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The Interestings
The Interestings: A Novel | Meg Wolitzer
Named a best book of the year by Entertainment Weekly, Time, and The Chicago Tribune, and named a notable book by The New York Times Book Review and The Washington PostRemarkable . . . With this book [Wolitzer] has surpassed herself.The New York Times Book Review"A victory . . . The Interestings secures Wolitzer's place among the best novelists of her generation. . . . She's every bit as literary as Franzen or Eugenides. But the very human moments in her work hit you harder than the big ideas. This isn't women's fiction. It's everyone's."Entertainment Weekly (A)From New York Timesbestselling author Meg Wolitzer comes a new novel that has been called "genius" (The Chicago Tribune), wonderful (Vanity Fair), "ambitious" (San Francisco Chronicle),and a page-turner (Cosmopolitan), which The New York TimesBook Reviewsays is "among the ranks of books like Jonathan Franzens Freedom and Jeffrey Eugenides The Marriage Plot."The summer that Nixon resigns, six teenagers at a summer camp for the arts become inseparable. Decades later the bond remains powerful, but so much else has changed. In The Interestings, Wolitzer follows these characters from the height of youth through middle age, as their talents, fortunes, and degrees of satisfaction diverge.The kind of creativity that is rewarded at age fifteen is not always enough to propel someone through life at age thirty; not everyone can sustain, in adulthood, what seemed so special in adolescence. Jules Jacobson, an aspiring comic actress, eventually resigns herself to a more practical occupation and lifestyle. Her friend Jonah, a gifted musician, stops playing the guitar and becomes an engineer. But Ethan and Ash, Juless now-married best friends, become shockingly successfultrue to their initial artistic dreams, with the wealth and access that allow those dreams to keep expanding. The friendships endure and even prosper, but also underscore the differences in their fates, in what their talents have become and the shapes their lives have taken.Wide in scope, ambitious, and populated by complex characters who come together and apart in a changing New York City, The Interestings explores the meaning of talent; the nature of envy; the roles of class, art, money, and power; and how all of it can shift and tilt precipitously over the course of a friendship and a life.
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review
andrew61
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Pickpick

When Julie, a geeky teenager in 1974 living with newly widowed mother + sister goes to summer camp she meets 4 new friends who bewitch her with their difference + form the structure of her next 40 years. This bk explores relationships both beneficial + corrosive as well as jealousies + passions that simmer. An enjoyable story of friendship as it changes over time although when I put it down I did not miss the characters who at times annoyed me.

Megabooks Perfect review! 2y
Chelsea.Poole Loved this one! 2y
36 likes2 comments
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JillR
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Pickpick

Seven teenagers attend Spirit-in-the-Woods, a creative summer camp. Friendships are formed. Then they grow up and we read 466 pages of minute detail about their adult selves. This. Felt. Long. But, now I‘ve finished it, in that weird way good books sometimes do without you realising, I‘m living a bit in their lives now. It‘s like they‘re my friends and I want to know where they‘ve suddenly gone to and what they‘re doing! And the ending…

Megabooks Exactly! 2y
JillR @megabooks I really struggled with my thoughts and review of this one (about halfway through I was like, please end)! 2y
41 likes2 comments
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rather_be_reading
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Bailedbailed

Bailed! Might be my frame of mind right now or the fact there were too many characters. Ive heard alot of praise about this one so I might revisit later.

erinachu Honestly, the main character is a terrible, boring person. 3y
EKonrad I did NOT get the hype about this book. I found it to be really boring. 🤷🏽‍♀️ 3y
rather_be_reading @erinachu glad im not the only one! 3y
keithmalek Don't revisit it just because other people liked it. I bailed too. The very first thing I noticed is that teenagers don't talk that way. 2y
54 likes5 comments
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rather_be_reading
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Book 63

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks 💙❤️💚💛 3y
InkintheMargins This is one of my most favorite books ever! 3y
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks The Help 💛💛 3y
64 likes3 stack adds5 comments
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Suet624
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Pickpick

This was on my shelf for ages and I‘m glad I was able to finally get to it. It was a satisfying read in that I could dip in and out of the book and still feel connected with the characters. From summer camp to middle age, the characters, all friends, experience many situations that felt very familiar. Envy of another couple‘s financial state, dealing with a spouse‘s depression, what information you share with a partner, children (!). Overall, 👍

Reggie Ethan!!!!!!❤️ 3y
Suet624 @Reggie Gosh, yes. Loved him. 3y
48 likes2 comments
review
jdiehr
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Pickpick

The reviews on this one are mixed, but I really liked it!

It's always a little daunting to jump into such a long story, but once I was in I was all in.

The book is about a group of friends who meet at camp as teenagers and covers their stories until they are in their 50s.

Maybe it's because I am in my 50s and am still friends with the members of my church youth group that I was so able to relate.

Enduring friendships make for good stories 🙂

Ruthiella I liked it too. I wanted to see what would happen next. 😀 And I like the irony of the title. 3y
jdiehr @Ruthiella Didn't Jules' husband say they weren't really all that interesting? Ha, ha! 😄 3y
23 likes2 comments
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jdiehr
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I heart Sunday afternoons

MrBook 😻😻😻😻 3y
Kloves2read Awe! Cats & books! 🥰 3y
Trashcanman 👁👁 3y
See All 6 Comments
rubyslippersreads Your cat coordinates with your quilt! 😻 3y
Trashcanman @jdiehr 🤗💖 3y
27 likes6 comments
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jdiehr
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Simple pleasures 🙂

Ruthiella Mmmm, Reese‘s! 😋 3y
21 likes1 comment
review
8little_paws
Mehso-so

Finished my re-read of this. I'm still feeling mixed on it. There's *so much* going on in this book and the main character is super-unlikeable, unenjoyable to spend this much time with her. It's a long book, so it's a commitment. I am, however, looking forward to the book group discussion about this book on Zoom tomorrow night!

Megabooks I don‘t remember this book well, but I remember really being upset that my favorite character died of cancer young! 4y
ValerieAndBooks I felt this was a so-so as well. 4y
39 likes2 comments
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KarenUK
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Pickpick

Loved this. A group of six friends meet at a summer camp for arty kids, and somewhat ironically name themselves ‘The Interestings.‘ What follows is the story of their lives as they divert and collide, in all its messiness, life-changing events, disappointments and realities, petty jealousies, secrets and tragedies. It‘s about ambition and dreams, what it means to be ‘special‘ and not so, but ultimately it‘s the friendships that kept me engaged.

Reggie I liked this one. Ethan!!!!❤️ 4y
KarenUK @Reggie Yes! Loved Ethan, and Jules too... 😍 4y
64 likes5 stack adds3 comments
review
Chelseabillups30
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Bailedbailed

If I bail on a book, do I still have to give it a legit review? I don‘t remember having ever done this before. ☹️🤷🏻‍♀️🙁

BarbaraTheBibliophage I usually write a few sentences about what made me bail. Not extensive. 4y
41 likes1 comment
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Chelseabillups30
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The tagged book seemed to get really great reviews from lots of Littens before I started reading it...but the above meme is basically a depiction of how I‘ve felt about it so far.

MariaW For me it‘s Fifty Shades Of Grey. 🙈 4y
keithmalek It's terrible. 2y
Chelseabillups30 @keithmalek, yep. Agreed. This is one I will not be revisiting! 2y
60 likes4 comments
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Chelseabillups30
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And wondering if I should bail on this book or not. I‘m having a really hard time getting into this story. It‘s a long one and I‘ve got about 9 hours left if I stick with it. It is a rare day that I don‘t finish what I start, especially books.
You might say I‘m finding that “The Interestings” aren‘t as interesting as I‘d hoped they‘d be.
Did anyone else have a hard time with this one?

Ruthiella I liked it a lot but the kids/characters aren‘t that interesting at all...they just think they are. I say give up if it isn‘t grabbing you!😀 4y
44 likes1 comment
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Chelseabillups30
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I‘m convinced that my stats will never be impressive for one of these, even with Covid forcing so much time on my hands, but can I request an extension so I can continue to use @Clwojick ‘s tracker she let me have access to today?

I don‘t want to wait an entire month to keep filling it out! We should just continue the readathon until next month, please and thanks! #nerdalert #24B4Monday

Andrew65 No problem, of course you can. Keep me updated as you go. Love the tracker. 😊👍 4y
Clwojick Ahahah! I‘m obsessed with these trackers! I use them for all the readathons 🤍 my husband calls me a nerd all the time, since tracking things like this is a total thrill for me! 🤓 4y
Chelseabillups30 @Clwojick, looks like we have permission to extend this readathon if we want to! ⬆️ Check ins every Monday between now and the next one to see how much further we‘ve gotten? What do you think is a reasonable expectation of an extension before the next one? You gotta be in on this because nobody else is yet!! (edited) 4y
See All 13 Comments
Clwojick I‘m also doing #MidyearRush, and #CYOReadathon but I can totally extend this for the next month. 😂 I read HARD for the two weeks my husband is at the mine, and then significantly less when he‘s home, so I‘ll have to think on a goal. I‘m trying to hit 100 hours by July 6th, so maybe I‘ll be extreme and go for 200 hours by the 27th? 😂 4y
Clwojick I started tracking my hours on the 22nd for #MidyearRush, and I‘m currently at 63hrs44m. 😅 4y
Clwojick I don‘t think I know the term “reasonable goal” anymore 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 4y
Chelseabillups30 @Clwojick, you‘re doing so many more than I am! I have no idea what those other two entail! Do tell! 4y
Clwojick Well I‘m hosting the #MidyearRush from June 22-July 6. Main goal is to evaluate where you are in your annual challenges and goals, and see if you‘re falling behind anywhere... then take the 15days to read your little hard out to catch up, or jump start into the second half of the year. 4y
Clwojick #CYOReadathon is hosted by @Sace on the first weekend of every month. For July she‘s extending the Readathon for a week though. ♥️ Her readathons are super relaxed and low key. Simply create your own (CYO*) goals, and tag her in your posts. 4y
Clwojick Now, if you want to get into other events that aren‘t just readathons, I also suggest checking out @TheAromaofBooks post about her upcoming July event #BookSpinBingo. I am super excited for that one! You choose 25 books you‘d like to read from your shelf, and number them 1-25. Sarah will make a post on July 2nd with the order of the books by number, which you make into a bingo card. Throughout July, try to read a bingo! 4y
Chelseabillups30 @Clwojick, all of those sound super fun, but I think I‘ll only commit to yours and @Sace‘s for now, being that my TBR stack while I‘m staying at my parents house doesn‘t have 25 books on it. BUT, something like that does sound super fun for the future when I‘m home and surrounded by all my books again! 4y
Clwojick ♥️♥️♥️ 4y
Sace @Chelseabillups30 hi! I'm super lazy and I'm rubbish at quantifying so my readathon is really low key. If you read 5 minutes you can claim victory 😂 4y
55 likes13 comments
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erinachu
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A book I picked because of the cover ❤ and with #readyoursign this will be number 9 on the Leo prompt list. Read a book with a character that is proud, bold, or ambitious.

review
erinachu
This post contains spoilers
show me
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Mehso-so

This was... interesting...ha. It was nice. I like books that follow characters through their lives and the characters felt real. I just didn't like them much. Jules should have been happy with the good man that she married. Someone who time and time again came back to her. Her only redeeming quality is that she did not run off with Ethan in the end.
⭐⭐

8little_paws Jules is a terribly self centered person and it was hard for me to spend this many pages with her LOL
4y
erinachu @8little_paws yes. She had a fine life. She was only dissatisfied with it because she was surrounded by people with more money than she had. So many people would kill to have a loving family and a good job 4y
2 comments
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erinachu
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#bookreport and #weeklyforecast
🎧 The Interestings - 87.3% finished. I'm enjoying this one well enough. It's not amazing, but its nice.
📚 A Storm of Swords - 22.1% done. On track to finish it this month for #bookspin 😁
🎧 The Ten Thousand Doors of January - up next! I finally got it after spending 10 weeks on hold with the library.

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erinachu
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Listening to the tagged audiobook while my fiancee and I organized our shared book space 😍 when we get a bigger place I'll bring the rest of my collection from my parents' house

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erinachu
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#bookreport and #weeklyforecast
🎧 Mrs. Everything - finished and LOVED and cried over.
📚 Midnight in Chernobyl - 8% done. I really don't have the time to read books since I'm back at work. Having much more luck with listening.
🎧 The Interestings - starting this week!

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Djspens
Interestings | Meg Wolitzer
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Hung my puzzle in my “Gramma‘s Library” 😃 my favorite room in the house!!

Riveted_Reader_Melissa Perfect! 💙 4y
rather_be_reading 👏👏 4y
67 likes2 comments
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Thousand-Lives
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I‘m on a 5-star reading streak! 🙌🏼

MicheleinPhilly That‘s such a great feeling! 4y
katy4peas Hey, check out @sprainedbrain page for more info but we started a Jane Austen book club! We would love to have you join us! We are starting with Sense and Sensibility in May! 😊 #PemberLittens 4y
Thousand-Lives @katy4peas I‘ll check it out, thank you! 🙂 4y
69 likes3 comments
review
Thousand-Lives
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Pickpick

I loved this book! A group of teenagers form a friendship while at a summer camp for the arts. The novel follows them over the next 4 decades, exploring the way their paths diverge and their relationships evolve. I grew attached to these characters who felt so very real to me, and it made me nostalgic for my own summer camp days.

This was my March #doublespin. I‘m playing catch up!

TheAromaofBooks Great review!! And never too late to finish a #bookspin read!! 😁 4y
65 likes5 stack adds1 comment
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Thousand-Lives
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My kids have finished their online learning for the day and now this tired mom is recharging! 🙌

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Thousand-Lives
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Current read. It was my March #doublespin, which I never got around to, but suits my current reading mood. I have the audio version also, and love when I can immerse myself in a book by switching back and forth.

Megabooks Fantastic book! 4y
Thousand-Lives @Megabooks I just finished and absolutely agree, it was fantastic! 4y
55 likes1 stack add2 comments
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Loreen
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Mehso-so

The Interestings are not as interesting as they all think they are. I set this book down in August 2019 & didn‘t pick up again until earlier this week. It was a hate read at that point.
But I did like how it ended much more than I expected and thus the So-So instead of a pan. 🤷‍♀️

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Suet624
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I loved my March #bookspin selection. Here is my list for April.

Billypar I can vouch for #s 2, 16, and 17: I loved all three! 4y
merelybookish Me too. Plus it is so satisfying reading some books on my shelf! 4y
BarbaraBB Such great books! 4y
TheAromaofBooks Yay! Glad you liked your March pick, and happy to have you back for another round!! 4y
Suet624 @Billypar just saw this response! I‘m so happy that I have those three to look forward to. 4y
63 likes5 comments
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rachelm
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Another Saturday morning at the library. Kids are playing. I‘m listening to this one. Perfect start to the day!

Zelma I would have loved that nook as a kid. 4y
49 likes1 stack add1 comment
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rachelm
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Year isn‘t quite done, but I‘m so happy with this so far!

MrBook Wow!!! 😁👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 4y
kspenmoll 🙌🏻🙌🏻 4y
readordierachel Way to go 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 4y
40 likes3 comments
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rachelm
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Thanks for the rec @Megabooks ! My library had this available! Perfect timing. I‘m enjoying it so far.

Megabooks Awesome!! 👍🏻👍🏻 4y
51 likes1 stack add1 comment
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mom2bugnbee
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Pickpick

I realize that this isn't a new book, & it's been on my TBR for years. Wow. I love tales of dysfunctional families that speak many years, & I loved this book!

⭐⭐⭐⭐✨/⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

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bourne.shell
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Pickpick

I really enjoyed this book and the main characters: Ash, Ethan, and Jules. Following the characters as they grow up together. She nails the antsy, discontentment of getting older and realizing that those special moments from our youth weren't nearly as special as we remember, that's it's really just a lament of wanting our youth back instead of dealing with the ups and downs of marriage and life.

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Ellohcin
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Gaylagal2
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EadieB @Gaylagal2 Nice covers! 5y
Librarybelle I do like these covers! 5y
29 likes2 comments
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mcctrish
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36 likes1 stack add
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Loreen
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I‘ve not posted her for a while. I need to get back in the habit! Here‘s my #fridayread. #weekendreading #readmyowndamnbooks #readingalfresco

16 likes1 stack add
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GidgetsTreasures75
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8-22-19: My 67th finished book of 2019! #theinterestings #megwolitzer 👍🏼📖#️⃣6️⃣7️⃣

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theladygreer
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I feel like the cover and the title both do this one a disservice, but when I finally picked it up, really enjoyed it. I find myself thinking about the characters at random moments weeks after finishing it, which is always a sign of a good read.

Megabooks I couldn‘t agree more! 5y
17 likes2 stack adds1 comment
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Jason7
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Pickpick

While this audiobook might not blow you away, it‘s quite good. The story focuses on characters and relationships. The plot is not a fast moving one, if that's what you're into, but it‘s interesting and should keep your attention. Plus, the narrator is really good. Judging by this novel and her latest release, The Female Persuasion, listeners can expect consistent, high quality work from Meg Wolitzer.

Overall rating: 4.41 stars

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BekaReid
Pickpick

In this character-driven narrative Wolitzer seamlessly navigates the relationships of six friends over the decades as she weaves back and forth in time and through the lens of different members of the group. It's an extraordinary telling of ordinary life that absorbed and engaged me from the onset as Wolitzer explores what shapes friendships and how they evolve. She deftly handles tough topics- i.e., talent, envy, money, power, and mental health.

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BekaReid
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“She recognized that that is how friendships begin: one person reveals a moment of strangeness, and the other person decides just to listen and not exploit it.”

13 likes1 stack add
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CuriousG
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The lambs on my super warm & comfy new reading socks look an awful lot like this Litsy cat 😊 #cousins?

Getting started on Mount TBR and The Interestings today. It's been sitting on my shelf for years, so time to get going on it!

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Ellohcin
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Found 2 books on my reading list at the thrift store today! 🙌🏼 Something feels so good about pay $1 for a book that originally costs $27.99. 📚

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gradcat
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#adventrecommends Day 22 @emilyrose_x
I love many of Meg Wolitzer‘s books, but “The Interestings” is far and away my favorite. A group of precocious teenagers meet at a summer camp in the mid-70s. The camp is for arty students; all of the half-dozen featured in the book have a talent, and are creative as well. But as we follow them into adulthood, the promise that was exhibited in youth hasn‘t necessarily been realized in adulthood. Wolitzer ⬇️

gradcat ⬆️ is great at limning in words all of the shades of her characters, subtle and otherwise. In this tale we find great love, but it‘s tempered by envy, anger and disappointment...so, in other words, life. 5y
Reggie Ethan!!!!!!!!!!!❤️❤️❤️ 5y
Trashcanman 😔 5y
See All 11 Comments
gradcat @Reggie You‘re funny! I loved Ethan, too! 5y
gradcat @Trashcanman Why the downcast face, buddy? 5y
Trashcanman @gradcat call an optimist, I'm feeling blue. I need a hug from a big cloud of carbon monoxide. 5y
Trashcanman Sorry 5y
CSeydel @Trashcanman we‘re with you. Hang tough. 👊🏻💔 5y
Gaylagal2 Oh my gosh....loved this book! It was my first Meg Wolitzer book and she's amazing 🤓 5y
gradcat @Gaylagal2 I agree with you 💯 percent naturally 😊😊 5y
gradcat @Trashcanman Holidays can really be blue times...sorry I keep missing you. Look up, buddy, we‘re about to get out of this nasty 2018, and into a fresh, new 2019...keep the faith 😌😌 5y
66 likes1 stack add11 comments
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nosferatoos
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My Black Friday bookoutlet haul. I‘m so excited about all of these. #bookoutlethaul #bookmail #bookstacks

Jess Now that is a great stack of books! 5y
candority Great haul! 5y
BookishTrish Nicely done! 5y
37 likes3 comments
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TrishB
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Mehso-so

The actual story bits - where the story moved on, where good and ‘interesting‘ and there were lots of sub texts and themes in the book! Just a bit too many sections dragged a bit and didn‘t add much.
I think I liked it a lot more than some others on here- some stinging reviews!! 😁

BookNAround A reading friend and I declared that The Interestings weren‘t very interesting after all when we discussed it at book club. 😂 5y
Cinfhen I bailed!!! 5y
Reggie I loved this book. Ethan!!!!!!!! 5y
106 likes1 stack add3 comments
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danibel
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Currently reading

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TrishB
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Thank you Cathy for your lovely gifts ❤️ so thoughtful! 😘Will look forward to seeing what I make of the book as I know it splits opinion!
The socks I will keep away from my daughter!
I‘m doing my best to get myself fit and healthy again 😁

Cinfhen So sweet !!! 5y
Cathythoughts Oh so glad they arrived... get well , take care. ❤️😘 5y
TrishB @Cinfhen it certainly is 💕 5y
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TrishB @Cathythoughts 😘 I will. 5y
batsy How thoughtful! Lovely gifts. Hope you're feeling better day by day ❤️ 5y
TrishB @batsy I am thank you 😘 just not used to being ill or at home!! 5y
106 likes1 stack add6 comments
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LeslieO
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Ready to cozy up and read these goodies! Thank you so much @Slajaunie ! What great picks. The coffee sounds amazing, will definitely be trying that tomorrow morning. I love Fall. 💛#fffs FallingForFallSwsp

LeahBergen I really enjoyed The Way the Crow Flies. 👍🏻 6y
Avanders ❤️🧡💛🎃🍁🍂😍 and what Great wrapping paper! 6y
45 likes2 comments
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Deborah42
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Mehso-so

Several teens meet at an arty summer camp and form bonds that will follow them throughout their lives. They each believe their incredible and unique talents will bring them success and change the world. Unfortunately, for most of the group members, the day-to-day routine of ordinary life gradually squashes their dreams. Maybe a little too real.

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nomierosie
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Adding to my @Waterstones Wish list because I have a full loyalty card 💃 any recommendations? I'm mostly reading non-fiction at the moment but open to all suggestions 📚 #recommendations #recommend #suggestions