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#FOODANDLIT
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Bookworm54
The Aunt Who Wouldn't Die | Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay
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Pickpick

This was a short novel for #FoodAndLit #Bangladesh

Somlata marries into a family of old wealth (that are going broke). After her elderly aunt-in-law dies, she haunts Somlata, forcing her to hide her jewellery from the family. It also follows Boshon, a teen who doesn‘t believe she needs a man to enjoy life.

This had an abrupt ending, but I did enjoy it!

review
Butterfinger
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Pickpick

Evocative writing. Equal to The Kite Runner. The effects of war on different groups of people are exposed. Rape as a weapon. WOMEN CHOSE TO MARRY and leave with THE ENEMY BECAUSE THEIR FAMILIES DISOWNED THEM. A brother turned into an extremist because of guilt. His sister remained a rebel to the new government because of guilt. They both neglected their loved ones while on crusades. Trigger warnings #FoodandLit @Texreader @Catsandbooks

rockpools I do like her writing - this is the only one of the trilogy I haven‘t read. I need to pick it up! 5h
33 likes1 stack add1 comment
blurb
Texreader
Bangladesh: A Legacy of Blood | Anthony Mascarenhas
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Who‘s excited for our #foodandlit country #Bangladesh for May? I‘ve got so many books to read for it! And don‘t you just love this artwork by @Catsandbooks ? Here‘s to another great reading Month!!

Butterfinger I always love @Catsandbooks designs. 2d
35 likes1 comment
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Texreader
Year of Ravens: A Novel of Boudica's Rebellion | Ruth Downie, Eliza Knight, Kate Quinn, Stephanie Dray, Simon Turney, Russell Whitfield, Vicky Alvear
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April wrap-up: I finished two books for March #foodandlit #Ireland, then read four books for April #Rwanda (still working on my fifth). I read one book for #authoramonth Kate Quinn (still reading two more), and one book I finished from last month‘s author Leigh Bardugo. And I read Keeping House as an impulse read.

I tagged my favorite book of the month, but it was a close call.

review
Texreader
Sister Deborah | Scholastique Mukasonga
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Pickpick

Deborah is a mystic who helps a young girl heal her weak body. Grown up, the girl, now a professor in the USA, goes back to #Rwanda to learn Deborah‘s fate. I struggled to follow this story. There is so much more to it, but I couldn‘t follow who was who, when things were happening, etc. I blame it almost entirely on the fact that I listened to it. I sometimes wish narrators would tell us when a new section is started, even just a longer pause. ⬇️

Texreader Or maybe it was written to be hard to follow, or it‘s the fault of the translator. Now I‘m reading the author‘s short stories, which are so good. So I don‘t think the author intentionally set out to confuse readers. So, warning to the wise: read the ebook or physical book. Take a pass on the audio. #foodandlit 5d
TheBookHippie I loved it -but I can‘t do audio - so I read it in book form. I loved the short stories too. 2d
48 likes1 stack add2 comments
review
Texreader
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Pickpick

This is #Rwanda President Paul Kagame‘s story through 2008 (he‘s still president today). A young Tutsi refugee from the violence by the Hutus even back in the 1950s, he fought in Uganda, secretly training to become a rebel soldier to try to return to Rwanda. As he built a secret army, the genocide in 1994 occurred. He was able to dismantle the Hutu government and would eventually be elected president. He assembled a Hutu/Tutsi government, and ⬇️

Texreader has managed to keep internal peace albeit sometimes with an iron fist. The astonishing history is that France helped the Hutus, providing weapons to them DURING the genocide. The United Nations and the USA had been warned emphatically about what was coming and then knew when it happened. AND DID NOTHING to stop what they called an internal tribal dispute. The author lays down the blame thickly, by name, to everyone who turned a blind eye. He ⬇️ 5d
Texreader Identifies how many opportunities the world had, even with minor assistance, to prevent the million+ dying agonizing brutal deaths and rapes. Kagame is a hero in a sense—Rwanda in 2008 became an Asian Tiger economy-wise. But I wonder how his government has managed since. Given his stern personality and years in office, I can‘t fathom that he hasn‘t turned dictatorial. Highly recommended but it needs an update. #foodandlit (edited) 5d
47 likes2 comments
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Texreader
Igifu | Scholastique Mukasonga
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So appropriate this last day of April reading about how precious milk is in #Rwanda for #foodandlit. For example, from the BBC: “Unique to Rwanda, milk bars reflect a little-known truth about how intrinsic cows and milk are to Rwandan culture.” I‘ve truly discovered that in this month‘s books. @Catsandbooks

TheBookHippie Me too. 2d
30 likes1 comment
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Liz_M
All Your Children, Scattered | Beata Umubyeyi Mairesse
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Not a bad #BookSpinBingo month. I finished the tagged for #FoodandLit, #Rwanda. The Book Censor's Library was my #DoubleSpin and also fits #OffMyShelf - #InvolvesBooks; The Colour and Dance on the Volcano were for #192025; Indigenous Pacific Islander anthology worked for #FictionalTraveler and was my #BookSpin. There are a couple of #1001Books, and several for a global reading project.

Most importantly, I have two bingos!

Suet624 Nice! 5d
Ruthiella Bingo! 🤩 5d
27 likes2 comments
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Texreader
Igifu | Scholastique Mukasonga
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I‘m squeezing in one more book for April for #foodandlit #Rwanda @Catsandbooks

TheBookHippie I‘ve enjoyed her books so very much! 7d
50 likes1 stack add1 comment
review
Butterfinger
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Pickpick

The complexity of each character had been thoughtfully crafted. Auci has a way of bringing these historical people back to life by giving them likable and unlikeable traits. I'm sad to say goodbye to the Florios of Sicily. I learned a lot about the Industrial Age of southern Italy, especially tuna canning. All thanks to this captivating family. #Italy #Jubilee #FoodandLit @Texreader @Catsandbooks

Texreader Sounds great! Stacked! 7d
37 likes2 stack adds1 comment