Welcome to Litsy!

#Naturalitsy #Midsummersolace

The view from the garden where we're staying in Backbarrow. Was there ever a more hobbity/Tolkein place name? 😊

I won't want to leave tomorrow

This set of essays, part memoir, part journalistic, part autobiographical, reveal a really interesting cast of characters that have in some way connected with the author. When it worked - it was real, written with passion & heart and the characters were drawn with deep interest & respect. Where it was less satisfying, it felt the author had strayed too far from her roots, spent too long on her high school years and finished some essays abruptly.

Some nice evening light to end the day with.... Happy Tuesday. 👍🏼

This week our #BFC group is all about selfcare, listening to ourselves, being kind to ourselves and having fun! So in that spirit I walked home from work today slowly, started a new book (I know, walking and reading beside a canal is hazardous- I‘m a seasoned pro!) and will be having a chamomile tea bath before bed! @chrissyreadit @erinsuegreads @itchyfeetreader @microbemom @phatsallylee @blaire @sudi @wanderinglynn

I have this on my shelf. Like the author, I grew up on Florida‘s gulf coast. I love Tucson but I‘m very sentimental about my childhood home. #soakupthesun #songsofsummer

Recently I‘ve been reading #onenonfictionamonth and been loving it. This is my #bookhaul from #nyc. Didn‘t realise just how non fiction focused my book buying was this week!

I am really enjoying these essays thus far, not a genre that I read very often.

Sarah Gerard reading as part of an event at the organization/gallery I work with in conjunction with another cool nonprofit called Wordier Than Thou. (A horn self-toot: I curated the exhibition in the image 😊)

I didn‘t love this collection of essays—I kind of wish she had just written a novel instead—but Sarah Gerard certainly qualifies as a #ModernGirl. She did an excellent job, at times, of capturing the eerie and jarring atmosphere of Florida as I‘ve always known it.

#FierceFeb

Living in the area where most of these essays take place, the book literally hits very close to home. Most of the time, very interesting and enjoyable book. (Cringe at the way Ybor was mispronounced, but good narration otherwise)

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It‘s #NonfictionNovember!! One my my #November #BookRecs would def be Sarah Gerard‘s SUNSHINE STATE, a collection of (mostly) long-form essays. So well-researched and fascinating. One of the last essays about grandparents and aging had me in tears. Just so well done.

Read “BFF” and “Rabbit” and ignore the rest. This collection could be vastly improved by cutting 2/3 of it. 👎🏼👎🏼👎🏼

I‘m conflicted because I believe you shouldn‘t feel bad about giving up on a book you‘re not enjoying, but at the same time, I hate to have a DNF on the shelf!

I‘m 4 hours and 3 essays into the audiobook and I‘m giving it one more essay before I quit. This essay collection just doesn‘t know what it wants to be & you lose her voice in the bizarro journalism pieces. What this collection needed (and didn‘t get) was a good editor with a critical eye

This cover is gorgeous! But I‘m going to need this to pick up quick or it‘s going to be a DNF. The first essay was pretty good, but this second one is so bland in addition to being about 10,000 words too long!

A bit hit-or-miss, as is common for an essay collection. I really liked “Records” about her high school years spent taking drugs and going to an arts school, but wasn‘t really into the ones about Amway or Christian Science.

It was difficult choosing which essays collections to talk about this month on @thereadingwomen #podcast. There are so many amazing stellar essay collections out there these days. But Jesmyn Ward is always a no brainer. And BAD FEMINIST was my first introduction to #RoxaneGay. SUNSHINE STATE surprised me this year; I love Gerard's long-form essays. Need essays? We're here for you.

Hope you all are having a fantastic weekend. This month is essay month on the podcast and one of our picks is SUNSHINE STATE by Sarah Gerard. It's her first essay collection and has some outstanding long-form pieces. Hear Kendra's full review on Ep. 29, available wherever you get your podcasts.

I tried, I really did. But I made it halfway through this book and not a single story captured me. The lesson here is - don't judge a book by it's cover 😏

@Little_Reader challenged me to post a #blackandwhite book stack! 😀🔲🔳 I challenge @rachelsbrittain to post a rainbow 🌈 stack! #BookColorTag

I have to admit, this was a bit of a slog. I like personal essays a lot, but a couple of these were pretty boring. I enjoyed the most personal ones, like the one about growing up in the late nineties (I can relate), and the one about her grandparents. I enjoyed this book moderately, but wouldn't especially recommend it.

I went to Key West Island Bookstore today and here's my haul. Two new books and two used that look like they might be forgotten treasures. Wish we'd had a week in Key West instead of one day. #bookhaul

Current Read! I loved "Records" because I too went to high school in Tampa, and picked this book up for nostalgia. The more factual essays on the history of Christian Science and Amway didn't give me the Florida fix I was looking for, but her writing is gorgeous and I'm hoping for more personal memoir in the second half ??

Many many many thanks to @Jaberwocky for recommending that we stop by #fairisfair while we're in Calgary. I have a soft spot for cluttered used bookstores and this one did not disappoint! I picked up two TBR books as a bonus. #bookhaul #yyc

"You were diagnosed, but you were never crazy. You were caught between the fear of leaving your mother and the fear of staying. Caught in the horror of being complicit in your endangerment every time she told you to fix her a drink. Caught in the need to protect her, though she didn't protect you; caught between the habit of being a child, obedient, and the need to rebel, as a woman.
It's not your fault you couldn't escape."

A candid of my current situation; shhh, I'm hiding in here! I'm very excited to start the tagged book.

Recommended from the New York Times. Interesting listen!

Looking forward to reading this book of essays to remind me of one of my favorite locals 🙌🏻
#mrblueskies
#junetunz

The first essay in this collection blew me away. I'm still so impressed with its sharpness and am hungry to reread it. From there the essays are a bit of a mixed bag. Some are strong and others less so. Overall it's a solid collection with that first one still as the most notable. For those who enjoy essay collections, this one is pretty fantastic.

We're celebrating this sunny day with readings from Sunshine State! Sarah Gerard and Susan Lanier tonight at 6:30!
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#citylitbooks #logansquare #chicago #author #reading #tonight #igreads #bookstagram #book #sunshine #sunshinestate

Received my winnings from one of Liberty's giveaways today and the weather cooperated too! #maybookflowers #sunshine #thanksliberty

This essay collection came to mind for today's #sunshine prompt. I haven't read it yet, but I love that cover ☀️☀️☀️

#maybookflowers

#aprilbookshowers #earthtones AND #lyricalapril #earthsong

Some of the earthy colours that are currently hanging out on my #playster TBR queue. #audiobooks

You're the only woman I've loved this way: enough to want to hurt you.

Sorry but I've worked in publishing and I have no idea what you could do to make me stop judging a book by its cover. In related news I think I'll like this book

It took me a bit to get into this essay collection, but now we're in sync. Thanks, Sarah & @HarperPerennial for Sunshine State & a sweet note 🌞Hits shelves this Tuesday 4/11 & is an Indie Next pick for May!

I put all the entries from the #READATHONESSAYS giveaway into the random name generator and @AccioAlltheBooks won! Thanks to everyone for participating. Another giveaway is coming your way in a few minutes! 🎉📚😘

GIVEAWAY TIME #4: As promised, I am going to shed some books during my impromptu #36hourReadathon. Next up: the wonderful Sarah Gerard's new essay collection, out next week. To win, make a post about your favorite essay collection, use the hashtag #READATHONESSAYS, and tag me in the photo. Do this by 4pm EST today (April 6th) and I'll randomly select one winner to receive the book. (US only, sorry.) Good luck! ⭐️🤘🏻📚

I'm really hoping this is in the May #BotM options!

Phenomenal essays on weird pockets of Florida from the author of Binary Star. Can't wait for you guys to read it in April!

Sarah's essays are a fantastic mix of memoir and journalism and it just whipped me up in a Floridian frenzy. Still recovering, tbh.