Welcome to Litsy!

My #weekendreads and #hyggehour. On a meandering road trip, currently outside of Reno.
Last night was at Feather River Hotsprings. Getting back to a half-read Lincoln Highway which I‘m absolutely loving. Loving Mary Oliver‘s Upstream as my quiet book. And could not put down The Boy in the Suitcase. Enjoying Invisible Murder, 2nd in the series. Enjoying the backdrop of life for Hungarian Romas.

This is the September bookclub pick. Loved Amor Towles "Gentlemen From Moscow" and "Rules of Civility" but reading "The Lincoln Highway" was like watching a Wes Anderson movie when your not in the mood.

Just a great author. This story of reform school boys making a hilarious trip from Nebraska to New York was LONG but I was sad for it to end. Emmet, Billy, Duchess, Woolly and Sally are great characters. Would love to see them come back.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A must read, Amor Towles‘ voice is always a joy for me. Set in 1950s with main characters from small town Nebraska (which as a girl from small town Nebraska I appreciate the way he accurately was able to capture this), this layered story looks at right and wrong, the meaning of legacy, and friendship in ways not always expected. Unreliable narrations with multiple POV with distinct voices, definite rec for anyone who enjoys lit fic.

Listening to this as an audiobook! About 1/3 through and I really enjoy the voice actors. Towles writing style is always a pleasure and I‘m very interested to see how this goes. I have the next 2 days off and lots of chores to do so I‘m hoping to finish it by tomorrow night! Ambitious but hopeful 😊

When Emmet is released from juvenile detention, he and his 8-year-old brother hatch a plan to follow the trail of their absent mother's postcards from Nebraska to SanFrancico. What begins as a #LoveontheRoad experience soon gets complicated as two escapees from the facility highjack the intented road trip. #FeelintheLove @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @Eggs

Imagine a road trip where everything that could go wrong, goes wrong and more. Beautifully written and a good story but I did skim some parts as it just became long winded. I think I would have enjoyed this more if there weren‘t so many characters telling the story. But if you are up for an epic adventure story I would definitely recommend this!

The drive from Salina to Morgen was three hours, and for much of it, Emmett hadn't said a word.

#FirstLineFridays @ShyBookOwl

#sharreadathon @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

From the standpoint of ambience, the good people at Howard Johnson's had decided to carry the colors of their well-known rooftop into the restaurant by dressing the booths in bright orange and the waitresses in bright blue - despite the fact that the combination of orange and blue hasn't been known to stimulate an appetite since the beginning of time. 😆

#sharreadathon @sharread liked A Gentleman in Moscow @TheAromaofBooks

I think I will read the tagged in honor of @sharread

A Gentleman in Moscow was one of the last books that she posted and enjoyed.

I will also devote my time in the land of Fourth Wing this week.

#sharreadathon @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

Oh, was this a journey — I feel like I traveled the 1500 miles (in the wrong direction) with Emmett and Billy. And I‘m now in an absolute tangled mess over the final act — feeling every which way about where characters ended up and the choices they made.

All this to say, it was as engrossing and affecting as I always hope a novel will be.

Having a hard time deciding who my favorite character was. For now I‘ll go to bed mulling over this amazing road trip story.

#DaysDevotedTo @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @Eggs
#Go4ARide

This story has amazing characters. I even liked the sociopath. The pacing was plodding, the atmosphere lacking, and the ending crap. My heart belongs to A Gentleman in Moscow.

Another great Towles novel. A Gentleman had a MC tied to one place, but The Highway takes us on a road trip. Emmett & his younger brother, Billy are on their own and ready to drive The Lincoln Highway to California to start a new life. But, first they have to deal with two workhouse runaways with other plans. At turns, funny & heartbreaking, this novel will take you on an epic journey worthy of 4+ ⭐️. Amazing narration elevates Towles‘ prose.

Bracket Two of 2024 - already different with the layout. Should be interesting.

Bracket One for 2024

An epic story about 4 boys making a fresh start for themselves. Alternating perspectives mostly from 3 of the boys. Shows the complexity of human behavior and you truly get invested in each of the characters. While it could have been shorter; I enjoyed the perspectives of the ancillary characters. It‘s just under 600 pages but is a surprisingly quick read.

Amor Towles became one of my favorite authors with "A Gentleman in Moscow" so I knew that this book would capture my heart in the same way. The strength of Towles writing is simply the power of character. He creates characters that you feel like you have known your entire life, filled with heart, depth, emotion and flaws that very few writers today can create this well. The Lincoln Highway is a love letter to youth and the joys of adventure.

My April #roll100! I‘ve already started Good Blood, and I‘d like to get to The Lincoln Highway even though I‘ve bailed on his other books.

Unfortunately, our aide for Dad canceled this morning, and I‘m backup going on 2 hours of sleep. ☹️ I‘m not sure how much longer this is sustainable.

On his release from a reform school after the death of his father Emmett decides to leave Nebraska for California with his little brother Billy to find their mother. First, however, they have to help two absconders from the reform school, Duchess and Woolly, get to New York, where they are hoping to claim and divide Woolly's inheritance. ⬇

the most dangerous addiction of all

June 12, 1954 -- The drive from Salina to Morgen was three hours, and for much of it, Emmett hadn't said a word.

----

#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl

Great prompt for #threelistthursday @dabbe 📚

1. The Lincoln Highway
2. Harry Potter series
3. Eragon series

#coffeeandabook

Good writing and good story telling come together in this novel because Towles writes with porpoise. The plot is very good, but the structure, style, care and craft of his storytelling is beautiful. I wonder what the middle of my story is.

“The point is, Billy, that Duchess is full of energy and enthusiasm and good intentions too. But sometimes, his energy and enthusiasm get in the way of his good intentions, and when that happens the consequences often fall on someone else.”
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

If it wasn‘t for trying to get a bingo (I finally got a bingo!) I might have put off the tagged book. So glad I didn‘t! 5⭐️s
#Bookspin ✅
#DoubleSpin✅
BINGO!✅
Tackle the #BOTM TBR✅✅✅
5⭐️✅
4+⭐️✅✅✅✅✅
Excellent reading month✅
#JanuaryRecap #monthlyrecap

How I have loved both Amor‘s novels I have read to this point. This is just as enjoyable as ‘A Gentleman in Moscow‘. I found myself wanting to read it all over again. Highly recommend.

1. Yes, but I haven‘t had much practice!
2. Tagged book is by a favorite author!

#two4tuesday
@TheSpineView

1. My first car was a stick shift. My father thought it was a good deal and pushed me to buy it even though I didn't know how to drive it.

2. The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles

#Two4Tuesday @TheSpineView

#two4tuesday @TheSpineView

1. My dad tried to teach me when I was 15 and didn‘t go well… haven‘t tried since!
2. Tagged book

@BethM @peaKnit @JenReadsAlot

Released from a work farm where Emmett served for a year on manslaughter charges, he has a plan to start a new life for him & his brother. His friends Duchess & Wooly have different plans for them.

Not what I expected, & I think I would have liked this better in print. It meandered, with some unnecessary extra POVs, & didn‘t follow through on the initial story push I was interested in. Towles is very skilled at characters though. 🌕🌕🌗🌑🌑

Such a good book.

#NewYearNewBooks #Highwaycvr

@Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
@Eggs

#NewYearNewBooks @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @Eggs
#HighwayCover

1. The Lincoln Highway
2. Mommy Dearest
3. Visiting my youngest son in Los Angeles.
4. No Boxing Day in America and no mall shopping.
5. Green Christmas. Not disappointed. Snow for Christmas is very unusual for us. The last time was 1988.

#WinterGames

Started this one awhile ago and gonna try to finish today! #novelnovember @Andrew65

Trying to get back to this one after setting it aside for months. You can‘t necessarily see, but all three animals are snoozing while I read here. Ozzie is closest. Gatsby is next. And the skittish and seldom seen Sammy is napping on the chair next to the couch.

Profound but not what I expected. My favorite quote "Why doesn't summer vacation last until the 21st of September? After all, the season doesn't come to its conclusion on Labor Day weekend. The season of summer lasts until this autumn equinox- just as surely as the season of spring lasts until the summer solstice... It stands to reason that if we all agreed to let summer vacation last until the equinox, the world would be a much happier place."

September book report.

Open to those who signed up for #book2book with @AllDebooks

Comment below if you‘d like to take this one home. If multiple folks are interested I‘ll draw a random number.

@CSeydel @Bookish_Gal @LiteraryinLawrence @Chrissyreadit @Clwojick @Cuilin @bcncookbookclub @Tineke @julieclair @Catsandbooks @TheAromaofBooks @BookwormAHN @Lizpixie @KateReadsYA @TheBookHippie @dabbe @dabbe

- SOY de la opinión, profesor, de que en esta vida todo lo que tiene valor hay que ganárselo. Que debería costar ganárselo. Porque quienes obtienen algo de valor sin hacer nada para ganárselo están condenados a derrocharlo. Creo que uno debe ganarse el amor de una mujer y el derecho a llamarse hombre a sí mismo. Y uno debería también ganarse el derecho a la esperanza. Hubo un tiempo en que yo tenía un manantial de esperanza, que no me había ganado

A los presuntuoso el Señor les brinda la caridad en forma de decepción.

En el Sunshine hotel, cada habitación tenía su debilidad, y cada debilidad tenía su objeto que la delataba

Ah, pensé al ver la esquina de un libro que asomaba entre los pliegues de las sábanas,....El pobre hombre padece la adicción más peligrosa que existe.

'...todos los días nos levantábamos a la misma hora y nos poníamos la misma ropa. Todos los días desayunábamos en la misma mesa con las misma personas. Y todos los días hacíamos el mismo trabajo en los mismos campos antes de acostarnos a la misma hora en la misma cama...
...hay algo realmente desconcertante en hacer todas esas cosas de manera idéntica un día tras otro, sobre todo en la versión de mil página de la propia vida.'

Pero todos con los que nos cruzaba Mos parecían satisfechos con su carencia de objetivos. Deja que el camino salga a tu encuentro, dicen los irlandeses, y eso era lo que les sucedía a los viajeros intrépidos en la autopista Lincoln. El camino salía al encuentro de todos y cada uno de ellos, tanto si iban hacia el este, hacia el oeste o en círculos.