All Fours | 
pickDid well at the Salvos in Dubbo over the festive season. Grand total = $27.45 as I used my credit. The skirt has shorts attached for me to wear to ballet. I love an enamel dish to cook in. The bag of toiletries includes Elemais products which I love to use. The necklace appears to be made using a tea towel. I was very happy to score both books as I had been hoping to find them for a while.
panJune 2025 Book#2
This one is going #offmyshelf @wanderglynn It didn‘t work for me. I found it so exaggerated and even histrionic in the way situations were managed or explained. What about menstruation it was like the topic is something out of this world🙄I still don‘t know why this book was in so many awards lists. I know mine is an unpopular opinion🤷🏽♀️2⭐️Almost bailed it.
pickI‘m supposed to have strong feelings about this, right? But, I guess…sometimes I liked it a whole lot (eg, “I stood holding the note with that funny little abandoned feeling one gets a million times a day in a domestic setting. I could have cried, but why?”) and sometimes I felt like rolling my eyes — HARD (eg, “The future itself was another lover, reaching backward in time to cup my balls”). I bet Miranda July gets that a lot. 👇🏻
pickHow much you like All Fours may depend on whether you see a hidden thesis statement about relationships in middle age. But I don't think July wrote any lessons - in fact, it probably took a concerted effort to avoid them. The strange journey the main character takes, if not objectively realistic, felt true to people's struggles to reconcile sexual and relationship needs when they diverge. And way more interesting than the usual cheating narrative.
so-soThis was strange, thought provoking, and honest(maybe more than I would have liked). I understand the discussion around it and suspect I‘ll be thinking about it for awhile.
panI hate read this because I couldn‘t figure it out. Not my style at all. Turns out it‘s about perimenopause and the emotional, mental, physical changes. I‘m ok with the marriage, relationships, parenting styles etc but did not need the sex/fetishes/fantasies and the chaotic mental vomit that felt like a personality disorder.
panUmmmm...I was really close in DNFing this book, but I was curious to see if the MC would find closure and/or made some growth. Did she? I'm not so sure.
I did appreciate how the book touched on topics regarding sexuality (especially as we age), motherhood, gender, menopause, postpartum/trauma, and identity. However, I was not expecting to read how horny the MC was or about all her masturbation and sex escapades. ⬇️
As a 49 yo woman, I felt that parts of this book were so well written and hilarious, and other parts were so “WTF?”. Like a raunchy comedian who is so funny…and then tells a joke that makes you think “ok, that‘s too far.” I‘m not sure who or if I‘d recommend this, but I flew through it in 24 hours, and am both confused by and understand completely what I just read.
I JUST RECORDED FOR 50 MINUTES. THEN WHEN I WATCHED THE VIDEO BACK MY MIC HAD SWITCHED OFF 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭
So I had to do it all over again but EVEN MORE TIRED.
And now it's 2am and I need to edit them so can post on time before Women's Prize announcement.
On the plus side I think I was a lot less rude about some of the books the second time 🤣🤣
pickA book I finished last weekend as I try and read the women's prize shortlist. Interesting to be in the head of a 45 year old artist who hits a mid life crisis as she goes on a cross country drive to NY but stops halfway where she renovates a motel room + has a non consummated sexual encounter with a ynger man. What follows is the exploration of her sexual encounters as she rationalises her life. Its taken me a week to process, + still not sure.
pickNearly didn‘t read it, glad I did. This is not *the* mid-life novel; the protagonist‘s life bears no resemblance to mine, nor that of any other woman I know. She is the most self-absorbed, self-indulgent person you‘ll probably ever hear from yet despite that I found this utterly compelling, with a knowingness I suspect you‘ll recognise if you too are mid-40s. I also found the absurdity quite good fun in a way I didn‘t expect.
so-soI had a lot of issues with this book but as you can see I also marked a LOT of sentences/passages for future reference. I ran out of book darts and had to start using Post-it flags! I‘m still not completely sure this wasn‘t satire - the MC was so comically pretentious and self-absorbed that I think she may have been intended as a sly parody of a certain type of artsy hipster grappling with middle age. In that light it almost worked.
#shelfsweeper
#whereareyoumonday
Still in Monrovia with the sociopath narrator of this tedious nonsense
Far too hot for a warm beverage tonight, and I had ice cream earlier, so I‘m just kicking back without refreshments for tonight‘s #HyggeHourReadathon
I‘ve got a bad feeling about this…
So I know this book is polarizing. I went in expecting shock, expecting transgressive attitudes about sex, gender, and aging, expecting discomfort in the name of probing implicit attitudes and assumptions about propriety and morality. But so far it‘s just exhausting. It‘s like listening to your most neurotic friend monologue about her chaotic and obsessive thoughts, which are entirely self-oriented
so-soI found this protagonist super annoying and probably should have given up at the halfway mark but it does get somewhat better.
#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks
pick⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Mostly loved the beautiful, smoothly flowing writing, but this story made me feel a bit icky. A relatable recurring theme was fitting people into boxes, and that was very thoughtfully handled. I‘m torn. Almost brilliant. Docking a star for the several foul bodily descriptions for shock value which kinda stole the show. Not in a good way. The writing was so freaking good, that shit was not needed.
so-soI was not rooting for this MC - her need for discovery was almost insufferable and she lost me with the tampon episode. The writing is quite good though.
I know this was a big book that everyone was talking about but when I really looked into the reviews, it was all over the place, so I don‘t feel bad for hate reading it right now. I think I‘ll finish it because it‘s a quick read, but I just don‘t care about the narrator. Being so self aware and self assured in my 40s makes the midlife crisis hard for me to understand. Not a humble brag, just an observation.
pick3-8-25: My 17th finished book of 2025! I think I really got into this story because I went through menopause so early in life,37,and while the main character is suffering through perimenopause, I felt a connection of sorts.Beyond that, this story was a raw telling of one woman‘s journey through marriage and motherhood and everything that can happen when you let your guard down and start being real with yourself and your desires.⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️📖#️⃣1️⃣7️⃣
so-soSo this is not a story for everyone. It went to places I don‘t normally seek when reading. It was graphic in parts that were just plain out there & gross at times. But, this book took me out of my comfort zone and put me into a mind that is very unlike mine. That‘s the great thing about reading though, it transports you into another world or life. I gave this a so-so because I don‘t feel like I walked away with anything profound from it. Just eh
pickA frank and funny novel that veers into the bonkers. I really enjoyed the on point writing and humour. July manages to walk a line between ‘artiste‘ on a complete flight of fancy and enough self-awareness to keep it grounded. Still, her narrator is self-absorbed which stopped me from loving the book (that & her obsession with sex & menopause - but many have loved this part). A provocative, interesting read and great fodder for a book club.
I can‘t remember ever rooting so hard AGAINST the main character. She is dreadful. That being said, I‘m enjoying the book (about 70% complete) and looking forward to seeing how the story ends. Did anyone else feel this way about her?
pickA middle aged female artist facing a midlife crisis writes about a middle aged female artist facing a midlife crisis with all the credulity of a teenager who has just figured out how to have an orgasm, certain the rest of the world must not be clued in to the experience.
I still really liked it though, there were moments of real insight and while the main character remains insufferable from beginning to end, I still liked her. 💜
"I'd thought the two paths were:
sex with Davey vs. a life of bitterness and regret
But maybe the road split between:
a life spent longing vs. a life that was continually surprising"
I'm still not sure about this book but I feel this quote deeply, and it's one of the few times I've felt any genuineness from the main character, who hides herself from everyone, including the reader.
"It took me two days to call Brian the neighbor because I was busy savoring my position, like when a crush finally texts back and you want to enjoy having the ball in your court for a while."
Y'all know I have a soft spot for unlikeable female main characters but it is only page five and I am really being tested on this one. Also this particular quote had me ??? I have no idea why it's not THAT funny
so-so⭐️⭐️⭐️ I didn‘t love this. The writing was engaging and I got through it quickly but I just did not connect with the MC. There were some interesting pieces of commentary about women‘s sexuality and relationship structures and menopause, but by the time they came around I wasn‘t willing to give the MC a pass for being a self-absorbed jerk. #ToB2025 #ToB25
pickRead in 2024. At first I was a little unsure when I started listening to this one. It dealt with many topics & areas that I know nothing about but I realized that it‘s important for people with all different experiences to be able to tell their story. The biggest thing that resonated with me is the f-in patriarchy. Just that realization of how much of our lives as women is directed by the patriarchy (especially as we get older). The societal
https://amp.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2024/dec/24/this-book-is-my-bible-the-w...
Interesting read! A couple of comments here that made me 🤔 - eg ‘the author is older and cooler than me so that makes non-monogamy more legitimate.‘🤷♀️
What do you all think?!
so-soHmm. This was a little too out there for me. While it‘s full of great lines that will actually stick with me, the protagonist was just too over the top on the sex stuff and it felt incomprehensible to me. Not that there isn‘t a certain enjoyment in reading those kinds of characters. The parts about her birth trauma and perimenopause were far more interesting to me than the lust parts. #tob25
pickMy feelings about this one are complicated. The mid-life experience of a woman going a little crazy during perimenopause while dealing with child rearing, career, marriage and fidelity told in such an honest and intimate way was very well done. The narrator made me feel uncomfortable and maybe that is a good thing, but as I struggled with that feeling I realized that I really did not care for her or her cringey behavior. Light pick for me.
so-soI absolutely hated the first 3/4 of this. Part of the problem was that I looked up July‘s Instagram before I started reading, and could not separate the author, who I found to be a self-indulgent exhibitionist, from her main character. However, it was very well-written (although it dragged in parts), and the stuff about aging resonated with me.
And, of course, in a patriarchy your body is technically not your own until you pass the reproductive age.
pickProvocative and much talked about, I liked the on point writing and sense of humour, but didn‘t love the far-fetched & self-indulgent elements. Then again, I‘m all for more women telling their stories in a world that still seems to be dominated by men. The menopause side doesn‘t interest me that much but is resonating with many. Frank & intelligent, a good book club pick.
Had to sit directly in the sun today after work and read in my favourite park. It didn‘t help, but it also didn‘t hurt.
pick⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I couldn‘t put this down. The writing is crisp, honest, and funny. A book about love and relationships in all their forms. I‘m drawn to portrayals of midlife female MCs experiencing an awakening (and full expression) in their sexual, relational, and personal lives.
so-so1-7 Oct 2024
Not sure how I felt about this book. It was challenging - in that the main character‘s journey was far removed from my life, my preferences and my values. Her actions were totally incomprehensible to me; the sex made me cringe. There was no aspect of her experience I wanted for myself. Ultimately I related best to Harris - wondering wtf was going on. But it kept me reading, even if I did not really like it. I did love Jordi.
(Photo of author Miranda July holding her hit novel All Fours) I am loving this book. It‘s edgy and creative and liberating. I can‘t wait to see where it ends up.
pickIt‘s weird reading about a 45 yo woman w a 7 yo who sets out to transform herself on a long solo road trip… while being a 45 yo woman w a 7 yo about to take off on a long solo road trip (tho mine was planned months ago…😜).The book is bizarre, well-written, intense, a little crazy, & quite good. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Also, showing off our holiday pillows as the correct seasons settle in…
And sending #AllHallowsReadSwap #ahrs pkg tmrw! (Early bc of road trip)
Progress! 🤓
Finished Bulletproof ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I think they‘ve found their old spark again, or maybe it was the heavy nod to Only Murders 🤔☺️
Murderous Christmas ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 A cozy cozy! I‘ll definitely go back to read the 1st!
Listening to Mad Love on audio - a relatively quick murder mystery w a full cast. Def recommend so far!
Bubba & I are listening to the Zoo on road trips 🤩♥️
The tagged is for #reallifebookgroup… interesting so far! 🫢
I have Grace on loan from a friend, All Fours Libby/eBook came off hold (of course 🙄), picked up the Heyer yesterday from the library, and have had Untamed on my shelves for awhile - something made me grab it today 🤷🏻♀️
I STARTED EACH TODAY! I am supposed to read Atwood‘s The Robber Bride for a club meeting next Wednesday and Kaleidoscope is my current audiobook. #OhDear #WhereToFocus #Overwhelmed #Distracted
* Had a job interview a.m. 😢
Books update 🤓
Still finishing Sept‘s #cbbc, but up next is the tagged (a 2nd‘ary choice for #reallifebookclub) then the Cleo Coyle, my Sept #SeasonalCozies selection. I‘ve been meaning to check out their other work for a long time & I‘m finally doing it!
I also happen to be listening to their 20th (!) in the Coffeehouse Mystery series - definitely one of the better ones! ☕️🩸
Also rec‘d my #fffs package! Thank you @PatriciaU -I‘m so excited!!
