Welcome to Litsy!

I love Livia Day's Tasmanian cosy murders! This one centres around a mystery wedding dress designer, an upcycling/dyeing boutique, a hit-and-run, a dye bath used for other than its intended purposes, and a former wedding planner trying to put her life back together in the wake of her criminal husband. Can't wait for the next one, Drop Dead in Red. Only a month to wait!

I‘ve missed Litsy! 😊 I really admired the way Wait brings readers into the cult that is the center of this story. It‘s a quiet, not dramatic, depiction of events and that really makes it more horrifying. And yet, the resilience of humans comes through to make the story powerful instead of bleak. I‘m excited to read her new book when it comes out here!

Faloyin wants to break stereotypes of modern Africa in this book and wow, he does. I felt ashamed reading certain parts. For the colonial past in which my country participated actively, for never really listening to the lyrics of Band Aid, for museums with collections based on stolen works, etc. Like @thereflectiveflaneur says in his review, this book should be required reading for everyone.

Tagging my #ReadingAfrica2022 pals 🇪🇷

This week‘s #bookreport

I‘m still reading A Decline in Prophets, set on luxury cruise ship RMS Aquitania in 1932. Rowly and his bohemian artist friends are travelling home, but fellow passengers keep getting killed off…

Love the time and place and newspaper snippets.

These were some of the ghost ships lurking in the bay here during lockdowns, definitely not looking like Aquitania!

Happy weekend, all.

This book was heartbreaking. Set against the backdrop of Ueno Station where the 1964 Olympics took place, the novel follows the tragic life of Kazu, a man who worked construction on the buildings there and died in its homeless encampments as an elderly man. There is a lot of Japanese history woven into his struggle, too. Grab the tissues (and Google). This won last year‘s National Book Award for literature in translation, and it‘s deserving.

Totally blaming this on @RaeLovesToRead

Good audiobook. Inspired by a real man who, in the early 1900s, left his life in Stockholm to live in the Arctic. His face is disfigured in a mining accident and thereafter builds a hut and lives mostly in isolation (as a trapper) for the rest of his life. The hut still stands, little else is known.

The fictionalized Sven is a great character. He loves books, loves his dog. A story full of heart and adventure as well as quiet and solitude.

This is a quiet book that crawled under my skin without me realising it before well into the novel.

Two strangers arrive at the island; the Englishman (painter) and the Frenchman (linguist). The strangers do their things and the islanders do their best to make it as comfortable as possible for the strangers.

A book about colonialism, conquer and conquered, how it‘s easier to save someone/thing far away, who defines who you are

I DEVOURED this book - even when I wasn‘t listening I was either thinking about it or telling others about it. Much more than just Donor 150‘s story. Chrystal‘s mom was such a dynamic personality- I was enthralled by her. Debra, yearned to have a child, but as a single gay woman in 1980s California, she had few options & still Debra always found a way to get what she wanted. Crazzzzy story - fantastic narration- loved it!!!

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ Much like Allen‘s other books, this book is sweet, whimsical, and tender hearted. At the core, the book is about the power of stories to guide (and, sometimes hinder) our lives, especially the power of creating stories with the families we find. If you enjoy magical realism, you‘ll likely enjoy this book. There are some difficult topics briefly mentioned (or hinted at) in the book, so reader be cautious.