All the books I read in May 2023

May was a busy month for me as I went to Blackpool, Gent, Lille, Birmingham and as well multiple trips to Oxford. I still always find time to read. I am grateful for Goodreads cause it helps me keep track of books I have read and in the process of reading. I think I take on too much sometimes and get burned out.

I loved the Disney film. Frollo is one of the best written Disney villains and Hellfire is wonderfully crafted song. So have read this before but it was a long time ago and I couldn’t remember much of it other than characters dying. Reading it again makes it very obvious how different the book and Disney film are, and they very separate universes all together. I still loved Esmeralda in this book, and loved Frollo’s character arc too. I despised Phoebus in the book even more cause of how heroric he is perceived in the film. I didn’t realise this until reading the book that Phoebus in the movies is merged between Phoebus in the books and another guy. The characters that do survive don’t get very happy endings.

It does feel like a love letter to Notre Dame cathedral. I often wonder would the buildings still be standing today if it was not for this novel.

For my birthday I stayed in a city called Gent in Belgium. I went in a day trip to Lille in France which was lovely. Whilst waiting for my flights I read these two books. I never actually paid for them and just read them in the store. Nobody seemed bothered. Denmark and Finland are two countries I really want to go to.

No matter how many times I read The Color Purple it always moves me. The letters always get to me. I am glad it’s considered a modern classic because it’s raw, dark and powerful. I have never seen the movie, but Whoopi Goldberg is one of my favourite actresses so I am considering it. My nan used to own the film on VHS amongst other films she’s been a part off.

I read this on the bus to Oxford. I read it in a day. I just remember seeing the cover online and feeling like I had to buy it. I know they say you shouldn’t judge books by covers, but let’s be honest; we do! I really loved this book and found the twin characters interesting and how different their lives turned out and how they came over their controlling matriartic figure.

When I get the chance I do download a lot of free books on Amazon on my kindle: though some of them I do not finish or get to read until ages later. This comic was one of those books. I don’t remember much about it, but I heard the games were good. It was a short book and I liked the art style but I didn’t feel anything towards it.

Anyone who knows me knows I love Japanese culture and history in general. So listening to this audiobook was fun. I think the narration could have added more emotion, but the tales were interesting and it made me think of some modern mascots that have been inspired by these mythical creatures.

This is one of the rare e-books that I actually bought. I like the cover and fancied something different so I went for regency romance. The author is from Oxfordshire and was showcasing her work at the indie book fair in Oxford so I knew I would enjoy it. I liked the book cause of the Jane Austen vibes. I didn’t actually finish it until June, but I started reading it May so I guess that counts towards the last book.