Hello, friends! Happy February. Predictably, the world is still the same crazy one month into a brand new year. If you found energy and made time to read, you should be proud of yourself. I’m proud of us!

I did a little tarot reading for us to look at all things book-related for February. If you’re curious what the cards and I had to say, grab a little comfort snack or a drink, and let’s dive in together. _

How this works: I pull some cards for us and write a little bit about what I’m seeing when it comes to reading inspiration for the month ahead. You are welcome to simply take what resonates from the reading and move on with your day, or, if you think of any specific books that align with what I’m describing, comment those titles down below for people to check out. These readings don’t aim to be particularly predictive, and they aren’t meant to be taken as gospel. This is simply a bit of fun, something to bring you some reading inspiration if you need it, and an opportunity for us to further connect as a community. _

I’m using the Lilifer tarot deck, created by Marion Costentin, published by Little Darkness. The spread is lovingly designed by me. Here are the questions we will be looking at, and the cards we got. For a better experience, I recommend viewing the pictures below on the Pagebound website!

We’re kicking the reading off with the Nine of Wands as our general inspiration and reading potential for February! This card often talks about determination and resilience in working towards a particular goal. The person in the card is picking up wands one by one, controlling a powerful bonfire and keeping it from overpowering them. You know what came to mind straight away? Working on our TBR pile! Many of us are little magpies when it comes to this, and we love collecting new books so our future self can have a bounty of options. For February, it might be good to make use of the lovely plan feature that Pagebound has and look at what books from our TBR pile we’d like to prioritize this month. Keep in mind that each of us has our own limits, so we have to make sure not to overbook ourselves. We have a big bonfire to tend to, we don’t want it to burn us out!

As we move onto the next card, we have the King of Cups offering us reading advice regarding potential roadblocks or issues that may come up in February. What I’m seeing is a little bit of a tendency towards perfectionism when it comes to romanticising the ritual of reading, or a hang-up of sorts around a particular compromise we had to make in life. This reminds us that regardless of the fact that our circumstances are not always what we’d like them to be, we shouldn’t allow that to be a barrier for us when it comes to reading. This could be speaking to any number of things: financial difficulty, mental health struggles, chronic illness flare-ups, having to be a caregiver for somebody, a change in responsibilities at work, a change of living environment, and so on. Whatever compromises we had to make, we need to bear in mind that taking care of ourselves (and for many of us this includes reading) is not optional, but from time to time we might need to adjust how we’re going about it in our day-to-day.

After assessing our situation, this might mean trying out ebooks instead of picking up physical copies, so we can read while on the move or if we don’t have space for books where we’re currently staying. It could be an opportunity to try listening to audiobooks so we can read while doing chores, taking care of somebody else, or while we’re low on spoons. Sometimes, this might also mean coming to terms with the fact that various responsibilities catch up to us from time to time, and instead of getting overwhelmed and throwing in the towel on something that provides us with necessary downtime, perhaps we could try temporarily shortening our daily reading sessions to something like 15 minutes before bed, and see how that goes.

Lastly, this card equally serves as your permission to not feel bad if you took a small break from reading. Our first card suggests success in accomplishing our reading goals, and we don’t have to have an unbroken reading streak for this to happen.

It’s easy to compare ourselves to other people’s seemingly perfect reading set-ups and gear, and it’s also easy to sacrifice our downtime as soon as we feel like it can’t be what we initially envisioned it to be. This card is a reminder that our reading routines can and should be flexible, and that an imperfect reading practice is much better than an abandoned one. _

With our general advice out of the way, let’s take a look at what the cards have to say when it comes to reading inspiration for books to pick up in February.

Starting with nonfiction, we are met with another king! This time, it is the King of Pentacles. This King symbolizes things like material goods and stability, business ambitions, and a more traditional view of success. Now, with these topics our specific focus is defined by our second card, the Six of Wands. This card also talks about success, but this time it is positioned in relation to our community, so there’s a little bit of contrast here. The approach of the author is illustrated in the Seven of Wands, a card often representing justified defending of something that matters to us.

What I am seeing from these three cards is an exploration of a non-traditional approach to material success and stability, one that moves away from capitalism and the status quo. The Seven of Wands makes me think of radical ideology that is against the corrupt and unjust economic systems, reframing material success in a way that centers community and asks us to support each other so that we can thrive together. This card highlights having an inventive and determined approach, one that does not crumble under pressure of potential pushback.

It’s easy to lean into despair and feel like we are unable to create change, but this point of view doesn’t recognize all of the times in history when the power of the people did exactly that. We need to constantly work towards cultivating hope. We owe it to our ancestors who fought and died for a better world, and we owe it to the people that fight for our collective liberation every day. So, for February, maybe look into some non-fiction books written by activists and people who aren’t scared to dream up and work towards a better world when it comes to material stability and consumerism. _

For some inspiration when it comes to fiction books, the first card is a queen this time, more specifically, the confident, logical and level-headed Queen of Swords, followed by a dramatic conflict in the Five of Wands. The queen suggests a potential theme of standing up for what we think is right, both for ourselves and for others. This could be motivated by bigger things, such as collective liberation, but because of a wounded character trait that is indicated by the Eight of Swords, this could also be some personal agendas, such as self-preservation or even revenge.

I’m thinking a rivalry of sorts is going on here. A little bit of drama, perhaps. Two or more strong characters of a similar status, in some kind of situation where they’re either trying to defeat one another, compete in something, or they might even be working towards a shared goal but struggling to trust one another.

The Eight of Swords is talking about the author’s approach to the story. What I’m getting from that is that the story may be told through the eyes of a wounded main character, or by centering the main character’s healing journey. Because this card talks about trauma and feeling trapped by our insecurities or our past, this story might be exploring how the main character works through these personal shadows, learning to trust others again and ultimately realizing that it doesn’t always have to be them against the whole world. _

I hope you got something out of this monthly reading! If you thought of any good books that fit the descriptions above in any small way, drop them in the comments so we can check them out. Equally, if you read a book with similar themes that you really wouldn’t recommend, please do give us the tea on that, for science, thank you.

p.s. How was January for you when it comes to reading?? No, really, how was it? Did you end up reading any of the books recommended in the comments under last month’s blog? I ended up reading a memoir recommended by the lovely @lizzyy called “Building a life worth living” by Marsha M. Linehan and I really enjoyed it. I don’t think I would have picked it up on my own, so I was really pleased. :)

When the selection is something that makes you go 'ugggggggggggggghhhhhhhhh' what do you do? I have 10 other books for February I genuinely want to read, and this club selection doesn't even come close. Is it polite to sit out? Do I say anything? I've never been in a real bookclub before and this is why: the lack of control. I do love the idea of picking up books I've never heard of, but I like it on my terms.

I didn't realize all of this about myself until I was locked into what I have to read, and the only way to get the book is to buy it, since my library doesn't have any version of it. I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings, that's my main priority, and I also don't want to buy this book that sounds as interesting to me as watching paint dry.

Help me PB, you're my only hope 😭

I’m looking to purchase an ereader because I don’t have a lot of physical space and want to use it for books I want to try reading but don’t necessarily want in my physical book collection.

I’ve seen great things about Kobo ereaders. I really don’t want to support Amazon more than I have to, but wanted folks thoughts on kindles as well?

I’m looking to purchase an ereader because I don’t have a lot of physical space and want to use it for books I want to try reading but don’t necessarily want in my physical book collection.

I’ve seen great things about Kobo ereaders. I really don’t want to support Amazon more than I have to, but wanted folks thoughts on kindles as well?

Hi cuties! I'm so excited, because today I made a new recipe that I read about in a book. A couple months ago I read The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden, and in the book the main character describes a type of bread, and it just sounded so good I knew I had to try it. I baked it today, and not to toot my own horn 😗📯 but it turned out soooo good. I used the King Arthur Baking Company Recipe for Russian black bread, and it was so unique and interesting. Another book that had me baking recently was Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree, and I think a lot of other readers have been drooling over the descriptions of coffee and cinnamon rolls in that one!

All this to say, I'm a person who is heavily influenced when reading about food in books. I love when authors really describe food and drinks, I feel like it adds so much to the environment in a story. I think sometimes it can be the thing I most remember about a book!

So friends, have any of you been inspired to cook after reading, and if yes, what have you made? If not, what books have you read that have left you salivating after vivid food descriptions?

Side note: the "Love, but Also Food" quest pairs nicely with this post ☺️

Another round! Setting up a suggestion thread in the comments if you have one you would like to see next round!!

1. Characters who feel real OR characters who feel larger than life
2. A story that takes its time OR one that grabs you fast
3. Chapters you fly through OR chapters you sink into
4. A plot that keeps you guessing OR one that lets you breathe
5. A romance that sneaks up on you OR one that hits instantly
6. A cozy, familiar world OR a wild, unpredictable one
7. A narrator you trust OR one you’re not sure about
8. A book that leaves you smiling OR one that leaves you stunned
9. A cast you click with right away OR one you warm up to slowly
10. An ending that ties everything up OR one that lingers in your mind