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I'm Supposed to Protect You from All This
I'm Supposed to Protect You from All This: A Memoir | Nadja Spiegelman
A memoir of mothers and daughtersand mothers as daughterstraced through four generations, from Paris to New York and back again. For a long time, Nadja Spiegelman believed her mother was a fairy. More than her famous father, Maus creator Art Spiegelman, and even more than most mothers, hersFrench-born New Yorker art director Franoise Moulyexerted a force over reality that was both dazzling and daunting. As Nadjas body changed and began to whisper to the adults around me in a language I did not understand, their relationship grew tense. Unwittingly, they were replaying a drama from her mothers past, a drama Nadja sensed but had never been told. Then, after college, her mother suddenly opened up to her. Franoise recounted her turbulent adolescence caught between a volatile mother and a playboy father, one of the first plastic surgeons in France. The weight of the difficult stories she told her daughter shifted the balance between them. It had taken an ocean to allow Franoise the distance to become her own person. At about the same age, Nadja made the journey in reverse, moving to Paris determined to get to know the woman her mother had fled. Her grandmothers memories contradicted her mothers at nearly every turn, but beneath them lay a difficult history of her own. Nadja emerged with a deeper understanding of how each generation reshapes the past in order to forge ahead, their narratives both weapon and defense, eternally in conflict. Every reader will recognize herself and her family in this gorgeous and heartbreaking memoir, which helps us to see why sometimes those who love us best hurt us most. From the Hardcover edition.
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Andrea313
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Billed as "a memoir of mothers and daughters—and mothers as daughters—traced through four generations, from Paris to New York and back again", this book has been on my TBR list for some time. #amothersstory #mothersday #BiblioMAYnia #MagicalMay
@Eggs @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @OriginalCyn620

OriginalCyn620 Love the title! 4y
Eggs Sounds like a great read 👏🏻📚👏🏻 4y
21 likes2 comments
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Samplergal
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Pickpick

A daughter writes a memoir of her mother ( and grandmother) and finds friends in her female relatives. Her family is French, American, and Jewish, which makes for rich stories of her famous family. Her mother is Francoise Mouly, NY art director and father is Art Spiegelman, creator of Maus. 4🌟

gradcat Oh, I love Art Spiegelman books! ♥️ 5y
Anna40 Have to admit that I bailed on this one, was not for me 5y
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sarahjane1077
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8 likes1 stack add
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sarahjane1077
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I CANNOT stop reading this book. Ah-mazing! #memoir

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sarahjane1077
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My current read. Really lovely so far. Was a birthday present from the friend who knows what books I want before I can tell her or buy them. ❤️

8 likes1 stack add
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Ashley_Nicoletto
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Mehso-so

Interesting look at the relationship between mothers and daughters. I enjoyed this a lot, but as a person who has a strong relationship with their mother I had trouble connecting.

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rjsthumbelina
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Mehso-so

I can't decide for sure how I felt about this one. I really liked that it spanned generations of women. I also really liked the depth of the characters. I didn't like that it was at times difficult to keep the narrative straight, or that I didn't feel a real resolution at the end. I think it's possible that my dislikes were from it being a memoir, which I don't normally read.

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rjsthumbelina

Literally 2 pages from the end and my Nook dies!

Oh well. Good thing I only work 1 job today! Seeing how many books I can finish in my July 4th holiday from my full-time gig!

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rjsthumbelina
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Aluciddreamstate
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Pickpick

3.5/5⭐️. Great coming of age memoir by the writer through the intense family history of her mother and grandmother. The writer intertwines her life with that of her matriarchal figures searching for her identity. I struggled at times feeling like she was on the threshold of something profound and then it was left open. Maybe it is metaphorical for life or she just hasn't reached that point. Would recommend

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rjsthumbelina
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What a first line!

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Librariana
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Pickpick

????
"The acts of omission and inclusion we made in our memories were creative acts through which we authored our lives."
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Listening to the author narrate this memoir provided a welcome intimacy, a faithfulness to her original vision. It lent the tone to conversations that weaved a tapestry of the past... of relationships between mothers and daughters... and how these can encourage a better, deeper understanding of those bonds in the present.

Librariana #LitsyAtoZ @BookishMarginalia - I ran out of characters to include this in the original post! My apologies, Gloria! 7y
Cinfhen Nice review, our book club almost read this one but chose (edited) 7y
Librariana @Cinfhen - Oh wow! The book y'all ended up picking sounds intriguing! What a story to tell! -- There were times, with this memoir, where I'd get a bit confused... keeping track of names and having to recall "ok, whose mom is she??" But it really felt like an exploration of the reliability of memory and an explanation, perhaps, of why patterns persist through multiple generations. 7y
28 likes2 stack adds3 comments
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MrBook
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#TBRtemptation post! Wow!!! This must be one helluva memoir! Crossing between NYC & Paris, Nadja recounts how she came to learn of her family's past--which includes her father, "Maus" author Art Spiegelman. She learns turbulent & volatile things from her mother. In turn, she travels to Europe to meet her grandmother, who counters everything her mother's told her. Talk about each generation revising history! Captivating. #blameLitsy #blameMrBook ?

OrangeMooseReads This is a good one 7y
LitsyGoesPostal 😊👍🏻 7y
90 likes9 stack adds2 comments
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vtriay
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"It is posed as a theoretical question, whether a mother would run into a burning building to save her child. It is not one that many people know the answer to."

Librariana I just listened to that part a little earlier today. As a result, I requested 7y
3 likes1 comment
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catieohjoy
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That Kindle book sale got me...at least my total was only about $10! 📚

BookishMarginalia 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 7y
Suetara I'm deciding what to pick up in the sale now. So many great books! 7y
Theresa I missed this one when I looked earlier. Thanks for posting because it's been in my wish list for a while. Snagged! 7y
PurpleyPumpkin Well done!👍🏽 7y
46 likes4 comments
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Dempsey
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Pickpick

This is a must read for any woman who has a complicated relationship with her mother/grandmother.

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bitterbear
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this chick right here!!! #weekendreadfest #bookdrunk #introvert

bitterbear All lies... got called in Sunday. 7y
4 likes1 comment
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JewishBookCouncil
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Pickpick

Writing a memoir in your late twenties may be indulgent, but an artistically indulgent woman is a rebellious one, and Spiegelman uses her project to honor the women in her life whose lives are complex and compromised, resulting in a book that is stranger than fiction and difficult to put down. #JewLit

Read the full review: http://bit.ly/2gFSJGa

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LauraBeth
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2 hrs of Yard work ✅. Gave #Bitsy a bath after she "helped" in yard ✅ (Now she's walking around like she's the Queen just because she's clean). Now going to read for the rest of the evening ?

kspenmoll So want to read this book! 7y
LeahBergen 💗💗 7y
Mimi28 There are my buddies!! 😻🐶 7y
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Faibka 😻🐶💜💜 7y
britt_brooke 💕💕💕 7y
Bookish.Heart Bitsy!!!! ❤️❤️ 7y
OrangeMooseReads Good book! 7y
shanebeth sweet furbabies! 😽 7y
Litlady When I die, I want to be reincarnated as a furbaby and show up on your doorstep. 🐾💗🐾💗🐶😻🐶😻💜 Your posts brighten my day, Ms. Laura. ☺️😃 7y
LauraBeth @kspenmoll it's really good! 7y
LauraBeth @OrangeMooseReads I agree! 😀 7y
LauraBeth @Litlady awww - you're too kind 😊 but should you show up on the doorstep as a dog or a cat, I'll take you in 😀 7y
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LauraBeth
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It's a new day 😀

Posemn This is the best way I've seen yet to stay above the election spin. 😉 7y
105 likes1 comment
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Ammie
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So excited to sink into this one

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OrangeMooseReads
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I did it! Also finished this owl that I started some time ago (about a 1/4 was done before I started today).

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OrangeMooseReads
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Determined to finish this today. I only have a little less than 2 hours left. I can do it!

merelybookish I'm on a similar mission. 7y
12 likes1 comment
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OrangeMooseReads
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I'm getting there with this one. I can only do so much at a time. I'm finding it very heavy. Incredible, but heavy.

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OrangeMooseReads
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Just started this one. I'm incredibly interested in this story. Yes she is the daughter of Art Spiegelman (Maus)

BookishFeminist This memoir is SO GOOD. She's a really talented writer & writes her mom's story very compellingly. 7y
OrangeMooseReads So far I am enjoying it. 7y
13 likes2 comments
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AlicePaulJr
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Seriously well written and beautifully well rounded characters. And I'm only 120 pages in.

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theshrinkette
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I obviously couldn't just pick one. #memorablememoirs #booktober

RanaElizabeth Lab Girl! 7y
SarahSaysRead Can I ask what app you used to make this? Pretty! 7y
theshrinkette @SarahSaysRead If you have an iPhone, it's an app called PhotoGrid. :) 7y
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SarahSaysRead I do not, but I'll try searching for something similar. Thanks! 7y
theshrinkette @SarahSaysRead Layout for Instagram could also work and that's available on Android too. 7y
SarahSaysRead I found Pic Collage, seems similar. Thanks! :) 7y
57 likes6 comments
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EnidBiteEm
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Pickpick

The sophistication and elan of these three women who live in Paris and New York made me feel like a provincial convict 😬😂 but there was so much love between Nadia and her mother and Nadja and her grandmother ... and yet so much emotional dysfunction, hurt, and conflicting stories to unpick. This memoir took years to write, but NS was persistent in claiming her memories, fearing her very sense of self may be forgotten in their perspectives.

EnidBiteEm It was really the mother's memoir (Francoise, who was the Art Director of The New Yorker), as told through the eyes of her daughter Nadja (whose father, Art Spiegelman, created Maus). This is the other side of the family tree). #booktober #memorablememoirs #readit 7y
kspenmoll I really really want to read this. Promised myself I would buy it as a reward after I read 5 books from my stack. Thanks for review!! 7y
EnidBiteEm @kspenmoll I like the reward you've given yourself for such punishment 'after I read 5 books' *sigh* 😂 7y
kspenmoll Ha your right; what a horrid punishment!!! 7y
38 likes5 stack adds4 comments
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BookishFeminist
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#TGIF.

Peaceful sunrise reading before my day gets busy. 😳 I know people keep saying that food doesn't cure anything, but I keep thinking to myself that those people have never had a donut. They're perfection. 🍩

#bookandtea #bookandbreakfast

AnIndianReader Suppose to protect you from a donut? 😂😃🤔 8y
LauraBeth Doughnuts make everything better 🍩 8y
Bibliogeekery I want that donut! 🍩 8y
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Skyler I love that mug! 8y
Dorianna Donuts tend to help with a lot of life's problems. 8y
Posemn I agree with you except my helpful doughnut usually takes the form of an apple fritter. 8y
WhatDeeReads Clearly. Especially old fashioned doughnuts are healing. 8y
WhatDeeReads @Posemn even better! 8y
BooksForYears Doughnut Friday deserves 👍👍 8y
Godmotherx5 Love that mug! 8y
Ashley_Nicoletto Agreed! Donuts cure so much. 8y
Matilda Chocolate is magical and cures everything too lol 8y
Shortstack Sometimes starting your day off with something special can help set the tone for the entire day. 8y
Zelma I can't argue with that! I am a sucker for a cake donut with a little chocolate frosting. 8y
JSW Donuts are life. That and a book and coffee/tea are all I need. 8y
rubyslippersreads Donuts are therapeutic (and now I crave one). 😄🍩☕️ 8y
TheJessWall I'm fairly certain that donuts fix EVERYTHING. 8y
BookishFeminist @Shawshank It's more like donuts need protection from me! 😂😂 8y
BookishFeminist @Bibliogeekery Get thee to a Starbucks! It's one of their old fashioned ones. 😊 8y
BookishFeminist @Skyler @Godmotherx5 thanks!! I got it at @strandbookstore if you guys are ever in NYC! 8y
BookishFeminist @Posemn apple fritters are excellent, too. They aren't my everyday donut though because usually I just end up making a mess of myself 😂 8y
BookishFeminist @Matilda 💯💯 chocolate is magical and does indeed cure everything lol 8y
BookishFeminist @Shortstack Yep :) donuts and tea is one of the best ways! 8y
erzascarletbookgasm That picture on the mug..😂 8y
Yournewfriendsams Donuts can solve most life crisis' 8y
Godmotherx5 Oh, The Strand. On my bucket list. 8y
DizZyoNbooks That mug! 8y
BookwormVet I need to get my hands on this book! 😉 7y
Chachic Love the #bookandtea hashtag! ☕ 7y
136 likes15 stack adds30 comments
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BookishFeminist
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I have #Litsomnia, so I started a new book.

I'm starting this memoir. IT'S SO GOOD. The prose, like this quote, is 🔥. Nadja is unlocking the story of her mom's troubled past. Her mom is French, but she decided to move to NYC to get away from her family, but Nadja doesn't know why. Her mom is a former arts editor of The New Yorker, & her father is Art Spiegelman, author of Maus. She has fascinating stories to tell, & her writing is magical. 🔥✨

theshrinkette I enjoyed this book so much! 8y
BookishFeminist @theshrinkette Yay! I haven't heard much about it but was caught by the title. I'm hooked so far! 8y
See All 19 Comments
brendanmleonard That is gorgeous! 8y
BookishFeminist @brendanmleonard It's so beautifully & powerfully written. I could quote the entire first chapter. 8y
Texreader I've a bad case of #litsomnia (nice one) tonight as well 8y
Cinfhen This came up as a possible book club selection...what do you think? Our group likes non-fiction and memoirs 8y
BookishFeminist @Texreader Oh no! Solidarity- it sucks but at least we have books. 8y
BookishFeminist @Cinfhen From what I've read of it so far, it would be a fantastic book club choice. Lots of stuff to unpack about memory, family, mother/daughter relationships etc but it is not light. Lots of dark undertones. 8y
LauraBeth I can't wait to read this one! 8y
BookishFeminist @LauraBeth I think you'd love it- so good! :) I'm hooked. 8y
Cinfhen @BookishFeminist thanks! I'll let the ladies know we may have found our January read😊 8y
BookishFeminist @Cinfhen Let me know if you guys decide to read it! :) 8y
Erynecki I'm at the halfway mark! 8y
Theresa I just finished Maus last night so I feel like I've just met her parents. This may be a fascinating next read. 8y
BookishFeminist @Erynecki I hope you're liking it as much as I am so far! 8y
BookishFeminist @Theresa Oh this would be perfect! Maus obviously focuses on her dad & this is essentially a biography of her mom through her daughter's eyes. It's beautiful. 8y
alohabetty I'd love to hear what you think about this. It sounds amazing from what I've read of it, but also like it'd cut close to the bone, so I'm tentative. 8y
Erynecki @BookishFeminist It's a super interesting read. Given my personal fascination with Maus, its particularly interesting to read about the family from her perspective and focus on her mom. 8y
108 likes26 stack adds19 comments
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Erynecki
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The Maus books profoundly changed how I thought about Children of Survivors. And I once wrote to Francoise Mouly at the New Yorker hoping she would publish one of my great grandfather's paintings on the magazine cover. She did not, but sent me the nicest rejection note. So when I learned their daughter wrote a memoir...I knew I had to read it. It's the bio of a mother seen through the eyes of a daughter.

BookHermit Thank you for reminding me of the existence and name of this book. I heard a wonderful interview with the author but neglected jot down any details 8y
22 likes4 stack adds1 comment
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shelf-devoted
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Hoping for a weekend of sun and fun, gold skirts and glorious reading times. Loving this read so far.

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SubwayBookReview
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Erin: "It's a memoir of mothers and daughters over four generations. The author's mother has been the art editor at The New Yorker since the 90s. Her father is Art Spiegelman who is a cartoonist and editor. You'd think someone who grows up with amazing parents like this would have a dreamlike childhood but everyone has their own challenges. Nadja explored hers by looking at her mother's and grandmother's challenges in a beautiful and caring way."

sofiaga This sounds incredibly interesting 8y
85 likes23 stack adds1 comment
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Brona
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Wow! Just wow!

EnidBiteEm I just put that on hold at the library 😀 8y
7 likes2 stack adds1 comment
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Kiley
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Pickpick

Spiegelman's prose can feel overly flowery and self-conscious at times, but she is so eloquent and evocative that I really didn't care. The narrative is beautifully non-linear, and she manages to write about herself, her mother, and her grandmother with both a remove and deep empathy. Even if you're not a fan of mother-daughter narratives, pick this one up - Nadja Spiegelman is one to watch.

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KiskyLuella
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Pickpick

I heard Nadja Spiegelman describe this as "an autobiography of a mother as told by her daughter" and I think that description is perfect. It is far more than a memoir. It's a flowing, curious love letter to mothers, daughters and identity.

LauraBeth ImI've followed Francoise Mouly's career so I can't wait to read this! 8y
14 likes1 comment
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Kiley
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This is an A+ author inscription (the book is A+ so far too!).

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Jillreads
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"She wasn't particularly eager to see other people, but she was eager to see herself. This body of hers, this mind of hers, what might they look like when they were hers alone? But Paris was littered with ghosts of her past selves. She wanted a place so new it blinded her. A place that would pick her up and bleach her clean, a blank page on which a new story could begin. She wanted to go someplace no one she knew had been."

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whitney
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Legs tucked inside a laundry basket, eating dinosaur gummies, & listening to Gwen Stefani. 📖 #HowDoYouRead

PS Lost my first copy and finally snagged another one! Can't wait to finish it - so good. Also, I'm at the laundromat. And finally, heyyyy all you new followers. Welcome to Litsy! 💕

Brandilarsen Love the hashtag. I wish Litsy would let us have pics in the comments. I read on my phone so it's often in bed, curled around the tiny glowing rectangle. 8y
angrylilasian I've been trying to find an ARC of this book. I can't wait until August! 8y
Jillreads I am about 100 pages in and love it so far! 8y
63 likes14 stack adds3 comments
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whitney
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I'm midway through and internally reeling. Nadja holds her own against her talented father, with a memoir so vivid, so achingly truthful, that I have to take breathers while reading this. It's a book that will make you reevaluate your own relationships with family and especially your own mother.

SGJ Seriously? Had no idea this even existed. Too cool. Thanks you. 8y
SGJ Also/thank you again. Very excited about this. 8y
whitney @SGJ yay! glad to spread the knowledge. 8y
Pinknite Nice cover although there are a lot of great books out there but I can't read them cause of the bad covers :( 8y
paperbackhorror That's such a badass title. 8y
44 likes24 stack adds5 comments