Broadway) aka my favourite bookstore probably in the world. Have been wanting to buy this book for awhile, check out my short review in my October Wrap Up.

The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson 

A quick purchase from Indigo Books & Music at Toronto's Eaton Centre. I don't know much about this book other than that it's a contemporary YA, which sounds pretty good to me.

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart

Since reading We Were Liars (one of my favourite books this year) I have been itching to read/buy some more of E. Lockhart's novels to see if they're any good. This one was on the shelf at Strand Books so I picked it up. Lockhart's books are no where to be found in Australia (only We Were Liars, of course).

The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion

I know, I purchased a book by an Australian author in America. Whoops. I've been meaning to pick up this book for awhile now, especially seeing as the sequel, The Rosie Effect, was released last month. When I saw this in the Paperback New Releases at Strand Books I couldn't put it down. However I definitely like the Australian orange cover better than this one.

The Boyfriend List by E. Lockhart

Another E. Lockhart book I picked up from Strand Books, I believe this is part of a series, and I'm interested in reading it. 

Everything Leads to You by Nina LaCour

I've seen the beautiful cover of this book on Goodreads before, and it definitely caught my eye when I saw it on the shelf in Strand Books. I think this is a contemporary book as well, don't know much else. 

September Girls by Bennett Madison

This one I purchased at the Brooklyn Book Festival which was happening while we were in New York on the 20-something-th of September. This book was for sale at a stall for a local bookstore in Brooklyn, I'm not sure of the details, but it sounds pretty good. A good summer read, so hopefully I get through it this summer.

Crown of Midnight (Throne of Glass #2) by Sarah J. Maas

An obvious choice. This book is the second in the Throne of Glass series, the first book of which I read this year. This book was another one I'd been looking out for for awhile. However it doesn't match my copy of the first book AT ALL which I kind of regret, and eventually I will have to fix up my series so they all match. This was also from Strand Books (can you tell that I love Strand??).

Mr Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan

I bought this at Strand Book's Central Park kiosk/pop up in the south-east corner. I've been thinking of purchasing this for ages, and since I work in a bookshop, I thought it'd be a fun read. I've actually read the first chapter or so of this (on the subway home that day) and it's really interesting! I love the reading, from the author's biography in the first pages I knew it would be a great read. Can't wait to get back to this book.

Four: A Divergent Collection by Veronica Roth

Another book that I really wanted to buy. In particular, Four had to be purchased in America so that it matched my other editions (I have the hard copy Insurgent and Allegiant). But I didn't really want to pay an exorbitant amount for it (like many bookshops wanted for a hardcover book), so I waited. I actually picked up this copy from the Yale Bookstore in New Haven when we visited. They had 30% off new releases at that time and I was able to get this book, at a regular price! Bargain!!

#PTALive Sydney

Last Monday was Penguin Teen Australia's Live Event at Event Cinemas George Street. This was a free event hosted by the publishing company. Basically what they did was they talked about the most popular Penguin Teen books at the moment (including The Fault in Our Stars, Vampire Academy, etc) and discussed the film adaptations. They then went on to a new book being released in July by Kylie Fornasier, an Australian author, called Masquerade [GOODREADS]. Kylie was at the event, where she talked about her book, her inspiration for writing and the process she went through to get her book published by Penguin. The book sounds great, and I can't wait to get my hands on it. Kylie also posed for photos with fans and answered questions. The event then went on to outline the big releases for the rest of the year, including Silver Shadows (Bloodlines #5), The Revenge of Seven and Isla and the Happily Ever After to name a few. It was a great night and I'm really glad I went. Books Kinokuniya were also present and were selling books 20% off the RRP.

At the event, they were giving away some free copies of some books, so I thought I'd share them with you, because I can't wait to read them.

The first one was:
The Cinderella Moment by Jennifer Kloester

I don't really know a lot about this book, but I know it's quite popular because I've been seeing it around in Dymocks and Big W for months (the spine is really pretty, and I always find myself picking it out of bookshelves). So I was pretty happy to get my hands on this. From what I can tell, it is your average YA contemporary, set in Paris, involving fashion and romance and stuff. Really, I'm not too sure. But I also know that the author is Australian, and the sequel is being released soon, which I'm also excited about! It seems like one of those books that you just fly through and have heaps of fun along the way. [GOODREADS]

Book Haul - Winter 2013

Here is my first ever YouTube video, so be kind.

A Booktopia haul from Winter 2013 (yes it was winter, yes I live in the southern hemisphere, yes it's spring now).