Welcome to Litsy!

My students love these books -so we read them again this month 🤍🤍🤍 I‘m a so so on them -however seeing how excited they get when I read these stories aloud to them is pure joy .

Love this book and Mafi's writing!! She definitely brings all of her characters to life and adds such uniqueness to each of them. #TaherehMafi #whichwoodbook #fortheloveofreading #aliceinwonderland #feelings #ya

1. The Bees, Wise Man's Fear, The Phoenix Project (making slow progress)

2. Whichwood

3. Dahlias

#weekendreads @rachelsbrittain

A dark and delightful middle grade novel about a girl named Laylee whose magical abilities involve caring for the dead. We get to see some of our friends from Futhermore (since this takes place in the same universe), but I think I liked it even more. And I love the narrators very present voice. Great read!

1. Whichwood, Love in the Time of Cholera, and Black Leopard, Red Wolf

2. King of Scars, but that was more gold than yellow so maybe The Bride Test

3. Changes day to day (I love them all too much to decide), but I am feeling yellow this weekend

#weekendreads

Starting another library book tonight, and I love the way it looks with this bath bomb 😍

How very important and infuriating it is to have to remind a smart person not to be so stupid as to give up on themselves.

I'm falling in love with this world.

I love this book!!!!

Stumbled across this at the library today, but now I see that it's a second book in a series or a companion. Does anyone know if they need to be read in order?

For fans of The Graveyard Book and Coco. A girl who prepares the dead for the afterlife is in great danger. If she only allowed herself to be helped.

Dark and delightful.

Another lovely installment. I don‘t see any mention of more books in the series, but there were hints at future events so I‘m hopeful. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I‘m not surprised that Bronson Pinchot was awarded AudioFile earphones for this one. Working for that magazine was my inauguration into the world of audiobooks, and I‘ve never had a more immersive education about an industry. My appreciation for narration wouldn‘t be what it is without that experience. I expected to dislike his portrayal of Madarjoon but I keep catching myself snort-laughing at how over-the-top he takes it. And she‘s got zingers!

Folks who got hard copies/ebooks for this one, might someone be willing to take a moment and tell me how the Whichwoodians‘ names besides Laylee are spelled?? I‘m listening to the audio and there are some great lines of dialog, but I don‘t want to misspell the names in quotes and can‘t find them online without potential spoilers 😬 I‘d be so grateful 😊 #LittenHelpline

“His hand on her arm, her gaze strange and frightening in the moonlight, and wondered whether Oliver had lost the whole of his mind. After all, her body was her own business, and she‘d not told him he could touch her.” Yessssssss, thank you for addressing consent and bodily autonomy for youth! 🙌🏼🙌🏼🙌🏼 #consentmatters #consentissexy #metoo

“To be fair, Laylee resented many things, not the least of which was her lot in life but winter was the thing she resented perhaps most of all.” I think I‘ve found a kindred spirit.
So lovely to be back in the gorgeous world Tahereh Mari seduced me into with Furthermore. #audiobook #fantasy #WeNeedDiverseBooks

I really enjoyed both of the books in this series. This one was a lot darker then the first, as it focuses on a girl who prepares the dead for the afterlife. A few familiar characters from 'Furthermore' reprise their roles, and the themes are of friendship and being true to yourself. I'd highly recommend the audio books, as the narrator adds a lot to the story. I hope Mafi does a third book in this world, as is love to see more.

Mafi delivers again with a lyrical, creative world with magical characters. I do so love the easy conversational tone between the narrator and the reader. The gore could be downright disturbing at times and that, sadly, tarnished my overall enjoyment of the book. I would absolutely look forward to more adventures in the magical worlds surrounding Whichwood!

What a wonderful book. It was great to revisit characters from Furthermore but even better to be introduced to the enigmatic Laylee Layla Fenjoon.

This story of a girl who washes dead bodies and on the edge of despair is heartbreaking but fun and uplifting at the same time. It doesn‘t have the feel of a middle grade but I enjoyed the characters and Mafi makes such vivid worlds and the magic described is amazing. I loved this one a little bit more than Furthermore but both novels about girls struggling to make their own happiness any way they can are some of the best books I‘ve ever read.

Because somehow, even with the encumbrance of such an unfortunate and isolating occupation, she walked through darkness with elegance, navigating the corridors of life and death with a confidence he'd always secretly longed for.

Such a dark, brutal, and beautiful little book. Heartbreaking and breathtaking. A vivid and imaginative tale that I enjoyed even more than Furthermore.

In this companion to Furthermore, we meet Oliver and Alice on their mission to help a girl called Laylee. She is the only one of her people who takes care of their dead and therefore desperately lonely. The story is beautifully told and I‘m so glad I listened to the audiobook.

Tahereh Mari is one of my auto-buy authors. Her writing is phenomenal! Got my copy of Whichwood and the cover is stunning!! I can't wait to read it. My Shatter Me Series and Furthermore are signed by Tahereh. Whichwood is the only Tahereh book I own that is not signed (hint, hint). #taherehmafi #whichwood #whichwoodrelease #readerslife

It's so beautiful! Can not wait to dive in!

Got this beautiful book in recently and can‘t wait to read it! #bookmail #tbr #whichwood

Our ARC of WHICHWOOD came in a lovely box with rose petals. Fancy!

Gah! In love. There are bits of beauty in here. I think this book arrived for me at the perfect time. #whichwood #love #myheart

I couldn't get into this book, and a bulk of that is my own fault. I didn't realize it was middle grade versus YA. The story is good, and the writing is lovely, but overall I just never clicked with it. The main girl bounced around the place so much she bordered on a Mary Sue, and I felt like things were never fully explained. A pseudo almost ghost story with a touch of magic, it's a fast read with a gorgeous cover.

FURTHERMORE is one of my favorite books. I think Tahereh Mafi's middle grade books are especially wonderful. WHICHWOOD is a perfect companion to FURTHERMORE. The writing is so beautiful and I genuinely hope she writes MANY more books about this magical world.

I'm so excited to read this book! I've never read anything by this author but I've met her and she's amazing! I've only heard good things about her books!

It's safe to say that I'm obsessed with the cover for Whichwood so here's another photo. 😌🌹❄️ #Whichwood #TaherehMafi

IT'S SO BEAUTIFUL. 😭😍🌹❄️ #Whichwood #TaherehMafi

Laylee had little patience for sadness, and though deep down she felt a great deal of pain, she much preferred to be angry.

WHICHWOOD arrived at the bookstore the other day and I snatched it up so fast I almost hurt my arm. I've wanted to read it since Tahereh Mafi first mentioned writing about a Persian girl who washed the bodies of the dead. In thrilled to have it in my hand - and thrilled with its gorgeous cover! Will you be reading WHICHWOOD?