Lots to unpack here about women‘s roles in society. I really loved this, and found it funny that it had an intersection with my interest in polar exploration- that was unexpected!

And now relaxing post-run with something different, which happens to make a comparison just now to running. Also, yes those are my pajamas and yes it is 6:30 pm.

A little pre-run time in the backyard with the dog and a book.

Neferkitty? Really? I mean, I know I‘m reading a book from the point of view of cats, but oh dear.

Talking about childhood freedoms being curtailed when children were going missing and being murdered in Atlanta. I have recently listened to the podcast Atlanta Monster about that very topic - anyone else listened to it?

My lunchtime read. #fridayreads

After about 10 pages, I wanted to kick every single character who had been introduced. I put the book down for a couple of days. Picked it back up, read some more, and I still feel the same way.

On page 8 and in love already.

"I used to love this season."

#firstlines

"Until the killing of black mothers' sons is as important as the killing of white mothers' sons -- we must keep on."

1964...and 2017.

"In the neighborhood of Pelourinho in the heart of Bahia, the whole world teaches and learns."

#firstlines

Even better than the first one. 🚌🚌🚌🚌🚌 5 freedom rides out of 5.

"I may have seen her before and never noticed."

#firstlines

I was not enamored with this book. The first section, told by Roddy, was reasonably entertaining, but I was thoroughly bored after that. The main character was inscrutable, the style of storytelling distancing, and I am left baffled by this being called a thriller. There was nothing thrilling about it. 🥃🥃 2 glasses of scotch out of 5.

This came home with me from the thrift store. For 10 cents, I couldn't resist. It looks TERRIBLE!

Usually I don't get any books in the mail at all because I don't buy any, but today I got another one, a review copy from LibraryThing.

#bookmail #lter

And today the other three in the series arrived at the same time (though in three separate packages). Every year I try to tackle something long and/or with multiple volumes off the 1001 books list. This is it for 2017.

#bookmail #1001books

No further comment needed.

First of the tetralogy delivered ... of course not the first of the tetralogy. 🙄😁 Also a bookmark to color!

#bookmail

"Brother John -- good to see you."

#firstlines

My recommendation? Watch the movie. The book is interesting in the sense that so much of what was iconic in the movie is actually there, but the movie makes Benjamin less of a creep and leaves out a couple of draggy parts.
🎓🎓🎓 3 out of 5 mortarboards.

#1001books

"My name be Ice Cream Fifteen Star."

#firstlines

"Benjamin Braddock graduated from a small Eastern college on a day in June."

#firstlines #1001books

This becomes my first completed book of 2017 (of course I started it before the new year), and first to go into my bullet journal layout. Quotes will be forthcoming, but in the meantime, I'll just say: read this.

I liked this so much more than I expected to. One hit, one miss with DeLillo previously. It's about avoiding death cryogenically, but of course a book about death is really a book about life. Gorgeous writing, a little esoteric. ⚰️⚰️⚰️⚰️ 4 out of 5 empty coffins.

I will say right away that I was disappointed with this book. I enjoyed his first two, but while this one had a number of bright spots, overall it was too long and meandering. I don't regret reading it because of those bright spots, but it promised so much more! 💣💣💣 3 out of 5 ticking time bombs.

"Every summer Lin Kong returned to Goose Village to divorce his wife, Shuyu."

#firstlines

Reading at the dentist's office today. More festive than I felt.

Starting some nonfiction. Usually I listen to books like this, but it's the Kindle for this one.

Marina Abramovic is a fascinating woman. Also maybe more than a little crazy. I'm not saying that because of any of her performance pieces, but more because she thinks she communicated telepathically with Aboriginal people in Australia and believes in all kinds of weird crystal stuff. if you think she's a dangerous satanist you should probably avoid the book but otherwise you might find the look into the beginnings of performance art interesting.

"There was therefore a very simple reason why we had no flowers in our garden: we had no money to pay for them. But the poor hate to admit that they are slaves to their poverty, and invent mystical explanations for their lack of freedom. So we said to ourselves that it was a queer thing, flowers would not grow in our garden."

"Everybody wants to own the end of the world."

#firstlines

I admit to not knowing much about John Lewis. This is a good first step toward rectifying that. Well done to target its intended YA audience. I enjoyed the art style, looking forward to reading the next one. ✊✊✊✊ 4 out of 5 raised fists.

"The day was so delightful that I wished one could live slowly as one can play music slowly."

#firstlines

British couple Amy & Nick are on vacation. Nick dies suddenly. An American shipboard acquaintance, Martha, decides to assist Amy in the aftermath. Martha is a bit odd; Amy is cold. Their relationship makes for fascinating reading. ⛴️⛴️⛴️⛴️ 4 out of 5 cruise ships

This seems to be the thing of the moment. I'll finish a few more before the year is out, of course.

#myyearinbooks

Library day! I haven't finished March Book 1 yet, but it won't take long.

"Can you swim?"

#firstlines

Almost there with my #LitsyAtoZ challenge list. Subject to change, of course. Also, unfortunately I've already read The Autobiography of Malcolm X.

"Istanbul was cool."

#firstlines

"Fun reading makes me think of someone who slaps his knees in mirth as he turns the pages."

Late in life, a man looks back on young adulthood, that time when we think we know everything. But what if later you discover that you didn't, not at all? Can you pull up your memories? Can you see them in a different light? And how will you feel about yourself in the process? 🤔🤔🤔🤔 4.5 out of 5 thinking emojis.

"Dear Mr. M,
I'd like to start by telling you that I'm doing better now."

#firstlines
#knittingandreading

This just drew me in and totally enveloped me. The siege of Leningrad, two teenage boys thrown together, and a life-or-death mission for a dozen eggs. Beautifully constructed and written.

🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻 5 Russian bears out of 5.

"To someone like myself, whose literary activities have been confined since 1920 mainly to legal briefs and Inquiry-writing, the hardest thing about the task at hand- viz., the explanation of a day in 1937 when I changed my mind- is getting into it."

#firstlines

"What was the point of having a situation worthy of fiction if the protagonist didn't behave as he would have done in a book?"

In his introduction, TS Eliot said that "only sensibilities trained on poetry" could wholly appreciate this book. Well, I don't like poetry.

I can appreciate the book's existence, and I think it would be interesting to have it as a text in a course, but I found it overwrought.

?️?️?️ 3 natural disasters out of 5.

I meant to do yesterday's #seasonsreadings2016 prompt but things have been a little crazy around here so I'm a day late. These are books I have #notinenglish. I got rid of more when we moved from Italy.

"I remember, in no particular order:"

#firstlines

Really enjoying this book!