The Odyssey retold from the viewpoint of Penelope - what more could you ask for?! This is a first-person account which succeeds in retelling a well-worn myth in such a way that it is still both absorbing and intriguing. For someone who studied Classics and loves myth retellings, this was a fantastic read.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#thepenelopiad #margaretatwood #myth #theodyssey #retelling #firstperson #fivestars

This was my reading list from May, all of which I really enjoyed! A very successful month of reading, as was June, which I‘ll be posting soon 😊A Skinful of Shadows was a favourite, as was A Court of Frost and Starlight, and The Year of Reading Dangerously was a great read about reading. All excellent, all 4 or 5 stars! #reading #list #May #monthly #updates

I‘ve never read any Frances Hardinge before, but WOW was this good!! This is technically a Children‘s/YA book, but honestly I‘d recommend to anyone of any age. The writing is gorgeous, the characters are vivid, and the storytelling and magical realism element are totally unique. I had the pleasure of meeting Frances at Hay this year, & she is absolutely delightful - when she signed my book, she drew a goose! #author #impressed

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Had the pleasure of seeing both of these excellent authors speak at #ChipLitFest in the UK. Both have an enduring love of books, which I could of course identify with, and had been profoundly affected by their reading in the past. Would definitely recommend both for book lovers ❤️😍📚

Books read back in March 📚 Got through 10 books in a month which I was really pleased with... Highlights include John Boyne, Bear and the Nightingale, Mary Beard, The Cruel Prince, and of course Chimamanda ❤️ #booksread #march #towerofbooks

I know I‘m seriously behind the hype over this, but what an amazing book! Vasya was the perfect kind of heroine, in that she wasn‘t perfect. The semi-mythical corner of Rus‘ where Vasya and her family live is beautifully evoked by Arden, and I can‘t wait to read the her next book in the series. 👍

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Catching up on reading this ARC of The Cactus, even though it‘s out already with a WAY better cover 😬 But I don‘t mind because I love love love this book!! I love Susan and Rob and Kate and I even started to like Edward and Aunt Sylvia towards the end 😂 The characters are fantastic and the story itself is a little predictable but just so lovely ❤️❤️ Comfort reading at its best 👍

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I *think* this is the right tag. I love this cute little edition, it‘s very pretty ❤️ Fascinating to get an insight into the day-to-day, internal workings of such an amazing author‘s life. Very quick read and a sweet gift, perfect for anyone interested at all in reading/literature/classics.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I seriously love bookshops and book shopping, so of course I chose to go to London for my birthday and do a bookshop tour 😂 Here I am in Daunt Books, clearly absorbed in these awesome tiny volumes. Also visited Foyles, Persephone, Skoob, Any Amount of Books, & Hatchards. SUCH an awesome weekend 📚📚📚🤓

I actually finished this last year and never updated... Such a fantastic book. Having never read any Ali Smith before, I found it slightly unusual at first, but once I got used to her style the beauty and depth of the prose really came through. Definitely looking forward to Winter, just need to wait for the paperback to come out because I want it to match this one!! 🤓🍁

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Can‘t believe it‘s taken me this long to read a Terry Pratchett Discworld novel! Very glad I did though. I would have adored these 10/15 years ago, but going to enjoy them aged nearly 24 anyway 😂😂📚❤️

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#LitsyQuestions @GypsyKat

1. Haven‘t listened to any!
2. How To Stop Time - Matt Haig
3. A Room of One‘s Own - Virginia Woolf
4. Sarah J Maas

📚❤️🤓

This is just an insane book, full of facts and explanations that it‘s difficult to believe. It‘s extremely well-researched and easy to read and understand, with plenty of contextual evidence to illuminate the points made. I couldn‘t recommend this enough to anyone interested in psychology, social & cultural studies, and even applied economics. Well worth the read, and I‘m looking forward to attempting Gladwell‘s other works!

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[featuring tea and fluffy socks, obviously]

This is intense but amazing, another one of those must-read commentaries on our culture which opens up a whole new (or expanded) way of seeing things. Jess Phillips, an MP who has been through most of the crap, discusses trolling, motherhood, women in parliament, and so much more. Definitely one to pass on and recommend to others.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

LOVED meeting Matt Haig at Cheltenham Literature Festival - he‘s such an amazing author but also a truly inspiring mental health campaigner 🙌😁 #cheltlitfest #author #meetup #matthaig

I‘m quite the Pride and Prejudice fan... so to say I was apprehensive about this update is an understatement! Although not quite at Austen‘s level of social commentary, this is an excellent update of a favourite tale. It‘s well-modernised, quite believable (the exception perhaps being everyone‘s financial status), and just a generally enjoyable book. I‘d recommend this to any Austen fan, and anyone who enjoys fiction.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

So worth the hype. Gyasi weaves a fascinating and harrowing tale of the lives of two (unknown to each other) half-sisters and their descendants. Effia marries a slave trader at the infamous Cape Coast castle, whilst Esi is imprisoned there before being shipped to America. Each chapter is just long enough for the reader to become invested in a character, but swift progression between generations reflects life constantly moving on.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I think it‘s obvious from my goofy smile how stoked I was to meet Robert Webb! Saw him speak at Cheltenham Literature festival and it‘s definitely inspired me to read his book 😍🤓📚 #cheltlitfest #robertwebb #hownottobeaboy

I LOVED this book 😊 it‘s the perfect balance between frothy chick lit and a more serious novel - enjoyable and easy to read but with some seriously important underlying messages about life, death, and the power of memory. Definitely not one to miss! 🌹

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

'Put two authors together in a room and someone is bound to leave mildly depressed.' - Bettany Hughes, The Hemlock Cup 🏺🤓 #firstlineofcurrentread #anditsaugust #classic #onedaylate #currentread

Another insanely hyped book which I missed first time round! The original memoir/self-help/travel read, this certainly lives up to the hype. Although I didn't find it as life-changing as some, this is a fun, easy, and intellectual read with a more meaningful message underneath. Take from it what you will, but a great read either way 😊❤️🙏

Just... wow. This is one of the best books I think I've ever read. It's just so life-affirming! Tom is a 439 year old who has a lot to go through before he can realise the true joys in life. Through a series of flashbacks to Tom's past, interspersed with the realities of the present, the reader joins Tom on his journey of enlightenment. Matt Haig's writing is simply a joy to experience ❤️⏳

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Can't quite believe it took me this long to discover these books! I loved the main character Feyre, and the world that Sarah J Maas has created on both sides of the wall. The reader is kept in the dark for much of the book (as Feyre is), which makes the end all the more enthralling. I can't wait to read the next two books in the series 😬📖🤓

Second hand book haul!! Spent last week in Edinburgh and managed a whole morning of bookshop exploring! So much fun (although I'm not sure my friend agreed!) 😁📚 #secondhand #haul #finds

Current reading 📖📖 #magazine #book #girlup #laurabates #everydaysexism #currentreading

#asidefrombooks

#bookishwouldyourather

1. Wine 🍷
2. First page 📖
3. At the beach 🏖
4. Fantasy (...maybe) ✨
5. Darcy of course!

❤️

I read this in a morning. It's half memoir, half woven tale. It's nothing less than you'd expect from the late great Carrie Fisher.

Preeminent here are Carrie's diaries from the filming of the first Star Wars film. They're an incredible insight into her relationships with the cast and crew, how THAT hairstyle came about, and perhaps most significantly into the mind of a teenage girl thrown in at the deep end, and left to thrive.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Hands down my favourite sentence in this book. For some reason this just stood out to me, especially after the rich description of the Fata Morgana. The imagery is just so compelling... {{ "children of the earth and lost in wonder" }}

I put off reading this for so long. It never appealed to me for some reason, and I only bought it in the end because my mum liked this limited edition cover 😅 However, this book is AMAZING. It kept me totally gripped, the characters were fascinating, and Perry's descriptions are fantastical. There's a bit of jumping around between setting and protagonist, but nothing which the beauty of the book can't outweigh. A new favourite! Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I adore Jane Austen 😍 but this was a strange read. Lady Susan is complete, but is written in an epistolary style - very unlike Austen, although the normal characteristics are there. The other two parts here are unfinished novels, which is the main reason why I wouldn't rate this higher. They're both SO Austen, and I want to know what happens!! They both evoke the worlds of her completed novels, I only wish they'd been finished 😔 Worth a read!

My holiday reading from last week! Particularly a fan of Jeanette Winterson's The Gap of Time - insanely well written, gripping (even written over 17 years), and cleverly connected to its inspiration (Shakespeare's A Winter's Tale) -- also can't believe it took me this long to read A Room of One's Own, and I can safely say it met and exceeded all of my expectations. I love finding books to recommend! 📚🤓😍