Welcome to Litsy!

Strong, lyrical writing and some memorable scenes and characters that stick, but I found all of the main characters unsympathetic and as a result the book was hard going. Interesting re Japan and Korea through history & the impact on families & emigrants. But I found it hard to care about the characters & the various moves & plot developments episodic and/or confusing so wasn‘t moved by it.

#HappyFridayreadinghour
Relaxing this Friday with Flashlight. I couldn‘t have imagined how much I would love this book, I started a sample on kindle and cannot put it down. Great storytelling, characters. A most engaging read. The main characters are in Japan at the moment. Surprises all the way .. so good. Enjoy your Friday ladies ! 🥂xxx I‘m on chocolate peanuts and raisins ☺️

Another book I loved from the Booker list. A winding puzzle of a story that revealed itself slowly, and although it‘s long, I remained gripped throughout. So many aspects of this book broke my heart. I love the title - it‘s a nod to a piece of the story and also I think a good metaphor for the way the characters could only see part of the puzzle at any one moment - so much was left in darkness.

It seems some people didn‘t like it because it was long and rambling! I loved it because of that and thought it was a really good story and reflection on Asian geo-politics.

It's quite an authorial feat to write about a visit to the authoritarian dystopia of North Korea and to leave the impression that you, the author, are the most unsavoury element in the book!
I'm overstating it, I guess, but Delisle's graphic bio of his two month sojourn to North Korea overseeing an animation sweatshop (little evidence of his awareness of the exploitative nature of this) is characterised by his sneery arrogance and lack of ⬇️

BOOKER ANNOUNCEMENT SOON!!!! Who do you think will win???

Here are my (brief) thoughts:

https://youtube.com/shorts/XHApzXfK7vA?si=7p6eGoxMp4E_QmQL

This is #pebblecat being adorable! She is another kitty friend of mine! #catsoflitsy

I found this one all the more affecting and absorbing for NOT romanticising its characters.

It's formed by layers of unresolved resentment and suboptimal family dynamics, and its very imperfection is what chipped away at my heart.

Flashlight is about family, history, migration, change, identity, Korea, America, and Japan. It's about what we take for granted and how we don't always value what is most important to us.

Quietly touching ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Giving up at 52%. I was enjoying it for the first 30% or so, but I keep picking this back up and wishing I was reading something else 😅

A night Louisa and her father goes out for a walk along the beach. When Louisa is found, her dad is gone.

In this puzzle of a book we get the backstory and what happened afterwards.

The language is a little dense, but other than that I loved this one. I especially loved learning about Korean and Japanese history.

I had a hard time believing some of the things that happened in North Korea, but nothing would surprise me

So I was only able to visit 2 bookstores but I did find plenty of bookmarks on our 1 1/2 week anniversary vacation.☺️👍🏼 so here‘s my haul