 Hi everyone, a big welcome or welcome back to my channel. So today we're going to be talking about all of the books that I read in September and I read some really good books in September. As autumn arrived, I found myself reading some more classics, some more magical reads, some slightly darker reads. We have a range of genres, a range of ratings. As always, I would love to know if you've read any of these books or what else you have been reading. Chat to me down below in the comments about anything you'd like. Let's get into the books. The first book I read in September was George Eliot's Silas Marner. This is a Victorian novel that tells a story of a solitary man who lives alone after he is exiled from his previous community when he is accused of thievery. He is bitter and private until a young orphan girl turns up on his doorstep. So believe it or not, I have not read much George Eliot before as much as I love Victorian classics. I had read this one before technically in my first year of university, but at the time we were made to read so much so quickly that I barely remembered it. I decided to pick this one up again and I'm so glad that I did because I absolutely adored this. There's just something about reading Victorian novels when it feels all autumnal, isn't there? I know it's not just me. I loved everything about this. It is a pretty short novel and I found it to be so perfect and well-paced and clearly crafted. I loved the examination of rural life in here. It is pointed and critical and humorous and affectionate. I loved learning about our protagonist. I loved seeing his journey throughout, his development from shutting himself down and away at the beginning to inevitably but also willingly evolving with everything that happens around him. I love the side characters and the side plots and how everything knitted together so perfectly making this such a great little contained story. There's highs, there's lows, there's some drama, there's some tenderness. It has a very sweet ending. This is everything you'd want it to be. It really draws you in and keeps you there as you read. Such a delightful story. Can't wait to read more George Eliot and in the end, I gave this one 4.5 stars. Next up in September, I picked up The Wildermint by Richard Powers. Another really, really good one. It came out at the end of September. I was kindly sent this copy by the publisher. It is currently on the shortlist for the Booker Prize. It follows a story of a man and astrobiologist named Theo who searches for life on other planets. Theo is navigating how best to singularly bring up his son who is having a lot of problems at school and just with life generally, including being deeply affected by the destructive nature of humans and the decline of our world. So this is my first Richard Powers novel. I never did actually get round to reading the over story, the hype a couple of years ago, kind of overwhelmed me. But this, wow. This is such a perfect novel and such a me novel. This is character focused and intimate and inward looking, but it is also massively universal and mind bogglingly philosophical. The themes in here of crisis and natural beauty and love were all explored so brilliantly, so cleverly. And the central relationship in here between Theo and his son is just glorious and heart-wrenching. Some of the dialogue in here is so stunning. This book just did so much and it was the perfect length. It didn't need to be any longer. It touched my heart. It made me cry. It made me think. It did everything that a great novel should, really. It was just such an immersive and powerful reading experience. I think this one is going to stick with me for a while. I'm going to be recommending it to people left, right, and center. Of course, I gave this one five stars. Next up, I read Lie With Me by Philippe Besson, translated by Molly Ringwald. Originally written in French and set in France, this short novel tells the story of two teenage boys in the 1980s and their romantic relationship. So I'd had this book on my shelves for quite a while. I think the publisher sent it to me randomly. I didn't request it. For some reason, I picked this one up. It was a bit of a random pick, but I'm really pleased that I did. This is a very simple but very effective novel. It is coming of age. It is an exploration of first love and sexual awakening. It explores heartbreak and the passing of time. There are no gimmicks in here. It is just very clear heartfelt writing. Very true to life experiences. I found this to be totally believable, totally relatable, and totally readable. It was one of those reading experiences where you just have those moments of total clarity where you're like, yes, that's it. I have felt that. A really great little book. Overall, I would definitely recommend it if it's your kind of thing. You can probably fly through it in one or two sittings. And in the end, I gave this one four stars. Next up, I read Arty and the Blue Gods by Jaspinda Belan. This is a new upper middle grade novel that I was kindly sent this copy of by the publisher. It tells the story of a young girl named Arty who lives alone on a Scottish island with her temperamental aunt. Her only comforts are her books and her fox friend until one day a boy washes up on the shore. Arty then finds out that she has been lied to about who she is and she embarks on a journey of self-discovery. So I first read Jaspinda Belan when I read Tamarind and the Star of Ishta last year and absolutely fell in love. That novel was so magical and so heartfelt and that was exactly what I was going for in picking up this one. Broadly, this is what I got. So I love Jaspinda Belan's common themes of homecoming and belonging and self-identity. They are central to this novel and they are wonderful. I loved the journey Arty went on to find out who she really was. I was definitely intrigued as I read to unravel the whole mystery. It's also worth noting that the settings in here are lush. The moody, windy, magical Scottish island is painted so well. Unfortunately, I didn't love this one quite as much as I loved Tamarind for some reason. It just didn't touch me in the same way. I also thought there were some issues with the pacing in particular, but it was still really lovely. Definitely one I'd recommend if you like quick, sweet, magical feeling novels or children's fiction. So in the end, I gave this one three stars. Next up in September, I read The Fortune Men by Nadefa Mohamed. This is a historical literary novel that was long listed for the Booker Prize. I was kindly sent this copy by the publisher set in Cardiff, Wales in the 1950s. This one tells the story of a black Somali man who is accused of a murder he didn't commit. So there were a lot of good things in here. I loved the premise and the setting, the idea of exploring Somali culture within Wales at this time. And this book's strength was definitely building up a picture of these different families and these different locations in Cardiff. The mix of different cultures in here and different ways of life were really brilliant. I loved the sense of place in here. Unfortunately, I didn't connect with this book as much as I hoped I would. The whole trial and justice storyline didn't hook me as much as I hoped it would, which was honestly quite surprising to me. I just never really felt invested in these characters' stories. The whole thing didn't really have an impact on me like I thought it would. It felt like there was something stopping me getting there. So overall, I don't think this is a bad book. I definitely enjoyed aspects of it. I can totally see why people are enjoying it. But for me, I just didn't love it. So in the end, I gave it three stars. Next up, I read Single Window by Daniel Sluman. This is a new contemporary poetry collection that I was kindly sent a copy of by the publisher Nine Arches Press. It came out at the end of September and it primarily explores the experiences of Daniel and his wife, Emily, one, an amputee with chronic pain and the other suffering from Crohn's disease in Fibro, myalgia. The poems detail the year of 2016 when the two were unable to move and were confined to their home. I was so excited for this collection. I was intrigued as soon as I read the premise and let me tell you, I loved this. This was just what I hoped it would be. Reading the first-hand experiences of the fear and isolation experienced by disabled people in Britain today was shocking and eye-opening. These poems are so vulnerable and so intimate. I almost felt personally trusted as I read this collection. The collection also features photographs throughout taken by Daniel and Emily at this time, both of themselves and of their home and this was so effective. It added a whole extra layer of authenticity and intimacy to the collection. Themes of isolation and confinement are something that we can all relate to on some level at this point in time. And I really think that having these experiences with the pandemic recently really made me be able to appreciate this collection more than I ever would have been able to before. Also, I just want to point out that on a craftsmanship level, these poems are lush. Some are very striking, some are much more tender. I really loved the playing around with structure. Some of the imagery is a chef's kiss. This is so great. So unlike anything I've read in poetry before, I would definitely recommend this to anyone who loves contemporary poetry. I will definitely be keeping an eye out for more poetry by Daniel Sluman in the future. And in the end, I gave this one 4.5 stars. Next up, I read The Dragon Republic by R.F. Kwan. This is the second book in a historical fantasy series inspired by military Chinese history. I read the first book in this series last month. Broadly, it tells the story of a young woman, a war orphan named Rin, who, despite all the odds, passes a test and gets to attend the most elite military training school in the empire. Here, Rin discovers her lethal and unearthly power for shamanism, and the whole time, the peace of the Nican Empire is growing more and more unstable. So I'm not going to talk about the details of this book too much because I don't want to spoil anybody. He wasn't started the series yet, but here are my general thoughts. The first book was okay. I liked a lot about it. Some odd choices were made. Ultimately, I think it ended up where it needed to be. If you want to hear more of my thoughts on the first book, go and check out my summer recent reads video. I will leave it linked around. I decided to stick with the series because I'd heard from many people, including my husband, that the second and third installments in this series improved. Thankfully, I did find this to be the case here. So I liked this book. It felt like a good step up. We got to know some of the characters a bit better. It felt like the scope widened, the stakes heightened. If you like military fantasy and you enjoy the more political and strategic elements that some fantasy have, then you should really enjoy this. This wasn't amazing. There were definitely issues. This isn't the best fantasy series I have read by any stretch. My main issue with these books is definitely the character development and the connection to the characters. That's lacking somewhat. That being said, I am enjoying the ride here. I'm enjoying being in this world and just being swept along. I'm currently reading the final installment in this series. So you will be able to hear my final thoughts in my next recent reads video. But until then, I gave this one 3.5 stars. Next up in September, I read Keeping the House by Tice Sin. This is another new literary novel. This one came out last month. Thank you to the publisher for sending me this copy. Revolving around the London heroin trade, this one tells a story of three generations of the same Turkish Cypriot family, specifically the women who keep the family business and the family generally afloat. So this was another big anticipated release of mine. I was so excited about this whole thing. And I did find this book to be so unique and clever and immersive. The thing I loved most about this novel was definitely the world that was created. You get a real sense of time and place in here. You get a real sense of the community and the families and their homes. Some of the descriptions in here of people or food or smells are so stark and specific. You really feel like you're there. I loved the prose in here as well. It is quite quirky and humorous, but also very frank and eye-opening. While this book did have many, many strengths, I didn't fully fall in love with it. Similarly to In The Fortune Men, actually, I think this is down to the characters. While I found some moments about them to be fascinating, I didn't feel particularly invested in them or in their individual stories. More so, I was interested in the wider general story surrounding this topic, if that makes any sense. Either way, I did think this was fab. Definitely want to watch. I think tons of people would really enjoy this. So in the end, I gave it 3.5 stars. The penultimate book that I read in September was Winter Recipes from the Collective by Louise Gluck. This is a new poetry collection that I was kindly sent a gorgeous copy of by the publisher. It's due to come out on the 30th of October. So it's quite hard to describe what this book is about without saying that it's simply about life with all of its joy and despair with the aging process and death ultimately coming at the end. I had never read any Louise Gluck before, despite her being such a celebrated, acclaimed poet. I am so pleased that I picked up this collection because Louise Gluck is a true artist. The poems in here were truly sublime, so beautiful and very haunting. I read beforehand that this collection is reminiscent of chamber music being told through a chorus of different voices and you definitely get that sense while you're reading. There are a lot of experiences that contributed to this collection and the whole thing just feels so authentic and relatable and really touching. The poems in here felt quite traditional in their style and that really, really worked for me. Really impressed with this one. I will definitely be reading more of Louise Gluck's poetry in the future and in the end I gave this one four stars. And the final book that I read in September was Burnt Coat by Sarah Hall. Another new novel, believe it or not, this one just came out on the 7th of October. This is a proof copy. This one tells the story of an old, celebrated sculptor named Edith who was coming towards the end of her life. Throughout, she reflects on her childhood, her relationship with her mother and the time when she brought a new lover into her studio during a lockdown for the first time. So you may or may not know that I am a massive Sarah Hall fan. She is a Cumbrian author. She comes from the Lake District like myself and her writing is just beautiful. I fell in love with her when I read Haweswater a few years ago. I was so excited to hear that she was bringing out this new book and boy, this was stunning. This whole setup is like a dream to me. I love novels that are reflective. I love novels that explore family and childhood and memories and how all of this shapes us. I love novels that explore desire and romantic love. I loved the structure in here, a flitting between Edith's present and different times in her past getting to piece together more and more about her life as I read. The exploration of the central relationship in here within the context of a lockdown was so heart-wrenching and touching. The writing in here is also beautiful all the way through really, but there are also some specific wow moments that just took my breath away. And just the whole atmosphere that was created in here, the moody settings, the exploration of isolation and connection and passion, the haziness of memories, the pain and loss of remembering. Yeah, this was really, really good. I can't wait for more people to read this one. Sarah Hall is such a great writer. In the end, I gave this one five stars. So there we have all of the books that I read in September. I think this was a really good mix. I really hope you enjoyed hearing me chat about all of them. As I said at the beginning of the video, I would love to know if you've read any of them, how did you find them? A big thank you as always for watching and listening and saying hi, if you do say hi, it really makes my day. I hope you're all doing really well and I look forward to seeing you in my next video. Bye everyone.