Welcome to Litsy!

#TuesdayTunes @TieDyeDude
Latin music and non-English language music in general is a gaping musical gap for me. But I did recently discover the Chilean artist Mon Laferte and was an instant fan. It's always nice when you find someone who's got a large musical catalog because it's like suddenly stumbling onto this treasure trove of music. This is her song Química Mejor:

🧪🧪🧪🙂

NOT to be confused with Lessons in Chemistry, though both deal with biases against women in science. I‘m probably in the minority, but I‘d much rather hang out with this novel‘s protagonist than Elizabeth Zott. She felt more real, and her humor‘s much sharper. I also just realized in writing this that she never has a name, throughout the entire novel!

Wang has a very unique voice that I really like. Her protagonist is a Chinese American woman with a difficult family history, making her resistant to committing to her boyfriend. She's also struggling to finish her Chemistry doctorate. As both her academic career and relationship start to crumble, she's left to sift through her memories of her childhood, her culture, and her parents' volatile marriage to find out who she is what she really wants.

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 💫

Honestly, a good little quick read! I felt like I was reading a story and poetry all in one. I thought the fact that it has not chapters would throw me off but it didn‘t!

#chemistry #weikewang

I read this in one sitting which is unusual for me, even for a short book, as I was so hooked by the protagonist and her emotionally detached tone. This is almost stream of consciousness as our protagonist relates her thinking over a short period of time as she wrestles with making decisions about her relationship and her job. ⬇️

My second book finished during my weekend reading retreat with @HOTPock3tt We are at the cutest little B&B in the middle of nowhere hanging out with other book lovers. ❤️

I was surprised by this book! At first I wasn‘t sure I liked the style, but it grew on me right along with the main character. I would have liked a bit MORE for the ending, but totally respect this book for what it is.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

2/5 ⭐️ I'm not a fan of this writing style. Overall disappointed with this one. #LMPBC Group E

I LOVED this book! If not for work I could have read this book in one day. It had humor, but also great sadness. It was a unique read. I'm so glad this was picked because I would have never picked it up for myself otherwise! #LMPBC @JackOBotts @Catsandbooks @sprainedbrain

Still wrapping my head around this gift from @BookNAround. What a heart-wrenching story. Extra special that the author got her MFA from Boston U, where my daughter attends!

Also, this is a perfect cover.

⭐⭐⭐⭐✨/⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I enjoyed this novel about a woman unsure of her choices in life. She questions almost everything in her life, but her relationship with and views of each of her parents were some of the most interesting parts to me. The writing is kind of stilted and detached but unexpectedly funny in places. I picked this up on a whim and I‘m glad I did!

I wanted to love this one but it was so slow, choppy, and emotionally remote that it was just okay. The narrator spends so much time paralyzed and unable to make a decision that it made me wish for something, anything to happen. The writing redeems the stultification somewhat. Full review at http://booknaround.blogspot.com/2021/12/review-chemistry-by-weike-wang.html

Got April's book in (for me!) #LMPBC
@sprainedbrain @JackOBotts @Catsandbooks

This Breaking Bad quote hits for this #LMPBC selection. This was borderline my so-so/pick, and I bumped it up to “pick” given its resolution. It‘s a novel about family, relationships, and understanding (others and ourselves).

I‘ll be putting this in the mail to you soon, @kellyann28 👍🏼

1. Chemistry & A Good Girl‘s Guide to Murder
2. Waiting on my Maus hold to come in
3. A Good Girl‘s Guide… & an “I Survived” book for my son (about the American Revolution)
#WeekendReads

I‘m guessing this one is much better in paper rather than audio. I spaced out quite a bit and didn‘t care enough to rewind. My favorite parts were the bits with the best friend; those felt warmer and less distant than the rest of the book.

#CuriousCovers #Yellow

his is a story of the inner thoughts of an Asian woman going through life struggles: her relationship is ending and she is not doing well in getting her PHD. What I liked about this was that it showed what every woman goes though to be what everyone else wants them to be yet really just wanting to be ourselves. I did not like that there was not really an ending. Then, again, isn‘t that life?

A PhD chemist, confused by her life path, struggling against unrealistic expectations, crushing stereotypes, her feelings for her family, and general place in the world. Finds a new way forward, a new place to belong. Excellent little story.

Thank you, @Cinfhen for the recommendation! This was outside of my usual wheelhouse, but I really enjoyed it. I‘m glad I went with the audiobook: the narrator was engaging and I avoided reading dialogue without quotation marks-my brain always gets confused with that. I enjoyed the humor, the stream of conscious writing, and the ambiguous ending.

#booked2020
#panasianauthor

Ripped through this one in audio. The main character is trying so hard to be logical about feelings and choices and I foynd it really engaging. End is a little ambiguous for my genre fiction heart, but it's cool, I can imagine the rest.

I just don‘t know how to feel about this book. I think I liked the overall story but I really didn‘t like how no one had a name except for Eric. It was an easy, fast read, which is what I needed because my local bookstore is doing a book challenge to read five books in seven days. One book down! This also marks off #panasianauthor for #booked2020

My present state of mind is a free floating swirl of facts, numbers, fears, wishes, hopes, desires, reflections and an endless loop of trivial thoughts, so spending a few hours in the offbeat headspace of this unnamed protagonist was a pleasant diversion. Quirky and at times complex, this story of a Chinese grad student experiencing misgivings about her current situation was the perfect antidote for my current mood. #Booked2020 #PanAsianAuthor

I didn‘t care much for this one. The lack of communication between the main character and everyone else was hard for me to stomach. I wanted to shake her and tell her to just speak her truth- to her family, to her boyfriend, to her therapist even!

I‘m glad it was short, otherwise I might have bailed.

One redeeming quality- the descriptions of science, math, and chemistry in an interesting thought provoking way.

(My crew enjoying the sun)

I‘m liking this so far!

3.5/5 🌟

Short, quirky & funny.

Happiness = reality - expectations

⭐️⭐️/5 I didn‘t really enjoy this book 🤷🏻‍♀️ I have 2 science degrees (one in chemistry) so I could relate to a lot of the chemistry and lab parts of this book. I was just bored with this book overall even understanding all the science in it.

I discovered a Free Little Library at work today and grabbed these two BOTM books. I will drop off several books on Monday.

Such a lovely, unique novel that explores the pressures and expectations that come from being a woman in science and an immigrant.

Current audiobook

Didn't excite me, but points for being different. Interesting that many characters (including the narrator) don't have (aren't referred to by) names, but narrator's boyfriend, Eric, does (is).

An old #botm selection I finally picked off my TBR list. I‘m just not sure about this one...I enjoyed the science references and even the feeling of getting a glimpse inside her stream of consciousness. But at the end of it all I just felt...indifferent.

Different day, different book, same airport.

Studies have shown that the brain feels exclusion not like a broken heart but like a broken bone. It is physical pain that the brain feels.

I am enjoying this book more than I thought I would. The writing is clever and engaging. But wow, is this poor narrator‘s family emotionally messed up.

I liked this one. Chic-lit/coming of age, but from a slightly different perspective and background than the "usual" one. And that specificity let it to being unique whole still making some of the themes very relatable. The main character has a distinct voice that for in with her background and added to the story.
I liked this one.
#ReadHarder
#ReadHarder2019 - A book by a woman and/or AOC that won a literary award in 2018

So true

On my TBR list for way too long - really enjoyed this, it‘s kind of sad though!

Took myself out to lunch last week and this was my reading companion. This is our current #bookclubread, but I'm also listening to "the life-changing magic of not giving a f*ck". This last one has gotten a little repetitive for me and I don't necessarily agree with the majority of her sentiments, but it's definitely been helpful in questioning some of my habits and putting things in perspective.

Despite it‘s short length this one took me a very long time to get into. I enjoyed the story and the structure but the narrator‘s voice was a bit much. At times I felt like I was trying to follow a hummingbird. It was stressful to the point where I was identifying with Eric‘s exasperation. It wasn‘t until Part 2 that I found myself enjoying it fully. I may read this again someday but also, maybe not. 😉 3.75🌟

I am starting this tonight. Charlene is sleeping in my lap. #catsoflitsy

Ready to go!! #24in48