The Art of Hearing Heartbeats | 
pickJulia travels from New York to the small birth village of her father in Burma to try to find out what happened to him as he disappeared four years back. A mysterious local who seems to know her closely tells her the heart-breaking story of her father's youth, before he moved to the US. Although the story is a bit too "fairytalish", I still enjoyed the writing and the atmosphere created by the immersion in the Burmese life, culture and traditions.
panI went into this expecting to love it like the rest of the world but quickly felt the opposite way. A daughter searching for answers after her father abruptly leaves their family ends up in Burma where she immediately meets a man who knows all of her father‘s secrets including the story of the great love of his life which is supposed to be enough of a reason to abandon his other life. I found the love story over blown and saccharine. Not for me.
pickWhat a beautiful story! Julia‘s father disappears, and a few years later she finds a love letter he wrote to a woman in Burma (Myanmar). She travels there to find him and meets a man who knows her father. I loved everything about this book...I felt transported out of America and into the Burmese way of life. The love story was so compelling. I hated for it to end!
Making my lists for potential books for #readingasia2021. Here are a bunch of books for #Burma #Myanmar. So many were already on my tbr list like the tagged book. There may or may not be book shopping on this weekend‘s agenda. 😉 @Librarybelle @BarbaraBB
Not at all what I expected and is actually really great!
So, this book was one left out on a driveway. I've found so many people have done this over lockdown and it's been s fab way to discover new reads 😄 even though it increases my collection hugely 😂😂
I rather liked the cover, as well as the subject of a missing father and husband and subsequent back story.
@MrBook #readwithmrbook
Challenge update.... halfway through the year, and enjoyed all these so far....💕📚
bailedI‘m not having a great reading month. I read almost half of this before realizing that it was a little to cheesy and unrealistic to keep me engaged. Hopefully bailing on it will help me get out of this little reading funk I seem to be in.
pickJust finished up #Fall for #booked2020 with the tagged book (Thank you Cindy for recommending!💕)
Beautiful writing, with memorable characters and a long lost love story at its heart.... this story somehow had the essence of a fairytale or fable. Unread love letters, gorgeous descriptions of the beauty, aromas and sounds of Burma, and an endearing narrator, all captured my heart. Lovely. 😊💗
Thank you hostesses! 4 out of the 6 were 5⭐️ reads!!!
#weeklyforecast
- The tagged book is my final book for the season of #Fall #booked2020 ! I‘ve been reading in a totally random order, but my excuse is we have no seasons in FL! It‘s just hot, and hotter! 😎🌴
- I think the Lily King is going to be my jam, and I loved her book Euphoria 🖋💗
-The bottom three are my next ones (in order) for #bookspinbonanza I hope to start at least one this week....
panArgh! #unpopularopinion time... I finished it for a book club otherwise would have dnf‘d. I didn‘t care about any of the characters. The dude is married with a kid and disappears...to go be with a girl from his past? The premise didn‘t work for me. The all knowing narrator didn‘t work for me either. The story itself was, well, boring. Lots of eye rolling. I am reading another book with a blind MC which is a million times better.
panSummed up in one word: boring. I have no idea what prompted me to add this to my tbr! Even just before starting, I looked at the title, and wondered about that – it did not sound like something that I would like... and I was right. It actually started a bit creepy, I thought, what the man (who ultimately told the story) said to Julia. It might have been more entertaining for me had it stayed creepy! The end was super-unrealistic and eye-rolling
#day2 of #7days7covers - would you like to play @OriginalCyn620 ?
pickI am speechless - what a beautiful story. I laughed, I cried and I felt so much love for these characters. My heart is so full ❤️
“...he did not merely read books but traveled with them...” 💕
pickThe way this book is written gives us such beautiful imagery of emotions. This is about what unconditional love really is. It wasn't the hot and passionate romance book but instead tale of a sweet and innocent love. Sometimes I still wonder why the main character went about things the way he did but in the end after reflecting about it I don't think I would change it. A very beautiful tale.
#LilithJuly I‘ve posted this book before but it‘s one of my favorite #LiteraryLoveStories ♥️♥️♥️Set in Burma, Tin Win and Mi Mi develop an intense, literally symbiotic relationship that will make your #heartbeat and break! SO GOOD
pickA beautiful story with riveting characters who give the reader a glimpse at stark human emotion. The imagery used by the author lets the reader see the sights, sense the smells, and hear the sounds of Burmese culture. Imagine being able to hear the heartbeats of the people you love - such an astounding book. I cried my eyes out.
So far, so good! 😊 Hope everyone had the chance to relax (and read) this weekend. 😊
This book set in Burma is a fiction/romance novel/mystery. I hope it‘s good and I can finish it over the weekend. Happy Friday🤓🐛
1. Art of hearing heartbeats
2. None. My anniversary is 2 weeks later so that‘s the better celebration.
3. Brown
4. Nicholas James.
5. 😘
#friyayintro @howjessreads
pickWow! I have read a lot of truly excellent books this year, and this ranks with the best of them. One of the most beautiful love stories ever. Set in Burma, so a completely different culture, and I learned a lot, as well. A unique view of life. Highly recommended. Another 5⭐️ Thank you again, @AmyG
In addition to my birthday gift last week, my son gave me his miserable cold (can‘t complain too much since the actual gift was tickets to Hamilton next month in Orlando). I‘ve felt generally miserable, out of sorts, and haven‘t felt like reading. Doing better today, and, with hubby off Christmas shopping, I‘m getting back to this wonderful book. I could post a quote from every page, it seems.
pick(Disclaimer: listened to the audio) this was a fantastic story of true love, beyond the physical attraction most call love. The story follows a young lady as she searches for her father and discovers a love greater than words. The story and scene-detailing are beautifully done and the entire book kept me captivated. The audio added some emotional queues and was really well-done.
#gratitude30 #luxury It‘s turning downright chilly in South Florida, so to be snuggly wrapped in my fluffy snowflake throw with a good book after the craziness of the holiday really feels like luxury to me.
“I speak of a love that brings sight to the blind. Of a love stronger than fear. I speak of a love that breathes meaning into life, that defies the natural laws of deterioration, that causes us to flourish, that knows no bounds.”
Reading this while waiting for my son and his family to arrive and thinking that this is a perfect description of a parent‘s love this Thanksgiving Eve.
I had planned to read The Handmaid‘s Tale next, but hubby beat me to it. Thought I‘d start this one instead.
@AmyG you really didn‘t need to! Thank you so much for the book and your lovely note. The thing I love most about Litsy is how it has led to so many new friendships.
#AbbaInAugust #LayAllYourLoveonMe prompt instantly brought this moving love story to mind.
pickA very unique and interesting read. Read in two days, I didn‘t want to stop!
#GetMovin THIS book will have you singing 🎤 #IBelieveInAThingCalledLove ❤️🤗❤️It‘s what I call a #LiteraryLoveStory no cheesy, sappy romance BUT real emotions. SO GOOD 🙌🏻
so-soStarted out good but dragged on.... hard to accept that the protagonist would allow herself to be kept in the dark for that long.
@Kenziejo @Amabear @ErinGoBragh1011
Flying through my #lmpbc #round2 selection. Hope you are too!
pickThis was a surprise for me, I didn‘t think I‘d like it but it ended up being a really engaging story. Definitely recommend.
pickThis was a quiet and soft book. I needed that right now. A love story, a look at how we use our eyes rather than our other senses, a quest to understand a parent‘s actions.
#EyeCandyGiveaway the wonderful and lovely @Kalalalatja is celebrating her 25th bday in true #LitsySpirit she's #PayingItForward 💞🎉💞 One of my favorite love stories happens to feature a STUNNING cover, this photo does it no justice😕But the last person I loaned my copy to never returned it. It was just too pretty!!! Thanks for the chance to read two of your favorites @Kalalalatja and much #birthdayLove💝
I'm not exactly sure what qualifies as a bath time book but I read this one majority of the time in the bathtub so it's my #bathtimebook for my #septemberbookchallenge #autumnreads #highlyrecommend
pickI guess I've been in the mood for contemplative books about life! When you lose loved ones it's presumably natural to start thinking about the what's important in life, how short it is, and the best way to make the best of the time we have. This book did quite well! It's about love mostly..the power of love. It's also about our life journey, and how we don't really know who our parents were before they were our parents.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
(#Ihatetheuncle)
pickThis is a beautiful book and I throughly enjoyed it! The love story between Tin Win and Mi Mi completely captivated my heart. Julia's journey to learn about her father's past really got me thinking. How much do we really know about our parents? They do so much before we are even a thought in their minds and how many of us ever really take the time to find out about that part of them. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
pickI liked this story of a woman's quest to find her father (& learn his history). The Burma setting was evocative and Sendkker's writing style is calm and well-paced. I wasn't fully immersed in it but felt for the characters and enjoyed it as an original, interesting tale.
"...life is interwoven with suffering. That in every life without exception, illnesses are unavoidable. That we will age, and that we cannot elude death. These are the laws and conditions of human existence... Laws that apply to everyone, everywhere in the world, regardless of how dramatics times might change. There is no power that can release a person from pain or sadness-unless it be that person himself"
❤️ #wordstoliveby ??
Changing location to Burma, book-wise. In reality still in Izu peninsula, Japan, for one more day. Not a bad reading spot. 😉👍
#AprilBookShowers Some favorites #setinsoutheastasia The Sympathizer and Ghost Bride are actually on my TBR
pickA beautifully written book that moved me and is a re read for sure
