Welcome back to Book Break!
Today I am doing our October book haul
I have a huge box of books in front of me here, and I've got no idea what's inside,
so it's very exciting
Ooh the first one I see is Christmassy, that's getting me in the mood for Christmas already
This is How Winston Delivered Christmas.
So this is just one of our most popular books and now it's out in paperback, this is a really
cute little story about Winston the mouse
and it's got activities throughout it as well
So like here there's a recipe for mince pies
Lovely illustrations throughout
Recipe to make stained glass window biscuits
This is just like a lovely hands on Christmassy book.
OK...
The Secret of Cold Hill, so now we're going much darker than our cute Christmas book
This is a Peter James one.
So this is a ghost story, it's a follow up to The House on Cold Hill but you can read
it on its own, it works as a standalone.
And this is set after Cold Hill House has been burnt down, destroyed by a fire, and
replaced by new development of modern houses.
But whatever was haunting Cold Hill House still lives on here.
Got a lovely Chris Riddell here, Poems to Fall in Love With.
So this is a follow up to his last poetry collection, Poems to Live Your Life By, which
is where he's taken some of his favourite poems and then illustrated and given them
like a whole new lease of life
And now he's done the same thing.
So these poems are all about different forms of love, and I just absolutely love the way
he draws them, and you can really tell how he relates to each poem, and it really brings
it to life for you.
Just a really gorgeous book!
This one, I've heard a lot about, it's been super popular, this is The Order of the Day.
So this is historical fiction, but it's about real meetings that took place in the build
up to the second world war
and it's got real historical figures in it, like Winston Churchill and Neville Chamberlain,
but it's very much fiction, this is a really gripping book about a really important period
of history that changed the world.
Ooh, this is the paperback of a book I loved, this is The Neighbour by Fiona Cummins.
So this is a thriller, set in a small town, a family have just moved in, despite the fact
there have been a series of serial killings in this neighbourhood.
And the story is told turn by turn from the perspectives of the different people who live
in this town.
And you don't know who to suspect.
Everyone's got their own pretty disturbing secrets going on behind closed doors, and
you're trying to figure out which of the neighbours is the serial killer.
It's really tense, really keeps you guessing all the way to the end, I absolutely loved
this one.
OK, this next one is a lovely little book by Ken Follett.
So he decided to write this after the burning of Notre Dame Cathedral which is a building
that he absolutely loves.
Ken Follett is the author of the Kingsbridge books, The Pillars of the Earth is the first
in that and it's all about the building of a cathedral
So this is definitely something that's really close to Ken Follett's heart.
And this book is called here A Short History of the Meaning of Cathedrals
So it's him talking about what Notre Dame and other cathedrals like it mean to us and
why they're so important.
And money from every sale is going to be going to a French charity dedicated to rebuilding
the Notre Dame Cathedral.
Ooh, then we have the new Frances Hardinge, this is Deeplight.
It comes out on Halloween, so it's perfect for this time of year, she always writes such
good dark fantasy.
So this is set in a world that was once ruled by these cruel and mysterious gods that have
now vanished.
And there are relics of them scattered beneath the oceans.
So this book is about two teenage boys who go on dives to try and find relics of the
gods that they can sell.
But on one of their dives, they come across a really dangerous relic that's going to change
their lives forever.
Now the next book I've just seen in this box is our biggest book of the year, this is Me
by Elton John
which is his first and only autobiography.
The whole office has just been so excited about this one
we've had rainbow cakes
we've had spontaneous sing-a-longs
It's been so much fun.
It's just such an exciting book, whether you are a fan of Elton John or just a fan in general
of British music, of rock and roll
It's got so many stories that we, nobody has ever heard before in here
it's just a fantastic read.
OK, I've seen another very Christmassy looking one in here
So this is a Danielle Steel book, Beauchamp Hall, I just learned how to pronounce this
title, it's not what you expect.
So this is about an American woman who after breaking up with her boyfriend and losing
her job and just being in a pretty rubbish time of her life,
impulsively decides to buy a ticket to the UK, to come visit the set of her favourite
show, which is a period drama called Beauchamp Hall.
And it's all about her actually making friends with the cast of the show, and what goes on
behind the scenes becoming just as dramatic and exciting as what goes on on the show.
So this book I think is perfect for fans of Downton Abbey.
And while we're talking about Christmas, here's a lovely new MCL, Poems for Christmas.
So this has got an introduction by Judith Flanders, a lovely illustration on the front
of two little children hanging up their stockings
And it's just a gorgeous collection of books about Christmas!
It's got like christmas carols in here, the words of those written out.
It's got Twas the Night Before Christmas, of course, my favourite one.
This is something I can imagine you sort of sitting down with every night in December
and discovering some new Christmassy poems.
And then the other new MCL to go with that is Poems for Travellers, so this one is a
lovely collection of poems all about different types of travel, different methods of travel,
different places to travel.
If you're not actually going on a holiday for a while, this might be the next best thing.
Another one that everyone's been so excited about that's finally here is Wayward Son by
Rainbow Rowell.
So this is the sequel to Carry On
which is the story about a 'chosen one' wizard and his vampire roommate
who are enemies but then fall in love.
So that was Carry On, that was absolutely beloved,
at the end of that book, spoiler alert, they saved the day, so this book is all about what
happens after you complete your hero's mission
and the answer in this book is you go on a road trip across America with your boyfriend...
who happens to be a vampire.
Ooh I just read this one and I absolutely loved it, this is The Life-Changing Manga
of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo, who is of course the author of The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying
Up
and is the star of that Netflix show.
So this is a manga about a young woman who lives in this very messy flat, and it's all
about her putting Marie Kondo's methods into practice basically
but it's such a charming story
and it's all about how, the reason that her flat is so messy is kind of because she's
lost track a bit of what she actually wants out of life, so she's taken up all these different
hobbies and then given them up
she's had different relationships which have led her to different places in her life
and then with the help of Marie Kondo, she actually makes her flat a space for herself
and works out who she wants to be.
Elle: I think I need to read this book.
Emma: Yeah I know, I read it and then was like fine, I'll go tidy.
Now this next one I'm really excited to read because I've just heard that it's absolutely
beautiful.
So this is The Winter Soldier by Daniel Mason
who wrote The Piano Tuner which also everyone's just been raving about.
So this is historical fiction set in World War One, and it's about a medical doctor
And the author is himself a medical doctor, so he knows a lot about this.
The main thing that everyone's been saying is just that the writing in this book is just
so amazing
So beautiful
So I just am absolutely desperate to read this.
Now sci-fi fans will be really excited about this one, this is Salvation Lost, which is
the second book in the Salvation series by sci-fi master Peter F Hamilton.
So these books are set in the distant future, and there is an alien race called the Olyix,
who are planning to harvest humanity for their god.
And so the humans have to decide are they going to flee or are they going to fight back?
Then there's a new poetry collection from Paul Farley, who is widely regarded as one
of England's finest poets.
So this collection is called The Mizzy.
And from what I've heard it's just almost impossible to categorise because he just writes
so well about so many different themes.
So this just sounds like an absolutely beautiful collection.
Now this next one I'm really excited about.
This is Spirited by Signe Johansen.
So she is a cook, she's written several cookbooks, she's written about hygge
and her books are all really cosy, indulgent books about really enjoying yourself, and
really embracing food
and this time it's about embracing alcohol.
So these are lovely cocktail recipes, again, perfect for this time of year.
So this one's about really enjoying the taste of experience of drinks
and it's got alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks in here as well
But they're perfect for throwing Christmas parties and having these lovely winter warmer
cocktails
And now another really lovely Christmassy looking one
This is Meerkat Christmas
So this looks like a really fun interactive one
So it's about a meerkat, who decides that his home doesn't feel Christmassy enough
So he wants to set off to find a part of the world that feels more Christmassy!
And as he goes along, he's sending postcards about each of the places he goes that you
can actually open up and read
So it's a really fun, colourful, really hands on Christmassy book.
And finally, the last one in here
This is another one that would be a great Christmas present.
This is Adventures in Moominvalley.
It's a lovely book, perfect for fans of the Moomins, because it's got all your favourite
characters created by Tove Jansson
but new stories
because each of the stories in here are from the TV series.
And it's a really beautiful book
It's got a lovely mix of hand-drawn illustrations as well as graphics from the TV show
So it's really visual and just a lovely book to get lost in over Christmas.
So that was our October book haul
That was just a really fun selection of some of the most exciting books coming into our
office over the last month
So do leave a comment below letting me know which ones you're most excited about reading
And of course, do give this video a thumbs up and hit that subscribe button below for
new videos every week.
See you next time!