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How fascinating!!! The books I decided to read next are very similar in theme. Two books of a person of Color who has a decision to make - to be someone they're not to get what they humanely deserve or to stay true to their heritage and family history.

A 'meh' book if ever I read one. Didn't get a sense of time or place from this & found the plot a little sparse. Both mother & daughter were fairly unlikeable & I wasn't really invested in their relationship. There's a lot of ideas in this novel but they feel underdeveloped & messy. Haiti section was better but all too brief. Tone of writing suggests profundity but I failed to grasp it. Liked the ending though & some lovely lines re: childbirth.

Today's read. So far this year my reading pace has been very slow (for me.) I haven't even been managing a book a week. My BUYING pace however is like greased lightning!

Libertie is a historical novel about a young Black woman coming of age in the Reconstruction era. There is not only beautiful prose in this novel but rich historical research.
I highly recommend this beautiful and thought provoking novel for everyone including historical fiction fans and book clubs.
4 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The beginning and the end of this book were very good. I struggled with the middle. The story seemed to go off on tangents. I loved reading about the traditions and superstitions of Haiti. This author certainly has a way with words. She did a great job on her debut novel.

This book got a lot of buzz last year when it was released so I was curious to read it. I really wanted to enjoy this story of a female doctor in the 1860s and her daughter, the narrator and titular character. It‘s really Libertie‘s story as she struggles in finding her place in the world- taking her from NY to OH and Haiti. But I didn‘t connect as deeply with any of the characters as I had hoped to… but I think it‘s a discussion starter!

I wanted to like this more than I did. Although there were sections I loved, I felt I couldn‘t really sink my teeth into it. #ToB2022

It took me a while to adjust to the pacing. Initially, it felt like too much attention was being given to seemingly minor details. Once I realized those details make up the story, it started to come together for me. Libertie chafes against a lot: her mother, school, her husband, any expectation at all. But she is also unapologetic in her belief that she is deserving of total freedom. A radical position! Not my pick for #tob but glad I read it.

How‘s this for something eerie? Esther and I were #audiowalking when I spotted a penny in the street. Picked it up and the narration mentioned a penny right as I slipped the coin into my pocket! #tob2022 #tryingthisagain Can‘t say I am fond of 11 yo Libertie so she better grow up soon.

“...in birth is the freest you can be. You do not have to take your leave of anyone or do anything for anyone. You are even free of deciding for your body how it will go---it is deciding for you.“

This was definitely my experience giving birth at home. (Not so much my experience giving birth in the hospital, although in the end, there were even elements of freedom there, despite the attempts of the system to control me and my body.)

This book confused me for a long time. The way the characters related to each other seemed strange, and their motivations didn't make sense to me. I thought my review would be that along with praise for the rich settings Greenidge weaves. But when I got to the last chapter, everything felt like it fell into place. It's not often that I read a novel like that, where things feel opaque only to come clear at the end. It's quite satisfying. #ToB2022

Camille helped me take photos of my #gettbr delivery. In case you can't see through my cat, the titles are Crying in H Mart, Ophie's Ghosts, and Libertie. That last I actually started on audio mere hours before the postal carrier delivered the box of books, which was a fun coincidence.

This 100 miles in January goal to raise $$ for cancer research has me blowing through the audiobooks! This one was good, a bit slow at first but the prose was so gorgeous it kept me listening. Mother daughter relationships are so layered and emotionally charged and this book explores that in depth while also considering slavery, colorism, love and pain. Roxane Gay called it a must read and she was right! #BIPOC #BookspinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

I really wanted to love it. Liberties mother is a doctor in Brooklyn.Free black women in kings county reconstruction era.While the writing is beautiful, and it spins a tale different from most in the time period, I wanted Libertie not to still struggle so much under others expectations. She only came alive for me when she fell in love with music when away at school. This was my #bookspin this month .

Another #tob book that just didn‘t work for me. This story about a freeborn black girl (then woman) with a doctor for a mother around the time of the Civil War should‘ve been right up my alley. But I never felt a connection with Libertie or her choices.

#tob22 #tob2022

This kept me reading but never fully came together for me. The storyline and the relationships between the characters just felt a little choppy, although I didn‘t mind the second half of the book as much as some others. The Haiti parts were interesting and I would have liked to have gone deeper there. Maybe the author just tried to do too much and it felt like skimming.

Book 4 of #TOB22 done! Got a ways to go 😅

Libertie is my #bookspin Crusader for Justice my #doublespin

I enjoyed learning about the African American celebration of Pinkster (roughly based on Pentecost) and Fèt Gede in Haiti. But similar to Greenidge‘s debut, which I also read for #ToB, I found the narrative a little too scattered for my tastes. I prefer the historical fiction I read to be more focused and immersive. The voice of Libertie, while an interesting character,felt a bit too modern to me, right or wrong. #ToB2022

Read for #tob22 #tournamentofbooks and I‘m sad to say it wasn‘t a great one for me. Historical fiction isn‘t my genre, so it‘s partially on me but I just felt like I was trudging toward the end. I will say, the narration was great in the audiobook and the character development was a high point.

One of the few times I disagree with one of Roxane Gay‘s recommendations. This was one of her book club books earlier this year, but I had a very difficult time staying engaged with the story. I‘m just glad to finally finish it.

#tob22 #tobshortlist

#BookReport 50/21

Two disappointing #tob22 reads but Fresh Water for Flowers made up for that ❤️❤️

There seems to be a very mixed response to this bk but I really enjoyed it. I heard the author on the virago podcast then saw her bk in the library so decided to give it a go. Libertie, dtr of a black female Dr in civil war UsA, grows up with weight of her mother's high expectations and her life story covers the war, university, and marriage in Haiti. I understand the qualms but I found Libertie a fascinating character and this a very readable bk.

Life is too short to read books you‘re not enjoying, even if they‘re on the #ToBshortlist! I skipped this when it came out, and that was the right choice. Bailed on #audiobook at 41%.

This book started out strong with the arrival of Ben Daisy in Libertie‘s live, a liberated slave who keeps searching for the lost love of his life. Libertie is small at the time. When she grows up she goes to college in Ohio. When she is grown up she marries the Haitian Emmanuel and follows him to his country. The story loses pace however and I found it hard to stay engaged. In the end I was just glad I was finished, I‘m sorry to say. #ToB22

I have to put this aside and try again later; just can‘t seem to get into it.
#tob2022
(Anyone else on Untappd?)

I liked the first part of this, although I think I might have liked a book about Libertie's mother even more. But I think the last half of the book was too rushed. I wanted more time spent fleshing out the characters in Haiti. #tob21

@mdm139 Ironically look what my daughter just walked in the door with!

Pictures alongside my next book for #tob22 #tobshortlist

I feel like this book hit some really high notes but also reached some low notes, too. A soft pick buoyed by fantastic narration. A coming of age story set post civil war, Libertie is raised by her mother, one of the first black women‘s doctor in NYC taught to behold her mind over her body. This book touches on feminism, freedom, family,success, colorism, sexuality, magic, medicine, education,mental health, marriage and religion. #ToB22ShortList

At 75% I‘m much more captivated with this novel. The first half was ok, at times disengaging but once Emanuel Chase makes his appearance, the story picks up….it also gets a little steamy 😉 Narration is very good. #ToB22ShortList #Hoopla

#HooplaAudio #ToB22ShortList Enjoying the narration & story 🎧A freed black woman who practices medicine in NY, in the 1800‘s and her daughter & apprentice Libertie. Gorgeous cover 😍

Libertie grows up free at the side of her mother, a doctor who can pass for white, and who plans to groom Libertie to join her in practice. This is a novel of family, expectations, and failures to communicate, as Libertie and her mother don‘t quite see one another clearly. I enjoyed seeing this part of history through Libertie‘s eyes, but found the book a little forgettable, so a soft pick for me.

I loved this novel, told from an unusual perspective; Libertie is a black girl who comes of age at the end of the American Civil War, but who was not from an enslaved family.

I didn‘t realise until afterwards that both Libertie and her mother are based on real people; Libertie‘s mother is a famous women‘s doctor.

I‘m pleased that this book has made the #ToBshortlist. Fab cover too!

Please tag anyone else who is playing along with #ToB.

Thank you so much, @GirlMeetsBook for the lovely birthday #bookmail! Looking forward to getting started on this one. #LitsyPenPals are the best (even though I suck majorly lately).

FriYay‘s book and noms pairing of Libertie with burrito, street corn, and oh so tart prickly pear limeade.

Recently read and really enjoyed this book- it‘s on Kindle sale today for $2.99

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08GFN3PX4/ref=nodl_?ascsubtag=amzn1.ideas.3J94XXYSQO5...

I have been in a slump of sorts—in that I have been ready very slowly and only able to focus on romance. But I am seeing my Mom this weekend and had told her I‘d give her this book when I am done.

This month's selection from #WellRead plus some interesting looking add-ons. Lucky I decided to go for them this month since the bookshops are closed again☹️

Another pick with reservations. A easy read, with good writing. I liked the storyline, but many of the moves and changes of feelings by the characters didn't make much sense, there was a lack of reasoning for the amount of whiplash changes of moves and feelings of the characters. And storylines that had no resolution, they were just abandoned. Would love a spinoff of The Graces.

The face you make when it‘s the PERRRRRRFECT outdoor reading weather, but it‘s 6:40PM and you‘re the one in charge of dinner tonight. Stupid adulthood. 🙄

This is a great book but somehow I always end up disappointed with this author's books. Maybe it's all the hype that she got for this one. This is really just a coming of age story with some (a lot of) racism thrown in. That said, the #audiobook is pretty awesome. The narrator sings and speaks Creole and I was impressed with the performance.

My review of this book can be found on my Youtube Vlog at:

https://youtu.be/UB3GR2u7H9o

Enjoy!

4.75 ⭐️

Libertie was such a wonderful read. It took me awhile to get through it because I wasn't "in the mood" to devour the themes covered in the novel, but I loved the characters, their development, & seeing a diff view of life in Brooklyn. Greenidge covers colorism, sexuality, mental illness, sexual abuse, feminism, autonomy, religion & spirituality and mother-daughter relationships in this novel without explicitly feeling like it.

#14Books14Weeks Update 6 hardbacks read 8 to go and 1 paperback read 13 to go.

#OverBookedClub I‘ve posted several questions marked as spoilers. Answer when you can. Looking forward to discussion.