Welcome to Litsy!

Shoddy little noir 'really about' the father-mother-daughter dynamic, turns out as a male fantasy either way. Diverting, possibly worth the dollar I paid for it at Dollar Tree ...

A weird story about how a girl came to be. How a man came to be obsessed. And how their stories interact.

Display replenishments today! The top book is for #1stInASeries. The bottom two are for #SelfImprovement. The other two for #White.

Have you read any of these?!

#LitsyLovesLibraries #MrBooksDisplays

I LOVED this book. I could not put it down. Stressful, tight, sparsely worded but in the best possible way.

Not at all what I was expecting. But at least it was short!

I‘m glad that this book was super short because I honestly didn‘t like it. It was all very the place and it just took too long for things to come together. It was superficial, which was intentional I believe, but it felt like it really had no depth or satisfaction in it. Just not a fan of the writing or the content. #goodreadsgiveaways

I sorta liked this story of the Breaks tone Family, but none of the characters are developed much, little dialouge...the story is simple and straight forward, not much intrigue.
Strange...unsettling....might not recommend to everyone. Not bad, but nothing innovative.

For me the overall effect of this one was meh. It had me totally gripped for a moment in the middle, but then it lost some of it‘s force. Heather and Bobby were for my the more interesting characters, and I found myself annoyed and more than a little bored with Mark and Karen as the end approached. It‘s interesting, but ultimately a little unsatisfying.

Karen and Mark live a comfortable life that is completely centered around their daughter Heather. Then Heather becomes an attractive teenager and her parents are less important to her. They don‘t know how to deal with this new reality. An interesting plot but Weiner wrote a book without dialogue, just a recitation of people doing or thinking things. He can‘t expect his readers to feel anything after finishing this cold story.

Compelling novella from the creator of Mad Men. Quite a different style but I enjoyed it albeit with a sense of dread. My son read it in one sitting this afternoon.

4⭐️ because it is a quick, engaging read

I really enjoyed this. It was punchy, short, and clinical in its presentation of wealth in today‘s society. I can see why some won‘t like it. But if you go in knowing it‘s a novella - no beautifully crafted prose here - then you might be pleasantly surprised.

I‘m going in! Reviews are very mixed but it‘s short and, well 🤷🏼‍♀️Mad Men.

What?

I felt a bit wary to read this book because of the low ratings and reviews, but I HAD to read it anyway, because, Mad Men! MM is my favorite show of all time and I'm struck with every rewatch (currently on 6 now) what a genius Matt Weiner is. So I felt I had to give this book a chance. I'm so glad I did! It's short but for me it was very compelling and not what I was expecting, in a good way. Not everyone's cup of tea for sure, but TBC 👇🏻

Body fuel. Brain fuel. Liked both books but really was intrigued and struck by the structure of Heather the Totality.

This novella is blunt and affectless in the way it contrasts privilege and the absence of it. Tension is built effectively, quickly yet steadily throughout. Weiner is scathing in his critique of the pursuit of perfection, the facades we make for our lives, and the culture of competitive comparison that rules so many of our social interactions. It‘s true brilliance is as a portrait of isolation and ego within familial relationships.

“...Some disease of wealth that had turned them into half-people with coffee machines and cash registers where their hearts should be.”

Oh yes, this is biting already, I‘m feeling good about it.

Up next something much shorter and hopefully much more direct.

Nope...

This is tough, as a book, this is too short. I read it all in less than an hour. As a short story, it is good. It has a tight story and a believable conclusion. 1/2 this book is a prequel to the last quarter of the book learning about Heather and her parents vs Bobbie and his life. I am torn as this is not a book and I would say library it, but it is an ok novella. I‘ve read way creepier such as You.

I‘d have finished this before work if we hadn‘t gotten slammed with people; I‘m not sure if it‘s a pick because it‘s a pick, or just because it wasn‘t mediocre enough to be a so-so. With its terse prose and sense of immediacy, it reads more like snapshots of moments that add up to a whole than a novel, but still, not terrible. #heatherthetotality #matthewweiner

Someone just returned this, and it looks like a read I can finish before I leave today. (I got called into work for a few hours, which is great because I can make up most of the hours I missed when I left on Friday.) But it looks quick, and so why not scoop it up for a bit? #heatherthetotality #matthewweiner

I had the benefit of having low expectations when I read this book. A fellow Litten had rated the book so so and said it read more like a screenplay. I read the book anyway because I am a huge Madmen fan. She was right. I found the story choppy but enjoyed it none the less.

Well that was.. dark. A quick read, but not really any depth.. and the ending just falls right off without anything.. 🍭🍭.. on a better note, here‘s Geoffrey sleeping 😌 #catsoflitsy

Finishing these and then I‘ll do something productive 😁🤷🏻‍♀️ #bookandabeer

Starting this (should be) quick one on my lunch break 😊

Started listening to this on Audio tonight waiting for my son to finish basketball practice. I was a huge Madmen fan so I hope this is good.

It was ok. Quick read ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 1/2

This book felt more like a short story. It was not long and very singular in focus and idea. The main girl was veering toward manic pixie land, but the plot was well written.

Iced chai + a revelatory avocado toast with garlic aioli and garlic flakes and cilantro and acid and garlic oil and I‘m in love 😍. Trying to finish this book up for book club Monday. It‘s only like 150 pages but... I am having a HARD time.

Look at this light! Love it.

Lunch was delicious and this book is creepyyy.

Blackened catfish po boy, fried okra, and fries tonight! We took the beignets home 😍.

This was our book club pick for December. I have mixed feelings because I am liking the story but disgusted by the author. I am hoping to have a fiery discussion about all the sexual harassment and assault accusations going around today and how this affects the way we do (and should) consume entertainment (like this book!).

I just finished Heather, The Totality, and don‘t think I have a complete review of my feelings on this yet. It felt more like a film storyboard than anything else.

Day 2
Shortest Book of the Year #allthebooksof2017
http://bronasbooks.blogspot.com.au/2017/10/heather-totality-by-matthew-weiner.ht...

Well, it's my lucky day. Not only did I get a fantastic #totebagswap, I got my goodreads win. And wow, is this a short book.

This book could have been so much more. The downward spiral of this family makes for an interesting story, but it felt as if it wasn‘t complete. Almost like an outline for a story.

I have heard good things and bad things about this so I‘m giving it a try. I will say this much. At $25 for 134 pages, I‘m glad the bookstore I manage has a lending policy

2/5 stars

The word “coffee” comes up 23 times in this 138 page book, making the 9 times “pulling a face” came up in the 582 pages of The Heart‘s Invisible Furies” seem not quite as excessive as it seemed when I was reading that book. It also makes my current beverage choice feel very appropriate. #bookandcoffee

Really love this #cozyreaderclub #subscriptionbox! Highly recommend

I don‘t know if I just went in with expectations that were too high because Matthew Weiner is the creator of Mad Men. I love that show and was so excited to read his first book. But it felt unfinished. Like it was the outline for a larger novel either a Mad Men feel. In the end, I just felt underwhelmed and like I‘d missed out on a better, longer story. It had more potential.

A peculiar book. Flat, affectless prose that is entirely expository. Perhaps it's a grim satire of #richpeopleproblems & an aspirational life lived entirely on the surface, like life reduced to FB status updates. Or maybe the real horror of the novel is the male gaze & how it works to produce violence; how the gaze of the adoring father & the obsessed creep exists on a continuum. Weiner's prose lacks beauty & nuance & irony. It's hard to tell.

😩💔

Mark knew that he wanted to be a grandfather and of course see her happily married, but she would eventually be out of his life one way or another and he became too preoccupied with the near future that he feared he was wasting their special weekend days together by taking too many pictures and reminiscing about moments even as they were happening.