Top 5 Tuesday: Anticipated Releases for 2020

The theme two weeks ago was “books I need to read in 2020” and as I have given up on TBRs and whatnot I am going to link you to my previous “New releases I didn’t get to in 2019” because basically those are the books I would like to read!

Top 5 Tuesday is hosted by Shanah @ The Bionic Book Worm. Since the T5W seems to be MIA, and since this particular topic inspired me (because, you know, I try not to make TBRs but I also LOVE talking about books that I want to read!) I decided to participate at least for today, but I don’t know yet how often I will take part!

And anyway, without further ado, here are some of my most anticipated releases for the year 2020 (a number which by the way still seems very unrealistic).

Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi

I discovered Roshani Chokshi in 2019 and got obsessed with her books. I am relentlessly recommending this series at work, and I cannot wait to see what will happen in the third installment! It’s taking me back to my PJO reading years and I am here for that. I love sassy kids fighting ancient gods, and I cannot wait to see what the Tree of Wishes will have in store for us.

Bridge of Souls by Victoria Schwab

Cassidy Blake is the second middle grade story I got obsessed with in the year 2019. I love how original and quirky it is, while also meddling with great travelling and historical points. I know I have to wait for most of the year, but I’m really excited! And I am also delighted to let you know that the French translation of City of Ghosts is getting released this week, and I cannot wait to shove it into everyone’s hands!

The Henna Wars by Adiba Jaigirdar

I saw the blurb for this one on twitter, and I was immediately hyped. I don’t read enough F/F books to be honest and I do want to read more. Plus, this one seems right up my alley, so I’ll be on the lookout!

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins

Did I ever think a new book in the Hunger Games universe would be released? No I didn’t. But now that it’s happening, I need it and I cannot wait! (And also I’m not that excited about the fact that it’s going to be about SNOW of all people, I have to admit I am still curious.)

Infinity Son by Adam Silvera

Okay so this one has already been released, but it was indeed a 2020 release that I highly anticipated so it well deserves its spot on this list. Furthermore, I haven’t picked it up yet because I have actually decided to go on a book buying ban! I’m getting one last Owlcrate this month, and after that, I won’t be buying any books for… I guess as long as I can. I’m trying to save up money, and I already have tons of books at home. In addition to that, I can also get books from work if I return them undamaged, and from the library. (Ich schaffe das!) ANYWAY. I haven’t read a book by Adam Silvera in a while, but I loved what I saw and I cannot wait to see what new universe he crafted!

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And that’s it for today! Thank you so much for reading, and please feel free to share some of your anticipated releases for the year!

January Owlcrate Unboxing | Vengeance Will Be Mine

This box was the last Owlcrate I will be receiving in a while because I have decided to save up money for traveling + get my own apartment, and in the meantime I am also drowning in books, so I can save up at least for now! But it was worth it and I absolutely loved it! For the second time in a row, the Owlcrate book was one that was up my radar, and I am delighted about it. I will try my best to find the time to read in February, and of course will let y’all know about my thoughts!

Honestly, this book contained all three of my favourite bookish items: a mug, a candle, and a pair of socks. What else could a bookworm be asking for? And finally, it also had a little display that appears to be a pin banner, and I am definitely going to make good use of it! I found a spot of it, and am now proudly displying pins from past Nerdy Post boxes, my new Owlcrate pins, and more ♥

My YARC 2019 in Review

This will probably be my last “2019 recap” kind of post, but I couldn’t let go as long as I hadn’t wrapped up my YARC 2019 challenge. My plan, if I remember correctly, was to read between 11 and 20 books, and I ended up reading 16 which is therefore a success!

I kicked off this reading challenge with Starfish by Akemi Dawn Bowman and I completely fell in love with it. It was extremely relatable and beautiful and I can’t shut up about it. We follow Kiko, a Japanese-American teen, through her summer, as she deals with her anxiety and what she wants with her future. She also has to deal with her mother’s degrading comments, which was heartbreaking, but overall this book was incredible ♥ (Full review)

January also had another instant fave: The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi. It was my first book by this author, and I loved both the concept and the execution, as well as the diverse cast of characters. I might break my book buying ban just to buy the sequel as soon as it gets released! (If you want to see me rave about it, check out my full review!) And while we are talking about Roshani Chokshi I also read later this year both Aru Shah and the End of Time as well as Aru Shah and the Song of Death. And let me tell you, I have become obsessed with this series. It is simply amazing, and I’m forcing it down the hands of all my customers with 9 or 10 year old kids (aka clearly living my best life).

In February/March I also read the two volumes of the manga Manabu by Masako Yoshi. It’s a slice of life kind of story that takes place in the 80s follows the high school life of a teenage girl whose parents have left Japan to work in Germany. It was a very beautiful and sweet story, and it also reminded me of how much I wanted to read more mangas. And then I didn’t. Except for one volume of Living no Matsunaga-San, a newly released series by Iwashita Keiko following a teenage girl (yes I mostly read shojo when it comes to manga) who moves in a boarding house, and the relationships she will develop with her flatmates. Also very cute.

In March I read a Korean graphic novel by Song Aram. The title would be translated as Two Women but I’m actually not sure it has been translated into English. It tells the story of two different women who met several times in their lives, and it’s about their friendship. This book was absolutely beautiful, and I loved how it showed that everybody can be happy with their life in a different way.

After this one, I read The Weight of our Sky by Hanna Alkaf. It takes place in 1969 in Malaysia during the race riots that took place in Kuala Lumpur. We follow Melati, a teenager who loves music and gets separated from her mother on the night the riots began. Through the book, she will try to find her and also have to deal with the djinn that is constantly in her head (what seems to be OCD). This book really hit me hard regarding how it dealt with anxiety, and overall, it was stunning and although I don’t talk about it enough, I hope everyone reads it! I also just learnt that it got the Freeman Award and I’m delighted about it! (Full review)

Another book I read in the earlier part of the year was Quest and Quandaries by Alda Yuan, which I received courtesy of the author. Now this book is complete fantasy, but I loved the fact that the main character (who is both sarcastic and badass) is described as having Asian-like features AND complains about the fact that in fairytales and such stories the characters always appear Caucasian. This earnt this book a spot on my YARC list hands down. (Full review)

I got I Hope You Get This Message by Farah Naz Rishi in the October Owlcrate box and completely fell in love with it. Through the story, we follow three teenagers dealing with the upcoming end of the world, including a Pakistani-Muslim boy who has decided he must go to the end of the world to find his estranged sister. It’s a book about family, and telling your loved ones that you care about them, and I loved it from beginning to end. (Full review)

Like a Love Story by Abdi Nazemian was also a great discovery! It takes place during the AIDS epidemy of 1989 and features the ACT UP movement, as well as three teens who get entangled with it. It’s about first love, and is an excellent coming of age, dealing with a topic that was dear to the author: growing up a as a gay kid from Iran in the United States. This book was excellent. (Full review)

When it comes to yound adult literature, I also discovered the novel I Want to Eat your Pancreas by Sumino Yoru. Now don’t be scared by the title, it apparently comes from a saying. It’s a very sweet story about friendship ans loss, narrated by a teenage boy who just lost his friend. It deals with grief in such a true and beautiful way, I don’t think I will forget about this book any time soon.

This summer, I ended up reading one of Murakami’s non fiction books, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running, in which he talks about his love for long distance running, and compares it to his writing process. This was actually the only book on my mid-year TBR that I managed to read, and I absolutely LOVED it. It was so inspiring, and a quick read as well: I would most definitely recommend it. (Again, if you want to see me rave about this book, check out my full blog post!)

I also read two books in French by Japanese author Akira Mizubayashi, one from 2017, Un Amour de mille ans, and a newly release from the end of August called Ame Brisée. Both deal with his passion for music. He is an excellent writer, who has worked on both the Japanese and French languages, and now writes in French. His books are beautifully crafted, and I’m so glad I finally gave them a try. I would 100% recommend them (and, just saying, the people I recommended it to at workk also loved it and I’m endlessly happy about this!)

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And I guess that’s it with my 2019 YARC wrap up! I can’t believe this year is over, and personally feel like I am lost in the great unknown, but anyway. Please feel free to recommend me more books by Asian authors, and about the different Asian culture, and more diverse books in general. I will probably not go around reading them any time soon because I am very badly organised, but I would love to add them to my never ending TBR! Cheers to another wonderful reading year!

Rentrée Littéraire de Janvier

Encore et encore, j’ai bien trop de livres à lire. Chaque carton que je déballe, la pile s’agrandit, et je glisse de nouveaux livres dans mon sac dans l’espoir de trouver le temps de les dévorer. Je vais finir par me noyer dans mes piles de livres. Enfin, toujours est-il que j’ai pour l’instant eu le temps de lire quatre des nouvelles parutions de ce mois-ci, et je voulais partager !

La première, c’est Otages de Nina Bouraoui, que j’ai lu au mois de décembre. Dans ce livre, on suit une femme, divorcée, la cinquantaine, qui travaille dans l’usine de caoutchouc de sa ville. Elle a deux fils, maintenant adultes, et vit seule : à travers son histoire, on va suivre son aliénation, et tout les éléments qui l’ont conduite là où elle est : à l’arrière d’une voiture de police, car elle a pris en otage son patron. J’ai trouvé cet ouvrage très bien fait. C’est la première fois que je lis un livre de Nina Bouraoui, et son écriture m’a rappelé un peu celle d’Annie Ernaux, que j’aime beaucoup. C’est un livre qui fait réfléchir sur la pression au travail, et sur les attentes qu’a la société envers les femmes. Je ne peux que conseiller.

En numéro deux : comment faire cette rentrée littéraire sans parler du livre de Vanessa Springora ? Cela faisait peut-être un mois que les épreuves du Consentement étaient dans le bureau de la librairie, mais j’ai finalement attendu la parution pour lire ce livre que je voulais d’ailleurs ABSOLUMENT lire. Je ne le regrette pas. Alors oui, j’ai dû le poser quelques fois car ce n’était pas toujours très confortable à lire. Mais j’ai trouvé ça très bien fait. Vanessa Springora aborde un sujet vraiment pas facile, ce n’est une surprise pour personne, mais elle a su trouver la juste distance. Ce n’est pas un livre à mettre dans les mains de tout le monde, bien entendu, mais c’est un livre important. Si vous hésitez à le lire, je peux vous dire ceci : ce n’est pas du tout larmoyant. Certains le redoutent, mais on n’est pas dans l’apitoiement ; au contraire, c’est plus une analyse de la situation, documentée également sur les prises de positions des intellectuels des années 70/80. Alors oui, c’est bien sûr une mise en accusation, mais je le répète : c’est très bien fait, et je suis vraiment contente de l’avoir lu.

Et en numéro trois, les éditions Stock on sorti un nouveau livre dans la collection Ma Nuit au Musée. J’ai lu les trois précédents ouvrages, qui m’ont passionnée, donc bien sûr, dès que celui-ci est arrivé à la librairie, je me suis jetée dessus. Dans La leçon de ténèbres, Léonor de Récondo va passer la nuit au musée Gréco à Tolède, dans l’espoir d’y rencontrer à travers ses œuvres son artiste préféré. (Enfin, on bouge du musée Picasso !) Ce qui est génial avec cette collection, c’est qu’on part à chaque fois du même principe — un artiste qui va passer la nuit dans un musée — pour arriver à un résultat complètement différent. Le livre de Léonor de Récondo est une magnifique déclaration d’amour à Dominikos Theotokopoulos, ce peintre du XVIe siècle que l’on connait plutôt sous le nom “El Greco”. J’ai appris plein de choses. Et encore une fois, j’ai envie de voyager et de m’enfermer dans des musées !

Et le quatrième livre est bien sûr Miroir de nos peines de Pierre Lemaitre (ça fait longtemps que je n’avais pas lu un livre aussi gros !) Dans la droite lignée d’Au-revoir là-haut, l’intrigue se déroule cette fois-ci en 1940. On démarre alors que la France attend toujours de voir quand la guerre va véritablement éclater, et on assiste à la débâcle totale qui s’ensuit dans les mois suivants. C’est exécuté de manière magnifique. On voit les liens se tisser petit à petit entre les personnages, bref, c’est superbe. Et je dois avouer que c’est en fait le premier livre de Pierre Lemaitre que je lis : j’avais simplement vu Au-revoir là-haut au cinéma à sa sortie. Et du coup, there you have it, je suis actuellement en train de dévorer Couleurs de l’incendie ♥

On s’arrête là pour la littérature générale, mais il y a aussi quelques petites merveilles qui sont sorties en jeunesse — ou qui ne vont pas tarder !

Tout d’abord on a le volume 2 de Aru Shah de Roshani Chokshi qui est paru début janvier. Cette série aux airs de Percy Jackson suit une jeune ado dont la mère est conservatrice de musée, et qui découvre qu’elle est la réincarnation de l’un des mythiques frères Pandava. Avec ses sœurs, qu’elle rencontre volume après volume, elle va donc suivre des aventures incroyables, qui en même temps se résument à un seul but : sauver le monde. Ah oui, et éviter de se faire tuer, accessoirement. C’est délicieux.

J’ai ensuite découvert le premier volume d’une nouvelle série : Lesly Davenport et la montagne noire de Zac Gorman. C’est fantastique et humoristique, et c’est aussi une superbe histoire d’amitié entre deux jeunes filles qui n’ont rien en commun, ce qui fait vraiment du bien. Il y a des monstres, un léger sarcasme, et de superbes rebondissement. J’ai hâte de découvrir la suite !

Fin janvier, le premier volume de Cassidy Blake de Victoria Schwab va enfin sortir en France sous le titre de Cassidy Blake : Chasseuse de fantômes, et j’ai trop hâte de faire découvrir cette histoire à mes jeunes lecteurs. Les parents de Cassidy vont filmer un documentaire où ils parlent de fantômes et d’événements historiques. Ce qu’ils ignorent c’est que leur fille peut véritablement voir les fantômes, ce qui va lui attirer des ennuis…

Et le dernier ouvrage dont je voulais parler est une superbe découverte en ce qui me concerne. Il sort fin février, et il s’agit du Garçon du sous-sol de Katherine Marsh. C’est l’histoire de deux jeunes garçon : l’un vient des Etats-Unis et a déménagé pour un an à Bruxelles avec ses parents. L’autre fuit la Syrie et à tout perdu : il va, de désespoir, se réfugier dans le sous-sol d’une belle maison à Bruxelles. C’est une superbe histoire, qui je l’espère rencontrera tout le succès qu’elle mérite.

Voilà tout pour le moment, mais quand je parcours les catalogues, je peux vous promettre que cette année a encore de belles choses en stock pour nous !

Favourite Reads of 2019

Apologies again, because I haven’t been posting enough lately. The truth is, between work and existential crisis, I barely open my computer, so that doesn’t help. What I did manage in 2019 was to read 131 books, something I barely can fathom myself! And out of this list, I have picked my 10 favourites! Most of them are YA, but it also includes literary fiction, as well as one non fiction book. Here we are, in no particular order:

 

Rosie Loves Jack by Mel Darbon

This book was so precious! I discovered it by accident upon its release in France and I absolutely fell in love with it. Through the story, we follow a sixteen year old girl with Down syndrome who is travelling on her own for the first time in order to find her boyfriend who has been sent to Brighton. In the process, she gets stuck in London in a middle of a snowstorm. This book was beautiful. It managed to both break and heal me, and deserves more recognition! (Full review)

King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo

This book won me over. I read the Six of Crows duology a while ago, and really liked them although I wasn’t really impressed by Shadow and Bone. But this one. I completely fell in love with it. I love how we are following two strong badass ladies and one tortured prince who also happens to be super sarcastic, which means I am basically in love with all three of them. I liked it so much that I finally picked up Siege and Storm. Needless to say that I cannot wait for the TV show. (Full review)

Don’t Date Rosa Santos by Nina Moreno

This book was so sweet! It’s about friendship and family, and falling in love, and contained all the elements that I needed to become obsessed with it. Including the main pairing acting domestic af before they even started dating. It was extremely swoon-worthy and I would most definitely recommend it if you are looking for a cute romance and/or a coming-of-age YA novel! (Full review)

The German House by Annette Hess

This book was translated from German. It takes place in 1963 during the second Auschwitz trials, and follows a young woman who speaks Polish and becomes the interpret for the Polish people who survived from the concentration camp. It is brutal and so very important, and most likely will be a book I will never forget.

What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami

The only non fiction book on this list! It’s the second book by Haruki Murakami that I read, and I absolutely LOVED it. He talks about his passions for writing and running, and it’s absolutely INSPIRING. (Full review)

 

Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid

This one I wasn’t necessarily expecting to read this year, because I hadn’t read any other books by the author. But of course it drew my attention because of how hyped it was, and not one second did I regret picking it up! It was a fascinating book, and I barely put it down. It oh-so-deserved the hype, and I will definitely check out more books by Taylor Jenkins Reid! (Full review)

Circe by Madeline Miller

I absolutely loved The Song of Achilles, so when I heard that Madeline Miller had released a new Greek mythology retelling, and that this one would follow a badass witch, I knew that I HAD TO read it. I even attended her reading at Shakespeare & Company, and it convinced me that I would fall in love with this book; and I sure as hell did. It is absolutely stunning. (Full review)

The Weight of our Sky by Hanna Alkaf

This book broke me in so many ways, but I’m still thankful that I read it. If you are not aware of this, The Weight of our Sky takes place during the 1969 riots in Malaysia, and follows a teenage girl with OCD who is trying to be reunited with her mother. This book was a rollercoaster of emotions, but it also depicted Melati’s anxiety perfectly. Will it break your heart? Most likely, but it’s absolutely worth it. (Full review)

Starfish by Akemi Dawn Bowman

I picked up this book because of the mental health representation and boy was it worth it. Did it break my heart? Yes. Did I completely fall in love with it? Also yes. Do I want to protect Kiko against the world at all cost? Absolutely. It was a hell of a journey seeing her growing, but this book was amazing and also, you need to read it. (Full review)

The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi

This one, just like Starfish, was one of my first reads of the year. To be honest, I was already in love with the concept before I even started it. And in the end, the story completely won me over as well. (Full review)

Special mention to Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery because I feel like it’s worth mentioning I read all six main books in the series, and absolutely loved them. 2019 is the year I finally became obsessed with Anne of Green Gables. And this is also once again the proof that I can read a series from beginning to end if I actually commit to it! It happened twice this year, and I hope it will happen again!

And in conclusion, this was an excellent reading year. I hope 2020 will be just as good!

December Wrap Up

A new year has come, let’s hope it will contain great reading stats! And before I start with anything else, let’s wrap up the month of December. Quickly, because I have only read four books. (Because of the strikes, I had to drive to work which meant less reading time. I also had to share lunch with my new coworker, which also meant less reading time. And finally, extra hours of work which ALSO meant less reading time.) These were great books nevertheless, so I’m not complaining!

Books I’ve read in December:

Winterwood by Shea Earnshaw ⭐⭐⭐⭐

A mysterious, fantasy story about a witch living in the woods, and a boy, who has disappeared. This one was the November Owlcrate book and I completely fell in love with it. The atmosphere was just the right amount of eerie, and it has some great twists: some of them I saw coming, some of them I didn’t. It was a very beautiful book, and I cannot recommend it enough.

Nowhere Boy by Katherine Marsh ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I really wonder why I hadn’t heard of that book sooner because it is SO IMPORTANT and I cannot wait for its French release, so that I can shove it into everyone’s face! Nowhere Boy is the story of a fourteen years old Syrian refugees who ends up living in the basement of an American family in Brussels, and secretely befriends their son who is about the same age as him. This book broke me in so many way, but I am so glad that I read it.

Thisby Thestoop and the Black Mountain by Zac Gorman ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This one is a middle grade fantasy, in which we follow Thisby, who is a guardian of the Black Mountain. Her job is to keep all the monsters in the dungeons well-fed, basically. But her life is transformed when Princess Iphigenie’s daughter goes missing, and both girl go on a quest to find him, and keep the peace in the realm… This book was hilarious. It had all the right touches of humour, and was a very pleasant read, featuring two amazing and inspiring girls!

One book in French:

Otages by Nina Bouraoui ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Première lecture pour la rentrée littéraire ! Un livre qui fait réfléchir sur l’aliénation des femmes, et la société d’aujourd’hui. Pas très drôle, mais très bien écrit ; je suis vraiment contente de l’avoir lu.

Books I didn’t get to finish:

The Guinevere Deception by Kiersten White

The Music of What Happens by Bill Konigsberg

TV shows I’ve been watching:

The Witcher 💫 Anne with an E

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Wrapping up my reading challenges for the year 2019: I have read a grand total of 131 books, which I can hardly believe. When it comes to the audiobook challenge, we are still at 11 books: since I aimed for at least 10, I guess I succeeded! I just wanted to finish the one I was currently listening to, but unfortunately I didn’t have the time to, so you will see it in my January wrap up!

As for the YARC, I will probably make a full post to recap on the books I’ve read: yes, all 16 of them. Which means that I have also reached my goal! My idea was to read around one book every month for this challenge, and since I reached 16, I overall suceeded and I’m really happy about it!

I’m not making any insane reading plans for 2020 as I do not know where this year will take me in terms of jobs and housing, and I now know that both of these elements affect my reading, however I am still hoping that I manage to read at least one hundred books, so cheers to that, and I wish you all the best for this new year!