I love short short collections and this one is just so incredible. A favorite of the year for sure.

https://www.readingwomenpodcast.com/blog/interview-with-anjali-sachdeva

First book of 2018. Oh man. Such a great read to start the year. #ReadingWomenChallenge

This book is one of the best surprises of the year. It's the story of Billy, who decides to lose half of his body weight after his son commits suicide. But it's so much more than that. This book is beautifully and thoughtfully written. All the stars.

Hello and welcome to all my new followers! Just wanted to let you all know that I post most of my reviews over @thereadingwomen these days. My co-host and I have a bi-monthly podcast where we discuss books by or about women. We also get to interview cool authors like Min Jin Lee and Emily Bitto. Be sure to subscribe to get the latest episodes and follow us for daily bookishness.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/reading-women/id1118019442?mt=2

A contender for favorite book this year, this is the story of orphans Rose and Pierrot. He is a gifted pianist and she an exquisite dancer. When they perform together, they discover they have a magnetism that draws people to them. But through a series of unfortunate occurrences, they are separated. What follows is years of unmoored loneliness that drives Rose and Pierrot to act in desperate, risky ways in an attempt to fill the ever-present void.

My weekend reading schedule was completely hijacked by Ron Rash's newest novel, THE RISEN. When I heard him speak at the Decatur Book Festival, he mentioned that he started his writing life as a poet, which totally makes sense to me. His writing sweeps you up and takes you into deeply lyrical places before you're even aware it happening.

I love library book sales. Not only do I get bags of books for under $20, but I also get to support literacy in my community. Win-win.

Mostly posting over at @thereadingwomen these days, but here's a shot of today's stack. #allthebooks

Despite being 400+ pages, I flew through this multi-generational saga about a Korean family living in Japan. But it's way more complicated than that. We follow three generations as they navigate the challenges of living in a country that does not accept them. Definitely one of my favorite reads this year. Thanks @grandcentralpub for sending me a copy!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

To say I loved this book is an understatement. Using SLAUGHTERHOUSE FIVE as a guiding motif, Christine tracks her path to recovery after suffering a stroke at 33. @kdwinchester and I had the chance to interview her for the @thereadingwomen . Available wherever you get your podcasts. 💃🏻💃🏽

Home sick from work today, which means I get a head start on PACHINKO—released today! 💃🏻🤧😷

Princess culture is complicated, so I am happy to find a well-researched book that dissects it, identifies problems, and proposes solutions. Some notes:
-Princesses perpetuate patriarchal constructs they supposedly combat, don't encourage female friendship
-Division of genders widens gap between them
-Girls are encouraged to define themselves by appearance
-Death of mothers in movies = normalizes a lack of female role models in girl‘s lives

Didn't love the way the story played out. Mathis tells us the story of Hattie by looking at the lives of her 11 (!!!!!) children and one grandchild. I didn't feel like I connected to any of the characters, though I had great empathy for all of them. This review in the NY TIMES is helpful: https://mobile.nytimes.com/2012/12/06/books/the-twelve-tribes-of-hattie-by-ayana...

A great middle reader about home, family, and belonging told through newspaper clippings, flashbacks, and a present-day epistolary narrative. I had a hard time starting it, but I'm not exactly target audience. 😊

A thought-provoking middle reader about race, power, and social status. I would definitely recommend the audio. The narrator's accent helps make the story come alive.

Saw it at the library and couldn't resist.

Despite the craziness of he year, instill managed to pass my goal. Here's to a great year of reading in 2017! 🎉

Starting today.

When your spouse brings home part of his childhood library. (this is only half)

Prepping my 2017 reading list for @thereadingwomen . This one is at the top of my list. The publisher's blurb mentions THE NIGHT CIRCUS and Neil Gaiman, so it sounds like something I would love!

Thank you, thank you @AWahle for all the goodies!! I've wanted these books for forever. And Margot has been loving the mice. 😻

Some of my first loves. Mysteries are my all-time guilty pleasure. I read so many that my dad thought all the murder would affect me adversely, but so far the only side effect is an immense TBR pile.

Hello Litsians. The last few weeks have been meh, so I haven't been reading much. I read THE SNOW CHILD over the holidays last year and adored it. The writing and the story were so magical and immersive. Looking forward to digging into her new book in 2017.

Just got my Litsy secret Santa box! Hopefully I can wait until Christmas to open the beautiful packages inside. 😊

Finally got my hands on this one! I've listened to the last three books on audio and I just love the narrator.

Many good, yet hard, things in this one. Themes: the danger of silence, the use/misuse of female bodies, guilt + shame brought upon by societal expectations/perceptions, marital rape and present/absent men. The writing feels forced in some places. I found myself having to re-read passages to understand what was going on. Given time and discussion with Josh, I did find I understood the stories better. The title story is especially good.

Don't let the small size deceive you; this is not an ordinary kid's picture book. Without giving anything away, I believe she's making a statement about violence against women, specifically when men make women say things the women don't want to say. Heavy stuff for a picture book. If you have read it and have a better idea about what it means, let's chat about it.

Tonight's reads. I'm soooooo excited about VIRGIN and a Ferrante picture book is an excellent appetizer.

Thanks @kdwinchester for making my best friend necklace dreams come true. 😍

For those of you who may not know, I co-host a podcast with @kdwinchester about books by or about women. Yesterday, @thereadingwomen made a huge announcement--the inaugural Reading Women Award! We chose one fiction and one nonfiction book that we felt were the best of the year. Give it a listen! #thereadingwomen #thereadingwomenaward2016

I loved this one at least as much as I loved STATION ELEVEN. It's the story of a girl who was abducted by her father as a seven year old. She doesn't know why her father took her, but the consequences follow her to adulthood. It's part thriller, part mystery, and a generally brilliant read. I adore her writing. It makes me want to write a book.

Inspired by all my fellow #Litsians to post my #DecemberTBR

Benedict re-creates the life of Albert Einstein's first wife Mileva, a brilliant physicist whose career was ambushed and co-opted by Albert. The storytelling is weak in places, but that doesn't diminish the importance what's being said. I don't think we fully understand how difficult it was for women to have scientific careers and this novel shows that. We need more stories like this to remind us history is not the boy's club it's made out to be.

Help! I'm two chapters in and finding the characters boring at best. Does it get better?? Do I need to give it runway? I'm close to bailing but I would stick it out if it's worth it. Many thanks. 😘

If you've ever encountered someone who didn't think rape was a thing or blamed a girl's outfit for how she was treated by boys, and you knew they were wrong but weren't quite sure how to respond, then you must read this book. Orenstein examines thoroughly examines how our culture's attitude towards sex, rape, and hookups and proposes a better way forward with education, acceptance, and mutual respect. Highly, highly recommend. #nonfictionnovember

While not as magical as the novels, I did love it. ✨💫🔮

This book is amazing. It made me reevaluate so many thing about my life and I've already seen positive results from applying some of her suggestions. Brown backs up her statements with years of research findings so it is definitely a scientific and substantial read. Highly recommend.

The best part of being in TN for Thanksgiving is going to McKay's. And this is just my stack. Josh got his own. 😊

Technically, I'm reading five books right now. Hopefully I can finish this one on the drive tonight and two more over the weekend, so I can start new ones on Monday. 😂

When Christmas comes early!!!!! 🎅🏽🎄🎁
Many thanks @kdwinchester

While this doesn't exactly have to do with books, I'm sure many of my fellow Litsians played this game as a kid and would nerd out over this tactile version just as much as I did. 🤓

ICYMI: @kdwinchester and I are discussing our severe case of #ferrantefever on our latest podcast episode. Who's with us? 🙋🏻

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/reading-women/id1118019442?mt=2&i=377415588

Reading this on my kindle and loving it so much.

Guys, book coma is real. I'm still processing everything that happens in this book, but I will say that Cora is boss and this narrative is something we all desperately need to hear right now.

So apparently I can't go anywhere without buying a stack of books, but it is hard to resist a library sale.

I'll be visiting my sister this weekend, so I probably won't be posting as much. THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD will be accompanying me on the drive. I'm sooo excited to finally get to this one.

Repost from @thereadingwomen
One of the reasons we started the Reading Women podcast is because we believed there were dozens of brilliant voices that weren't being heard and wanted to bring those voices to a wider audience. Books have the power to change how we think and show us how to have empathy for people who are not like us. We love Yang's challenge to #ReadingWithoutWalls. Share and encourage others to read outside their comfort zone.

While not as laugh out loud funny as I WAS TOLD THERE'D BE CAKE, I love Sloane's perspective on life. Definitely worth a read (or listen, she reads her own work).
#nonfictionnovember

What election?
#eatingmyfeelings #readingmyfeelings

I'm so happy to have my series books back. The Beverly Gray series is about a kick-ass, counter-cultural woman who dares to go to college and have a career when everyone else is getting married and pregnant. I'm sure close reading would uncover a plethora of cultural insensitivities, but the spirit of the books is amazing. WORLD'S FAIR is the most expensive book I've ever bought and I still don't regret the purchase.