A Little Unhaul

I think I sometimes enjoy getting rid of books as much as I enjoy buying them. There's something about taking a book that you didn't enjoy off your shelves and passing in on to a new home. I have very limited shelf space and I'm picky with the books I choose to keep. It's my goal in life to one day have a room full of books and I want all of the books I put on my shelves to have been ones that I've enjoyed. If a book isn't for me then I pass it on, and that includes books that I've had on my TBR and no longer feel like picking up. So I thought I'd take you through some of the books that are destined to move on to a better home, where hopefully they can be more well-loved. 

THE WANDERERS BY MEG HOWREY (2017)

Simon and Schuster UK • 384 pages

I read The Martian last year and it was one of my favourite books of 2016. Since then I've wanted to read another sci-fi novel that made me feel all the feels that Andy Weir's debut did. I thought I might have found it with The Wanderers because it screamed 'for readers who loved The Martian'. Sadly, this just didn't cut it for me. The story follows three astronauts as they take part in a simulation to prepare them for a journey to Mars, each of them having their own narrative as well as members of their individual families. 

To me it all felt very flat. The story never lifted off the ground (excuse the pun) and with so many characters getting their chance at telling the story I was left feeling confused and less and less interested. This was sent to me for review back in April and it was a very underwhelming experience. I'm surprised I still have my copy after all this time so it's well overdue to be sent to a new home. 

CLOUD ATLAS DAVID MITCHELL (2005)

Sceptre • 531 pages

This book has been on my shelves for years. I bought it second hand around 5 years ago (no exaggeration) and it's been sat unread since. This was one of those books that I'd heard a lot of people talk about so I picked up because it was popular, but I've never once been inclined to actually read it. After several years of sitting on my shelves untouched I think it's about time that I finally let Cloud Atlas go. If I'm not going to read it after all this time I'm pretty sure I never will. 

LOOKING FOR ALASKA BY JOHN GREEN (2006)

Harper Collins • 263 pages

This is one of those "it's not you, it's me moments" because I think the time may have come where I finally say goodbye to John Green. The Fault in Our Stars is still on my shelves for the time being but I've been weighing up whether or not I should keep Looking For Alaska for a while now. I liked it at the time I read it, but I've slowly been reading less and less YA over the years and I doubt I'll read this one again. It never left a lasting impression on me so this is another one I'm putting on to my to-donate pile. 

THE BUTCHER'S HOOK BY JANET ELLIS (2016)

Two Roads • 349 pages

You might remember that I wrote about my reading progress with The Butcher's Hook in a recent post. Spoiler: I didn't get along with it. I made it about half way and decided to give up, and even now I still feel kind of sad about it because I really thought I was going to love it. Historical fiction set in eighteenth-century London with an anti-heroine at the centre of the story sounded exactly like my kind of read. I gave it a fair try but the writing style and the story failed to grab me. Sadly, I think this is one of my most disappointing reads of the year.

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There are several others that I've decided I know longer want to keep, but we could be here forever if I went through each book that I'm un-hauling. They'll be many more in the future too no doubt. If some books aren't for you it's best to pass them on in the hope they will find someone who can love them.

If you'd like to check out more of my reviews (some of which I most certainly won't be un-hauling) then you can check them out here. Until next time, happy reading fellow book lovers!