Welcome to Litsy!

I went through a big Margaret Atwood phase about 15 years ago but I never came across this one. Her books are always unique and this one can even be called weird but it's marvellously written; I can never quite pinpoint what is so masterful about the way she writes about her characters' inner lives. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

3/5

A post-apocalyptic story told from the perspective of someone who didn't realize he was witnessing the end of the world until it was too late.

It's a strange book. I had a tough time reading it.

In my July 20th episode: NYT Best Books; Persian cookery; Shakespeare under a tent; a Canadian feminist classic; literature about art; Canadian SSF; graphic nonfiction; two books about Puerto Ricans; etc

https://youtu.be/ZpcWmoUCc00

ebook: Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood
audiobook: Devil in Disguise by Lisa Kleypas
print book: Anxious People by Fredrik Backman

#weekendreads @rachelsbrittain

#KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMJournals
Maybe it‘s a bit late to post a review here, now that I‘m into volume 2—and also it seems strange to review an author‘s journals! But I think it‘s worth mentioning that this presentation of LMM‘s journals is fantastic—there are photos and other images reproduced throughout, along with LMM‘s captions/notes, to show the format in which LMM herself put together her journals. ⤵️

I‘ve felt ambivalent about the 3 Awad books I‘ve read. I appreciate her commitment to truly bonkers plots and skewering of niche subcultures (MFA programs in Bunny, skincare/wellness industry in Rouge, theatre kids & chronic pain in All‘s Well), but the magical realism elements didn‘t work as well in this one. Absolutely love the cover/title, reflecting both the college Shakespeare production & FMC‘s debilitating invisible pain.

@willaful posted about this book a few weeks back, reminding me of a childhood favorite—so I pulled it off the shelf & thoroughly enjoyed a re-read. I LOVED Jean Little‘s books as a kid. I found her characters so relatable. This one is told from the perspective of Martha, whose personality is far more brave & bold than mine! But I still love this book and these characters so much. Martha‘s broken arm prevents her from going to a much-anticipated⤵️

Gem of a book with beautiful writing and imagery, as beautiful as the flowers and gardens described in the novel. Set against the war, it‘s quiet and melancholic as the story is about those who are waiting at home..those waiting for return of loved ones; for love; and to be sent off to war. It breaks my heart. There‘re so many great quotes, I took my time with the book. Read it for June‘s #TBRtarot 😅

An engaging post-apocalyptic thriller about an Anishinaabe community.

In her big, neglected house in Carstairs, she had entered a period of musing and drinking, of what looked to everybody else like a slow decline, but to her seemed, after all, sadly pleasurable, like a convalescence.