It's been a while since i shared my son.... he's now going on 21 months! So silly and cute 🥰

Hi litsy!! Its been a minute. But I'm here! Just started this book today and it's really intriguing and so well done. Funny, bc i didn't like writers and lovers much at all!
I hope you're all doing well! We are enjoying our summer and looking forward to a fun filled fall.

I'm almost halfway through this, my FINAL unread #botm book! And it's really terrific. I love the author's voice/ style.

It's been way too long since i posted but this book was just fantastic because her life is incredible. She is such an amazing person, really recommend this memoir.

YIKES. have you seen this internet drama? This book is getting lit up over at goodreads for how the author handles anything but a glowing 5 star review. That'll be a pass from me!

Hi littens! I've been neglectful as of late here. Idk why! Just busy i suppose. Anyways, I'm truly 8 little paws again! We adopted Walter and Donny a few weeks ago and they're fitting in perfectly.

This isn't my normal type of book I'd read--I'm not super interested in the music industry let alone a fictional band--but this examines Black womanhood from a whole new dimension. No easy characters here, they're all complicated people, and the story moves fast and kept me hooked. Glad I took a chance on it!

This was entertaining! A bit repetitive, but mostly a look at how having breadth of experience vs depth can help one become a better problem solver. Some of the case studies were really interesting.

Reading Jen Beagin is such a delight. Her voice is so unlike anything else I've been reading, funny, dark, and her characters feel so complete and alive. Her books aren't for everyone as they touch on some really dark topics but I'll read anything she writes. She's the real deal.

I don't know where to begin with this book. It is by far the most difficult prose I've read in years. I need a guide! I think I liked it? I certainly won't forget it. I need to re-read it at some point, when I have a bit of distance btw me and the book. Recommended IF you are looking for a very challenging prose read on a very challenging topic. Not for faint of heart!

I found this utterly enchanting, and the ending hit right. What a delight to read even though it's definitely dark.

Some of this worked for me, she can write a poetic sentence and thought. Some didn't. I can respect her thoughtfulness and reflection and recognize she's probably not the writer for me.

Overall didn't like this one, the stories were too obscure to let the reader in so the experience reading isn't enjoyable. The last story is amazing and you can find it online, search for the author's name and the title "you, disappearing". Read it there and skip this book.

First time I read this about 5 years ago, liked it but didn't love it. 5 years later I absolutely loved sitting in her brain and following her thoughts and musings. Couldn't ask for a more timely book.

A fun giveaway by @Hooked_on_books for her #goodbyebotm giveaway. My book club choice would be life after life by Kate Atkinson. My book club had a great conversation about it!! I liked the book more after the discussion than I did before.

I liked it, but can't say i loved it. felt kind of disjointed but the back 3rd really comes together. There were some elements in the first 3rd that I'm not even sure why they were included as they weren't relevant. Kind of odd.

Beautiful story of a woman coping with the grief she's suffered in her family and the struggles she's had with religion. A lot is packaged in this book, but the author weaves through all the themes so well.

He clearly takes care in crafting sentences, but this was just so boring and I'll take nothing from it ultimately.

This didn't wholly work for me. I felt unconvinced that this is a particularly millennial issue still, by the end of the book. It suffers from having been written prior to COVID-19, and not updated, it feels wildly out of date in some sections. Part of the main assumption here also relies on millennials being addicted to posting on social media, which I can't get behind.

Thankfully for me this had less body humor than her other stuff, haha. She's always great for a laugh. Every time I read her though I just power through and read it like any other book. This would be best read slowly, over time, like a few essays at a time. You'll enjoy the humor more that way.

This is a comprehensive look at the lives of everyday Chinese people in the mid 2010s. It's super informative, but a bit dry. It reminded me of Pete Hessler's book The Buried, but without the spark and liveliness in each person. I'm still glad I read it, though.

Here is my January card @TheAromaofBooks i already started 2 books. This is almost entirely from my tbr! So excited to actually see my tbr decrease! This challenge has been the only thing to get me to really read what I own.

Look at what a great December I had! I read both my bookspin and doublespin books, and got a bingo! And a bunch of these were old TBR books on my shelves!

If you liked her other two books, you know exactly what you're getting here! Always great for a good laugh. This had less gross body humor :).

I binge read this in a day. Well researched, and i think it's a wonderful companion book to Hidden Valley Road. It's really about how research is conducted, and the limits of psychiatry.

I mean do I even need to write anything? It's amazing.

I couldn't with this one. The MC is unpleasant to spend so much time with, the plotting is off, and the overall premise, I just couldn't buy into. You can see glimpses of future Makkai in the sentence structure, but this story doesn't shine.

He's no longer a baby! Mr. Toddler over here. He loves to run and climb, eat, nap, and splash in the tub.

Each story here is a whole, complete world. I'm in awe of her creativity. Truly a master story teller. I read one a day, a great way to savor this collection.

I need someone smarter than me to explain this book 😂 it's about growing up in the US to a Chinese immigrant mother and not feeling like you really belong anywhere, also about women in Chinese culture. It's definitely a blend of memoir and story telling.

Eh.... this one didn't really do it for me. I kept putting it down (audio) then forgetting about it. I felt it could've been edited better, it was somewhat verbose. I can't say I really disliked it , but I don't think it'll stick with me and I'm happy it's finished.

What a delight this book is. Is it novella or novel? IDK. But regardless he packs SO MUCH into it. Vivid characters, a tight plot, fast paced and room for a sequel. And just terrific body horror. Sign me up for all his stuff.

This was just so lovely and a phenomenal debut. It covers a lot in 661 pages--a coming of age that seems like a fluffy, relationship novel that also hits hard on gender and racial power dynamics. There was a little about the ending that didn't hit right, but definitely glad I finally picked it up. About time!!

How odd to read a 2019 book about a pandemic in 2020. It was pretty wild to compare and contrast. Though instead of a cough and lung damage this virus leads to lengthy sleep. It examines dreams, time and community behavior. Very interesting book and I found it to be a page turner.

There's certainly fantastic setting-building here. The whole book does come together by the end, there finally feels to be a storyline, and some of the action scenes had me tearing through the pages. But most of this is just episodic scenes of the narrator's life, bildungsroman-esque, and is in major need of editing as some of it is just repetitive or doesn't add to the reader's experience. Writing on race was clunky, outdated, awkward.

Take a look at the review by @merelybookish she captures my feelings perfectly. The author does do a lot of things really really well here but you have got to get through the creepy, disturbing layers first and ultimately this was just too weird for me.

Here is December card! I'm allmost finished with The Old neighborhood already. @TheAromaofBooks

Here's how November shook out! It got away from me fast. Early November was so wild, with the election. But i read both my bookspin and double spin books and even got a bingo! @TheAromaofBooks

Yeah!! I finally read this little book thanks to #bookspinbingo! @TheAromaofBooks this was my December #Doublespin. This is just 4 interviews with her, it's really kind of a companion to her book Are Prisons Obsolete. I would recommend reading that or her book women race and class first.

Really solid sci fi debut. Great character building, especially the main, and an engaging plot that for the most part wasn't too confusing. Totally recommend it, hope she writes more!

I got so invested in some of these stories in so few pages, it's almost like reading a novel. My absolute favorite was the one about a woman who meets a man at a conference, and their interactions and how she copes with it. While they all have different characters, they're certainly thematically linked as evidenced by the title. Kudos to the NBA fiction longlist for including this title!

Solid collection, many of the essays hold up even though this collection is about 5 years old. Set up in 3 sections--life, art, and politics. They're all very short essays, and the politics section talks a lot about Muslim identity and Pakistan. I do hope he publishes another essay collection, I'd pick it up on a timely basis and not wait so long! His prose is enjoyable to read regardless of if he's writing fiction or nonfiction I have found.

There is a lot here! About how national borders are harmful. It really goes deep into the history of nations vs states, the history of borders. Maybe too much? Regardless it gave me three full meals of food for thought, that's for sure.

This book about the ever changing relationship between two young people was really beautifully portrayed and I found the ending incredibly satisfying. Really enjoyable to read in my experience.

So there were elements of this I like--I actually really liked the Mike section-- but other elements of the story just weren't fleshed out enough for me. I wanted more of Benson before Mike, and more of their fights. Benson didn't seem a very passionate guy to me and I wanted that. I'm still going to give this author another chance. A solid 3 star read for me. @thearomaofbooks it's my november #bookspin book!!

My little monkey is 11 months old! Only 1 month of being a baby left. He is walking full time now! He says mamamamama and doesn't understand isn't only 2 syllables 😂 still only 2 little teeth!

OMG I found this book absolutely unsettling and haunting. I couldn't get it out of my mind. Like, I'd put the book down and I'd just feel so uncomfortable for hours. I absolutely must read his backlist, bc this and White Tears both blew me away.

Squee! Just starting. I understand this is the second of three interlinked books he's writing, the first being white tears. That book ripped my brain open so I'm absolutely dying to get into this one.

Totally forgot to post this earlier!! @TheAromaofBooks here's #bookspinbingo for November. I have read 1 book so far,I highlighted it in yellow

It's a good book but I had a hard time with it. The first 2 sectionsare slow but it does pick up in section 3. I also cannot say I agree with her ultimate conclusion on how to help eradicate caste. I think this might be a good book for people somewhat new to race discussions in the US, but if you've read a lot on the subject, this book may help you gather your thoughts and analyze them, but probably not provide a whole lot of new food to chew on.