This month we’ve got another all-book update! No DVDs or Blu-rays purchased in the month of June, if you can believe it! But, of course, I couldn’t resist a few bookstore trips. Here’s what I picked up.

  • Bette Davis by Alexander Walker
    Lovely, oversize book offering an overview of Bette’s career and plenty of photographs. Bette is slowly taking over my classic film book collection, it seems. Though I need to make an official count, I think I own more books about her than any other star — even Cary Grant!
  • Let’s Just Say It Wasn’t Pretty by Diane Keaton
    The actress shares her thoughts on “beauty, aging, beauty, and the importance of staying true to yourself.” I like many of Diane Keaton’s films and love reading this type of memoir, where the author just shares a collection of experiences and musings on life. This one was given to me by my mom, who often passes books along to me after she reads them.
  • Night Film by Marisha Pessl
    This is a fictional book, but I’m including it in the update because one of its characters is a cult-thriller filmmaker whose career began in the mid-century. The book follows a journalist searching for the truth after said filmmaker’s daughter turns up dead in an abandoned building in New York City. Her death is officially ruled a suicide, but the journalist has his doubts and comes to suspect that the family is harboring dark secrets. I devoured this book over a span of just a couple of days in June and enjoyed it greatly. I would recommend it to any fan of thrillers, though you should prepare yourself to be frustrated by the ending!
  • Westerns and the Trail of Tradition: A Year-By-Year History, 1929 – 1962 by Barrie Hanfling
    I’ve come to enjoy Westerns (after forcing myself to give them a shot, haha), so I was delighted to come across this cool book at a used book shop during my travels in June. It’s always interesting to read about films chronologically, especially when discussing genres, to see how their conventions may have changed over time. Very excited to read this one!