Looking forward to celebrating with our May birthday babies soon!
If you‘d like to be added to the list to receive #birthdaylove on your special day, just email your Litsy name and birthday to litsybirthdays@gmail.com and the Birthday Fairies will do the rest!
🎉📚🎉📚🎉📚🎉📚🎉📚🎉📚🎉📚🎉📚
I‘m so excited that we‘ve launched #camplitsy24 - here are my 4 nominations.
Looking forward to seeing what everyone else picks, and to my TBR list growing exponentially!
If #camplitsy24 is new to you, take a look at @BarbaraBB ‘s post from earlier today and make your own 4 nominations. We‘ll then all vote for 6 books from the long list and discuss them throughout the summer here on Litsy.
pickThe next book, after Water, in the ‘four elements‘ set by John Boyne.
This one, about a gay footballer caught up in a sexual assault scandal with a 19-year old girl, is as compelling as the first book. I couldn‘t put it down and read it in one sitting (it is only short though!)
There was one bit that just seemed a bit OTT! But then what do I know about this murky tabloid world?! Be interested to hear what others think…
Out 18th April in UK.
pickA lovely book, about what lessons we can learn from the books taught in the UK school system.
Many of the books were ones I *hadn‘t* studied, or even read so, beware, this book if full of spoilers!
I really liked that though - the plot spoilers and the author‘s explanations and analysis drew me to the books and made me want to read them all!
#netgalley Published last week in the UK
Just arrived in Manchester ahead of the Percival Everett author event this evening.
Meeting @TrishB and @Oryx later - currently having a lovely lunch in The Portico Library cafe. (Sweet potato, peanut and chilli soup) 😋
The library itself is over 200 years old - most of the books are ‘out of bounds‘ but still wonderful to sit amongst them.
pickI rather liked this #womensprize long lister to start with….but then the perspective changed to a second-person narrative, the chronology jumped (I think?) and it all got a bit magical-realism.
On reading GR reviews, this seemed to confuse other reviewers too, but then they all said it came together at the end. 🤔 Well, it didn‘t for me so please can someone who‘s read it let me know what on earth went on?! 🫤 (In spoilers below please!) 🙏
pickClearly this is a tough subject to read about (a primary school shooting) but it‘s more about the aftermath than the event itself.
Was Marty actually in the hall at the time - was she running to escape or was she running towards the school? And what effect will all the truthers and conspiracy theorists have on the village?
It‘s a very similar style to Girl A - quite steady with a slow reveal rather than twisty-turny edge of your seat stuff.
These are my choices for the Women‘s Prize for NF short list. TBH, I‘ve liked everything I‘ve read, but these just edge it. I don‘t think they‘ll all be in the actual shortlist, as I‘ve included 3 memoirs.
I‘ve hibernated 2 - VC and Britannias and haven‘t yet read enough of Shadows and Young Queens to include them in my list but I‘ll continue on regardless with those two, even if they don‘t make the shortlist.
Not so much of a big win in today‘s LitsyToB24 semi-final - 60/40 in favour of Wellness.
The Rachel Incident has been storming through the brackets up until now, but appears to have finally met its match in Wellness. Which did you vote for and are you sorry to see Rachel go?
Look out later today, when Barbara will be posting the results of our zombie 🧟♀️ votes - who will Wellness go up against?! 🤔
bailedIt‘s official…I‘m going to be a non-completist of this year‘s #womensprize for fiction!
The first 20% of this was OK then it lost me completely. I looked it up on GR to see if I could glean any clues, only to learn that it‘s book 3 in a series. (Although some called it a ‘companion piece‘ not a sequel and others said it stood alone just as easily).
I also read that there was a glossary of characters in the back so I thought that might be ⬇️
Hello, fellow #LitsyToB24 Littens! We‘re getting close to the end now…Today‘s semi-final result is a clear win for Hello Beautiful, with 75% of the vote.
I‘m sure this is what most of us expected, or are you surprised by this result? Tomorrow we‘ll find out the other semi-final result, along with which Zombie this one will go up against. Which Zombie are you hoping for to go up against HB, or should that be which do you hope HASN‘T been picked?!
pickI chose to read this #womensprize nominee next as I didn‘t think I‘d like it, and I‘m saving the ‘better‘ books for later… 🤪
I haven‘t read any of Enright‘s other work, but I understand that women‘s intergenerational trauma is a theme in her writing. This book also includes a male POV as we hear from an impoverished poet who abandons his family, his daughter Carmel, and her daughter Nell.
Won‘t be my fave on the list but better than expected!
Went out last week to an Indian street-food restaurant. (Not in India - we were on holiday in the English Lake District!).
The food was fabulous (the owner / chef had spent some time in India), dogs were welcome and, best of all, I got to try nimbu pani!
Their version was a mix of lemon and lime juice, with a hint of spice. I could definitely taste cumin in there - delicious!
pickThis #womensprize long listed novel apparently started life as a series of short stories and, part-way through the book, this was an issue for me and I even considered bailing.
The ‘8 lives‘ are arranged non-chronologically which makes for a more challenging reading experience and the initial set-up seemed rather tacked-on.
However, towards the end, everything drew together satisfactorily and my opinion changed to a pick.
pickI actually really liked this, which surprised me as there had been some mixed reviews on Litsy, so I had considered waiting until the #womensprize shortlist came out before reading it.
I particularly liked where the author pointed out all of the omissions in Orwell‘s work, where he‘d left out Eileen to suit his own narrative.
I didn‘t like the author infrequently inserting her own life into the book - either go all in or not at all!
pickAnother #womensprize long listed book that I really liked.
It follows the lives of two people in Shanghai. Alva, a teenager in 2007 is disgruntled when her white American mother marries a Chinese man. Lu Fang is her new stepfather and we see how his life was affected by Mao‘s Cultural Revolution.
None of the characters are likeable and it‘s really rather a sad book, (I‘m not selling it, am I?!) but I do recommend it.
pickI was worried that this #womensprize for NF long lister would be a bit dry but it wasn‘t. (I‘d tried to start Vulture Capitalism which I found difficult to get into so thought this may be the same).
The author uses real-life people and their stories to discuss the impact of AI, both good and bad, which makes it an interesting and accessible read.
Covering areas such as facial recognition, health apps and crime statistics I‘d recommend it.
pickThis is a ‘re-imagining‘ of Huckleberry Finn, from the POV of the slave, Jim, or James as he calls himself. I read HF before this and I think it‘s worth doing so.
The first half of the book faithfully follows the original and is satirically funny. The second half becomes a lot darker and is where Everett gets his message across about slavery.
Looking forward to seeing the author next month with @TrishB and @Oryx
Published 11/04 in the UK.
so-soThat was…. different. 🤔 My least-liked book on the #womensprize long list so far.
An unnamed man returns to unnamed country (in Africa) to find his brother, who may be dying. Along the way he meets many people, who aren‘t named and who he should recognise but doesn‘t, who all want to tell him their stories.
I liked the stories at the start but they became very repetitive and the way of naming characters was frustrating ⬇️
pickMy favourite so far from the #womensprize long list. Set in Sri Lanka during the civil war, from the 1980s onwards, it follows 16 year old Sashi as she tries to train to be a doctor against a background of fear and violence.
Powerful and raw, this feels like non-fiction at times. So much so that I looked up whether the author had direct experience of the war and she hadn‘t.
The audio narration was also fantastic.
Our final first round bracket for #LitsyToB24, and The Rachel Incident wins, with a 60/40 split. Both of these books were looking back at your younger self - did you identify with either / both of them?
Thank you for all your comments on the first round - now is the time to vote for the quarterfinals! Here‘s the link - please vote this weekend and Meg will take over on Monday with the next round‘s results.
https://forms.gle/BnGAYebiyBjwiGuGA
A significant win for All The Sinners Bleed in today‘s #LitsyToB24 bracket - by 17 votes to 4, meaning Sinners had the most votes of any book in our first round. Are you surprised by this outcome?
We put these books together due to the element of mystery in them, and also the question of whether crimes had been committed. Did you feel that either book was a typical mystery or crime novel?
We‘d love to hear your thoughts on both books!
These were the two #litsyToB24 books that were left over when our matching fairy (aka Meg!) had finished her magic. Therefore we don‘t have a common theme for these two - unless anyone has any bright ideas?! 💡
Also, we had another draw today, with 7 votes each. (The lowest voter turnout of any bracket!)
This time, we chose The Birthday Party to continue on because it gained more Zombie votes than Julia. Do you agree with our decision?
Another very close-run vote for today‘s bracket in #LitsyToB24, but Wellness just wins it by 11 votes to 9.
We chose to bracket these books together due to their unique storytelling about a couple. What did you think about each portrayal - did they ring true for you?
Both could also be classed as a depiction of American life. Were there any parallels here between the two books, or did the dystopia in Biography make them completely different?
Today‘s #litsytob24 bracket has another runaway winner!
Hello Beautiful gained 16 votes, with only 3 (Ruth, Holly and Debra)voting for Lovesick Blossoms. Personally I liked both of these books, but we had to pick just one, didn‘t we?! How difficult a decision was it for you?
We put these two books together due to their portrayal of entangled relationships - how do you think each book dealt with this theme?
pickI liked this, but not as much as the other HF that I‘ve read from the #womensprize longlist.
The novel is based on the life of the author‘s own grandmother, living in Australia at the end of the 1800s, up until just after WWII.
Dolly moves around a *lot* and this lends a restlessness to the book as well - it almost felt a little rushed in places as we were never in one place long enough to learn about it, or the people that lived there.
pickThis #womensprize for NF long-lister is still a pick, but I chose the wrong format (audio).The author describes so many paintings and I wanted to see them - not the best idea when you listen whilst driving, as I mostly do. 😬
Even when I was at home, as all of the artists are Dutch, I couldn‘t find many of them as I didn‘t know how to spell their names. I‘ve reserved the (digital) print copy so I can re-read but it‘s not available until ⬇️
pickThe MC talks to her young child as she struggles through the change in her life since giving birth to him, along with coping with a seemingly absent husband who prefers to work long hours.
I don‘t have kids so can‘t speak to the veracity of this novel but I certainly found the MC‘s stream of consciousness thoughts really stressful to read, but incredibly compelling.
Another great read from the #womensprize long list.
pickMy first book from the Women‘s Prize for Fiction since the long list was announced (although I had read 2 previously) and I really enjoyed it.
I‘m not a huge fan of HF, although I‘ve enjoyed similar books based on re-tellings in previous years of the list, such as Hamnet and The Marriage Portrait.
In my view, this holds its own against such exalted authors - it really rattled along and I didn‘t want to stop reading.
pickWelcome to Day 3 of #LitsyTob24!
Our winner today is Mobility, with two thirds of the vote!
Both books had female MCs who were navigating their way through life, alongside unique storytelling about families, but each book had a distinctive style.
What did you think of the storytelling? Did you like both Belle and Bunny?
We‘re looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the books and today‘s result!
pickThis was an incredibly tough read, from the Women‘s Prize for NF long list but vitally important and I felt that I learned a lot.
The author‘s mother has MS and decides she cannot continue so undertakes to end her life by Voluntarily Stopping Eating and Drinking (VSED). I had no idea that this is legal in the UK, and many medical practitioners have not come across it before so there many challenges over and above the decision itself. ⬇️
Quite a different story on today‘s bracket for #LitsyToB24 - a runaway win for Let Us Descend!
Only 5 people voted for Same Bed, including your esteemed hosts, Meg and Barbara, plus Erin, Tracy and Ruth - everyone else went with Let Us Descend.
What did you think of this bracket and the voting? Both of these books had an element of history in them, but told in very different ways. What did you like about/ dislike about each of the styles?
Barbara, Meg and I are so excited to kick off #LitsyToB24!
Our opening bracket was incredibly close throughout the voting and ended in a draw. As your hosts we took the casting votes, and Vintage Contemporaries won by 1 vote!
We bracketed these books together due to the community / found-family feel in both of them - did you also see that?
We‘d love to hear your thoughts on both books, and also what you think of the result!
pick#europacollective
I‘m reading at least 5 other books at the same time, but they were all immediately forgotten once I started this, and I read it in only a few hours.
It‘s not an easy read, particularly the first third of the book, but I loved the writing style. The links between ‘then‘ and now were incredibly compelling, and very worrying.
I‘m sure this will be up there with my favourite books of 2024.
mcctrish, GatheringBooks, tpixie, kspenmoll, Gleefulreader, LeahBergen, TheBookDream, DrexEdit, Sapphire, TheKidUpstairs, Aimeesue, Deblovestoread, charl08, Adventures-of-a-French-Reader, Tamra, lauraisntwilder, Chelsea.Poole, Cathythoughts, BarbaraBB, jlhammar, CSeydel, Sparklemn, JuniperWilde, julieclair, AllDebooks
#weeklyforecast
There‘ll definitely be more books than this in my week, as I can‘t seem to stop myself from starting new books at the moment and, with the Women‘s Prize for Fiction long list this week, I‘ve got no chance!
I‘ve just started the two on the left, for the NF long list, and both seem really interesting. The Postcard is the one that‘s drawing all of my attention right now I just can‘t put it down. I‘m about halfway through Talking.
pickObiefuna is a young boy, who loves to dance, growing up in Nigeria. When his father catches an embrace between Obiefuna and the newly arrived house boy, he sends his son away to a strict seminary.
There, Obiefuna begins a journey of self-discovery whilst battling terrible violence from the older boys.
Once again, this is a book without an ending. 😠 I was just getting to know and love Obiefuna and then….nothing!
#netgalley #blessings
pickThis is my favourite so far from the #womensprizeNF long list (even though I‘ve only read 4! 🙂)
The author grew up in a Rastafarian family in Jamaica, and I was surprised to learn about how strict the religion can be, as well as the views on women and girls.
Safiya is a poet and that really shows in her writing, and I loved her narrating the audio herself. She certainly has a huge capacity for forgiveness, after all that she went through.
pick#womensprizeNF
The author looks at the ‘ordinary‘ people who contributed words, their etymologies and sources to the OED, back in the 1800s and early 1900s.
I enjoyed meeting all of these people, as well as learning a LOT of new words. I particularly admired the author‘s ability to link each chapter (A is for Archaeologists, Z is for Zealots) together, and I could imagine her shuffling little cards around, just like the contributors of old.
pickI did wonder at the start how the author would extend a story about being mistaken for Naomi Wolf into a full-length book, but this is so much more than that. Sometimes rather impenetrable and often rather scary, Klein looks at many different cases of ‘mirroring‘ in society, with particular reference to Covid, as well as Israel, Trump and even the wellness industry.
A fascinating read, even if I had to read it in chunks to understand it fully.
Anyone else subscribe to nb. magazine? (I presume it‘s UK only)
I can‘t remember where I read about it, but I thought I‘d give it a go and my first copy has arrived in the post today.
Their stated aim is to share and illuminate new and notable books.
Haven‘t had chance to read it yet but, on flicking through, it looks really interesting. And it smells rather deliciously of fresh printing ink! 🤣
Just a little tiny book haul today, because I definitely needed more books…
Popped into the library to pick up some ‘possibles‘ for the Women‘s Prize for fiction (and no I‘m not telling you how many library books I now have on loan!) and they had a book sale on, so I had to support, of course, by buying 5 books.
Young Queens is on the NF long list and came out today, and Mongrel because it‘s also rumoured for the Fiction Prize and sounds fab.
pickMy first book finished from the Women‘s Prize for NF long list, although I‘m in the throes of reading most of the rest at the same time! 😃
I really struggled with the style of this at the start and had to keep re-reading to digest what was being said, although most of it was fascinating information once I processed it, hence the pick.
The biggest issue I had was the stating as fact, things that could only be conjecture. For example ⬇️
It‘s all gone a bit crazy in my reading life, so my #weeklyforecast looks quite nuts!
A lot going on with the Women‘s Prize for NF… I also borrowed some library books ahead of the Fiction prize and noticed this morning that 3 of them are reserved so will have to go back just before the longlist announcement- Good Material is the first I‘m reading of these.
Blessings is an ARC out in a few days and continue the #buddyread of A Suitable Boy.
pickThis isn‘t published until 14th March in the UK but @MicheleinPhilly convinced me to read it out of #netgalley date order, and I‘m so glad she did.
I knew the premise before I started and I was breathless for the first part, waiting for ‘the thing‘ to happen, and then devoured the second part, wishing for a conclusion but not wanting it to end. And I cried at the end too.
I wish I‘d seen the play with Jodie Comer…
A week ago I definitely wasn‘t going to even consider reading any of the Women‘s Prize for NF.
Fast forward to today and, oops, look what arrived….the two biggest books on the long list. I also have everything else (apart from 1 that I don‘t want to read) reserved at the library or on BorrowBox or NG. 🤷♀️
I‘m looking forward to Shadows, despite its size, as I think it will be a great companion piece to A Suitable Boy.
pickWow… this book. I bought it when it first came out but kept putting off reading it. Perhaps because I thought it might destroy me and perhaps because I feared it might be over-hyped. Yes, very much, to the first and, no definitely not, to the second.
This would have made my favourites of 2023 if I‘d have read it then, and I can‘t see it NOT making my 2024 favourites, even at this early stage in the year.
pickSet in a Yorkshire pit town, this short debut novel follows 3 generations of a mining family as they wrestle with their identities.
The author is a poet and you can really tell from the beautiful writing. The structure takes a while to get used to, with short passages from each man, plus reports from a group of academics who are doing an art project in the town, as well as parts of the story told through surveillance cameras. Some reviewers felt
so-soI started this as it‘s on the ‘Women‘s Prize eligible‘ list and it was immediately available on BorrowBox. I wish that I‘d waited to see if it *did* make the list as it‘s not really my cup of tea.
The Great Tarare supposedly existed in real-life Revolutionary France - a young man whose insatiable appetite made him an attraction.
Parts of the tale were really engaging but the fact that he ate live animals and human flesh were not.
pickAn interesting account of the impact of the US nuclear tests on the people of the #marshallislands.
In 1954 the US detonated a bomb that was a thousand times more powerful than Hiroshima- and the resulting fall-out decimated the islands and the lives of the inhabitants.
The audio narrator was a little bit robotic (maybe due to me listening at 1.8x) so I switched to digital print for the final 20% - much better.
#readingoceania24
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