Welcome to Litsy!

“Did I take baths in the giant soaking tub with a view of both the Hudson and the East River (and everything in between)? Yussss. But I had complicated thoughts about structural inequality while I did it.”

The above quote captures what Green‘s duology is like quite nicely. Did I find the books compulsively readable and highly entertaining? Yes. Emphasis on the “e” and singular “s.” But…👇🏻

Sunday vibes. 🖤🤍

This second book in the Carls duology dramatically expands the roles of its diverse, flawed, and lovable supporting characters, as well as the plane of action and the stakes—from first contact to corporate espionage and far beyond. I took my time with this one because I‘d rather be in Hank Green‘s dystopic world than this one.

Not sure why all the non-Christmas books I‘ve “suggested” or had on hold for MONTHS are coming in this month, but none of my Christmas suggestions are coming in. Come on #CloudLibrary, don‘t you know it‘s the #WinterGames?! 🤣

I loved the first Carls book, so I can‘t wait to dig into this one! Thennnnnn hopefully I‘ll pop back over to my Christmas TBR. #TeamEvergreen

Book 2 in this duology. How did he know that most of what is in this book is or has taken place? Isn‘t Threads a thing now? People cannot stop going into the new online Altus which was designed by an alien force. The friends that keep believing in humanity make this book so worthwhile in this world of selfie takers/phone addicts. Live your life! Carl in monkey form is the BEST!✌🏼😜

Now I absolutely loved the first book in this series and the second one felt very unnecessary. I hate I didn‘t love it but April wasn‘t the main character for most of the book, the Carls played a more active roll and I felt the whole time it was going off the rails. I know that was the way you were supposed to feel based on how the story was going but still I didn‘t love the ending and it didn‘t help matters any. I overall gave it 3 stars.

If you‘ve just finished An Absolutely Remarkable Thing and you‘re wondering if you should read this sequel, the answer is YES. The author wraps the story up in a compelling, suspenseful and thought provoking way. (The audio also includes a conversation with the author not found elsewhere, by the way) And if you haven‘t read An Absolutely Remarkable Thing yet, start there. Both books are unique and worthwhile.

Easily one of my favorite books of the year so far. I love the mixed media elements, and the story is BONKERS, while still making total sense. A look at fame culture, human greed, and the positives and negatives related to the internet - all wrapped in an exciting scifi story featuring aliens and AI, and conspiracies to bring the downfall of humanity

Interesting take. I love this character (Miranda). Which is funny, bc April was so damn annoying in the first book!

Another exciting day of making buttons. Our only indoor show this year happens this weekend and I've been spending a lot of time listening to audiobooks and finishing up stock.

If any of you littens happen to be at Motor City Comic Con stop by and say hello.

#Studio42Books #MC3

“You are a story that you tell yourself, and even if it is not always accurate, it is who you are, and that is very important to you.

This week's #WednesdayTradition features A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor by Hank Green and Yippee IPA from Picaroons, my "local" when I am in New Brunswick.⁣
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#BookBathAndBeverage #LocalBeer #CanadianRoadTrip #SciFiSeptember #Demonathon

What a wonderful follow-up to a first novel. I'm sure Hank always knew this was going to be two books but it couldn't have been a more satisfying and to a fabulous saga.

So frustrated… Been wanting to get A beautiful foolish endeavor for a minute, finally do for my birthday only to realize that it‘s book 2. Like, how did I not know that? Shouldn‘t it be the first thing we check? In the distance I can hear a bell chime followed by the echo of “shame“ being repeated over and over again.

Fantastic sequel! It was a great balance of characterization, action, and relevant themes. I love where he took the story. I bailed on my #Bookspin after a few pages and read my #Doublespin instead this month. @TheAromaofBooks

#SpringSentiments @Eggs
Prompt: Fatuous

My birthday book haul! Bought the top one for myself for #AuthorAMonth, and got the rest as gifts! Excited to dive in!

Not as good as the first for sure. 3/5
I'm glad I read it though.
I really wish there was absolutely no social media. That phones were once again only for making calls, texts, and emails.
That you could only access the internet through computers.
Could you imagine going back to zero social media platforms? I wonder what 2021 would be like in that world. What our kids would be like in that world. It would have to be better.

464 pages. Not THAT breathtaking as the first part (after finishing the first one, my heart was pounding for half an hour more due to a massive cliff-hanger) but it was still a great story. A mash up of extraterrestrials, society behaviors and multi-billion $ companies' impact on our lives.
#hankgreen #carl #aprilmaybenot #abeautifullyfoolishendeavor

Excuse me while I become a Hank Green fangirl, because this book pulled me out of a reading slump, and was absolutely fantastic. If you haven‘t read An Absolutely Remarkable Thing, you should! A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor is the sequel and wow, I‘m mind blown. It‘s great commentary on society and social media.

Book Two of Two of the Carl Saga: In April‘s absence, her friends are trying to find their footing in a post-Carl world.

I really enjoyed the first book, in fact I rated it five stars. But somewhere between book one and book two the story lost its enchantment. Still an interesting book but I just preferred Book One.

All “A” titles rounding out my month ...
The last one may fall in to December.

I put my new library hold down to take a picture, then I walked away for a second. I guess someone decided it looked like a great spot for a nap. I almost don‘t want to move the book.

I loved everything about these books!
Green managed to be funny and smart and terrifying in a perfect balance.
I‘m not sure what to say, it would be so easy to accidentally drop spoilers... so I‘ll just say I thought this was a brilliant commentary on technology and social media, but in a fiction format with giant robots, lots of references to pop music, and an amazing virtual reality world.
If any of that appeals to you, please read these!

Enjoyable (though not sure it should have been separated from the first book)

“I‘ve decided to stop lying to you.”

#FirstLineFridays @ShyBookOwl

I had honesty forgotten a lot of what happened in the first book so this one took a little while to get into. But I liked the povs and how they intertwined and I liked how they moved the plot along from the last one.

This great follow up to An Absolutely Remarkable Thing picks up right where that book left off but goes in some unexpected directions. There is more commentary about the dangers of power and inequality and how social media can play on this. I thought the first book was a little better, but this is still really good. The audio has a brief dialogue between Hank and Cory Doctorow that I also enjoyed.

Totally recommend this sci fi duology!! The first book leaves a lot unanswered, but the second fills a lot of the holes. It's well paced with interesting characters and lots to say on our society. Frankly: i prefer these 2 books to ther writings I've read from Hank's more famous brother.

Book #38: A sequel I‘ve waited years for! Having followed Hank‘s videos for over a decade now, it‘s so fascinating to see his worldview translated into fiction once again!

“Your life is written on this body, and I love every piece of it.“ 💝

I loved this book as much as the first. The characters are relatable and flawed. I laughed (literally), I cried (literally), I felt that empty hole of happiness when the book ended.

Easily my favourite duology I've read.

Beautiful artwork from here:
https://twitter.com/hankgreen/status/1044656557609426945

More of the artist's work here:
https://www.samanthamash.com

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3082748517?book_show_action=false&from_rev...

Good thing I got all my lawn work done earlier. Now I can relax on my back deck with my book and listen to the rain fall. My deck has a roof so I can enjoy my favorite kind of weather without getting soaked. 😍🌧

My #bookspinbingo list for August contains mostly books from readathons for the month - that's how I'm going to fit in trying it out! @TheAromaofBooks

I really want to kick back and disappear further into these (both have started to get really interesting) but I have lots of other things that need to get done today 😩😩

“...something can be great while also needing a great deal of work.“

This book is so good, even the acknowledgements have beautiful writing.

I loved this book.

An excellent follow-up to the first and another favorite.

Pic is one of my favorite Star Trek earrings, given as a gift. Special Edition celebrating, I think, the 50th anniversary. @wanderinglynn

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4.5/5)

I didn‘t think it was possible, but this book managed to be even better than its predecessor. The concept of humanity is heavily emphasized in this novel, and the impact of Atlus on the world is well-written and needed in times like these. While Andy‘s character became a bit unlikeable in this one, I did enjoy the character arcs throughout and understanding Carl and his mission. Overall, this was a great sequel and book.

It is my 40th birthday today!
These are all the books I got as gifts!

It finally came! Reading as much as I can until my toddler wakes up.

I am bonkers excited for this sequel, and it‘s finally in at my library! Curb side pickup starts this week and lucky me gets to pick this up!

Robots and aliens and puzzles, oh my! 🤖👽🧩

I also came across this delightfully well done recap of the first book, An Absolutely Remarkable Thing. 100% spoilers of the first book, y‘all! Do not click if you intend on reading the first book! Here be monsters!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtP3FHjtwTE

New book day for me and a signed copy!

Another Tuesday, another Pub day! Here's what I'm cataloging today. Mostly fiction, with a few paperbacks and a graphic novel.

I just got my “new releases in July” newsletter from Goodreads. Wow, July! Way to release tons of books I want to read all at once!

Is there anything you‘re really excited for releasing this month? (Not necessarily pictured here...)