Hey guys so today's video is going to be my august wrap-up
I'm really excited for autumn time. I can't wait!
I've always been an October kinda gal but I've always said
my fave season is summer but i'm finally realising that
i think it's autumn. Keep it on the down-low though!
The elephant in the room: I dyed my hair.
It's wet so it's not actually this red usually.
 
Kind of like a strawberry-blonde colour.
Here's a picture:
You can see it in my last video (a Cornwall vlog)
 
I didn't have time to wait
for it to dry today.
Let's get straight on to the video...
I had a really good reading month in aug.
I read 3 physical books & 3 audiobooks.
 
I'm really into audiobooks at the moment.
First is a picture book called 'Here We Are
Notes for Living on Planet Earth' by Oliver Jeffers
It's beautifully illustrated.
I received it for my birthday.
I forgot to mention it in my bday haul video.
 
This was such a cute book.
I saw it in the store & fell in love with it. My mum gave it to me.
It's funny receiving a picture book for your 22nd.
It was sooo precious.
It displays in around 20 pages
everything there is to know about Earth
on a v basic level.
The author's just had a baby.
He wrote it for that baby.
To explain things to it
in a v gentle way!
It talks about Earth, planets, the Solar System...
the sea & the land, animals, people
night & day...
It says it all in such an endearing, universal way.
 
For example, here is talks about people.
 
Talking about respect between people & treating people kindly.
'People come in many different shapes, sizes & colours. We may all look different
act different & sound different but don't be fooled, we are all people.'
Here it talks about animals...
'There are animals too. They come in even more shapes, sizes & colours.
They can't speak though that's no reason not to be nice to them...'
The attitude of the book is so kind.
Plus the illustrations are beautiful.
It's gorgeous.
My mum read it to me. I really enjoyed it.
Really cute. I gave it 5/5 stars.
I recommend it to people of all ages.
You could read to your baby or toddler...
or at any time of your life.
What I particularly loved
is that I'm a Christian
so I believe that the world was created & we have a creator.
but a lot of these kind of stories
where they talk about the world & how it is
don't just ignore that but they state things in a way
as if there isn't a creator (which i disagree with)
but this was v respectful to everyone.
No matter what your beliefs are, this wouldn't offend you.
 
Just really lovely. I would recommend.
The next book is
Seige & Storm by Leigh Bardugo
This is the 2nd book in the Grisha trilogy.
I gave this 3/5 stars.
I gave the 1st book 4.5/5.
I'm happy this got a 3 because
I thought it might be lower. I was scared because
this series doesn't have the best reputation.
But 3 stars means 'good' in my rating system.
It was pretty enjoyable.
I loved the introduction of Nikolai
but who doesn't!
There was 1 moment in this where
never in all my life have I felt so angry at a book
 
it wasn't lack of quality writing style or character development
 
it was something that 2 characters did that drove me insane.
i'm really not an angry person but
this had me fuming. i could barely read on.
i'll link trigger warnings below
 
The way it was handled, the whole situ,
the way the characters were treating each other...
 
I wanted to give this 2/5 stars
but i realised that was unfair as it was on-track to get 4/5.
 
So i dropped it to a 3.
 
We'll see how I like the last book!
I was disappointed i didn't enjoy this enough.
It's fine. Everything's fine.
the last physical book was
one of my faves i've read in a while
'Turtles All the Way Down' by John Green
This is a contemporary.
Usually I much prefer Fantasy.
So i thought i might not enjoy this
 
so i didn't annotate/tab this
but i adored it.
So i gave it 4.5 stars.
It's so natural. That's what contemp. authors strive to achieve but
this was so realistic.
i loved the MC, her BFF & BF (kinda)
 
It's difficult to explain but
we're following Aza who's a junior in highschool
 
 
She lives in Indiana
She's a v normal girl
but she suffers from OCD
which i believe the author also has.
I've heard it was good rep.
Aza's also trying to solve a mystery
 
She's rekindling a friendship with a boy whose rich father
has gone missing.
 
But she's also tryna deal with her mental health.
 
 
She's also dealing with friend drama & sparking a relationship
with the boy.
The way Green wrote about Aza's OCD
felt v legit (i can't speak bc i don't have it)
It felt so aware.
The way that other people perceive it
& how Aza deals with it
was really eye-opening
& well-informed.
You feel like you're stuck inside Aza's head.
That is also how Aza feels
being stuck inside her own head.
A v clever book. One of fave contemps. now.
My only complaint was that
I thought the ending was rushed/unresumed.
But i also appreciated that.
It was difficult to rate but i adored it & would recommend!
It didn't have a crazy level
of metaphors like Green's books sometimes have.
If you are put-off because of his writing style,
you still might enjoy this one.
 
Try it, give it a go. It's such a good one.
Next is audiobooks.
I read 2.
First was
The Siren by Kiera Cass
This came out in the 00s.
No, I'm wrong it came out in 2016.
It reads like it was written in the 00s.
I gave it 2 stars.
I wrote: 'This wasn't bad but it really wasn't great either.'
This book follows a group of sirens.
 
The MC is called Khalen.
 
The narrator pronounced it Collin.
It might've been her American accent.
 
She turns into a siren because she's on a cruise with her fam
& the sirens capture the boat.
Her family drown
but she resists the sirens' calls.
so they adopt her into the siren fam.
 
The mythology behind the sirens was really
interesting actual & I WISH
it had gone into more detail about that.
 
The other girls missed their past lives
but had a great love for the Sea
who was a personified being
who could communicate with the sirens.
The whole concept was awesome
but wasn't explored
which was disappointing. Instead of that
 
the MC falls in love with a guy.
 
They haven't even interacted & she's already in love.
It was so unrealistic. They were meant to be soulmates but--
 
Insta love.
This book was insta love.
The minute she met him
the entire plot was focused on their relationship.
They didn't even interact that much.
It was tragic.
I just didn't like it. It was kinda bad.
The potential was there. It just wasn't reached.
It wasn't even attempted to be reached. IMO that's worse.
 
I didn't enjoy this.
I really like the author so i want to read her other series
 
but i feel like it might just be like this.
How will it be any better?
I've heard good things though.
This was an easy, quick standalone.
The audiobook was alright but
it wasn't for me.
 
Lastly is The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving
This is a gothic classic.
 
Written in early 1800s.
 
It uses that formal english that is typical of that time.
 
But it was v approachable &
v not offensive.
I gave this 4 stars.
I did actually really enjoy it!
It was a short story & the narrator was great.
I read this via Libby.
 
Usually my Libby selection isn't great,
 
 
 
but it's actually been p good lately.
 
 
But i've always heard about this.
Good to get you in the mood for spooky szn.
It talked about autumn & dark evenings & colder weather.
 
I liked that but i thought it was underdeveloped.
 
It also wasn't scary. It was meant to be like a horror.
 
This school teacher called Ichabod Crane
works in a village in NY state.
 
There's a tale of a ghost-like figure
 
 
he's like the headless horseman.
At the end, it's mean to be v scary.
But i laughed. (lol)
Idk whether that's because horror in those days
just wasn't scary or what...
It felt like a folk tale
& i did like that but it wasn't scary.
 
But it is very gothic. Good for autumn.
I did enjoy it.
Those were all the books i read in autumn.
 
I read so many audiobooks
because i am reading House of Earth & Blood by SJM
 
 
I'm on page 190.
I am loving this!
 
 
I'm reading audiobooks so I can make progress
towards my goodreads goal.
 
 
I hope you guys really enjoyed this.
Give it a thumbs up if you did & subscribe.
I can't wait to film more vids for you.
Bye!
The fact I just filmed that entire vid in my sleep shirt without you guys
knowing? Kinda crazy.
