Welcome to Litsy!

Having read these four novellas already, I felt like rereading them all at one time to keep the thread of characters clearly in my mind. This is by far the best way to read these stories, Water, Earth, Fire and Air. Four terrific stand alone stories, stories of childhood traumas, survival, hope. Don‘t miss this book if you haven‘t read the novellas already.

Happy Publication Day! The four elements of the novel— four characters loosely connected, covers decades and centers around different angles of sexual abuse. It‘s a dark story, but one that is not without hope & healing. Boyne brings all of the characters to life— even those at the darkest points. It‘s a compelling listen that is well-performed across all of the narrators. I never knew quite where it would go but I was hooked from the beginning!

I‘ve not received an ARC in a long time. Thanks LibraryThing! (This one‘s due to release in September)

This is not an easy book to read. There is a lot of trauma regarding sexual abuse. The book is divided into 4 parts that are loosely connected.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy.

When John Boyne takes you for a ride, buckle up! I am glad I was able to read all four novellas in one go, as it made the reading experience better for me.

Be ready, you will not feel joy reading this, but the stories are told in such a way that it will be hard to put down (I did have to take a break between Fire and Air to catch my breath, though).

Be ready to question your biases!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ #arc US Pub Date: 9/9/25

💨Air review! 💨👇🏽