Ceri Louise Reads

I said in my Goals post that I am aiming for at least 50% of the books I read each month to be from my owned backlist… except this month…

I move at the end of May and I have a lot of books out from the library that I need to take back before I leave. And I’m a completionist so I want to read as many of them as I can before I go… I have checked with the library system where I am moving to, to see if any of the books are available there, but you pay to reserve items in that district so if I can get to them before I go it’s a win.

So, in order of priority (probably), here are all the library books that I’m hoping to read in May…

1. The Good Muslim by Tahmima Anam

This is the second book in the Bangla Desh series – I read the first one, A Golden Age, for Read Around the World last year and decided to include this as one of the series I want to finish this year. 

The first book follows Rehana and her children as they live through the revolution that led to Bangadesh’s independence in 1971. The rest of the series follows subsequent generations of the family.

This book and the third one are available in my new library system, but this one is only in large print, so I’d rather read the edition I currently have out!

2) The Bones of Grace by Tahmima Anam

Unsurprisingly, this is the third book in the Bangla Desh series. I don’t usually read series back to back, but I’d potentially make an exception for this one. This book I’d have to request from the library when I move and I want to avoid the charge if I can.

3) I am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika Sanchez

I first heard about this book on the Mexico episode of the Strong Sense of Place podcast, which is my favourite bookish podcast. This is a YA contemporary about a young woman coming to terms with the death of her sister and her parents’ expectations. I’ve wanted to read it ever since, and it’s not available in my new area, so I need to get to it before I go.

4) Three Apples Fell From the Sky by Narine Abgaryan

This book is one I picked up for Read Around the World, as the author is Armenian and its set in a small Armenian village. It sounds like a beautiful story about community and friendship so I really want to read it soon. I could get it from my new library, but I’d probably need to request it.

5) Seven Mercies by Elizabeth May and Laura Lam

This is the sequel to Seven Devils, which I read for a book club a couple of years ago. The series follows the crew of a rebel spaceship who are trying to resist an evil empire. I enjoyed the first one but didn’t love it, so I didn’t want to buy the second one. I keep putting off reading it, though, so whether I will actually pick it up and finish the series is unclear. I can get it relatively easily in future if I need to. I would like to read it while I have some recollection of the first one.

6) Peach Blossom Spring by Melissa Fu

This one is maybe higher up the list than it should be. I had an eArc of this prior to its release but haven’t got around to reading it yet. When I saw the physical copy in the library I thought it might help me get to it sooner, but that hasn’t worked yet. I do still have the digital copy though, so it’s not the end of the world if I don’t read this before I have to return it.

This is a cross-generational story about the legacy of the Japanese invasion of China in 1938 for one family. Exactly the sort of book I usually love.

7) The Relentless Moon by Mary Robinette Kowal

This is the third book in the Lady Astronaut series, an alternate history science fiction series in which a catastrophic event speeds up the world’s attempts to colonise space. I read the first two a few years ago and it’s another series I want to carry on with while I still remember most of what’s happened previously. I can get this relatively easily from the library when I move so it’s less of a priority.

8) Nocturna by Maya Motayne

This is a Latin-inspired fantasy, the first in a series. I can’t remember where I first heard about this series, but it’s the sort of thing I love. I saw this in the library and remembered someone rating it highly so I picked it up. If I don’t get to it, I won’t mind too much.

9) Phoenix Extravagant by Yoon Ha Lee

I read Yoon Ha Lee’s Machineries of Empire series a few years ago and absolutely loved it. I’ve heard mixed things about this fantasy novel, but I really want to give it a try. It is available on the library ebook system, though, so it doesn’t matter if I don’t get to the physical copy before I move.

10) The Vanished Birds by Simon Jimenez

This book came highly recommended by my friend Angela from the BookTube channel Literature Science Alliance. It’s another Latin-inspired fantasy and one I’m super keen to get to. It is also available as an ebook from the library so I don’t need to prioritise it.

11) Men We Reaped by Jesmyn Ward

This is the only non-fiction on the list, so if I’ve finished the other non-fiction things I’m currently reading then I may get to this one. It’s one I heard about on a podcast bookclub called The Stacks, so I want to read it so I can listen to them talk about it on the podcast. It is another that I can read on the online system, though.

12) The Summer Seaside Kitchen by Jenny Colgan

Jenny Colgan is a new favourite author I discovered last year. She writes chaste romances and they are always really sweet. This is the first in a series where I own the fourth, but as she’s such a popular author there are loads of copies of her books in the library system. She is also an author that I let myself buy if I see her books in charity shops, as I know I’ll reread them. If I do manage to read all of these, I also have the second book from the series, The Endless Beach, out currently too.

So that’s it. That’s all my current library loans that I’m hoping to read in May. What are you planning to read?