Welcome to Litsy!

#OctoberReCap

I read and listened to several books I own (I must admit, some I purchased this month, but I still own them).

#OffTheShelf @Librariana

This is the author‘s debut published in 1995. It‘s published as a novel but feels like it has to be a memoir. A section on the character‘s father, one on the mother, one on the experience of ballet dancers, and one on falling for a married Russian immigrant. As I was reading it I thought the writing was too simple, but by the end I realized how impactful the descriptions were and how close I felt to the characters. #10BeforetheEnd #offtheshelf

Chris Whitaker said glowing things about this novel at the National Book Festival so I purchased it immediately. This story spans decades & centers around characters I grew to care for. The damage that war creates, the need to hide your sexual identity, the repercussions of being an orphan, a woman who talks with spirits, & an affair that ties two families together are all part of the story. Forgiveness is the ultimate message. I really liked it.

This author can do no wrong. He brings together characters I won‘t soon forget - Nicholas, a young man whose father is instructed by God to paint and off he goes, leaving his wife and son to fend for themselves. His father, a tortured soul who paints and tries to hear God again. Isabel, a young woman who grieves for her brother and finds an unworthy man to be with. This book is lyrical, partially magical, very Irish, and thoroughly engrossing.

Second book in a row I could not put down. A baby magpie falls from a tree and Marnie rescues it, much to the annoyance of her husband. Tama becomes a household pet and a viral sensation. Tama is ostracized by her magpie family but adored by Marnie and barely tolerated by hubby. This is a surprisingly tense story and, as the author always manages to do, it was a reading-race-to-the-end for me. A very complete & enjoyable read. TW:DV. #offtheshelf

I went to a tiny bookstore in the bottom part of the state and they had so many books, new and very old, that I‘ve read and loved. It felt like my own personal library. After talking with the bookseller, she suggested I might like this one and considering we seem to have the same taste I purchased it. I loved it. Magical realism is not generally my jam, but this involved a mute boy and his loving mother and grandmother who have suffered losses. 🔽

As I mentioned previously, Jenny of Reading Envy gave this book five stars. It was a local book seller who handed it to me and said I had to read it. This was delightful. Short stories involving women dipping into alternative settings, where a certain injection could turn you into a horse to be wild forever, where women in their 60s review their friendships, where a statue of Mary and Jesus offer comfort and sarcasm. Great to dip in and out of. 🔽

Miller is an author who has a farm in Vermont. I really enjoyed his first book so I had high hopes for this one. This is a story of a young man watching his father farm in Iceland and helping him to take on the duties of the farm as his father falls into a depression. I feel as if I learned so much about Iceland and about farming through this book. It wasn‘t quite as good as The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven but a worthwhile read, for sure.

#offmyshelf “most recent TBR”
#ohcanada

This novel brings an important aspect of Canadian history to light-the use/abuse of indigent British children as indentured servants in Canada in the 19th and 20th cent. Told from the present with flashbacks to the past by Winnie to her granddaughter.

I‘m glad to have read it. However, I didn‘t like the writing or storytelling style personally. I found it too basic, the characters felt one dimensional.

A woman wakes up exhausted every morning, limbs aching, with unexplained bruising. She eventually finds out that she‘s sleepwalking. Strange things are happening - cats start to run away from her - and she tries to ascertain what is happening. It‘s a short read, a bit creepy, and one that keeps you hooked. The ending? Yeah, who knows what happened but I have several theories and I‘m okay with that. #offtheshelf #bookspin