Welcome to Litsy!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ what an excellent read! Winter‘s story is so heartbreaking. You root for her but also find her extremely frustrating. I also loved how Sister Souljah wove herself into the story and was very honest about herself. It‘s a story that teaches a lesson but is so entertaining you forget you‘re learning. Really glad I read it and can‘t wait to receive my copy of the new sequel.

I understand why this is a classic. If I read this book back when it was initially published, I would‘ve loved it. I did enjoy some of the nostalgia of that era, but that‘s where most of my enjoyment ended. The homophobia and HIV stigma was yikes, even for the time it was published. The MC is horrible. The author includes herself as a character, but that whole section was ultimately pointless. I never got over the materialism. ⬇️

I feel like I‘ve probably posted about this one here before... oh well! 🤷🏾‍♀️
A book by a Black author that opened my interest into a new genre was The Coldest Winter Ever
Author: Sistah Souljah / Genre: Urban Fiction

This book not only opened me up to a new genre of reading, but a really whole new world I never could have imagined. & changed my idea of what a book could be. #Blackliteracyisrevolutionary

First day off starts with a book #holidayseason.
I hope it won‘t be the coldest winter ever hahaha get it ? 🤦🏾‍♀️

While this is a good urban fiction book, the classic in the genre I was annoyed and angered by the amount of homophobia throughout.
There is a chapter where the main and her mentor (sister soujor herself which is a choice) meet a group of GIV positive women. The fear mongering in this chapter had me checking again what year this was written and how disappointing. By 1999 we had more education then this author shows and her mentor was supposed

17:Told from the perspective of a teenaged daughter of a drug lord, the narration of The Coldest Winter Ever is incredible! The voice of Winter, who is smart and self-absorbed, transports the reader to the Brooklyn streets. The strength of the writing wanes when the author becomes a character in the story.The focus gets muddied and Sister Souljah has a haughty view of herself. The book does improve, but the ending feels abrupt and disappointing.

A unexpected smack in the face to wake a bitch up. Or a bitch ass N*****

#LitsyLove @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Happy Monday!! 💚

1) The Sims 4, Writing, READING.

2) Psychological Thrillers, Medical Thrillers, Law/Crime, all the gory stuff with lots of blood. 😬

3) I have a blue heeler mix with a terrier. My little farm dog from the big city.

4) My Goodreads account has better accuracy. All owned.

5) I collect Amazon Prime boxes. 🤷🏽‍♀️

6) Feels like -44 outside my front door right now. Tagged book is my mood.

Slowly checking off items from my #blackandbookedchallenge. This one was difficult to read because I'm not a fan of contemporary urban fiction at all but I'll attempt to separate the book from the genre...

An unlikable MC and generally little action did nothing to win me over BUT I couldn't stop reading, if only to see Winter get what was coming to her. Make of that what you will.

⭐⭐⭐

Maybe it‘ll be the coldest winter ever, but maybe not...all I know is that some preparations are in order. I‘m so grateful for the pool my mother put in the backyard for me. It means I don‘t have to leave home to exercise. Unfortunately, it does come to an end in the winter...we covered it today.
#Gratitude30
#Weather
@hermyknee

I‘m not sure what to say about this. It was an excellent book. I am glad I read it, but it was horribly depressing. I felt like I was watching a slow motion car wreck. I think what gets me the most is that I see a lot of Winter in many of my students, and I don‘t know the answer or how to help.

This isn‘t a book I would have chosen on my own, but one of my co-workers told me that I had to read it. It is an intense read so far and I am guessing there is probably not going to be a happy ending. But glad to be giving it a chance.

Here's the two books I plan on using for #TwoinThree this weekend. They're both on my #GARBingo card, which I haven't read any books from in about two months 😬. I definitely won't finish the #GreatAmericanRead in time.

@Samplergal

Actions 👏🏻 have 👏🏻 consequences 👏🏻. Too bad Winter Santiaga couldn‘t listen to Sister Souljah and remove herself from the vicious cycle. Winter isn‘t very likable but she‘s very real. What will you live for? What will you die for? Will it be worth it? The moral lesson in this is clear. And we should ALL listen. #GreatAmericanRead

Oh wow. I picked this one up because it was on the #GreatAmericanRead list and I was completely blown away.

Winter Santiaga, daughter of Brooklyn drug Lord Rocky Santiaga, sucked me in, twisted round my heart and spat me back out. I finished the book blinking, in disbelief of my surroundings, because it was so transporting.

Sister Souljah has a keen ear for dialogue and a keen eye for detail. Stellar read. 5⭐.

Warning: sex/strong language.

Working on a project for my MBA and this book is calling my name! I can‘t wait to get back to it. One of my gauges for a great book is if I end up reading it in the 🛀🏿 bathtub after the water has drained!!! This has happened two nights in a row!!!

A classic read #sistersouljah #winter #🔥🔥🔥

Saw this on the Great American read and looked it up and then . . . Bought it 😳😳 because I need more books 🤷🏽‍♀️

( also I may have come up with a fix for the pic problem I was having-I tried it by just downloading and it did not work. if I edit it it will work - I added an overlay.)

You guys. This book is in my head like a sickness. I will absolutely finish this today.

I finished A Separate Peace and was utterly underwhelmed by it. 😑 Started this one, which is boldly opposite to Knowles‘ classic in almost every way, and I am loving it!

#GARbingo

As an aside, I‘m wondering what would possess publishers to print a 500-page book on cheap paper with almost no margins, then bind it all in a tiny, glossy hardcover. It makes the reading experience not so great. #firstworldproblems

Finished The Coldest Winter Ever by @sistersouljah over the weekend and I don‘t even know how some of y‘all were reading this in middle school. lol This book was an extremely good read and just when I thought Winter was going to catch a break in life, another plot twist was thrown at me. More of my thoughts are on the blog.

One of the best books of all time loved loved loved

#TBRtemptation post 1! Many consider this to be the best urban fiction novel. Ghetto-born, Winter is the young, wealthy daughter of a prominent drug-dealing Brooklyn family. After they move to the suburbs, things change, and she'll put her street smarts and seductive skills to work. She'll do whatever it takes to stay on top and live luxuriously. Will it be her downfall? #blameLitsy #blameMrBook 😎

Very important question: Why is it so 🤬 cold?! #currentmood

The culture shock for this book is almost too much for me. This girl spends more on one outfit than I spend on food in a month or on concert tix for 2 to see our fave band! I can't even imagine spending that much in one go on books! This girl is smart but she needs to straighten out her priorities! (Disclaimer: this is coming from a small town girl who wears scrubs most days. I realize my worldview is... limited?) 👚👖 👟👍🏽

You don't have to ask me twice, ice cream! 😍😍😍

A compelling urban fiction story about the devastating circumstances of poverty-stricken families living in the projects of Brooklyn. Though it was written 17 years ago, its portrayal of the dangerous world of drugs is still relevant. The characters are well-crafted and the conversational tone makes it a page turner. Definitely worth the read! (Warning: there is crass language and explicit sexual scenes that may bother some readers.)

I remember reading this. I've actually read it twice. It was gritty and may be credited for adding steam to the ever-popular "Urban/Street fiction" genre. I didn't care too much for Winter because she could've been better. She was definitely smart so I didn't like the dumb choices she made. As for the writing, Sister Souljah did an excellent job writing this book. #urbanfiction #nostalgiaread

it's nice when previous readers point out good stuff for you yay library books

Girl! Let me tell you about how cold Winter is?! This book was passes around my middle over a decade ago and I still love it! Think New York coming of age story with a father in jail and your life falling apart with a dollop of street smarts! So good. You cant put it down! But so extra! No shame.