Welcome to Litsy!

Alternate histories are always a gamble, especially as a reader who loves history. But Sittenfeld continues to be able to do no wrong. She‘s pitched these characters perfectly, so that although we know this story is a could have been it still feels authentic and possible. moments are a little bit didactic about what it‘s trying to say about feminism, and politics, but in the end that didn‘t make it any less of an engaging read for me.

Rodham imagines what might have been had Hillary Clinton never married Bill. Hillary gets her due, Bill suffers suitably and Trump, well, he makes a slithery appearance. The book is divided into 3 parts: the Yale school dating Bill years; 1990s senator Hillary; 2015 race for the Democratic ticket. I was into parts 1& 2 but part 3 lost me. It started to read less like a complicated story about a complicated woman and more like wish fulfillment. 👇

Reading on the verandah with a big ol' moon shining down.

Off work for 2 and a bit weeks 😁 warming up my reading muscles with Curtis. Got this after I really enjoyed Romantic Comedy for #camplitsy

Portraits in orange! (Couldn't resist pairing my #doublepin with my daughter's most recent painting.)
I bought this book when it came out and have avoided it ever since. But the time has come to read it! Excited to see where it falls on my Sittenfeld scale. (Please be better than Romantic Comedy! 🤞)
@TheAromaofBooks

Rodham offers fascinating insight into Hillary‘s mind – or at least Sittenfeld‘s informed best-guess about it. The first-person point of view doubles the effect. It‘s shockingly intimate, even quite horny at times. I found it difficult to force myself to forget that Rodham is about a real person, and that she might have read this imagined version of her own life. Full review: https://keepingupwiththepenguins.com/rodham-curtis-sittenfeld/

This was a fun read that speculates on what might have happened if Hillary hadn't married Bill. I enjoyed the way the plot included flashbacks whether than being chronological.

I actually loved this!

A very interesting premise (what if Hillary didn't marry Bill) and the story was actually a lot of fun to read. It just feels like a richly detailed narrative with fun Easter eggs of reality sprinkled throughout.

I really enjoyed this take on Hilary's life if she hadn't married Bill. It doesn't paint Bill in a particularly good way, but with Hilary I thought it was interesting. The mentions of Trump in it were quite funny.

There was a feeling I got before I spoke in front of an audience and sometimes also before an event that was less public but still important, an event that could have consequences in my life- taking the LASTs, for example, which I'd done in a classroom on the campus of Harvard.

#FirstLineFridays @ShyBookOwl

Novel proposing a counterfactual life for Hillary Rodham (and the world, really) if she hadn‘t married Bill Clinton. I enjoyed it more than I expected—there are some fun twists and examinations of the (good and bad) consequences of some of her decisions. I also liked being in character Hillary‘s head and getting her “real” reactions to people and situations in addition to public statements. Warning: there are a lot of Bill Clinton sex scenes… 😬

Starting this next on #cloudlibrary I need an audio to block out the noise of a loud TV while I'm taking care of my Mom after having some minor surgery. I can get caught up on work and read at the same time!

This was my first alternative history read, and I did enjoy it! Reimagining what Hillary‘s life would have been like had she not married Bill was an interesting premise, and I think the author did a nice job weaving fact and fiction. But truthfully, I could‘ve done without the sex scenes. Not because I‘m a prude or anything, but because Bill Clinton. 😂

#bookspinbingo

I found this book to be cringy. I was really looking forward to it after reading American Wife years ago and I liked that AW was based loosely on the Bush‘s but names were changed. I hated that Hillary & Bill‘s names were not changed and I thought it was unsettling to say the least.

The book imagines what might have happened if Hillary had not married Bill. The first half had me completely confused; I genuinely kept forgetting I wasn‘t reading Hillary Clinton‘s autobiography. I just felt completely muddled. Then halfway through off it swerved and I loved it. Overall a clever if slightly crazy read although I‘m a bit nervous this narrative might now get muddled up in my mind with what is actually real 😆

Some great Kindle deals on today! 😀 #99ponkindle #kindledailydeals

Overall, this was a frustrating reading experience. The writing style, the characterization, the white feminist undertones, and the disregard of the role of white supremacy and nationalism that played into the 2016 election made Rodham really unpleasant for me. Ultimately, I‘m not sure if this book really needed to exist. Check out my full review: https://amysbookreviews.com/2021/05/15/rodham-by-curtis-sittenfeld-review/

Listening to my first Curtis Sittenfeld book. Narration is great. I was intrigued on where this book would lead on the alternate life of Hillary without Bill.

Not the right book tagged because this doesn‘t seem to be in the database. It‘s always nice to visit Sittenfeld‘s literary world, but I came away from this thinking that I missed something somewhere.

Finished the tagged while doing some knitting that required less attention. Time to get back to my sweater.

Author tackles alternative history: What if Hillary Rodham didn‘t get married? Carries with it questions about double standards and society‘s expectations of women.

I was surprised to find this available on Libby last night and snagged it right away.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
I really enjoyed this journey in an alternate universe where Hillary and Bill never got married. It was a bit slow u til the post Bill years. The last portion was by far my favorite part of this book. I did not expect many of the plot points Sittenfeld Gad and enjoyed her weaving reality and fiction throughout. #read2021

#BookReport 02/21

Another satisfying reading week. Except for The Topeka School, which I didn‘t get into, they were great reads. So I‘m happy 🤍

Finally got chance to finish, apart from the very toe curling sex scenes in the beginning, I was hooked on this. Some of the commentary about the casual sexism when she was younger hit home.
I do wonder what they would both make of the book? And why Bill still comes out of everything smelling of roses.

Just sitting down to read after logging off finally 😞
Trouble is Numan has dropped a new single (I‘m told that‘s the right vernacular) and I‘m 13 again

https://youtu.be/-RxebQuFgJY
Just in case, it‘s good stuff 😁

Starting tonight 🐶♥️

#WeekendReads @rachelsbrittain
1.Currently reading Rodham, surprisingly good!I didn't think I would be interested but it's compelling and oddly moving.She makes Bill Clinton sound quite irresistible!
2.I think Enid Blytons I read when I was a kid have some nice lessons-girls can do it all,kindness to people not like you,most importantly,never be a snitch!😂
3.Dying to read Black Buck by Mateo Askaripour!
Have a good weekend!

In an alternate universe, Hillary doesn‘t marry Bill Clinton but remains Hillary Rodham. Liberated from his ambitions and sexual extremities, she can create her own path and follow her own ambitions.

I kept wondering what was true and what was fiction. Hillary felt so real! The one downside for me was the namedropping (a lot!) of politicians I never heard of.
⬇️⬇️ #bookspin #pop20 A book everyone seems to have read

I seriously loved this book! The author wrote it so well I lost track between fact and fiction all the time. Her Trump dialogue was CRAZY accurate. I also want to say the paper used in printing this book is outstanding

Honestly my NYE isn‘t really any different cuz it‘s 2020, maybe I should try harder next year 🤷🏻‍♀️I am really enjoying this book but it‘s so intermingled with truth that I forget it‘s fiction

Thank you Cindy 😘😘 for my birthday goodies! Opening books anytime is awesome and look at all these 😁
So glad we finally got to meet this year, especially given what‘s happened since! ❤️❤️ xxx

Uggghhhhh I really wanted to just be completely and totally immersed in this one. Hillary has long been one of my idols and the premise of this book is so intriguing. However I hate how she is written as a flat cardboard character with little to no personality. It‘s annoying enough when this happens in books with fictional characters. But to do this to someone who actually exists? It‘s hard to look past. Maybe someday I‘ll pick this back up again

Day 5. In this alternative history, Sittenfield explores what could have happened if Hilary Rodham turned down Bill Clinton's second marriage proposal. There is a lot of in depth discussion of American politics and systems which my Brit brain found a little confusing. But the character development and prose overshadows that slight niggle. #12Booksof2020

Thanks to @Andrew65 for hosting.

New day, new book ( I like how Curtis Sittenfield writes)

Finally diving in to this beauty!

Let‘s hope I can finish this #BookSpin by the end of the month!!

In this intriguing novel, the author explores what Hillary might have done with her life if she had turned down Bill‘s marriage proposal. The alternative universe Hillary still gets involved in politics, but it‘s the other smaller details that make the story so interesting. Sittenfeld is great, as always, at writing ambitious and complicated women.

Luckily I had my guard dog with me during this #audiowalk as I was rather distracted by the book. #grateful

Almost a pick, but fell a bit short. Summary: First 1/3, cringey sex scenes that made me a bit squeamish (seriously, does ANYONE really need a mental image of a naked Bill Clinton playing the saxophone while having sex?); middle part is a bit “meh”; circa page 400 it‘s WHOA, I did not see THAT plot twist coming. I‘d give it 3/5 stars.

Imaging how these alternative-reality presidencies might have gone is helping to distract me from the 2020 Election Day-That-Seemingly-Will-Never-End. 😖

My working-the-polls rebellion read. #vote

I am really enjoying this alternate history of Hillary Rodham Clinton‘s life and career. Can‘t wait to see how it turns out!

Finally put the time in this weekend to finish this. And it is a very clever premise, well executed, but which I appreciate more now it‘s over as I spent a lot of the final section being *very* anxious about how it was going to end and what was going to happen. Now I want to go back and read it again.

A fascinating premise well executed.

Spotted in one of my favorite Indie bookstores 😁

A “what might have been” if Hillary didn‘t marry Bill. I liked this fictionalized Hillary, and was super entertained by how Bill‘s life turned out as well.

This is a #blameitonlitsy read so let the fun begin.

Just couldn't get into it at all. I think I'll pick up her autobiography instead

I've had this book on hold forever and it finally came in today! 💖📚 #librarylove

Next from the to-read pile...