Welcome to Litsy!

I have two books to go from my #10beforetheend list - this one and I Who Have Never Known Men - and besides from the book on UPF they‘ve all been great! 🤍

Safe bet - I‘m either that or reading…sometimes both!

"I touch the names, and I feel their lives."

You can use this book in the classroom to discuss the Vietnam War and its impact on families. Students can create their own memorials or write letters to veterans.

This poignant story follows a boy and his father as they visit the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. Through simple yet powerful illustrations, Bunting conveys themes of loss, memory, and healing. The narrative emphasizes the importance of remembering those who served. It‘s a touching exploration of grief and honor.

Former sweethearts Warren and Sarah reconnect in their early 60s and fall in love again. But Warren is still married, and has to choose between Sarah and his family. A soft pick. It treads a very fine line between carefully observed & dull. It also has one of the most annoying characters I've experienced in a while. And having read the reviews on here, I went in prepared for a shocking ending. And actually, the ending worked for me. 👇

I really enjoyed the start of this one , but it didn‘t hold my interest. The ending , which was mentioned in Litsy posts , was the only reason I read on. I didn‘t like the ending either. It just didn‘t make sense to me. Not a pick for me , definitely a so-so.

I loved this book, about two high-school sweethearts who broke up due to a misunderstanding and meet again in their 60s.

I‘d highly recommend it, with only one caveat - the ending is really odd and should probably come with a trigger / content warning but can‘t say why, because spoiler.

Also, the UK cover just makes no sense - the book‘s about 60 year olds and this just doesn‘t relate at all. 🤷‍♀️

Warren and Sarah were college lovers and they reconnect decades later. She‘s divorced but he‘s still married, unhappily but with a strong moral fiber. What are these star-crossed lovers to do? Up until the last six pages I loved this book, making it a soft pick. Hours later I‘m still shaking my head at the ending.

I don't enjoy novels where I don't like the characters and this book falls into that category. However, even though I liked almost none of the characters, the plot held my interest enough to want to know how it ended. I was not happy with the resolution though. In thinking about the novel, opera was a major thread throughout it and I guess the plot was a tragedy in the sense of an opera.