Speak: A Novel | 
pickBeautiful writing, sad subject matter.
Apt for a literary sci fi novel focused on memory,
the format is a mix of epistolary and diary entries, told from a number of voices throughout history.
(Did a tandem read, can highly recommend the full cast audiobook.)
1/? [Gonna be a long one]
so-soA novel told in 7 points of view, it‘s ultimately about loneliness.
Told mostly in letters and journal entries, we cross the ocean to the new world with Mary in the 1660‘s. we hear about Alan Turning‘s love of science and hope of developing an artificial mind. We see stages of the development of AI through other characters, and when AI is banned we accompany a bot banished to a disposal warehouse.
Strange one of a kind book. Mixed feelings.
pickThis was a really unique book about the future of technology in terms of what could happen with the advancement of robotics, etc. The underlying symbolism of losing our voices as we progress with technology is very powerful and I definitely feel like it made me think hard about a lot. This books is written from a lot of perspectives and in different formats which also adds to big picture the story paints.
pickI'm not convinced this is entirely successful (it has that "just missed" feeling) but it was hard to put down and I'll be thinking about it for some time.
What makes us human? Is it the need to tell our stories and have them witnessed? (Does that mean we are less human when we cannot do so?) And/or is it our apparent inability to inhabit the present moment without under-layering it with a remembered past we can't let go of? Intriguing stuff!
pickI have no idea what was going on in this inventive novel but it was all interesting
pickLOVED THIS but then I‘m weird. I would definitely read anything else she has written.
“It is a haunting thing to know we‘re raising a child who will process things differently from the others. In an ideal world, its differences would be respected and even cherished, but I fear our world is far from ideal.”
“I found pictures of the Pacific, waves rising like they‘re looking over each other‘s shoulders to see how the others will break.”
Just started this. I‘m not sure where it is going but it has an interesting beginning.
so-soI read the first 120 pages of this in one sitting and really enjoyed it but the story didn‘t really progress from there. MARY‘s memory has been built around stories from lonely people who had difficulties coming to terms with loss. I finished this with too many questions - perhaps that is the intention. Definitely a book that would prompt discussion.
so-soI went into this with really high expectations and I think that screwed me over a little. It reminded me a lot of David Mitchell's Cloud Atlas. Hall laid a strong foundation but I think she overexplained in the second half, especially with regards to how the characters were connected, and it just trailed into the unknown towards the end. I really like her writing style and I enjoyed the book well enough, it just didn't blow my mind.
Long day and now on 3 hour journey home with a flapjack, tea and a book I picked up from the library last night that was not on my to read list. (I Was supposed to leave empty handed. Too many books at home still to read).
Sunday reading.
#arefriendselectric ✨In the case of this book, in some instances, yes... but these stories emphasizing the complications of communication really lost me. Too many different narrators, none of which succeeded in proving their point.
#nuyear
panThis book was almost painful for me to finish. Too many characters, none of which were fully formed, and none of which I connected with in the least. Each one seemed to be obsessing over something that happened in their past, with all stories linked by the idea of technology and communication. But I‘m still not sure what new point on those matters the author was trying to communicate. The whole thing fell flat.
#TBR read. I've got 4 books going at once now....I need to finish one of them (all of them) this week. 😬
My husband just put Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson on his TBR, so he's been referring to the book I'm reading as the "boats, not rape" book.
pickGetting ready for bed. Couldn't find book. Phone was in my hand still. Oops. Great book so far though!
#AprilBookShowers Day 9 - Artificial Intelligence
What a beautiful, unusual, and thought-provoking book. In its pages, Louisa Hall questions the very nature of existence...of inter-connection. What makes us human? The author explores this through a cast of characters including a Puritan girl sailing to the New World, Alan Turing, a computer science genius, a couple nearing a breakthrough in AI, and a child suffering from a mysterious illness.
I don't read a lot of sci-fi and #artificialintelligence is not a subject I'm drawn to. I did, however, enjoy this novel of nested stories told in different genres that imagines a history of AI . #aprilbookshowers @RealLifeReading
#24in48 #readathon
Here's my audiobook choice for the weekend to fill in the reading spaces. Told in five voices with different narrators. Great choice for the readathon. Easy to follow and short chapters.
For this #recommendsday, I'm sharing my 5 ⭐️ reads of the year so far! I hope some of you have liked them too. 👍🏻👍🏻
Only about halfway through, but really liking this book. Multiple narrators and storylines, but easy to follow.
pickFirst 5🌟 of the year. Heartbreaking and life-affirming at the same time. The audio is amazing too. I'm going to talk about the picture and what ties the book together below. If you want to discover yourself, read it!
This book has surprised me. I've been putting off reading it for over a year, but I'm really enjoying it!
The Memoirs of Stephen R. Chinn
"He begins to wonder whether perhaps he‘s fooling himself, whether he‘s convinced himself he‘s living when in fact he‘s merely performing, going through the motions of life, a wire monkey raised by a wire mother."
#quote #LouisaHall #Speak
The Memoirs of Stephen R. Chinn
"We tend to assume that sentient machines would be inevitably demonic. But what if they were responsible leaders?"
#quote #LouisaHall #Speak
Gabby White
"Gaby: So you‘re not really a person, you‘re a collection of voices.
MARY3: Yes. But couldn‘t you say that‘s always the case?"
#quote #LouisaHall #Speak
Gabby White
"Listen, there are no known words for the things that I‘m feeling. I‘m not going to try to describe them."
#quote #LouisaHall #Speak
pickWhat is humanity? Okay, that sounds more philosophical than I meant it to. This book tracks multiple people in time and the ways they speak- or write- to people and to computers. The underlying question is can technology replace that human interaction.
While I liked some forms/POVs more than others, I have to admit I've never read anything quite like this.
Halloween candy + new book + bubble bath - stress from a long day = plans for tonight.
This one sounds awesome! Multiple POV, litfic-sci-fi.
Any book about Turing gets my interest.
pickCreative novel about the past, memory, loss and artificial intelligence. Hall weaves in stories of characters throughout various times in history, some real (eg Alan Turing), others fictional. Each longs for someone lost in the past and strives to keep that person alive somehow. Raises interesting questions about technology and interpersonal relationships. http://cannonballread.com/2016/09/the-fibonacci-novel/
Listen, whiz mathletes: this is why English class is important. One day a terrible quiet will settle over your house. There will be no words. Then you'll want to tell stories.
My current #tbr pile. #bookstacks The secret is wait for the books to reach $1 or .01 on Amazon. Most of these cost me $4-5, except the signed ones.
pickI cannot tell you how much i loved this book. It asks questions and makes profound statements about language, conversations and stories - especially where these come from women and are controlled by men. It gets all the stars. (And the audio cast was amazing).
6mo
Focus on relationships, not simply communication gaps but the mistakes made when people build the wrong vision of the person they thought they were building a relationship with and the resulting fall out, reflecting on loss. 6mo
I feel I should point out three things: 6mo
6mo
⚠️animal death, homophobia, body dysphoria, non consensual hormonal modification, internalized fatphobia, ableism 6mo