so-soI‘m going backwards in Thorpe‘s writing and this is the third book I‘ve read of hers. While I‘ve quoted this book several times I have to say this book felt a little too ambitious. A trip to Lithuania in honor of his grandmother who escaped from a concentration camp with a teen who has experienced a psychotic break, the story covers a lot of ground and feels a bit too much. I was captivated while reading it but ultimately disappointed.
The author put this quote both in her novel and in her acknowledgments. It hit me hard each time I read it. A great description of my current understanding of the world.
“No one seemed amazed that in Lithuania, in order to deal with the end of communism, local artists had made a statue of Frank Zappa.… And now Frank Zappa has become sort of a patron saint, if you will, of Uzupis, but also of Vilnius and even Lithuania as a whole.”
Who knew?
pick4.5⭐️ Had heard about this book through Sarah‘s Bookshelves and thought I would give this book a try. I ended up really liking the book; felt the book started out a little slow, but it seemed to pick up steam as I got further into the book. If you like books that have family drama, you may like this one. #2025 #contemporary #family #literary #fiction
pickThis thought-provoking book is a mix of unusual personal/family memoir and what feels like a NF version of Labatut‘s How We Cease to Understand the World. It ruminates on life, death, war, and more. I found it fascinating and I‘m glad it serves as my final completed book of 2024. #TOBlonglist
I love Ann Naplolitano‘s writing. My first book I read from her was Hello Beautiful. In her stories she includes family tragedy, guilt and large families. Complex rich stories. Her stories are written like a soap opera and I‘m here for it. #prettybookcovers #winterreading
repost for @TheAromaofBooks:
Hey friends!! So I've been looking at my life and my upcoming schedule, and I am going to pause #RandomClassics definitely for January, and maybe longer, kind of depending. I still have a huge list of classics I would like to read, and I have really enjoyed reading these with you all, but for now I need to skip a month!! I'll let everyone know when I am ready to pick back up again!!
so-so3.5⭐️ I thought it was a decent story. Felt kinda blah. #literary #2024 #indigenious #fiction #contemporary +5pts
so-so3.5⭐️ I thought that the book was ok. I liked the ending more than the beginning and the references to Shakespeare‘s play. #2024 #fiction #retelling #historicalfiction #literary #literarycrew
