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I loved this book- abstract, surreal, and philosophical. The people in Heti's world fit into one of three categories: birds, who "consider the world as if from a distance”; fish, “concerned with fairness and justice here on earth”; and bears who “are deeply consumed with their own.” How does Mira, a bird, navigate life with her fish lover and bear father? How do we live life alongside the ones we love dearly who never quite see it like we do? ?

Gorgeous book. It‘s filled with variation: sometimes like a fable; then a very moderny narrative; and at one point switches to something that is completely, courageously like Beckett. It gave me a lot to think about…. A lot of ideas I agree with, and some that I don‘t. It‘s tender and soft and even inflammatory. I also love the way the sections are divided up—the structure! This work is totally innovative.

Some good philosophical musings but otherwise quite forgettable!

She had thought that when someone died, it would be like they went into a different room. She had not known that life itself transformed itself into a different room, and trapped you in it without them.

Since the lamp she liked best was was the least expensive one, it was possible that one day she might own it, if no one bought it first. Perhaps the fact that it was the least expensive one was the reason she had made it her favorite. There is no point in loving something that is not a bit within reach.

Happy Independent Bookstore Day! This is my haul. What goodies did everyone else snag?

#IndependentBookstoreDay #IBD2023

A strange, mythical, philosophical book of simply put complex ideas about the nature of existence, how to live a life, figure out what kind of person you are, die. It reminded me of Gertude Stein and Jeanette Winterson, in its ability to be utterly relevant to the present but feel as timeless as a fairy tale. This book is very intellectual, but it made me feel deeply. I marked many passages, some contenders for things I want said at my funeral.

"My basic premise is that in life, you live forever, because as soon as you die, you don't realize you're dead, so you're kind of always alive, so the thing is, you shouldn't worry about yourself."

"Being alive is a problem that cannot be solved by living."

"She had thought that when someone died, it would be like they went into a different room. She had not known that life itself transformed itself into a different room, and trapped you in it without them."

Well this is strange and mesmerizing so far

I haven‘t been able to review this gorgeous puzzle of a novel on Litsy because all I want to do is gush about it. Now that it‘s won a Governor General award, I will give it my best shot because it‘s got a low rating on this app. What‘s it about? Existence. The joys and griefs of being alive in a world that‘s falling apart. It‘s philosophical and whimsical, with prose crafting that thrills my language-loving soul. #LGBTQ #CanadianAuthor

I‘m pleased to see Heti‘s Pure Colour and Brian Thomas Isaac‘s All the Quiet Places on this list; they also made the Giller longlist and there isn‘t usually much overlap between the two awards. I‘m almost finished Finding Edward and really enjoying it. But the other two on this list are both books that I DNF‘d. 😕 #ShadowGiller2022

This was just too odd for me, and it‘s just quite strange to have a dying father ejaculate his spirit into his daughter. (And yes, in subsequent pages other sexual terms were used about it.) Plus it just wouldn‘t stay in my head after I‘d read it, although maybe that‘s for the better! 🤣🫣

What I‘ve been reading: Friday Reads Sept 16 #biblioadventures #poetry #art #transgender #audiobooks #GillerPrize #booktube
https://youtu.be/5bAStez1M38

Mira knew that humans made art because we were made in God‘s image—which doesn‘t mean we look like God; it means we like doing the same thing God likes. Both making life and making art are pouring spirit into form.

3⭐/5⭐

I think it‘s so dumb, people planning colonies on Mars. They should be planning things here, figuring out how to live here. Well, they think it‘s a mess so they want to go somewhere pure. But it‘s pure nothing!
(Internet image)

She had thought that when someone died, it would be like they went into a different room. She had not known that life itself transformed into a different room, and trapped you in it without them.

Being alive is a problem that cannot be solved with living. The self is ever stirred like the leaves in the trees. The leaves quiver and quake, just like we do. A person cannot stop their quivering and quaking, which is the essence of a human life.

The day or second day after he died, she saw falling from the sky the first sprinklings of snow. She had never felt greater quiet in her mind or soul. She cared nothing for the world‘s busy activity. She felt in competition with no one.

How she loved books, as she lay in bed with her dying father. She saw how great art was, as she lay in his bed, and how faithful; how faithful a book was, and how strong, a place you could be safe, apart from the world, held inside a world that would never grow weak, and which could pass through wars, massacres and floods—could pass through all of human history, and the integrity of its soul would stay strong.

It‘s true that the world was failing at its one task—of remaining a world. Pieces were breaking off. Seasons had become postmodern. We no longer knew where we were in the calendar by the weather.

People I respect gave this book good reviews. I feel like I‘ve been punked.

I liked some aspects of this book, and some of the lines stopped me in my tracks so I had to read them over and over to take them in. However, overall I didn‘t love it as much as I‘d hoped. Definitely a creatively written take on life, decisions, regrets and love.

I didn‘t “get” most of this book. It‘s very artsy. I‘m not artsy. Parts of it seems to read like poetry. The parts I did get were very good. Too bad they were few and far between. I think those of you who are artsy would get more out of this book than I did. To the rest of you, I don‘t recommend this book. I do appreciate the ARC that I won on Goodreads.

4🌟A philosophical, abstract, unique reading experience. A tough one to review. This book has polarizing reviews and I get why, you will either love this or you wont. I have really loved Heti's writing since first reading Motherhood and this book hit me hard. She is a visionary and this work really pushes the envelope for what a novel can be. It's poetic, experimental and facinating! #canlit #bookreview

#PureColour is a beautifully written book with many note-worthy quotes. It‘s about dying, art and bodies. I recommend to be in a good mental mood for this.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

#SheilaHeti #novel

Philosophical, metaphorical, and surreal. Not for someone that is looking for plot. I am interested in reading her other work. This ended on a very sweet note. 3 🌟

It was strange, the way her books often are. But I liked it. Might require a second read

I admit that this one was just a little too weird for me, although there were some insightful comments on life. The author kind of lost me when the main character and her dead father share their existence as a leaf on a tree. For customers that really like literary fiction, this may be a good choice, but for the rest of us mere mortals there just isn't enough there. I gave it 2/5 stars.