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South Of The Border, West Of The Sun
South Of The Border, West Of The Sun | Haruki Murakami
Growing up in the suburbs in post-war Japan, it seemed to Hajime that everyone but him had brothers and sisters. His sole companion was Shimamoto, also an only child. Together they spent long afternoons listening to her father's record collection. But when his family moved away, the two lost touch. Now Hajime is in his thirties. After a decade of drifting he has found happiness with his loving wife and two daughters, and success running a jazz bar. Then Shimamoto reappears. She is beautiful, intense, enveloped in mystery. Hajime is catapulted into the past, putting at risk all he has in the present.** Murakamis new novel is coming ** COLORLESS TSUKURU TAZAKI AND HIS YEARS OF PILGRIMAGE 'The reason why death had such a hold on Tsukuru Tazaki was clear. One day his four closest friends, the friends hed known for a long time, announced that they did not want to see him, or talk with him, ever again'
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review
merelybookish
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Panpan

Road tripping to NYC, my partner and I listened to the tagged Murakami novel. . . and, we hated it. This is my second attempt at reading him (I bailed on IQ84) and I just do.not.get.it! 😳 Honestly it reminded me why I don't read many male authors. 🤷
But I'm in New York City for 5 days and I get to meet up with @sarahbarnes so life is pretty good. 😁

sisilia Hahahaha I have love hate relationship with Murakami 4mo
Ruthiella Enjoy your trip! I‘ve only read Norwegian Wood and it was okay. (edited) 4mo
LeahBergen Enjoy your holiday! Other than Murakami … 😆 4mo
See All 6 Comments
Cathythoughts I know what you mean about the male authors. Ive started to find myself steering clear for the most part. Have a lovely trip ❤️ (edited) 4mo
youneverarrived Enjoy NY 🤍 4mo
sarahbarnes LOL. I promise not to bring up Murakami the whole time. 😆 Can‘t wait to see you! 4mo
61 likes6 comments
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mobill76

"But here she is, all mine, trying her best to give me all she can. How could I ever hurt her?
But I didn't understand then. That I could hurt somebody so badly she would never recover. That a person can, just by living, damage another human being beyond repair."

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Rebecca98
Mehso-so

Primo libro che affronto di Murakami, non ho apprezzato quanto speravo. La scrittura ineccepibile, scorrevole e fresca, ma la trama e l‘intreccio poco interessanti e lasciati abbastanza a loro stessi. Troppi nodi misteriosi lanciati al lettore e lasciati irrisolti.

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Noveldrama
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Pickpick

Murakami books are smooth like butter💝always.
I enjoyed reading this book too.
But this time it felt a little different from his other works as it always has an element of magical realism that characterises his work.
This book ending was abrupt too which left me wanting more.

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Sha0102
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Pickpick

What a marvellous romance by Murakami! Dense but easy to read.
#HarukiMurakami

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La_Cori
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#quotsyJan21 @TK-421
Day 4 #Hypnotic

“Look at the rain long enough, with no thoughts in your head, and you gradually feel your body falling loose, shaking free of the world of reality. Rain has the power to hypnotize.”

IuliaC Beautiful quote 4y
TK-421 I love this! 💕 I feel the same way watching snow falling 4y
43 likes2 comments
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Shaleen
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Mehso-so

It was a little different from other books by Murakami as it does not contain any element of magical realism that characterise his works. The theme of the book is the central character‘s longing for the past, his selfishness and the inability to move past trauma. The prose is lovely but I found this book to be unremarkable. I think I am done for a while with mysterious, disappearing women and selfish, horny men so no more Murakami for me in 2020.

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LauraJ
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Working and reading. Hope to finish this one today.
#AuthorAMonth

44 likes2 stack adds
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Eggs
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Mehso-so

The prose is lovely but the characters can be tiresomely oblivious to the ways in which their selfish actions affect spouses and children. Hajime pines for his childhood soul mate Shimamoto who moved away before Hajime realized he loved her. Once married and a father, he‘s still obsessed; especially when she shows up at his bar. We are then drawn into: what is dream/what is real (a Murakami favorite) But - Cover Love 🤗

#authoramonth2020

Soubhiville Logged, 26📚 5y
70 likes1 comment
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Eggs
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“My birthday‘s the fourth of January 1951-the first week of the first month of the first year of the second half of the twentieth century.”

#firstlinefridays
@ShyBookOwl

AlwaysForeverReading I am the Fairchilds‘ cook. 5y
65 likes1 comment
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BookwormAHN
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Mehso-so

This is just a weird story of a man obsessed with his childhood friend. And then he finds her 🙀
#AuthoraMonth
@Soubhiville

Soubhiville Logged, that‘s 5📚 5y
73 likes1 comment
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GatheringBooks
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#QuotsyApr19 Day 20: A #record does contain the soul of its maker, and what the listener makes of it. I think I own a copy of this book - but still have not had a chance to read it yet, languishing alongside the other Murakami chunksters in my shelves.

Weaponxgirl I always love seeing people‘s vinyl collections on here! I just wanna dive into them. 6y
59 likes1 comment
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imitelis
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Sometimes when I look at you, I feel I'm gazing at a distant star.
It's dazzling, but the light is from tens of thousands of years ago.
Maybe the star doesn't even exist any more. Yet sometimes that light seems more real to me than anything.

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matthieumcintosh
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Mehso-so

The impossible has been done: A Murakami has left me feeling blasé. I love Murakami, so this book being unremarkable kinda stinks. I can‘t really tell if it needed to be longer or shorter. Doesn‘t do enough with what it has and it really doesn‘t have that much. The last 40 pages redeemed it slightly, but did not make the first 170 of mediocre Murakami any better. It‘s fine, but sometimes okay is worse than bad?

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Emfn
Pickpick

Finished another Murakami book, can‘t seem to get enough of his writing. The story is about friendship, love, loss and reconnection.

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Emfn
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Finally been able to start this book which my best friend got me for my birthday. Murakami has quickly become a favourite author of mine after reading his book for the penguin student design awards.
#murakami #newbook #present #favouriteauthor

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SG2014
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Pickpick

This was my first Murakami and it was a delight. At some point you realize this is more than just a love story and it just pulls you in until you can‘t stop. I think a some rereads are needed to fully understand all that this book offers.

6 likes1 stack add
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Shavin
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Pickpick

What a brilliant read! Murakami has a certain writing flair that captures you like no other. Never thought his post modernism and magical realism based writing would ever interest me but this novel is simply so gripping that you can't put it down once started.

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Sarina.Dahlan
Pickpick

Except for the ending, this is a simply told story, but one packed with layers and complexity. Hajime, a man in his late 30‘s looks back at his life and the girls and women who helped shape it. It‘s an honest peek into a person‘s undercarriage and a reminder that we are all flawed creatures who try but sometimes fail to live up to our own expectations, regardless of what we outwardly show.

CoffeeNBooks Welcome to Litsy! 📚 6y
Craftylikefox Welcome to Litsy!! 6y
Sarina.Dahlan Thank you! I‘m still learning this app. So nice to meet you here. 6y
See All 10 Comments
RaimeyGallant Nice review! And welcome to Litsy! #LitsyWelcomeWagon Some of us put together Litsy tips to help new Littens navigate the site. It's the link in my bio on my page in case you need it. Or if you prefer how-to videos, @chelleo put some together at the link in her bio. @LitsyWelcomeWagon 6y
jpmcwisemorgan Welcome to Litsy! 6y
DarcysMom Welcome to Litsy! 🤗 6y
Chelleo Welcome 🤗 6y
Sarina.Dahlan Thank you everyone! I‘m looking forward to my experience here. 6y
Cinfhen Great review!! 6y
Eggs Welcome to Litsy 🤗 6y
33 likes10 comments
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Shavin
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It's time for the winter reads. Can't wait to get started!

CoffeeNBooks Welcome to Litsy! 📚 6y
StillLookingForCarmenSanDiego Welcome to Litsy 📖💙 6y
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Welcome to Litsy!! 6y
See All 6 Comments
Slajaunie Welcome to Litsy!📖📚💚 6y
Eggs Welcome to Litsy 🤗📚 6y
RaimeyGallant Welcome! 6y
14 likes6 comments
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erzascarletbookgasm
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batsy This is one of the few Murakamis I've read and I think this is why I love this book, lol 6y
GripLitGrl 😍😍😍 6y
59 likes1 stack add2 comments
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kthlnmscrl
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I'm an avid reader of his works and no those aren't mine. I just took a photo of his books from a bookstore. 😅 Who else here have read books of Haruki? ❤
#HarukiMurakami

BookwormM He is one of my favourite authors 6y
kthlnmscrl @BookwormM same here! Have you read Killing Commendatore? 6y
BookwormM I haven‘t yet but I will. Wind up Bird is probably my favourite 6y
See All 6 Comments
kthlnmscrl Mine's Wild Sheep Chase 😊 6y
Rhelia I loved Hard Boiled Wonderland 🤗 6y
kthlnmscrl @Rhelia Yaaaay! I love his books. ❤❤ 6y
16 likes6 comments
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PaperbackPirate
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Pickpick

This was another captivating and surrealistic story from Haruki Murakami. It was a lot shorter and more accessible than some of the other stories I‘ve read by him which keeps it off my favorites list. Nonetheless it is definitely worth a read.
This is my 2nd book completed for the #BookAWeekChallenge hosted by @TheReadingMermaid 🧜🏾‍♀️🧜🏾‍♀️
Photo taken with a 17th century Japanese folding screen.

BeansPage 😍😍😍😍 6y
17 likes1 stack add2 comments
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swatreads
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Pickpick

I didn't like this book as much as Murakami's other novels that I've read so far. There is less surrealism and more of reality in this one. Also it took a while to get into the story. It was pretty slow paced in the beginning. There are Murakami elements like jazz bar, books, mysterious woman, more books and music in this one as well. I disliked the protagonist Hajime. He was just annoyingly sefish. But I really did like how it ended.

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swatreads

“the sad truth is that certain types of things can‘t go backward. Once they start going forward, no matter what you do, they can‘t go back the way they were. If even one little thing goes awry, then that‘s how it will stay forever.”

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AbstractMonica
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Haven‘t posted in months, but still have been reading a little bit here and there. Currently a few chapters into this one, and it‘s my first book from Murakami. Great so far 👌🏼

forestofwords I haven‘t read anything from Murakami yet but they are definitely on my reading list 👍🏼 6y
13 likes1 stack add1 comment
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kindergartenkat
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First book for #ATBweekendreadathon!

ephemeralwaltz This is a gem of a book! 6y
kindergartenkat @ephemeralwaltz I just finished - what a beautiful book! Different than the other Murakami I have read (Hardboiled Wonderland), but I loved both. I just love his writing 6y
ephemeralwaltz Yes! More of realism than magical realism :P it's an underrated one. Glad you enjoyed it! Lovely 6y
Erin7 I‘m not familiar with this one. I‘ll have to add this to my TBR. 6y
11 likes3 stack adds4 comments
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sisilia
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Aren‘t we all stack-up loners? 😉

Bklover Yes! 6y
71 likes1 comment
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JennyM
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Day 28: #readingresolutions

#South of the border, west of the sun is one Murakami I‘d never heard of until a recent Litsy post. Perfect for today‘s prompt!

GatheringBooks was about to feature this one too! :) 6y
JennyM @GatheringBooks great minds! 😉 6y
40 likes2 comments
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Tamra
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Bailedbailed

I read 50+ pages last night and just couldn‘t get into it, which is my first bail on Murakami. I wasn‘t in the mood for the character I guess. I should probably keep it and try again later.

80 likes3 stack adds
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LeahBergen
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Next up (and only my second Murakami 😮). This is the current pick for my IRL book club.

erzascarletbookgasm Nice matching bookmark! 💗 7y
batsy It's a good one :) Hope you enjoy! 7y
britt_brooke What was your first? I‘m reading my second Murakami now too: Norwegian Wood. My first was his running memoir. I‘m finding the novel pretty boring so far, tbh. 7y
See All 11 Comments
LeahBergen @batsy I saw on Goodreads that you‘d just finished it. 👍🏻 7y
LeahBergen @britt_brooke Oh, that‘s too bad. My first one was 7y
BarbaraBB @LeahBergen That‘s his best, in my opinion. If you want to give it one more try, I should read that one, @britt_brooke ! 7y
batsy I read it awhile back actually, but just remembered to rate it on GR. I tend to do that quite often when I'm reminded of the books I've read but haven't rated 😃 7y
LeahBergen @BarbaraBB I really liked it! 👍🏻 7y
LeahBergen @batsy I do that, too. 😄 7y
britt_brooke @LeahBergen @BarbaraBB I‘ll probably give that one a shot, eventually. 😉 7y
121 likes4 stack adds11 comments
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ephemeralwaltz
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Happy birthday to Haruki Murakami!📚❤

ju.ca.no Pretty collection!! Unfortunately mine are from different publishing houses so they don‘t look alike that much... only the last ones that came out are matching 7y
youneverarrived ❤️❤️ 7y
DivineDiana Love your collection! 7y
56 likes3 comments
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JGadz11
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Hosted Book Club tonight. Put up an ambiance of breathtaking peonies, free swag bags, and a handbag I bought at a street market in Shanghai that is pretty much everything. #booksarelife #bookexchange #readerforlife #bookisthenewblack #HongKong🤘🏼

6 likes1 stack add
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Abailliekaras
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BarbaraBB Great pic! 7y
Abailliekaras @BarbaraBB thanks! It's Repulse Bay, Hong Kong. 7y
BarbaraBB @Abailliekaras I always think of Hong Kong as a lot of buildings and people... 😉 7y
Abailliekaras @BarbaraBB so did I! (And the city skyline is beautiful, I'll try to get a pic of that too while I'm here). But it's 70% national park. 😊🌳 7y
BarbaraBB @Abailliekaras 70%? Wow, who would have thought! Looking forward to a picture of the skyline with your next book! 7y
35 likes5 comments
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izah.ahmad
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So far I've read 3 Murakami's, but this one by far is so close to my heart.

A soul becomes bitter when they can't make peace with their past. There were things that weren't meant to be, and no matter how hard to let them go, you must do so, especially when it slowly become nothing else but a poison to yourself.

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izah.ahmad
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Pickpick

Love, love this book! Murakami awed me every single time 🤗

TheAquariusBookworm I can't decide which book of Murakami to read after Norwegian Wood! Would you recommend to go for this one? 😊 7y
izah.ahmad @TheAquariusBookworm you can go for this one, the storyline is quite close with Norwegian Woods, and I think it is a bit shorter as well. My second book of his is The Elephant Vanishes, quite complex though 😂 7y
TheAquariusBookworm @izah.ahmad If it's similar to Norwegian Wood in some way I'm sure I'll enjoy it, adding it to my tbr now! Murakami is so exceptional! 💙 7y
See All 8 Comments
izah.ahmad @TheAquariusBookworm Murakami never fails to surreal me with his works. Got to say I probably take times to start with another books whenever I finished reading his 😂 7y
TheAquariusBookworm @izah.ahmad I can imagine, I kind of feel the same way now! After reading him it's hard to go back to a 'normal' book! 😅 7y
izah.ahmad @TheAquariusBookworm am definitely having a hard time reading Sapiens now, well that's Murakami effect i guess 😅 (edited) 7y
Kammbia1 I just read this book last week. My first novel of 2018 and my fifth Murakami book. You can read my review: http://marion-hill.com/book-review-123-south-of-the-border-west-of-the-sun-by-ha... 7y
izah.ahmad @Kammbia1 nice start of the year! Murakami is a great writer; I have read 3 books of his, maybe you can start with as well 7y
5 likes1 stack add8 comments
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izah.ahmad
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My third Murakami #currentread

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erzascarletbookgasm
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suvata ♥️ Murakami 7y
49 likes2 stack adds1 comment
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BooksForYears
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#MayBookFlowers Day 2 - Sunshine

It's bright out there. Don't forget sun protection for your books!

batsy Of the few Murakami books I've read, this is one of my favs 🌞 8y
Literaryunicorn Love Murakami!!! 8y
SusanInTiburon Cool pic! 😎 8y
117 likes5 stack adds3 comments
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sydney1
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MHackmanBrooks
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kirstyreads
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Pickpick

The best way is to go into this clueless, it is so much

7 likes1 stack add
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urjas
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The occasional Murakami for the soul :')

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nerdpimp
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reading my first Murakami. Loving this book and I don't want it to end.

5 likes3 stack adds
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Alisnazzy
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Pickpick

Typical Murakami, in that you will travel through the protagonist's mental and emotional travails. A mysterious novel that will likely haunt me for some days, a 4/5 ⭐️ book.

tea_stankovic This was the firs book by Murakami that I've ever read. It was love on the first page 😊 @Ambrosnazzy 8y
13 likes1 stack add1 comment
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Alisnazzy
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My nightly routine when baby goes to bed. 😻💖 #catsandbooks

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Alisnazzy
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I can relate.

5 likes1 comment
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Alisnazzy
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My furry reading buddy 😻