March TBR

I am not normally one for monthly "TBR" - aka To Be Read - lists because I prefer to choose books on a more ad hoc basis. Choosing from a set list of books per month seems too much like homework to me. However, thanks to a couple of bouts of online book shopping when I should have been going to bed, I have found myself with a glut of books to read. Therefore before I damage my bank account any further with more book purchases, these are the books I am planning to read in March:

1: Annie's Ghosts by Steven Luxenberg
This non-fiction book charts the efforts of Luxenberg to discover what happened to his mother's sister Annie - who Luxenberg and his siblings didn't know existed until a few months before their mother's death. Annie, they discover after their mother's death, was committed to the local psychiatric unit at the age of 23 and never released. Luxenberg doesn't only explore Annie's life but also tries to understand why his mother was so keen to deny she had a sister.
N.B: This book is pretty difficult to get hold of - it's not available as an ebook and I had to order from it from the Book Depository, via Amazon, because even Foyles didn't stock it. 

2. The Gustav Sontata by Rose Tremain
I've got no idea what this book is about (something to do with lifelong male friendship according to the description on Amazon), but I am reading it because it's my book group's book for March. Having read barely any of the group's books last year (at least, that's what it felt like), I am determined to read more of their books this year. Here's hoping I get further with The Gustav Sontata than I did with Tremain's The Road Home, which I failed to get past the first chapter on at least two occasions.

3: Two books from Moth Box
Moth Box is a postal book service run by book vlogger Mercedes (MercysBookishMusings). Each box contains two independently published books that are individually wrapped by (presumably) Mercedes and come with fancy bookmarks (I think). The idea of the box is to encourage people to read more independently published books with the added novelty that you're buying "blind" (you won't know what the books are until you unwrap them). I haven't received my box yet but I am already suffering from buyer's remorse (or perhaps understanding why online shopping at midnight is never a good plan). Considering each box costs £20, not including post & packaging, I am not convinced it's value for money given your average book costs about £9 (ie. you are probably spending more than you would do if you purchased the books from a shop etc.). Still, I do want to read more independently published stuff rather than just going for what has won the latest literary prize etc. and this seems as good as any way of doing it.
A new Moth Box is available for sale on the first of every month. For more information, click here