Bookshelf August 2019

Hey book buddies! Reading time was very limited for me last month. I've spent every spare minute quilting a whole cloth quilt for the wedding and its almost done - just binding, the label and then a wash and its complete. I'll show you the full quilt very soon. It's been fun and it looks amazing! Can't wait to share!

I did read three books last month - one of them I really loved the other two were quite a bit of work but here's my thoughts on each book.


Boy Swallows Universe - Trent Dalton

This book is a pretty intense boy coming of age story. It's set in Brisbane, Australia and it delves deeply into the Queensland drug trade. It's quite violent in parts but it's an honest, semi- autobiographical novel of a boy and his mute brother navigating life with an ex con as a nanny, a mother in prison and a heroin dealing stepfather.

There were parts of this book I laughed, parts I cried, parts I cringed and there were also parts that felt a little unrealistic (but hey, what do I know about that world). 

Trent has an amazing writing style. He draws you in with his eloquent writing, his vivid imagery and his endearing characters and this is his debut novel - can't wait to read more of his work.

I enjoyed this book and it certainly lives up to the hype. Great read...four stars!


The Binding - Bridget Collins

I was immediately drawn to the beautiful cover of this book and the plot intrigued me. I was eager to start reading but unfortunately, I only enjoyed Part One. I loved learning about the life and work of a binder and the true value of these precious books.

A binder had the ability to relieve people of bad memories or suffering they needed to heal from and bind them away forever. Books were true accounts of people's lives, thoughts, experiences or bad behaviour and if the book was destroyed, the memories would flood back to the owner so they were protected carefully.

Of course, there was a black market where people would sell their memories to survive and the books were sold for entertainment. There were men who wiped women's memories to cover their own disrespectful behaviour and if a binder went too deep, there were those who lost their minds completely and became a shell of their former selves.

Parts of this book were fantastic but there was a lot of reading in between. There is a romance between two boys which I wasn't expecting but it didn't have the feel of the next great love story, it was more dangerous lust than love. I gave the book three stars!


The Chain - Adrian McKinty

This was my favorite book of the month, I loved it! I wouldn't necessarily call it a fast-paced thriller but it was engrossing.

Imagine receiving a phone call to say your child has been kidnapped and the only way to get her back is to pay the ransom and kidnap another child in her place, to keep the chain going! You go from being a victim, to a kidnapper and criminal and your linked to the chain forever. Oh, the horror!

I was engrossed in the first third of this book, then there was a little lull, but it set the scene for the dramatic ending. It explores what people will do to protect their children plus how easy it is to exploit people for your own satisfaction or entertainment.

I really enjoyed Adrian's writing style and I'll be on the hunt for more of his titles. Great read...five stars!


And that was it for me last month. It does bring my total to 38/50 (will I make it with the wedding so close?) I hope to take it a little easier this month and relax with a book as much as I can, but life trumps any personal goals you set and its where I need to be right now :)

Before I go, here's a little teaser of the whole cloth quilt:


I promise to show you the full reveal very soon. You're going to love it!

Happy reading book buddies!
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4 comments

  1. I have read The Binding too and much preferred the early parts of the book. x

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    1. I'm so glad it wasn't just me Kay. I loved the first part, it had a beautiful fantasy feel to it but then it all got a bit weird for me ;) A clever idea for a book but not enough to make me love it!

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  2. Thanks for the book feedback. Your little sneak peek of the quilt is absolutely beautiful. So much detail.

    I have to admit that I often choose books by their cover pictures. I know, I know, not the best way to go about it. I got 1/2 way through Boy Swallows Universe but had to return it to the library. Hopefully I'll get to read the rest of it some day :)

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    1. A beautiful book cover is all it takes for me sometimes Anorina ;) I enjoyed the beautiful writing of Boy Swallows Universe plus I learnt a lot of useless stuff (the prison story about cockroaches for example) hope you get to finish it soon. The quilt is done but I'm scared to wash it. I'll do a post soon about my thoughts on these preprinted quilts. It looks amazing but it wasn't all smooth sailing unfortunately :(

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