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#WomensPrize2019
blurb
jhod
Ordinary People | Diana Evans
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#womensprize shortlist readings in Cadogan Hall

Lovely people and talented writers! All extraordinary!

And the woman who read Milkman (and who did the audiobook) was incredible!
#womensprize2019

86 likes1 stack add
review
batsy
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Pickpick

I liked this just fine & was invested enough to read till the end, but I felt that it could have been better. I appreciated the depiction of a dysfunctional Chinese-American family & their restaurant business, but it did feel aggressively overwritten & workshopped to death, as others have mentioned. I felt the author's presence more strongly than I did the characters. A compelling look at family dynamics & the American Dream, but frustrating.

batsy I was reading this as part of the longlist for #womensprize2019 & am of course behind times 😅 … But I can understand why this didn't make the shortlist. 5y
JennyM I always love your reviews! Always spot on. And your coffee looks good ☕️😊 5y
ElishaLovesBooks Great review-I bought this one at a sale. So glad to prepare my expectations 😁 5y
batsy @JennyM Thank you! ❤️ And that's what's known locally as "white coffee", with Chinese origins... Felt fitting for the book ? 5y
batsy @ElishaLovesBooks Thank you ☺️ I'd love to know what you make of it. 5y
90 likes5 comments
review
batsy
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Pickpick

I'm not sure how to talk about this & it strikes me that it's so out of what I've been taught to be conventional wisdom. I feel compelled to use a list of adjectives: terrifying, exhilarating, devastating, gut-wrenching, & still, at the end, hopeful. Reading interviews with the author helped me to not to read this as a metaphor for anything. Instead, I tried to see the world through the lens of Igbo ontology. It blew my mind open. #womensprize2019

batsy This is an essay by the author https://bit.ly/2E1s4wEand an interview https://bit.ly/2GIsoU0 There is also a reading list https://bit.ly/2KZTY38 Reading the author interviews & essays while reading the book helped me immensely. This isn't a plot-driven novel where you have to worry about spoilers. (I'm sorry that my review can't capture what I found so moving & destabilising & unnerving about the novel.) 5y
batsy Looks like the first link above doesn't work; here it is https://www.thecut.com/2018/01/writer-and-artist-akwaeke-emezi-gender-transition... 5y
saresmoore I think it‘s a very helpful review! Thank you for sharing the links, too. 5y
See All 28 Comments
Billypar Wow, your review and @Emilymdxn 's are really making me think I need to get to this sooner rather than later! 5y
saresmoore Aaand I just read the article from The Cut. Don‘t think I can formulate words to respond. 5y
llwheeler Well if I hadn't already stacked this, you using "ontology" in your review would have made me! Love that word/concept 5y
erzascarletbookgasm Intriguing. Thanks for the essays and interview links, will check them out. 5y
batsy @saresmoore Thank you, Sara! I felt the same after reading The Cut piece and I still do. Sadly the author mentioned that they got a lot of hate mail after that essay came out 🙁 5y
batsy @Billypar @erzascarletbookgasm It's truly so distinctive and eye-opening. I feel like all of my responses to it are so banal and doesn't measure up to what was actually put into the work. 5y
batsy @llwheeler Me too; I love it! The author described the book in those terms and I realised that they are trying to depict something outside both the Western and scientific framework. 5y
llwheeler @batsy So cool. Definitely moving this one higher up the to read list. 5y
Freespirit Great review. Thank you😊 5y
Leftcoastzen Wow, great review! 5y
readordierachel Thanks for sharing that Cut article. So moving. Will definitely read the novel. 5y
youneverarrived Brill review. I can‘t say enough about this book. Just love it 🖤 5y
JennyM Excellent review!!!! ♥️ 5y
Centique That interview is fascinating Suba. Thanks for sharing the link. Really keen to read this! 5y
batsy @Freespirit @Leftcoastzen @youneverarrived @JennyM Thank you so much! I've a feeling this book will stay with me for a long time. 5y
batsy @readordierachel @Centique My pleasure! I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since I read it. 5y
Reggie Great review for a great book! 5y
batsy @Reggie Thanks! 5y
fleeting Yay I've been wanting to buy this and read it, thanks for confirming that I should! 5y
batsy @fleeting Hope you find it a good one 💜 5y
BarbaraBB This sounds absolutely as a must-read. Thanks for the review and the articles. 5y
Lindy I love your review. I also had a hard time describing the impact of this amazing book. 5y
batsy @BarbaraBB Thank you! I'm glad for the other readers sharing the links on GR; it helped me a lot to understand where the author is coming from. 5y
batsy @Lindy Thanks, Lindy! 💜 5y
Suet624 This book blew my mind. I gave it very cautiously to friends of mine because I was afraid they might not love it as much as I did. An absolute favorite of mine. 5y
94 likes3 stack adds28 comments
review
Redwritinghood
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Mehso-so

#womensprize2019 Evans does a great job of capturing the discontent that often arises during that period in a couple‘s relationship when they have young children and their careers are starting to pick up. It‘s a challenging time, especially for women who have the added burden of being the ‘perfect‘ mom. Unfortunately, the book is bogged down by some superfluous plot lines and the writing is often of the telling variety and overly wordy. 3⭐️

review
batsy
BOTTLED GOODS. | SOPHIE. VAN LLEWYN
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Pickpick

The structure of this book won me over. It's a narrative sustained through episodic vignettes. Set in communist Romania, the atmosphere is oppressive, dark, & absurd. I was wary of the magical realism, but it's woven in so deftly & naturally. The structure, themes, & writing are very clever. The police state haunts every page; but interpersonal relationships, like between spouses or mothers & daughters, broke my heart. Distinctive & memorable.

batsy I did have occasional issues with it, mainly ideology. A communist police state & its ghoulish instruments of torture is something that needs to be told for what it is, but the narrator having come from Romanian nobility who were landowners colours the perception. So sometimes when Alina talks about the poor peasants (including the one she married), I get a whiff of something unpleasant, like disgust for the poor. #womensprize #womensprize2019 5y
Cathythoughts Excellent review! Stacked 5y
ErickaS_Flyleafunfurled Oh wow - great review! Stacked! 5y
See All 16 Comments
batsy @Cathythoughts @ErickaS_Flyleafunfurled Thank you 💜 It's a unique, unexpectedly poignant read that wouldn't have been on my radar if not for the prize longlist. 5y
Ms_T Lovely review! 5y
Chrissyreadit That is a great review! 5y
TrishB Wonderful review 👍🏻 5y
Tanisha_A Super review! 👏 Stacked! 5y
RohitSawant Stunning review! 5y
Redwritinghood Great review! I really liked this one too. 5y
batsy @rohit-sawant @Redwritinghood Thank you! 🙂 5y
Izai.Amorim Great review. Extra kudos for the 'episodic vignettes.' 👍 5y
batsy @Izai.Amorim 😁 Thank you! 5y
GatheringBooks this has been on my book depository wishlist for the longest time - your review convinced me that i should get it for #WomenReadWomen2019 - Romania/Russia/Germany. 🧚🏼‍♀️📚💕 5y
batsy @GatheringBooks I hope you give it a try! Would love to know what you think. 5y
103 likes12 stack adds16 comments
review
sprainedbrain
The Pisces: A Novel | Melissa Broder
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Pickpick

This book is batsh*t crazy. I kinda loved it.

If you‘ve ever wondered what (very graphic) sex with a merman would be like, can stomach upsetting animal neglect, and don‘t mind an obsessive, completely unlikeable main character, this may be the book for you. Also, must tolerate weirdness and aforementioned graphic sex that is not at all sexy.

Otherwise, you should probably keep scrolling. Nothing to see here. 😂

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#womensprize2019

RebL Lordy! 5y
Patchshank I kinda want to get it for my sister 5y
vivastory 😂😂 5y
See All 16 Comments
Jee_HookedOnBookz I like your review 😅🤣🤣 5y
Leftcoastzen Yowza ! 5y
CarolynM I can honestly say I've never thought about sex with a merman, graphic or otherwise. Now you've got me wondering 🤔 Maybe I should read the book 😉 5y
Ms_T Very nice review - my one no-no is animal cruelty so I‘ll give this a miss 🙈 5y
Kaye Thanks for the warning. Glad you liked it, but I‘d probably use it to start our grill to make supper. I don‘t even like ordinary romance in a book. If it involves animals, I‘ll pass. 😬🤢😵 5y
readordierachel Not sexy in the slightest. 🧜‍♂️ 5y
mabell You totally sold me on “keep scrolling” 😂😂 5y
sprainedbrain @CarolynM You‘re a brave soul. 😂 5y
sprainedbrain @Ms_T most definitely! 5y
sprainedbrain @kaye Yes, this is definitely not a book for you. 😬 5y
sprainedbrain @mabell you‘ve made a good decision. 😅 5y
UwannaPublishme Thanks for the hilarious warning! 🤣🤣🤣 5y
126 likes2 stack adds16 comments
review
Redwritinghood
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Mehso-so

#womensprize2019 It took me too long to finish this book! My biggest issue is that there are too many characters in the book and most of them were underdeveloped so that they came across as caricature or stereotypes. The story mainly centers around a family that owns a Chinese restaurant that succumbs to fire. Unfortunately, the author tries a little too hard to jazz it up instead of dealing with the intricate family dynamics more deftly. 3⭐️

72 likes1 stack add
review
sprainedbrain
Praise Song for the Butterflies | Bernice L. McFadden
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Pickpick

This book chronicles the life of Abeo, who lives a life of comfort and happiness in a (fictional) African country until the age of 9, when her father takes her from her bed in the middle of the night and drops her into a life of ritual slavery (unfortunately NOT fictional, even today). While the book takes a lighter approach than it could have and doesn‘t detail the horrible suffering, it still packs a hell of a punch.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#WomensPrize2019

SW-T Oh, I didn‘t know about this one! I love McFadden. Stacked! My favorite book of hers is still 5y
sprainedbrain @SW-T I will definitely check that out! Loved her style in this one. 5y
Chrissyreadit I had no idea about this practice until this post. It sounds like an incredibly sad book. 5y
sprainedbrain @Chrissyreadit It is sad, but the tone of the book is very matter-of-fact and it seems lighter than it could have been, if that makes any sense at all. Obviously the subject matter was sad, but it still wasn‘t a hard book to read. 5y
Cinfhen Wayyyyyyy too sad 😭😭😭😭 5y
116 likes6 stack adds5 comments
blurb
ClairesReads
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Backing up book club with book club. Also #readharder2019 a novel by a trans or non binary author.

readordierachel I've heard good things about it! And the cover is so lovely. 5y
ClairesReads @readordierachel I‘m really enjoying it. It‘s quite unlike much else that I‘ve read before but in a good way. 5y
31 likes3 comments
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ClairesReads
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Erinreadsthebooks I love this book! 5y
batsy What a sentence. 5y
ClairesReads @batsy RIGHT?! GENIUS!! 5y
See All 11 Comments
ClairesReads @Erinreadsthebooks I‘ve only just started but I‘m loving it!! 5y
Redheadrambles Great ! So looking forward to this 5y
ClairesReads @Redheadrambles it‘s really interesting. I‘m hoping I‘ll finish it today 5y
Redheadrambles @ClairesReads that‘s super fast ! 5y
ClairesReads @Redheadrambles it‘s pretty readable and compelling. 5y
Suet624 This was a sentence I posted on Litsy too. 💕 5y
ClairesReads @Suet624 it‘s a good one hey? 5y
Suet624 @ClairesReads so good. 😁 5y
31 likes11 comments