so-soI‘m a huge fan of Shaun Tan‘s work and I expected this to be my favorite yet since glimpses into the artists‘ mind is usually my jam, but for me this was #goodnotgreat The good was it was unexpected, I found a few unique insights, I got to see a new side of his painting style, I learned a few things about the man behind the work, but I felt less drawn in by the drawings when they weren‘t connected by a narrative and a lot of the writing felt flat.
pickReading this as a girl I remember being charmed by the idea of having lots of kids, but now I just kept thinking 6 children is WAY too many children 😂
“Then I heard a step behind me and turning round I saw Mrs Danvers. I shall never forget the expression on her face. Triumphant, gloating, excited in a strange unhealthy way. I felt very frightened.” #hashtagbrigade
“For one desperate moment I thought that something had happened to my brain, that I was seeing back into Time, and looking upon the room as it used to be, before she died… In a minute Rebecca herself would come back into the room, sit down before the looking-glass, and she would see me too” #hashtagbrigade
“Oh, God, I thought, this is like two people in a play, in a moment the curtain will come down, we shall bow to the audience, and go off to our dressing-rooms.” #hashtagbrigade
I haven‘t written poetry in what feels like forever, but these verses are unlocking something in me and I‘m finally scratching down a few lines and ideas! It‘s such a relief! ✍🏼🗒️🤍
“And then I knew that the vanished scent upon the handkerchief was the same as the crushed white petals of the azaleas in the Happy Valley.”
#hashtagbrigade
“…I had the odd, uneasy feeling that I might come upon something unawares, that I had no wish to see. Something that might harm me, that might be horrible. It was nonsense of course,”
#hashtagbrigade
pickI picked this up during #hyggehour last night and read most of it in one sitting. I‘ve been intimidated to read On Earth We‘re Briefly Gorgeous, and starting with his poetry felt more familiar. Now I want to read everything he‘s written! This was a comforting read for me. Pain mixed with beauty. The kind of spare writing that shuts out distractions and doesn‘t leave room to get lost in despair.
pickMohammed El-Kurd‘s poetry about life in Palestine, the effects of the Nakba, and his grandmother‘s legacy hit me really hard, gave me a lot to contemplate, and is something I know will stay with me. I‘m definitely going to get my own print copy of this so I can revisit some of the thoughts.
The Virgil spine might be speaking to me, but Virgil is not. I just don‘t have the brain capacity for this right now. However I‘m loving every single second I‘m spending reading Du Maurier, and that spine is at least as incredible. Since I started doing categories I‘ve always picked my books for the month right when the numbers came out, and changing them feels a bit like cheating, so I could just DNF The Aeneid and be done with my #bookspin ⬇️
pickIs this a memoir, a family history, philosophical musings on Zen Buddhism, Noh theater, or American vanity, a creative experiment, a meditation, all of the above? I didn‘t find anything particularly profound here, but it was a compelling listen and falls under the enjoyable surprise category for me. #authoramonth @Soubhiville
'Of course, she said, you know why he is marrying you, don't you? You haven't flattered yourself he‘s in love with you? The fact is that empty house got on his nerves to such an extent he nearly went off his head. He admitted as much before you came into the room. He just can't go on living there alone…‘
#hashtagbrigade I‘m curious what you guys think ⬇️
pickThis has been sitting on my shelves unread for a decade or 2. I picked up a copy back when I was a poetry student cause Pinsky was someone I thought I ought to read & then proceeded to ignore cause I also thought I wouldn‘t like it🤣 He‘s not exactly my new favorite poet but he‘s also not what I expected, proving 25 yr old me wasn‘t as smart as she thought she was. This was smart & oddly sweet. It rang with privilege, but also insight & sincerity.
pickI‘ve read a lot of her poems over the years & have been meaning to read an entire collection for ages. In the past I always found her work very hit or miss, but I was able to appreciate it more as a whole. This still isn‘t my favorite poetry style, but when the pieces do speak to you personally they can be especially gut wrenching or cathartic. And she really is one of the voices that launched this style, which is such an impressive legacy!
I sing of arms and of the man, fated to be an exile, who long since left the land of Troy and came to Italy to the shores of Lavinium; and a great pounding he took by land and sea at the hands of the heavenly gods because of the fierce and unforgetting anger of Juno. #firstlinefridays @ShyBookOwl
Congrats!!! 🎉🎉🎉🎉
What an awesome giveaway! We all need to cultivate more joy! Everyone should check out @DebinHawaii ‘s page for details!
My 5 things are:
1 - tea, coffee, cocoa, basically hot things in mugs
2 - books, libraries, and Litsy!
3 - snuggles with my fur babies
4 - seeing my best friend‘s number unexpectedly light up my phone screen
5 - wildflowers
pickWhat an inspiring voice and spirit! Her words are filled with anger, beauty, grief and passion, and she can make the act of reading and bearing witness feel sacred and powerful.
When you unexpectedly wake to snow in April you must immediately crawl back into bed with your Rumi, hot tea, and all the kitties to wait for spring to come back
But it‘s only 10am 😭😭😭😭 This always happens at the beginning of the month! Am I gonna have to stay up super late some night this week just to get my hoopla books?
Waking up to new numbers on #bookspin morning is always so exciting!!! The spin gods clearly like my new This Spine Is Calling To Me category, cause since I started using it in January one of the numbers has landed on it 3 out of 4 months! After reading Galatea yesterday I think I‘m in a Greek mood & this Virgil spine is everything! #Doublespin fell on Classic, & #hashtagbrigade just started Rebecca which is one of my all time favorite classics.
pickAnother Madeleine Miller that I‘ve read and now want my own copy of! This is the most straightforward piece of writing I‘ve ever read by her, and it packs more of a punch than I expected in so few words. It helps that this is a myth we all know whether we‘re familiar with the Greek stories or not, and one that‘s just as topical today as the day the original was written.
from Song of Myself XXIV
#tussle #poetrymatters @TheSpineView
#hashtagbrigade I‘m super psyched to be starting this one with you all (and Cassandra) this morning! It‘s one of my all time favorites! I think this will be my third read. Revisiting Manderly seems like a great trip to take for my birthday month ❤️
#ReadAway2024 update. My read my bookshelves project continues at the same glacial pace! In March I read 4 books off my own shelves, but this time that was up to 25% of my reading, since my entire March lineup was the Murderbot series and my #AAM thriller on audio, and frustrating chunksters and poetry off my bookshelves. @DieAReader @Andrew65 @GHABI4ROSES
I couldn‘t stand the thought of more Dostoyevsky in April, so I rushed through the ending today. The past month has been a lot of skipping days and then skimming to catch up as I‘ve gotten increasingly impatient with The Bros and our long winded narrator. Still, this has been lingering on my TBR for 20 years and I‘m super grateful to @BarkingMadRead and the #hashtagbrigade for getting me to finally read it!
‘How white the moonlight is tonight,' said Anne Blythe to herself, as she went up the walk of the Wright garden to Diana Wright's front door, where little cherry blossom petals were coming down on the salty, breeze-stirred air.
#firstlinefridays @ShyBookOwl
Almost all the Anne books start in fall. I love that I‘m actually starting this one in spring!
March hasn‘t been a huge reading month for me, but I did read both of this month‘s spins, finish one of my super intimidating chunksters, and am on track to finish the other at the beginning of April. I can‘t wait to be done with it! And I‘m looking forward to some new spins and a month of brighter, fluffier, more springtime appropriate reading! #bookspin #doublespin @TheAromaofBooks
Phew, done! I‘m guessing no one will find it spoilery if I say I found the ending unsatisfying 😂. I have no idea how to rate this — there were enough nuggets along the way to keep me reading, but the further I got the more infuriating I found it. There were so many places I wanted the author to take this that she stubbornly refused to go & the questions I found most interesting stay unanswered. 😅😵💫🤬😬🤷🏻♀️ See you Sunday! #sundaybuddyread
Alyisha, I just received the most gorgeous, decadent package from you and Moxie Crimefighter! Thank you so much for all the gifts! I feel very spoiled and I can‘t wait to dive into this beautiful book and my new tea! And thank you for another amazing year of #auldlangspine
P.S. Cedric approves, and says bunnies smell weird and amazing and he‘d like to meet one someday!
#Naturalitsy #Litsolace #SpringMoodBoard
In typical fashion for my area, spring poked its cheeky head out last week and I got super excited and threw all the windows wide open! But then the temperature plummeted, and yesterday I had to shut everything up tight and turn the heat back on. Currently I‘m staring out the window at ice, not flowers, so this is more of an aspirational mood board. But when it decides to descend for real I‘m ready for it!
![[tagged book]](https://image.librarything.com/pics/litsy_webpics/icon_taggedBook@3x.png){kind=icon}
