Welcome to Litsy!

So good! The unusual family dynamics were fascinating- so strange to an outsider (the reader) - but so delightfully normal to the family, that the story seemed effortless. Underscores that kindness and manners are important!

An astounding novel. This is filled with incisive observations and a consistent sense of humor that's both biting and erudite. Yet at the same time there is so much heart and earnestness: characters who feel endearingly real, leaving the reader fond of everyone.

Then there is the ending, which lands with the most perfect tone and sensibility. It took me out.

Really it's one of the best contemporary novels I've read.

Simone, over the phone, had given me a list of questions for the president if I had a chance as well as a selection of words she believed he would be inspired to look up in the dictionary when he had a minute (Simone had said if he actually only had one minute, he should just read the definition of the word “elitism”) because it was obvious to her he didn‘t precisely know what they meant.

Let me tell you—this novel is hilarious. It cracks me up on nearly every page. It‘s funny in the same kind of way that the Harry Potter books are funny.... Just tons of heart and wit and spunk.

I gifted a library patron an ARC (of the tagged book). She loved it as much as I did & was so grateful that she presented me with this today!

The thing is... I have no idea what it is! 😂

She‘s so hip that I didn‘t want to admit that I was clueless (gotta maintain my street cred, you know)? I thought it was going to be some sort of kombucha... but it definitely isn‘t. I know for sure that it has vanilla beans in it. Is it extract? Help! 😆

There‘s something really beautiful & sad about the fact that even though I read this book closely, I still tried to connect the dots on its cover.

The meta-question at its center is one that‘s been on my mind, given how apathetic I‘ve felt toward many of my recent reads (despite their literary merit): “Isn‘t there a way to have it all?... To be, at the same time, intellectually & emotionally involved?”

*Review cont‘d in comments 👇🏻

“You worry too much, honey. Everything is going to be fine. You‘ve always worried and it‘s always been fine.”

“Exactly,” Aurore replies. “That‘s exactly why I need to keep worrying.”

I didn‘t understand how they could agree that everything had always been fine.

*This book is so funny & astute- oftentimes depressingly funny, & this is a prime example - but funny nonetheless. It‘s just what I needed to get me out of my recent book apathy.

I forgot my book at home today & there are no available copies on Overdrive or Libby. I‘ll just be over here, moping real hard. 😿

Also, Happy 40th Anniversary, Garfield! Thanks for being a comfort on Mondays, whenever I‘m peeved, & anytime I want to eat all of the lasagna (which is always). 🎂

“She always got strangely nostalgic... when the time came to pack the car & go home. She demanded a window seat for the ride back. She said looking at the seashore fade away through the window was a good way to get a grasp on her melancholy & that being able to pull from a store of melancholy was what made great artists. “Car trips make great artists?” I asked, making sure I understood what my sister had said. “Car trips *back,* Simone specified.”

This was one of the books I got in a Goodreads giveaway and it was okay. It‘s an interesting story about family and dysfunction and has some tones of Augusten Burroughs. But, it was dry and honestly really boring at points. I didn‘t hate it, but it‘s not my favorite.

This book was a good companion this month though endless commutes and tennis lessons. The family grew on me as the book went on.

Someone folded down the pages in this library book 🤬🤬🤬🤬

This is one of those books that‘s saying so much more than what‘s on the printed page, & like any good coming-of-age novel, allows the readers to renew their understanding of life & the world through the burgeoning eyes of a child. Isidore‘s observations of the “hows & whys” of people are spot-on & will have readers nodding their heads. Even better, Isidore is funny & he doesn‘t even know it, making for a novel that is both comedic & insightful.

November 7: #booksandtea - This child here! He just notices everything, sippin‘ on that #tea!
“Mom ate from blue plates & bowls because she‘d read that blue tableware cut your appetite, & she always wanted to lose four pounds. That night, she‘d made whitefish, & whitefish you could eat as much as you wanted & not gain an ounce, she said, but still she‘d set a blue plate in front of her.” This book is crackin‘ me up. 😂 #lilbookishthanks

Yam fries and a sleeve of local brew while I wait for my next event at #VWF2017. This morning, Camille Bordas, about coming of age novels, said it's not nice to be a child going through adult experiences for the first time, but it's interesting to watch. She was born in 1987 & this is her 3rd novel, the 1st in English (her 3rd language after French & Spanish). Audience question: how do you do it? Answer: one sentence at a time.

Day 16: Published in 2017 - Added this one to my #TBR list yesterday, & I'm super excited because it's a French coming-of-age novel! "How to Behave in a Crowd" takes place in a small town in France, & follows an eleven year old named Isidore who doesn't quite fit in. His family may be full of prodigies, but they don't know how to respond to tragedy when it hits their household - and this is where Isidore comes in ... #bookstagram #septinbooks17

So this novel came out last month and didn't get much buzz, but I had fun interviewing the author. I was really impressed that she wrote such a terrific book in her second language! You can check out the interview here: https://chireviewofbooks.com/2017/09/11/how-to-behave-in-a-crowd-camille-bordas-...

After last month, I'm feeling a little reading fatigue. Trying to look for something that is interesting but not depressing.

Dottie's great company even though she feels like an idiot. I won't be able to get her to the groomer until next week and her hair is blinding her...so I dug around in my bits and bobs box and found this little deal! #dogsoflitsy #dottie

Parented by a quirky mother and a man she refers to as "the father," ... his keen skill for observing people and interpreting their emotions set him apart.

How to Behave in a Crowd is an intelligent and reflective look at adolescence, on par with Catcher in the Rye and The Secret Fruits of Peter Paddington.

See my full review at instagram.com/angeline_emery.

I have a lot of exciting reading to do! In addition to several other books, I've received an ARC of How to Behave in a Crowd by French author, Camille Bordas. I've never read anything like this and I'm really enjoying it! Review coming soon.

@penguinrandomhouse @Crownpublishing

This is an ARC I got from Penguin #firsttoread. I'm not far in but the narrator (a super observant, empathetic 12 year-old boy) cracks me up.
Probably not the book for you if you like plot or dislike precocious child narrators.

When I read the description of the story I thought of The One-in-a-Milion Boy by Monica Wood. Unfortunately, the only thing they had in common was a woman on her way to setting a record for age and that the boy was misunderstood. There were some entertaining spots but not enough to save the book from being a drag. #2017christyread #firsttoread #meh

August galleys I need to get to!!!

I want to read! Stupid work and adult responsibilities. *Grumble*

Holidays are for books and sunshine.