Welcome to Litsy!

Hi Everyone! I have missed you all and all the news about what you are reading. At the same time it's a lot. Along with everything else. So I had to check out for awhile. But I just passed my 9th #Litsyversary a few weeks back so I just wanted to check in and see how things were going. I hope you all have been well and gotten some good reading done! This is the #chunkster I am currently working on. Well worth the length!

Three solid A‘s (4.75⭐️) in this grid, but I chose the tagged because of my comfort in just settling in with this translated story.

5 ⭐️= Loved It, would recommend to others. A+
4 ⭐️= Liked it, would love to discuss. Solid B
3.5 ⭐️ = Close to either pick or so-so
3 ⭐️= Meh, no need to discuss. Avg C
2 ⭐️=Nope D
1 ⭐️=DNF F

This begins as a slow role of a book, and I stuck with it enjoying the translation from Italian. But soon I was completely wrapped up in the lives of Honor, her husband, Carlo, Carlos‘s brother Antonio, the extended family, and the impact that one generational secret had From 1934 to 1961.

#TopReads2025 for August goes to “Alfa Romeo 1300 and Other Miracles” by Fabio Bartolomei. This was just such a fun, quirky read that I loved so much! I don‘t usually like translated books but this made me a believer that they can be good!

My JULY reads❤️❤️❤️❤️

“Could we protest? We could not. It was all legal. The only thing that would have been illegal would have been for us to protest”
This book left a lasting impression. Written in 1930 it follows the experience of Cafone - peasants - of the fictional mountain village of Fontamara in Italy during the rise of fascism, and the happenings around them.

I haven‘t LOL‘d while reading a book in a while. I‘m sure my neighbors loved the peace & quiet in their backyard and then my random “Pffft! BWAHAHAHA!!” 🤷🏼‍♀️ #OhWell The minute these characters were described, I immediately thought of who I would cast in the movie 😆 Enjoy! And go read this book for a good time and some good laughs!!
Claudio: Stephen Merchant
Fausto: Dave Bautista
Diego: Ron Livingston
Abu: Don Cheadle
Sergio: Kristofer Hivju

My work week is done and in the books 🏃🏼‍♀️ Now to grab my book, wine, and snackies and “un-wine” 🤪 Tag yourself if you‘d like, and let‘s raise a toast to #FridayHappyReadingHour

A lovely and sad book about a young man - Lorenzo - who travels to Romania after the death of his mother who abandoned him years prior to chase her dreams (and lover) there. It‘s a quiet story of loss and memory and sorrow, and also a story of modern Romania and the impact of foreigners. Archipelago Press never disappoints.

I enjoyed Naspini‘s book Nives, so when I saw this while in London I grabbed it. The story in this is a difficult one - a young man finds out his father is responsible for the murder of several young woman and of keeping a girl locked in a storage container for 14 years. The story bounces from points of view but some reactions and behaviours in the aftermath of this just do not strike the right note, particularly the ending. #europacollective