Welcome to Litsy!

A buddy read I‘m doing with a friend of mine!

I don‘t care too much for most of the characters, but the perfectly lyrical way Von Armin is describing the blooming of the flowers, the scent of the ocean on the wind, makes me want to book a flight to Italy immediately. 💖

#SundayFunday If you celebrate Easter, I hope it‘s a happy one! And everybody else have a wonderful day and don‘t forget to tag me!

Reread, on audio. Always a treat, but especially this year, as I listened to it walking around Italy, even if I didn‘t make it to Portofino, and the castle that inspired the book, there was still wisteria and sunshine.

I dunno.

This wasn't without charm, but it also irritated the life out of me with its selfish, infuriating characters, and weird narrative choices.

The men were all shallow, amoral, self-important creeps.

I was hoping it would be a book about freedom, independence, joy, and self actualisation, but the moral of the story seems to be that if your husband is an asshole, it's probably 'cause you're no longer glowing enough to keep things on track.

I don't remember the last time I read a book with such annoying characters 🤣🤣

Waiting for the others to push Mrs Fisher from the battlements 🍿🍿🍿

(I suspect I will be disappointed... this isn't a murder mystery after all... Still, there's 100 pages left... plenty of time for it to end in a shoot-out...)

In this novel from #1922 , 4 women embark on a monthlong stay in Italy. Von Arnim‘s description of the Italian villa the ladies stay at feels warm and friendly and almost magical. The ladies, in turn, find themselves during the month. Very character-driven, and it‘s wonderful to watch the growth of the characters as the novel progresses. The audio version I listened to was very good! #192025 #52BookClub24 #ACharacterDrivenNovel

I was hoping, with so much discussion of the meals in this book, there would be some good Italian food descriptions. But, since there weren‘t, I made a Shrimp Portofino based on the location. This was actually my dinner last Sunday (when I planned to finish this book), but didn‘t finish until yesterday. #CookingTheBooks #BookAndDinner

Oh my goodness, @BarbaraJean what an amazing trip to Italy you sent! The scents, sights and tastes without even leaving my chair! The journal is beautiful, candle smells amazing, and the cookies look delicious. And I can‘t wait to did into the books. You should be an armchair travel agent! Thank you so much! #staycationswap (Hope you like yours as much!)

#WeeklyForecast

I want to continue my reading of Islands of Abandonment.

I have just started The Enchanted April and want to finish that.

I want to read Still Born

And hopefully get a start on Blonde Roots

Let‘s see how we go.

I had been so god this year and during the year‘s first four months only bought 6 books. Then May came and I bought 8 books.

The good thing is that I have already read 3; the 2 Manga and Black Butterflies.

I hope to get to several of these in June.

And A Glass of Blessings is for a buddy read in November #PemberLittens #HashtagBrigade. I bought it early since I was buying from an online bookstore I usually don‘t buy from.

I just finished this enjoyable novel published in 1922. So many quotable portions throughout. I‘ve highlighted quite a bit for this buddy read. I‘m really looking forward to the discussion with my friend tomorrow.

I‘m doing a buddy read with a friend this week. Really looking forward to discussing this cheeky book with her.

#bookspin #doublespin #bookspinbingo #april

Ready for some spring reading. Hoping the weather around here starts resembling spring. #BookSpinBingo

Another breakfast with THE ENCHANTED APRIL—which, I‘m sorry to say, hasn‘t grabbed me the way I wanted it to. Everyone‘s comments made it sound charming, but so far I‘m more frustrated than anything else. While I recognize that von Arnim means it to be a productive and/or humorous frustration, it‘s still kept me at a distance from the characters. Sadness.

I started another book from my Litsy stack over breakfast. THE ENCHANTED APRIL‘s first chapter made me almost unbearably sad, but I hope that‘s a sign these women‘s lives are about to turn around.

#Alphabetgame #LetterE

Also enjoyed: Etched in Bone, I love this series; Educated; Eleonor Oliphant is Completely Fine Love this book❤️; Emma

“There had been wonderful stars the evening before, and she had gone out into the top garden after dinner, leaving Mrs Fisher alone over her nuts and wine, and, sitting on the wall at the place where the lilies crowded their ghost heads, she had looked out into the gulf of the night, and it had suddenly seemed as if her life had been a noise all about nothing.“

#SundaySentence #192025

#FridayReads #FirstLineFridays #192025

“It began in a woman‘s club in London on a February afternoon – an uncomfortable club, and a miserable afternoon – when Mrs Wilkins, who had come down from Hampstead to shop and had lunched at her club, took up The Times from the table in the smoking room, and running her listless eye down the agony column saw this:

“To Those Who Appreciate Wisteria and Sunshine. Small medieval Italian castle. . . .“

https://youtu.be/F25jLisvP9Y

Intro

Curtis is back!

The Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim

Other People Manage by Ellen Hawley

All Will Be Well: A Memoir by John McGahern

A Lost Lady by Willa Cather

How should I mark my five-year anniversary?

#FirstLineFridays

Hilarious story. I really enjoyed the interaction of these four women while they stay in an Italian castle for a month. Different personalities and backgrounds, different motives to stay at the castle. I liked the sarcasm tone of those dialogues, absurd situations. Even the author‘s life was peculiar. This edition has an introduction part. Better to read it after the novel. 3.5/3.8⭐️ #BookSpinBingo May 2022 #DoubleSpin @TheAromaOfBooks

Finished this last weekend with the #sundaybuddyread crew - it was so enjoyable! Definitely not what I expected but the descriptions of Italy in the spring were gorgeous and the characters were hilarious. I loved reading and discussing along with everyone @TheBookHippie ☺️

Enjoyable listen! I recommend the audio, great narration. Her writing style is eloquent and humorous. I listened to this while doing housework and it made the time fly. This is a photo of the actual castle inspired by this book, which she also wrote there. Perfect book for my first fiction read in 3 years! 🙌🏻

My April #BookStats & recap. I‘m satisfied with 10 books finished in April considering what a busy month it was. Finished up North & South & Oceanography of the Moon & the others I started & finished. I really enjoyed everything I read with the exception of slogging through North and South at times. An American Sunrise, I read for a book discussion & then listened to it on audiobook & took part in Big Read Hawaii & completed the National Poetry ⬇️

💐Tagged
💐 I‘m in SE Texas, so spring lasts about 15 minutes before we barrel at 90 mph into full-blown summer! I didn‘t choose the number 90 lightly—our temps are already up there. Then it will be 95 every single day until the end of October, so I stay inside in my AC. 🥵
💐 No, not much of a green thumb. I like planting things initially, but the upkeep proves challenging.
💐 Raspberry lemonade!
Consider yourself tagged!
#ThoughtfulThursday

I had my doubts about this classic (published in 1922) going in to #SundayBuddyRead but it turned out to be a lovely surprise that although 100 years old & about 4 women in 1920‘s England, still has relevance today. Charming, humorous & with scenery descriptions stirring enough to make me want to drop everything & head to Italy, it was an enjoyable & perfect for April. I watched the 1991 move last night after finishing & really enjoyed it too. ⬇️

#BookReport Still avoiding books that might queue the water works which all 4 books accomplished. Loved The Enchanted April. I would like to make this story real and set myself in Italy for a month. The other three were all enjoyable but nothing that will stick with me.

#WeeklyForecast Fortunate Ones is for #LMPBC. I‘m about 25% and am not yet connecting with the story yet. Probably me and not the book. Barely started the other two.

I enjoyed this a lot. Final discussion this Sunday. Until then 🤐

#SundayBuddyRead @TheBookHippie

#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Absolutely loved this month‘s #sundaybuddyread ! The humor was written so very well! The thoughts and struggles of each of the women were so real and honest and still relevant today 100 years this book was written. The descriptions of the Riviera were so vivid and enticing it made me feel like I was there even though it‘s been cold all month where I live lol. Excellent read and I hope to read more by Von Arnim soon.

I started The Enchanted April on the morning of Easter Sunday. Perfect!