A selection of quotes and pictures to represent August’s reading:
commonplace book
noun
a book into which notable extracts from other works are copied for personal use.
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“We all wear masks,” he said, in a voice that was soft but impossible to ignore. “Every single one of us. And for different reasons. Some, to conceal. Others, to deceive. But masks are funny things. The very presence of a mask tells us there is something behind it.”
The House at Devil’s Neck by Tom Mead (2025)
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“No, my friend, I am not drunk. I have just been to the dentist, and need not return for another six months! Is it not the most beautiful thought?”
One, Two, Buckle My Shoe by Agatha Christie (1940)
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Dummy boards by Georg David Matthieu
Did evil have wants and needs? Surely not, surely that would make it too human. No longer a tug from the depths of the abyss, but something sentient that could surface in anyone.
The Silent Companions by Laura Purcell (2017)
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Karma is a natural consequence. Badness accrues. It affects the way you live your life, how you perceive the world. When you do evil things, you see the world as petty and selfish and cruel.
Katabasis by RF Kuang (2025)
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“My goodness, are you all one family?”
“Yes, all one family,” Henny spoke up. “I’m Henrietta, Henny for short; I’m ten. Ella’s twelve, Sarah is eight, Charlotte is six and Gertie is four.”
“A step-and-stairs family!” The librarian laughed and the tiny freckles on her pert nose seemed to laugh with her.
“That’s a good name for us,” said Ella. “Some people call us an all-of-a-kind family.”
All-of-a-Kind-Family by Sydney Taylor (1951)
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Lamorna, Cornwall
I also toyed with the idea of installing electricity, but Vow Cave was ‘four poles’ away from the nearest house, and the cost was prohibitive. Since then I have sometimes wondered whether this absence of electricity was not a blessing in disguise: does not a dwelling without it breathe more freely? Some of the tension of modern life is due, I think, to the fact that people surround themselves day and night with the pulsations of electricity in one form or other.
The Living Stones: Cornwall by Ithell Colquhoun (1957)
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Favourite books read in August:
The Silent Companions and All-of-a-Kind Family
Authors read for the first time in August:
RF Kuang, Sydney Taylor
Places visited in my August reading:
England, US, Hell
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Reading notes: I didn’t finish as many books as usual in August, for various reasons, but on a more positive note I completed the 20 Books of Summer challenge for only the second time in my nine years of participating. I’ll be posting a summary of the challenge next week, but for now I can say that being flexible is the key to success!
In September (and October), I’m looking forward to joining in with RIP (Readers Imbibing Peril). It’s the 20th year of RIP and it has been hosted by @perilreaders on Instagram for the last few years, but I’ve noticed plenty of book bloggers still taking part as well. I won’t be posting a list in advance, but I have plenty of dark, spooky reads lined up for the next two months!
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How was your August? Do you have any plans for September?
She Reads Novels 
Ouf, have you read the Kuang then? I’m hoping to get through it for RIP XX in the next few weeks! But congrats on completing your twenty titles, all good reads I’m sure. 🙂
I just finished the Kuang this morning and will need to pull my thoughts together to write a review. I can’t say I loved it, but it was interesting and different!
haha, I love Hell as a place you’ve visited! Congratulations on finishing your 20 books of summer, that’s very impressive and I also love the quotation from Poirot, he’s absolutely right, of course!
Thank you! I hadn’t expected to finish 20 Books of Summer as I almost never do! And yes, the Poirot quote is very true.
I keep a commonplace book. I like it that you shared it with us.
Thanks, Deb!
England, US, Hell – haha! A different kind of journey this month!
It’s certainly different reading a whole book set in hell! I’m hoping for more pleasant travels in my September reading.
Oh, I loved the All of a Kind Family series as a kid!
I hadn’t come across it until an American blogger recommended it. I’m sure I would have loved it as a kid!
Love those first two quotes! Those are two books I’m looking forward to reading myself. 😀
I hope you get to read them soon!
Hey Helen, while your numbers were lower, still looks like a good month of reading, and well done on completing 20 Books of Summer! 🥳 I finished 3 books in August and have two books I am carrying over into September. I am also looking forward to joining in with RIP XX too. 🎃
Blessings, Jessica 💌
Thank you, Jessica! I’m pleased that I managed to complete 20 Books of Summer for only the second time. I hope we both enjoy our RIP XX reading!