Welcome to Litsy!

Nearly 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.

I 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

I found this protagonist super annoying and probably should have given up at the halfway mark but it does get somewhat better.

#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 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.

I 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.

3-8-25: 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 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

A 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?

A 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

⭐️⭐️⭐️ 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

Read 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

Surprising at every turn. Some very explicit sex scenes in this novel about a woman facing change in her body. A story about family and how to be an individual within parenthood. Great first book of 2025. Not for the faint of heart. 4.5 🌟

I really do not get the fuss. The first 2/3 of this book was stupid. Is it possible that an educated woman has never heard of perimenopause? I trust the other books on all the “best of” lists will be an improvement.

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?!

Hmm. 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

My 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.

I 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.

I guess I should read this one 😂.

And, of course, in a patriarchy your body is technically not your own until you pass the reproductive age.

Provocative 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.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 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.

1-7 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.

It‘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!!

Just started and already enjoying this one. I see mixed reviews here. I‘ll try not to read them so I can have a fresh experience. 📚

Where to begin? This book felt like a car crash in motion. You felt it the entire time. The central character is infuriating, willfully destructive, sometimes pathetic, sometimes woefully misogynist/ageist. She‘s always on the verge of seeing her behavior for what it is, blinks, and continues doing it. But isn‘t that life for some people?

Frustrating? Yes. Thought-Provoking? If you can stomach it, yes. The Litsy rating makes sense. 🤷🏻‍♀️😅😤

This is a weird book. Initially I was not impressed & almost put it down, then I got kind of swept up. Then it was just too much information, too much emotion, too much sex. But inside my head is too much sometimes, like could I just fucking shut up & give it a rest. That‘s what MJ wrote 🤯 her weaving of perimenopause into this was perfect and I had no idea about ghost baby syndrome. This is totally a book that has to be finished. I like Jordi

I‘ll be honest, this started slow for me but has taken an unhinged turn and I‘m seated and here for it.

I went into this book cold solely because it was named the Book of the Summer by a local bookshop since they sold an unprecedented amount of copies. I‘m getting why…and I‘m also slightly concerned/suspicious of my neighbors. 😅

My library hold came in for #camplitsy #betterlatethannever

⭐️⭐️⭐️

This book is really… something. Cringy and weird but also compelling and insightful, it‘s like the proverbial car crash you can‘t look away from. I can see why it was such a buzzy book this summer and I can appreciate how it‘s unflinchingly honest. 🎧

I wish I knew someone else who has read this so we could talk about it! I figured this would be right up my alley being the same age as the main character. Trying to figure out peri menopause/menopause and how it will impact life. But I couldn't really relate to her mid-life sexual awakening and/or crisis. Her personality is def different from mine. I had a hard time with some of the scenarios she gets herself into. I'll give it a light pick -⭐⭐⭐

Wow wow wow what a journey. I loved July's short story collection and was underwhelmed by her first novel, so I wasn't sure what to expect from this one, but it really resonated with me, especially as a feminist bisexual mom. There were a lot of insights that blew me away. I loved the protagonist‘s relationship with her best friend, the subversion of the road trip story, the look at complicated birth trauma, and the sheer weirdness of it all.

I just couldn‘t. The character wasn‘t someone I could relate to. Certainly my issue, not the author‘s.

Just starting. The protagonist‘s voice is very strange. I hope I come to like it! 🤞

Current books I‘m not a super fan of.

Dropped off at a local #littlefreelibrary! I hope someone else enjoys it more than me 😆

"But thoughts don't work like that. You don't pick them like pears from a tree, they just fall on your head."

"No reason was turning out to be a major theme in life. Generally speaking, when real pain was involved, there was no reason, no one to hold accountable, no apology. Pain just was. It radiated with no narrative and no end."

"Motherfucker... I was referring to life itself."

"We only felt right when we were saving a life together, fixing a flat tire by the side of the highway. We only became us against insurmountable odds. The rest of the time we respectfully forgave each other for utterly failing to be what we felt we deserved. And then some of the time we were fucking furious about this and it seemed impossible to continue."

Ooof