Welcome to Litsy!

A set of loosely connected travel stories; a careful, devastating poet's voice; the permeating feeling of loneliness.
What did you think?

A book basically about drinking coffee, reading and writing. So simple, yet so very enjoyable ❤

As if I didn't already have plenty of reasons to love Patti Smith ❤

97 (Cowpoke) There are actually three kinds of masterpieces, was all he said.

99 The truth is that there is only one kind of masterpiece: a masterpiece.

211 I wonder if I would have been a good detective. It kills me to say it, but I don‘t think so. I‘m not the observant type. My eyes seem to roll within.

67 (Sebald) He recognizes voices within silence, history within negative space. .... What a drug this little book is...

A reader‘s book

Honest nostalgia, loving beyond graves.

86 Not all dreams need to be realized. That was what Fred used to say.

142 The transformation of the heart is a wondrous thing, no matter how you land there.

157 I‘m still the same person, I thought, with all my flaws intact, same old bony knees, thanks be to God. ... As I said good-bye I realized I missed that particular version of me, the one who was feverish, impious. She has flown, that‘s for sure.

How amazing it must be to be loved by Patti Smith. Just the full embrace. Her cowboy guide (surely Shepherd), reminiscences of domestic life with husband Fred, favorite cafe in the West Village, Rockaway bungalow, pilgrimages in search of Genet, Rimbaud, Kahlo & Rivera, Dazai, Akutagawa. Her openness & admission of vulnerability (related: Nobel ceremony). How come even learning her favorite snacks is interesting? Reads like an old friend. 2015

An interesting book that you can read and analyse from different angles. I guess I was more on the side of the very not “artist“ person so some stuff seams a little bit like a non-sense to me. It made me question myself, made me try to get more open-minded about differences but it did not make me want to know more about Patti Smith, even if I tried I feel a little kind of indifferent. I'll have more thoughts about it and this feeling may change.

#GroovyTrain #RedRoseSeptember @Cinfhen

I love Patti Smith. And I mostly listened to the audio version—read by her. But I‘d only recommend this to Patti Smith fans. More a collection of short vignettes. Some cut-to-the-bone writing about life, loss, mourning, art. Interspersed with the really mundane. She writes about coffee so much I started to laugh. Getting coffee. Making coffee. Drinking coffee. Finding a hard time getting coffee in Japan. Still, it‘s Patti Smith!!

I don‘t think I was in the right mood to read this book. Patti Smith loves her coffee and I found myself drinking a lot of coffee whilst reading it! Apart from this, it sadly didn‘t have much of an impact on me.

I would love to be in New York right now....but I can‘t be there....so I am just going to have read about it through Patti Smith‘s eyes 😀

Now here is a memoir I‘m enjoying. More of vignettes from her life, not in chronological order. Her writing is like spoken word. Listening to the audio—narrated by Patti! I could listen to her world weary gravelly voice for hours. Actually, I am! Just requested a hard copy from the library to peruse as I listen.

#Bookishbingo

I got another bingo. I‘m likely to stall here.

Another book not included in my goals for #24B4Monday. Third finish. Now I‘m really going to work on that stack I originally picked. 😂. #mayMadness.

This was a wonderful book of essays. Such great writing. All I wanted was coffee and some talent for writing while listening to this book. 4⭐️

Enjoying this audiobook so far.

Depression, grief, survivor guilt. All of this are the fondation of this slice of Smith‘s memoirs. I liked the slow spiral of her life. The flashes of brillance drowned into her everyday grey, monotonous life. Grief is a hard lover. Smith is also a fan of procedural tv shows and also a fangirl. Her Doctor is Ten. Her writing flows effortlessly. Depressing not joyful, still really good. #booked2019 #spring #featuringamusician

I'm at 90 % mark. Should be finished when the last period is over. #readingandlisteningtohockey

Aiming to get to 50% on this Sunday afternoon hockey game.
Happy Mother's Day Littens.
#readingandwatchinghockey

Game 1 🦈 and Blues.
#readingandwatchinghockey

Then there are four. #readinggandwatchinghockey

Do or die. Win or go home. This is Game 7. Go ⭐️
#readingandwatchinghockey

I have this in ebook and print. I loved Just Kids and so far, this one doesn't disappoint. It's my next
#booked2019 #spring and #featuringamusician

Smith is a very introspective artist and this memoir of her life stories waxes philosophical at times. She is able to relate her life back to art and literature in a way that can be touching at times, and other times over my head... While some of her anecdotes include her children and late husband, mostly she writes from a solitary and sometimes melancholy perspective. #ownerofalonelyheart
#anglophileapril

What a beautiful little book. I flipped back and forth about whether I liked it and even went so far as to tell a friend not to bother with it... I almost bailed. In the end, though, I couldn't put it down and I totally fell for it. It's a memoir of loss and grief told through stories of travel, dreams, and nothing, really.

If you‘ve read tagged book, you may remember the visit and might enjoy the photographs.

https://www.newyorker.com/culture/photo-booth/patti-smiths-talismanic-photos-fro...

Not a typical memoir but more a collection of musings on art, philosophy, music, coffee, family, and self.

I enjoyed this small glimpse of Smith and totally understand why she's labeled as the rock n roll laureate.

Love the Hill of beans story! #pattismith #mtrain

5?/5
One of my favorite authors!!
"Lost things. They claw through the membranes, attempting to summon our attention through an indecipherable mayday. Words tumble in helpless disorder. The dead speak. We have forgotten how to listen."
~Patti Smith,M Train
#pattismith #poet #mtrain #books #bookish

Reading this mere meters away from the Florabama Bar is either the least Patti Smith or most Patti Smith thing I could be doing.

-corinne

This is a non fiction about thoughts in Patti Smith‘s head. It‘s an easy read, some parts I found interesting and I enjoyed her perspective on life. Her use of dialogue drove me batty. She listed her dialogue with these at the beginning: - . Why? As much as I enjoyed it, my mind did wander quite a bit as I read this.

I enjoyed reading something outside of what I‘d usually read, and I loved her artist‘s perspective and her life experiences.

I don‘t buy many paper books (I use a combination of the local library and buying kindle books) but I had to make an exception for Patti ♥️

A fascinating selection of insights into the life of a cultural icon. See my Goodreads review at: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28503848-m-train #pattismith #mtrain #rockmusic #autobiography #poetry #photography #newyork #coffee #cafe #literature #nonfiction #music #verse #pattismithgroup

Who wouldn‘t love to trade places with #PattiSmith?

Where are you standing right now? #vmbookclub

Half way through the veggiemama bookclub pick for Feb

I just started reading this. So far, so good . #vmbookclub

One may tolerate demons for the sake of an angel.

#quotsyjan18 #balance

I've been saving this one for this trip to NYC.

Perhaps the polar opposite of sitting in a cafe in NYC. The nearest subway stop is a three day drive away. Quite enjoying Patti's poetic storytelling.

"In art and dream may you proceed with abandon. In life may you proceed with balance and stealth." ~ Patti Smith
Love all her writing! Looking forward to her latest release in Fall. Have you read any of her work?

#books #bookish #booknerd #bookgeek #pattismith #poet #artist #writer #reader #booklover #reading #biblio #literature #bookcollector #pattismith

Morning cuppa with Patti Smith.

Vacation purchases during a trip to Spotty Dog Books and Ale in Hudson, NY. #bookhaul

Loved it! Wonderfully written memoir.

Seems so simple. But to me, the fact that there is still love between Patti and Sam 40 years later is so moving! So, it may be simple but I think it's a really #greatdedication #riotgrams

Melancholic but beautifully written memoir of love and travel and how to say goodbye. #roguebookbingo

I started this book with eye rolls at all the romantic ideas of gathering stones to make a pilgrimage to a poet's grave but then I realized: I have become jaded by life. After all the triumph and tragedy of Patti's life, she has remained a dreamer and I love that.
She shares stories of the moments she treasures, late night musings watching detective shows, and coffee. Lots and lots of coffee.