Kudos: A Novel | 
I am posting one book per day from my extensive to-be-read collection. No description and providing no reason for wanting to read it, I just do. Some will be old, some will be new. Don‘t judge me - I have a lot of books. Join in if you want!
#ABookADay2023
pickCan we pull back a bit on declaring this to be a timeless, classic series? That first book is incredible but, for me, “Transit” was stagnant compared to it.
But when discussing this book alone, rather than the series:
“Kudos” is more of a return to form. There were some seriously fascinating conversations, rich with insight, both caustic and thoughtful.
And that ending—nailed it. Phenomenal.
pickI finally got around to this one. I read, I think on LitHub, that Jeff Vandermeer recommended this as a beach read and it got me to finally start it. Now that I've read it, it totally makes sense. Kudos is somehow an effortless read without sacrificing it's depth. Great writing.
pickThe final book in the trilogy and just as good as the first two. In this novel the protagonist is on the plane for a literary conference, and at the conference. The novel focuses on relationships, the dynamics and how they work and maybe more importantly how they don‘t work. There‘s also a lot of talk of litterateur and writing, and these topics are probably every book lovers dream.
Next up.
The Norwegian transition was published earlier this month. I loved the first two books in this trilogy and considering my last reads, I really need something good now.
I was blessed today with a rare private event with Rachel Cusk, on her tour for the paperback release. Our small talk was quite illuminating. She mentioned how the blowback from her first two books was so intense because of the rage evident in the content and yet this series has the exact same material- but the narrator is “passive” this time & it‘s a critical success. But she purposefully constructed it for that effect. Kudos, indeed, Ms Cusk!
Speaking of signed copies...I didn't realize the copy of Kudos that FSG sent was a signed edition
I just got an email that I won this! Wow, that's two book wins in a month (the first was from LitHub)! My TBR shelf is going to get really crowded in 4 to 6 weeks.
I never think of myself as a #series reader but I enjoyed all of these installments. #bookishrewind2018.
Times Critics‘ Top Books of 2018 https://nyti.ms/2E2Pfse
Haven't read the article yet and probably haven't read most of the books either. Thought I'd share anyway.
pickI have had people telling me I would like Cusk for a while now, but it took the Tournament of Books longlist to push me over into giving it a try. This book won't be for everyone. Not a lot happens and it's full of philosophical conversations with acquaintances and near strangers, so of course I liked it quite a bit.
Now I need to go back and read Outline and Transit (it is unlike me to read a book 3 of anything before reading prior books.)
pickJust as mesmerizing as the first two books in the trilogy. Cusk is a genius. She has achieved the near-impossible, and produced something wholly original. What an accomplishment. I can‘t wait to read all three books again.
I‘ve been saving this one for ages. Simply adored the first two books in this trilogy. I just started this today but so far it‘s as breathtaking as it‘s predecessors.
so-soI haven‘t read the other books in this trilogy so I don‘t know how to compare them but I am not sure what to think of it. Basically it‘s people talking to the narrator, who isn‘t much of a character herself. She is an author on tour and everyone shares their stories with her, even those who are supposed to be interviewing her. That construction is a bit tiresome even though the stories people tell her are fantastic and intimate.
pickIt takes real talent to write a thoughtful, engrossing novel that is a series of conversations. Our narrator is a conduit, relating the stories others tell of themselves. These stories within stories offer fascinating perspectives on the relationship between narrative & life & how they shape the lives of men & women. The feminist line is subtle but strong & beautifully reflects the complexities of different experiences & attitudes #goldsmithsprize
The weather is bad. I have no errands to distract me. I think it's going to be s pyjama day with my third Goldsmiths prize nominee
I came to this trilogy just as the final book was published. Perfect timing!
https://wellreadneck.wordpress.com/2018/09/21/hooked-on-a-series-the-outline-tri...
panKudos is the 3rd in a series, but was chosen for ToB Summer 2018. I admit I like plot-driven novels. This is not. Faye, a divorced and remarried author, travels to a literary festival in Italy. We then get to read about the people she meets as they tell us/she presents their lives. That‘s it. I would rather read a novel about any of those characters‘ lives. This really has no plot. Took me 8 days to read 232 pages! #tournamentofbooks
pickReally loved the third in this series. I feel like I somehow understand Faye even less, or that she is more of an enigma than ever, but the whole novel passes in a dreamlike state that I found entrancing. I wished there was more.
Starting this right now, bedtime is in 5 minutes 🤣😜 #tournamentofbooks #summerreadingchallenge
Me: I finished the last book in a series
Daughter: YOU read a series? What was it about?
Me: Uh.....a woman who has conversations.
Daughter: Sounds awesome.
Actually, it was awesome. I love this series, although Kudos was probably the weakest of the three, imo. And the ending disappointed me at first. And then I realized it was kind of brilliant.
So yeah, Rachel Cusk is pretty amazing.
These two books (Rachel Cusk's Kudos and Stevie Smith's Novel on Yellow Paper) have sat together on my nightstand, waiting TBR, for a few months now.
Today I tried to decide which one to start. I opened up Kudos and found . . . a poem by Stevie Smith. 😯
So funny! I love reading coincidences!
pickJust the perfect book. Cusk examines both the literary publishing world and how the dynamics between parents affect children. I now want to go back and reread Outline.
Has anyone read this apparent trilogy??!! I have outline and haven‘t read it yet, now kudos is in from the library and I‘ve got 10 days to read it. Should I do outline first???
pickCertain themes emerge - inauthenticity, disenchantment, divorce - and yet a magical dust seems to gather around Cusk‘s narrator, so that everyone reveals their most profound, biting stories in incredible detail. I would say no other novelist compares, though I think there is a quality of ancient storytellers, like the Decameron, in the fascination with human variation. And a similar feeling of dread - and of ecstatic relief when no crisis occurs.
pickToday, Cusk's new book got a huge article in one of Germany's major newspapers, Die Zeit - and rightly so! Its protagonist Faye, a writer and divorced mother of two, takes us into Europe's literary circles, and the whole story is told from Cusk's trademark "annihilated perspective". Will #Kudos convince the #Booker judges? It certainly made the #indiebuddyreads prediction list!
“Why should her photograph be accurate? So that she could be identified by the police? The whole point of her profession, she said, was that it represented an escape from reality. Besides, she preferred being that sylph with the waterfall of hair. In some part of herself, she believed that was who she still was. A degree of self-deception, she said, was an essential part of the talent for living.”
A couple days late. Here are my top picks for May. All were #netgalley ARCs, so I‘ve included the publication dates.
pickI've enjoyed all three books in the "Outline" trilogy. Thought provoking.
pickThe final book of the trilogy which began with Outline and continued with Transit. Usually, I am a lover of plot, but these books, while mostly devoid of plot, have an abundance of character. So smart and nuanced. By the third book this ingenious way of looking at characters and the world does begin to feel less surprising (in form), but I found all three books to be wonderful. #netgalley #netgalleyTBRattack
Thanks @BookwormAHN
1. Playing phone tag with the blinds sales guy
2. Greeting cards. New shampoo.
3. I have pre-ordered the tagged book. Super excited. (I've never pre-ordered a book before.)
4. A chocolate chunk 🍪
5. Consider yourself tagged. 😘
Ahhhhhhhhh the final book! I may be drooling a bit. ♥️
Why is it so exciting to discover the title and cover for the next book in a series? Sure to be one of my 2018 reads!
