Mailbox Monday -- Birthday Edition

My birthday was a little over a week ago, and Cowboy couldn't figure out what to get me for a long time, so I said, "Oh, just find something on my Amazon wish list, it's bursting with ideas."  

So he checked out my Amazon list and decided to get me ten different books off it, focusing on the out-of-print ones we could only get used, but putting a few new ones in the mix too.  He wanted me to get a package or two in the mail every day for a whole week, and it pretty well worked!  I think there were only two days I didn't get a surprise from him, and some days more than one!

Top to bottom, they are:

Aspects of the Novel by E. M. Forster -- sooooo looking forward to digging into this once my writing/revising hangover passes.

The Silent Gondoliers by William Goldman -- this is supposed to be very funny, and it's from the guy who wrote The Princess Bride and set up in the same way, ie that it was originally told by S. Morgenstern.

Westward the Women by Nancy Wilson Ross -- I'd kind of forgotten this was on my wish list.  I'm curious as to whether it bears any resemblance to the movie of the same name.

Lark Rise to Candleford: A Trilogy by Flora Thompson -- I've heard a lot about this trilogy, and more about the TV show based on it, and I'm hoping it'll be really fun.

Before Green Gables by Budge Wilson -- obviously, a prequel to Anne of Green Gables, but other than that, I can't remember what I've heard about it, or even where.  I'm hoping to read this during My Year with Anne, if I can squeeze it in.

The Quest for Shakespeare by Joseph Pearce -- someone's attempt to figure out what Shakespeare was really like, I think.

The Lavender Cookbook by Sharon Shipley -- I tried cooking with lavender for the first time last year and had mixed results with recipes I found on Pinterest, so I'm hoping this will lead to more successes.

The Anne of Green Gables Treasury by Carolyn Strom Collins and Christina Wyss Eriksson -- a collection of a bunch of Anne-related stuff, like a map of Avonlea, a timeline of her life, how to do crafty activities mentioned in the books, and so on.

Tolkien's World -- a coloring book.  Yes, it's true.  I'm an adult colorer!  One of these days, I'll do a post about all the different adult coloring books I have, and which ones I like versus which ones have disappointed me, and so on.

EDIT:  I just realized I left one out!  Sam absconded with it, and I forgot to get it back for the photo and post.  It's Mr. Bliss by J.R.R. Tolkien -- a picture book about a man in a tall hat and his yellow car, which Joseph recommended to me a while back.

I'm linking this up with Mailbox Monday, which is always such fun :-)  Have you gotten any new (or at least, new to you) books lately?