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#Netherlands
review
andrew61
The Safekeep | Yael van der Wouden
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Pickpick

This may be my favourite of the booker shortlist so far (3 read) and was an intricate story of two women in 1961 Netherlands. Isabel lives on her own in the house her family moved into during the war, but her life is impacted when her older br leaves his girlfriend staying there while he works away. Ava is a dizzy, vibrant woman who grates on isabel. As the plot reveals itself as a reader, I was absorbed and ultimately moved by what was revealed

LeahBergen Great review! I‘m excited to get to this one. 3d
Anna40 Yes, great review (edited) 3d
BarbaraBB My favorite too! 3d
See All 10 Comments
sarahbarnes I loved it, too! 2d
youneverarrived Really looking forward to reading this! 2d
andrew61 @youneverarrived definitely worth reading and I think you'd like it. 2d
andrew61 @LeahBergen thanks leah, and belated happy birthday, hope it was a good one. 2d
quietlycuriouskate Looking forward to this (currently waiting for my library reservation to come in). 🙂 2d
squirrelbrain Definitely my favourite off the list! 2d
LeahBergen Thanks, Andrew! 2d
46 likes10 comments
review
ImperfectCJ
The Safekeep | Yael van der Wouden
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Pickpick

This might be my second-favorite novel on the Booker Prize shortlist so far (I still have one more to go). The style and the slow evolution of intense emotions really work for me, and the audiobook narration fits the content very well.

squirrelbrain Which is your favourite? 3w
ImperfectCJ @squirrelbrain James is my fave so far, but I still have Stone Yard Devotional yet to read. 3w
52 likes1 stack add2 comments
review
Tamra
The Safekeep | Yael van der Wouden
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Mehso-so

Unpopular opinion 😏

I appreciated the unconventional mystery plot device, but the writing style wasn‘t for me. Too many words to the point of repetition & overwrought emotion. At times I was thinking “get on with it already”…..It reinforces my admiration for the power of effective spare writing.

As opposed to The Birthday Party which was MADDENING in thrilling anticipation of the climax, being akin to a movie in slow motion. 😵 👍🏾

sarahbarnes A very fair review! I did like this one a lot but I can see where you‘re coming from. And I loved the Birthday Party! (edited) 3w
Tamra @sarahbarnes wasn‘t The BD Party a crazy ride?! 3w
50 likes2 comments
review
Hooked_on_books
The Safekeep | Yael van der Wouden
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Pickpick

It‘s rare that multiple times within a book I think that it‘s not what I expected. And that‘s what happened here, in the best way. I liked how I learned different things as I moved through the story. And while there is brief explicit sex, I‘m a little surprised anyone has mentioned it, as I‘m not a fan of explicit sex in books, but it serves the story so well here that I works. (I wonder if it‘s the type of sex that is a problem for some.)

BarbaraBB In that case don‘t read this one on the NBA fiction longlist. I don‘t mind explicit sex but in one if the stories it went on for pages (it served a goal but still) 3w
BarbaraBB I loved The Safekeep too and hope it‘ll win the Booker! 3w
squirrelbrain I agree with your review entirely! You know I loved it anyway and really the sex isn‘t *that* much. I hadn‘t thought about why it is an issue for some, and you may be right in your thoughts. 😞 3w
See All 6 Comments
Hooked_on_books @BarbaraBB I‘m about two-thirds through that one and have read the story you‘re talking about. I was saying “oh, enough!” then got to the end of the story and laughed out loud. It was worth it to get to the ending. 3w
Hooked_on_books @squirrelbrain I‘m sure it‘s not homophobia for everyone, but I‘m just as sure it is for some. It‘s so brief that it‘s not something I even would have thought about or mentioned but only did so because I‘ve seen it brought up before. It makes me sad, but prejudice is unfortunately alive and well. 3w
BarbaraBB That‘s true! I started skimming pages until the end and that made me laugh despite it being not funny at all 😀 3w
36 likes6 comments
review
Twocougs
The Safekeep | Yael van der Wouden
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Pickpick

So I wasn‘t sure about this story and several times almost stopped reading it. BUT for some unknown reason I kept reading it. I‘m so glad I did. What a beautiful but chilling story.

blurb
shawnmooney
The Safekeep | Yael van der Wouden
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https://youtu.be/7YtuMpg5BE4?si=h4RJavp0F3eFXIcv

Introduction

Mystery guest

Weekly highlights

The Stone Angel by Margaret Laurence

The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden

Ivy's Tree by Wendy Burton

Animal Person by Alexander MacLeod

blurb
Deblovestoread
The Safekeep | Yael van der Wouden
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Read4life 💙💙💙 1mo
55 likes1 comment
review
Jas16
The Safekeep | Yael van der Wouden
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Pickpick

I have spent some time trying to figure out why I loved this less than everyone else seems to and haven‘t come to much of a conclusion. I liked the beginning with all of its fraught anxiety much more than I did the part after the revelation in the third act (which was not really much of a surprise). I liked it but I expected it be my new favorite from the Booker shortlist and it didn‘t live up to that for me. Still a pick.

review
sarahbarnes
The Safekeep | Yael van der Wouden
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Pickpick

This book blew my mind! So incredibly good. ♥️ The unexpected turns, the almost unbearable tension at times, the sheer beauty of the story. I haven‘t read the full shortlist but would be very pleased to see this book take the prize.

squirrelbrain ❤️❤️❤️ 1mo
Suet624 Perfect review and I agree with all of it. 😊 1mo
sarahbarnes @squirrelbrain @Suet624 ❤️❤️❤️ 1mo
BarbaraBB Great review. I loves it too, especially the way it is written and how Isabelle has been portrayed 1mo
sarahbarnes @BarbaraBB agreed! I loved the way it‘s written and how the story is revealed over the course of the book through the two different perspectives. 1mo
42 likes1 stack add5 comments
review
VRM1975
The Safekeep | Yael van der Wouden
Pickpick

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