I tried reading this book TWICE. I made it to page 76 this time, but the writing is messy and sidetracks every other page. Nothing really interesting has happened, and all the characters are weird and not in an appealing way. Couldn‘t connect to anything.

A teenager from Hanoi, Vietnam studies abroad to escape her relationship with her mother. The story takes place while she‘s in college in North Carolina. She‘s in a funk and depressed and deals with her feelings through napping. I liked this novel a lot more than expected. It‘s a short and fast read. There were a handful of typos throughout the book, but didn‘t take away from the reading experience. Wasn‘t crazy about the ending.

Really difficult subject matter, but I enjoyed the writing so much. Vanessa gets tangled up in a relationship with her much older professor. This story was devastating but important to understand. Some chapters were very sexually explicit and the age gap between Vanessa and Strane (15 and 42) make it even more uncomfortable. Still incredibly thought provoking. Gives insight to psychological warfare victims experience.

Hmm 🤔 wasn‘t a fan of this one. Ji-Won is an 18 year old college student struggling through lost friendships, her parents divorce, and her mother‘s new, creepy bf. She feels responsible for protecting her mother and younger sister all while her mental health is deteriorating. The chapters were extremely short and i really didn‘t like any of the characters. There was a lot (towards the end) that was questionable. First half was extremely slow.

This story is about an unbreakable friendship that stands the test of time through several decades. Marjan Kamali does a beautiful job highlighting the history and women‘s activism in Iran while simultaneously linking it to the political unrest still happening. Much like The Stationary Shop, this book will also have you salivating over the delicious Iranian dishes described throughout the chapters. Loved it to pieces.

Able God is our MC. He is struggling to succeed within his family and society. He‘s working a menial job at hotel where he meets a sex worker by the name of Akudo. Fascinated by her, he gets involved with her without giving it a second thought. Unspeakable things happen, and he has no other option but to flee his country. This novel takes you through the vicious migration through Africa and across the Mediterranean Sea in hopes of a better life.

This was a story collection from Ruben Reyes Jr 😊 many of the stories have themes of immigration, family separation, and queerness. Loved the approach of magic realism/sci-fi for such serious themes. Really loved this one, and can honestly say I enjoyed every single story.

Happy Holidays to everyone out there in Litsy World. Hope you all get to spend quality time with the people you love the most. I just had dinner with my family, ate a slice of cake, and am settling down on the couch with a book! Hope you all have a lovely night.

Okay, I LOVED this book. I initially bought it because it‘s an interesting concept. Romeo and Juliet aren‘t really dead?!?! Whaaa?!? It had all the elements I love in a story. Sarcasm, badass female protagonist, mystery, and a teeny tiny bit of gore. I found myself reading it slowly because I never wanted it to end. I can‘t wait for the follow up novel (it won‘t come out til June 😭). It was a fun read!

Thoroughly enjoyed this.

Another great read. Heavy on Civil Rights and the resilience of black people through everything they‘ve been forced to endure. Also major on Christianity and the affect it‘s had on society and it‘s racial bias- along with heavily rethinking the way America was built.

Great graphic novel about a young boy named Ebo, looking for his older brother Kwame, as he makes the treacherous journey from Ghana to Italy.

James Baldwin writes about his early childhood, involvement and work during the civil rights movement, his time in Paris, relationships with MLK, Malcom X, Huey Newton (and several others), the inequality in the social justice system, AND SO MUCH MORE. Definitely a must read for anyone and everyone. He wrote this over 50 years ago, and not much has changed.

This was a nice but odd little read... Nothing was in chronological order, and a lot of characters were introduced for such a short novel, but it was still very pleasant. A tiny close knit community in a small Armenian mountain village go through ups and downs and lean on each other for the good and bad. I feel like I can‘t explain much more without giving too much 🥲😂

A story of a thirteen year old boy that gets bullied at school and develops an eating disorder. It becomes so severe he gets sent to an inpatient facility . He struggles with opening up to his doctors & peers, trying different foods ,and dealing with his beloved but sick grandmother.

Such a great book! A story that follows 5 survivors of Indian residential schools. I was tearing up so much as their individual stories unraveled. Such a dark part of history.

Really LOVED this novel more than expected. Although it was absolutely gruesome, it was crafted so beautifully it was easy to read. Usually with crime/mystery/horror genres, it often feels like the author adds so many twists and turns that it‘s almost overwhelming and takes away from the writing. This novel was so fluid and well thought out, but still managed to keep me on my toes. I have to say, i think it‘s my favorite Japanese novel 😱

Beautiful yet devastating story of solidarity within a reservation in northern Minnesota. Quill is a courageous wife, mother, friend, and woman. As she‘s out one day on her daily run, she hears a bone chilling scream from a nearby woman. This is a heavy story that focuses on missing and murdered indigenous women. Quill is tired of her community constantly being under attack of heinous crimes, and will stop at nothing to get to the truth.

This was my first James Baldwin book, and I haven‘t been able to stop thinking about it. It was complex and poignant. I hung on to every word.

From my goodreads!

This book was entertaining, I‘ll give it that. I‘m not really into romance, but I just felt the urge to read something out of my norm. Anyway, the story was extremely predictable, but it still had me laughing here and there. The further the story went on the more I disliked Emma, but still hoped she would grow on me. I‘m not really sure what to expect from this genre, but it just seemed overly cheesy for my taste.

Was duped by Junji Ito‘s artwork! I was drawn to the graphics immediately, but read 3 stories and had to bail. They all kind of ended the same… “and then she was alright.” Or “ The girl never appeared again.” There was no explanation or substance to the few stories I read. The blurb said these were based off true stories, but they lacked any details. It felt like something I would make up on the spot to scare a group of kids around a bonfire 😭

This book was almost 900 pages, but quite frankly I couldn‘t put it down. The story is that of 3 generations and the hardships, secrets, and love they share. There was a morbid touch to the novel (with it‘s medical aspects), but that part of it really had me hooked. Loved all the women and their tenacious personalities.

I‘ve been actively walking during my lunch breaks, when I get home, and on the weekends. I do about 6-7 miles a day. I find this paragraph to be very true .. I‘m a native Californian and moved to Minnesota 6 years ago. When I walk in the winter I feel more invigorated than any other time of the year! I also feel I do better at work (focused more), and can accomplish more. I‘m almost 40 and feel like this is the most energized I‘ve ever been.

First book I‘ve read that takes place in Nigeria (I think 🤔). Great storytelling, and loved the historical facts sprinkled throughout the novel. Adunni is a 14 year old girl from the village of Ikati. Her mother unexpectedly passes, and her life starts to spiral in the darkest of ways. This story is about this girl‘s love for her mother, her education, and hope for her future.

This book has 147 pages. I read 50 and bailed because I couldn‘t imagine it getting better, and I could not get into it whatsoever. I loved the novel that came before, so I was excited to continue where the story left off.. but it ended up being a dud for me.

This book has so many interesting themes and ideas. For the most part it was pretty easy to follow considering all the different centuries, countries, and colonies. Thoroughly was engaged with all the characters, and curious to reread it as I know how it ends, and would love to analyze the subtle hints for first time readers.

This short novel is a different take on Frankenstein. Agnes Tulloch is a housewife with four children living on a small island off Scotland. Not much happens on this reclusive island until a foreigner comes and rents a croft for his scientific work. This book made me laugh and tear up. I was literally giggling the first quarter and getting glassy eyed by the end.. was very much repulsed as well (which you would expect from this classic horror).

Okay, I really enjoyed this novel! Loretta, a 50‘s housewife who pretty much has little freedom due to a religious and overbearing husband starts to experience paranormal gifts. Her husband suspects she‘s been possessed by the Devil. The story itself was pretty predictable, but I didn‘t mind because I enjoyed several of the characters and the writing was great! There are very graphic themes, but is also very empowering and kept me hooked 😁

Great collection of short stories. One of my favorite books read this year.

Another book club pick I wasn‘t too keen on. I liked the idea of it, but really wasn‘t pulled into it.

Enjoyed this book even though there was heartbreak throughout.

Favorite story was Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption… Apt Pupil was gross and sorta felt Pro Nazi 🙃 Couldn‘t get into The Body, and didn‘t read the last one because I needed a break from Stephen King. This was a book club pick for me, so it wasn‘t my usual go to.

Mixed feelings about this one. I very much disliked Oliver Harding. He is the professor narrating the story, and giving insight on his obsessions over his colleague, Ruhaba. Loved Ruhaba and her nephew and would very much have preferred their perspectives.

8 years on Litsy!!

Read this for book club… important read, but felt like it wasn‘t interesting enough for such heavy topics.

This book started off interesting enough, but once they got into the relationship aspects it got a little taboo and weird, I think. Also, I‘m not sure if it was the translation of the book, but the way the story was told seemed very choppy.

Surprised I haven‘t read until now. Celie and Shug kept me laughing when their personalities came out. Important read

This story was unique, but all I will say is that Margaret Murphy deserved more from the adults in her life.

So much to say about this novel, but I‘ll keep it short. A devastating insight to a Palestinian woman‘s life from her teens to older age. Taking place in Kuwait and Jordan where her family has to survive as refugees. Finally, she visits Palestine to visit family and tie up loose ends. She eventually joins the resistance against the Israeli occupation. Heartbreaking story. I was rooting for Nahar. Loved the reference to James Baldwin in this novel.

Really loved this book. I enjoyed getting to know all the female characters for who they were. The author did a great job NOT glorifying Bundy, which I truly appreciated.

This was such a beautiful and devastating story. Set during the Syrian revolution, a young pharmacist student loses everything. What used to be her family and home are just a painful memories now. She‘s surviving with the help of her best friend, and by fighting to help unfortunate civilians stay alive at the local hospital. This was such a sad story, but so important to read.

I found it mediocre. There were SO many distractions that I genuinely did not enjoy it. Most of the book was speculation, and the true events of the murders weren‘t revealed until the very end. I felt like I read two books. The first being the author‘s attempt to fool the reader (it was overwhelming) the second was the novel I actually wanted to read. The book got good reviews, so I‘ll chalk up my dislike to not connecting with the writing style.

Solid 3 stars. Such an interesting novel. About halfway and beyond it teetered from slow to rushed. Still enjoyed most of it.

The introduction to the night Alex‘s family was murdered was interesting. After that I kept waiting for the story to pick up again. Instead there were a lot of side stories and new characters that were not likable and felt foreign to the storyline. I thought about abandoning this book so many times, but it was a fast read so I continued reading hoping it would get better 🙃

Afaf is the principal of an all girls Muslim school. One day, a shooter makes his way into the school undetected and everyone‘s world changes in the blink of an eye. The story is a series of tragic events after another, to help us understand the present moment in the novel. Having read A Woman in no Man prior to this, it helped me understand the dynamics of Afaf‘s immediate family a little bit better.
⭐️⭐️⭐️

Loved Rex Ogle‘s first novel Free Lunch, but this one fell really short for me. I enjoy the relationship he has shared with his grandmother, but ultimately I wasn‘t enveloped in this specific book which read more like narrative poetry.

Graphic novel of an adopted Korean girl that grew up in a small town in Maryland. Sarah, was adopted as an infant.. she knew nothing of her birth parents or her Korean culture. She attended schools where everyone else was white, and ridiculed her for being different. As she got older and started facing more racist & aggressive encounters- there was nowhere to turn to as even the adults in her world were just as ignorant as her bullies.

This book tore me to pieces. It‘s such an important read about history, culture, generational trauma and SO much more. Etaf Rum is an amazing storyteller🥺