Welcome to Litsy!

I bought this several years ago, but haven‘t gotten around to reading it yet. Sounds interesting and I‘ve heard good things about Laing‘s writing.

#AboutAddiction #BookMoods
@Eggs @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

On the surface it looked great...travelogue and biographies of interesting writers and their connection to drinking. In reality it just didn‘t work. Tried setting it aside and coming back to it at different times, but that made no difference. Finally decided to give up and move on. While the topic is interesting, this particular book just isn‘t for me and that‘s okay. A reader for every book, a book for every reader...just have to find your match.

A fascinating account of six writers & their battles with alcoholism, and part travel memoir as Olivia Laing visits their home towns in America. I learnt much about these writers - all fascinating characters - & the destructive side of their addictions. Interesting & sad to ponder why men of such talent kept ruining it - & what more they could have achieved. Laing is compassionate & her writing is exquisite. A great read.

My daughter is competing in Tournament of Minds today so I have a whole day of waiting around at Flinders Uni. Not a bad spot to read though!

Book is the mixture of literary criticism, biography, memoir, travelogue, and this dynamic structure is quite impressive pulled together in coherent story about inner demons and struggles of six, more or less connected and successful writers. Heavy and complex topic treated with respect, well researched, written in readable, almost chatty, prose and with very personal touch. ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Warm weather, good company and new book. Perfect Sunday❣️

@bookriot #bookstagram #riotgrams #BooksAndSocks

Mixed feelings on this one: beautifully written but such a depressing topic.

Laing inspects Hemingway's shelves in Miami.

On drinking and writing

I had a flash of that tiresomely English reluctance to join in...

On Wednesday, I arrived at the SO's work too early to pick him up just so I could enjoy a pint and a chapter.

Does anyone else find it a little funny how people don't understand that the book isn't always because of the wait, but sometimes we create the wait because of the book?

#bookandapint

Nothing like coming home to #bookmail! Thank you so much @hermyknee 😘

Are they drinkers with a writing problem?Ms. Laing digs deep into the culture of writing and drinking while touring notable sites that were the stomping grounds of the writers discussed in the book.Fitzgerald ,Hemingway,Tennessee Williams, Cheever, Berryman and Carver.She honors their great skills yet points out the devastation alcohol had on their lives and the lives of their families.Excellent Book.

We all carry something inside us that can be rejected; that can look silver in the light. You can deny it, or try and throw it in the garbage, by all means. You can despise it so much you drink yourself halfway to death. At the end of the day, though, the only thing to do is to take hold of yourself, to gather up the broken parts.

#TBRtemptation post 4! This one comes recommended by my supervisor. Laing focuses on one specific question: Why have some of literature's best works been composed by alcoholics? Is there a connection between the two? She looks at Fitzgerald, Hemingway, Tennessee Williams, Berryman, Cheever, and Carter. She traveled extensively to compile this book for us. #blameLitsy #blameMrBook 😎

#augustgrrrl #raiseyourglass @Cinfhen

Olivia Laing explores the relationship between alcohol and creativity in this nonfiction book. She discusses the extent to which alcohol has played a role in the writing of iconic authors including Hemingway and Fitzgerald. I'm looking forward to finally reading this one; it currently sits on my Kindle TBR list.

Olivia Laing #needsmorelove I haven't read To the River yet but the other two are really interesting. The tagged book is about writers and their connection with alcohol & The Lonely City is about loneliness in artists/writers and in their work. She brings her own life into both books but it's done in a way that doesn't distract from the people she writes about. Recommend for anyone that likes reading non-fiction books about writers #anditsaugust

This is part travelogue, part memoir (alcoholism affected Laing's family when she was a child), and mostly biographical coverage on the above authors and how alcohol gripped them. It also covers neurobiology and psychology-- questions why/how alcoholism happens. No easy answers. I enjoyed this thought provoking read. One caveat-- the author does dissect some of the above's works -- so if you hate any kind of spoilers, keep that in mind.

Just started this non-fic about writers and drinking. The author holds up "The Swimmer " by John Cheever as an excellent example of short story that also embodies alcoholism. So of course I had to pick up my bedside copy of John Cheever's short story collection to read it (it's near the back, so I hadn't gotten to it yet). What a story it is ?! (ETA to add tag ?)

Despite some success with giving away books (well, one) over a week ago, and my determination to #readmyowndamnbooks, I bought more books this weekend while out with friends, including @janeycanuck (who exercised much restraint despite us going into 3 separate shops). #iamweak

#bookhaul Thought it would NEVER get here!Like I needed any more.

Bought these at Alexander Book Co. in San Francisco. Currently reading The Trip to Echo Spring, which has been on my list for years. Bumped it up since reading her lovely biography-art history-memoir The Lonely City. I love her writing style and ability to weave between subjects.

I also bought Riverine by Angela Palm because it won the Graywolf Prize for Nonfiction. After Eula Biss & Leslie Jamison's wins I'll buy anything that wins that prize.

Currently window display from public library Jaume Perich i Escala #literature & #alcohol

A quote from Hemingway, found in his personal papers after his death. Guess I'm going to have to work on that lying thing.