Litsy

Teresereading

Pomegranate Soup: A Novel | Marsha Mehran

Dawn rose over Clew Bay and the small Irish village of Ballinacroagh.
#FirstlineFridays
@ShyBookOwl

11 likes

lil1inblue

The Blood of Flowers: A Novel | Anita Amirrezvani

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This was riveting coming-of-age story about an unnamed girl set in 17th century Persia. The historical and cultural aspects were fascinating. I appreciated how folktales were woven into the story and how the plot somewhat mirrored the style of those folktales. The descriptions of Persian carpets were so beautiful; they made the art come to life.

This pairs well with the nonfiction book I'm reading about Iran's history.

23 likes

rachaich

Martyr!: A novel | Kaveh Akbar

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What an intense and different novel, exploring art, the world, love and the life death continuum.
I found it tough at times in it's bleak honesty but alongside that, such gorgeous writing.
Will remain with me.

22 likes

britt_brooke

Martyr!: A novel | Kaveh Akbar

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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Because of how his mother died, Cyrus becomes obsessed with the concept of dying a meaningful death. Or perhaps, with living a meaningful life. A clever and introspective study of grief. Full circle creativity, and flawless execution, lead to its much-deserved critical acclaim. Wholly unique. I loved it!

BarbaraBB Glad you did! 1w

britt_brooke @BarbaraBB 💛💛 1w

Trashcanman 👋👋👋👋👀 1w

britt_brooke @Trashcanman Heyyyy!! Good to see you here! 1w

87 likes3 stack adds4 comments

BarbaraBB

Martyr!: A novel | Kaveh Akbar

#LitsyToB25 Martyr! is our winner today. Only Tracy, Holly and Theresa voted for Rejection. Short stories and the tournament aren‘t always a good match.
And we do agree with the #ToB25 judgment today so in both tournaments we‘ll see Martyr! continue.

BarbaraBB @Bookwormjillk @Suet624 @cariashley @Soscha @AmyG @squirrelbrain @Butterfinger @kspenmoll @lesliereadsalot 3w

BarbaraBB @Hooked_on_Books @ImperfectCJ @ChaoticMissAdventures @kwmg40 @GatheringBooks @Deblovestoread @Jas16 @BkClubCare @sarahbarnes 3w

BarbaraBB @CarolynM @Kristy_K @Chelsea.Poole @Megabooks @AnneCecilie @fredthemoose @Well-ReadNeck 3w

See All 20 Comments

Chelsea.Poole I really, really enjoyed Rejection…and I‘m normally not into short stories. But Martyr took hold of me in a much more intense way, so I had to vote for it! 3w

Suet624 I‘m so happy!! 3w

Bookwormjillk Another set I didn‘t get to, but Matyr! is high on my list since @Butterfinger ‘s glowing review. 3w

BarbaraBB @Chelsea.Poole I remember that you liked it so much. Too bad it met Martyr! that soon in the tournament 3w

Lesliereadsalot Now I have to get to Martyr!! 3w

Well-ReadNeck I may need to re-read Martyr! it might hit different at a different time, but I just thought it was 👍🏼, not really 🤯Rejection made me feel sooooooo uncomfortable in all the best ways. I did listen on audio which I think may have enhanced it for me since tone is so important to that one. Voted the other way, but not disappointed here. 3w

Well-ReadNeck For those of you who may not have made it that far, the final story in Rejection ties it all together in the absolutely best (and funniest) way 3w

Megabooks I love short stories, but I was not a fan of rejection. Glad to see Martyr move on! 3w

fredthemoose Ugh—I didn‘t necessarily love Rejection, but Martyr! was my least favorite of this year‘s list. Just did not like or care about the MC at all. 😝 Glad others liked it more. (edited) 3w

ChaoticMissAdventures I liked both of these, hate it when that happens, but I loved Martyr! the writing was so sharp about addiction. Glad to see it move on. 3w

Hooked_on_books I‘m unsurprised given the accolades Martyr has earned. Like @fredthemoose , I struggled with the MC. I also didn‘t like the big reveal of who the female artist was. For me it was a bit silly. And I thought Rejection was great in a disturbing way. I feel like the author had a good time writing it and that came through. 3w

Butterfinger Martyr was my favorite. I thought it was very relatable. It brought to light things that I never learned. 3w

Jas16 I could not even finish Rejection so Martyr easily got my vote. 3w

sarahbarnes I still want to read Martyr at some point! 3w

GatheringBooks I voted for Martyr which is keeping me up for several nights now - I knew 100 pages in that this was my choice. 3w

kwmg40 I'd read the first story in Rejection and never got back to it. I really liked Martyr! so it was an easy decision for me. 3w

cariashley Pleased with this outcome! 3w

62 likes20 comments

cariashley

The Lion Women of Tehran | Marjan Kamali

Book(er) of the Month time! 😹 It‘s a minor miracle I was able to stage this, haha. I wasn‘t super excited about these when I ordered, but now that they‘ve arrived I‘m looking forward to them. #BookerCat #botm

tpixie Cute trick! Hope kitty 🐈‍⬛ doesn‘t think it‘s a litter box! lol😹😹😹 4w

Ruthiella Cats love an empty box! 😻 4w

AmyG I am listening to Part of Your World and loving it. 4w

See All 13 Comments

Nebklvr If thats the biggest box available, then kitty will just have to make do although they appear a little disgruntled. 4w

ChaoticMissAdventures 😻😻 4w

Soubhiville What a fun photo! 4w

cariashley @Nebklvr @Ruthiella Booker loves ALL boxes, but yeah he‘s getting too big for these! 4w

cariashley @tpixie ha he does kind of have that stance 😅 4w

tpixie @cariashley 😹🩵 boxes are fun!!! 4w

cariashley @AmyG ooh good to know! 4w

marleed Loved both books, love the ‘staging‘! (edited) 4w

dabbe 🖤🐾🖤 3w

peanutnine 😻😻😻 3w

52 likes13 comments

peaKnit

The Lion Women of Tehran | Marjan Kamali

Thank you @CSeydel for this bracket model. I thought I‘d join the fun! #bookbracket2025

CSeydel Great start! 1mo

26 likes1 comment

ICantImReading

The Lion Women of Tehran | Marjan Kamali

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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A meditation on the randomness of the wheel of fortune, a portrait of the lasting impacts of female friendship, a lion‘s roar for women‘s rights amidst political turmoil. The enticing Iranian food descriptions also really brought the story to life as a sensory experience. Immersive and illuminating! 🎧

59 likes1 stack add