What’s on my shelf: September book reviews
IDK about you but I love love LOVE nonfiction. An avid reader, I usually finish 70-100+ nonfiction books every year for my annual reading challenge.
Here’s what I read in September, along with brief reviews of each book.
Pretty Pastel Decorating: Decorating Interiors with Pastel Shades by Selina Lake
This book was simply gorgeous, with inspiring interiors & beautiful ideas for decorating your space with pretty pastels.
My rating: 4/5 ⭐
You might also like:
Joy in the Little Things: Finding Happiness in Style, Home, and the Everyday by Kerrie Hess
Homespun Style by Selina Lake
Domino: The Book of Decorating: A Room-by-Room Guide to Creating a Home That Makes You Happy edited by Deborah Needleman, Sara Ruffin Costello, & Dara Caponigro
NPR’s Podcast Start Up Guide: Create, Launch, & Grow A Podcast on Any Budget by Glen Weldon
NPR’s Podcast Start Up Guide was brimming with a rich array of resources & SO much information on creating, launching, & growing your own podcast, featuring tools, tech, & advice on getting your podcast started on yes, any budget.
My rating: 4/5 ⭐
You might also like:
Breaking the Curse: A Memoir of Trauma, Healing, & Italian Witchcraft by Alex DiFrancesco
DiFrancesco’s memoir was incredibly validating & affirming to me as a trauma survivor. Breaking the Curse helped me to feel seen, less alone, & like what I survived wasn’t my fault.
My rating: 5/5 ⭐
You might also like:
Becoming Dangerous: Witchy Femmes, Queer Conjurers and Magical Rebels on Summoning the Power to Resist edited by Katie West & Jasmine Elliot
Telegram: A Collection of 27 Issues by Maranda Elizabeth
I Hope We Choose Love: A Trans Girl's Notes from the End of the World by Kai Cheng Thom
Start More Than You Can Finish: A Creative Permission Slip to Unleash Your Best Ideas by Becky Blades
This was my second time reading Start More Than You Can Finish; it’s definitely going to be one of those incredible books I return to & revisit every year. Blades’ book is affirming, uplifting, & filled with inspiring exercises & prompts for artists & creatives of all types.
My rating: 5/5 ⭐
You might also like:
Things Are What You Make of Them: Life Advice for Creatives by Adam J. Kurtz
Show Your Work!: 10 Ways to Share Your Creativity and Get Discovered by Austin Kleon
Make Your Art No Matter What: Moving Beyond Creative Hurdles by Beth Pickens
Marimekko: In Patterns by Marimekko
A beautiful book documenting Marimekko’s famous patterns + prints.
My rating: 4/5 ⭐
You might also like:
Living with Pattern: Color, Texture, and Print at Home by Rebecca Atwood
Prints Charming by Madcap Cottage: Create Absolutely Beautiful Interiors with Prints & Patterns by John Loecke & Jason Oliver Nixon
Absolutely Beautiful Things: Decorating Inspiration for a Bright and Colourful life by Anna Spiro
What It Takes to Heal: How Transforming Ourselves Can Change the World by Prentis Hemphill
Hemphill weaves together the personal & the political; the individual & the collective; highlighting the interdependent practice of healing & the need for social justice movements & healing work to be interwoven together for us to achieve collective liberation, justice, & healing.
My rating: 5/5 ⭐
You might also like:
This Way to Change: A Gentle Guide to Personal Transformation and Collective Liberation―Poems, Prose, Practices by Jezz Chung
I Hope We Choose Love: A Trans Girl's Notes from the End of the World by Kai Cheng Thom
Emergent Strategy: Shaping Change, Changing Worlds by adrienne maree brown
Disabled Witchcraft: 90 Rituals for Limited-Spoon Practitioners by Kandi Zeller
A much-needed resource in the witchcraft space! Disabled Witchcraft aspires to make witchcraft accessible to disabled people with limited amounts of spoons (LINK TO SPOON THEORY) & at this, it succeeds. Zeller emphasizes creativity & autonomy, encouraging readers to adapt any the 90 rituals this book contains to their own access needs.
My rating: 5/5 ⭐
You might also like:
The Magical Writing Grimoire: Use the Word as Your Wand for Magic, Manifestation & Ritual by Lisa Marie Basile
Telegram: A Collection of 27 Issues by Maranda Elizabeth
Becoming Dangerous: Witchy Femmes, Queer Conjurers and Magical Rebels on Summoning the Power to Resist edited by Katie West & Jasmine Elliot
A Year in Practice: Seasonal Rituals and Prompts to Awaken Cycles of Creative Expression by Jacqueline Suskin
I appreciated what this book aspired to accomplish &/also I found it hard to relate to as a disabled person whose creativity is constrained more by my disabilities & day to day capacity than it is inspired by the seasons.
My rating: 3/5 ⭐
You might also like:
Walking in This World: The Practical Art of Creativity by Julia Cameron
The Creative Habit: Learn It and Use It for Life by Twyla Tharp
Getting to Center: Pathways to Finding Yourself Within the Great Unknown by Cody Cook-Parrott
Doorways to Transformation: Everyday Wisdom for the Creative Soul by Karen Kinney
A series of short but impactful meditative pieces for centering, grounding, & transforming creatives of all types; definitely a resource to return to again & again.
My rating: 5/5 ⭐
You might also like:
The Artist's Way Every Day: A Year of Creative Living by Julia Cameron
The Art of Aliveness: A Creative Return to What Matters Most by Flora Bowley
Growing Gills: How to Find Creative Focus When You’re Drowning in Your Daily Life by Jessica Abel
What’s on your bookshelf? Let me know what you’re reading in the comments 💕
Book Recommendation Zines
