There is a lot to admire in this novel. The first half of the book worked best for me. Once the novel picked up where There There left off, I started to lose interest. Well worth a read, but not on my personal short list. 3 🌟 #bookerlonglist #booker @squirrelbrain @AnneCecilie @charl08 @JamieArc @BarbaraBB @Graywacke @jlhammar @Deblovestoread

A novel about ghosts, abuse, absent family, and found family. Nothing deep and nothing new. Charaters' pasts feel more like a plot device than truly being explored. 2 🌟

August Reads
5 🌟
James: Percival Everett 📖
Galatea: Madeline Miller 🎧
4.5 🌟
The Safekeep: Yael Van Der Woden 🎧
Enlightenment: Sarah Perry 🎧
4 🌟
Chain-Gang All Stars: Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah 🎧
Brotherless Nights: V. V. Ganeshananthan 📖
3.5 🌟
Whale Fall: Elizabeth O;Connor 📖
3 🌟
This Strange Eventful History: Claire Messud 🎧
Orbital: Samantha Harvey 🎧 📖
2 🌟
Held: Anne Michaels 📖

I love Madeline Miller's writing. This short story retelling the Pygmalion myth is as close to perfect as I can imagine. 5 🌟 I needed to read a short fiction that I knew I would love before I move on to more #bookerlonglist novels.

A loosely connected collection of short stories. Some worked better than others for me. I found them over written. Not a fan, proud that I finished this short novel. 2 🌟 Not on my short list #bookerlonglist @Deblovestoread @squirrelbrain @JenP @AnneCecilie @charl08 @JamieArc @BarbaraBB @Graywacke @jlhammar

This poetic, rhythmic, meditative novel was not for me. There is no plot, and although I can appreciate what this work is doing, it did not captivate me. I switched to the audio version at about the 50% mark since I was having trouble making myself pick it up. 3 🌟 #bookerlonglist
@squirrelbrain @JenP @AnneCecilie @charl08 @JamieArc @BarbaraBB @Graywacke @jlhammar @Deblovestoread

I am in love with Thomas Heart. Strongest novel of Sarah Perry's that I have read. I hated Melmoth and thought The Essex Serpent was interesting. This book took my heart. The exploration of different love and the nature of time. This is one I want to reread. The way she would blur timelines as if "all life happened at once." 4.5 ? This would be on my #booker shortlist. @squirrelbrain @JenP @AnneCecilie @charl08 @JamieArc @BarbaraBB @Graywacke

3 🌟 read for me. I can admire this novel, and I enjoyed listening to the audio book, but I did not feel invested. This would not make my personal short list. 3 read, 3 in the process of being read, and 7 to go! #Booker @JenP @AnneCecilie @charl08 @JamieArc @BarbaraBB @Graywacke @jlhammar

"Who should read this book? Every single person in the country." Anne Patchett "Percival Everett is a genre." Kiese Laymon 5 ? Everett is one of my favorite writers. This is my favorite novel of his. The book takes off when it stops following the plot of Huck Fin. A top read of the year for me. #booker2024 @BarbaraBB @jlhammar @Graywacke @JamieArc @Leniverse @AnneCecilie @JenP

Finally read the winner of the #Womensprize and #carolshieldsprize. An important book about war and truth. Beautifully written. I felt removed from the book emotionally. Can appreciate this novel. 4 🌟

Wonderful start to the 2024 #Bookerlonglist . Rich tale of how we begin to reconcile with the holocaust. Set in the early '60s in the Netherlands. This novel also explores what it means to be gay. Highly recommend. 4.5 🌟

A quiet lyrical novel set on an island off the coast of Wales right before WWII. Beautiful writing. 3.5 🌟

A violent, fast-paced novel about the wrongs of the incarceration system in America. This gave me a lot to think about, packaged in an alternative future. 4 🌟

July Reads

5🌟
Prophet Song: Paul Lynch 📖
4🌟
Soldier Sailor: Claire Kilroy 🎧
3.5🌟
Good Material: Dolly Alderton 🎧
The Midnight News: Jo Baker 📖
The Coast Road: Alan Morrin 🎧
3🌟
Happy Place: Emily Henry 📖
2🌟
The Book of Love: Kelly Link 🎧

Brutal honest portrait of early motherhood. At times, it was uncomfortable to read. Beautifully written. 4 🌟

A story set in 1990's Ireland looking at three marriages in a country where divorce is not legal. Some beautiful writing, but it did not blow me away. 3 🌟

A delightful romp. It dragged a bit in the middle. 3 🌟

This was a very long, complicated story about coming of age. It is a fantasy that did not work for me. This was my first Kelly Link, and I will not be rushing out to read more of her sadly. 2 🌟

One of the best books I have ever read. All the stars. This is a brilliant book about a community's decent into war. The author is able to make the reader believe it will all be OK as the world erupts around this family. I lost sleep to race to the end of this novel. #bookerwinner2023 If you only read one novel this year, read this! 5 🌟

I loved Longbourn by this author. Her voice as a writer really works for me. I enjoyed this novel set during the Blitz. Reads like a historical mystery. My only hesitation is that the author tackles so many topics that, at times, it comes off as a bit muddled. Still recommend this novel for Historical Fiction fans. 3.5 🌟

A delight of a book. Story of grownups going through a breakup. Strong writing. Recommend! 3.5 🌟

June Reads
4🌟
You Are Here: David Nicholls 🎧
3.5🌟
Ordinary Human Failings: Megan Nolan 🎧
3🌟
The House Of Doors: Tan Twan Eng 🎧
Western Lane: Chetna Maroo 📖
The Warm Hands of Ghosts: Katherine Arden 📖
2.5 🌟
A Handful of Dust: Evelyn Waugh 📖
2 🌟
Assassin of Reality: Marina & Sergey Dyachenko 🎧

I read this novel published in the 1930s on Ann Patchett recommendation. She is using this novel for her next novel. I enjoyed this classic. It has a huge shift in tone at about 50% through the story. I am glad I read it, and it has made me hungry for the next Patchett novel. 3 🌟

I wanted to love this novel, but something in it just does not work. Set during WWI, a sister desperately searches for her brother. The end was wrapped up too neatly, and for all the action, I found that it dragged in the middle of the novel. I still love this author, but this was a miss for me. 3 🌟

Loved this sweet novel. A grownup romance and the slow process of getting to know someone on the hiking trail. Highly recommend. 4 🌟. Sweet novel.

What a suprise this novel was to me. It starts so bleak and desperate. This novel follows an Irish family as they relocate to London where a tragic event happens. Imagine my suprise as the book takes a major turn near the end. Loved it! So glad the #womensprize brought this novel to my attention. 3.5 🌟

It is a surprising and charming story about grief and family. I enjoyed it. 3 🌟 #womensprizeforfiction

This historical novel (that is on the short list for the #walterscottaward ) did not capture my imagination as I hoped it would. I learned about Malasia in the 1920's, but failed to connect strongly with the characters. 2.5🌟 for me.

May Reads.
5🌟
Sipsworth: Simon Van Booy 📖
4.5🌟
Clear: Carys Davis 🎧
4🌟
Wandering Souls: Cecile Pin 📖
Doppelganger: Naomi Klein 🎧
3🌟
Land of Milk and Honey: C Pam Zhang 🎧
All Our Yesterdays: Joel H Morris 📖
The Fraud: Zadie Smith 🎧
2.5 🌟
The Lost Bookshop: Evie Woods 📖

#Womensnonfictionprize
#WalterScottPrize

Charming tale of an elderly woman who finds a way to reconnect with the world in an unusual way. Loved this book that was sweet but not cloying. 5 🌟. It was the best read of 2024 for me so far! Highly recommend.

Sweeping historical fiction set among the literary set in England. I enjoy the authors writing, but I found this tale and her message a bit muddled in the novel. 3 🌟 #walterscottprize

Loved this short novel. I love her writing, and this historical novel is no exception. She writes with such heart. 5 🌟. Set on an isolated island off the coast of Scotland. Dont miss this novel! One of my top reads of 2024.

This was a fun fan fiction about Lady Macbeth. Wonderful imaging what her life was like leading up to the beginning of the play. Perfect to get me out of a reading slump. 3 🌟

This was so much more than I expected. She examines history and our need to look away from hard truth. It is also a call to action. Highly recommend. 4 🌟 The author narrates the audio book. ♥️

It took me months to finish this historical, fatasy romance. There are two timelines in the novel. I figured out the twist well before the novel revealed the connection between the past and present. The writing was cliqued at times. I was not the right reader for this novel. 2 🌟

This is my first book by this author. I thought it was a solid book with an interesting concept. I'm glad I read it, but I'm not wild about it. 3 🌟

April Reads.

5🌟
How to Say Babylon: Safiya Sinclair 🎧
4🌟
Martyr!: Kaveh Akbar 🎧
The Adversary: Michael Crummey 🎧
2 🌟
The Blue, Beautiful World: Karen Lord 📖
#womensprizeforfiction
#womensprizefornonfiction

5 🌟. Outstanding memoir of a poet that grew up in Jamaica. I learned a great deal from this well crafted work. The audio book is read by the author and was great. Read this book! #womensprizefornonfiction

What a disappointment. I love science fiction and was delighted that an SF book made the #Womensprize long list. For most of the book, I was confused. When the puzzel pieces came together, I no longer cared about the story. 2 🌟

Loved this cold, gothic historical fiction novel set in Newfoundland. The novel tracres the war between siblings in a small coastal village. Great on audio. 4 🌟

Love this novel about recovery from addiction, trying to find your place in the world, and choosing life. It is entertaining and surprising. Loved the audio book. Highly recommend. 4 🌟

I snuck one more book in before April. I found this tale set in Ghana and the US of a friendship an easy, uncomplicated read. It was straightforward and engaging. I wonder if I will remember it over time. It would not make my personal short list for #thewomensprize. 3 🌟 (beautiful cover!)

March Reads.
4 🌟
Let Us Descend: Jesmyn Ward 📖
Enter Ghost: Isabella Hammad 🎧
3 🌟
Man‘s Search For Meaning: Viktor E Frankl 📖
2.5 🌟
In The Upper Country: Kai Thomas 🎧
2 🌟
Hangman: Maya Binyam 🎧
#Womensprizeforfiction
#Carolshieldsprize

A long serpentine parable that all comes together in the last chapter. You have to have patience with not understanding what is happening. I can admire the writing skills involved, but not a favorite read for me. 2 🌟

Loved this long listed book for the Women's Prize for Fiction. An exploration of where one belongs along with a production of Hamlet. I need to sit with this novel for a while. Highly recommend. 4 🌟

I listened to this historical tale of slavery set in Canada on Audio. It read like connected short stories to me. I did not give it my full attention and had a hard time following the family lines. I feel I did this novel a disservice, but I am also unwilling to reread it. So-so for me. It is on the Walter Scott long list for historical fiction.

I found this book of philosophy interesting. The story of the authors survival of the concentration camp was compelling and gave his theory of life much more weight. I am glad that I read this book.

February Reads
4.5 🌟
The Body in Question: Jill Ciment 📖
3.5 🌟
The Glass Hotel: Emily St John Mandel 📖
3 🌟
Amy Snow: Tracy Rees 📖
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: George RR Martin 📖
2.5 🌟
The Road to Roswell: Connie Willis 🎧
1 🌟
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn: Mark Twain 🎧
I read Huck Finn to prepare for James by Percival Everett coming out this month.

Poetic slave narrative with mythical elements. Her writing is brutal and lyrical. A must-read for literary fiction fans. 4.5 🌟

This is a very problematic and difficult read. I listened to it in preparation for Percival Everett's new novel, James. I did not enjoy this text at all! I can't believe this use to be taught in schools.