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
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?

Happy belated birthday – and what a great haul! I do tend to ask for books for my birthday and Christmas. I just added Your Silence Will Not Protect You to my tbr as well!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you! I am very grateful to have received so many ☺️ And I can’t wait to read itn
LikeLiked by 1 person
What an amazing stack! How on earth did you hold all that with one hand?! Haha!
I’m totally bookmarking this to come back to, some of those titles sound great.
Hope you had a great day 🙂
Anika | chaptersofmay.com
LikeLiked by 1 person
It was a struggle!! My arm hurt after too and I worried they’d all be wonky! I’ll hopefully read them all soon! You too ☺️
LikeLike
Oooh, it hadn’t even occurred to me to look for books on Depop!
I’m missing charity shops as well – both donating and buying. Like you though, I’m shielding until August, so I’m just going to have to sit tight until then.
Hope you had a lovely birthday.
LikeLiked by 1 person
They have quite a good selection — I just enjoy the browsing as it substituted charity shops 😅 And Im not sure I’ll be rushing out in August, but I hope to get to one sometime soon! Thank you, I did!
LikeLike