Drinking Pimm's and reading a mystery set at Oxford in the '80s when I came across this savage footnote burn on Cindy Lauper
Drinking Pimm's and reading a mystery set at Oxford in the '80s when I came across this savage footnote burn on Cindy Lauper
Holed up inside on this snowy day with Lillian Boxfish, the Mary Tyler Moore show, and some Welsh rarebit (with bacon 🥓).
I really enjoyed the writing in Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk, and Lillian Boxfish herself was a great character and such fun to read about, but at times it felt just a little bit preachy. Mostly I like how well it pairs with the MTM marathon I've been on for the past couple of weeks.
A little late on #funfridayphoto but these are two of my favorite book to movie adaptations.
I think the movie version of The Devil Wears Prada is one of those cases where the movie is much better than the book, and High Fidelity is too much fun to leave out.
That's all. 👠😈
#onewordtitle for today's #riotgram
This is the book that's been in my physical TBR pile for the longest time. I've been about 70% done with it since about 2011, so it might be better classified as a DNF, but I've kept it through two cross-country moves and I keep telling myself I'll finish it one day.
My #mostreread book has gotta be this copy of Pride and Prejudice. I don't reread much anymore and I have a proper grownup copy of it now, but when I was younger I almost wore this one out. #FeistyFeb
#shadows for #FeistyFeb day 2
This collection of stories by Helen Oyeyemi is pretty great--probably my favorite of her's.
#FeistyFeb day 1 - #tbr
Right now I have 13 books checked out from the library...and these 8 are all due back by February 7. Guess I'd better get to reading (and renewing)!
My normal shelves are kind of a shambles (they're narrow and they're falling apart), so here's my overflow shelf in the linen cupboard. #riotgrams #shelfie
January #stats
I've read plenty that I've liked so far in 2017, but nothing that I've really really liked. But I've got a massive pile of library books to get through in February, so hopefully that'll change soon!
I found Claire to be a very relatable protagonist, but the book bogged down a bit in the middle and I wasn't satisfied with the ending. It's very Bridget Jones Diary, but not as focused on romance and not quite as funny.
#tbt to when I reread The Handmaid's Tale over Thanksgiving in CO
I read this in the 12th grade for school, but (like a lot of others here) figured it was time for a reread. Teenage me did not appreciate how good it was. It's so well-crafted--Margaret Atwood drops you into Gilead and Offred's head and then slowly, slowly fills you in on how it all came about. It's so compelling and (unfortunately) so relevant.
Idaho is a beautifully written book--seriously, it's gorgeous and full of interesting, complicated characters. But it's sooo HEAVY. There's barely a speck of levity, which isn't my favorite thing, even though it makes sense for the subject matter. I'm very glad I read it, but ultimately I admired the writing more than I enjoyed the story.
Finally finished Hag-Seed (had to return to the library half-read a while ago and the hold list is so long I thought it'd be ages before I got to check it out again. But then I found it on the quick picks shelf last week)! I've never read the Tempest but the story came across just fine, and reading about how the production itself came together was great fun. 🌬🌊🏝
Stayed up past my bedtime last night because I had to finish this one--super cute, plus it was light and fast-paced enough to zip through in one sitting.
Lazy Sunday in bed with a matching book! The stories in Some Possible Solutions were eerie and good--twins and doppelgängers, questions about individuality and relationships, plus tsunamis and tornados and aliens!
Home sick today so I'm posted up in bed with The Portable Veblen, which I'm really liking so far 🤒🤧😷🐿
Just under the wire for #funfridayphoto -- my 2017 tbr stack. Normally I don't let physical TBRs get away from me this much (usually if I buy a book, I read it) but between all the library books I had checked out and my fall reading slump, my BOTMs piled up. And then my book club had a book swap. Priority #1 for 2017 is getting this under control!
Hot damn do I love this book. Started rereading it in June a little at a time between books and figured I might as well finish it up before the year ends. It's still my favorite.
You have to describe it in the voice of Stefon from SNL because this book has EVERYTHING: mimes, war, gong-fu, con artistry, ninjas, corporate espionage, anarchists, pirates, and honestly it's so funny and the writing is just amazing, I can't recommend it highly enough.
Finally finished this one today after putting it down for about a month to read other things. It's so easy to get swept up in the world of the Metropol, but it can be a little slow at points so it was also easy to take an extended break. Overall it was a delight.
Today's plane read for my flight back up to Boston ✈️📚
Happy holidays Littens! 🎄My dad got me The Vegetarian for Christmas, and I also got a gift card to my fave bookstore up in Boston!
Didn't get much reading done tonight because I was busy running errands and baking up some chocolate hazelnut macarons for my office Christmas party tomorrow!
Book club brunch and book swap! Just what I needed--more for my TBR pile 🙃
I've been away from Litsy for a bit and I haven't been keeping up with #booktober, but I had to jump in for #bestsidekicks. Both of my favorite books put the sidekicks in the spotlight: The (unnamed) narrator of The Gone Away World is Gonzo Lubitsch's sidekick, and Lamb is the story of Biff, who's sidekick to Jesus!
Hooray for bookmail! 📚📬 This is gonna be a great fall read. 🔮🎃😈💀
Soft pick on this one, I think. It was decent; not very demanding, but it kept me interested. I'm not entirely sure it needed as much plot as it had, but overall everything worked.
The booksmith was also doing dollar used book grab bags yesterday. I haven't opened it yet--I think I'll save it as an emergency backup option for when I'm in a really dire book slump.
This one was super light and a ton of fun--perfect Friday night read. I think it could potentially make a great movie, too (someone's got to have the rights to it already, right?). 💸💸💸
I've been in a reading slump all this month and I've decided I'm busting out of it once and for all this weekend.
First up was Eileen. I've read some mixed reviews, but I really liked it. Don't go in expecting plot--nothing really happens until right at the very end. It's really a deep dive on one character, and Eileen is worth it.
So my patronus is a...friggin' mole?? I don't know how I feel about this. Although I do have terrible eyesight, so I suppose that's fitting, at least. 😒
Another movie night for me--tonight it's Heathers! 💅🏻💣☠👯
Not getting much reading done tonight since I'm at the movies instead--I'm finally gonna see Vertigo! 📽🌀
Been in a bit of a book slump lately but this one's due back at the library tomorrow so hooray for deadlines! Now that I've read it, I'm glad I won't be making the next person on the hold list wait for it any longer because it's really good. Very dense and symbolic and you really feel like you're in Sophie's head.
Book 4 of the #biblioweekend! Surprise surprise, I liked another collection of short stories 🙃 But seriously, this was really good and I'm already in the bag for whatever Abigail Ulman does next.
These were all about young women growing up at various points in their teens and twenties. My favorites were the three stories that followed Claire, as well as the story about horse camp.
Book 3 of #biblioweekend was a palate cleanser after The Underground Railroad last night. I hadn't read a Stephanie Plum in forever, but I knew exactly what I was going to get. Things seem to be getting a little stale--Lula and Grandma Mazur were nowhere near as funny as I remember them being in the early books.
Also, #somethingforsept #readandeat I figured a plain peanut butter sandwich was the perfect lunch to eat while reading Stephanie Plum.
Well, that's two for the #biblioweekend--the plan was to read the first hundred pages or so and then go to bed, but once I started I couldn't stop. It was absolutely riveting.
First book of #biblioweekend done!
I'm not entirely sure how I feel about this one--I think I'm doing that thing where I'm judging it on what I wanted it to be (Strange & Norrell meets J Cabal) rather than what it was (mostly farce, with just a little hint of the supernatural). But it was still pretty fun, if a bit too cute.
I know I've gone to the Northanger Abbey well before, but I couldn't find my copy of The Poisonwood Bible up here and @LFox couldn't find it at our parents' house either, so I'm going with my second favorite school book for #funfridayphoto (or is it #funphotofriday--I can never remember).
I was assigned NA twice in college--first for a class called 'Chick-lit: Junk or Genre' and then for a Jane Austen class. I loved it both times.
I know I've gone to the Northanger Abbey well before, but I couldn't find my copy of The Poisonwood Bible up here and @LFox couldn't find it at our parents' house either, so I'm going with my second favorite school book for #funfridayphoto (or is it #funphotofriday--I can never remember).
I was assigned NA twice in college--first for a class called 'Chick-lit: Junk or Genre' and then for a Jane Austen class. I loved it both times.