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

Published in 1960, “The Singularity“ by Dino Buzzati is a thought provoking, prescient, and creepy story that makes the reader wonder what our future holds. We often like to discuss the implications of A.I. on society and books and Dino Buzzati's story is a great exploration of what it means to be human, how far A.I. can go to replicate/replace human behavior, and where do we draw the line?

https://open.spotify.com/episode/4j9KJg2YYTFMUazcmPi6cS

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

Reading Natalia Ginzburg, and this novel in particular, was an excellent use of the July 4th holiday. The war is over and Elsa's Italian village is returning to life after fascism. I particularly enjoyed the lines about how no one likes Purillo, who sided with the fascists, even as he continued to live among them. And I sympathized with the repeated refrain, "Why has everything been ruined?"