July 2017 Book Haul


Hi there! As the title says, I'm now going to show you aaall the pretty books I got in July, and as this was the month my order from the Folio Society Summer Sale arrived, this haul is an extra exciting one :) I am very happy with all the books I got, so I hope you enjoy the beautiful goodness that is ahead of you 😍  You will have seen all of these already if you follow me on Instagram, but I included some extra shots of the books' insides here.




The first book I got this month isn't from the Folio Society. It's still absolutely beautiful, however, and I'm so glad I treated myself to the Waterstones exclusive gift edition, which is blue instead of green. It's just so stunning! I didn't buy this only because of the cover, though. The premise sounds very interesting and intriguing, too. In this book, we follow a widow who recently lost her husband and moves from London to Essex, with her son and his nanny. She chooses to go there because of her interest in natural history, as she has heard about fossils being found on the coast of Essex. There are also rumours of a dragon-like serpent inhabiting the river and scaring the populace. The narrative apparently takes place around the 1890s, and is said to explore how different characters confront new ideas and discoveries. This sounded so fascinating to me, I just had to get it!


The following books are all the ones I got from the Folio Society Summer Sale! 



This is Nineveh and Babylon by Austen H. Layard. I recently read the epic of Gilgamesh and some other short, incomplete texts from Assyria and its surroundings, all of which I found absolutely fascinating. When I saw this book for half-price, then, I just had to get it. It's a non-fiction about the discovery of the Assyrian citadel of Nineveh in 1842. Up till then, Nineveh had, apparently, been a mythical place like Atlantis, known from texts but never found and thus considered to be either a fictional fabrication or lost forever. This alone made the book sound terribly exciting to me; How fascinating to read about the first discovery of such a place! I'm getting really into archeology, the enthusiasm and passion with which these books are often written is so inspiring and makes me really happy :)





And then this book is full of these beautiful photographs. I just can't wait to read it, and am considering reading it for the Tome Topple Read-A-Thon: it is a huge tome after all  :)                                                                              
















This next book is along the same lines: Troy and its Remains by Heinrich Schliemann. I wanted to get this for ages and was so happy to find it in the Sale :) It is the account of how the German archeologist, Schliemann, discovered the remains of homeric Troy. Again, as far as I know, the city was never really discovered until then. This book shows what Schliemann found when he followed the literary map offered by the Iliad. The Folio Society website describes it as 'a story of adventure, obsession and discovery'. Doesn't that sound amazing? I have been fascinated by Troy ever since I saw the movie with Orlando Bloom when I was younger (I actually hoped to discover Troy myself..Alas, this book proves that I'm a little late, I guess 😁), and can't wait to dive into this book soon:)





Isn't it just stunning? This is The Time Traveller's Guide to Medieval England by Ian Mortimer. The title is pretty self-explanatory, so I'm not going to say a lot about it. It looks like a very nice and easy to read overview of the English Middle Ages, with absolutely perfect illustrations. It's so colourful and I think it will be a fascinating and instructing read, covering many topics. I'm keen on not only reading about royalty, but also the lives of the general populace, the customs and beliefs of the time!



I hope you're not yet tired of seeing history books here, because here follows another one :) This one is Restoration London by Liza Picard. To tell you briefly what this is about, let me give you another quotation from the Folio Society website, where this beautiful book is described as 'A marvellous, kaleidoscopic social history of London during the 1660s, from Pepys to the Great Fire'. Just like The Time Traveller's Guide, this sounds like a fascinating and instructive read, not only about the kings and queens of England, but about the people and their lives. English history is one of my favourite topics to learn about, and as I'm going to start my master's degree in Anglophone literature soon, I really can't read enough about it! :) 


And just look at these beautiful endpapers and pictures inside the book!! 😍😍














Did you think these were all the historical non-fictions I got this month? No, but I promise this one is the last. You will understand why I just had to get it when you look at the beautiful cover and those amazing picture plates below! It's Feudal Society by Marc Bloch. Again, the title is quite self-explanatory: it is an examination of the social bonds in medieval societies. It's the most intimidating book of this haul, I think, because it sounds like it might be a bit dry in some parts. The topic is still extremely interesting, though, and I feel that learning more about history is always helpful for my studies. And did I mention how beautiful this book is? If nothing else, it should be a very atmospheric read :)





















So these were the history books I got, but luckily the haul doesn't end here. Keep in mind that I got all these books for half-price, and I treated myself to so many of these beautiful books to reward myself for finishing my bachelor thesis. So excessive book buying should be excused in this case, right? 😅

This stunning book is Orlando by Virginia Woolf. I have never read anything by her, yet, but this book was mentioned so many times by several of my teachers, I thought it was about time to remedy that. It sounds like a very interesting piece of feminist literature, and as I have been thinking about delving more into the realm of gender studies, this seemed like the perfect opportunity.







There are also several beautiful paintings in this edition, isn't it just perfect?


















The Last Man by Mary Shelley is another FS edition I have been eyeing for ages. I was so happy to get this in the sale! If you scroll down, you will know why: it is illustrated with paintings of Caspar David Friedrich, whom I remembered from school as the artist of the Romantic period. I have to admit that these paintings were what first made me want to buy this book. I do love Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, but have never heard about this apocalyptic novel before. It sounds very intriguing, though, and if it is in any way as poignant, thought-provoking and thrilling as Frankenstein, it should be a fantastic book. I'm so looking forward to reading this one, the illustrations look so eerie and atmospheric, it looks like it will really take one away to a different place :)


And last, but certainly not least, the free gift the Folio Society kindly send me with my first order from them. It is called Cider with Rosie and written by Laurie Lee. I admit that I have neither heard of this novel, nor of this author before, but I'm very grateful for this kind gift and might look into it at some point. It's just such a nice touch of the Folio Society to give you a free book for your first order :)








The illustrations look quite intriguing, don't they?



















Phew these were quite a few books. Congratulations if you actually made it through this post and thank you so much for reading! Some of these are still available on http://www.foliosociety.com/, in case you're interested in any of them. You can also find out more about who the illustrators for each of the books are there, I didn't include that information here as this post is already very long.
Did you get any books in the Sale, or have you read any of these already? What were some of the books you got in July? 😊💕

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