Welcome to Litsy!

Who knew a book about mysterious revenge killings related to lynchings and other violent, racial-based crimes could be so fun? This is one of the more unique works of fiction I‘ve read. The author achieved an odd balance of dark subject matter mixed with humor. If anything, I would have loved it if the book was a bit more serious. A less-skilled writer could never have pulled this story off. I can‘t wait to read more of Everett‘s work!

I finished THE SUNBEARER TRIALS this afternoon while I broke in my new moccasins! It was a fun take on the kids-in-life-or-death-competition storyline, set in a queernorm world influenced by Mexico instead of Europe.

The moccasins are a limited edition from Manitobah Mukluks, in partnership with artist Rosa Scribe, and they were a lucky thrift store find. They‘re brand new, AND I had a $10-off coupon. #AuldLangSpine2025

Today‘s library haul features two more #AuldLangSpine2025 requests, two from the Canada Reads Longlist, another Junjj Ito collection, Freya Marske‘s latest, a guide to help me plan my time in the Loire Valley, and the first Namibian novel I‘ve had the chance to read.

My first finish for #auldlangspine2025. This was such a great pick @DGRachel

I loved this world of tea dragons! It made me smile, reflect and appreciate the work the authors put into the story and graphics. I look forward to returning to the tea dragon world.

Oh, hey, I forgot to tell y‘all how much I loved MOST ARDENTLY! It dove straight into my heart and tugged, tugged, tugged. It‘s also the second Remixed Classic I‘ve adored, after INTO THE BRIGHT OPEN by Cherie Dimaline, so clearly I need to seek out more of them.

I finished it while I started this book nook. I‘m now fairly far into it, thanks to stints with a couple other audiobooks. #audiocrafting #AuldLangSpine2025

Having finished Miss Dior and loved it - I‘m going to move on to book 2 on my #auldlangspine2025 from @TheBookHippie Think I‘m going to dip into a few of the short stories first and then maybe one or two of her book reviews. Never read anything by Dorothy Parker - but she sounds a super interesting woman so excited to get immersed in her brain.

I can see why BETTER LIVING THROUGH BIRDING is so popular! Christian Cooper‘s enthusiasm really shines through. I‘m enjoying it a lot and I want to prioritize his comics the next time I have a Marvel Unlimited subscription.

That said, either the print book has teeny, tiny typeface or I find his prose style very slow. It‘s taking me forever to get through these 296 pages and my progress-to-effort ratio has made me a bit grumpy. #AuldLangSpine2025

Completed my #AuldLangSpine2025 pick from @JoeMo . This memoir is a gloriously acerbic, brutally honest look at the restaurant business in the early days of Anthony Bourdain‘s career. It‘s a bit repetitive, but I absolutely adore his voice. And now I know how to make a breast of chicken and mashed potatoes “tower like a fully engorged priapus.” So there‘s that. 👍🏼👍🏼 Thanks, Joe!

@monalyisha
#AuldLangSpine

Ahhhh, this was so good! I tore on through it in less than a day, thoroughly caught up in Imogen‘s identity struggles and her intense friendships. I laughed A LOT (especially at the small German sausage), nodded along with Imogen‘s thought processes, and desperately hoped for her to reject Gretchen‘s prescriptive declarations. It‘ll stay with me for a long while.

Also, I think both Imogen and Tessa would approve of my penguin. #AuldLangSpine2025

My stack for the various challenges I am attempting to tackle:

1. Tolstoy: #kareninawinter, #chunksterchallenge2025 (848 pgs) and #fictionaltraveler (somewhere cold)
2. Dissolution: ##BookedInTime (Tudor England) and #fictionaltraveler (somewhere English)
3. Bourdain: #AuldLangSpine2025
4. The Cancer Factory: #DiseaseoftheMonthBookClub
5. King: #Nonfiction2025