2018 Book Haul

Last year I made the decision to track my own bookish spendings, and discovered I bought far more books than I thought I did. This year I decided to do the same, and have it all wrapped up in a single post. My goal for 2018 was to buy fewer books than in 2017, buuuut it didn't exactly go to plan. In fact, I was much, much worse.

The above picture is only of the physical books I bought this year, and it doesn't even fit on one bookshelf! I definitely gave myself a bad start by buying two hardcover books at the start of the year when I could have just as easily bought the paperback editions. But I'm such a sucker for a pretty cover and I couldn't resist the lovely golden covers of Strange the Dreamer and The Hazel Wood. As the months went on, I was doing okay in terms of spending. I wasn't sure I was going to stick to my goal of staying under £100, but I was certain I would spend less than the £140 I did in 2017.

What I didn't account for was YALC. This was my third year attending the convention, so I should have known better. I spent far more than I had planned - more so than in previous years. What can I say? Put me in a bookish environment for a weekend and I am weak.

There was also just a lot of book purchases that I didn't necessarily have to make. I didn't need to buy my own copies of the Chaos Walking trilogy because they're in my library. I didn't need the new editions of Alice Oseman's books because I already had them. I didn't need to buy the UK collector's edition of Vicious when I already loved my copy dearly, and I could have waited to buy the paperback edition of Vengeful in a year's time. But they're all so pretty and the spines look so nice on my shelves and I love all the books so in my mind they were sensible purchases.

Books I Bought

1. The True History of the Kelly Gang by Peter Carey (audible, unread)
2. Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil deGrasse Tyson (audible, read)
3. Turtles All the Way Down by John Green (kindle, unread)
4. Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow (kindle, unread)
5. Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor (physical, unread)

6. The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert (physical, read)
7. The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness (physical, read)
8. The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness (physical, read)
9. Monsters of Men by Patrick Ness (physical, read)
10. The New Moon's Arms by Nalo Hopkinson (kindle, read)

11. Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi (physical, read)
12. Release by Patrick Ness (physical, read)
13. Drown by Junot Diaz (kindle, read)
14. Starfish by Akemi Dawn Bowman (physical, read)
15. Solitaire by Alice Oseman (physical, read)

16. Radio Silence by Alice Oseman (physical, read)
17. I Was Born for This by Alice Oseman (physical, read)
18. Smoke and Iron by Rachel Caine (kindle, unread)
19. Restore Me by Tahereh Mafi (kindle, read)
20. American Panda by Gloria Chao (physical, read)

21. Only Love Can Break Your Heart by Katherine Webber (physical, read)
22. Not Your Sidekick by C.B. Lee (physical, read)
23. Not Your Villain by C.B. Lee (physical, read)
24. Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli (physical, read)
25. Bright We Burn by Kiersten White (physical, read)

26. A Skinfull of Shadows by Frances Hardinge (physical, unread)
27. In Paris With You by Clementine Beauvoir (physical, unread)
28. Before I Let Go by Marieke Nijkamp (physical, unread)
29. The Girl in the Well Is Me by Karen Rivers (physical, unread)
30. Here to Stay by Sara Farizan (physical, unread)

31. The Serpent King by Jeff Zentner (physical, unread)
32. Goodbye Days by Jeff Zentner (physical, unread)
33. The Cruel Prince by Holly Black (kindle, unread)
34. Vicious by V.E. Schwab (physical, read)
35. Vengeful by V.E. Schwab (physical, read)

36. City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab (physical, read)
37. The Queen Of The Tearling by Erika Johansen (kindle, unread)
38. A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi (physical, read)
39. What If It's Us by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera (physical, read)
40. To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han (physical, unread)
41. Gmorning, Gnight! by Lin Manuel Miranda (physical, unread)
42. The Adventure Zone: Here There Be Gerblins by Carey Pietsch, Clint McElrory, Justin McElrory, Travis McElrory, and Griffin McElrory (physical, unread)

Overall, I got 42 books in 2018, amounting to £183.84 spent. This is over £40 more than last year, even though both years I bought a similar number of books.

My goal for 2019 is once again to spend under £100, and I am promising myself that I will not buy more than 20 books for the whole year. Of that £100, £20 of it will be reserved for YALC. I hope that by setting a specific spending limit in advance, I will be better at sticking to it when the time comes!

Conclusion: I have no chill when it comes to books.

Have you read any of these books? What were your thoughts? How many books have you bought in 2018? What are your favourites?