A selection of quotes and pictures to represent October’s reading:

commonplace book
noun
a book into which notable extracts from other works are copied for personal use.

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But…the world is a difficult and dangerous place, they say. Everywhere it is the same. They say that over the seas, to the west and to the east, there is very much beauty: in the land, and the weather, the plants and the animals; it seems very strange and magical. But even in these different and magical places, the people are the same.

The Water Child by Mathew West (2023)

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‘Discoveries come readily when your mind is joyful and open.’

The Wayward Sisters by Kate Hodges (2023)

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‘I suppose duty is facing each situation as it arises,’ he went on, ‘doing what’s right, what’s best all round, I mean for the people involved in each circumstance, the people who’ll be affected by what you do.’

Due to a Death by Mary Kelly (1962)

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She dreamed, without being really asleep, of arctic seas, of monstrous tunnels through hillsides fringed with icicles. Her travelling companion, who had grown a long tail and a pair of horns, offered her cakes the size of grand pianos and coloured scarlet, blue, and green; when she bit into them she found they were made of snow.

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken (1962)

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‘I felt she spoke the truth, but how will I ever know? Once you learn that someone has built a life on lies – it’s impossible to pick out the truths.’

The Black Feathers by Rebecca Netley (2023)

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The Rector, coming into the room and learning what was the subject under discussion, said that since the world began each generation had condemned the manners and customs of the next.

The Nonesuch by Georgette Heyer (1962)

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People over forty can seldom be permanently convinced of anything. At eighteen our convictions are hills from which we look; at forty-five they are caves in which we hide.

From Bernice Bobs Her Hair by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Where All Good Flappers Go by various authors (2023)

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It’s a paradoxical state of mind that afflicts the magician’s audience – they both want and do not want to be fooled.

The Murder Wheel by Tom Mead (2023)

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But what did the opinion of the world matter beside my own conscience? What course of action would allow me to look in the mirror with any degree of confidence or pride?

Scarlet Town by Leonora Nattrass (2023)

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Favourite books read in October:

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase and Scarlet Town

Authors read for the first time in October:

Mary Kelly, Rebecca Netley, Kate Hodges – and twelve more new authors all from Where All Good Flappers Go (review to follow soon!)

Places visited in my October reading:

England, Portugal, America, Scotland

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Reading notes: October was a good month for me in terms of reading. I read three books for 1962 Club and six more from my NetGalley shelf – now I just need to catch up on writing the reviews!

November is always a very busy month in the book blogging world, with Nonfiction November, Novellas in November, German Literature Month and Margaret Atwood Month all taking place at the same time. I’m sure there are others that I’ve missed! I have some novellas lined up to read this month, but not sure what else I’ll have time for.

How was your October? Do you have any plans for your November reading?