August 2021 Wrap-Up || Lots of Comics, Lots of Horror

Hello again! I took a bit of a break in July from a lot of things. Which may or may not be linked to me downloading TikTok. Because of that, I only ended up reading one book in July, which was The Bell Jar. I have to say, that might not have been the best decision I’ve ever made considering it was my birthday month and summer- my least favorite season. But that’s all done, and I’m finally back with some more bookish content. So here is all the stuff that I read in the month of August!

In the Miso Soup by Ryū Murakami, Ralph McCarthy (Translator) ★★★☆☆ : I 100% do not recommend this book for people not already into horror novels or movies. Ever since getting interested in the world of Japanese horror last year, I have been wanting to pick up a book by  Ryū Murakami . It definitely did live up to the claim that it was shocking and generally vile. Loneliness and isolation permeates every crevice of this novel and the mood of it all made me feel very weird (and perhaps a bit queasy) for the couple of nights I read it. I did “enjoy” reading it and slowly discovering what was happening, but beyond shocking, especially with a certain scene (major warning for gore), it felt like there was something missing.

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson ★★★★★ : This was my favorite read of August and was a story that lingered in my mind throughout the month. While I don’t think Shirley Jackson is for everyone, her brand of meandering, quiet horror is one that I absolutely love. The line, “Journeys end in lovers meeting,” continues to echo in my mind along with all the possible meanings that it could have in the context of this story. The loneliness that the main character, Eleanor, experiences was so viscerally identifiable in myself…I just want to read it again as soon as possible and visit those creaking halls of Hill House once again.

Velvet Was the Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia ★★★☆☆ : ARC provided by the publisher through NetGalley.  Goodreads Review

Lobizona by Romina Garber ★★1/2☆☆ : Unfortunately, I really didn’t enjoy this one. There were so many plotholes, too many on-page sports games, unbelievable insta-love. The beginning chapters were intruiging and I liked where it was going, but didn’t love where it ended up.

Hunger by Roxane Gay &  I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness by Austin Channing Brown: Memoirs are hard to review, but these were solid and offered a valuable perspective different from my own. I’m glad I finally read these memoirs and would highly recommend the audiobooks of them!

Lovesickness by Junji Ito, Jocelyne Allen (Translator)  ★★★★☆ | Uzumaki by Junji Ito, Yuji Oniki (Translator) ★★★★☆ : These were solid, freaky horror stories by the infamous Junji Ito. There are some images from his mangas that will probably live in my head forever and most of them are from Uzumaki. Yikes.

The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys by Gerard Way , Shaun Simon , Becky Cloonan (Illustrator) ★★★☆☆ : I got deep into reigniting my tween fascination with Gerard Way last month, which of course included reading/watching a bunch of stuff he created (as well as breaking out my Gash Urban Decay eyeshadow that he used during the Black Parade tour). Anyway, this is a graphic novel featuring the world created for My Chemical Romance’s concept album, Danger Days. It was honestly a bit of a letdown. There was a lot going on here…I’m still not sure how I feel about it because it was so all over the place. I still love you, Gerard.

Blue is the Warmest Color by Julie Maroh ★★★☆☆ : This was alright. It was a quick read, but I wish we would have been given more. I feel like that’s the case with a lot of graphic novels, so maybe the problem is just me needing to alter my expectations when reading them.

August was quite odd and I’m glad to finally be living in the month of September. It’s basically Halloween. I’m hoping to carve out some time to focus a bit more on this blog and check out other blogs for some reading inspiration, so let me know what your favorite read was last month or what you are reading right now. Thanks for reading! ♡