Welcome to Litsy!

The Wanderer, by Peter van den Ende, illustrator (2020)
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Premise: A wordless graphic novel that follows a paper boat on its adventures at sea.

Review: The illustrations in this are absolutely stunning, which is a good thing considering they carry the whole weight of the story. I was hoping it would be a bit more than it was, but it‘s beautiful nonetheless

3.5⭐️ It was a well told story that was very cute to read. My issue was that there wasn‘t a way of really knowing where one was, whether one was in the more contemporary storyline or the flashback. Overall a pretty solid story. #2025 #bookclub #canadian #fiction #wwii #greatdepression

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This author is a wonderful storyteller. A journey of love through the eyes of a china rabbit

122/362

Etta and Otto and Russell and James, by Emma Hooper (2015 🇨🇦)
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Premise: An 82-year-old Saskatchewan woman living with dementia embarks on a long-desired trip to see the ocean, leaving her ailing husband alone with his memories.

Review: This novel felt to me like it wasn‘t sure whether it wanted to be a modern fairy tale or something more down to earth. Its themes of dreams deferred and duty, and depiction of prairie are great.⬇️

#CoverStories Day 18: Central to this tale is the plight of a father and his young son (who was sent a new pair of #shoes by his mother who is working in the United States) as they travel from their home in El Salvador to Guatemala to the US-Mexican border, ostensibly to be reunited with the mother. My review of this timely tale: https://wp.me/pDlzr-gum

Having read all of the #CanadaReads shortlist, this is my pick for the 2025 winner. I‘m unsure if it‘s passing similarities to last year‘s winner will hurt its chances (serious social topic + elements of fantasy / social justice). I listened and will have to reread soon - there‘s a lot to unpack with this one.

#WeeklyFavorites
@Read4Life