The Late Americans: A Novel | 
pickThis novel is told from a different perspective each chapter, which leaves it feeling more like a set of loosely connected stories with overlapping characters. Not a bad thing! I love Brandon Taylor‘s writing and the way he writes about bodies existing and moving through life. A solid and slightly melancholic read.
so-soSeamus compares life to museum exhibit or doll‘s house, much like novel: distanced glimpses into lives w/out real entry. Self-aware of indulgence in self-pity, characters (& author) can‘t refrain from gossip & complaints in endless circles. People behaving badly is a good read, but not if it‘s vapid. Sex, sexuality, privilege, aggression. Characters in service of arguments. Unending swing from egoism to self-loathing=real but exhausting? 2023
bailedI did not like this at all. Bailed at 130 pages, couldn't connect with one character, all equally unlikeable.
TW - graphic sexual content
pickWell it turns out i loved this. After bailing on a few books recently it was a treat to be reading sentences that grabbed me and shook me and had me absorbed in completely different lives. I think it helps to read this as interconnected short stories and not to try to hold in your head who is sleeping with who etc because thats a difficult task. I loved that each person, when seen from the lens of their lover or friend‘s perspective ⬇️
pickI loved this and kept wanting to get back to it when I wasn‘t reading. The prose is so clean and there‘s something about the intimate, fly-on-the-wall style that makes you feel close to the characters. I was invested and cared what happened to each of them, which gave the story tension. I loved the ‘relay‘ style passing from one character to the next. Thoughtful and on point. Beautifully explores both the state of our society & relationships.
I adore this author and so glad he could fit lil PDX Powell's into his tour.
bailedBit of a #bailfest today, which isn‘t like me! 🤣
I thought this one was proving difficult due to the random incorrectly hyphenated words scattered about the #netgalley download, as well as the off-putting titles, appearing somewhere on every page.
However on reading Holly‘s @Hooked_on_books review I realised that the book itself is tough to get through; it‘s rather pretentiously self-conscious so I‘m giving up.
so-soOh man, this one is painful. I LOVED Real Life and Filthy Animals, so I was SO excited for this one. But it just never grabbed me. I even restarted it after listening to the first third then setting it aside for a few days. I feel like there are moments of brilliance, but it‘s a bit flat overall.
The books on his nightstand make me happy. “The Forsyte Saga”🥰
It‘s here 🤩
pickBrandon Taylor more than delivers on the rich promise of his debut, REAL LIFE, in this deliciously accomplished second novel. Each of Taylor's characters is drawn with vivid intimacy, but this is in many ways an ensemble piece, and he beautifully captures a collective sense of elegiac desperation in the complex cast he has assembled. And because this is Brandon Taylor, the writing is exquisite. Coming in May (sorry.)
so-soI'm still working through my thoughts on this one. This is my first time reading one of Taylor's books, and he is clearly talented. I will in no way be shocked when this book garners a lot of positive attention when it's released. For me, it felt like one of those books that will win awards and be on lists, while I smile and nod and pretend to have "gotten it" even though I actually just found it a bit pretentious and unsatisfying. #ARC
I am STOKED about this win! 👏🏽
