Welcome to Litsy!

What did I just read? Was it literary suspense that didn‘t feel suspenseful? An author disappears and her children find out she has gambling debt with a very dangerous, shady character. Her American translator (who is the MC I guess?) comes to Brazil to “help out,” but ends up falling for the author‘s son for no discernible reason. I felt at a remove from these characters and there was no narrative tension for me, but I didn‘t hate it. 🤷🏻‍♀️

January‘s travels to Brazil... a reclusive author and her persistent translator, the migration of osprey, and some delicious empanadas (internet picture). On to February!! #foodandlit

I literally don't know how to review this book. It was an odd story, revolving around a character who is absent for almost the entire time. The chapters were very short & I felt compelled to keep turning the pages. It seemed as though I should have felt a lot more urgency than I did. Although I wanted to keep reading, it wasn't necessarily because I was desperate to know the ending as much as I just kept wanting to see the next moment. I didn't ⬇️

@hestapleton is hosting the brilliantly-named #slumpathon this weekend & I'm totally here for it! Not sure what my goals will be yet, but they're definitely going to involve reading the tagged book for #foodandlit

@Chrissyreadit @Texreader

Finished this today for #foodandlit for Brazil.

It was pretty good.

@Texreader @Butterfinger

Couldn‘t adjust to the lack of quote marks for dialogue, and just couldn‘t get attached to any of the characters. Moving on.

Well @Jerdencon reminded me that I‘ve meant to read Ways to Disappear (tagged book) for years. I‘m going to see if I can find it or maybe a travelogue for #brazil.

And thank you to @Catsandbooks for reminding me (on grocery order night) of @4thhouseontheleft ‘s food suggestion. I‘m always excited to find a new gluten-free treat! #foodandlit

Starting this one for #bookandlit Brazil
@Texreader @Butterfinger

I must admit, I‘m not a fan of Emma. Raquel, on the other hand, is my favorite. That being said, this is a beautiful novel on language and translation and writing. I would read every single one of Beatriz‘s books!

There‘s also a lack of quotation marks which sometimes made it hard to pick up on dialogue, but I got used to the style eventually.

This is my #Doublespin for January and another #foodandlit read.

Not convinced by this book.
I didn't connect with any of the characters. Found the storyline odd and tricky to read with a flow.
I did like one of the final chapters, told by missing author, about the gaps.

My book club have chosen this. Frustratingly, my copy has only just arrived... book club is Wednesday 😄😅😱. Intense reading needed!

What's up with that ending? Can anyone explain?

Eh...there wasn‘t enough to this story for me. Nothing was really resolved, and I didn‘t enjoy it too much 🤷‍♀️

Snow day snuggles and reading!
#catsoflitsy #littenkitten #snowday

Who else is guilty?! 🤣

I have five pages left. Five. Please stop. Biggest pet peeve. 🙄 #readingproblems #imsoclose #steepedinstories

#bookmail !! About to dive into our LAST book in this swap! Where did the #steepedinstories time go?! 😥

I‘m intrigued by these tropical tea blends to accompany the latest read too!

Thanks so much for a fun swap ladies!
@drokka @TheKidUpstairs @BookishTrish

I know I‘ve enjoyed everything so far!

#Aprella #Brazil I went on a hunt for books set in Brazil as I don't seem to have any in my stacks (besides The Lost City of Z on my #TBR list) but I just added this one because a "noirish literary mystery" set in Rio sounds interesting. I love the cover! ❤️?

Update: I just saw @Reggie 's post about Perfect Days, also set in Brazil with a suitcase on the cover & now the suitcase on this cover is not quite as charming as it was before! ??

Wonderful tricky book about translation and other misunderstandings...

Set in Rio. Can't think of another novel I've read based there!

Picked up this book again after setting it down for awhile -- I love the writing style.

This song reminded me of this book. #LaIslaBonita #JuneTunz

A good day for book mail, including "Ways to Disappear" all the way from Japan! Thanks for sending it my way, @shawnmooney ! ?

The 2017 Sami Rohr winner was my favorite of the contenders I read. About a famous Brazilian writer who disappears, leading her children and US translator to attempt to find her. Well written, poetic style, with some interesting quirks like chapters comprised of emails. My fave were the dictionary entries that tied into the story. Literary drama about never fully knowing a person. But also had a suspense/thriller plot. Lots to like! #JewLit

A translator has lost her author. So it begins...

Really beautifully written. I get the "Where'd you go, Bernadette?" comparisons but it's not, at its core, a breezy, funny novel in the same way. Which isn't a bad thing! Whimsical writing, grim subjects. ??

Idra Novey is a fantastic writer, and I'd maybe be up for trying another very different novel by her down the road. But I quit this one in disgust at the 60% mark: it was relying increasingly on mystery novel conventions, which I loath more than just about anything in my reading life. Hate hate hated where this book was going. I feel ill from those last few pages, and am so glad to have bailed.

This book! 💜

Art (yes, it is a painting) by Vincent Kohler (http://melissaeastondesign.com/steak/)

I found this novel LUXURIOUSLY comforting, from beginning to end. Novey doesn't use any tricks, but dazzles naturally.

I barely put this book down from the moment I brought it home from the library. A novel that is a study in disappearing - or, perhaps, in ways of seeing, of being seen. What do you let be seen? Who sees you? Is one person's vision of you more correct than another's? Is any person ever fully seen? How does one lose sight of oneself?

A short, quick read dotted with lovely turns of phrase and turns of ideas.

Novey talks about playing with genre in her work. Every review platform titles this book as something else: thriller, experimental fiction, literary fiction, a mystery. She tells her students that she hopes they bring in work they cannot categorize and that makes them question the notion of genre.

This came in tonight's mail. It's gotten quite mixed reviews, but I want to give it a try; if it works out I'm going to use it for the verb category for the #EclecticReaders challenge.

🍷🍷🍷Cheers! Not highly climatic or full of complicated plot twists. This book is like a lazy river with gentle ripples & a few rough under currents. I enjoyed the simplicity of this novel, format & poetic beauty of the author's words. The cover & title can mislead the reader to think of disappearing in only a physical sense. As you delve more into the story you discover the many ways one can disappear via their soul, mind, spirit or emotionally.

Now this seems like a year-end list worth paying attention to (though I may be biased as I used to be a bookseller). http://lithub.com/the-years-best-overlooked-books-according-to-booksellers/

I loved this novel. Novey writes with beautiful economy, and this gorgeously improbable tale is beguiling and surprising. A treasure.

Finished this gem ahead of my book club next week. Very quick and engaging read. I find myself drawn to books that detail a life change, and this definitely fit that requirement (like the title story in Paris for One and Other Stories by Jojo Moyes).

💜💚❤️

About a Brazilian author who disappears and her translator who tries to find her. Idra Novey is a poet, and the prose in this book proves it. Beautifully written. #booktober #bookssetinsouthamerica @RealLifeReading

I bought this at the airport on my way home from boston and finished it on the flight. It was so good I ignored the man sitting next to me who was trying to start a conversation with me.
#waystodisappear #brazil