What a great start for #EuropaCollective - 5/5

What does it mean to be the only survivor of a family massacre? How to live with being related to a man capable of such atrocities? How to make sense of such a tragedy? What could have been done differently? How to live with ghosts?

All these questions are present in this beautifully written book. Every word, every sentence rings right, feels true. This novel is a tour de force. It's just perfect.

3.5/5

Very good travelogue, very well-written touching on interesting subjects: traditions, poverty, crime, immigration, family, etc.

More than a travelogue, it's a book of encounters. Paul Theroux shares the stories of people he meets along the way.

It was a very slow read for me, I could only read a few pages at a time (not sure why). I loved when he referred to other books. The only thing missing for me was a map...

Reading time!!!

The book is ready, my spicy chai tea latte is ready, but is my brain ready!?

2/5

Disappointed. Some made me smile slightly, but overall I guess I was expecting more, or rather better, from it. Not my cup of tea...

Love the title though, haha 😆

If you want to escape present time, then pick up this book.

It was a pure pleasure to read. Willa Cather's writing is so beautiful, especially when she describes her surroundings.

It's a tale about immigration, multi-faceted, set in a harsh environment, but it's also a friendship story, a story about neighbors helping each other out. You'll witness the difficulties faced by the immigrants in the late 1800s, but also how resilient they were.

2/5

Quite disappointing. Despite very well written parts, the way the book was constructed made it hard to read and to follow the story.

The way the book was constructed was a disservice to the interesting themes presented in the book: expatriation, homecoming, the feeling of not belonging (especially for the future generations), etc.

Solid 3/5
Read during the month of August.
Do I remember the stories? No... but I remember finding them quite well written and well plotted. And most importantly, I remember having a good time ;)

A solid 3/5.

The crime plot was interesting enough, but what I really liked in this book is all the information given about Groenland, the Inuits, their culture, and history. First book with Qaanaaq Adriensen, I'll be sure to read the others.

My book somewhat suffered from the salt and sand at the beach 🏖️

PS: Mo Malø is French, his family is from Saint-Malo.

This book is an invitation to think about words. Who uses them, how they are used by different people, who records them, who gets to define them, who chooses to include them in dictionaries, etc.

Well-written, with an engaging and well-constructed plot, I'm sure this book will seduce numerous word lovers.

It's the second book by J. M. Erre I'm reading, and I'm really not disappointed (I actually ordered another book by him).

The narrator, who would like to become a writer, shares with us a series of her short stories, always introducing them beforehand. Humor, self-deprecation, satire = everything you need to spend a good time.

Don't think it's available in English, unfortunately...

Picture: the beach in Les Sables d'Olonne (high tide).

It was well-written, the subject seemed up my alley (a woman and her mother living away from people, in an isolated place, the plot taking place during the winter months), but despite it all, nothing clicked for me: I couldn't get into the story, and I didn't connect with the characters.
It happens...

3/5 - Soft pick

Mystery taking place in Nice, France.
The mystery plot in itself is okay. But what I enjoyed most is when the private eye, Ghjulia Boccanera, talks about Nice: life there, the people, the language, etc.

Rereading for my French book club

This book is full of references to colonization, full of humor too (absurd situation, dark humor, double entendre). It's a short book that is worth taking the time to read in-depth.

It's a successful rewriting of The Tempest by Shakespeare, adding contemporary themes (published in 1969).

Reading keys: Think of Ariel as Martin Luther King, and of Caliban as Malcolm X ;)

That's my jam! That's the type of books I like to read.

A depressed man decides to go abroad, in a country recently out of war, to kill himself. That's how the story begins. We follow this man's journey through this difficult period of his life.

I love world literature. It's not the first book by an icelandic writer that I read, and for some reason, they never disappoint.

*Already gave my copy... Picture of my reading buddy instead ;)

Interesting read
I would say 80% accuracy, however to be taken with a grain of salt (age of their friends, neighborhood they are living in, big city life). It's always difficult for me to read books about French culture, as I always notice generalizations, or inaccuracies, or sometimes wrong interpretations.
Fun fact: yes, if you ask me, a French person, "how are you doing?", I'll answer the question honestly. (Can't get used to the American way).

Read it for my nonfiction book club last month.

A couple of essays I've found interesting (the one on book covers for example), but honestly, I couldn't care less for most of it... I've already forgotten most of them, they just didn't stick with me. A couple of ladies really liked this book, and found it very interesting, but it really wasn't the case for me.

First book by him I'm reading, not bad bad, but I knew it wouldn't be my cup of tea... Too Hallmark for me.

A friend lent me two books by him, said she loved them, so I finally decided to read one of them. I'll be returning both her books back as chick lit is really not my jam.

One thing that annoyed me when reading it: the high number of metaphors...

Short read, but very interesting.
Definitely offers food for thoughts.
I read it for my French book club, and it led to a very engaging conversation.
As all autobiographical works, it's impossible to judge how a person feels or felt about their own experiences, but it's always nice to get someone's glimpse on a specific place and time.

*I lent my book, so instead enjoy this picture of free roaming bisons taken south of Custer, SD

Some interesting content, but I didn't like how the book was organized, it was not really by regions, neither by chronological order, so it made it a little bit confusing to me.

Read it last month... Need to catch up on my reviews...

3.5/5
It's a love letter to nature, a thank you to everything nature gives us.

The author shares wisdom from nature, teachings we, humans, should put into practice.

Robin Wall Kimmerer shares Native Americans' wisdom and concepts about reciprocity, about our duties concerning nature.

It's a very interesting read, even if I'm not a fan of the lyrical tone she sometimes uses.

The legend of Pocahontas with stunning illustrations.
A sad tale, well-written, inspired by the true story, with a very interesting choice of narration.

My first Corto Maltese! It made for an interesting read. In the future, I could look into getting the whole series ;)

I need to catch up on my reviews...

This one was quite a disappointment. I'll sound perhaps harsh to some, but this book sounded to me like a cheap rehashing of very common inspirational/motivational phrases. Nothing new, nothing special, just very cheesy content.

Excellent book about the life of Elizebeth Smith Friedman and her pioneer career in the field of codebreaking.
The book is well constructed, informative, and at times gripping (especially when it comes to her involvement in hunting spies during World War II).
This book offers also a lot about the history of the FBI, CIA, and NSA, revealing their amateurish nature at first, and their petty power fights.

Soft pick 3/5

Lily is found dead, and Asher, her boyfriend, is charged with first-degree murder. Through the voices of Lily, previously Liam, and of Olivia, Asher's mom, we dive into their history and their present.

Interesting plot that keeps you guessing, for some reason, I was hoping not to have closure at the end... Disappointed with the ending, which feels rushed and underdeveloped.

Really like Antigone by Anouilh.
Well written, with some humorous parts. From the beginning, the fate of the different characters is divulged, but despite knowing, we are hoping for a different ending.

2.5/5

I feel some parts were better developed than others. I would have liked more developed characters, perhaps more complexity in their personalities.

Also, as for the plot, it's only in the middle of the book that it gets interesting... The writing of the first part seems disjointed.

I must admit being disappointed... It was difficult to get close to the characters. Overall I felt it was superficial and stereotypical...

Very neat children's book about Kate Walker, the first woman to be put in charge of a lighthouse. This book is beautifully illustrated by Emily Arnold McCully.

Very disappointing in comparison to Daughter of Fortune. It contains far more romance in it (which for me is a put-off). The only nice element was to see what became of the characters from Daughter of Fortune.

It was my first Allende's books. It's a soft pick (3/5)

I enjoyed the story, it was well written.
I liked the historical background with Chile, then the Californian gold rush. I wanted to know how it would end.

Very interesting book about Mormon fundamentalists with, in parallel, historical information about the creation of the Mormon faith.

It's also the story of a true crime, the one committed by the brothers Ron and Dan Lafferty. Jon Krakauer also talks about the underage marriages and incestuous relationships in some of the fundamentalist communities. All these make for a difficult read, but it's a necessary one.

Yesterday, I finished the very entertaining book by Franck Thilliez. Excellent mystery, very dark, even though I knew who the killer was early on...
And this morning, my parents' Easter package arrived from France. Unfortunately, a stork was injured crossing the Atlantic. We're never too old for chocolate ;) This package made my week!!!

Edit: actually so-so

I liked the innovative storytelling of this book with every member of the band telling their own take on what happened 30 years ago: from how they got together as a band, and how they ended up splitting.

Why the change: unrealistic choice of interviewer...

It's well-written with a good flow. But I must admit being disappointed in the ending, that I found cheesy... Am I the only one!?

Well-written plot enhanced by the quality of Brian Selznick's art.
It is a voyage through time revealing the power of imagination. This book is also about finding out where you belong, finding your place in the world, finding a home.

On the fence some about this book... Not sure about how I feel about the prose or about the story in itself. Some parts were very poetic and well-written, but I had difficulty getting immersed into the atmosphere of the book sometimes.

So-so read for me...
I just couldn't really get into it. I've read it till the end, but it was slow, I didn't get attached to any of the characters, wasn't actually much interested in the plot... It wasn't badly written, but I didn't care for the plot.

Interesting graphic novel starring Jonathan Ames in the role of an alcoholic (it's fiction).
Well constructed plot with good illustrations by Dean Haspiel.
I really liked the bonus at the end of my edition recounting how this graphic novel came to be.

3/5. I wouldn't have read this book if it wasn't for my book club. I'm not a fan of celebrity autobiographies, hence the rating.
That being said, I found value in her sharing her life story, sharing the reality of making it as an actress (the amount of luck involved), sharing candidly with the readers the traumas she had to endure growing up. The negative point to me was the lengthy parts about the theater/cinema that I wasn't much interested in.

2/5 - very soft so-so
Some interesting points with a good vulgarization of the microphages role in spreading cancer. However, some of her thinking process is quite flawed, with her own opinions coming out of nowhere without anything to back them up.

Soft so-so

Fast read, the plot is interesting enough, but quite predictable with under-developed characters.

When you read this collection of short stories, you travel away from reality, but also through time. En attendant is a good example of the latter, in which the Second World War is very much present.
Some are funny, some are sad, sometimes they are both. Always well-written, they offer a good escape from modern life.

Just not my jam. Not my kind of humor, I rolled my eyes several times. A lot of superficial/shallow contents.

I found the story line about Lexington and Jarret very interesting, well-written, while the modern love story didn't convince me, I would have preferred it to remain a loveless enquiry about the painting...

Overall interesting novel, however I felt detached from the characters, I had difficulty getting immersed in the story, and feeling for the ordeal the characters are going through. I think the writing style has something to do with it, perhaps repetitive and generic at times.

It's a quick series to read, and it's quite entertaining. I like how the author offers a modern twist on Greek mythology. Quite good to chill out.

Last book read in February!
Excellent book, I loved the concept of following different characters in their daily life, with their questioning about life, their vision of life, their doubts, etc.
It's a very reflective book with a different illustration style for each season.
I highly recommend it.

It had started so well... Then more than halfway through, it became ridiculously weird, and it spoiled everything...

Excellent graphic memoir about the author's experience in the oil sands. Beaton offers a well-constructed immersive journey into her experience. It offers a lot of food for thoughts.

I saw this book on a list of recommendations by NPR if I'm not mistaken... But zombies are really not my jam...
The illustrations are good, the plot is perhaps a little rushed for me (not enough time to develop the characters, the relationship between characters), but if you like survival stories in a postapocalyptic world full of zombies, I guess you'll enjoy the ride.

Excellent collection of essays, in which the author recounts her experience with schizophrenia with a candid honesty, sharing her uncertainties about the future, her fears, describing how she sometimes disconnects with reality, and which coping mechanism she uses.
This must-read offers a lot of useful information. It's impossible not to feel for Esmé, and through her, to feel deep empathy for anyone going through what she's going through.