Boulder | 
#12DaysofChristmas #12booksof2023
My May choice is one from the #Booker longlist. In only 105 pages Eva Baltasar writes about love in a way that‘ll stick with me for a long time time.
so-soThis was a “meh” for me. I appreciated the complicated & richly emotional context of the MC‘s failing relationship. But, it didn‘t speak to me. I‘m only likely to remember this novella for the final nursing scene. 😜
pick#InternationalBooker list, though I don‘t typically read those titles, I am amazed at this slim character study!! Boulder is a woman who is more comfortable at sea, physically exhausted than contained in domesticity. She falls in love which changes her whole world. Then motherhood hits and everything changes. The way new motherhood is described from the non-birthing partner‘s perspective is phenomenal.
pickWhat a unique character. And yet, who knows just how unique Boulder really is. How many women feel the same way she does but don‘t feel they can share their desire of being unattached. Especially her feelings toward motherhood and being isolated from the person you love and are so close to, abandoned because a child has entered the scene. Some lovely writing too.
pickA night all by myself, at a bar in the city I grew up in. Feeling nostalgic and blown away by this book.
In only 105 pages Eva Baltasar writes about love in a way that resonates with me. Love for another woman, love for a child, love for ordinary things like cooking food and working and traveling.
This may sound sappy but the book isn‘t. On the contrary, it‘s dark and beautiful.
My favorite of the #internationalbooker shortlist so far.
pickThis slim book really packs a punch. Dark in a way I enjoy, it tackles different perspectives on motherhood in a way I found very compelling. Plus an ending that has Nightwood vibes. I‘m glad to see it on the Booker shortlist.
