I couldn‘t resist doing this either! I‘m not sure about Blanche and Coffee Girl, but I very much identify with the top row and especially Audrey with a “What‘s going on…” face while eating a croissant. See @TheBookHippie ‘s post if you‘re curious about this 😊

I feel like I‘ve been through more book slumps than normal in the past year or two. I do two things.
1. I read the first paragraph of like 5 different books that appeal to me and see if any of them immediately suck me in.
2. Graphic novels or middle grade reads that I can read quickly usually help a lot. Finishing something helps me get my reading mojo back.
#SundayFunday

My office is exchanging Valentine cards today and this was from my supervisor. We were both reading Iron Flame at the same time. The poem made me smile and laugh - an essential for a long Friday work morning. It deserves to be shared 🌹💙 Please also note my Dewey‘s Dilemma book puzzle in the background 🤓

I have been curious about this book for a while and am glad I had an impetus to finally read this. What a great little book exploring the life of a neurodivergent person. A lot of great ideas were explored including what it means to live your best life in the space of societal expectations. I was surprised to find myself often tense, wanting the best for Keiko. Another great one for #AuldLangSpine. I continue to read the list as promised!

I finished this at the end of January completing 5 books from my #AuldLangSpine list. This was as great as expected and really interesting to explore loneliness through different lenses with art that complimented the text. I hope Radtke keeps her graphic novels coming.

If any of you don‘t know, @catiewithac is the most generous Litten. Thanks so much for this birthday package. It felt comforting/distracting after a terrible inaugural week. It was fun to open up every little thing - and I loved that the puzzle was from NPR/Invisibilia 😊. Lastly - great wrapping! (For those who can‘t see the little glass vial is matchsticks and says Burn Candles, Not Books)

Excited to see what February‘s #Bookspin brings us!

I continued my cathartic badass female trajectory with this one. I admit I knew little about Riot Grrl and nothing of Kathleen Hanna. I really appreciated learning about this corner of punk/feminism. While it was hard to follow her life‘s story, I really appreciated her growth and willingness to examine herself and create a life that made her feel best. I will be listening to Bikini Kill, Le Tigre, & the Julie Ruin nonstop the week. #AuldLangSpine

One of those books where I want to say “why did I wait so long to read this” but I actually read it at the exact right time. I read this to revisit an #AuldLangSpine list from a couple years ago. 3 women of menopausal age have powers and give some terrible men their comeuppance. Nonviolence is a strong value of mine but this just felt good to read, especially this last week.

France and Italy. War and love. Passion and obsession. Storytelling and fact. A fever dream of a book. What's not to love? Winterson goes such an interesting direction with this historical fiction book that takes place during the Napoleonic wars. She uses a unique voice that I would never associate with a story part war, and characters just as unique. I think I will be thinking about this book for a long time. #ALSpine #AuldLangSpine

Remember when we read Butter for Camp Litsy? Yeah. I‘ve been reading it ever since. I just couldn‘t bail. I loved the concept, but I had a really hard time with other aspects. The translation felt off to me. And I think there are probably cultural differences that kept me being able to get over some things. The views of weight for one. The one highlight: discovering that rice with butter and soy sauce is so good! Between so-so and pan.

I‘m so glad you put graphic novels on your list, @Billypar I love them but it‘s been awhile. I was surprised to find this was fiction. Weaving together the narrator‘s life growing up with his current work as a journalist, this is a compelling story. I do wish there were more about the clowns - it felt there was more to their story. I found the art really interesting and took a lot of time examining them. Overall a great choice! #AuldLangSpine

Christine! Thank you so much for this! It‘s very kind of you ❤️ It just came and I thought, “Oh no. What book did I order and forget about?” 😂😂. This will be a great one to turn to this year when some hope is needed. Happy New Year to you!

I love my chill Saturday coffee shop time. Next up for #AuldLangSpine is the tagged book. The writing style so far is great.

This was my first from @Billypar #ALSpine list and it was a great first read of 2025. I won‘t say much about it. Knowing less going in is more. Really atmospheric modern gothic psychological thriller. Foreboding and tension. The story unfurls in a masterful way. At halfway through I couldn‘t put it down. This book is about a lot of interesting things and makes you think but that would give some things away. Check Vinny‘s great review for more!

Having a very peaceful 1st day of the year with my first #AuldLangSpine book of the year.

January #Bookspin List! Featuring mostly #AuldLangSpine books, both past and present. Thanks, Sarah, for hosting this for another year. I love a low-key challenge like this. Looking forward to another great reading year 🥂📚

I‘ve curated my January choices from @Billypar ‘s #ALSpine list, and I‘m looking forward to having a great reading month. As always, I will most likely not read all of these (though with a few graphic novels, maybe I will), but will endeavor to keep reading them throughout the year. Happy New Year to you, Vinny (name taken from your Litsy profile 😊)!

I forget how fun it is to get so engrossed in a story that you don‘t put it down until it is finished. Short chapters work well for me in that way too. If you‘re looking for another book to sneak in before the new year, this is a good choice. Loved the Knives Out/Rom Com with great female characters. I too would read another with this couple.

It‘s the most wonderful time of the year! Jolabokaflod of course 😊. A happy night of reading to you all 📚

Great choice of book, @Jadams89 🎄🕎. I was trying very hard to resist buying this in case I received it and I‘m so glad I did 😂. I hope you have a wonderful evening celebrating Jolabokaflod 📚 Thanks again @MaleficentBookDragon for hosting the #Jolabokaflodswap ❤️

It‘s been a wonderful solstice. A long walk along the river in the snowy woods and reading the tagged book by the light of the Christmas tree. It‘s a book we will come back to. Thanks @TheBookHippie for the great lists of recommendations!

My #Jolabokaflod package has been sent and should arrive by Friday. I also received mine, @Jadams89 😊 Looking forward to Christmas Eve!

Whoops. I little early Christmas shopping for myself inspired by #ALSpine #AuldLangSpine with one more on the way.

Great matching @monalyisha ! There is not one book on this list that I‘m not interested in. I really like the diversity of genres, and I always love a good graphic novel. I‘ve read 2, own 1, acquired 1 today. A few I‘ve been meaning to read for a while. The 📖 are the ones I will probably get to first, but as with previous years, I‘d like to work on it all year. #AuldLangSpine #ALSpine

Going all out on the holiday books for December‘s #Bookspin

How meta 🇫🇷. On a different note, this book is much more interesting (less dry) than expected!

Such a beautiful fall evening for #hyggehour

I couldn‘t be more excited to spend #DeweysReadathon with this view! Anyone else participating?

A light day at work means I get to finish this! I can‘t put it down at this point and was almost up WAY too late reading it 😂

Thank you so much for this VERY fall package @Captivatedbybooks 🍁🍂. I appreciate good wrapping and I love the fall leaf decor! I‘ve spread it around my house. The books are perfect, as is everything else! Thank you, and thanks for making sure it got to me today ❤️ #fffs

All the fall vibes for October‘s #Bookspin list! Very excited for my favorite reading month, especially with #Dewey24readathon at the end of the month!

Middle grade books are my favorite during this time of year. I‘m not sure how good this book will be, but it sure is cute and emitting all the cozy autumnal vibes that I‘m craving.

My #FFFS package has been sent to arrive on Monday!

Wow. The first two parts were good, but then it turned into so much more, and had me thumbing through the first two parts to read the story with this new information. Best to go into this knowing as little as possible, but if you start it and don‘t get it, stick with it! This is my 3rd of the #Booker Longlist, and so far I‘ve really liked them all (James, My Friends). Pictured with the gorgeous endpapers, which I love, in part b/c of the story.

While I didn‘t love this as much as many of you, it was still an engaging story that kept me hooked and was a good way to pass time on my flight.

September‘s #Bookspin list. Here‘s hoping I chose the right order so I get some good picks this month that I‘ll actually read 🫣😂

An interesting read in light of the recent question, “would you rather meet a bear or a man in the woods?” In this story, neither. I was sad this book turned from magical to bleak for me, and sad that Sam couldn‘t escape her trauma. Glad to have carried this book with me for this optimal photo while on Mackinac Island 🧸
#camplitsy24
Thanks so much to the hosts! It was a great summer at camp!

After a tough therapy session, my therapist asked me what I was going to do the rest of the day. She asked what 7-year-old Jamie would do. Some parts of me haven‘t changed. 7-year old Jamie would take a book to the woods. So that‘s what I did, and it was lovely.

This epigraph has me so curious about how this book is going to go…
#camplitsy24

August‘s #Bookspin list, featuring Booker nominees, books I need to finish, and books I really want to read. And some Paris-set books for the Olympics.

When the #Booker 2024 Longlist was announced, I showed *great* restraint by not ordering most of them (just one - Held - because the cover is pretty lol), and instead placed 4 on hold. I‘m not sure what I‘m thinking, trying to read most of them, since I‘m reading at a snail‘s pace lately, but I‘m going to try. I‘m encouraged that several are quite short. When I read the first paragraph of each, I ended up reading several chapters of My Friends.

@Amiable I couldn‘t help but to notice the cute ears on your Brady. We got our Birdie (another B name!) from a rescue and the first thing we noticed about her was her adorable ears. It‘s one of the many things we love about her 🥰 #dogsoflitsy

Between a pick and a so-so. A look into the life of a black female shark scientist, though most of the story focused on her journey getting there and her struggles as a black female in a very white male dominated field. I can‘t help but to wonder if this was also a revenge piece against a former professor. I would recommend this in print form. While excellent at her job, a great audiobook narrator she is not.

I should be reading one of four other books right now but a day at Lake Michigan means I get to start a new “summer” book, and the start of this one is pretty great…

1. JamieArc is for my name (Jamie Archer). I only just realized that people might think Arc is for advanced reader‘s copy. Nope 😂
2. I typically drive, grocery shop, clean, do a puzzle, or walk while audiobooking.
3. Last audiobook was True Gretch, tagged is current interesting listen.
#WondrousWednesday

This was a short and surface look into Whitmer, Michigan‘s current governor, read by herself. It was interesting to learn the backstory for some of her decisions through some hard years. I will never make fun of her “Fix the damn roads” slogan again 😊 I respect and appreciate her more after listening to this. The audiobook includes some fun audio clips, including SNL‘s Cecily Strong.

I have a hard time picking favorites, but Percival Everett is a no-brainer for me. I describe him as brilliant but readable. I love how he writes with such nuance, makes you think in ways you didn‘t expect, and turns the tables on things. He writes about incredibly difficult subject matter in a way that doesn‘t leave you feeling too heavy. James was no exception. Now, what should my next PE book be?
#camplitsy24

For those interested, PBS is holding a Facebook Live event about James. You can search the event on FB for more information. #CampLitsy24

My spouse sent me this from a Facebook page. You can search for it for the full post.

“Huck and Jim in Their Final Years”

In 1903, on his last visit to his in-laws at Quarry Farm in Elmira, New York, Mark Twain posed for this photograph with his friend, John T. Lewis (1835-1906), who was born a free man in Maryland and who had migrated to upstate New York.

Lewis is said to be the inspiration for Jim/James.
#CampLitsy24