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Ice
Ice | Anna Kavan
In this haunting and surreal novel, the narrator and a man known as the warden search for an elusive girl in a frozen, seemingly post-nuclear, apocalyptic landscape. The country has been invaded and is being governed by a secret organization. There is destruction everywhere; great walls of ice overrun the world. Together with the narrator, the reader is swept into a hallucinatory quest for this strange and fragile creature with albino hair. Acclaimed upon its 1967 publication as the best science fiction book of the year, this extraordinary and innovative novel has subsequently been recognized as a major work of literature in its own right.
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Leniverse
Ice | Anna Kavan
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"Nobody wanted to be reminded of what was happening in other parts of the world. (...) To speak of the catastrophe was an offence under the new regulations. The rule was to choose not to know."

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Leniverse
Ice | Anna Kavan
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#Bookhaul
The greyscale miniature edition 😂
I didn't actually realise when I ordered them that White Nights was such a slim volume or that I was colour coordinating my purchases 😆

TheBookHippie Brilliant. 7mo
41 likes1 comment
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Ladygodiva7
Ice | Anna Kavan
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Not sure what to think of this book, it was hard to keep reading. A narcissistic narrator chasing a pale woman and abusing her, I couldn‘t tell what was real and what was hallucinations. I had high hopes for it.

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Rissreads
Ice | Anna Kavan
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Bailedbailed

Yeah nah! Couldn‘t figure out wtf was real and hallucinations. Not invested enough to continue. Just didn‘t like it. NEXT!

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nosferatu
Ice | Anna Kavan
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Mehso-so

This one had been on my radar for a long time so it‘s a shame I didn‘t enjoy it as much as I had hoped. Most of the story is told from the perspective of one hell of an unreliable (and unlikeable) narrator, whose terrible actions brought me close to quitting more than once. And yet there are some things to be enjoyed here, such as …

nosferatu ... the ambiguous plot (“the unreality of the outer world appeared to be an extension of my own disturbed state of mind,“ p. 62) that seems to take place in the aftermath of the release of Vonnegut‘s ice-nine. There is also some beauty in the apocalyptic description of frozen landscapes in the second half of the book, framed by scenes of pointless abuse and violence. … 2y
nosferatu … I do understand the sci-fi is used as a metaphor here, but for me it just doesn‘t work all that well. 2y
9 likes1 stack add2 comments
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charl08
Ice | Anna Kavan
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Rather tempting display in my local Waterstones.

Ruthiella Very tempting! 😍 2y
charl08 @Ruthiella on my xmas wishlist! 2y
Liz_M Ooooh! So many new Coralee covers! 2y
78 likes3 comments
review
Bookwomble
Ice | Anna Kavan
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Pickpick

I fully expected to love this book, but it actually left me rather cold (sorry 😔). The main character is a narcissistic abuser who repeatedly terrorises the woman who is the target of his obsession, vindictively punishing her when she has the temerity to object.
Yes, it is surreal and has a kaleidoscopically shifting viewpoint in which the characters may actually be aspects of the same fractured personality, but I found it hard to get past the...

Bookwomble ... ugliness of the central theme of abusive persecution. Perhaps that was Kavan's intent, to depict the brutality and sterility of abusive relationships. Actually, reflecting on that I'd shift it from so-so to a low pick, but I don't think I'll be wanting to re-read it. 3y
TrishB Great review 👍🏻 3y
30 likes2 comments
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Bookwomble
Ice | Anna Kavan
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From the real-life dystopia of Nazi Europe to the imagined dystopia of glacial climate change. Contrasting the icy conditions of the book with a sunny afternoon tea 🌞

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smbaal
Ice | Anna Kavan
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Pickpick

A glacial glimpse into an unnamed girl‘s fear, isolation and lost innocence. Almost certainly mirroring the author‘s own fractured persona. The description of a world succumbing to slowly encroaching ice, and society breaking down, is a haunting, hallucinatory dystopian vision.

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Liz_M
Ice | Anna Kavan
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Pickpick

A singular book – the most surreal, dreamlike apocalypse you will ever experience. The narrator on returning to his home country fixates on a childhood love, a frail girl dominated by her mother, now a husband, and then the Warden. As the world is slowly encompassed by ice-age glaciers, the narrator abandons duties to “save” his love. The story slips from “reality” into visions and back again, unsettling any hope to force a plot or storyline.

Liz_M Favorite (atypically amusing) quote: “I had never before met anyone who owned a telephone and believed in dragons“

3.5⭐ #BookSpinBingo, @TheAromaofBooks, @Clwojick, #MerryReaders #WinterGames, +1 participation
+25 Winter; +120 for 4 hrs reading for #ReadYourWay, @TheSpineView, #AVeryMerryBingo, (Snow on Cover) @Jadams1776, #FestiveFlicks, (Fantasy) @Traci1
(edited) 4y
Traci1 That sounds really good. 4y
Liz_M @Traci1 The set-up is fantastic - I loved the opening section. It somehow seemed more ordinary once the Warden enters the story and it becomes more adventure-ish. 4y
See All 8 Comments
TheSpineView 👍📚📖 4y
vivastory I loved this one & found it's placement in the recent adaptation of I'm Thinking of Ending Things effective artistic statement 4y
Clwojick ❤ Way to go! 🌲 4y
Liz_M @vivastory Oooh, interesting! 4y
TheAromaofBooks Great review!! 4y
21 likes1 stack add8 comments
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rwmg
Ice | Anna Kavan
Panpan

After a nuclear war, a nuclear winter sets in. As the icesheets spread the narrator (nobody in the book has a name) pursues and attempts to rescue a woman who he considers is in an abusive relationship. Is she? Well, since he sees her get killed or stumbles across her body several times, only for the pursuit to continue in the next chapter, who knows? Some beautiful descriptive writing but I'd've appreciated a much clearer storyline. So-so or pan?

Reggie Ya still make me want to read it. Lol 4y
18 likes1 comment
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rwmg
Ice | Anna Kavan
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Reggie A friend just recommended this to me earlier tonight. What a coincidence! Looking forward to what you think about it. 4y
rwmg @Reggie I'm about half way through and I have no idea what is going on. I see the woman who wrote it was a drug addict and I think she must have been as high as a kite when she wrote it. 4y
Reggie Lol, hmmmmm I haven‘t decided whether that attracts or repels me yet. 4y
16 likes3 comments
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Kav138
Ice | Anna Kavan
Pickpick

I do not know how I missed this through my undergrad and grad career. Unsettling in the best possible manner.

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Emilymdxn
Ice | Anna Kavan
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Pickpick

I was in two minds about whether to mark this as a pick or not, honestly it was very confusing and brutal and I spent a lot of it not sure if I was enjoying it or not, but I went for calling it a pick because I was so engrossed while I was reading it, it truly sucked me in, it was so original and the ending made me feel so much. So so weird bleak and nasty, but beautiful in places, I *think* I recommend it? Would love to know what others thought!

47 likes1 stack add
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Emilymdxn
Ice | Anna Kavan
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This is such a bizarre book. I‘m reading it very slowly for such a short book, and I have no idea if I like it or not. It‘s very engrossing, very dark and it really throws me off to read something so strange, unique and disturbing. I have no idea what‘s going to happen which is a nice feeling

rwmg It's on my wishlist and I was just wondering earlier today whether to spend a voucher on it but in the end chose something else 6y
Emilymdxn @rwmg I do think it‘s worth reading it‘s just very unusual - incredibly thought provoking, a bit odd to read in tiny sections in my lunch hour in a canteen! 6y
SaraBeagle I bought this, but I‘m waiting to see if I can talk my book club into reading it. 6y
See All 8 Comments
Sarah83 Love the bookmark 💖 6y
Emilymdxn @Sarah83 it was a swap goodie from @quietjenn so all credit to her! 6y
Emilymdxn @SaraBeagle I think it‘d be fascinating to discuss with a book club!! So much there to talk about, but probably too dark for me to suggest to mine! 6y
SaraBeagle @Emilymdxn Oh, we‘re definitely dark. We just finished 6y
Emilymdxn @SaraBeagle it‘ll suit you down to the ground again!! I‘d love to be able to pick this one apart in person, there‘s a lot in there to discuss 6y
32 likes8 comments
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Emilymdxn
Ice | Anna Kavan
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It was clear that he regarded her as his property. I considered that she belonged to me. Between the two of us she was reduced to nothing; her only function might have been to link us together.

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Emilymdxn
Ice | Anna Kavan
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This is an amazing book I‘m reading, but the thing I wanted to share even more is how much happiness and peace I‘ve found making homemade chicken spinach sandwiches and reading library books on my own at lunch. Like everyone else I‘ve been thinking about climate change a lot today, thinking about how I‘m prepared to live differently and work harder, but in the middle of the panic I found a lot of comfort doing my small cheap relaxing thing.

40 likes1 stack add
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SaraBeagle
Ice | Anna Kavan
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Birthday #bookhaul arrived today. Which one should I read first?

38 likes1 stack add
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Occy
Ice | Anna Kavan
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Pickpick
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RealLifeReading
Ice | Anna Kavan
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Eating a chocolate croissant thing from Paris Baguette and seeing what's on my Libby. I'm currently listening to Hunger and flirting between the other two books (Ice is very surreal and strange and I need a breather in between)

Kalalalatja That croissant 👌👌 7y
mdemanatee Can‘t go wrong with some Meg Cabot on the TBR 7y
RealLifeReading @Kalalalatja it was yummy! 😀 7y
RealLifeReading @mdemanatee this is actually the first time I'm reading her books! 7y
mdemanatee @RealLifeReading this is a series I‘ve held in reserve for when I need it. But I grew up in the Princess Diaries generation and she is still my most read author by a long shot. I actually marvel at how many of her books I‘ve read in context to the fact it is far from all of them. 7y
120 likes1 stack add5 comments
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RealLifeReading
Ice | Anna Kavan
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An after-lunch treat of affogato (nespresso with Coffee Coffee BuzzBuzzBuzz)

Leftcoastzen BuzzBuzzBuzz indeed! Looks yummy 7y
TheLibrarian I need this ice cream in my life!!! 7y
quirkyreader I love affagotos. And when I talk about them in Michigan coffee houses I just get odd stares. 7y
See All 12 Comments
Cortg I‘ve never had it but it looks amazing 😍 7y
Thndrstd This has been on my TBR for awhile. Let me know what you think. 7y
well.read.panda The perfect combination for an affogato!! 7y
janeycanuck I love affagato - my preferred form of coffee any time of day, including at breakfast!! 7y
RealLifeReading @Leftcoastzen @TheLibrarian it's got espresso bean fudge chunks in it! So good! 7y
RealLifeReading @quirkyreader bring your own ice cream along! 😀 7y
RealLifeReading @Cortg if you're a coffee fan it definitely is! 7y
RealLifeReading @Thndrstd it's very strange... 7y
RealLifeReading @well.read.panda @janeycanuck affogato is the best! 7y
119 likes1 stack add12 comments
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Lylah
Ice | Anna Kavan
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Snowstorm going on outside... Definitely in the mood for some winter reads! Any recommendations?

Jabberwocky I love Farley Mowat‘s books set in the Arctic for winter. 7y
See All 6 Comments
Lylah @Andrew65 @Jaberwocky @Nat_Reads thank you for the suggestions!! 7y
Lylah @KarenUK that was on my tbr but I didn't know it was winter-y! 7y
39 likes1 stack add6 comments