pickThis was a nice collection of poetry and two Essays about nature, and more specifically various species of birds. I enjoyed most of them, but my favorite was “Wild Geese“
My only criticism is reading through her second essay about finding an injured gull, and instead of taking it to a wildlife facility or the vet, she and her partner started caring for it. It isn't what you fo with injured wildlife. You don't keep them as pets.
“Socrates said, ‘The misuse of language induces evil in the soul.‘ He wasn‘t talking about grammar. To misuse language is to use it the way politicians & advertisers do, for profit, without taking responsibility for what the words mean. Language used as a means to get power or make money goes wrong: it lies. Language used as an end in itself, to sing a poem or tell a story, goes right, goes towards the truth. A writer is a person who cares what ⤵️
A point so simple, so clear, he made it in less than two pages. 👏🏻
pickI liked this a lot more than Difficult Women, which I read a few years ago. I especially enjoyed her literary criticism essays. It was interesting to read this more than a decade after it was written, and it was a little heartbreaking to read her cautious optimism about the direction we were heading, knowing how far we've actually regressed since then. This my February #AuthorAMonth pick. @Soubhiville
We took a trek to the National African American Museum of History & Culture in DC today. We only made it through a few floors. It was a sobering & overwhelming experience. A must see if you go to DC. I of course had to get a book. This book has been on my to buy list because James Baldwin is one of my favorite people. They had a ton of books I could have bought.
pick#Read2025
I finally read this one thanks to #AuthorAMonth It‘s been in my TBR for ages & it‘s my 2nd Roxane Gay (I read Hunger in 2017). I had hoped to finish Not That Bad too but I ran out of time. Although some of the cultural references are dated (it was written 12 years ago), the fact that so little has changed is pretty telling & sobering. Some essays were better (or at least I connected with them more) than others but overall, a good read.
Today was my last day at my job. Among many other things, I received this as a gift.
pickThis was my first Roxanne Gay read and I quite enjoyed it. Her opinions were relatable and, even if I didn‘t agree, she broke them down in such a way that I could still appreciate her viewpoint.
#authoramonth @Soubhiville
#VirginiaBloomsberries February discussion thread.
📚 What effect did the narrative style have on you as a reader?
📚 Do you consider the stylistic choices VW made, helped raise questions about truth, subjective experiences, authenticity, &reliable narrative?
📚 What did you consider the central theme to be?
All are welcome to join us. Let me know if you wish to be added/removed from the taglist.
Next up - https://litsy.com/p/SWU3ekxLejl2
I know it's a spoiler but I would rather it not unpleasantly surprise other readers as it did me. 5h