Welcome to Litsy!

Two novellas and three short stories, each set in a different African country; all are devastating and heartbreaking. 💔 Most feature children. This is fiction, but we know it is rooted in truth: exploitation, religious violence, ethnic conflict, poverty, despair.

#The52BookClub24 Sticker on cover (Oprah)
#Pop24 Title complete sentence
#TBRtarot (January) YOU in title
#Roll100 February

This collection is hard to review. Two of the five stories are amazing; the other three are some of the worst writing I‘ve read in years. The two stories worth reading: An Ex-Mas Feast, and Say You‘re One of Them. The rest is beyond a pan; I was angry I wasted my time with the other stories, which are much longer, and very poorly written.

I bailed on my #DoubleSpin pick for October. I just wasn‘t feeling it 🤷‍♀️ @TheAromaofBooks

Heartbreaking. Powerful, good on #audio This collection of short story was a hard listen but I‘m so glad I did. His voice needs to be heard in the world. #BookspinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

Oh so many books have made me cry! The tagged is a collection of short and short-ish stories that all had me bawling. Also, for 2020 reads, Girls at war and other stories by Chinua Achebe and So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo are a couple others I can think of.

Thanks for the tag @Cuilin
#FridayFeelings

Who else wants to share?

1. When I was 3-4 I lived on the farm where my mom, grandfather, great-grandmother & greats back to my first bohemian ancestors to America lived. My cousin & I would play in the barn. 1 day, 2 boys yelled at us to get out of their barn. This was shortly after my grandfather & his brother died. Later in life I told my mom & she said there would have been no boys around in that area. I know it was them.
2. My healthy, happy family

#ThankfulThursday

Books, where would I be without them? These are to be read next. Diverse and interesting!

Intense book! Beautiful & horrific stories of religious conflict, war, disease & impacts on personal levels. This book contains 5 stories — 3 short & 2 longer heart wrenching stories that feel like they could be real & surely pieces taken from personal accounts. Not the easiest read, but amazing. Finally finished my 1st #bookspin for February after lots of reading & writing for work. Luckily my #doublespin is lighter & we have leap day tomorrow!

Loved the stories.

Last book of 2018 was far from uplifting. It‘s time to start my 2019 #LitsyAtoZ!

Hard to read but powerful, gripping stories about families, community ties, and conflict. The three stories are each devastating, so read when your mind is right.

#Aprella Day 10: Piercing narratives of poverty and violence in Africa make for a #CruelWorld indeed. A #BigBadWolf book find.

Great way to end the night 🙌🏽

A depressive but necessary read. Very Graphic 3/5

A collection of stories about the different ways in which conflict impacts children. One box of tissues is definitely not enough...

This book was an exceptionally difficult read. Just 5 short stories.. But 5 different stories told from the view points of different children. Children that are forced to encounter situations that are way beyond normalcy. Painful book but a must read!

I just finished the second story in this book and my heart aches. Child trafficking, though a difficult subject, has always been an abstract term for me. This second story however, made it real. I don't think I can sleep tonight.

'We knew how to pretend we were strangers - just a street kid and a prostitute talking' - a depressing look at the street life in Nairobi. A heart wrenching first story in this collection.

The essential Africa map before I begin this much raved about collection of stories by Uwem Akpan. Any of you read it already?