Welcome to Litsy!

What a mess.

Note: Even if you frame your book with 20 pages of “Here is a manuscript found written by a crazy suicidal guy and is therefore a mess,” you do not get a pass if you write a book that‘s a mess that seems like it was written by a crazy suicidal guy.

Especially when the climax occurs off-screen.

Playing catch up: black and white for @candority 🖤🖤🖤 #bookcolortag

Trying to finish this by Monday for a book club but not so sure. I feel like this is one that I need to take my time reading to understand it better. Thoughts from those who've read it?

A great way to start a weekend

DAY 1: #shelfie #riotgrams

Bought these beauties with my second place fantasy football winnings. 🙌🏻🏈🥈💰 #bookmail #tbr

At our happy place @TheBookmarkPR in an attempt to avoid thinking about our fresh electric power woes: during yesterday's wind storm the power started flickering and now half our house (the half not affected last time) is at half power -- lights dim and flickering, refrigerator on but not cooling... Sigh. Let's hope the electrician can fix it, and that it stays fixed for more than 2 weeks. 😬

"Hystopia" is an unusual combination of alternate history, war story and serial killer thriller. JFK has established an unstable program titled Psych Corps in Michigan to help Vietnam veterans handle the trauma of war. "Hystopia" is an unique concept & has the narrative propulsion that could easily be termed cinematic. The book rises above entertainment through the complexity of the characters and the violence and unrest both foreign and domestic.

What a great cover!

SUBJECT TO CHANGE. Given my current response I can imagine something clicking one way or another soon but currently this feels like the definition of so-so. There are stunning moments and characters and some gorgeous prose but on the whole it feels really uneven and when I finished I just felt very 'meh'. Mixed bag

When we're in the city, books happen.

Slowly but surely getting through this, not quite sure how I feel

Time to get my read on!

Very slowly making way through this for sight reading homework. Proving an interesting experience!

First Litsy post! Excited to join this book community. I started David Mean's HYSTOPIA the other day, and it's definitely something different.

This story is a book within a book, but that's really only the beginning of what seems to be a weird and twisted (but awesome) book. I've seen HYSTOPIA compared to one of my favorites, CATCH-22, so I'm curious to see how this plays out.

And so it begins! Slight trepidation given the mixed reviews but marmite books are always interesting!

I had moments of liking this book, but just moments. Overall, it felt like too much, too many effects it was trying to create, too much zaniness. I didn't care enough.

Which of these two next Litsy friends? Any preferences?

Booker long list #12. I'm a little nervous about this one, tbh.

Our Man Booker Prize 2016 judges on Hystopia by David Means…

‘Hystopia is a dazzling, muscular debut about conflict, trauma and the savage irony of the twentieth century.‘

Which longlisted book are you reading?

#ManBooker2016 #FinestFiction

Our Man Booker Prize 2016 judges on Hystopia by David Means…

‘Hystopia is a dazzling, muscular debut about conflict, trauma and the savage irony of the twentieth century.‘

Which longlisted book are you reading?

#ManBooker2016 #FinestFiction

Our Man Booker Prize 2016 judges on Hystopia by David Means…

‘Hystopia is a dazzling, muscular debut about conflict, trauma and the savage irony of the twentieth century.‘

Which longlisted book are you reading?

#ManBooker2016 #FinestFiction

#bookhaul as we reach the end of #augustphotochallenge

Writing style (a novel within a novel with two main stories) completely corresponds to the content (an alternative history, the consequences of the war, amnesia, pills, visions, violence) and this style doesn't fit me, although I understand why the author decided to use it. I appreciate the idea behind the book and recommend it to all who enjoy reading challenging books (in terms of the form and content). It's quite psychedelic book.

So. Much. Killing. Disgusting. Another author to avoid. I made it halfway and wish I hadn't.

Not an easy read and at times not exactly enjoyable. But incredibly original and quite clever in what it was able to achieve. A worthy nominee for the Longlist. See our panel reviews and where it ranks for us:

https://thereadersroom.org/2016/08/26/2016-man-booker-hystopia-by-david-means/

This is hard for me to rate because I appreciate it more than I actually enjoyed reading it.

It‘s a complex, mindfuck of a novel that pays homage to postmodernist fiction from the late 20th century.

I can‘t say I fully understand it, but I can tell you that it evoked deep emotions in me anyway. It confronts heavy themes, from war trauma and mental illness to grief and love, leaving us to question the depths of our own resilience. #ManBooker2016

My reading buddy is helping me through this mind fuck of a book. 😜 #catsoflitsy

Having finished Barkskins about a week ago, here I am reading about lumber mills in Michigan. Again. 😂

Currently trying to read but having a hard time

Thirty pages in and already this one seems like it's going to be HEAVY on the postmodernism. Luckily, I'm a fan of postmodernism, so bring it on.

This was a quick attempt for the Man Booker. Not a book I would have ever picked up based on description and not one I care to finish. It might be your thing but it isn't for me.

#TBRTuesday - several that I'm hoping to get to soon!

Did I imagine my fate was ahead of me? You bet I did. Did I stand there at dawn, a Nam dawn creeping across our weary faces and fleshing out the colors in the jungle, and imagine my death? You bet. Because what else could we do between firefights but try to foresee the possibilities at hand, all of them, including our own deaths?

Two more Man Booker longlist titles scored from the library

Book number 4 in my way through the 2016 Man Booker Longlist will be: Hystopia by David Means. Have you read it? What did you think? I am currently reading (and loving) Work like any other. We will start posting reviews for our books next week!

LOVED THIS BOOK.

So excited that my Librarian's Book Club books came in today!

So this book is bonkers. If you like trippy war novels, alternate history, and a flat-out brilliant premise, this book is for you!