A Birthday Book Haul (and Books I Bought in June)

My birthday was on the 1st July and I had asked for quite a few books. I received all of the books that I asked for and even received a few surprises from some amazing bookstagrammers! I am so grateful for all the lovely messages I received on my birthday, and for every gift I received. I’m trying to keep track of where all of my books are coming from (I make it sound like they’re just *appearing* in my room without permission) so that I can organise my TBR and my bookshelves a little better from now on.

I want to keep track of the books I buy new and also secondhand, which at the moment is through Depop only, but hopefully I’ll be able to return to my beloved charity shops in the coming months. I’m shielding until August (unless anything changes) and I am buying a bit more than usual as I like getting packages through the door!

I’m lumping the beginning of July together with June, and then any books I acquire throughout July I’ll add to a July Haul at the end of the month. So, here is a list of all the books I received for my birthday and another list of all the other books I bought for myself in June.

Birthday Book Haul

From my family, I received:

• Mooncakes by Wendy Xu and Suzanne Walker
• Bloom by Kevin Pancetta and Savanna Ganucheau
• A Phoenix First Must Burn edited by Patrice Caldwell
• A Song Below Water by Bethany C. Morrow
• Blended by Sharon M. Draper
• Watch Us Rise by Renée Watson
• The Art of Spirited Away by Hayao Miyazaki (intro), Yuji Oniki (translator) and Alvin Lu (editor)

From my lovely bookstagram friends, I received:

• Mr Salary by Sally Rooney
• A Good Man Is Hard to Find by Flannery O’Connor
• And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
• Five Years From Now by Paige Toon

Books I Bought Using Money I Received for My Birthday:

• The Midnight Library by Matt Haig (Goldsboro Edition)

Other Books I Acquired in June

Bought New:

• Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert
• Take a Hint, Dani Brown by Talia Hibbert
• The Master’s Tools Will Never Dismantle the Master’s House by Audre Lorde
• Your Silence Will Not Protect You by Audre Lorde
• Taking Up Space: A Black Girl’s Manifesto for Change
• Dark Days by James Baldwin
• Letters from Birmingham Jail Martin Luther King Jr.
• Create Dangerously by Albert Camus
• So You Want to Talk About Race? by Ijeoma Oluo
• A Song of Wraiths and Ruin by Roseanne A. Brown

Subscription to @ourwomenswrites book of the month (from a giveaway I won)

• Real Life Money by Clare Seal

Bought on Depop:

• Woven in Moonlight by Isabel Ibañez
• Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid

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So, the total number of books I acquired in June (and the 1st July) is 25. That’s a lot of books, and a lot more than I thought. It is making me want to go back through my photos and posts to see how many books I acquired in previous months. I definitely didn’t realise how many books I’d bought myself until I wrote them all down. This is definitely a good way to hold myself accountable for the books I buy and something I’ll aim to do every month.

Have you bought any books for yourself this month? Do you tend to ask for books for your birthday?