September 2025
What I read, what I bought, where I went? All that
Here’s my first proper book haul/monthly recap here on Substack. When I was doing these on Blogger/Instagram, they were popular until they weren’t, because, I guess, algorythm (or everyone) found people cooler to follow than me.
What I read
So I was super ashamed as I spent the whole of August (and part of September really) trying to read + finish Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace because I’m a performative (fe)male/it’s part of my reading challenge for 2025, but September went a little bit nicer. Even though I didn’t manage to finish Infinite Jest quite yet. I’m very good at failing my own challenges.
So in September I managed to finish three books, and believe me that seeing as my reading rhythm is these days, this was a huge win:
Where the Crawdads Sing, by Delia Ownens, review will be here tomorrow
Desvio, by Ana Pessoa and Bernardo P Carvalho
Vol I of Cardcaptor Sakura Collector’s Edition, by CLAMP
I enjoyed all three, and I hope to write about the last two anytime soon (I have so many books I still want to review that I’ve read… ahem, last year - but Substack is giving me some hope as a new platform to share things).
What I bought
After going crazy in Salamanca in August, September wasn’t filled with new books (at least not for me - more on that soon!). In order to get free shipping for my boyfriend’s order at Walt’s Comic Shop, I got Raina Telgermeier’s Ghosts, which I’ve had on my wishlist for a while now, and the first volume of Lonely Castle in the Mirror, a manga adaptation by Tomo Taketomi of the novel by Mizuki Tsujimura.
Last weekend there was the yearly “Festa do Livro de Belém”, a small book fair held since 2017 at Palácio de Belém (the Presidential Palace) for Lusophone books only. My boyfriend and I brought a lot of books home (books we have no space for, if I’m being honest); I only bought Agora agora, by Brazilian author Carlos Eduardo Pereira.
It was very interesting not only to explore the selection of the Brazilian distributor Saudade, but also to get to know small, independent publisher On Y Va from southern Portugal.
Events
Here are some photos from Festa do Livro de Belém (plus the small stack of books we brought home); October will be super eventful with book and literary festivals, so stay tuned!
Essa Feira do Livro de Belém é o que gostava que a Feira do Livro de Lisboa fosse: só autores lusófonos! (Acesso ao mercado anglófono já eu tenho em demasia...) Se calhar vou te de repensar o timing da minha viagem de verão a Portugal :) Sugestão para o reading challenge de 2026: autores lusófonos ;)
Importa sempre celebrar mesmo quando lemos pouco. Agora com a maternidade é mesmo difícil para mim ler, por isso não te martirizes porque a vida acontece e é normal termos períodos de menos leitura.
Tenho tanta pena de não ter conseguido ir à Festa do Livro em Belém este ano! Para o próximo a minha bebé já vai ter 1 ano e meio e vai ser mais fácil.
Não conheço nenhuma das editoras que mencionaste;
Vou checar! E obrigada pelas recomendações de livros.