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LaviniaG

LaviniaG

Joined May 2016

review
LaviniaG
The Modern Art Cookbook | Mary Ann Caws
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Pickpick

Excellent for art history lovers, also, some interesting recipes as well. #art #arthistory #cookbook

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LaviniaG
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Barbara Pym is my comfort read. I love her prose so much: sharp and funny, yet somehow warm. This is my fourth Pym book and I‘m enjoying it immensely.

2 likes1 stack add
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LaviniaG
Gould's Book of Fish | Richard Flanagan
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Bailedbailed

Just given up on it almost halfway through it.
I love an atmospheric book, I love art, I like experimental writing & can definitely appreciate descriptive language, I enjoy historical fiction, and I‘m all for an unreliable narrator. But I can‘t with this one, it doesn‘t engage me in the slightest. There are other books out there. #richardflanagan #gouldsbookoffish

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LaviniaG
The Country Girls | Edna O'Brien
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Pickpick

Definitely a pick and an important read, challenging some of the taboos of the 50s and 60s Ireland.

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LaviniaG
Frankenstein: ; Or, The Modern Prometheus | Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley
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How about this bookshop in my neighbourhood? I know, right?!

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LaviniaG
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LaviniaG
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Trying to beat the heatwave: air conditioning, orange juice, ice, and Stefan Zweig's memoir.

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LaviniaG
The Idiot | Elif Batuman
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Absolutely love it so far. It has a lot of my fav ingredients I'm looking for in a book: a quirky main character, a chatty best friend, a probably failed romance, academia, linguistics, literature and arts in general.

7 likes2 stack adds
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LaviniaG
Asymmetry | Lisa Halliday
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Pickpick

I enjoyed the book a lot, despite it being a bit too fragmented for my taste, that is to say I couldn't see any connection between the parts, or maybe that was part of the asymmetry I guess? Oh, and Ulysses is following me everywhere, apparently!

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LaviniaG
Le Grand Cahier | Agota Kristof
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Pickpick

I am a bit surprised this book (first of a trilogy) is not more popular, probably understandable coming from a Hungarian-born Swiss writer. However it is translated to English, so if you ever get your hands on it, don't hesitate. An unnamed war in an unnamed country, seen through the eyes of a pair of 11 year old twins. Twisted and cruel, yet somehow innocent.

Centique Beautiful photo! 6y
7 likes1 comment
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LaviniaG
Ulysses | James Joyce
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Nothing like a classic for the summer, right? Going pretty slow since I'm both reading and listening at the same time 🙈but I will finish it this summer, I swear! Have you guys read it?

6 likes1 stack add
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LaviniaG
Circe | Madeline Miller
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I still have about a quarter to go, but I absolutely love this book. I read a lot of contemporary fiction, so delving into this myth retelling is like a breath of fresh air. There are lots of passages of extreme beauty and I cannot recommend it enough.

8 likes1 stack add
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LaviniaG
Tulip Fever | Deborah Moggach
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Pickpick

I did like it, but, as it happens with these books which are similar in subject, themes and time period (The Miniaturist, Girl in Hyacinth Blue), my first temptation is to compare them all with Girl with a Pearl Earring, which is SO exquisite and probably my favorite art-inspired book. Oh, forget my ramble, pick it up, it's fast and entertaining.

LaviniaG @BarbaraBB are you Dutch? There was this interesting tradition mentioned in the book: when people died, all the paintings in the house were turned with their face to the walls. Why was that? Thx! 6y
BarbaraBB Yes I am Dutch but I‘ve never heard of this tradition. I googled it and I couldn‘t find anything about it either... I‘m sorry! 6y
LaviniaG @BarbaraBB Oh, don't worry. I hope the author didn't just invent that for the book's sake. Thanks anyway! 6y
TheBookHippie That‘s a Friesian.. byleauwe spirits folklore tradition Germanic in origin I think ? I‘ll ask my dad if he remembers (he‘s 80) my grandma was French Fries (Jewish) but I do remember some weird funeral superstitions she told us about when she was a girl that her neighbors did ... totally forget until I read this post! 4y
5 likes1 stack add4 comments
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LaviniaG
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Pickpick

Absolutely loved this, cannot wait for Sally's next.

KateFulfordAuthor @rosuvertical perhaps you could consider my debut? Reviews are saying: “I loved this book more than I initially thought I would. Fulford infuses her characters with intense personalities that are prone to clashing with those of others. I loved Eve from the very beginning..." It‘s been nominated for The People's Book Prize 2018 too!

Learn more via the link in the BIO
6y
10 likes1 comment
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LaviniaG
East of Eden | John Steinbeck
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Reading (and loving every piece of) it for the third time. So. Good.

3 likes1 stack add
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LaviniaG
Tranquility | Attila Bartis
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Pickpick

Should you get any chance of reading this Hungarian writer, do it asap.

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LaviniaG
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Pickpick

Very insightful, still a bit less interesting than Fun Home (for me, that is).

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LaviniaG
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Pickpick

Bechdel's account of her childhood is absolutely stunning. Just borrowed her second volume of memoires, Are you there, mom? Looking forward to it.

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LaviniaG
Empire Falls | Richard Russo
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One of my favorite books of ALL time. I've been having a crush on Miles Roby for almost a decade now. Grab it if you haven't already, you can thank me later.

Mcoun I liked this one too. 6y
7 likes1 stack add1 comment
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LaviniaG
The Arrival | Shaun Tan
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Pickpick

My second encounter with #graphicnovels. An exceptional book, Shaun Tan is such a talented storyteller!

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LaviniaG
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Still many hours to go, but really enjoying it!

TheAnitaAlvarez This book is fantastic! I really enjoyed it, the setting, the characters, the writing are all 💯 6y
7 likes1 comment
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LaviniaG
Middlemarch (Revised) | George Eliot
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Reading Middlemarch for my Classics book club. Looking forward to many a good night with it.

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LaviniaG
Frankenstein: ; Or, The Modern Prometheus | Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley
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Pickpick

Beyond expectations. I probably read it too late in my life, but definitely worthwhile.

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LaviniaG
Margaret the First: A Novel | Danielle Dutton
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Writing in the 17th century, quite bad for your health.

2 likes1 stack add
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LaviniaG
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These stories are really starting to grow on me. Good job, Lucia!

5 likes1 stack add
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LaviniaG
Multiple Choice | Alejandro Zambra
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Pickpick

Such a rewarding read. Consider me amazed.

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LaviniaG
Homage to Barcelona | Colm Toibin
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6 likes1 stack add
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LaviniaG
Someone at a Distance | Dorothy Whipple, Nina Bawden
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Having a hard time choosing my next read :| #persephonebooks

BarbaraBB What is your native language (I can't read the title of the third book!)? (edited) 7y
LaviniaG @BarbaraBB it's Romanian. The title says "Happiness is a safety pin". 7y
Jess_Read_This We must be mutual friends based on those Viragos and Persephones alone!! 😍😍😍 Gorgeous book haul! 7y
LaviniaG @Jess_Read_This we must, then! Thank you! 7y
9 likes2 stack adds4 comments
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LaviniaG
Death in Venice | Thomas Mann
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Reading it for the 3rd time. As brilliant as ever.

8 likes1 stack add
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LaviniaG
A Man in Love | Karl Ove Knausgaard
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Last pages of Knausgaard's book in a super cosy and cool (literally!) café. As usual, pretty hooked by his writing. #karloveknausgaard

4 likes1 stack add
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LaviniaG
Burial Rites | Hannah Kent
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Will get my hands on this one asap!

4 likes1 stack add
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LaviniaG
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My second Pym novel, I am absolutely charmed by her style.

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LaviniaG
The Great Gatsby | Francis Scott Fitzgerald
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Reading (and loving) it for the umpteenth time. ❤️

4 likes1 stack add
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LaviniaG
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Finished reading this wonderful novella for my book club. It's my second reading and I thought it would leave me less impressed this time, but I was wrong. The last 20 pages at least, are pure brilliance: so soft, so touching, so raw my heart aches.

3 likes1 stack add
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LaviniaG
The Tortoise and the Hare | Hilary Mantel, Elizabeth Jenkins
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Looking forward to this #viragomodernclassics to get me out of the reading slump!

7 likes1 stack add
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LaviniaG
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Adult books with illustrations are so rare nowadays, it's a real treat when you stumble upon one. #persephonebooks

6 likes1 stack add
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LaviniaG
Sfr?it de sezon | Chivu Marius
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Pickpick

Hah, I pimped the bear :)). Great selection of Romanian #shortstories

1 like1 stack add
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LaviniaG
Lincoln in the Bardo | George Saunders
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Started Lincoln in the Bardo and tried reading it on my subway ride to work , but it's not working; I need peace and quiet to focus on it. So far it's definitely challenging at least in terms of form and style.

5 likes1 stack add
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LaviniaG
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Early '90s. Declan is dying and Tóibín masterfully brings together the women in his life (sister, mother, grandmother), forces them to cope with him being gay and having AIDS, throws in a couple of best friends and delivers an absolutely amazing story of hardship, friendship and loss. I love this guy to the moon and back.

3 likes2 stack adds
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LaviniaG
The Essex Serpent | Sarah Perry
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This amazing book will stay with me for a looooong time.

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LaviniaG
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2 likes1 stack add
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LaviniaG
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Halfway through it and loving it.

1 like1 stack add
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LaviniaG

Halfway through it and loving it.

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LaviniaG
Girl with a Pearl Earring | Tracy Chevalier
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Yum yum yum.

Tav An incredible point in the novel! Lots of delish tension. 8y
4 likes1 stack add1 comment
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LaviniaG
Past Continuous | Yaakov Shabtai
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Picked this one up on a whim today in a second hand bookshop here in Barcelona. It comes with lots of high praises from those who read it. (Translated from Hebrew).

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LaviniaG
Ulysses | James Joyce
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Someday I'll read it from start to finish, I promise!

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LaviniaG
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"The darkness of sleep, just before the dream."

2 likes1 stack add
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LaviniaG
Concierto Barroco | Alejo Carpentier
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The amount of love I have for this book! If you're into music and magical realism, please please pick it up!

OSChamberlain This looks so cool 😱 8y
1 like2 stack adds1 comment
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LaviniaG
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Pickpick

Fascinating read, I cannot wait to visit the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao this summer!

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LaviniaG
Hamilton: The Revolution | Lin-Manuel Miranda
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I've never been obsessed with a musical. Until I listened to Hamilton. O. M. G. ❤️

1 like1 stack add