We Are Called to Rise | 
pickA great read about the impact of war, generational trauma, and the importance of human connection. Alternating perspectives of individuals in Las Vegas, centering the war in Iraq and the aftermath on soldiers and their families, as well as an immigrant family. In-depth inner dialogue and emotional lives of the featured characters who all struggle, but do their best. A great audio as well!
pick#2021Book110
Books with multiple narrators often run the risk of having a few strong storylines and a few that aren't as interesting. In this book, however, all four narrators have compelling stories, and I loved how they all started to fit together as the story went on. The conflicts presented in this book were very timely and, unfortunately, all too realistic. But the ending, while perhaps a bit idealistic, gave me some hope.
pickI absolutely loved this book. I couldn‘t put it down. Heartbreaking in so many ways, but still some hope in the end. 5 stars.
#BookReport 46/19
This week I finished two great books: We are Called to Rise and Too Much Lip.
I also managed to make a start with this month‘s choice for the #NYRBBookclub.
And I am still reading the Wells. I am not enjoying it at all and just able to read it in very small portions.
pickLas Vegas, city of opposites, where glamour and wealth seem never far away from poverty and harshness.
A refugee boy, a lonely wife, a war veteran with PTSD, another veteran in rehab, and a social worker. I‘d like to read more about each of them.
But this book is about the tragedy that interweaves their storylines. A tragedy that represents the major themes of current times. It is sad with a glimpse of hope. I loved it.
#ReadingUSA2019 #Nevada
so-soQuite enjoyed this as a short read and something a bit different from what I usually read.
#AllRise I read this book a few years back and I remember being amazed at how well the separate stories crystallized into a singular plot. Achingly beautiful but terribly brutal, this story was an emotional gut punch. We meet a woman who‘s marriage is imploding, an Iraq war veteran, a case worker, a young immigrant from Albania and his pen pal, a man recovering from an attempted suicide all residing in glittering but fading Las Vegas.
bailedI‘m so sorry #LMPBC GroupR, but I just can‘t with this book. I can‘t handle the abuse and the sadness and I‘m only 45 pages in. Forgive me for bailing, but I just can‘t cope with the negative emotions right now. @LauraBeth I will try to get this is in the mail this weekend.
pickTold from multiple POVs against the backdrop of Las Vegas, this book tugged at my heart repeatedly as I journeyed with each of the characters as they encountered and dealt with the ordinary and the extraordinary circumstances of life, of love, of family, of war, of PTSD. Definitely recommend!
1. Laura McBride or Joan Didion
2. The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms (favorite from this year so far)
3. 5‘8” and shrinking
4. Depends on type and time of day (coffee w/ cream in a.m. but black if I‘m having with dessert. Etc.) I am coffeebiguous. Same for tea.
#sundaysurvey @alisonrose
"The way I see it, nothing in life is a rehearsal. It's not preparation for anything else. There's no getting ready for it. There's no waiting for the real part to begin. Not ever. Not even for the smallest child. This is it." ❤
I put this book down when I first started it because I was looking for a light read and this wasn‘t it. I‘ve since picked it back up and I love it. Read it through the line at DTOP (DMV) and everything. This quote stood out to me.
pickI really enjoyed this multiple point of view fiction. I cared about the characters and I thought the story moved well. I mostly really wanted to help the kids. Misunderstanding plays a big part in the plot, as well as cultural differences.
I was excited to find time to visit an Indie bookstore, The Writer‘s Block, while out of town. The staff recommended local authors I couldn‘t resist. The irony was when a friend posted a link to the same store the very same day. https://www.lonelyplanet.com/usa/travel-tips-and-articles/11-authors-recommend-u...
My May TBR. On the right are my kindle and audiobooks. Add to this my May Owl Post when it arrives, and it‘s looking like a good month! Plus the hubby will be traveling, so more reading time for me!
Oh yeah, Rage by Stephen King should be in there too, for the #LosersClub!
#readingresolutions
My surprise Iris started blooming @tpixie ! I found a patch of Iris in the insanely overgrown weedy garden beside my new house when we cleaned it up in the fall. They were so strangled by weeds I didn‘t expect them to bloom this year, but they have started to 😊
I started this book today. Four chapters in and I can tell I‘m going to love it. Thanks Book People‘s half price rack!
pickBook club pick. Really enjoyed it. Military-caused PTSD in multiple forms, never preachy. Fascinating depiction of Vegas as a hometown.
This is a tale about families, the ones we have and the ones we make. A tale about how ordinary people have the resilience and #power within them, can rise to the challenge.
#aprella #werise
#readingresolutions
pickThis book BROKE me. And I would do it again in an instant. I normally do not enjoy books that jump between points of view.... I‘m so glad I didn‘t let that deter me from reading this. One of the most inspiring and thoughtful books I‘ve read in a long time. Don‘t read it in public if you‘re not prepared for ugly crying.
pickThis was the best book I have read in a while. It made me question my own rating system, but I rarely give 5 stars and this one deserves it.
One that‘s been on my TBR list for a long time! #ReadingResolutions #PolkaDots
pickTook a little while to get caught up in storyline but then I didn‘t want it to end.
pickThe story follows the lives of people with very different backgrounds and how their lives collide because of one freak event. I liked how the author tied the separate storylines together in the end. It was heart breaking, but also hopeful. The other layer of the story was the effect of war on soldiers and while it was central to the story, it wasn't smack over the head obvious.
pickFound this book out of the blue. Love it. Bashkin and his family live in Las Vegas. They own an ice cream truck and are trying to be true Americans. The author then winds the stories of three others into what happens when a tragedy takes place. It's just a good book and is very relevant in today's society.
pickReading this book proves that bookseller recommendations are vital to the world of reading. If it hadn't been for the guy who suggested it, I doubt this would have crossed my radar. McBride writes about fear, grief, and loss but she gives her story soul and hope. All in the quirky desert town we call Las Vegas.
Full review http://thebibliophage.com/book-review-called-rise-laura-mcbride/
I am really loving this book. The author uses language in just the right tone and cadence, especially considering the diversity of the character points of view.
It all matters! What a beautiful book. So many gems!!
Book and a pedicure. My toes needed help!! 💕😎📚
Vacation book shopping! Picked this one up at an indie bookstore today. I like to ask the booksellers for local author recommendations. This wasn't on my radar, and I think I'm going to put other books aside to read it. It gets great rating here and on GR. #happybibliophage
pickOne of my all time favorite novels, this book takes multiple story lines and beautifully twists them together in an ending that is sheer perfection. Tragedy, triumph, and moments of laughter and heart break, this book has it all.
Painting baby brother's room today! 🙌🏻👶
I'd really like to be reading, but I'm so excited to get the room done! Ready or not, he'll be here in 4 weeks or less!! 🤰🏼❤️ We will be raising another reader! #raisingreaders 📚#libraryhaul
Ps...has anyone read We are Called to Rise?
pickLove the book. Ready to read Laura's next book 'Round Midnight release soon (March, I hope)
pickI thoroughly enjoyed this book. I enjoyed how the author wove together disparate stories of PTSD from various global conflicts into a handful of intersecting characters who live in Las Vegas. There is an improbable, fantastical element to parts of the story but it leads us to a feel good place in spite of some fairly gut wrenching material so it worked for me in this case. Loved the setting! Gave me a different take on Las Vegas! Thanks @Alicia 💗
pickI loved this book--converging stories of families connected by the most tentative ties. The Las Vegas setting provided a novel perspective. I loved the way different threads were tied together at the end, bringing real characters, unique but united in their humanity, together, with a message of hope. I cried.
Doing a bit of #spinepoetry for #24in48 ☺ We Are Called to Rise
Into Thin Air, A Breath of Snow and Ashes
Circling the Sun, The Fault in Our Stars
Through my Eyes, This is Where I Leave You
No Place to Hide, The Infinite Moment of Us
Enjoying the holiday break by cozying up with a good book and a new bookmark from a friend!
pickSo I lent this to a friend before reading it and she was not a fan. But I loved it! I just love something about books where different people's lives converge at the end. Also it was overly cheesy, but I love unrealistic happy endings so it was perfect!
so-soA solid 3 out of 5 stars from me! It was well written and there was some absolutely gorgeous phrases (and obviously the title being taken from an Emily Dickinson poem means instant kudos from me), but unfortunately I'm a bit of a cynic, so I was a bit sceptical about some parts!
