Welcome to Litsy!

True Story traces the fallout of a high-school rumour as it reverberates throughout the lives of the subject, the perpetrators, and the onlookers. It sounds simple enough, but it‘s actually a wonderfully complex interrogation of who gets to tell stories and who gets to decide if they are true. Full review: https://keepingupwiththepenguins.com/true-story-kate-reed-petty/

A sexual assault sends ripples through the lives of four people in this compelling debut told in a variety of forms including movie script, transcripts, college application essays, 2nd person narrative. I could barely put it down and read it in just a couple sittings.

I have to agree with Elif Batuman, this was “un-put-downable.” Gripping, complex and original.

First Book Outlet #bookhaul of the new school year. Only four are coming home with me. #sorrynotsorry

I wasn't really impressed with this book, it picked up a bit for me towards the end, but on the whole didn't really enjoy it.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This book is brilliant. Playing with narrative style, voice, and genre, “True Story” examines how trauma shapes us. Who gets to tell stories and why; what is truth, and does it matter? I picked it up on a whim and finished it in less than 48 hours - it is completely engrossing, incredibly creative, and leaves a powerful impression.

Like mother, Like daughter 😁My daughter is packing 3 books for our 2 night getaway #Relatable 😉Wishing everyone a lovely weekend & for those in the US, enjoy the long holiday weekend 🎉🎉🎉

I randomly grabbed this one off the shelves this afternoon and suddenly found myself on page 140. 😆

Thanks again for this lovely gift, @erzascarletbookgasm ! 😘

This book started so well but it went downhil pretty quickly for me. The characters were forgetful and very confusing.

1999. Two high school boys drive a drunk girl home. The story they tell about what they did will change over time, dividing the school and destroying her life. Years later, one descends into alcoholism; Alice becomes a reclusive ghostwriter; and their intertwined stories play out as horror fiction, a thriller, a series of emails, and film scripts, culminating in a stunning twist. It‘s an extraordinary commentary on power and truth.

Ooooo it‘s good…

A mystery Book Depository parcel arrived today! Who do I thank for this lovely surprise?? 💕💕💕

When Alice is passed out drunk it is rumoured that two boys sexually assaulted her. The book is split into sections with different narrative styles, some of which worked more for me than others. With touches of Ottessa Moshfegh and Lisa Taddeo‘s writing this was intriguing and definitely not what I thought I was getting. The jury is still out for me as to what happened and my thoughts on this one, the ending in particular, but I *think* I liked it

Thanks for sending this one my way @BarbaraBB I‘m not sure what I was expecting and it took me wayyy too long to actually understand what was happening. I was engaged and I liked parts of the plot/ but in the end the wow wasn‘t so WOW for me. I don‘t think this would have worked for me on audio, so I‘m VERY GRATEFUL for the print copy. This is a total case of #FoMo / the want to read was better than the actual reading!! #CoverCrush ♥️

#BookMail courtesy of my wonderful friend @BarbaraBB ❤️🥰🙌🏻So excited for the tagged book and the NYRB which I know is a beloved author of my favorite sisters @Reviewsbylola @emilyhaldi Feeling spoilt and very grateful 😊 Thanks, Barbara xx I LOVE the postcard but the wording got cut off😞It says “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” #TRUTH

A great read … compelling & spooky ,I couldn‘t put it down. The twist at the end wasn‘t as I thought it would be… I think I got caught up in the hype about the ending & was ready for any possibility.
I really enjoyed the entire book .. a great read ! I read it yesterday afternoon & this morning & this afternoon .. a quick read for me 👍🏻 thanks @BarbaraBB @Megabooks ! I hope you like it @Cinfhen , look forward too your thoughts ❤️

What a book. You should know nothing about it, just dive in, and get lost in a story that mixes horror, suspense, confession, epistolary and noir in a fantastic way. And the final twist is a great one. Such an original debut and highly recommended!

(Pic: Folegandros, Greece. The sky colored by fires on the mainland 🥲)

Alice is a reclusive expat living in Spain whose life was changed by a sexual assault in high school. Nick was lacrosse teammates with one of the guys who did it. Told in alternating vignettes over 16 years, they both fight and succumb to the fallout from that night. Still one of the most creative twists I‘ve read!

A hard review to write because I want you to read it, but I don‘t want to ruin it. Such an enjoyable reread. Thanks @BarbaraBB 😘

I literally could not put this one down. It‘s the literary horror thriller for the #metoo age I didn‘t know I was waiting for

After seeing this book EVERYWHERE for a while now I finally caved and got a copy. I‘m going in!

I am posting one book per day from my extensive to-be-read collection. No description and providing no reason for wanting to read it, I just do. Some will be old, some will be new. Don‘t judge me - I have a lot of books. Join the fun if you want.
This is day 199
#BooksToRead #TBRPile #TBRMountain

#WeeklyForecast 23/21

It‘s about time I start reading Orkney, our #HolidayEscape #buddyread. Reviews have been extremely mixed so I‘m excited to find out where I‘ll stand.
Want is a gift from @Megabooks that has been on my TBR a long time. True Story got much praise last year and I‘ve meant to read it ever since. Let‘s hope I‘ll spend more time reading than last week!

Reading Envy Podcast Episode 220: Pronunciations with Scott

Scott returns from a coastal vacation and three recent reads. We also discuss group reads via BookTube, the appeal of series, and more.

Listen and subscribe:
https://tinyurl.com/ReadingEnvy220

Mixed feelings about this one, which is very creative-writing-workshop-y, but (for me) doesn't make the point it seems to want to make. Still, it reads quickly, and is not dull.

I loved the message of taking control of your own story. I also thought the way this story was told many different ways was interesting, however this kept me from being attached. I wish this book had more Alice and less Nick.

This was my #BookSpin

On to the next one. I really wanted to put a heavy focus on my BOTM books this month and it worked out that both my #BookSpin and #DoubleSpin are BOTM.

Not the best book of the year for me, but interesting. Reminded me a bit of Trust Exercise in the way the story is presented. There are two big secrets revealed at the end but I‘m not sure the journey was worth it. The fact that I listened to this as an #audiobook is probably this one‘s saving grace. I don‘t think I could have done it in print.

This book was nonsensical for more than half of the story. It kept switching the writing style, and cutting off the characters mid sentence, as well as an unnecessary amount of short sentences. I did not enjoy how many sentences started off with “You” instead of the voice coming from the actual character. Like,

“You get a cup of coffee. You go to the train station.”

I wasn‘t a fan.

At first I thought this was 4 different stories but not quite , they seem to intersect. The first one impacted me the most. Published this year.
#2020joybooks
@MrsMalaprop

Flying through this one - refreshingly different.

Well I bailed on this at 56%. It was just all over the place, there was no cohesion and I just couldn't get into it. I was enjoying it for about the first 20 to 25% but after that... I couldn't figure out how the timelines connected other than the characters. It was just weird to me. 🤷‍♀️

#bookspinbingo Digital Library Loan 12

@TheAromaofBooks

Up next for #bookspinbingo, Digital Library Loan #12. This is also a selection for the #gilmoreathon taking place on Instagram. I seen several good reviews for this one. Hopefully this will be a winner for me.

#RoadTrippin Maybe I‘ll be able to read a few pages 🤞🏽

Well, I thought this was great! Loved the interweaving plots and how it all came together.
Read in an afternoon and haven‘t done that for a while!

I think a lot of inventive stuff goes on in this one, and the balance between truth and fiction is played with throughout, but the end kinda fell flat. Overall I did really enjoy it. Also.. this multicover cover is SO COOL.

I‘m seeing a lot of good reviews for this one, so I‘m excited to jump in this morning.

This is a weird book and the main character Nick is one of the stupidest males in all of literature. The story revolves around a group of high school students and a sexual assault that occurs during their senior year and the aftermath of it.
#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks
#Booked2020 #WineOrWhine There's actually a lot of drinking & complaining
@Cinfhen @4thhouseontheleft @BarbaraTheBibliophage
#LittensDressedInBlood @MidnightBookGirl

I finished this and thought: What did I just read?! Wow. That was... different, in a good way. Quite a roller coaster of genres, points of view, feelings and writing. I enjoyed it but think it‘s the kind of book you either love or hate with little room in between. It will not be for everyone.

This is one of those books where the less you know going in, the better.
Just know that this is about truth, lies, rumors and their fall out. And about telling our stories, how they shape our lives, and who gets to tell them.
It‘s a mashup of style & format - part high school drama, part thriller/ horror/crime/noir told via straightforward narratives, emails, scripts and annotated essays.
Just know it‘s really good and I could not put it down.

...a thriller, a horror, a memoir, a noir....

What does it mean when the worst happens and you don't remember it?

Just a wonderful examination of what it means when you don't control the story of your own life. Petty uses elements from different genres and formats to fantastic effect. This reminded me of Dana Spiotta's Innocents and Others. One of the best books I've read this year.

I needed an audiobook that would pull me in and be riveting enough to power me through all of the weekend‘s household tasks. This did the job! I liked the unique construction of the story and the genre mashup quite a bit. Really engaging on audio.

Wow, what a ride--I went into this totally blind earlier tonight thinking it would carry me through the week, and ended up finishing it in one long sitting! It should be known that there are some pretty heavy trigger warnings for sexual assault in this, but it provides some excellent social commentary in a creative format. Highly reccomended! 4.5⭐

I really dug in to read this in one (with a snack break) sitting to kick off my #24b4monday goal. It was really unique and I appreciated the creative writing style. I always respect when an author can create space for you to pity a character while also knowing they‘re garbage. Great humanity throughout. Not sure how some of the more fantastical tangents landed for me, but still a great read.

Here‘s what I‘m going to try to get through for my #24b4monday goal. Let‘s see how distracted I get 😬

Put on my cherry print socks and my husband told me I looked socksy. We both laughed. We are hysterical people.

Also, this is the bulk of my August book haul, not including two audiobooks, an eARC, and an online secondhand purchase I‘m waiting on.

What books did you get this month?

I oscillated between feeling like this book was either madness or brilliance, and while it didn't end up firmly landing in either camp, it was ultimately closer to the latter. It could be considered problematic, and not everyone while take to it, but I think it's meant to be that way. One thing's for sure - it's certainly unique! #BOTM

(And if my review has you scratching your head, just wait until you get halfway through this book!)

This book is soooo good - I couldn‘t put it down. The blurb claims that it is a genre-defying mix of a campus novel, psychological thriller, horror story and crime noir, which is true.

I‘m still trying to process parts of it, what actually happened or didn‘t happen and how I feel about it.

Other than that, I‘m not going to tell you anything about it as it‘s one of those you should go into knowing nothing about.

#netgalleyreviewathon

This was a great, thought-provoking read. I found it really suspenseful in parts. It's the story of an event that happened to a girl in high school, and how the story and it's repercussions are experienced by different people. It's completely unexpected and for me, was totally gripping. First book in a long while that I've finished within 24hours.