Welcome to Litsy!

This is tough to review because I love another book by this author (Year of Wonders) and I admire the research this clearly took to write. Also, the premise is so cool: readers follow the Sarajevo Haggadah throughout history along with Hanna, a rare book specialist, in 1996. Each stain, etc. is linked back to a moment in time featuring characters and far flung settings. Unfortunately, style left me without connections to characters besides Hanna.

What a fascinating imagining of the people who shared in the life of an ancient text. It really brings to mind just how much was lost in book burnings of yore.

32/80

#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

#ReadingMyTBR #Reading2025 @DieAReader

"I might as well say, right from the jump: it wasn't my usual kind of job."

#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl

Still working on covering the faded pink of my house. Starting my 2nd Geraldine Brooks during brakes.

#BookSpinBingo

March #BookSpin list!

@TheAromaofBooks

12-6 Oct 24 (audiobook)
Brooks tells the story of a priceless 15th century illuminated Jewish book and its travels from Spain to Sarajevo through many hands to reach an Australian rare book excerpt shortly after the Serbian War recounting a history of antisemitism.
I enjoyed the concept which seems to be a trial run for the more successful Horse, but the narrative was difficult to follow as the book is traced backward in time to its origins.

I loved the story of the book & the various people who were involved in creating & caring for it through the ages but I wasn't thrilled w Hanna in the present day. Her examination of the book was interesting but her difficult relationship w her mom didn't feel like it added anything to the story. Then, the entire last 1/4 was pretty annoying, I'll rant a bit in a spoiler comment. But I learned a lot & the history was fascinating so it's a pick.

The MC has gone from her home in Sydney to Sarajevo to Vienna to Boston to London…so far. But the book in question lives In Sarajevo. #WhereAreYouMonday @Cupcake12

I enjoyed this novel immensely, books by this author are always such learning experiences for me, which I always appreciate.

“I wanted to give a sense of the people of the book, the different hands that had made it, used it, protected it.” We follow a rare book expert who is uncovering the history of an old book. In each chapter, she discovers something in the book, like a hair, an insect wing, a wine stain, etc. In the following chapter you read the backstory of how it got there. 🔽

Late to the game on this one, it‘s been on my TBR forever.
I LOVED it!
Brought me back to the ‘Library at Night‘ immersive experience where the Sarajevo Library was one of the featured libraries.
This beautifully highlights the importance of libraries as cultural institutions and the librarians out there that care deeply about their role in protecting these spaces.
❤️📚

#2023Book62
I love the way the writer took the main plot and kept branching off into seemingly unrelated flashbacks and side plots. I knew they would eventually have to come together, but the way everything finally led back into the main plot was incredibly well done.

This is an #unpopularopinion, I know, and it is a reflection of my preferences, not the quality of the book itself. The concept is fascinating-the history of an ancient religious text seen through the eyes of the people, predominantly women, who handled it through the centuries. It‘s well written, but the audiobook narration is jaw-clenchingly awful and I HATED Hanna, the manuscript conservator (⬇️)

I think my rating is more the result of a me problem and not a problem with the story. The narrator was fantastic and the descriptions and prose were wonderful. The historical elements were interesting, and I like how the artifacts found within the ancient codex connected all these separate stories and characters. But it was also extremely depressing, so full of misery and tragedy (which I guess is historically accurate) (cont. in comments)

This was one of those books I read with no idea who the author is - do other people do that? 🤔 I only realised at the end that I've read a book by her - Nine Parts of Desire.

I absolutely loved this and it just spoke to my little comparative religion-loving heart.

TW: rape (not too graphic) and torture (had to skip pages). Weak-stomached the author is not.

I loved the exquisite detail and different eras covered. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This was excellent. I‘ve been hearing resounding praise of Brooks for years. I‘m glad my August #BookSpin prompted me to finally pick this off the TBR shelf. It traces the journey of an illuminated manuscript back in time, interweaving the story of the expert called upon to restore the book in 1996 Sarajevo. There was so much fascinating history here—I loved the glimpses of each era and the people whose (often-harsh) lives the narrative explores.

My next listen is historical fiction 😊

Can I just say how much I love it when I go to start a new book and realize I have the perfect book-to-bookmark pairing? 😍

#AlphabetGame I couldn‘t pick just one… I LOVE both of these books SO MUCH!!!

Especially enjoyable as an audiobook. #alphabetgame #letter

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 1/2 This was my first Geraldine Brooks novel and I was pretty blown away. I read this because she‘ll be at the National Book Festival (so excited!!). The topic didn‘t sound too interesting - the description is rather vague. I was so pleasantly surprised and I‘m very interested in reading something else from her.

I‘m excited about this month‘s #BookSpin and #DoubleSpin picks—I got one selection from each half of my list: one specific book, and one shelf to pick from as the mood strikes. People of the Book is my BookSpin pick, and the DoubleSpin landed on this shelf of fiction choices. There are certainly some chunksters on this shelf, and I probably won‘t end up going for Count of Monte Cristo, but I have a lot of great options!

I feel I cannot do justice to this book in words.Gut wrenching,page turning,exhilarating,devastating-I could go on & on.So much history through people & the effect an ancient illustrated Jewish codex had on their lives, misfortunes, & fortunes.Hanna,a rare book restorer, follows up on clues within its pages:hair,wine stains,salt crystals,a feather,& a rose, in hopes of unlocking the book‘s journey through time.Each epoch stimulated all my senses.

More reviews to catch up on,but I will not get to them today.
People of the Book⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
All the Ways We Said Goodbye⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Heron‘s Cry⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Bloomsbury Girls⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Dictionary of Lost Words: between a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ & a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Started this tonight. Brings me back in time to the siege of Sarajevo during the Bosnian War(1992-95). Judy Collins wrote and sang this haunting song:

https://youtu.be/46ss5p3KSps

People of the Book is a historical fiction novel about a book conservator named Dr. Hanna Heath and her intensive research on the history of the famous Sarajevo Haggadah. The book is an imagined history following the real clues found in the manuscript, and the novel jumps back and forth between Hanna‘s findings and historical events that brought the book to its current home in the National Museum in Sarajevo, Bosnia.

This novel tells the story of a Jewish prayer book from the middle ages, and all the people and places it touched over the centuries.

⭐FULL REVIEW UP ON MY GOODREADS, BUT IN ESSENCE-
*insert Amy Santiago voice here* YA BORING.

This is the reading challenge for my online book club, and People of the Book fulfills #15! These prompts seem complicated but I like the challenge of finding books already on my shelves that fit 😅🤷🏽‍♀️

This book has an interesting concept and a beautiful cover, but it's very slow-going. Maybe because the protagonist isn't particularly likable? 🤔🤷🏽‍♀️ #currentlyreading

My job interview today went well so I'm sitting here thinking positive thoughts. After yesterday's disgusting EVERYTHING, I'm celebrating this personal win!

Happy to be playing #BookSpinBingo with @TheAromaofBooks to help me complete #MountTBR. Let's goooo! 🎉

Struggling to form a mental image of this dark and pale protagonist... 🤨

Thanks for the tag, @Eggs !

The tagged book is the first I read by Brooks, and I was thoroughly captivated. Her writing is so beautiful, and I felt it lent so well to this inspiring tale of one book‘s journey through the years and the people it touched. Thinking about this makes me want to reread it!

1. Definitely anything to do with a face mask - “please put up your face mask” is often said at the library

2. My cats - always
#ThankfulThursday

#ThankfulThursday

1. “Regulations vary by county but masks are worn in retail spaces.” 😯

2. My paycheck! 😬

Thanks for the tag @Eggs ! 😀

Tagging @Arvena @BookNAround @JessClark78 @zezeki If you are so inclined. 😊

Happy Anniversary and CoNgRaTuLaTiOnS on your milestone!
*My favorite book so far this year is the tagged book, People of the Book.
*I have 2 books I‘m most looking forward to reading in the 2nd half of 2020 1.Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier and 2. A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving @squirrelbrain #nutsaboutbooks

#TBRPile Day 10
Posting 1 unread book each day for 31 days. Including my ebooks. No reason, no explanation. Creating a TBR out of my TBR.
@StaceyKondla

Day 5 of #7books7days

Fabulous audiobook

#AcrossApril Day 8: The endpapers pictorially depict “The Global Journey of the Sarajevo Haggadah.” This book is inspired by the true story of the Jewish holy book, Haggadah, a famously-illuminated codex read aloud by the Jewish people during #Passover. The author learned about its disappearance, its incalculable value, and the fact that it was saved by a Muslim librarian from being destroyed during the war. My review: https://wp.me/pDlzr-gs5

My January wrap up! January is always my biggest reading month of the year. Lots of great books but the tagged one was my favorite.

I loved this one! It‘s the story of an Australian book expert who is offered a job to analyze and conserve the Sarajevo Haggadah. As she examines and makes repairs, she finds traces of the book‘s history. Each clue she finds sends the reader back in time to uncover the life and mystery of this extraordinary book.

Happy New Year! I‘m “chaperoning” my daughter and her theater friends at the house which means I‘m reading and they‘re singing their hearts out into the new year/decade!

Off to an excellent start!

I‘m starting this today! Book club is in exactly ONE week and I really hope I finish in time 🤞🏼 I also have the audio downloaded on my phone for drives, errands, cleaning etc!

#Day7 #7Days7Covers #CoverLove

If you fancy playing along all you have to do is post a picture of a book cover you love with no explanation.

Ready for another day in my dad‘s antique store... not so secretly hoping it‘s slow so I don‘t get too many interruptions from my books 😂

I took the kids to daycare today so I could get some cleaning done. And then I crawled back into bed with this month‘s book club title and a new crochet project... I almost feel guilty as I look around at all the piles of laundry that need to be put away 😂

#bookworm #quotsyaug19 @TK-421

Intertwined themes of cultures impacting each other, of the present interpreting he past, of the past dictating the future. A sacred Hebrew book, created by a 15 c Muslim slave, survives the Diaspora, the Inquisition, and wars. Muslims, Christians, and Jews all have cared for this art piece, protecting it with their lives. Brooks has taken minute details such as a wine stain to create the most amazing stories. The 1 negative - I CAN'T SEE THE MAP.

"It was here to test us, to see if there were people who could see that what united us was more than what divided us. That to be a human being matters more than to be a Jew or a Muslim, Catholic or Orthodox."