I went to Half Price Books today but I wasn’t looking for my usual fiction or mystery reads. Instead I had a mission to find some books to cut up.

Oh I know some of you may be cringing but as you know I love to craft with paper and that means vintage paper, scrapbook paper, scraps, handmade paper, you name it.

I’ve been into collage lately and so I was interested in finding some magazines or books with interesting images. My first stop at HPB was the magazine rack but I didn’t find any good magazines. This particular location I went to doesn’t have a big magazine selection.

I probably spent the most time in the collectibles section and the clearance section. I saw a few collectible books that I was almost tempted to buy for their covers alone (I can repurpose those into a new journal) but I scored the best find in the clearance section.

I got a great gardening book with lots of pretty colorful photos and illustrations. I can’t wait to start using some of the images in my journals.

Speaking of journals, I have to tell you about my reading journal! I have managed to keep a reading notes journal all year and have had a lot of fun so I will share with you in an upcoming post. I’d love to hear if you’ve visited any used bookstores recently or if you’ve had some luck finding some gems.

November was a whirlwind but overall it was a really nice month. We celebrated our anniversary, went to a film festival and enjoyed a quiet Thanksgiving. My plans for a lot of reading were a bit of wishful thinking but I’m actually very happy with the books I read as some were true gems.

The books I read were: Wonderland by Zoje Stage; The Return of the Solider by Rebecca West; Assembly by Natasha Brown; Notes on an Execution by Danya Kukafka; A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers. 

With the exception of Wonderland, which was quite disappointing, all the others I thoroughly enjoyed. Three of these happened to be novellas which I read for Novellas in November. I had planned to read a Margaret Atwood book for #MARM but I just couldn’t stick with my TBR.

Oh and the big reading news is that I completed my Goodreads goal! I think that’s the first time I’ve done that. Granted my goal was lower than previous years and only at 50 books.

I’m still in the middle of a couple of books but I have to say I’m really in the mood for some fun, holiday reads. Give me cozy books and let’s pretend there’s no work or responsibilities to attend to! Haha… I hope you are all gearing up for the festive season and more than anything that you make time for yourself and to enjoy those books on your nightstand.