Welcome to Litsy!

Wow. I bought this at Barnes & Noble as a blind-date-with-a-book promotion. It was wrapped up and the tag said “Cain and Able-esque” which is what sold me. Bonus: Obioma teaches at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln, my home state. Four brothers fish in the forbidden river. A madman spits out one of his prophecies, changing the course for the family forever after.

Beautifully grim and atmospheric. The grief spills off the page in poetic prose.

This book set in Nigeria follows a large family of boys trying to live up to the expectations of their parents in a challenging time. Beautifully written and painfully wrought, the trials these brothers endure are truly heartbreaking. Violent and sad, this one is powerful but not for the faint of heart. #Roll100 #BookspinBingo @PuddleJumper @TheAromaofBooks #MountTBR

Mixed about this one. It was difficult to get into. The writing can be at times beautiful, the siblings relationships are well explored in their complexity and the small town life is evocative. I did find it repetitive plot wise and this led me to switch off.

A father‘s hopes and dreams for his children is that they never ever become simple fishermen. He wants something more from them. He wants them to be juggernauts. It‘s a quite hilarious scene in some ways. But sometimes things don‘t go as a parent plans. Sometimes things go very tragically awry. I find myself thinking about the curse and whether or not I‘m supposed to be thinking about it to the extent that I am.

I‘ve been on Litsy for 5 years!

My first post (above) was for an audiobook that had been nominated for the Audies (the audiobook industry‘s equivalent of the Oscars (r)). The Armchair Audies was a panel of volunteers who each selected a category and listened to each of the nominees and, then came up with their own pick! It was fun while it lasted! 🎧

A boy describes his life growing up in Nigeria. Surrounded by his family and African culture, he gives a story about how a madman ruined his family. The turmoils this family goes through are unimaginable. Listening to the strong Nigerian culture and tales keeps you engaged throughout the whole book! Can‘t wait for him to write more!

#3books #writtenbyapoc that I love....
@OriginalCyn620 @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

Hoping to have enough time to do a deep dive into this one today - barely got started yesterday. Partner is out fishing again so at least have a little bit #diversevoices #tackletheTBR

Another book that has been sitting on my shelf for years, unread. Figure the perfect time to start it is while my partner is out fishing in the kayak!

@BookishTrish Thank you so much! Zoë had to come and check out the goodies too :) I am so looking forward to curling up with a coffee and my new book while nibbling on some chocolate!

Happy to have picked up a few new books at the library yesterday! This was a book club pick a few months ago that I am having to catch up on because of the business of life and school! I love my book club and always enjoy the books our group picks so I wouldn‘t miss out of one for the world!! Anyone read this one??

3 ⭐
I struggled to get through this one. In some parts the writing was absolutely beautiful, but in others it fell short and was really clunky. I also found the lack of dialogue or direct action difficult to engage with - I didn't connect with the characters and found myself not as invested as I would have hoped.

This was a good book but some parts were overly descriptive...I think the book could‘ve used a stronger editor because the overall story was good, but there were a lot of poor choices that should‘ve been caught by the editor.
While I‘m here, #grateful21
Day 14-15
1. I ended a relationship that needed to be ended (with no tears, though it still didn‘t feel great)
2. Did a little spring cleaning
3. I‘m still standing despite recent difficulties

A devastating tale of brotherly love and family solidarity that imagines the juncture where illness, madness, prophecy, fatalism, and superstition meet. #chigozieobioma

#grateful21 Day 13
1. Mommy daughter day - manis and pedis with my baby
2. I‘m off work next week (staycation)
3. Grandma is eating again! She‘s been fighting multiple illnesses.
4. Positivity
@Eggs

#grateful21 Days 9-12.. I have been falling off.
1 Had a good time with a friend
2 Grandma is doing a little better
3 I went to pick out paint colors to paint my home

Heartbreaking

Beautifully written, imaginative, sometimes sad, frequently sad actually. Started slow and then started huttling at speed. Sometimes the images felt too vivid. I finished reading the book then i felt dissatisfied with the whole story. Sigh. I cant deny the art of it, it just left me feeling a little adrift

A super-short #litsywalkers walk to the library this morning, via the churchyard - but it was outdoors at least. For reasons best not considered, all the gravestones have been moved to alongside the walls.

And a libraryhaul. I will be quoting from the local history book at some point, because you‘re going to need to know about the women of Teignmouth! (No, really!)

Some #redreads I‘ve really enjoyed 👍❤️📕 #literarylove

I kept my Strand purchases to a minimum. But there were about 90 other books or t-shirts or candles or socks or bags or games that I wanted to buy.

“He had it coming, he had it coming
He only had himself to blame!”

When four brothers defy their father and become Fishermen, they run into the village madman who predicts the older brother will be killed by one of his siblings. Things escalate, and you are left wondering whether everything is a question of fate or the belief in fate 🤷‍♀️

#CellBlockTango #MusicalNewYear

My reading buddy tonight. He just had his 8th birthday 😻😻🍾 #catsoflitsy

Loving this so far 🤘🏼 🐟🐠🐡

#OctoberXfiles A band of brothers encounter the village madman, not quite the #boogieman but known throughout the village as an evil and dangerous presence, on their way down to the river. The madman delivers a prophecy which in turn alters the lives of these young boys. Mythical and luring, an atmospheric novel that gets under your bones. #AfricanLit #Debut

I wanted to love this book but it did not move me the way I had hoped. The imagery and symbolism are very good. The Nigerian setting is vivid. I will watch this author to see how he grows past this first work. Pick, but with a bullet. 🤨

#abookaweek. #TwoinThree #3. Just starting this for a book club!

Obioma‘s debut novel (2015) focuses on four brothers in Nigeria in the 1990s. While their father is away, they break the rules and go fishing, a seemingly harmless activity, except it leads to a breakdown in the family that mirrors the political breakdown of Nigeria. Extraordinary novel, grim and heart breaking. https://cannonballread.com/2018/08/a-parable-of-nigeria/

#audiobaking my man‘s favorite cake - Victoria sponge with raspberry jam......
(thank you Mary Berry for your fool-proof all-in-one recipe !) 🍰

This audiobook is a re-read for an IRL bookclub.... this narrator has the most beautiful melodic voice....😍🎧

Today‘s plans

Compelling and sad story about a family‘s life in a Nigerian community. Life, love and loss feature strongly and how we cope with these and try to move on.

#quotsyjune18 #vision

#junetbr #readingresolutions
Start of June reads 😁
I have a #whodunnituk read which is a definite and I‘ll probably do my #1001books
My tbr is overwhelming at the moment so the kids are picking the books! My daughter selected this one this morning.

The characters are described from the perspective of a 9 year old boy(Ben), often in metaphoric terms based on birds: one character is an eagle, another a falconer, still others egrets, and these magical descriptions show people in dimensions not often found in fiction.

The Fishermen is a dark yet flamboyant novel of a close-knit family that disintegrates because of a mad man.

For more reviews on book check our blog

http://www.booxoul.com

This was intense and dark. A lot of young child suffering and angst, which is hard. Writing was a little dense—every 4th or 5th sentence was a forced-feeling simile or metaphor. Obioma was leaning hard on Things Fall Apart, which he mentioned explicitly a couple of times.

I was grateful for vivid characters and setting, interesting (if imperfect) prose, and a new Nigerian voice. It‘s a debut, so I‘ll try this author again for sure. 3/5

A compelling, moving story beautifully read. This made a long trip go so much more quickly.

👍

Commute reading, featuring a bookmark form @Mdargusch ☺️ Considering it‘s raining today it‘s a little aspirational 🤷🏽‍♀️ ☔️

I like this. I don‘t see a lot of maps in litfic, but for this story it‘s useful! #bookmaps

Straight up stolen from @Bibliogeekery. Image credit goes to Rough Draft Books in NYC. #Shade 🐸☕#POCAuthors

From #roughdraftbarandbooks

Thank God for the long weekend, y‘all. I‘m using #litsypartyofone as a excuse to start this #ownvoices book I borrowed from my cousin over a year ago, knowing full and well I already have two books going right now that I need to finish 💁🏽‍♀️

This story of family, consequences, and tragedy is infused with the place of Nigeria and societal superstitions. The first 3/4 is terrific, but honestly I started to lose interest toward the end. I loved the narrator of this audio—he has a wonderful voice. ⭐️⭐️⭐️

This is the story of four teenage brothers. One day the mad man of the village predicts that the oldest brother will be killed by one of the others. This prophecy sets in motion a series of irreversible events. A tragic story of life and loss in a Nigerian community.

#manbooker

On motherhood in my current read:

“Mother was a falconer: The one who stood on the hills and watched, trying to stave off whatever ill she perceived was coming to her children. She owned copies of our minds in the pockets of her own mind and so could easily sniff troubles early in their forming, the same way sailors discern the forming foetus of a coming storm.”

😍

Weekend hike with my girlfriends. Autumn and sun. No time to read but no way I go anywhere without my book. #currentread

These are some books from my tbr. Let me know your thoughts for our #LMPBC group.

@DarcysMom @slategreyskies @Lissa00