Thanks for the tag! @Mitch
1. The tagged book will be on my favourite list for 2024 as well as just for August.
2. I prefer paper books, but read all three types - they all have their place!
3. Probably literary fiction.
#wondrouswednesday
Thanks for the tag! @Mitch
1. The tagged book will be on my favourite list for 2024 as well as just for August.
2. I prefer paper books, but read all three types - they all have their place!
3. Probably literary fiction.
#wondrouswednesday
Whew, this was a tough read, but definitely worth it. The author, whose previous book was about her own experience of sexual abuse, focuses on the 4 women who told their stories during the trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, as well as the defence‘s attempts to discredit them.
A slight quibble would be a couple of areas that seemed repetitive - sometimes it was clearly deliberate for emphasis but there were some points that needed better editing.
I loved Profile K by this same author so bought this, a previous novel, at the Crimewriting Festival where I saw her speak.
I‘ve realised that my issue is that I‘m not a huge fan of ‘locked room‘ mysteries / crime - they‘re not expansive / wide- ranging / as full of opportunities for me.
That said, I did enjoy this one for the most part and at least I‘ve learned what style of crime I like. 🤪
I had high hopes for all of my holiday reads - that‘s why I chose them to take - but, whilst they were all good, they didn‘t live up to my expectations.
This one, failed to pull me in completely, I think because none of the characters were very likeable, and it was a bit Rooney-esque in that they were all failing to communicate properly. It had a bit more bite than a Rooney though, hence the pick.
This was the first book I read on my hols and, probably because I had such high hopes after seeing the author speak, I was ever so slightly disappointed that it didn‘t quite live up to my expectations.
I still liked it, but it was very violent and I didn‘t feel particularly connected to either the characters or the setting so it felt like I skimmed along the surface rather than being engrossed in the story.
Content warning below ⬇️
Thanks for the gift, Jess @jhod ! We just got back from our hols today and it was waiting for me.
Henry had a fun time in Keswick - visiting The Pocket Bar twice and being made a fuss of by the staff in there!
It sounds like a fascinating book and I‘m sure I‘ll love it - I‘ve looked up the reviews and they‘re not *that* mixed - pretty positive, I think.
Thank you for your lovely gifts @Caroline2 @Cathythoughts ! 😘
Sorry I didn‘t post pictures of the *actual* gifts - this morning was rather hectic as we hadn‘t packed much ready for our hols.
Pic is the view from our pitch in the Lake District.
Thanks for all of my wonderful birthday gifts! (Not featured here, vouchers from @julesG @TrishB @MicheleinPhilly @Hooked_on_books )
@quietlycuriouskate - The Wonder sounds fabulous, as does Fifteen Wild Decembers @youneverarrived and I love the notebooks and bookmark too.
@BarbaraBB - both books sounds fabulous - isn‘t These Silent Woods a strange shape though?!
@Megabooks - I‘ve been looking forward to reading Pomegranate ⬇️
I said I wasn‘t going to go book shopping today but happened to be walking past Waterstones and got propelled in by an unknown force.
I couldn‘t revisit this beautiful copy, and it‘s signed as well, so it was lucky that I had a birthday voucher from @julesG burning a hole in my phone! 🤣
Thanks Jules! 😘
❤️❤️❤️
Lovely article about how well The Open Book in Wigtown is doing. This is the bookshop where you stay and run it for a few days / weeks at a time.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5y844905n9o
❤️❤️❤️
I still really liked this, but it‘s not my favourite ‘Lucy Barton‘ book. As well as Lucy, Bob Burgess is highly featured, as is Olive Kitteridge.
Early on, there were too many disparate threads and inconsequential stories about characters we‘d never met before. The book soon picked up though, as Bob becomes involved in a murder investigation - I wished this had been the whole focus of the book.
#netgalley
Published 19th Sept in the UK.
#camplitsy24
Well, here it is….! Your final winning book of this year‘s camp is BEAR! 🐻
No huge surprise there, I don‘t think, but we did have some votes for The Alternatives too - Bear won by 27 votes to 6.
Look out for Barbara posting the final vote shortly… I‘m excited to see what we choose for our overall winner of #camplitsy24!
#camplitsy24
It‘s time to vote for your favourite book from August!
Will it be The Alternatives or Bear going up against Clear and James?! Let us know in the comments below ⬇️ with reasons why (if you want to!).
I‘ll announce the result once everyone has had the chance to vote, and then Barbara will be along with the vote for the overall favourite of #camplitsy24.
And our last question of #camplitsy24 for this year…. Let‘s talk about the ending of the book - what did you think?
Tomorrow we‘ll vote between Bear and The Alternatives and then Barbara will post shortly asking you for your #camplitsy24 favourite.
We hope you‘ve enjoyed August‘s books - thank you all for your valuable and insightful contributions! ❤️
#camplitsy24
This part of the discussion is all about the 🐻.
We looked at fairy tale elements last week, but do you think that the bear is ‘just‘ a bear or is it an allegory for something else or a particular message to the reader?
Do you think the events surrounding the bear would have actually played out like this in real life? (note that we'll discuss that ending in Q3)
#camplitsy24
Well, here we are in our last week of camp! 😢 Time to think about rolling up your sleeping bag, and exchanging friendship bracelets before we leave.
But not before we have a few more questions about Bear.
A few of us touched on this one last week - we only saw Sam‘s perspective throughout the book. Did you wish you could have seen Elena‘s POV too- and how would it have differed?
Here‘s my #booker #longlist in order of favourites (without Playground yet, of course). I actually enjoyed almost all of the list this year - only Held got a so-so.
I don‘t think this will be the judges‘ list - I think they‘ll have Orbital, Headshot and perhaps Wandering Stars in there.
I was torn between Creation Lake and TSEH for my final shortlist place - I think the Kushner is a bit more Booker-y which is why it won the spot in the end.
#booker #longlist 12/13
An odd book, but I rather liked it. ‘Sadie Smith‘ is a spy sent in to infiltrate a group of French provocateurs. Their shady leader, Bruno, sends emails to the group which Sadie becomes fascinated by. These emails are rather an excuse for the author to expound on topics such as pre-history, anthropology and philosophy but weirdly I didn‘t feel talked down to, unlike The Alternatives. It kept me hooked all the way ⬇️
#camplitsy24
‘They made magic. They were the girls at the center of a fairy tale, and they, along with their mother, would live in such bliss all their days‘
It‘s often said that this book is a fairy-tale retelling. Did you see that in this first half of the book? What elements from fairy tales were included?
#camplitsy24
Elena and Sam caring for their mother is a central part of the book - how has this impacted on their relationships with each other and with the wider community?
How do their caring roles differ? Who do you have the most sympathy for?
Welcome to our final book of #camplitsy24! But watch out, there‘s a 🐻 in camp!
As ever, if you‘ve read to the end please don‘t include any comments that may spoil it for others.
The book has a real sense of place on San Juan island in the Pacific Northwest - how did this influence the storyline and the sisters themselves?
Thanks for the tag Holly @Hooked_on_books 😘 and sorry I‘m so late @monalyisha !
It‘s going to take me another 10 minutes now to type this out as one is REALLY long. 🤣 I‘ll start with the shortest first, which also happens to be the one I read most recently, then working my way backwards from there…. 🤔
1. Thoroughbreds.
2. I come back to the apartment and find the worst thing in the world.
3. Elwood was a prefect, so his room that year was ⬇️
I was so torn as to whether to give this a pick or a so-so. I went into it expecting not to like it, as I didn‘t enjoy The Essex Serpent at all, which many say is the author‘s best.
There was nothing that I loved about it, but I didn‘t hate it either. I‘m glad I listened on audio as it just burbled away in the background whilst I was commuting, but then I could have skim-read more in print.
My biggest issue was that it still felt very ⬇️
I took my two Booker books back to the library and somehow came out with five more. 🤔
I mean, I definitely need more books to read because:
a. I don‘t have 300 unread books on my shelf at home. 🤪
b. I‘m not working 7 days a week right now, so I‘ve got plenty of time to read.🙄
Anyone read any of these? They were all on the ‘new in‘ shelf - fortunately I didn‘t get any further into the library than that! 🤣
#bookerlonglist 10/13
Loved this - it‘s up there at the top of my list with Stone Yard Devotional. I don‘t want to talk too much about the plot - you need to read it for yourself. I had a little inkling partway through but the denouement was still devastating.
Isabel lives a friendless, neurotic life alone in her family house in The Netherlands in the 1960s, until her brother‘s new girlfriend comes to stay while he is away, upending her life.
#bookerlonglist 9/13
As with There, There, this was a tough read although, I think because I knew what to expect in terms of the author‘s style, I found it a little easier to read.
I preferred the first half of the book - the more recent sections (based in the aftermath of the Powwow in There, There) became rather repetitive.
This will be borderline, I think, for my own personal shortlist although I can see why the judges may shortlist it.
#camplitsy24
That ending…! What did you think?! And what happens after that?
That brings to a close our discussions of The Alternatives. Thank you for joining Barbara, Meg and me.
We look forward to next week‘s book - make sure you don‘t leave any food about camp and keep an eye out for the BEAR! 🐻
#camplitsy24
Last week we explored each sister‘s background and working life.
Now that the sisters have met up and spent some time together how did you find them as a group? How did the family dynamics play out?
Did you change your mind about any of them as a result of learning more about them?
Hi all!
#camplitsy24
Welcome to the second week of our discussions on The Alternatives.
Some reviews have labelled the book as cli-fi - did you feel that? How big a part did climate or environmentalism in general play in the book?
How much of a role did worries about the climate or the future of the world have on Olwen‘s decision to leave? What about the other sisters - did it concern them?
Tomorrow we‘re finishing our discussion on The Alternatives and then, next week we start Bear! (I‘m a bit scared of a 🐻 in #camplitsy24! 😜)
The issue with this book is there are no chapter numbers so, the break point may be a tiny spoiler, but I think we all know there might be a bear involved!
Next weekend we‘ll discuss the first half of the book, to the chapter that ends ‘A bear beside her sister, close enough to walk over to and touch‘
#booker #longlist 8/13
I went into this expecting not to like it, based on other reviews and, indeed, it took me a while to get drawn in but soon I was engrossed. Dev lives alone in a remote cottage following the death of his mother, when his dodgy cousins turn up with a teenager in tow, who they‘ve kidnapped to pay off a drug debt.
I can‘t figure out (yet!) if I agree with those who say it isn‘t a Booker book - still mulling it over! 🤔
#booker #longlist 7/13
I liked this, but didn‘t love it.
I liked it for its unusual concept and style - following 8 girl boxers as they compete in Reno.
I didn‘t love it because there wasn‘t enough depth to make me care about the characters, and they all seemed to blend into one. It started well, but got rather repetitive as it went on.
I don‘t think it will make my personal shortlist but I think the judges might like it.
Hooray! The penultimate book that I needed from the Booker Longlist. 🎉
Only the Richard Powers to get now, but I requested that from NG back in May so I doubt I‘ll get it st this late stage. 🤷♀️
#booker #longlist #bookerlonglist
I finished this yesterday then saw @Deblovestoread Debra‘s review - which pretty much said everything I wanted to say! 🤣
Beautiful writing but it was a bit confusing with the chronological jumping around - it felt like a series of vignettes rather than one cohesive novel.
#booker #longlist
I have to say, though, there‘s always one impenetrable / opaque book on every book prize longlist, and if this is this year‘s then it‘s not so bad!
#bookerlonglist 5/13
I borrowed this from the digital library prior to the #bookerlonglist being announced, as it was strongly rumoured, but I found myself not wanting to start it.
Once it made the list and I *had* to read it 😜, well, I just couldn‘t put it down.
Based on a real-life incident at the Libyan Embassy in London in 1984 it follows the lives of 3 friends who are exiled in the UK as a result.
It tailed off ever so slightly ⬇️
#camplitsy24
Our final question for this week…. We look forward to joining together around the campfire again next week, for the second half of the book, where we‘ll hopefully get some answers as to what is happening!
Without giving away spoilers if you‘ve read to the end, why do you think Olwen left, and why so suddenly? Other than being worried about her, why do you think the sisters travel to find her?
#camplitsy24
The book has had mixed reviews so far, but hopefully not as polarising as All Fours! 🤣
This section, with all of its descriptions and expositions, is certainly a part of the book that some of us weren‘t sure about, but some of liked and felt we learned a lot.
What did you think of all of the sisters‘ different work backgrounds? How did this play into their roles as sisters?
Welcome to August at #camplitsy24! Hopefully your cabins are still neat and tidy and you haven‘t run out of marshmallows yet!
As ever, if you‘ve read to the end of the book, no spoilers please for those who are saving the second half for the upcoming week.
The first few chapters introduce us to all 4 sisters - did you enjoy learning about them all?
#camplitsy24
I‘m sure you‘re all as excited as we are to continue our discussions tomorrow on the craziness that is All Fours!
Here‘s just a little reminder that our third month of this summer‘s camp will be The Alternatives, followed by Bear.
Next Saturday, 3rd August, we‘ll discuss up to the end of Act One, Scene Two. (Don‘t worry if you‘ve just started and that‘s confusing - it starts with chapters and changes to a script part-way through!)
👏👏👏 to the team at Penguin for this marketing experience at the Crimewriting Festival!
Richard Osman‘s new book apparently takes place all over the world (one of the MCs is a bodyguard to very wealthy people) so they set up a chill-out area that was an airport lounge.
Free drinks are always welcome (!) and they had a passport Photo Booth, plus a newspaper with an exclusive sneak-peek of the new book. ❤️
Had a fabulous day at the Harrogate Crimewriting Festival yesterday. I saw 4 panel events plus Dorothy Koomson and Richard Osman, so over 20 authors in total.
I‘d read a lot of the authors‘ books beforehand and now I want to read even more - they were all fascinating people to listen to!
Bottom pic is the goody bag, and I bought 4 books, including Murder in Harrogate, published specially for this event.
I couldn‘t put this down! The Van Laars own a camp in the middle of the woods. In 1975 Barbara, their daughter, is missing from her camp bunk. 15 years earlier her brother, Bear, also went missing in the woods and was never found. Are the two disappearances connected?
I loved all of the characters (or loved to hate some of them!) and there were so many twists and turns, which I didn‘t see coming at all.
Highly recommended!
Further to my last post, this is another author at the Crime Festival and, from the blurb, I really wasn‘t sure.
Whew-ee though, this was a page-turner (or whatever the equivalent is on audio!). It‘s very gruesome, with a lot of VAW, which is difficult when you can‘t skim-read on audio, so be warned.
I just couldn‘t stop listening, and I‘m really looking forward to seeing the author now, on a panel called ‘From PI to AI‘
I‘ve been reading lots of crime, from authors speaking at the Crime Festival that I‘m going to in 3 weeks‘ time. That‘s the only reason I hesitate to give this one a so-so, because I‘m going to see them and I don‘t want them to hate me! 🤣
I mean, this was fine - just very slow (the lodger didn‘t even move in until around 25% through).
There were two twists at the end, neither of which I saw coming but one I appreciated and one I didn‘t.
I loved this book, about two high-school sweethearts who broke up due to a misunderstanding and meet again in their 60s.
I‘d highly recommend it, with only one caveat - the ending is really odd and should probably come with a trigger / content warning but can‘t say why, because spoiler.
Also, the UK cover just makes no sense - the book‘s about 60 year olds and this just doesn‘t relate at all. 🤷♀️
#bookhaul from our York meet-up. I went with the intention of buying Sandwich (hubby thought that was hilarious - that I intended to buy just *one* book!) and spotted this ARC in the Amnesty charity shop. Definitely need to go back there again as Moon Road and Evenings & Weekends were also ARCs, for just Qc each.
Tangled Vines is the Murdaugh murders story, and I‘m seeing the Redemption author speak at a Crime Festival in a few weeks‘ time.
Littens in their natural habitat!
This was such a fab bookshop, with friendly and knowledgeable staff.
Mainly crime, both fiction and NF but, as the staff explained, it‘s amazing how many books have crime in them!
Book haul to follow later, when I get home.
#trainreading
On my way to York to meet Trish, Emma and Katie for a bookshop crawl.
Pic is of Knaresborough (not Japan! 🤣) - book is really interesting NF having just finished reading Butter for #camplitsy.
@TrishB @Oryx @youneverarrived
Went for a walk today (up a big hill!) to Eas Mor waterfall. The ‘library‘ there is not a library in the traditional sense, although there are a few books there.
Instead, it‘s an emotional, beautiful, peaceful, library of thoughts and feelings , left by visitors.
Just arrived on the Isle of Arran for a real #camplitsy24 trip.
Within half an hour we were in a tiny bookshop, selling books set in and around the Scottish Isles. One isn‘t on Litsy - Night Falls on Ardnamurchan, about the end of a crofting family‘s lifestyle. Had to get a 🐿️ notebook too.
Our campsite is right on the beach and looks out to the uninhabited island of Ailsa Craig - does anyone else think it could be the island from Clear?!