Bookmail Unboxing and Book Haul #1!

Hey everyone! I’m so excited to start a new category on my blog: bookmail and bookhauls. I won’t have a set day to get these done; I’ll just publish them as I receive things in the mail. These posts will be broken into two sections (pretty self-explanatory). Maybe someday I’ll even film a video of me unboxing something? We’ll see! If this is the kind of thing you want to see more of, just let me know!

BOOKMAIL UNBOXING!

Since my review of Guapa a few months ago, I’ve been in contact with Other Press. On their website, Other Press says, “We publish novels, short stories, poetry, and essays from America and around the world that represent literature at its best”. I was super excited that they responded to my review and liked what I had to say! They generously offered to send me two more titles for review, so that’s all I expected. Today, I was surprised to hear the doorbell ring our weird Christmas jingle (don’t ask me why we have it set to this) and the mailman handed me this huge envelope! It was way heavier and bigger than just the two books I was supposed to get. You can imagine the excitement I had while taking this photo seconds before opening the package!

So, it’s nothing special. It’s just a large envelope with my name and address on it. But, still, I was wondering what could be inside this mystery package that was much bigger than 2 books. Here’s what I got:

7 books! I was (and still am) so astounded at the generosity of Other Press. I am very thankful for publishers who believe in me and my website. Here are some quick notes on the books I got:

–Incarceration Nations by Baz Dreisinger—this is a nonfiction book about the author, who travels around the world to examine the prison systems in several countries. I have a feeling this title will reveal a lot about the history and future of justice, which is something that I believe needs to be talked about more.

– Quicksand by Malin Persson Giollito – this book focuses on an 18-year-old girl who is charged for the involvement of a shooting at her school. She is a popular student and the public is waiting to hear how she became a “cold-blooded killer”. I can tell this is going to be an ‘at the edge of your seat’ kind of book!

–The Faithful Scribe by Shahan Mufti – This is a nonfiction title about the first Islamic democracy. The author uses stories from his relatives about Islamic civilization in Pakistan. I haven’t read a book like this before, so I’m very eager to start this!

–The Diamond Setter by Moshe Sakal – This book is about an Israeli man who gets swept up in the gay scene and protest movement. It features a love triangle between three men. Reading queer stories that take place in countries other than the US is a goal for me, so this is my perfect book.

–For Two Thousand Years by Mihail Sebastian – This story, originally published in 1934, is about a Jewish student living in Romania during the years before World War II. It explores anti-Semitism and Zionism. I have yet to review a book that touches on anti-Semitism and I’m very excited to start this one.

–Where Women Are Kings by Christie Watson – Seven-year-old Elijah has a history of disruptive behavior, but his adoptive parents believe they can help him succeed. The book talks about racism, as Elijah is black and his adoptive mother is not. This really sounds like my kind of book that I tend to gravitate towards.

–The Unit by Ninni Holmqvist – This is a dystopian novel about a world in which men and women over the age of sixty, who are not married and do not have children, are sent to a retirement home. There, they are forced to donate their organs until their final donation. This book sounds so COOL and almost scary!

So, those are the 7 titles I got from Other Press. I can’t even say which one I’m the most excited for! THANK YOU SO MUCH, OTHER PRESS!

MINI BOOKHAUL

I’ve been on a book-buying ban for a while. I haven’t spent money on books in two months! I decided it was time to break this ban and splurged on two titles. I got them used (which saved me some money) and only one has arrived so far. Here it is:

This is Skim by Mariko Tamaki. It’s a graphic novel about a girl nicknamed Skim, who’s in high school, and it explores topics of suicide, depression, and LGBT themes. Skim is a witch, which is super cool, and I related to her character. Yes, I already finished it! Hopefully, I’ll be able to get a review posted for this title soon. I gave it 4/5 stars on Goodreads.

Thanks for tuning in! I want to post more unboxings and bookhauls on here. I had a lot of fun writing this one! I’m supposed to get more bookmail later this week, so maybe I’ll write another one soon? The mailman must hate me at this point. Let me know if you enjoyed this or if it bored you!