Welcome to Litsy!

Read this if you‘re desperately curious about the first settlers of the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

Or if you‘re like me & you really appreciate Vowell‘s unique voice & witty historical observations. I do think I like her books in audio format better, where it feels like I‘m sitting down with a friend infodumping their newest fixation. I wish more time was spent on her last section about Anne Hutchinson, but I still blazed through this. 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑

🎶 Books, glorious books! Non fiction and fiction! 🎶

#BookHaul

Two for One:

Laserwriter II: A very New York story; a New York of a certain time and place. Good story but I am very much not the New Yorker from that time or place.

Wordy Shipmates: Humorous recounting of the words spilled by the early colonists. Tries too hard to laugh out loud funny. Falls a bit flat.

I still have a soft spot for Vowell‘s roaming travel history books, while this one was not my favorite, it was still both informative & entertaining which is her genius. Less the Puritans of Plymouth (of Thanksgiving pageant fame), and more those later arrivals of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and all the minor disagreements of faith that led to major schisms as group after group broke off (or were exiled) to later found their own colonies in ⤵️

Washington: “For happily the Government of the United States . . . gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance.”

90% !!!!

Squanto !!!

Hahaha! Well honestly....who hasn‘t found themselves asking themselves that question (more and more frequently lately)🤔.

“ (...) in the 1960s, President John F. Kennedy, believing that the United States must “bear the burden . . . of helping freedom defend itself,” invades Vietnam; otherwise, he explains, “if we stop helping them, they will become ripe for internal subversion and a Communist take-over.”(...) And then, because the U.S. will keep on going west to help people until we‘re going east, the warships and the F-117 stealth fighters hurry toward the Persian⤵️

Interesting.

Made me think of your comment the other day @GingerAntics

Still love her snark!

The original “readers are more empathetic”.

“So I say to you read! Read! Something will stick in the mind, be diligent and good will come of it.”

😂 I love her snarky history takes.

I loved Assassination Vacation & thought I‘d try one of Vowell‘s other books. I almost didn‘t finish but read that the part about Anne Hutchinson was interesting, so I stuck it out. I ended up not being that interested in the Puritans, although Anne was the bright spot. I didn‘t like the audio format—different actors with Vowell narrating most of it. Why have all the big-name actors if they‘re only going to read a few lines?

#7covers7days #covercrush Day 4

Group nomination here because these are all so fun! Also I'm playing catch-up and posting twice today because I had no time to post yesterday. #RulesShmules 🤣

Not sure I ever understood what the central premise of this was supposed to be so I found some parts to drag and other parts seemed cut short. I would have liked to know more about how Vowell experiences this history and not necessarily a (humorous) retelling of the history.

This ☝🏻#forexampleclimatechangeisREAL

At home in the land of the Puritans... #beachweek #newengland #southshorema

I love Sarah Vowell but this one was a bit of a slog - which is why it took me since November to finish it! I'm glad I did though. The ending was worth the slog through Puritan facts.

Sarah Vowell has a unique way of presenting history and I enjoyed her look at the Puritans and the Massachusetts Bay Colony although it was pretty dry at times. I did really appreciate some insights into local New England history especially regarding the Pequot War which took place in Mystic, CT. I also learned about Anne Hutchinson who I knew nothing about and found that the Hutchinson Parkway was named after her. V for #litsyatoz2019

Currently reading

I‘ve liked other Sara Vowell books, but this one really missed the mark for me. I think the subject matter just wasn‘t appealing to me. And the flow of the book wasn‘t quite right. If I hadn‘t been listening to the audio and Sara‘s quirky voice, I might have bailed on this one. 🤷‍♀️

1. Basically anything by Sarah Vowell, but especially The Wordy Shipmates!
2. July
3. Nope, never wanted kids despite everyone insisting YOU‘LL CHANGE YOUR MIND ONE DAY!!! Guess what? They were wrong.
4. Probably pretzels because they last a long time so less worry about them being stale 😜🥨
5. I‘ll try to find you!
#friyay #friyayintro

I listened to the audiobook and I‘m so glad I did. The voice acting is really fun, and when it‘s being read to me I am not as bothered by the author injecting random tangents and her own opinions into the book. I learned a lot, including that the puritans were fantastic readers and loved writing and education. I really enjoyed this audio book and highly recommend it to anyone with the slightest bit of interest in American or British history 3/5 🌟

When you have a boat in your classroom, of course you have to use it for photo ops! #currentlyreading #nonfiction

Got some book mail in today from @Natasha.C.Barnes !! Thanks!! 😊

This was a slow read for me, not because it was dull, but because I had to slow down to absorb all the information that was coming at me. (Except the middle part about the Pequot Wars - I really did find that boring.) I think the author did a good job bringing the Puritans to life, and exploring the roots of modern American attitudes in Puritan beliefs. I especially found the part on Anne Hutchinson interesting.

Still plugging along with this one. I seriously could have done without the whole section on the Pequot War.

#riotgrams Feb. 2: Current read. It‘s kind of a slog but I‘m about two-thirds through it.

😂😂😂

This one has been on my list for a long time. I‘m reading it long-distance with two of my oldest friends.

#NCBgiveaway Now how about some nonfiction? This one has gotten a lot more Litsy love than some of the others. Vowell's funny and approachable exploration of the Puritans sounds fascinating: "The people she finds are highly literate, deeply principled, and surprisingly feisty. Their story is filled with pamphlet feuds, witty courtroom dramas, and bloody vengeance." If you want it, comment below and I'll draw on Tuesday. US only please, sorry

Talk WORDY to Me 👌🏽

Sarah Vowell makes history so accessible. She‘s funny and makes awesome comparisons to help the reader understand events and possible motivations of people she writes about. This book was about the Puritan settlers in the early 1600s. #audiobook #nonfiction

#audiocooking some mac&cheese with a very hopeful beagle #dogsoflitsy (this book is great so far!)

Felt like listening to Vowell's deadpan humor.

Trying to stay sane on this super busy Monday. I love how snarky she is.

This one has been on my TBR for a while. Finally getting to it. #litsypartyofone

Sarah Vowell has a way of taking history and making it come alive. In this book she takes puritans and the first colonies in Boston and Rhode Island and gives their story excitement.

Lazy Sunday with the wife: broiled lobster, fresh corn, cold Riesling, and Grace and Frankie.

I thoroughly enjoyed this history of how the Puritan settling of Massachusetts has influenced American values and politics up to the present day. Vowell's takes on history are always informative and entertaining, and this one is no exception. The audiobook is recommended, as it is narrated by the author with assists by well-known personalities who give voice to the real-life historical figures featured in the narrative. 👍🏼

#MiaCat and I both enjoyed this account of how the Puritans settled in America. The audiobook is read by the author and a host of famous people whose job it is to give voice to the people referenced in the text through their original writing. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#LitsyAtoZ

Reading The Wordy Shipmates on a ship...

Meh...I expected more. The snark doesn't sit well in a supposed historical text. (I read that the Library of Congress lists this as fiction ?) There seems to be no organization to it. And I have no idea what the thesis was.
The Audible version was odd. She had a host of actors signed on, but they read just a line or two here & there. It doesn't come off well.

On the upside, I finally know what "The Hutch" is & who it's named for.

Immersive, well researched. It's a great dive into life with the Puritans of Plymouth colony. Only gripe is that it takes the Puritan's view of English politics of the time instead of a more objective view.

Ok Littens, I need help deciding which book I should listen to next. I'm saving Sarah Vowell for my 'W' in the #litsyAtoZ challenge for next year, so it's between these two.