what i’m reading in may 2020 – a monthly tbr

i can’t remember the last time i made a monthly tbr – if ever??!! – but i wanted to share mine this month for a few reasons:

01. it’s asian pacific islander american heritage month and i wanted to share my love my reading some books by asian authors/on asian stories! i originally wanted to participate in asian readathon, like i did last year. but realistically, it’s not happening. mostly because i read one (1) book last month and zero the month prior. this quarantine has oddly stopped all motivation for reading. SO. i’m going to be realistic and set smaller goals.

at first i felt really guilty for not reading solely asian stories in my tbr (and felt like a bad advocate for asian-ness/diverse authors/etc etc) BUT. YOU KNOW WHAT. i literally started a book club to celebrate and promote asian authors/stories. SO. every month is an asian reading month. anyway.

02. i want to keep myself accountable. i mentioned this earlier but I HAVEN’T BEEN READING. and it’s making me sad. it’s not even that i don’t want to, but more so that i haven’t been prioritizing it. i have a million things i need/want to do and not enough time to do it all. this was true before as well, but i’d be able to listen to a lot of audiobooks on my commute. now that that doesn’t happen… my reading has tanked. and yeah, i know, i wanted to focus on the quality of books vs amount this year but i still want to read. so i’m sharing a monthly tbr.

that said, here are books i’m hoping to read:

little women, by louisa may alcott

bookshop – book depository – goodreads

i watched the movie last month and it left me EMOTIONALLY WRECKED. it quickly became one of my favorites and i went to buy the book immediately. so i’m v excited to enter the world of Little Women once again and feel all the feels. :”) i already started it and hopefully i’ll be able to get through it soon!

i love you so mochi, by sarah kuhn

bookshop – book depository – goodreads

this is our pick for subtle asian book club this month! it’s been on my tbr since i heard of it pre-release last year. it’s dubbed as a cute contemporary set in spring featuring japanese culture & fashion. i’m hoping this will lighten the mood and allow me to fictionally travel during this quarantine/isolation.

ghosts of the shadow market, by cassandra clare (and others)

bookshop – book depository – goodreads

so, the one book i read last month was Chain of Gold (finally!) and it left me wanting MORE. and also a little confused/wanting more context. specifically on matthew fairchild. and i KNOW it’s because i didn’t read Ghosts of the Shadow Market. this is a short story collection set in the shadowhunter world and i’m excited for it! i read Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy, another short story collection, and loved it. i found it easy to read because they’re short stories – so you can take breaks in between – but it comes together really nicely. i’m hoping this will be the same experience!

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bonus: audiobooks!

a little life, by hanya yanagihara

bookshop – book depository – goodreads

i’ve been wanting to read A Little Life for the longest time and may this month be the month it finally happens!!! i got the audiobook and am READY to cry. (okay maybe not but,,,, it’s fine) i’m thinking of doing a reading vlog of my process mostly because everyone on booktube does it lol. either way, i’m excited! i’m hoping this will get me back into reading via audiobook and i’ll pick up more after! i’m not adding any more audiobooks to the tbr mostly because this book is HUGE and it’s like 30+ hours. again, keeping it realistic.

what are you hoping to read this month? have you read any of these books? let me know in the comments!