Welcome to Litsy!

August #bookspin karma

I had already decided to take this with me on a very quick getaway next week. Perfect timing!

@TheAromaofBooks

“The eldest six of Francis and Viola Turner‘s thirteen children claimed that the big room of the house on Yarrow Street was haunted for at least one night.”

#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl

April #bookspin list!
@TheAromaofBooks

My November #bookspin! I've had this on my Kindle for way too long, and after hearing so many good things about it, I finally checked it off my list. But...I was underwhelmed. It's not that I disliked the story -- I just found myself feeling pretty apathetic about it. I think this could be a hit for a lot of folks, but for me, it was just okay.

@TheAromaofBooks

Lovely writing and I liked getting the snippets of Viola & Francis‘ past but I would have liked to sink further into some of the other stories - they left me wanting more!

Novel 1/3 for #NovelNovember

This month‘s book club pick! There were vivid characters, and it was interesting to read a book set in Detroit. Overall, I didn‘t love this book, but I think it‘s more a personal preference thing… it was well written and I‘m sure we will have good discussion!

Finished my non-holiday #doublespin for December! I really enjoyed this family saga. I come from a big family, though not as big as the Turners, and identified a lot with the themes of identity and responsibility. Highly recommend. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

One of my favorite reads from 2016. This cover also makes me think of #fallcolors every time I see it.

#FallFinds

I know I have an unpopular opinion on this one, but I thought this was really slow. There were so many characters and different timelines that I had a hard time keeping everything straight and connecting to the story. I just didn‘t enjoy this as much as I had hoped I would.

With the family matriarch‘s health declining it is time for the 13 Turner children to decide what to do with the family home, which is worth a lot less than is owed on the mortgage. Each of their Turners has their own role in the family and their own demons to battle but they share a love for their mother, a history of growing up in Detroit, and years of family lore. A good debut, I loved parts of this book but others were much less successful.

The Turner House touches on many topics; self care, psychology, addiction, family and marriage issues to name a few. A good book to me, is one that makes me think about wider issues, focuses on relationships while gives me some historical information and an insight into how other people live and their experiences. This totally ticks all those boxes and more.

Sometimes I let my husband just grab a book off my shelves Starting this now.

So good, especially loved on audio. This one has been on my #TBR for 5 years! Not sure why it took me so long but glad I finally experienced this gorgeous family drama. Taking place over 5 decades, we get to know this family of 15 with all their failures, squabbles and triumphs and I found myself cheering them on the whole way. Highly recommend!

#currentlisten Audiobooks are the only good thing about a long commute!

If I‘m reading this and The Round House at the same time, do I get some sort of real estate novel award? J/k, I‘ve been meaning to read this for like *FOUR YEARS* so it‘s really good to get started! #HooplaDigital

The Turner Family live on Yarrow Street in Detroit for over 50 years. The father has died, and the mother has moved in with her eldest, Cha Cha. The haint, that he had first seen as a child, has returned, and he is tormented. There are 13 siblings, and the time has come to decide on the fate of the family Home. A story of love, growing up and figuring out what is real. As a member of a large family, I related to the siblings interaction.

#springintoreading #yellowspines

This is the book that I did not finish for Book Club, but I am working on it! Chose not to attend the meeting. Just didn‘t feel right.

Going on pure word association/ first thoughts @JoScho
📖tagged book, haven‘t read it but it‘s on my TBR
🎥 Animal House ~ John Belushi
🎵 Our House by Madness
#ManicMonday
#EmojiMadness

Black History Month is coming to a close. In today‘s political climate it‘s especially important to celebrate the many and varied contributions Black Americans have made to our country and our culture. What books did you read in honor of Black History Month?

#blackhistorymonth #blackhistory #readdiversely #readdiversebooks #bookstack #bookpile

A complicated story of a family struggling with their own demons. Beautifully written

These are the ones I‘m considering for #LMPBC
Any preferences or ones you‘ve already read? @LazyDays @cherinium @DarcysMom

How to summarize a story about family, addiction, love, racism, the fractured American Dream, the recession, Detroit, ghosts... ? Just pick up a copy and allow yourself to become immersed in the Turner family‘s story.

Me: I‘m going to knock out this final! So I will go hide in my office and work!!
Drives to office: carpet cleaners are there
Drives home to get laptop to work at library: Library not open until 10!
So now I sit in the campus coffee shop which isn‘t open and type. It is kinda the best spot after all. Off to enjoy the quiet.
I am still blaming you, @mdhughes72 . You know I cannot ignore an assignment fully.
Hi,Litsy Peeps! I miss you!!

I have been so excited about #24in48 that I made my TBR stack last week. This likely means that I won‘t feel like reading any of these books this weekend but nevertheless here is what I came up with. This readathon could not have come at a better time.

I've had this checked out forever. Probably I should get to reading.

Picked up this book from the library for my book club this weekend. I'm about 50 pages in and I really like it so far! 😄

Finally starting this book- it has been on my TBR for ages.

My puppy, Charles Wallace, makes me happy! @CareBear #happytaxdaygiveaway

An absorbing family saga that I couldn‘t put down!
- @malloryomeara

“There are few moments more telling, more ripe with the possibility of humiliation, of implied derision or unwanted sympathy, than when a lover returns from the bathroom after sex.”

It‘s hard to believe this is a debut novel. It‘s easy to see why Flournoy received so much praise.

Jumping back and forth between present day and the Turners initial move to Detroit, Flournoy gives us perspectives from several of the Turners on their personal issues, as well as as their family home on Yarrow Street and their memories and connection to it. Cleverly woven in is a commentary on poverty, race, and class as pertaining to Detroit's history, landscape, and housing crises. A well-crafted, well-paced, multigenerational story.

I fell asleep reading this book last night, so close to the end. So naturally this morning I'm not getting anything done until I finish reading. #LitsyPartyofOne

Deep in the literary fic zone these days. #nowreading

I didn‘t fall in love with the characters like I thought I would. I loved the fact that they took care of their mother and the saying we all grew up in the same house but have different opinions about how we grew up rang true for this family.

This was such a great read! Flournoy carries all the characters throughout the entire story. Not easy to do! Superb writing here.

This was a really well written book that centers around what it means to be a family, to struggle with addiction, to contemplate ghosts and to move toward the present. It was an easy to read novel that felt true. It takes place and Detroit and many issues discussing race and poverty were discussed. All in all I really enjoyed it.

And just like that I only have 4 more books to read off this list!!!! Yeah!

I need a break!!! Not from books, of course not 😂 I‘m just really looking forward to this four day weekend that begins as soon as I get off work tomorrow! I have been taking care of so many little things that I haven‘t been able to read as much as I want! Until tomorrow. I just want to read. And read.

By the way this book is really good. I love the way Flournoy examines family, history and relationships! So good.

Just started this today and so far I‘m really enjoying it. Flournoy‘s writing is lending itself nicely to this story of a family home. I‘m invested. This is another book off my “must read” list as well!

TBR. I️ try to limit myself to this little lamp bookshelf. It is very full.

Pearls pick for the month of November. I‘ve already started and see I will be unproductive tomorrow.

"Everybody can't be wrong all the time. Sometimes it's gotta be you."

This podcast is so good with discussion and analysis and author insights. Just listen to a random episode if you don't see a book or author that you know. It's all entertaining! #somanydamnbooks

I loved this book and I'm not sure if it's the book itself or the way in which I strongly relate to the Turner family (my dad is the middle son of nine children).

⭐⭐⭐⭐

#litsypartyofone plus one! @Ambrosnazzy
#TBRBingo @WhatDeeReads

Cannot stop thinking about this story... Can't put my finger on why but these characters are living inside my head now.

Nice looong weekend

So far so good...
#currentlyreading #nowreading #truth

So I let my kid pick my next book. Looks like I'll finally get around to reading this two years after I bought it from the 2015 #DBF. I've heard great things about it and the author was a sweetheart when I met her at the festival. here's my bingo card for #TBRBingo. Also gonna make this my #awesomeautumnbooks post about #siblings because there are 13 Turner children in this family! 😱😱😱

@WhatDeeReads @Jess7

While it showed promise, this wasn't a great novel. There were some well drawn, colorful Turners, who I cared about. The family was so large that half of them barely made an appearance, and the family was not together enough— the few scenes of large family gatherings were my favorites. The novel seemed hung up on bizarre episodes, such as accidental intergenerational urination. I also didn't love the writing itself. Unsatisfying.