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When I Was a Child I Read Books
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
30 posts | 19 read | 57 to read
A "New York Times Book Review" Editors' ChoiceA "New York Times" BestsellerA "New York Magazine" Best Book of the YearAn "Economist" Best Book of the Year Pulitzer Prize Winning Author of "Gilead""" Marilynne Robinson has built a sterling reputation as not only a major American novelist but also a rigorous thinker and an incisive essayist. In this lucid but impassioned collection, Robinson expands with renewed vigor the themes that have preoccupied her work. "When I Was a Child I Read Books" tackles the charged political and social climate in this country, the deeply embedded role of generosity in Christian faith, and the nature of individualism and the myth of the American West. Clear-eyed and forceful as ever, Robinson demonstrates once again why she is regarded as one of our essential writers."
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review
ClairesReads
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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Panpan

It is my fault that I didn‘t like this book. A lesson in reading the blurb not just the title. I was expecting a series of essays about childhood reading and instead got one about human nature with a heavy spiritual bent. I was propelled by a couple of interesting historical analyses early on in the collection and my respect for Robinson as an author of fiction. At the end of the day there was just too much God here for me.

27 likes1 stack add
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Hooked_on_books
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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Bailedbailed

I‘m calling it. Marilynne Robinson is deeply intellectual, and I‘m down with that. But she‘s also interested in musing about theology and philosophy and I‘m just not. (Plus I find this title very misleading.) When I realized I was only forcing my way through this book to have an #Iowa for #ReadingUSA2019, I decided that was a dumb reason. So now I am free!

#dogsofLitsy #Bindi

Amandajoy If you still need an Iowa book, try this one 5y
DGRachel Puppy! 😍 5y
rachelm Ditto Thousand Acres 5y
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Librariana Hooray to freedom and to releasing one's self from feeling forced to read something! 😊 5y
ljuliel Bryson‘s Thunderbolt Kid takes place there if you have yet to read it. It‘s very good. 5y
diovival Haha it looks like somehow this book let the pup down too 5y
Hooked_on_books @Amandajoy @rachelm Thanks you guys! I was thinking of that one, but I found something on my shelves that works, so I‘m going to try that one first. 5y
Hooked_on_books @ljuliel I like Bryson and in bailing on this book I discovered he was born and raised in Iowa, which I hadn‘t known. I‘ve got something on my shelves that fits, but If it lets me down, I may look for this one. 5y
49 likes8 comments
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GatheringBooks
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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#QuotsyApr19 Day 17: #Controversy does seem to be the order of the day - which only serves to further divide people, with the refusal to see another‘s point of view. I have this book in my shelves waiting to be read.

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HannaPolkadots
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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If anyone wonders if I love this book 😉 I'm underlining, drawing and taking notes on just about every page ❤

RealBooks4ever I'd say... YES! 💜 6y
RealBooks4ever Hey Hanna Marie - haven't seen you here in a long time! Hope all is well! 🙋🏻‍♀️ 5y
BarbaraBB Hi Hanna, just thinking of you. Hope all is well 💕 5y
HannaPolkadots @RealBooks4ever and @BarbaraBB - I just now saw these comments!☺ Thank you both so much for noticing I was gone for a while and for caring!❤❤❤ it means a lot. What lovely people you both are!!!😍 5y
BarbaraBB I‘m Happy you are back here ❤️ 5y
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Emilymdxn
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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Mehso-so

I liked this and I would read more nonfiction by her, but I wasn‘t as convinced as I am by her fiction. It was heavy and took me weeks to get through.

Perhaps as a non American reader there was some stuff that I would have needed her to prove a little more, like the USA objectively having the best higher education system in the world by any possible standard which... okay.

Grrlbrarian Yeah we very clearly do not, so that‘s 🤔 6y
Minimalgrl Agreed .... us .... the USA .... best education system...😂😂😂 That is ridiculous 6y
50 likes2 comments
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Emilymdxn
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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Got some quiet time alone now that my aunt and uncle have left and the rest of my family is napping. Little bit sad to have left my boyfriend at his this morning and I won‘t get to spend any holiday time with him until new year now, couldn‘t be helped but I wish he was here. Gonna try and finally finish this, that I‘ve been reading for about a month lol.

What are you guys up to?

#joinin

aymiereads Just watching a Christmas movie and relaxing! Merry Christmas! 6y
Emilymdxn @aymiereads merry Christmas 🎄 xoxo 6y
JSW Sitting in an airport ready for adventure! Watching the other holiday travelers. #joinin 6y
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Emilymdxn @jsw wow where are you going?? 6y
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks I cooked breakfast for my daughter‘s friend Hilary (my daughter is at a Christmas dinner with her dad) and now I‘m about to get ready for a get together with my family at 4. Xxxooo 6y
Emilymdxn @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks hope it all goes great!!! Happy Christmas xoxo 6y
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @Emilymdxn thank you!! ❤️ 6y
MaGoose I ran errands and made homemade brownies this morning. Now I'm surfing Litsy and will be reading magazines and books for most of the afternoon. Tomorrow my mom and I will be driving about an hour and a half to have lunch with relatives. 6y
alisiakae Finished my current read this morning, then had class at noon (it‘s online, and the instructor chose to hold classes both today and New Year‘s Eve), watched the latest Outlander episode, went on a walk with family, and now I‘m doing a bit of work! 6y
Susannah I have one more package to wrap and a stocking to fill, but I finished up shopping and chores this weekend to have a lazy Christmas Eve. And I am excelling at the laziness, if I do say so myself. 😉 Merry Christmas! 🎄🎁📚❤️ 6y
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Emilymdxn
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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The great truth that is too often forgotten is that it is in the nature of people to do good to one another.

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Emilymdxn
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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Lunchtime in the office 🥰🥪☕️📚

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Emilymdxn
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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#sundayfunday @sebrittain

Marilynne Robinson is the one I always come back to! Her calm voice full of love and optimism helps me feel hope when I need it (and a lot of the time in current politics I really need it). Reading the tagged book now

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Emilymdxn
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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Next up! I was definitely in the mood for something considerate and calming and Marilynne Robinson always gives me that. A good book for a rainy winter day I think.

Liz_M I hadn't heard of this! I loved the Gilead books and this sounds even better (a book about books?!) 6y
Emilymdxn @Liz_M I‘m only a few pages in now but I think it‘s a book of essays about a lot of different topics, some of which are books?? I‘ll review soon and hopefully know a bit more of what it‘s about!! 6y
Liz_M I'll look for your review! ☺ 6y
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GAustin
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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Pickpick

Marilynne Robinson is a favorite. Her Fiction is wonderful. Her books of essays are altogether overwhelming to my mind. She weaves around and takes long walks that leave me lost and then suddenly she lands it all in a very thought provoking and eye opening finish. She stretches my understanding every time. Must keep a dictionary by me to keep up with her vast vocabulary.

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GAustin
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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If you have to travel for work and be away from family, there are worse places to be than Clearwater Florida, accompanied by good books.

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GatheringBooks
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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#Septembowie Day 26: Marilynne Robinson is a #SlowBurn kind of author. Trust me, though, when I say that she is worth the wait. Haven't read this memoir yet but it looks perfect for our #metareading theme.

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GAustin
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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This, you cannot read, or may I say, should not read tired. Good night.

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GAustin
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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Here, here, Mrs. Robinson! Every once in a while her writing squarely hits the nail in it's head.

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GAustin
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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To the top of my stack it goes. This will be my sixth by Robinson. She is a rare mind. That is for sure... #amreading

DrSabrinaMoldenReads I loved that book. 7y
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BooksForYears
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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And that does it for my @24in48 Readathon - finished 7 books and read for more than 24 hours! 💪

mcipher Wow! That's amazing -congrats! 👍 7y
JacqMac Yay!👏🎉 7y
melrailey Congrats! 7y
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Graciouswarriorprincess Congratulations!!! Amazing!📚👍🏻😊 7y
erzascarletbookgasm Wow! Congrats! 7y
stacybmartin Way to go! 🎉📚🎉👏🏼 7y
Soubhiville Sweet! Congrats! 7y
abbylibrarian Awesome!!!!! 7y
Beachesnbooks That's amazing!! Congrats!! 7y
Kalalalatja Well done! 👏👏 7y
123 likes10 comments
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BooksForYears
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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This will be my last read of the weekend...less than 5 hours to go until I hit the 24 hour mark. I've even checked out the audiobook version from Hoopla, so this book mermaid will be getting her legs back and running some errands to close out the @24in48 Readathon.

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BookishMarginalia
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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Excellent article with many practical tips about fostering the love of reading in children, starting when they are newborns. It also includes many book recommendations. Please read and share! We need more passionate readers in this world! #RaisingReaders https://www.nytimes.com/guides/books/how-to-raise-a-reader

Mdargusch This is so important! There are some good tips in the article. I always used new books as bribes when my children were little. 😊 7y
erzascarletbookgasm Thanks for sharing! Very good tips in there. 7y
IamIamIam I've always told new parents to lead by example. Having kids is no excuse for not reading and even if they're playing with board books and you get a paragraph or two in, they see you paying attention to books. Also, read to your child's interests. My kids never liked short, rhyming books until they could read them themselves. My son's favorites at 1 were Tikki Tikki Tembo and The Little House, both hefty books for a little kid! 7y
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Magpiegem Thank you for sharing this :-) 7y
mabell @IamIamIam Good tips! 7y
Skygoddess1 When my sister was pregnant with my nephew, I threw her a baby shower. Part of the instructions I sent to guests was for them to buy their favorite child's book (any age) and write a note to my nephew to get his library started. Even now, I give him books for Christmas and his birthday 7y
PennyPistol Excellent article. Thank you for sharing. 7y
133 likes4 stack adds7 comments
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AdeleReads
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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Summers are for reading Marilynne Robinson (and other fantastic books) on the lawn.

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BooksForYears
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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#MayBookFlowers Day 22 - Childlike

God Help the Lost Child Who Read Books

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Christine
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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Pickpick

Love all of her novels but finally getting to her essays - good grief, this woman has an amazing mind! The politics-themed pieces in this volume are so much more painfully relevant today than they were four years ago. Still, her thoughts give me so much hope! (And to think that we had a president who publicly recognized the wisdom and power in Marilynne's contemplative, bookish, compassionate words - here's to hoping one day we will again.)

cariashley She's brilliant. ❤️ 8y
badnorthern Love her. 8y
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BooksForYears
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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For #nationalreadabookday here's me reading a book about a woman reading books while surrounded by books
#BiblioMeta
#LitsyFeature

Desha Haha so perfect! ❤️📚📚❤️ 8y
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smccallum
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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#somethingforsept / #septemberphotochallenge today is favourite August reads. These are my fiction and non-fiction picks! Franzen blew me away. I was not expecting something so funny and yet devastating and Robinson is amazing. Religion and faith are a huge part of her thinking but this never stops her from fully fleshing out her argument in ways that have often been avoided by other particular religious writers I've read. Dynamic, powerful stuff

smccallum @katedfisher not yet! I have it and will be reading it soon though 8y
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smccallum
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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Pickpick

This woman blows my mind. Not only is her fiction a dream but she is also an profound and moving essayist?!?! Large portions of this collection feel especially poignant given the current political climate but there's just so much here that I would implore everyone to read. One of my favourite essay collections.

MrBook You've talked me into it 😊👍🏻. 8y
smccallum @MrBook ahaha I hope you enjoy it too! 8y
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smccallum
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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Coffee and essay time!

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smccallum
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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This woman has all the wisdoms.

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Amyegia
When I Was a Child I Read Books | Marilynne Robinson
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In honor of Marilynne Robinson Day tomorrow (I'm seeing her at Printer's Row): "I seem to know by intuition a great deal that I cannot find words for, and to enlarge my field of intuition every time I fail again to find these words."

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