Is it just me or did August fly by? It was such a hot month, so I’m not sorry to see it go. Since I stayed inside for much of the time, I did get a lot of reading done. But now it’s September and I’m so ready for the fall to start! The weather already feels better, and I have been enjoying my pumpkin spice lattes. Now to wait for the leaves to change and the temps to drop.

This year I vowed to focus on my goals for the year. So here we go:

• My blog following is still growing. I reached another milestone in July — 410 followers!
• I have been consistently scheduling blog posts for 6 months, and I honestly can’t see myself going back to scrambling for last minute posts anymore.
• I’m getting close to finishing a first draft of my WIP, but I’m dragging my feet on it. I just don’t feel ready to let it go yet, if that makes any sense?
• I haven’t made much progress on reading the books I own compared to the books I buy or check out from the library. Maybe it’s time to focus on that in the last part of the year.

Here’s my breakdown of monthly/cumulative totals for August:

August Totals:

• Books read: 27
• Books DNF’d: 2
• Pages read: 5,997
• Hours listened: 87 hours, 26 minutes, 15 seconds
• Average pages: 374.8
• Average hours listened: 8 hours, 44 minutes, 38 seconds

Cumulative Averages:

• Days per book: 2.99
• Pages read per day: 185.82
• Books read per month: 24.43
• DNF’d books per month: 0.75

Genres Read in August:

• Biography/Memoir: 1
• Fantasy: 8
• General Fiction: 4
• Historical Fiction: 5
• Mystery/Suspense: 5
• Play/Theater: 1
• Romance/Erotica: 1
• Social Sciences: 1
• Travel/Food: 1

Backlist vs. New Releases:

• Backlist books: 11
• 2021 releases: 16

Fiction Vs. Non-Fiction:

• Fiction: 24
• Nonfiction: 3

Format Read:

• Print: 11
• Digital: 5
• Audio: 11

Age Range:

• Adult: 14
• YA: 12
• MG: 1

My favorite books of the month were The Last Nomad by Shugri Said Salh and Kate in Waiting by Becky Albertalli.

Here’s what I read in August:

• Hunting Prince Dracula by Kerri Maniscalco (Stalking Jack the Ripper #2) 
• Tristan Strong Destroys the World by Kwame Mbalia (Tristan Strong #2) 
• Travel Hacks by Keith Bradford (ARC)
• The Last Nomad by Shugri Said Salh (ALC)
• People Love Dead Jews by Dara Horn (ARC)
• A Constellation of Roses by Miranda Asebedo
• Kate in Waiting by Becky Albertalli

• Two Can Keep a Secret by Karen M. McManus 
• These Feathered Flames by Alexandra Overy (These Feathered Flames #1)
• Cazadora by Romina Garber (Wolves of No World #2) (ARC)
• Velvet Was the Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (ARC)
• The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater (The Raven Cycle #2)
• Chain of Iron by Cassandra Clare (The Last Hours #2) 

• There Came a Contagion by Doug Ingold (ARC) 
• A Slow Fire Burning by Paula Hawkins (ALC)
• Assembly by Natasha Brown (ALC)
• Hot Six by Janet Evanovich (Stephanie Plum #6)
• So Many Beginnings: A Little Women Remix by Bethany C. Morrow (ARC)

• The Great Glorious Goddamn of It All by Josh Ritter (ALC)
• Strange Beasts of China by Yan Ge (ALC)

• Macbeth by William Shakespeare (No Fear Shakespeare)
• Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney (ALC)

• The Happiest Girl in the World by Alena Dillon

• Savage Tongues by Azareen Van der Vliet Oloomi (ALC)
• Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty (ALC)

• Lobizona by Romina Garber (Wolves of No World #1) – reread
• A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik (The Scholomance #1) – reread
• The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker (Women of Troy #1) – reread

How was your reading for August? Are you excited for the fall?