Welcome to Litsy!

#MLKDay #JanuaryJazz

59 long years and we are still waiting for Martin‘s Dream to come to fruition. The seminal speech of the 21st Century, but it feels at the moment as if this dream is moving further away than ever with so many right winged governments around the world. We must fight on!

This is the link for the speech which I often watch. https://youtu.be/smEqnnklfYs

@Eggs @AlwaysBeenALoverOfBooks

It so heartbreaking to read what it was like in this country not too long before I was born. 5 ⭐️

My afternoon plans include some Yona, a Barking Squirrel Amber Lager from Hopcity Brewing Co, and my first official #AuldLangSpine title! (Full disclosure: I cheated and read one at the end of 2022. More on that later.) I‘m excited to dive in. I‘ve only read one Whitehead previous to this, but I deeply respect his commitment to privileging the truth far ahead of the reader‘s comfort.

A low pick for me.

I didn‘t read the synopsis, so I didn‘t know what this was about going in, but after doing some research, it makes me mad that this is what black people suffered through during the Jim Crow Era.

I commend Whitehead for tackling an important topic in American history. But I do have one gripe about this book and the use of the n word. It was a little off putting for me.

2.75 ⭐️
11/12/22

#lettern #alphabetgame @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This was a reread for me. I liked it even better the second time. I was so focused on the atrocities of the school when I first read this one. But this time I was able to pick up on all the other important points Whitehead was making. Definitely recommend multiple readings of this one.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫I‘ve purposefully avoided this book since it came out because of the difficulty of the subject matter & my general avoidance of “heavy” fiction, but Whitehead manages to write of brutality without his writing becoming brutal.
The fact that it‘s real, recent history is hard to take in, and I‘m grateful there are authors like Whitehead who do the difficult work of wading through that history & telling us these stories.

Perfect condition copy of this book from charity shop for only £2. Could not resist. Litsy reviews suggest it's a hard read in terms of subject matter, but excellent.

Set in a school for juvenile offenders during the 1960s, the story relates the horrendous abuse suffered by the students of color. The protagonist is an intelligent, straight-arrow kid who winds up there out of sheer bad luck. He clings to MLK‘s words for comfort and strength but soon learns that the admin of the school do not share MLK‘s vision.

Even in death the boys were trouble.

#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl

Oh the ending!!

Whew! Whitehead is monstrously talented. I knew it all along, and yet reading The Nickel Boys was still a shock. He knows just when to pull your eyes away from a scene, to avoid reveling in the horror, which somehow makes it more impactful. Full review: https://keepingupwiththepenguins.com/the-nickel-boys-colson-whitehead/

It‘s got it‘s surprises along the way, but it was both a time and emotional investment into characters that didn‘t prove to be worth it in the end

Not a book you would describe as enjoyable but it is an important story with sympathetic characters and a hopeful ending.

@JackOBotts I‘m so glad you had this on your #nywd22 list! This is a book I‘ve wanted to read, but also felt very intimidated by because of the hard subject matter and content warnings.

Yes, everything that happened to these boys is heartbreaking, but Whitehead handles in the most brilliant way. Allowing the reader to feel for the boys without wallowing in the sadness. To be in the story but not be so weighed down by it like others I‘ve read… ⬇️

I finished my first #NYWD22 book from the list of @Amandajoy and I‘m going to need a minute. 😢

This book has been on my tbr since it came out, and I just love the way Colson Whitehead writes. A work of fiction that is strongly based in the real-life horror that was the Dozier ‘school‘ for boys, this book took me right through every emotion and broke my heart.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2

A fictional work based on the state-run Dozier School for Boys in Florida where boys were tortured and even murdered while the school remained open for more than 100 years. Brilliantly written and completely devastating. The novel ends with a nice twist.

This is just over 200 pages but it's not really a quick read. It's very tense, disturbing and damn right horrifying and I had to put this book down many times to process what I had just read.
While this maybe a work of fiction, we can all recall the many stories in the media on these 'reform schools' in the last decade. The horrifying stories, the racism, the cover ups, the lack of any meaningful apology.
Excellent read.

#WinterGames2021 #TeamGameSleighers Finished this TBR read tonight while these two snuggled on my lap (they just use me for my blanket). This book was sad knowing it was based on actual events. I have been donating a lot of books lately but this will be added to my shelf. #WrapItReadathon #WinterCosy #AVeryMerryReadathon #DashingDecember @StayCurious @keys_on_fire @TheSpineView @Andrew65

Celebration of light is one of our Traditions. This year was bigger than ever and perfect for kids in quarentine since there is no human contact. #WinterGames2021 #TeamGameSleighers @StayCurious

Week 1 of #Wintergames2021 posting before bed.
315 points for #TeamGameSleighers. #WrapItUpReadathon @keys_on_fire #WinterCosy @PuddleJumper #AVeryMerryReadathon @Spineview @StayCurious

#TeamGameSleighers #FestivePhotoChallenge Day 5 By Candle light. @StayCurious

#FestivePhotoChallenge #TeamGameSleighers Day 4 book and chill
@StayCurious

Pulled along by tiny dreadful images. Sucked into an uncomfortable wonder at the possibility of a horrific underlying truth. Dragged into a relentless and unblinking telling of a history…somewhat imagined and yet somehow wholly the truth. Thrown down the rabbit hole in search of facts. Another swig from the well of bitter waters. Another shadow in the mirror reflecting a venomous darkness.👇🏽

Reading for Book Club. I‘m always caught up in a less than 24-hour countdown every single month for book club. No matter how hard I try, no matter how determined I am to start the next book right after the conclusion of the last book, it never happens. It‘s a mad hustle in the end. &This month I think that I am the moderator.😳
Today…nothing, but reading! Too bad that I was up late last night watching scary movies & I‘m actually really sleepy!🥱😴

Incredible writing

A fictional work based on the state-run Dozier School for Boys in Florida where boys were tortured and even murdered while the school remained open for more than 100 years.

I‘m still thinking about this book days after finishing it and nothing I could say about it will ever be enough. Brilliantly written and completely devastating. Add this to the pile of books that destroyed me emotionally.

TW: Racism, severe beating, sexual assault, rape

One of the dark realities of the 20th century. Everywhere in the world authorities' failure against perpetrated abuses only increased criminality instead of fighting it and transformed potentially good and most of the times innocent citizens into unrecoverable lawbreakers. Some of the victims struggled to escape their bleak predetermined path and inspired others to do the same. The novel ends with a nice twist.

Just checking in with how the readings going so far

#midwaypoint #halfwaythere

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Pulitzer Prize winner for sure! Such an enormous book that I couldn‘t put down. So many injustices and atrocities that I just wanted to scream throughout. So artfully crafted telling the story primarily of two youths sent to a Florida ‘reform school‘ in the 60‘s. This will stay with me for a while.

Finished my #newyearwhodis #bookspin selection at work today. I was so glad no one called during the last chapter! Excellent read! Thus far I have not been disappointed with Mr. Whitehead‘s work. Now I have no idea what to read on shift tomorrow.

Forgot to post! My #bookspin and #doublespin picks for June! 🪅

I had to digest this novel for a few weeks before reviewing it. Beautifully written and unbearably sad, it follows a Black boy‘s experiences after he is unjustly sent to a Florida reform “school” whose horrors unfold with gut-wrenching terror. Everyone should read this novel. To use a movie analogy, this was a story that had me sitting in the theater long after the credits rolled and the lights went off.

This has been on my list to read for quite some time. I finally decided it was time and I‘m mad I waited so long. What a phenomenally written story about such an important topic! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

It's hard to review a book that's so heartbreaking. It's atrocious that horrors like what happened at that "reform school" were allowed to happen and no one batted an eye. A thought-provoking book that makes you question your faith in humanity... at least it did for me. It leaves me with a bitter taste in my mouth, and a heavy heart.

I finally picked out my next book. Women Talking was kind of a letdown. I bought this over a year ago and have been saving it, so I hope it's worth the wait
The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead

This book provides a glimpse of the devastating effects of a Southern reform school during the Jim Crow era through the eyes of two black boys sentenced there. Based on a real school, this book follows the stories of the two boys and the horrors they witnessed and endured at the reform school and what happened after they left. Well-written, eye-opening, and beautifully tragic.

This book packs a huge punch in 213 pages. We follow the bond of two black teens as they struggle to survive the horrors of a reform school in 1960s Florida. Based on a real reform school, we are privy to just a few incidents here and nowhere near the full range of atrocities unleashed upon the boys in attendance. Not to cash in on the "torture porn", but I think there was room to highlight a bit more of what was happening in the school.

I loved this one!

If you haven‘t picked it up you definitely should.

#didntseethatcoming #historicalfiction

This book will wreck you. So good, though.

In a major reading slump here, just sort of existing, behind on all my litsy challenges. I'll get my act together eventually. Just need a little more sunshine, literally, I'm like a houseplant ☀️🌱

I started a book club with my mom and sister. Best book club ever!

#bookclubs #familyreadingtogether

Tough read, but very good. My #doublespin for March. @TheAromaofBooks

This book is a gut-punch. It would be terrible if it wasn't based on the Dozier School for Boys. The true horror is that a place like this really existed. Knowing that people were aware of the torture those children were enduring and chose to remain quiet... There isn't a great way to review this book. It reveals the worst of humanity and the cruelty of broken men. But it celebrates friendship and surviving an unimaginable hell. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

March TBR stack

We‘re already off to a great start!

#TBR #tbrstack #marchtbr #marchtoread

I read this book in one day. So powerful! Wow! What a story. Historical fiction about a reformatory schools for boys who undergo atrocities that break the human spirit. Sexual abuse, physical abuse, whippings. This story was laid out so well, that the ending is shocking but not surprising. What an excellent story.

This book is heartbreaking and deserves all the attention that it has received. It isn‘t quite a 5-star read for me though, because I felt as though I was being held an arm‘s length away for most of the story due to the journalistic tone of the book. I think an emotional tone would have packed more of a punch for me, but nonetheless this is a fantastic, must-read book. 4⭐️

SUCH a powerful book, based on a true story of a reform school in Florida that housed and abused boys from 1900 to the 70s. This novel centres on the Black youth, showing how racism throws people into such systems and forgets them, but also their creativity and resilience. The treatment and ongoing trauma also parallels what I‘ve heard and read about residential schools for Canadian First Nations children.
#Booked2021 #authorsfirstname