Book Haul: MNL to SIN Stash Part 4

Happy Labor Day, everyone! May 1 is a holiday both in Manila and Singapore. I took advantage of that fact, claimed two vacation days and flew to Manila for the weekend. I got back in Singapore this morning. I had a great time in Manila and I always feel like the time I spend there is never enough – I guess that’s usually the case when you only get to see friends and family once in a while. Anyway, I wanted to share with all of you the books that I’ve acquired the past few days.

Right before I left for my flight to Manila, I saw a package waiting for me in our mailbox. It contained a signed copy of Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco Stork. My blogging buddy Holly is good friends with Francisco and through that connection, I’ve started exchanging emails with him some time ago. He is such a kind and amazing person that it comes as no surprise that I’ve enjoyed talking to him about random things, not just about books and writing. I’m a bit embarrassed to admit that I’ve never read any of his books. That’s going to change soon! I’ve heard nothing but good things about Marcelo in the Real World so I’m pretty excited to read it. I’d like to thank Francisco for being generous enough to send me a copy of it.

During the weekend, I had dinner with a good friend and she mentioned that she hasn’t given me a gift for my birthday yet and that we should drop by Fully Booked so I can pick something. No arguments from my end!

My favorite branch of Fully Booked – several floors of bookish goodness.

She ended up getting How to Save a Life by Sara Zarr, a washi tape roll featuring sea creatures and plain old scotch tape for me. She couldn’t resist adding the scotch tape to the mix, saying that “it’s a classic” compared to washi tape.

Now this isn’t book-related but most of you seem to enjoy seeing my washi tape rolls so I wanted to show these as well. I asked some of my friends to order washi tape rolls from Hey Kessy and Bee Happy Crafts and we had a washi swap (my friend made the washi-covered clips):

More rolls to add to my collection! Which one is your favorite?

Pretty cute, aren’t they? When I have some free time, I’m going to try and make washi postcards. Moving back to books, I’ve noticed that lately, I’ve been reading more contemporary than fantasy novels so I grabbed these three titles from my own bookshelf to bring back with me to Singapore:

Rebel by R.J. Anderson
Arrow by R.J. Anderson
Elfland by Freda Warrington

I now have way too many unread books in my bookshelf here in the flat. Which is why I only grabbed three books from my bookshelf even though I could have fit more in my luggage. I found it a bit surprising that I didn’t end up buying books even though I visited several bookstores. But then again, I haven’t even read all of the books that I brought from my last trip home.

I got a book in Yosemite for my six-year-old godson and he liked it so much that he gave me a card to thank me:

When I got back to the flat, I also had a Hawaii postcard waiting for me:

What about you, got any interesting books, postcards or washi tape lately? Hope you’re having a good week so far. The great thing about this week is I only have to go to the office for two days. By the way, I’m planning to change my blog header soon so watch out for that.

Book Haul: Kinokuniya Part 2

Kinokuniya was having a sale last weekend and since my flatmates are members, I went with them to see if I could take advantage of the 20% discount. I know I keep harping on how expensive books are here and I usually rather buy copies in Manila for UK or US editions that are also available there. So when bookstores have sales here, I usually aim for books that I can’t get back home or through Book Depository like Aussie titles. Most of the ones I wanted were out of stock but it made me happy that Paper Chains by Nicola Moriarty was there.

I’ve been wanting to read Nicola Moriarty’s books for a while now and I’m glad I will finally be able to try her writing. I got an extra copy to swap with my friend Maggie of Young Adult Anonymous, I know she’s a fan of Aussie fiction as well.

I was walking around the bookstore, trying to decide what else to get and I was just thinking that it would be great if I could find books similar to Laura Florand’s since I enjoy reading her books so much. Lo and behold, The Loveliest Chocolate Shop in Paris by Jenny Colgan pops up! I knew it was a sign that I should grab a copy. It’s rare for me to buy a book just based on the cover and synopsis because I usually rely on reviews from fellow book bloggers. Let’s see if this lives up to my expectations.

That’s a French-themed postcard made out of washi tape right beside the book. What about the rest of you, have you bought or borrowed any books lately?

Meeting Mina in Singapore

Mina V. Esguerra, author of some of my favorite Filipino fiction novels, is here in Singapore for the weekend. She’s on vacation with her family and I was glad that she made time to meet up with me. We decided to meet in front of the National Library because their hotel was near there:

It was my first time to visit the National Library and I had to go inside to return (unread) books. Of course, I couldn’t resist borrowing some of the titles that I’ve been wanting to read:

Blame It On Paris by Laura Florand
Peaches by Jodi Lynn Anderson
The Secret of Peaches by Jodi Lynn Anderson
The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson (our next YAckers read)

Let’s see if I can read all of these before they’re due. I really should visit the National Library more often! They have better stocks that the library near our flat. We had dinner at the nearby mall (sorry, no pictures of our Japanese dinner and cupcakes for dessert) and here’s Little Boss, Mina and me:

I’m so glad I got to see you while you’re here, Mina! Had fun chatting with you and M. Hope you enjoy your vacation in Singapore.

If you haven’t read any of Mina’s books, feel free to check out my reviews:
Fairy Tale Fail
Interim Goddess of Love, Queen of the Clueless
My Imaginary Ex, Love Your Frenemies
No Strings Attached, That Kind of Guy

You can even get Smashwords discount coupons through this link.

2013 California Book Haul

I was pretty excited by the fact that books are a lot more affordable in the States than in Singapore. Sometimes, books are even cheaper than their list prices when you order them off Amazon. I visited Barnes and Noble several times but didn’t get anything because I realized I would save more if I got them from Amazon. I had such a hard time deciding which books to get but finally narrowed it down to the following:

Star Crossed by Jennifer Echols
The Chocolate Thief by Laura Florand
The Chocolate Kiss by Laura Florand
House of Shadows by Rachel Neumeier
Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery

I look forward to trying out Jennifer Echols’ adult novel, I hope it’s just as good as her YA books. The Laura Florand books were recommended by Michelle when we met up. I wanted to get a fantasy book in this stash and I’ve heard good things about House of Shadows so that made me curious. Eleanor & Park was a no-brainer given how much I enjoyed Attachments, I don’t have matching editions for these two but that doesn’t really matter. I’ve been looking for a copy of The Blue Castle for AGES but I was kind of disappointed when I saw that this edition isn’t a proper paperback – it looks kind of like a textbook.

These three I got during my meet ups with Maggie and Michelle:

The Reece Malcolm List by Amy Spalding
Story of a Girl by Sara Zarr
The Hypnotist’s Love Story by Liane Moriarty

Last but not the least, guess who walked into a grocery store and came out with a book? I couldn’t resist when I saw The Best Man by Kristan Higgins.

I think this is a pretty good haul, I didn’t have to worry about going beyond my luggage limit. I would have loved to get more but I had to be practical about the cost and how I’ll take these back to Singapore. I’m excited to read all of these!

Book Haul: Kinokuniya

I wasn’t having such a great work week so I thought it would be a good idea to drop by the bookstore to cheer myself up. Also, I still have gift vouchers I received last Christmas and I wanted to use them. I saw four books that I was interested in but since they’re a lot more expensive here, I decided to just get these two lovelies:

Just One Day by Gayle Forman (SGD 14.87)
A Face Like Glass by Frances Hardinge (SGD 25.89)

As you all know, I’ve been wanting to get a copy of Just One Day since it was released so I’m really looking forward to reading this. I’m trying to decide if I should start it already or wait until the weekend so I can read it in one day. I read and loved The Lost Conspiracy and I’ve been meaning to read more of Frances Hardinge’s books but I just haven’t gotten the chance. A Face Like Glass has an intriguing premise and I’ve seen it pop up in other bloggers’ best of 2012 lists.

Looking forward to reading these two books! I’m not planning to borrow any books from the library until after we’ve moved to the new flat so I’m sticking with books that I own for now. I also got this cellphone cover that has a bookish design:

What about you, have you bought any interesting books or other bookish items lately?

Book Haul: December 2012 in Manila

Only a few more minutes left in 2012! Before the year ends, I wanted to squeeze in a book haul post. I’m actually packing for my trip back to Singapore tomorrow and I realized that I haven’t talked about the books that I bought during my vacation. I went a little crazy because books are more affordable here in Manila. Dropped by several Fully Booked branches:

Got these titles by Filipino authors:

Trese 5: Midnight Tribunal by Budjette Tan and Kajo Baldisimo
The Breakup Diaries by Maya Calica
Fairy Tale Fail by Mina V. Esguerra

I bought several copies of both The Breakup Diaries and Fairy Tale Fail and gave them as Christmas gifts to friends. I also grabbed these Dorothy Sayers titles, featuring Lord Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane:

Have His Carcase by Dorothy Sayers
Gaudy Night by Dorothy Sayers
Busman’s Honeymoon by Dorothy Sayers

I was pleasantly surprised by these trade paperback editions because I was expecting the black and white mass market paperbacks. I think these are much nicer. I just finished reading Strong Poison and hopefully, I can review it on the blog soon. Looking forward to reading the rest of the books in the series, I keep hearing good things about the characters. I also got these two contemporary titles:

My Most Excellent Year by Steve Kluger
Attachments by Rainbow Rowell

Love the cover for Attachments, My Most Excellent Year’s cover could have been better. Last but not the least, I got a copy of this young adult fantasy novel:

Vessel by Sarah Beth Durst

I’m excited to read all of these! I just need to be creative in packing my stuff so I can include all of these and add more books from my own bookshelf. Happy New Year’s Eve, everyone! Off to watch the fireworks in our neighborhood.

12/12/12: A Day of Books and Shirts

It’s December 12, 2012! I wasn’t planning on putting up a post today until I dropped by the post office after work. I got a notice to pick up a package that couldn’t fit into the mailbox. I thought it was my latest Threadless order but I was pleasantly surprised to discover that it wasn’t! Turns out, it’s a package from my YAckers Secret Santa.

I know I haven’t talked about YAckers here on the blog, I was waiting for my first book discussion with them before bringing it up but the Secret Santa came first so here we are. Basically, it’s a YA book club with awesome members. Check out the YAckers site for more info and feel free to go through the list of books that have been YAcked. I’m so glad I was able to join the Secret Santa. Anyway, these are the contents of the package when I opened it up:

I already had a smile on my face when I saw these because I wasn’t expecting to get several books. Let’s take a moment to appreciate how nicely wrapped the books were:

Penguins and hearts! Aaaaaaaaaand here are the books inside:

For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund
Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini Taylor
Steel’s Edge by Ilona Andrews
Soho Teen 2013 sampler

I had a huge grin by the time I opened the presents. Many, many thanks to my YAcker Secret Santa, Janice! You know me so well, my friend, because I’m super excited to read all of these. The three books are on my wishlist and I’m curious about the Soho Teen sampler. Isn’t Janice a amazingly generous person? This the first Christmas gift that I’ve received this year and I’m more than happy with this surprise package. It really made my day.

Even better, my Threadless order also got delivered tonight. These shirts got added to my growing collection:

Always yes to more bookish shirts. I need to wash and iron these so I can wear them right away. Guess what shirt will I be wearing when I watch The Hobbit this weekend? What about the rest of you, have you started getting any bookish gifts?

Book Haul: Times Book Sale

I veered away from my usual Sunday library visit because my friend invited me to go with her to the book sale organized by Times. Since books are pricey here in Singapore, I wanted to take advantage of the availability of bargain books.

I was delighted to discover that there were several shelves of books in that place and all of them were being sold at a discounted price. So of course, we spent a few hours browsing through everything. I was pleasantly surprised to see novels written by Filipino authors available in the sale:

I was thrilled when I saw this edition of The Queen of Attolia because I don’t have a copy of it yet and one can never have enough copies of one’s favorite books:

Remember when I said that I haven’t bought books for myself ever since I moved here in Singapore? I’ve only purchased books given as gifts to friends. For my own reading, I just borrow from the library. Well, I made up for that with this stash:

Thunder on the Right by Mary Stewart
Wildfire at Midnight by Mary Stewart
The Queen of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner
Kiss It by Erin Downing
Hangman’s Holiday by Dorothy Sayers
Lord Peter Views the Body by Dorothy Sayers
Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde
The Chocolate Run and The Cupid Effect omnibus by Dorothy Koomson

I got all of these for only SGD 32. Not bad, right? I like seeing them all lined up on the shelf in my room. Yay for more books! What about you, what books have you bought or borrowed this week?

Book Haul: Contemporary Stash from the Library

I apologize that the blog has been neglected the past few days, real life has been getting in the way of things. I know that my most recent post was also about a library stash but I just can’t help myself from borrowing books even if I have to return them unread. Sunday library visits are becoming a weekly habit, there’s something about going to the library that I find therapeutic. The same thing happens when I visit a bookstore but since I don’t end up buying anything because books are expensive here, I’d rather go to the library. Here’s my stash for this week, contemporary novels which should be pretty easy to get into:

My One and Only by Kristan Higgins
Chocolate Wishes by Trisha Ashley
The One that I Want by Jennifer Echols
How to Save a Life by Sara Zarr

I’m already reading The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater on my Kindle but I couldn’t resist when I saw it in the library yesterday:

I found a beautiful quote from The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen to explain why I like having books around me even if I don’t get to read all of them:

“Books can be possessive, can’t they? You’re walking around in a bookstore and a certain one will jump out at you, like it had moved there on its own, just to get your attention. Sometimes what’s inside will change your life, but sometimes you don’t even have to read it. Sometimes it’s a comfort just to have a book around. Many of these books haven’t even had their spines cracked. ‘Why do you buy books you don’t even read?’ our daughter asks us. That’s like asking someone who lives alone why they bought a cat. For company, of course.”

What about you, have you gotten any books lately to keep you company?

Book Haul: November 18 Library Stash

Chores kept me busy this Sunday afternoon but I managed to drop by the library when I had to go to the mall for some errands. It’s not obvious in this picture but I like how the library is full during weekends, lots of kids running around, carrying books.

I managed to borrow three books even though I’m still not done reading the ones that I previously borrowed. Here’s hoping that I will manage to read these before the due date rolls around. Like I keep saying, I still find it fun to borrow library books even if I don’t get to read them. Kind of like a bookish security blanket.

Audrey, Wait! by Robin Benway
Firebird by Mercedes Lackey
House of Shadows by Rachel Neumeier

One musically themed contemporary YA and two fantasy novels, all of which are on my wishlist. I will probably end up renewing these because I’ve been a pretty slow reader lately (Goodreads keeps reminding me that I’m behind on my reading challenge).

I also bought these sets of postcards – they’re based on pictures taken by a Singapore photographer. Since I liked it so much, I bought a set that I’d keep for myself and another one that I could send to friends:

Speaking of postcards, I got this from a friend in Manila. Check out the girl reading on the steps of an old building:

Pretty good weekend in terms of what I was able to borrow and buy. What about you, any good books or postcards in your stash? Hope you all had a lovely weekend.