@vivastory on Litsy

Laura is a volunteer at End of the Line, a phoneline where people who are having trouble can call & find a sympathetic & non-judgmental ear. Laura is not that person, because she likes to encourage people to go further into their feelings of hopelessness & despair. This is a hot mess of a revenge story. It's sort of like if a Catherine Ryan Howard novel went on Jerry Springer. My first John Marrs, def won't be my last.

AmyG I recently read my first of his books. He‘s wonderful. Very psychological books. 3d

vivastory @AmyG which one did you read? 3d

AmyG I read What Lies Between Us. 3d

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LeahBergen I recently read my first novel by him and enjoyed it, too!

Her Last Move

BarbaraBB His speculative fiction is even better than his thrillers 3d

vivastory @LeahBergen That does sound good! 3d

vivastory @BarbaraBB I definitely plan on checking out some of those, especially with the new season of black mirror about to be released 3d

BarbaraBB Ah that is good to know! 2d

Sidnei That does sound god 2d

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vivastory

Untitled | Unknown

Scheduled for pub. in July, the first of the Saga Doubles will be SG Jones. I love these & will def be picking up the SG Jones & the Datlow anthology:
https://www.simonandschuster.com/series/Saga-Doubles

LeahBergen Cool! 5d

vivastory @LeahBergen Aren't they rad? 5d

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vivastory

When the Moon Hits Your Eye | John Scalzi

The plot synopsis for the new Scalzi lolol

Prairiegirl_reading I‘m so looking forward to this one!!! 5d

julesG @Prairiegirl_reading It's so good!!! 5d

Prairiegirl_reading @julesG good to know! Makes me even more excited about it! 😄 5d

Lesliereadsalot He‘s such a good writer. 4d

Branwen I am SO excited for this one! 🤣😂 3d

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vivastory

High Lonesome: Stories 1966-2006 | Joyce Carol Oates

My #ThorsDayRec this week is a 700 page collection that I finished at the end of January this year after starting it the beginning of Dec last year. There are numerous memorable stories collected in this retrospective, the title story itself is one of the greatest pieces of American 20th C noir fiction. When JC Oates is on point, she is right up there with Shirley Jackson & Patricia Highsmith IMO. Absolutely fantastic.

tpixie Intrigued! Great review! 5d

Ruthiella I recently found out that the movie Smooth Talk with Laura Dern is based on the Oates‘ short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been”. It‘s a good, but uncomfortable, film. 5d

vivastory @tpixie Thanks! There were so many fantastic stories in here. It would usually take me awhile to get through a retrospective this big, but I have always found Oates short stories very compelling (strangely enough although I have read several books of her short fiction I have yet to read one of her novels). 5d

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vivastory @Ruthiella It's funny you mention that; one of my streaming services is Criterion & while I was reading this CC had a Laura Dern retrospective including that movie. That felt like a cross between Shirley Jackson & Flannery O'Connor (edited) 5d

tpixie @vivastory despite her being a famous author I never have read her. I need to fix that! 5d

TheBookHippie Guess I‘ll move this up the list. 5d

vivastory @tpixie @TheBookHippie I think that this is a good volume to check out from your library if possible. If it is available, I recommend just reading where you want to. I had no intentions whatsoever of reading this beginning-to-end when I checked it out, it just worked out that way! 5d

tpixie @vivastory thanks for the tip! 5d

Branwen I feel really guilty for this admission, but JCO is an author that I really WISH I loved! 😭 I have tried to read so many different of her works, and each one has left me feeling disappointed. 😔 Do you have a favorite work by her? Maybe I could try that and see if it changes my mind? 3d

vivastory @Branwen I've only read her short works. I really liked Evil Eye. Also, her story Doll-Master is worth reading. It's one of the most unsettling things I've ever read. 3d

Branwen @vivastory Okay, maybe I'll give one of her shorter works a try! 🥰 Thanks, Scott! 2d

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vivastory

The Bibliophile's Devotional: 365 Days of Literary Classics | Hallie Ephron

Litsy has really been lagging for me all week, so I haven't been on very much. Anywho..my #weirdwords choice this week is vellichor. According to Ye Olde Google 'Vellichor is a new word and refers to the aromatic atmosphere within second-hand bookshops.“ It's been a bit since I've had the chance to visit my local used bookstore, Might have to set aside some time soon to do so! Years ago I used to be a regular.
@cbee

CBee Ooooo what a wonderful word! And I LOVE that smell 😍😍 5d

vivastory @CBee There's a candle shop in Minnesota that sells several book themed candles, including one called bookstore 💕 5d

tpixie Interesting 🤔 I know the smell now I know the word! (edited) 5d

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vivastory @tpixie It should be sold as a fragrance everywhere IMO 📖 5d

tpixie @vivastory yes! 5d

TheBookHippie My second favorite smell!!! 5d

vivastory @TheBookHippie Now I have to ask! What's your favorite smell? 😁 😅 5d

TheBookHippie @vivastory Mr BookHippies beard 👀😂😅 5d

vivastory @TheBookHippie Literally lol 😂 😂 😂 5d

TheBookHippie @vivastory 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 5d

CBee @vivastory oh yes! Frostbeard, right? I used to buy a lot of their candles. 5d

CBee @TheBookHippie 😂😂😂👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 5d

Butterfinger @Texreader when I was reading your post about the maze of used books, I was wondering if it had a certain wonderful smell. Here's the word for it. I hope I never forget it. 3d

55 likes13 comments

vivastory

Untitled | Unknown

I'm going to ignore the snow forecasted for tomorrow bc I'm ready for spring & my selections have energy to reflect it!
*De La Soul: The Magic Number
https://open.spotify.com/track/4hB8J06D2ZaGkWZDOMpYZB?si=de00150d34d84c9d
*RL Burnside: Let My Baby Ride
https://open.spotify.com/track/7tokOMPzSHbLJVZh8an2Nq?si=3b39b6b67d9146d6
*Kendrick Lamar: TV Off
https://open.spotify.com/track/0aB0v4027ukVziUGwVGYpG?si=bb6b6434380f44e1
@tiedyedude

vivastory #tuesdaytunes 1w

TheBookHippie 😂😂😂😂 I‘m in fake spring today. 1w

vivastory @TheBookHippie Drinking Shamrock shake with snow=PSL 80 degrees 🤷‍♂️ 1w

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TheBookHippie @vivastory 😂😂😂😂😂 1w

BarbaraBB Great songs! And I‘m all set for Soring too! PS seeing Kendrick later this year 🥰 1w

vivastory @BarbaraBB That's so fantastic that you'll be seeing Lamar! 5d

BarbaraBB Right? With Sza, in July! 5d

TieDyeDude Dang, those are some good grooves! Thanks for sharing. 10h

45 likes8 comments

vivastory

Married Love: And Other Stories | Tessa Hadley

*Ally read novels, wrapped up in her duvet beside the central-heating radiator in her bedroom, borrowing them from the centre & the public library, sometimes finishing one & starting another without even changing her position or getting up to make coffee, like an addict...She imagined the reading that she did now as like climbing inside one of those deep old beds she'd seen in a museum, with a sliding door to close behind you...*

AlaMich I love this quote! 1w

vivastory @AlaMich Hadley's writing is wonderful. 1w

BarbaraBB I recognize that about the starting of a new book immediately after finishing another 1w

LeahBergen Awesome! 1w

Branwen Oh this is so lovely! What a perfect description! 😍 1w

54 likes5 comments

vivastory

Confederacy of Dunces | John Kennedy Toole

President reacts to his voters (in a 2 part video!) who have buyers' remorse!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvFL8iXqnI4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnNSnJbjdws

54 likes

vivastory

The Book of Longings: A Novel | Sue Monk Kidd

*Good audiobooks with great narrators
*Shamrock shake
*Libraries
*Cafes in libraries
*Spring! (Such a tough winter)
#5joysfriday
@debinhawaii

Suet624 Happy to see you‘re using your old Litsy name again. 2w

BooksandCoffee4Me Aren‘t cafes in libraries wonderful?! 💛 2w

vivastory @Suet624 Thanks 💙 2w

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vivastory @BooksandCoffee4Me Best of two worlds ☕📚📚 2w

AlaMich I second all of those!!(except maybe for the ☘️ shake) 2w

TheBookHippie Shamrock Shake!!! 2w

vivastory @TheBookHippie So good 🍀 2w

TheBookHippie @vivastory I make them every St Patty‘s day ! But I‘ve not had a McDonald‘s one in decades! When I worked there I put 1/2 chocolate 1/2 shamrock …. In 1982 😂😂😂😂😂 2w

vivastory @AlaMich I somehow almost forgot about them this year 😱 2w

dabbe 🩵💙🩵 2w

vivastory @TheBookHippie Lolol 80s McDonald's had vibes. A homemade shamrock shake sounds delicious! 2w

TheBookHippie @vivastory recipe https://dinnerthendessert.com/wprm_print/9253 🍀☘️ 2w

vivastory @TheBookHippie Thanks! I'll give it a try ☘️ 2w

Hooked_on_books I‘m finishing up a move and haven‘t been scrolling much lately. It‘s good to see you back here! 2w

vivastory @Hooked_on_books Thanks! I'm recovering from a move myself, so I completely sympathize. So many boxes of books. 2w

mcctrish Shamrock shakes are such a sign of spring to me - we always got them on March Break with the boys ☘️ 2w

Christine Yes to the shamrock shake! I had one for the first time in years and why are they so good?? Nostalgic too. 1w

DebinHawaii Wonderful joys! 💛💛💛 A great audiobook well narrated is the best! 🎧 6d

55 likes18 comments

vivastory

Tales from the Loop | Simon St�lenhag

Every Thursday I will be posting about a book, or short story, I love that I have either never posted about or have not posted about in a long time. For my first entry for #ThorsDayRec is Stålenhag's sui generis work Tales From The Loop. I have seen this categorized under: Graphic Novel, Sci-Fi, Art Books, Fiction. Set in the 80s, TFL tells of a town with both decommissioned & sentient machines. There's a meandering narrative woven into (cont)

vivastory incredible artwork. TFL is like Stranger Things meets Dark. I def plan on checking out Stålenhag's other work!
(PS: If you have recommendations, please post!) 2w

LeahBergen This sounds fun! I‘ll try to remember to add some of my own. 😆 2w

vivastory @LeahBergen I'd love to see your recommendations! 2w

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BarbaraBB Sounds pretty obscure and I like that 2w

Bette His book, Electric State has been getting buzz since Netflix, sounds like the book is preferable. 2w

vivastory @BarbaraBB There's been a board game & a tv show of his work but it seems like his books are the lesser known when you Google him 2w

vivastory @Bette I've heard a lot of mixed reviews on the adaptations. Seems like most of the Netflix book adaptation lately have been misses 2w

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vivastory

Long Bright River | Liz Moore

LBR was one of the first books I read this year. After my first read of the year it was one of my first 5 star books. I was caught off guard by the series adaptation announcement on Goodreads just now. No idea! loved this book so much; I think I might have to sit out this adaptation unless I hear it's brilliant.

Deblovestoread I read The God of the Woods recently and was underwhelmed. It put LBR back down the TBR. Your review is moving back towards the top. 2w

Lesliereadsalot I like all her books because I find the stories and the characters to be interesting. I‘ll be watching the tv series, so will keep you posted. 2w

Soubhiville @Deblovestoread If you‘re willing to give her another try, I think Long Bright River is her best book. 2w

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vivastory @Deblovestoread I haven't read GOW, but I was bowled over by LBR. A page turner with great characters, portrayal of police & city bureaucracy and a satisfying mystery at the core. Felt like The Wire meets Agatha Christie 2w

vivastory @Lesliereadsalot Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on it! 2w

AmyG This was so good. (edited) 2w

vivastory @AmyG 💯 2w

Lesliereadsalot The tv show is horrible. Watched 1/3 of one episode and changed the channel. I did like the book tho. @AmyG 2w

AmyG 😬 Thanks @Lesliereadsalot …I will pass. Don‘t want to ruin the book. 2w

Lesliereadsalot @AmyG Exactly!! 🩷 2w

vivastory @Lesliereadsalot Thanks for your feedback! I didn't have very favorable impression from the trailer. Will be sitting the adaptation out. 2w

Lesliereadsalot Not to keep harping on this, The New York Times review of this show called the main character bottled up, evasive and uninteresting. That about sums it up! 2w

vivastory @Lesliereadsalot Yikes... pretty much the opposite of Mickey in the book then 2w

Suet624 Lord knows when I stacked this book originally but I was just about to stack it from your review. 2w

vivastory @Suet624 I think that you'd like it. I kept putting it off bc of the length but I ended up flying through it 2w

CBee Omg we‘re like, twinning. I JUST posted about it. I didn‘t get the email from GR until today 🤷‍♀️ @vivastory 2w

CBee And now reading these comments, it doesn‘t sound great 😂🤷‍♀️ 2w

vivastory @CBee 🤣 Maybe you'll feel different. If you do watch, I'd be curious to hear what you think 2w

Branwen This is one of my favorite books ever! I'm so glad you love it too! 1w

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vivastory

On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century | Timothy Snyder

First published in 2017 but just as relevant now, this concise & thought provoking book clocks in less than 2 hours on audio. But the lessons contained within are expansive & will stay with the reader. Highly recommended.

TheBookHippie Agree. A must read. Oy. 2w

vivastory @TheBookHippie Absolutely 💯 2w

Chrissyreadit 🙌🙌🙌 2w

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BarbaraBB I postponed it in 2017 but I guess there‘s no better time to read it than right now. Stacking. 2w

vivastory @BarbaraBB It's a quick read. I really liked the audio, read by Snyder. Some of it seems like preaching to the choir but other points were interesting enough to make me want to rec it. An important work IMO 2w

Leftcoastzen On permanent shelves, I read it again quite recently! 2w

Suet624 Bought it in 2016. I often wonder how Snyder feels considering that he‘s been talking about this for years. This recent election must‘ve just done him in. 2w

vivastory @Suet624 I had the same thought. I saw that there was an expanded edition after the invasion of Ukraine. 2w

Suet624 Oh! I‘ll have to take a peek at the library and see if they have it. 2w

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vivastory

How to Make a Horror Movie and Survive | Craig DiLouie

I arrived at my choice for #weirdwords after quite the rabbit hole: first reading a mention of an on-set fatality during the shooting of the Twilight Zone movie led to the morbid Wikipedia page which somehow led me to medieval torture methods which led to Latin phrase Poena cullei (Penalty of the sack). As wikipedia states, “The punishment consisted of being sewn up in a leather sack, with an assortment of live animals including a dog, snake...“

vivastory monkey, and a chicken or rooster, and then being thrown into water.“
@cbee 2w

TheBookHippie Oh dear me !!!! 😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫😂😵‍💫 wow 2w

CBee Holy wow, bring on the morbid today, Scott 😂😂 2w

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Deblovestoread Stuff of nightmares! 😵‍💫😬 2w

vivastory @TheBookHippie I took European history in college and I still remember some of the punishments ☠️🛞🐎 2w

vivastory @CBee I was initially going to use a word I found in the tz wikipedia for my post, but I was like, “nah, too much“ 🙃 2w

TheBookHippie @vivastory it‘s all coming back to me … 😂👀 some were just creatively evil..😂 2w

vivastory @Deblovestoread ☠️😬 2w

Leftcoastzen Yikes ! 2w

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vivastory

Moonraker: James Bond #3 | Ian Fleming

I recently read my first Fleming, which has an early opening scene in a casino.
Michael Mechanic's nf “Jackpot“ also has some memorable scenes in it regarding the excesses of the wealthy.
#sundayfunday @bookmarktavern

BookmarkTavern Cool to see another Bond book! Thanks for sharing! 7mo

Liz_M Great Scott! Welcome back, I hope you have been well, friend. 2w

vivastory @Liz_M Thanks! I'm doing well. How have you been? 2w

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TheBookHippie There you are 🙃 2w

vivastory @TheBookHippie How have you been? 2w

TheBookHippie @vivastory living through a shit show, you? 😂😅😵‍💫🤷🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️😫 2w

vivastory @TheBookHippie The past couple months I have been making my way through every season of The Twilight Zone. Starting to feel like a documentary lol. In between the craziness I've surprised myself by managing to read some great stuff 2w

TheBookHippie @vivastory I‘m watching The Golden Girls 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 2w

Liz_M other than ~waves hands around~ all this I've been okay. I'm looking forward to hearing about your reading when/if you post it! 2w

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vivastory

The Haunting of Velkwood | Gwendolyn Kiste

While college friends & neighbors Brett, Talitha & Grace are away at school they are notified that their neighborhood has disappeared. Twenty years later Talitha is approached by a researcher to return to the area as pictures obtained from a recent drone show that there is possible activity in her old house. I read this one in just a couple of hours this morning. I was absolutely riveted by this unique take on the haunted house trope (CONT)

vivastory & was moved by Kiste's explorations of how the ghosts of the past (both in a very real & metaphorical sense) will continue to haunt us. 7mo

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vivastory

Mr. Gaunt and Other Uneasy Encounters | John Langan

At 62% I ended up DNF'ing this one. The deciding factor for me was that while there were one or two stories I liked okay, there were none that I was crazy about. Having said that I will def be trying Langan's stories again in the future. His novel The Fisherman is one of the best horror novels of the past decade & his stories in two recent Datlow anthologies have stood out (esp the one in Final Cuts).

Reggie Please, please, try Sefira and other Betrayals. It‘s soooooo good. 7mo

vivastory @Reggie That one is def on my TBR! 7mo

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vivastory

Pumpkin Spice & A Body On Ice (Dixie Cupp Diner Mystery #1) | Willow Monroe

*I only watched a few of the highlights, but a fantastic DNC w/ memorable speeches & enthusiasm
*Starbucks released their fall menu, which for me is the official beginning of Spooky Season
*Compiling a list of favorite & new to me movies to watch for fall (kicked it off on 8-22 with a rewatch of Sinister)
*Libraries for being one of the few remaining public free spaces to just sit & read
*The joy of DNF (2 books this wk. No regrets!)

vivastory #5joysfriday @debinhawaii 7mo

Deblovestoread #hailthebail is liberating! 7mo

vivastory @Deblovestoread The older I get the more I realize that times too short, TBR is too long for books that aren't working 7mo

DebinHawaii An excellent joy list! 💛💛💛 Libraries & the start of the spooky season ☕️👻 are joy bringers as is the freedom of the DNF. 😉 Thanks for sharing & helping spread the joy! 🤗 7mo

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vivastory

World Jones Made | Philip K Dick

This book is wild. WILD. After a series of devastating wars, a Federal Government (FedGov) is instituted along with the Secret Police. Employing rhetoric of absolute opinions are now illegal, as these are seen as what have caused all previous armed conflicts & devastation. These absolutes range from the religious (Christian) or the lack of religious (Atheist) to economic ideals. As Wikipedia succinctly states, “In this particular dystopia,..CONT“

vivastory Relativism (a social and philosophical theory having originated with Albert Einstein's theory of General Relativity in Physics) emerged as the governing political orthodoxy. Relativism is said to be an ethical philosophy that states everyone is free to believe what they wish, as long as they don't make anyone else try to follow that principle.“
Into the picture enters Jones, who has the ability to see one year into the future. When strange *CONT* 7mo

vivastory beings start landing on Earth from outer space, Jones uses peoples fear to start a new movement & grab power. This one had much to say about the dangers of rhetoric, political manipulation, free will vs fate, freedom all in PK Dick's wild (& at times mind bending) explorations. A fantastic read. 7mo

Bookwomble PKD never stops being relevant! 7mo

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vivastory @Bookwomble Truth! 7mo

Bookwomble Sad truth, when you think about it! 🤔😏🫤 7mo

vivastory @Bookwomble He's been one of the most frequently adapted authors that I have to ask: what is your favorite adaptation? 7mo

Bookwomble @vivastory He is, and it's rather poignant that he died just before all that sweet Hollywood dollar would have solved his financial issues. I guess my favourite would have to be Blade Runner, even if it's more of a riff than an adaptation, but it's iconic. Then A Scanner Darkly, which is the most faithful adaptation I've seen. Then Minority Report. Total Recall is mainly fun, but getting into B-grade, and it's kinda downhill from there ... 7mo

Bookwomble ...Next, Paycheck, Imposter, etc. I don't think Cameron ever credited PKD for the backstory of Terminator, which I thought on first viewing was a rip-off of Phil's short story, Second Variety. I had great hopes for the Electric Dreams series, but thought it was fairly disappointing. And Blade Runner 2049 🤮 7mo

vivastory @Bookwomble My favorites mostly align with yours. I think that Blade Runner is the very rare one where I pref the movie over the book. The book is my least favorite that I have read by him so far. I have yet to watch Electric Dreams, but Id read the collection that contained all of the stories that were adapted in the series. It seemed like they were trying to ride the popularity of Black Mirror. Have you seen the Man in the High Castle? 7mo

vivastory @Bookwomble It seemed strange to me that they managed to stretch that one out for 4 seasons. 7mo

Bookwomble @vivastory Yes, they were definitely going for a Black Mirror vibe when they should have stayed true to the OG. I have seen the first series of TMITHC and enjoyed it even with the mainly understandable changes made. Then I came to watch the second series and found that I wasn't that interested and never finished it. I love the book, and that its structure was built around PKD consulting the I Ching at crucial plot points to decide is direction ☯️ 7mo

Bookwomble Yes, it would definitely have been better if they'd kept it tighter and shorter, but they do like to milk their electric sheep, don't they! 😄 7mo

vivastory @Bookwomble 😂 👏 7mo

The_Book_Ninja @Bookwomble I only know this as I‘ve been on an Ellison deep dive recently, but Harlan got an out of court settlement and an added credit to subsequent prints of Terminator after successfully claiming it was a plagiarism of an Outer Limits story he wrote called Soldier. I‘ve not seen that episode or read Second Variety but I‘m keen to investigate both 7mo

Bookwomble @The_Book_Ninja I read that about Ellison's legal action (after you posted about him the other week), and I also haven't seen that episode, so I can't comment on it, but Second Variety is about autonomously manufactured robots designed to pass as people so they can infiltrate & destroy the few surviving human resistance cells - this is stated near the beginning of the story, so not a spoiler 😊 It was made into a good awful '90s film, Screamers 😱 7mo

The_Book_Ninja @Bookwomble I must jump on some Dick 🤭I‘ve only read Man in the High Castle but I think I was too young to appreciate it. I remember being baffled. I like the sound of Valis…I might give it a go. 7mo

Bookwomble @The_Book_Ninja I'm not sure I'd recommend VALIS as a starting point.Then again, jumping into the deep end of the weirdest of weird weirdness might be the ultimate initiation! From PKD's subjective pov, VALIS is the barely fictionalised account of a theophany he had in 1974 in the form of a pink laser revealing an omniscient alien entity Zebra that told him our perceived reality is actually a construct of the Roman Empire, in which we still live! 7mo

The_Book_Ninja @Bookwomble yeah…sounds fun!🤣 7mo

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vivastory

Untitled | Unknown

I have posted about project 2025 previously & found this video at the DNC worthwhile:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuGOKzLi2-o
For a more substantive look at the impact of Project 2025 on books & reading:
https://lithub.com/the-republicans-project-2025-is-disastrous-for-books/
https://www.alreporter.com/2024/07/10/bill-to-arrest-librarians-filed-for-2025-s...
It is also worth noting that Tim Waltz as governor signed into law a bill (CONT)

vivastory that banned book bans:
https://www.them.us/story/minnesota-tim-walz-signs-book-ban-law-libraries
Also, this great DNC speech by Mayor Pete where he mentions book banning:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3ODmqYE328 (edited) 7mo

kspenmoll Thank you!!!! 7mo

kspenmoll Did you hear Amanda Gorman tonight?! 7mo

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vivastory @kspenmoll Not yet, but I heard good things! I plan on looking it up. 7mo

Tamra Proud Minnesotan - if this is what “progressive” looks like, I embrace it. 😊 7mo

AmyG People need to be aware of the nightmare of Project 2025. Thanks for posting. The more you know! 7mo

IndoorDame Thanks for posting all this! And good for Minnesota! I‘m talking heart from every small victory I can count in this escalating political nightmare 7mo

44 likes7 comments

vivastory

Untitled | Unknown

I have to admit that I am in a bit of a funk with the music that I have been listening to lately. However, these longtime favorites haven't disappointed:
Pearl Jam: Sirens
https://open.spotify.com/track/1cAMXz9mnvrqyQLSG4KeeE?si=33ccb732b9ce4271
Lana Del Rey: Yosemite
https://open.spotify.com/track/3WIifw9lqdgSZpt9renBAg?si=0da4cb1096b64145
Low: Sunflower
https://open.spotify.com/track/5MLBottNJ4s4yL6t9sIryD?si=7264e076fe5c425f
#tuesdaytunes

vivastory @tiedyedude 7mo

TieDyeDude Nice selection. Thanks for sharing some of your favorites! 7mo

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vivastory

Untitled | Unknown

1) Usually wine, occasionally I dip into something a bit heavier (whiskey & coke, old fashioned)
2) Edith Wharton's “Summer“ 💔 😭
@thespineview
#two4tuesday

IndoorDame I loved Summer so much! 7mo

vivastory @IndoorDame So good! 7mo

TheSpineView ❤️🍷 Thanks for playing 7mo

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vivastory

Jane Eyre | Charlotte Bront�

I was just scrolling through IG & saw someone screenshot a post from rakeshsatayl that reads:
Someone should start an airline for book lovers that has a library onboard and call it Jane Air (& I am dead 😂 ☠)

Leftcoastzen 👏😁 7mo

Ruthiella 😂😂😂 7mo

dabbe 😂🤩😂 7mo

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Reggie Lol 7mo

Bookwormjillk 😂😂😂 7mo

zezeki 😂😂 7mo

Deblovestoread 😂💜😂 7mo

Suet624 Brilliant! 7mo

53 likes8 comments

vivastory

Untitled | Unknown

Not book related, but I just returned from the theatre & holy facehugger was this good. There have been so many great horror films this year & the new entry in the Aliens franchise is definitely one of them!

Reggie Ok, so I was hesitant to see this because it shows basically all the deaths on the trailer but holy wow it was good. I did not see the sister being the 2nd to the last girl. I loved the music callbacks to the first movie soundtrack. The jump scares were really good. And I loved the synthetic in here. Sooo effing good. 7mo

vivastory @Reggie I had somehow managed to avoid all trailers since the very first one. Too many trailers now reveal way too much but I'm so glad you liked it. This movie officially displaced Immaculate as my second favorite movie of the year. I loved how Rain had strong Ripley energy w/o the movie doing an obvious Ripley callback. The scene in the hallway with the facehuggers & their temperature, I was gripping my armrest lol (edited) 7mo

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vivastory

The Doll-Master and Other Tales of Terror | Joyce Oates

I read the title story years ago. It is permanently etched on my brain as one of the most unsettling things I've read, so when I started this collection I did not revisit it. The other stories are an interesting mix in that in typical JC Oates' fashion there is a range of narrative voices. There are stories told from the POV of pretty awful people & those where the narrative voice is more sympathetic. Aside from the title story the (CONT)

vivastory standouts in this for me are “Gun Accident: An Investigation“ & “Equatorial.“ A few of the stories in this collection do not have tidy endings, so if ambiguous endings bother you I would suggest skipping this one. When JC Oates stories are at their best, they can sit comfortably alongside those by Highsmith or Shirley Jackson. 7mo

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vivastory

Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain | Oliver Sacks

I haven't posted my results for the Rolling Stones survey in a couple of weeks, but as this is the final one I thought I'd share. I scored 90%, not too shabby. My favorite songs from this list (in no order):
*Queen's “Bohemian Rhapsody“ (At position 84 this one should have def ranked higher. One of the greatest!)
*Joy Division's “Love Will Tear Us Apart“
*Leonard Cohen's “Hallelujah“
*Patti Smith's “Gloria“
*Billie Holiday's “Strange Fruit“

vivastory @dabbe #TLT 7mo

dabbe LOVE the meme and your choices! Thanks for playing and sharing! 🩵💙🩵 7mo

BarbaraBB Joy Division! I think I already told you once that where I live we have an all-time top 2000 each year around Christmas, for which you can vote. Each year Bohemian Rhapsody ends up being number 1. I guess it‘s become a tradition (Christmas-listening to the radio-Queen) but I still wonder why 😀 7mo

vivastory @BarbaraBB Lol that is so awesome! I know you said that there was a top 2000, but I didn't know that Bohemian Rhapsody was the top spot. That's wonderful 🤘 🌲 7mo

Meshell1313 🤣🤣🤣🤣 7mo

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vivastory

Untitled | Unknown

This post is inspired by the one that @billypar posted in response to the NY Times' 100 Best Books of the 21st Century. Like @billypar I will be posting 25 selections & they will be novels only. No short story collections, no graphic novels, no non-fiction & in no order whatsoever. I found this parameter very useful as there are quite a few novels published this century that I still intend on reading! But IMO you can do worse than these:

vivastory 1) House of Leaves: Mark Z. Danielewski
2) An Unnecessary Woman: Rabih Alameddine
3) The Likeness: Tana French
4) The Cartel: Don Winslow
5) The Slynx: Tatyana Tolstaya
6) Storm of Swords: George RR Martin
7) Underground Railroad: Colson Whitehead
8) The Historian: Elizabeth Kostova
9) True History of the Kelly Gang: Peter Carey
10) Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead: Olga Tokarczuk
(CONT) 7mo

vivastory 11) The Trees: Percival Everett
12) Brief History of Seven Killings: Marlon James
13) The Sympathizer: Viet Thanh Nguyen
14) NOS4A2: Joe Hill
15) The Three-Body Problem: Cixin Liu
16) American War: Omar El Akkad
17) White Is For Witching: Helen Oyeyemi
18) Big Machine: Victor Lavalle
19) The Animators: Kayla Whitaker
20) Stephen Florida: Gabe Habash
(CONT) 7mo

vivastory 21) The Blazing World: Siri Hustvedt
22) At NIght All Blood Is Black: David Diop
23) The Outsider: Stephen King
24) The Orphan Master's Son: Adam Johnson
25) Tomorrow & Tomorrow & Tomorrow: Gabrielle Zevin 7mo

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Aimeesue Great list! I read American War when it first came out and I think about it often. 7mo

vivastory @Aimeesue Thanks, Aimee! read it last year & have thought about it quite a bit ever since. 7mo

BarbaraBB Wow 🤩 I enjoyed @Billypar ‘s selection too and you encourage me to make mine too. Also, I still need to read American War and am glad it‘s one of your favorites 7mo

vivastory @BarbaraBB I'd love to see your list! 🙌 💙 7mo

Billypar Great list! I have vivid memories of reading House of Leaves on vacation in Florida during a thunderstorm and being freaked out. I'm really interested in #2, #18, and #22 which were already on my TBR (and #25 is on my shelf - should be coming up soon). I'm also intrigued by Stephen Florida, which I never heard of, and Roxane Gay has a gushing review of it on GR. I loved Slynx, Kelly Gang, and White/Witching as well. 7mo

vivastory @Billypar HoL def is an experience that sticks with you! I think that you will like all of the ones that you named. but I'm not sure how you will mesh with the Zevin, but I thought it was a beautiful story of friendship which is strangely under represented in contemporary lit. Everyone I have talked to who has read it has loved it. 7mo

sarahbarnes I loved White is for Witching and want to read more Oyeyemi 7mo

vivastory @sarahbarnes I also loved What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours. I tried Peaces a couple of years ago but had pandemic brain. I want to tackle it again because I have heard that it is really influenced by Barbara Comyns who I love 7mo

Billypar Yeah, I've heard such great things about the Zevin - I'm really curious, and it's true that friendship gets short shrift in novels. My goal was to pair it with the tagged anthology that I started on writers playing video games, but I ran out of time reading it, so I'm back to waiting for my hold to come in.

Critical Hits: Writers Playing Video Games

7mo

vivastory @Billypar That is an impressive group of contributors! J. Robert Lennon & Hanif Abdurraqib alone make it very intriguing. 7mo

merelybookish This is a great list and makes me see where our tastes converge and also how they differ! (The Slynx would not make the cut for me. 😂) But I loved Plow your Bones and Stephan Florida! Fun! Now off to peruse @Billypar list. 7mo

Reggie 14 and 17 🖤🖤🖤 7mo

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vivastory

Robot Uprisings | Various, John Joseph Adams

I have had this one for several years now. The recent discussions about AI definitely made for an interesting reading experience. There are several good stories in this collection; however there are three absolutely phenomenal entries: Charles Yu's “Cycles,“ Alastair Reynolds' “Sleepover“ & Seanan McGuire's “We Are All Misfit Toys in the Aftermath of the Velveteen War.“ Yu's story is from the POV of an alarm clock the minute before it is (CONT)

vivastory supposed to buzz & wake it's “owner.“ It tells of many indignities, while contemplating homicide of the sleeping owner. The Reynolds story opens with Gaunt, a tech billionaire, being removed from cryogenic freezing. He paid to be frozen, & subsequently reanimated, when a cure for immortality had been discovered, It is now far in the future, but he has not been woken because there's a cure. This one stretched my mind the way that the best (CONT) 7mo

vivastory sci-fi often can. Reading it was like the math lady meme, but holy shit I haven't stopped thinking about it & can't wait to read more by Reynolds. McGuire'story is about advancements in AI. People are understandably very alarmed by this so they decide that the only sphere that this will be allowed will be as an instructional/educational tool. Toy marketing gone awry. This was a melancholy, & somewhat shocking, one. (edited) 7mo

Reggie In every anthology, McGuire is easily top 3. Stacked. Have you read AnnieBot, it came out this year. And the robot in there is 2 thoughts away from Skynet killing us and she isn‘t even aware. It was so good. I‘ll have to check this out. 7mo

vivastory @Reggie Completely agree about McGuire. Have heard high praise for AnnieBot, def on my TBR. Will look for it next time I'm book shopping! 7mo

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vivastory

Bibliophile: An Illustrated Miscellany | Jane Mount

I love this idea. My 5 are somewhat obvious ones, but I can't help it. I love them. Make your list & share!
*“It was a queer, sultry summer, the summer they elected the Rosenbergs, and I didn't know what I was doing in New York.“
*“All this happened, more or less.“
*“It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen.”
*“The sky above the port was the color of television, tuned to a dead channel.“
*(#5 in the comments)

vivastory “The terror, which would not end for another twenty-eight years-if it ever did end-began, so far as I know or can tell, with a boat made from a sheet of newspaper floating down a gutter swollen with rain.“
#firstlines @monalyisha
(Titles under spoilers below) 7mo

vivastory Bell Jar 7mo

vivastory Slaughterhouse 5 7mo

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vivastory 1984 7mo

vivastory Neuromancer 7mo

vivastory IT 7mo

monalyisha Such classics! ✨ 7mo

BarbaraBB Great choices and a great idea by @monalyisha ! I‘ll share mine tomorrow when I am home again 7mo

vivastory @BarbaraBB Looking forward to yr selections! 7mo

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vivastory

Untitled | Unknown

Happy to see two songs that have been favorites for many many years on Obama's summer playlist:
Mingus' “Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting“ (the Blues & Roots album as a whole is terrific):
https://open.spotify.com/track/74EiaLmtaOlfKZYFkhHs6J?si=6bf7533753ef4084
Nick Drake “One of These Things First“ (Bryter Layter is another favorite):
https://open.spotify.com/track/6wuekNiL0KqFbvfdwuequN?si=f6d2bf75aff04d8f
#tuesdaytunes @tiedyedude

Billypar Mingus is one of my all-time favorite artists of any genre, and that is a great album! 7mo

vivastory @Billypar Agreed! I also love Black Saint etc & MIngus Ah Uhm (edited) 7mo

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vivastory

The Thief of Always: A Fable | Clive Barker

I have long been a fan of the Harper Perennial Olive Editions, so I was pretty happy to see that the new line will be horror novels. A blend of classic & contemporary. I won't be a completionist with this collection, but I have my eye on the tagged book (one that I have been meaning to read), The Exorcist (I needed a new copy!) & Lovecraft Country (a personal favorite). Anywho, here is a link to all 8:

vivastory https://www.harpercollins.com/pages/oliveeditions 7mo

AmyG That is one creepy cover. 7mo

LeahBergen The Exorcist cover! 😱 7mo

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sarahbarnes That is such an unsettling cover. 7mo

vivastory @AmyG @sarahbarnes There are also illustrations on the inside in other editions, I'm hoping that this edition has them too 7mo

vivastory @LeahBergen Yearbook photo 😅 7mo

LeahBergen @vivastory 🤣🤣 7mo

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vivastory

Cinemaps: An Atlas of 35 Great Movies | Andrew DeGraff, A.D. Jameson

What are the 3-5 books that you have read this year that you would most like to see adapted as either a movie or a tv series?
*Adama Cesare's “Clown In A Cornfield“ I read # 2 in March & I feel like the Clown etc books are great material for a new series along the lines of Fear Street/Scream.
*Brenna Thummler's “Sheets“ (I'd like to see an animated version of this to pay tribute to the richness of the original)
*Josh Malerman's “It Waits In The

vivastory Woods“ (This read as a creepy modern day Blair Witch, I'd be curious to see how it would translate to film)
Cliff Chiang “Catwoman: Lonely City“ (Chiang is the Paper Girls artist & this is easily one of the best DC Black Label works I read this year. Such a unique take on the superhero genre & would def be a breath of fresh air)
Chester Himes “Run Man Run“ (Out of all of the entries in the 2 LOA crime volumes, this seemed like it would make (CONT) (edited) 7mo

vivastory the best movie adaptation. With the exception of Marlowe's The Name of the Game is Death). 7mo

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vivastory

A Light Most Hateful | Hailey Piper

I had a coupon for Book Outlet so I just placed a small order. The ones I am most excited for are the tagged book (Piper is one of my favorite new to me authors this year), Best of R.A. Lafferty (part of the TOR Essentials series, very intrigued by the description & the forewords by various authors), & Be Sure (a collection of books 1-3 of Seanan McGuire's Wayward Children series).

BarbaraBB I don‘t know Piper, and will now have a look! 7mo

TheBookHippie What is this thing called small order?! Asking for a friend. Book looks intriguing. 7mo

vivastory @BarbaraBB I read 4 of her books this year, I liked some more than others but none of them were a dud 7mo

vivastory @TheBookHippie Small order is my lingo for 5 books 😂 🙃 7mo

TheBookHippie @vivastory this makes sense to me. 🤣😅♥️ 7mo

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vivastory

Equal Rites | Terry Pratchett

Read today in one sitting. It's Discworld, what's not to love?

Aimeesue Aww, Esk! 💙 7mo

vivastory @Aimeesue 💙 7mo

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vivastory

The Strain (The Strain Trilogy, #1) | Guillermo Del Toro

I picked this one up while browsing at HPB a couple of months ago. Flight 777 lands at JFK airport with all passengers on board dead, Nora & Eph from the CDC are called out to investigate & find four survivors onboard. They begin investigating what caused the mass casualty event & then strange shit starts going down. There is a blurb describing this as “The Hot Zone meets Salem's Lot“ & I think that's very accurate. I really liked this one. (CONT)

vivastory I watched the first season of the tv series years ago & I have to say that they did a fantastic job with the material from the first book. I have already ordered book 2. 8mo

dabbe That cover! 😱 8mo

vonnie862 Aaahh! That cover!!!! 8mo

Reggie Scott, have you watched a series called From? It‘s so effing good. It has a lot of different things going for it. Vampires? Children ghosts? Voices, whose, we don‘t know, telling people to do certain things. It‘s a lot. But good. 7mo

vivastory @Reggie It's funny that you mention From because just a few hours ago I was browsing through my streaming services & trying to find something to watch! I added that one to my watch list, so I will def be bumping it up my list after yr recommendation. 7mo

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vivastory

Untitled | Unknown

If you are a reader in the US then August 7th 2024 should feel significant. Today the first statewide ban was enacted. Specifically there is a state-mandated list of 13 books, 12 written by women, that will be banned statewide in Utah schools. Last I heard, the NY public library was offering digital memberships to address this issue. (CONT)

vivastory It is still ridiculous that it is easier to get an AK-47 in this country than it will be for a student to check out out Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret. Democracy is a fragile, ongoing process, Your vote matters.
https://www.theguardian.com/books/article/2024/aug/07/utah-outlaws-books-by-judy...
(edited) 8mo

vivastory https://pen.org/press-release/popular-and-critically-acclaimed-book-titles-banne... 8mo

TheBookHippie ALLLL OF THIS ! ✊🏼 8mo

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kspenmoll Thank you for posting! Guns before books. 🤬😱 8mo

BarbaraBB This feels dystopian 8mo

IndoorDame Thank you for posting! ✊🏼🗳️ 8mo

Jas16 It is just unbelievable. 8mo

psalva Thank you for sharing this! So upsetting. 8mo

Aimeesue There‘s no better way to ensure kids will read a book than to ban it. Horrifying, but I‘m glad libraries like NYCPL and SeattlePL are making the books available to students. 8mo

sarahbarnes 🤬🤬🤬 8mo

Branwen This is absolutely horrifying. 😩 7mo

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vivastory

Untitled | Unknown

My three selections for #tuesdaytunes
The past couples of weeks I have been revisiting O'Connor's “I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got“ Such a brilliant album.
https://open.spotify.com/track/2VQUtkqHTXKY5rm81PZEtk?si=ef291f3ae60b4e4c
Cowboy Junkies' “Blue Moon Revisited“ (Cowboy Junkies have been an under the radar music love since HS)
https://open.spotify.com/track/1RszdaPPEyHMoTyy0pRBrv?si=e1aab75de98e4342
Crooked Fingers “Sleep All Summer“

vivastory https://open.spotify.com/track/2JkNPBD9HsNyDjLGctJ90N?si=a34aa2260b054cf4
@tiedyedude 8mo

Bookwomble I love Cowboy Junkies ❤️ Misguided Angel is a great oing from the Trinity Sessions album, and Lou Reed himself praised their cover of Sweet Jane. 8mo

IndoorDame Such good albums!!! 8mo

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BarbaraBB I loved that Sinead album so much. It was my companion in very formative years 😀🥰 8mo

sarahbarnes Love all of this. 8mo

Megabooks Great choices!! 8mo

Deblovestoread 💜💜💜 Sinead! Love your choices. 8mo

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vivastory

Untitled | Unknown

1) I try to read daily & the number of pages I read in a sitting varies greatly depending on a few factors. I try to read at least 50-70 on a weekday, my quality reading definitely occurs during the weekend.
2) Keegan's “So Late In the Day.“ I read this yesterday & I was a bit underwhelmed TBH.
3) Recent classics read (& loved): Plot Against America, The Plague, Matilda.
#wondrouswednesday @eggs

Eggs Thanks for joining in 🫶🏻🙏🏻🤩 8mo

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vivastory

Incidents Around the House | Josh Malerman

Easily one of the most compelling, & creepiest, books that I have read this year. I read this essentially in on one sitting because I had to find out what happened. Put this one in the freezer.

BarbaraBB Stacked! 8mo

Reggie Ughhhh I‘m waiting for my hold on this one. I refuse to buy Malerman but I‘ve heard such good things about this one. Glad to see you liked it so much. 8mo

vivastory @BarbaraBB Like your new profile pic! Hope you like this one 8mo

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vivastory @Reggie It's funny because I really disliked Birdbox when I read it but I think that he's definitely an author who gets better with each release. 8mo

BarbaraBB Thanks! It‘s creepy right?! 8mo

Branwen Eeeeeek! I'm just about to start this one! Super excited! 8mo

vivastory @BarbaraBB It is! I hope you're having a blast on your trip 8mo

vivastory @Branwen I'll be curious to see what you make of it! 8mo

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vivastory

Incidents Around the House | Josh Malerman

It's me having just read 230 pages of the tagged book in one sitting. *shudders*

Addison_Reads This one was really good! I finished it in one night because I just couldn't stop reading. I also enjoyed the new Paul Tremblay, Horror Movie. 8mo

vivastory @Addison_Reads I just finished! So, so good. I couldn't decide if I should read this one or HM. Did you read Malerman's “It Waits In the Woods“? I typically don't do fiction on audio but I did for all of the creature feature & holy cow did that one creep me out. Excellent! 8mo

Suet624 😂 😂 😂 8mo

Addison_Reads @vivastory I haven't read that one, but I'm definitely going to now. Thank you for the recommendation. 8mo

vivastory @Addison_Reads It was definitely one of my favorites in the Creature Feature collection. I also really liked the one by Joe Hill & Jason Mott 8mo

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vivastory

Plot Against America | Philip Roth

I finished this remarkable alternative history classic yesterday. There is much to say about how terrible Roth was as a person. But as a writer he showed a far greater sympathy than he was capable of IRL. In lieu of a review, I'm linking to the recent 15 minute video by pop culture site watch mojo discussing the far right plan for #45 inauguration Project 20225. The fact that a site that usually discusses celebrity news is discussing the (CONT)

vivastory potential further dismantling of American democracy in January would have been among the pages of Roth's novel:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cr7QkuQKAcQ 8mo

Ruthiella You can‘t make this stuff up. 😭 8mo

sarahbarnes What @Ruthiella said 8mo

Suet624 I hope people are aware of Project 2025. 8mo

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vivastory

Untitled | Unknown

After reading & music, movies are definitely my favorite hobby. So, I'm curious: what was the best movie/tv series that you watched in July? For me there were 3 that really grabbed my attention at just the right time. Last weekend I watched “Anatomy Of A Fall.“ I can definitely see why this won so many awards. Such a sharp & smart commentary on the intrusiveness of certain aspects of the digital age into personal lives & questioning the (CONT)

vivastory notion of authenticity in a culture saturated with true crime coverage. Brilliant. I also loved the irreverent, raunchy animated musical set in a hotel in hell “Hazbin Hotel.“ I love a good musical with a unique premise & this did not disappoint! Finally was a movie that is incredibly timely & I am a bit reluctant to post about it, but it is the '62 Manchurian Candidate. I vaguely knew what this movie was about, but I watched after the (CONT) (edited) 8mo

vivastory events that had transpired earlier this month & talk about a weird time to watch that movie! Still, a great movie with a lot of memorable performances. What was yr favorite movie in July? (edited) 8mo

Reggie It was gonna be Maxxxine but I watched this 2012 indie gay movie called The Skinny where these five Black college graduates of a college meet up in NYC for Pride Weekend and everything happens. Also, the director used to do this series Noah‘s Arc on Logo where it was Sex in the City but four Black gay men and it‘s wonderful. It only got 2 seasons but I watch it every once in a while. 8mo

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vivastory @Reggie I'm going to have to catch Maxxxine on streaming release. I had every intention of seeing it last weekend & time just got away from me before I could. I'll look into the other one, too. Thanks! 8mo

Branwen I've been watching Midsommer Murders all throughout July and I can't get over how much I love it! It's just so cozy and well written! 8mo

TieDyeDude I saw Hazbin Hotel on Prime, but didn't look into it further. Sounds like it'd be right up my lane, though!

I didn't like this season of the Boys as much as previous ones, but I'm still invested. I just started the new season of the Dragon Prince on Netflix. We are slowly making our way through Blue Eyed Samurai, also Netflix, which is excellent. And the Netflix animated movie The Sea Beast was pretty cute.

I'm excited for Trap in August 🤞 8mo

TieDyeDude I think I watched the Manchurian Candidate for the first time in high school. Aside from introducing me to Sinatra's acting, it is a very memorable and chilling film. I never watch the Denzel remake. 8mo

Nottheseason @TieDyeDude hazbin is pretty cool! It‘s funny at least!! 8mo

vivastory @Branwen I never knew that Anthony Horowitz was one of the creators of Midsommer! So cool! I'll have to check it out. 8mo

vivastory @TieDyeDude Blue Eyed Samurai is one of my favorites of the year! VERY innovative in the blending of different animation styles with live action. Shyamalan is a bit hit & miss for me, but I admit that I am pretty intrigued for The Trap just because I think there is more going on than what the first trailer revealed. (Haven't watched subsequent trailers as they tend to reveal too much) Also, 100% agree with you on Sinatra's performance in MC 8mo

Suet624 I‘m stuck on E.R. But should be done soon. Then I‘m on to Anatomy of a Fall after the Olympics. 8mo

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vivastory

Lana Del Rey - Born to Die (Songbook): The Paradise Edition | Lana Del Ray

I'm not a seasonal reader/watcher/listener. Usually. I have a few musical exceptions & one is Lana Del Rey. According to Ye Olde Weather Channel Online it is going to be in the 90s here until 8-7. Typical KC, Below are a few of my favorite quintessential Lana Del Rey summer songs:
*National Anthem
https://open.spotify.com/track/2nvXyajLAAV9Iwy8K9EbUd?si=2db1c05bb2f0457b
*California
*CONT*

vivastory https://open.spotify.com/track/7oTE1KmtU2ml9zBhv9Reao?si=acdf5a62433148a0
*Doin' Time
https://open.spotify.com/track/0Oqc0kKFsQ6MhFOLBNZIGX?si=fae4493016f04e98
*Summertime Sadness
https://open.spotify.com/track/2dBwB667LHQkLhdYlwLUZK?si=eeb7158c70ca4529
#tuesdaytunes @tiedyedude 8mo

TheBookHippie Oh! I do not listen to her enough! I enjoy her so. 8mo

BarbaraBB Thanks for sharing. I love her too. 8mo

TieDyeDude A nice group of songs. Thanks for sharing! 8mo

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vivastory

Untitled | Unknown

Not sure that I will finish a book tomorrow, so I'm going to post my July #monthinbooks now. What a month! In my reading life, professional life & of course *points outside* In no order, these are the books that kept me company, provoked me, thrilled me, entertained me, kept me reading me way past my bedtime in a very unusual month:
*Catherine Ryan Howard's The Trap (Easily one of the best new thrillers I have read this yr. So smart.)
*(CONT)

vivastory Spencer Ackerman's “Waller vs. Wildstorm (I would rec. for readers who loved HBO Watchmen & I would love to see this one receive the same treatment)
*Lucia Berlin “A Manual For Cleaning Women“ (I'm a bit lost for words, other than to say that this is one that the recent NY Times list got right. Berlin was a modern day Raymond Carver. Absolutely incredible.)
*Elmore Leonard “Maximum Bob“: Reminded me of everything I loved about Leonard. *CONT* 8mo

vivastory Snappy dialogue, a great storyline filled with bizarre characters & some that you def root for. Plus, a romance? 💘
*Camus' “The Plague“ I have read a few works by Camus & this is easily my favorite. I planned on reading it during the recent pandemic, but am honestly glad that I didn't as I think it would have detracted from the overall effect. There is an extremely important message here. IMO this is better than The Stranger.
*(CONT) (edited) 8mo

vivastory *King's “Everything's Eventual“ I wrote a review on this one, so I will just say that this will be one of my fave story collections by King.
*Alan Moore's “Saga of the Swamp Thing: Book Three“ Halfway through Moore's take on Swamp Thing & I continue to be astonished by it.
*Darth Vader: Black, White & Red. A collection of shorts utilizing only black, white & red color palette seems like it might be a bit of a gimmick or limiting but it works! 8mo

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BarbaraBB A new Catherine Ryan Howard! I must look into that! 8mo

vivastory @BarbaraBB It is very good. I think you'll def like it! 8mo

Branwen Oooooh I will have to check out The Trap! 8mo

Suet624 I‘m so glad you had such a great month. 8mo

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vivastory

Untitled | Unknown

*Books
*Coffee
*Music
*Movies
*Weekends
#5joysfriday @debinhawaii

Leftcoastzen Simple & to the point! Enjoy your weekend! 8mo

vivastory @Leftcoastzen You too! 8mo

TheBookHippie 🎉🎉🎉LIFE♥️ 8mo

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kspenmoll 😀💙 8mo

S3V3N ☕️☕️☕️ 8mo

DebinHawaii All of these are great joy bringers! 💛💛💛 Thanks for sharing & for helping spread the joy! 🤗 8mo

Suet624 Yes!! 8mo

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vivastory

Untitled | Unknown

My #bratsummer will comprise of eventually reading the tagged book & maybe Bright Lights, Big City while I watch The Outsiders & brushing up on my dance moves:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KVkTAhSxV9w
#weirdwords
@cbee

Leftcoastzen Thanks for that!😹 8mo

Aimeesue 😂😂😂 8mo

CBee YESSSSS 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 The BEST scene 8mo

49 likes3 comments

vivastory

Untitled | Unknown

“Katie Cruel“ Bert Jansch, Beth Orton, Devendra Banhart
https://open.spotify.com/track/5i276TVJVTp2wEftCzpFjk?si=030dcc77938e4bac
“Outta My Head“ M. Ward
https://open.spotify.com/track/3krzlGHrZzMrfQLdgf2IbO?si=af7327dfbc0d435a
“Frankie & Johnny“: Dr. John
https://open.spotify.com/track/2vlcJff1ZToSqL1BiOF5k5?si=04ab2db87cd4429a
#tuesdaytunes (Thursday night edition bc it's been that kinda week) @tiedyedude

40 likes

vivastory

Crime and Punishment | Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Raskolnikov certainly loved his #hat. If you are intimidated by the Russian classics, I would suggest that you give this one a try. Even as recently as the 50s & 60s in America it was sold in gas stations with comics (Michael Dirda has spoken about this) & is often considered one of the earliest thrillers. There are philosophical interludes, but don't let the classical reputation throw you off. I literally had a nightmare about it.
#coverlove

vivastory @eggs @alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
8mo

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks 🖤👍🏻📚 8mo

jitteryjane724 Was supposed to read this for class in high school, and I definitely didn't. Looking forward to giving it a proper try! 8mo

See All 11 Comments

dabbe Wowza! What a cover! 😱 8mo

Eggs Graphic! 8mo

Cathythoughts Great book. I might try a reread someday. It‘s brilliantly done. Full of deadly suspense. (edited) 8mo

sarahbarnes I read this in college and loved it. 8mo

Reggie Hi Scott. Did you go see Maxxxine? I loved it. There‘s this movie on Shudder called Starry Eyes and it‘s just as amazing but the total inverse of Maxxxxine. You should check it out. 8mo

vivastory @Reggie I really wanted to see Maxxxine. I love the first two movies in the trilogy, especially Pearl, but I i was at the theatre a couple of weeks in a row & missed out on it. Might go this weekend if I can find it playing somewhere around me! I'll def check out too. One horror movie I saw recently that really surprised me is the recent Omen movie. Have you seen it? 8mo

Reggie Yes! It‘s so good. I love the high pitched choir soundtrack throughout the whole movie lol. I also saw the new Exorcist with the two girls possessed and must have been in a mood cause I cried throughout half of it. I also saw Arcadian on shudder with Nicholas Cage and I liked it. 8mo

vivastory @Reggie I'll check out Arcadian. Nic Cage is hit & miss for me in horror movies, but I admit that I keep thinking about Longlegs 8mo

57 likes3 stack adds11 comments

vivastory

Never Let Me Go | Kazuo Ishiguro

I'm not on Twitter anymore, so I'm sure I'm not the first to do this but I couldn't resist. The tagged book (a favorite) is Reader Top 100 Best Books of the 21st Century & NY Times Best Books of the 21st Century at the same spot. The more that I have looked at the NY Times list while it does seem to be more representative of prize winners etc I am tempted to buy a subscription to get behind the paywall & see the additional recommendations (CONT)

vivastory on the Tines list. I see issues with both lists. I also see glaring issues with how the initial list was compiled to begin with. However, I know that I have added several books to my TBR. These have mostly been in in the “If you like this, you might like this“ portion. I think it is wonderful whenever a major newspaper can get the book community all talking & arguing about books, rather than doomscrolling & catastrophizing. (edited) 8mo

BarbaraBB That is certainly true. I think I prefer the reader‘s list. 8mo

Cathythoughts I just read this one because of the list. It was very good , but very upsetting. 8mo

See All 10 Comments

sarahbarnes I agree - I love their focus on books regardless of whether I always agree with their lists. They publish a Read Like the Wind column once a week that I really love. It pairs two books together on a theme and I‘ve learned about several random books that way. 8mo

vivastory @sarahbarnes That sounds really interesting! I'll have to check it out! 8mo

vivastory @Cathythoughts Extremely upsetting 😥 8mo

vivastory @BarbaraBB I agree! 8mo

Suet624 https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/books/best-books-21st-century.html?unlo... 8mo

Suet624 You said you‘d like to get behind the paywall. Hopefully this works. It‘s a gift article. 8mo

vivastory @Suet624 Thanks, Sue!! 8mo

46 likes10 comments

vivastory

Eye of the World | Robert Jordan

I bought the first two box sets (books 1-6) of The #Wheel of Time several years ago & have yet to read a single one. This is the most intimidating series I own. Not only because of how long the series is (14 books) but I always hear about the slog, which seems to vary. Some people say it is one book & others say it's two, or three (& in the same breath say “but it was worth powering through“ lol). I do want to read it, or at least attempt it.

vivastory #coverlove @eggs @alwaysbeenaloverofbooks 8mo

persephone1408 My stepmom bought me the whole series a few years ago and I haven‘t started one yet either. 8mo

Eggs Perhaps the movie version would be an alternative to the slog 8mo

See All 12 Comments

Twainy I want to read this series too … I‘m also very afraid … the slog … the length … the description of women‘s clothes … 8mo

vivastory @persephone1408 Have you watched the show? 8mo

vivastory @Eggs Good idea! 8mo

vivastory @Twainy I agree. But I am also curious to give it a shot bc for years I had heard basically the same thing about Moby Dick. People constantly complained about all of the whaling minutiae. It is now one of mf favorites of all-time. 8mo

Twainy Don‘t make me read that whale book 😆 I must own it …. 8mo

jitteryjane724 For me the slog started around book 7 or 8. But I'm still glad I'm working on it! The first few are quite good so if you're on the fence you should go for it! Don't get overwhelmed at the beginning, just keep going lol 8mo

persephone1408 @vivastory I watched season 1 8mo

vivastory @jitteryjane724 Thanks for your feedback! 8mo

Branwen I'm definitely going to join the consensus and tell you that although there is a bit of a slog with a couple of books, it is absolutely worth it! 😂📚📚📚 8mo

53 likes12 comments

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vivastory

Joined November 2016