Welcome to Litsy!

I was not expecting to love this like I did.

I liked this for its philosophical insights and how the setting comes to life in Lavinia‘s day to day, and for this I would read again.

But wasn't sure in how at times the story is contrived in how it unfolds and for having characters that are all good (Aeneas) or all bad (Turnus (and later Acsanius)) – and so to me feels less real.

#Fiction #books #readaway2024 #eBook #Romance #adaptation

Beautifully written but I didn't really enjoy it that much, sadly.

@5feet.of.fury I completely spaced about yesterday being Presidents‘ Day! 😂 It‘s on its way to you now! Hopefully it should be there by Thursday! #LMPBC #GroupG #Round19

Lavinia, daughter of a king, promised to one, destined for another, & the future of Rome.

Loved this so much, but I hate that little blurb on the front. This story is about so much more than Lavinia‘s marriage to Aeneus & the war between her people and the Trojans. It‘s about the power a woman could wield, about how much control we have over our own stories, about the role that fate plays in our lives, & the beginnings of an empire. 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑

It has arrived! @5feet.of.fury I will get it to you ASAP! 💖

@mrsmarch @BookmarkTavern @5feet.of.fury Have you read any of these retellings? I‘m leaning toward Lavinia, but let me know!!

This is the Aeneid told from the point of view of Lavinia who's just barely mentioned in the poem. I think she did a great job with this. Definitely not her normal genre.

#AuthorAMonth @Soubhiville

#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

Lavinia, a Latin princess, has many suitors but she is not interested in any of them until Aeneas arrives from Troy.

Another woman from legend gets the chance to tell her own story, but she herself also reflects on whether she actually exists outside the story as told by Vergil. Enjoyable but if even the main character isn't sure whether she exists it's difficult to feel any emotional involvement in what's going on.

A voiceless character from Vergil's The Aeneid, Lavinia, is given a whole novel to herself, and it's good. Greek and Roman mythology is hardly believable, but in this very human take, it felt so much more like history than a carefully crafted fable inspired by an ancient epic. I struggled with the first quarter of the book but it picked up fast after that.

Meh. This is a narrative of the life of Lavinia, Aeneas's last wife in Vergil's Aeneid. As a teen, the poet Vergil speaks to her across time as he is dying and tells her what is going to happen. The purpose of her life is to marry a hero, a widower twice her age, who will die three years later, so she can bear his child, whose descendents will found Rome. She gets no other life. How depressing. Just interesting enough to finish.

I was drawn in from the first line with the self-conscious narrative of Lavinia as she contemplates her reality and attributes her very existence to her creator, the poet Virgil. Based on the last 6 books of Virgil's Aeneid, Ursula Le Guin not only gives a voice to Lavinia but allows her to take control of her own destiny. Beautifully done and a delightful read.

Sunday mornings are best spent reading with my furball.

Mini used book haul from my local indie bookstore this week. I've heard a lot of mixed things about Wicked but thought I'd give it a go. The Glass Castle is in brand new condition, and I think it warrants a reread. I don't know anything about Lavinia, but it's by Le Guin. The question is where to start??

Thanks for the interesting books and cute soup cup @MaGoose ! I hope you have a wonderful holiday! Thanks @Bookgoil and @rsteve388 for hosting this sweet #LitsyLoveWinterSwap 💜

I love everything I've read by Le Guin. I look forward to reading more of her work.

#bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks
Square 7 ✔️

#jubilantjuly @Andrew65
Book 2 ✔️

1 star - terrible. Wish i hadn't read it.
2 stars - not my taste, but not terrible. Probably won't revisit this author's work
3 stars - decent. Liked some aspects, disliked others
4 stars - good, would recommend
5 stars - loved it. Possible favorite

@Clwojick

How i missed reading Le Guin. Love how she writes ❤️

I admire LeGuin's faithfulness to The Aeneid while telling her own story but found myself not caring about the repetitive plotlines of war, the many difficult-to-distinguish regions and characters. At times I found it achingly beautiful, especially anytime Lavinia interacted with Vergil or Aeneas, and the glimpses into Aeneas' deep sense of humility and honor, but I would have loved more of that spirituality, passion, and philosophy throughout.

"Our people...called Aeneas father. 'Will that fence do, Father Aeneas?'...They spoke to Latinus the same way, and young as I was, I was Mother Lavinia, for we use the words not only for our parents but for those who take responsibility for us. Often a soldier calls his captain his father, and rightly, too, if the captain looks after his men as he should."
My first thought: Jake Peralta & Captain Holt would fit right in. #brooklyn99 #lavinia

This is exceptional. I was gifted this, and I was told it was a feminist retelling of a myth I love while hating on the Aenied which I dislike. It is exactly that and so wonderful

I'm back!
For a long time I had issues with my phone but I'm back! I'm still doing my masters in classical studies, and this is my dissertation year.
I hope everyone has had a good 2019 and I'm excited for a new decade of reading!
This is my first book of the decade and it was very kindly gifted to me.
#ClassicistsOfLitsy

Stunning and poignant. Although it was a shorter book, (just under 300 pages), the characters were extremely in depth and the story was lyrical, powerful, and rich with history. I adored Lavinia as a character, as well as her relationships with Aeneas, her father, & her son. Bonus points for it getting a bit meta with her “poet” & the themes of “Song Culture”, which helped me with the novel I‘m writing.

Check out these 9 mythic retellings from Bustle: https://www.bustle.com/p/9-mythic-retellings-that-will-give-you-a-whole-new-pers...
The tagged book keeps popping up on the most wished for books question in the Myths & Legends Swap form.

Don‘t forget to sign up for the #mythsandlegendsswap. Only seven days left to join in the fun! Sign-up form: https://goo.gl/forms/2R1SApiRylVWvME53

My Thrift book haul 😊

A gorgeous book exploring one of the silent women of mythology. It reminded me of The Penelopiad. #mythology #historicalfiction

Latest used bookstore acquisitions. Something fun, and something serious. #sustainability #mythology #bravegirls #paganism

One more day of school and waiting in the pickup line!
🎉🎉🎉😍❤

Having trouble sleeping, so am comforting myself with an unread title from my absolute favorite author. May she be read forever and her books never go out of print.

Such a big loss for the literary world today.

I own this title and will be starting it soon. #rip #tbr

Rest in bookish peace...

That's one way to spend a Friday night.

A pretty bookmark I picked up at Mount Rainier. #bookmarks

My first Ursula K. Le Guin

Love it already.