September 2024 Reading Recap
Diving into the fourteen books I read in the month of September.
While slowing down from the fast-paced reading month of August, I’m fairly proud of how many books I was able to read this month. From exploring new genres to getting the chance to read titles I have been wanting to read for awhile now, I feel like my fall reading season is starting off on the right foot and I’m going to dive into what my reading month in September looked like.
Reading Stats
Over the course of September, I ended up reading fourteen books totaling to 2,893 pages, and 60% of the books I read were physical copies while the other 40% were books I read on my e-reader (so no audiobooks this month).
Some Other Reading Stats Through Charts
What I Read in September
Lula Dean’s Little Library of Banned Books by Kirsten Miller
My first book of the month was actually a leftover book that I didn’t get to finish in August. After a slow first week of reading for September, I ended up finishing this book on the 9th, which was when I had to return it to the library.
Personally, I liked the book. It did provide a little bit more insight into the mind of a resident book banner (though through a fictionalized and satirical lens). While the on-page bigotry through some of the characters’ internal monologue was tough to read, I think this book shined an importance on the growing issue of book banning all across the country.
Carmilla by J. Sheridan Le Fanu
Since I’ve been wanting to read more horror and I heard this book mentioned so many times online, I decided to finally give Carmilla, one of the OG vampire stories, a try. Since I didn’t know if I was going to like it or not, I just checked out the e-book from my local library instead of getting one of the editions with the fancy covers or the one with illustrations inside and commentary on the book.
Le Fanu’s writing did live up to the hype surrounding this book and I did appreciate the quiet horror that he utilized in this story. Even after I finished the book, I was still second-guessing everything that happened in the story, but I promise that it’s in a good way.
Puzzled: A Memoir About Growing Up with OCD by Pan Cooke
After waiting for months to get this from my local library, I was able to read this in a single day. Puzzled is a really insightful graphic memoir detailing what it's like to be living with OCD, and this book had the perfect blend of illustration and storytelling to bring awareness to a mental health condition not always understood by the general public.
You are What Eats You by Chris Burton
I talked about this book and my thoughts on it in my reading blog for the Week of Weird Readathon: Round 4. You can check out the post for my full thoughts on the book, but I surprisingly liked this book more than I thought I was.
Carmilla: The First Vampire by Amy Chu
Another book that I talked about in my reading blog for the Week of Weird Readathon: Round 4, which you can read by clicking the link above.
Though, I will say that if you want a one-sentence summary of my review, it would be this: It’s better as its own story rather than a reimagining or retelling.
Upstaged by Robin Easter
I’ve seen this title a couple of times and I was finally able to pick it up from the library. This was a cute and wholesome graphic novel, and I loved the illustrations used to convey Ash’s thoughts. While I thought the conflict in the middle was kind of dumb, I overall liked this book.
Shiny Misfits by Maysoon Zayid
When I picked this book up at the library, it wasn’t already nominated for the CYBILS. However, the day after I checked it out, somebody had nominated the title. I thought it was a neat little coincidence so I figured I would start my CYBILS reading before the nomination pile gets too high.
Overall, I liked the book. I thought the Zayid took an interesting approach with addressing the “inspirational” content surrounding disabled people as well as how disabled people are perceived by others. However, there were some parts that dragged on for a bit and I don’t think the illustrations did a whole lot to convey the internal thoughts and feelings of the characters. But if you’re looking for a middle graphic novel featuring Muslim and/or disabled representation, you might enjoy this book.
A Haunted Girl by Ethan & Naomi Stacks
Using a mix of horror and mythology, A Haunted Girl portrays a compassionate look into the dark realities of dealing with serious mental health issues. While it is a dark read, I do think that this was a great read.
Monkey King and the World of Myths #1 by Maple Lam
Another book that I had to read for the CYBILS and I wasn’t 100% certain if I was going to like this book. However, this left me pleasantly surprised by Lam’s series opener with its infused blend of Chinese and Greek mythology and the heartfelt thematic elements that Lam includes in this book.
In Utero by Chris Gooch
Considering this book was on Kindle Unlimited when I was reviewing my access to the growing list of titles being nominated in my category for the CYBILS, I figured it was easier to get it from there than trying to figure out if I could get it from the library.
I wasn’t a huge fan of this book, if I’m being completely honest. There wasn’t anything really spectacular about the book and the interesting plot concept was let down by a lackluster execution. The only thing that I did like about In Utero was the friendship that developed between Hailey and Jen over the course of the book. Other than that, I wasn’t really impressed.
Rainbow! #1 by Sunny & Gloomy
I’ve been wanting to read this book for awhile, and I’m so glad that I was able to pick it up from my local library. This was a great series opener and I felt the authors were able to set the stage for what the rest of the series will look like. One thing that I appreciated about this book was the fact that both of the authors took a sensitive and compassionate approach to both of the MCs complicated home lives. While this book does dive into some mature themes, joy still radiated within the pages.
Banned Books Club by Kim Hyung Sook & Ryan Estrada
Since it was Banned Books Week, I decided to pick up Banned Books Club as my banned book to read for that week.
This was a powerful graphic memoir depicting the author’s experience as part of an underground banned book club during the totalitarian regime of 1980s South Korea. While it’s not an easy read, this book serves as an important reminder of the power books have to inspire change as well as providing insight on what happens when we don’t speak out against injustice.
Lunar New Year Love Story by Gene Luen Yang
Wrapping up the month with another CYBILS-nominated title to read, I felt that this book was a moving and heartfelt tale about connecting to one’s culture, overcoming generational family conflict, and learning how to love and be loved in return. It’s a bit longer than other YA graphic novels, you definitely get the heart and connection that Yang puts into this story.