Welcome to Litsy!

Patch is 13, a poor, bullied boy who unwittingly becomes the center of tragic incident in his small town. The book follows Patch and his best friend Saint through the following 25 years as the impact of that event ripples through their lives. It really is best to come to the story blind. Whitaker crafts a mesmerizing, slowly unraveling tale, full of complex characters so compelling that I just had to keep reading. Absolutely fantastic book.

This was a murder mystery that wasn‘t so much a mystery but an exploration of the impact that an act of violence on those left behind and on the ways people cope (and don‘t cope). It covers guilt and trauma and lack of resolution. I really wanted this book to work more for me, but somehow it just didn‘t in ways I cannot even quite put my finger on.

Seren and I had a cozy evening with this memoir. Reached about the halfway mark, but now I need to get some sleep!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Such a raw, emotional and heartbreaking novel based on true events😥

I would not recommend this book to a lot of people, even those who loved Fleishman Is In Trouble like I did. If you need likable characters, or atleast unlikable characters to learn a lesson, get their comeuppance, or a twist where you realize maybe the weren‘t so bad as you thought, this book is not for you. But it was for me, the way each child dealt with their generational trauma in wildly different and equally unhealthy ways was fascinating.

This book did not disappoint. A decades long epic and heartbreaking crime thriller. And I ‘bleeping‘ love Charlotte she is exactly what I wanted her to be.

2/3 of the way through. Fleishman Is in Trouble was one of my favorite reads of last year and while this book is nothing like it (sans New York and Jewish main characters) I still find it delectable. There was a lot more room for sympathy in Fleishman whereas it‘s hard to feel bad for any character in the Long Island Compromise. But I don‘t mind reading about people making bad decisions and I‘m a big fan of plots about living a split/secret life.

I‘m going to do #BookBracket2025 for some fun this year. January‘s pick is All the Colors of the Dark. It was interesting and thoughtful.

This book has a lot of very interesting theories. I enjoyed the stories that are included with each section, it helped show hey this is what that might look like. I buddy read it with a friend and we discussed it in sections so it was helpful to bounce thoughts off each other while reading it.

#25Alive!

A little #Laughter quote from the amazing Maya Angelou.

"My great hope is to laugh as much as I cry; to get my work done and try to love somebody and have the courage to accept the love in return." ???