Vivek is dead, but this story isn't really about death and sorrow- it's a celebration of life and love in many forms. I didn't care for Freshwater by the same author but am glad I took another chance with them. The story is well-constructed and multilayered and kept me invested right up to the last page. It was an interesting contrast to and companion for Detransition, Baby, which also worked with themes of identity, love, and belonging. 4*

"Life was like being dragged through concrete in circles, wet and setting concrete that dried with each rotation of my unwilling body. As a child, I was light. It didn't matter too much; I just slid through it, and maybe it even felt like a game, like I was just playing in mud, like nothing about that slipperiness would ever change, not really. But then I got bigger and it started drying on me and eventually I turned into an uneven block..."

I picked up this book knowing very little about it- my library had it available & I recognized the title from the 2021 Women's Prize longlist. I was drawn in from the first page and read it compulsively to learn more about the two MCs, Reese & Ames & their history. There is a pregnancy involved, but it was more of a plot device to draw the reader deeply into the complex characters. There's not much of a plot per se, but I didn't miss it. 4*

A 1.99 Amazon Kindle purchase. I've found some great books that way, but this sadly wasn't one of them. It had a lot of potential, but needed more polishing and the help of a stronger editor. Our MC Jane is a 30-something Japanese-American living in San Francisco with her boyfriend, Shiro, in 2012 when odd events begin to occur in her world that lead her down a twisted path of personal & family exploration. A very disappointing 2*.

Written in 2013 & translated from Korean, a satire of the tourism industry that takes the reader on a wild ride. Our MC Yona works for a disaster tourism company, where tourists can decide between a variety of disaster sites, affected by tsunamis, drought, fires, etc. She is sent to evaluate a poorly performing site, and after a twist, the story drags Yona & the reader into an alternate reality. Lots to sit with in this short, strange book.

A detailed depiction of a couple of days in the life of Laura, a pediatric nurse working long hours on an inpatient ward at a London hospital. Suffering from sleep deprivation and social isolation, she begins to lose her grip on reality. I didn't enjoy it per se, but it was well written and obviously the author has worked in this environment herself. Thankfully quite short, as I was glad to leave the inside of Laura's head. The end is shocking.

All the members of a wealthy family are killed in a mass poisoning except their young daughter, Hisako, who is blind. The story is told from the perspective of multiple characters, and the book is more about the storytelling than about giving the reader an easy solution to the "mystery". It's a book to savor and be patient with, masterfully crafted. I especially recommend it for those with an interest in Japanese culture. 4*.

So far, I love this collection of stories by Laura Van den Burg. I just finished "The Pitch"- reminiscent of her novel The Third Hotel, but always something fresh. I'm wondering if others tend to read short story collections straight through, or spread out over a longer time? I'm not much of a short story reader. I'm curious about others' habits.

Two lonely & traumatized women in Iceland, one quite old and the other very young, whose lives become entwined. I was drawn in by the writing from the first page and continued feverishly reading in search of answers. This short novel is the author's first work translated into English, and won the Icelandic Literary Prize in 2017. Although some answers are given, not recommended for those who prefer plot driven stories & reliable narrators. 4*

I got these from the library today and don't know where to start!

The success of this novel hinges on how sympathetic of a character you find Willa to be. I typically find Anne Tyler's main characters relatable and can root for them wholeheartedly, but this one was an exception. The writing was as good as usual, but this (her 22nd novel!) just missed the mark for me.

A novel told in a stream of consciousness that reads like a meta Twitter feed recounting the protagonist's observations and reflections on her life, which is deeply entwined with social media. It is an insightful look at the paradoxes of living embedded in the online world, & also a touching reflection on a family tragedy that causes the main character to question the meaning of life, but ultimately it didn't entirely work for me as a whole.

Wow, that was unpleasant. Winner of the 2020 Booker International Prize, this novel traces in excruciating detail the simultaneously mundane and grotesque happenings on a dairy farm in the Netherlands in the year after the oldest child, 12 year old Matthies, dies in an accident. Relentlessly repulsive and depressing without redemption, and chock full of animal cruelty and incest. Not recommended.

I loved this book. A middle-aged Japanese lawyer is called to assist his friend when she discovers a bizarre situation regarding her husband. We then follow him through the continually twisting and obsessional path he follows in uncovering the truth about this other man (and simultaneously about himself). Part mystery, part reflection on identity. I am disappointed this is the only one of this author's books translated into English!

Thank you @StillLookingForCarmenSanDiego and Merry Christmas!!! #poutinepenpals #canuckchristmasswap

Thank you, @StillLookingForCarmenSanDiego ! I was out of town and just got back to your card! I bought myself a book for my birthday 😊
#poutinepenpals

1. I don't really keep up with that specifically, but I'd like to see the new Little Women. Also I'm curious to find out more about the UK TV adaptation of Tana French's novels.
2. Mostly physical books. I'm not an audiobook person.
3. I read a sweet story about a man from Alberta who rescued three little kittens off an icy and snowy service road and found them homes.
4. It's not Friday anymore, but @Susannah if you want to join in.

A very complex and thoughtful book. Definitely partially sci-fi, part family drama, and part historical fiction about 1980s Florida and the space program. I didn't find the characters very engaging- they came across a bit cold and wooden to me- but overall I thought this was a unique and very interesting read.

This book will definitely not be for everyone, but if you like descriptions of nature, eccentric narrators, and to ponder philosophical issues, it may be up your alley. My reading of it may have been enhanced by understanding the role of the Catholic Church in Poland with regard to hunting and ecological issues, as not all the narrator's concerns and actions made automatic sense to my North American brain until I did some background reading.

#canuckchristmasswap Thank you, @sherryvdh !! Great books- neither of which I've read yet- and several other lovely little gifts! We are burning the gingerbread candles right now. Merry Christmas!!

@StillLookingForCarmenSanDiego

An imaginative retelling of the Donner Party's ill-fated attempt to reach California from Illinois in the 1840s. The set up was strong, although I will admit to some qualms about making up scandalous backstories for the long dead protagonists. My main complaint and reason for not rating it more highly is that things are brought to a rushed and muddled conclusion. It made me want to pick up more Donner Party nonfiction, though!

@sherryvdh It arrived!! I'm so excited for December 24th! Thank you! @StillLookingForCarmenSanDiego

This book really didn't work for me at all. I found the language very stilted and unnecessarily formal. It was supposed to evoke 17th century English, I suppose, but I found it was just a distraction. The story was just gibberish to me, and I like weird, nonsensical books. It's relatively short, so dive in and give it a chance if you like, but there's better and more magical out there IMHO.

4.5 stars. I simply can't express how much I appreciate what Clement has done with this short and extremely creative book. Such a unique style. I could read her writing all day long. The book spans years of the life of teenage Ladydi and her mother and friends in an area of Mexico ruled by drug lords. I don't want to preempt any of the clever plotting she's done and give any spoilers, so I'll just say I found this book intriguing and quirky.

So far this book is amazing! It's the story of a girl, Ladydi, who lives in a rural area of Mexico filled with criminals, kidnappers, and high level drug traffickers. All the good men have left the area to seek work elsewhere with promises to send money to their families. The landscape is fantastic and one review on the back calls it "a glorious fever dream of honesty and love." I'm slightly less than halfway through and excited to keep reading.

It's been a long time since a book creeped me out enough to keep me up at night... and it's nonfiction! Yikes! Thankfully distant history. I have been interested in some of the cases discussed in here for a long time, and I couldn't put this down. I am also extremely impressed with the amount of research that the authors put into this, and their emphasis on understanding the impact of time and place on the crimes and investigations.

Coming to my spooky read for the fall a bit late!

This book is due back at my library tomorrow and 4 people have holds on it behind me. I can't say I'll be rushing to get back in line for it. I love the idea- reimagining the relationship between humans and trees, a new understanding of trees- but after 250 pages, I have become quite bored with the multiple virtually indistinguishable human characters and their stories and there are still another 250 pages to go. Just not a good fit for me. Bail.

1. Quirky, dark, experimental or unusual books. Fiction or nonfiction are both great. Poetry, too.
2. Coffee
3. Bookmarks
4. Scented hand creams
5. Fudge and gingerbread.
6. The animatronic Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer
7. I am very easy to please. I love all things bookish and comfy and soothing things like socks, scented candles, soaps.
#poutinepenpals #canuckchristmasswap #xmasfaves

I haven't read anything quite like this before. Dark, humorous, neurotic, at times quite perverse, it's the story of Eileen Dunlop's unexpectedly last week in her New England hometown and the events that were her undoing and salvation. I could see where some people would hate this, but I kind of loved it. It was somewhat reminiscent of Lynda Barry's Cruddy.

I am super excited to throw this nonfiction into the mix. Right up my alley!!

I've been struggling with this one for a while. I haven't given up, but it's not getting any easier. The writing is good and the concept is very appealing- trees communicating with humans and whatnot- but it's just not drawing me in by the halfway point.

So I picked this up at the library. I'm about halfway through and very curious to see where she is headed with it. I am enjoying the dark humor although it is also pretty bleak and deranged.

A fictional representation of the experiences of boys at a juvenile detention center/reform school in 1960s Florida, based on an actual place. Whitehead drew off of various historical sources to keep his version as true to life as possible and honor their experiences. This book is not as intense as other nonfiction I have read on similar topics, and avoids being graphic or gratuitous in its depictions of violence. Recommended.

@KarynGood @StillLookingForCarmenSanDiego Thank you!! Getting pretty things in the Canada Post really made my day! #poutinepenpals

Thanks, @julesG !
❤ Alberta, Canada
🧡 44
💛 I almost exclusively use the public library- I am very lucky to have a good one.
💚 Married for 12 years
💙 she/her/hers
💜 Just a couple of my favorite types of birds 🙂

@Susannah want to participate? @StillLookingForCarmenSanDiego ?

I'm going to have a hard time matching the impression Lincoln in the Bardo made on me, but here's a sampling of the books I got from the library to try. Not sure where to start!

I know there were several people who found the format of this book didn't work for them, so I approached it with trepidation. Happily, it worked for me. I read it in two sittings and couldn't wait to see where Saunders would go next on this surreal, poignant, comically absurd and highly imaginative depiction of Lincoln's heartrending loss of his 11 year old son in the first year of the American Civil War. 4 1/2 stars.

I hesitate to give a truly negative review to a book I read in translation. Maybe this works totally differently in Korean. However, I felt like this one dragged for me, even though it was short. It's very dark. There were parts I liked, but I felt like most of the plot twists had been done elsewhere before, and done better. Plus I got tired of the claustrophobic feel of being in the main character's messed up head for 300 pages.

So far this one has been a punch in the gut with the themes of the death of a child and Lincoln's grieving, but I'm enjoying the format and the whole concept more than I thought I might.

I love the cover, and a location on the Saskatchewan-Manitoba border is integral to the functioning of the time traveling Universe, so it's made a positive impression so far! 3 chapters in.

The story of a neurotic middle aged woman who marries the first man she has sex with in college to make up to God for the fact she's fornicated, then 25 years later tiesherself in psychological knots questioning why God is compelling her to have an affair if He is also prohibiting her from doing so. I found everything about this book questionable, and would've bailed on it if it weren't for my book club (continued in the comments)

I finished reading Mona Awad's Bunny. I wish I could say I liked this book more than I did. It was different, which I appreciated. It ostensibly follows the trials and tribulations of Samantha, a 25 year old MFA student in creative writing at an elite university, who we are told many times over has a really vivid imagination and uses it to hide from the unpleasantness & demands of the "real world". Part satire, part fantasy (continued in comments)

The last third was not as strong, but still a 4 star read for being so hard to put down for the first 2/3. Part courtroom drama, part a reflection on responsibility versus guilt and other complex moral and emotional topics. It would be a great book club read and sure to generate much discussion!

I thought I was just picking randomly off the shelves at the library earlier this week, but I clearly had a theme I was pondering..."For The Time Being" "The Future of Another Timeline" and "Memories of the Future"! Any other time-related titles that pop to mind, anyone?

Since I'm reading Bunny on my Kindle, here's a photo of a weird fake bunny to accompany my blurb. I'm about 65% done. It's hard not to feel that Mona Awad has a chip on her shoulder about her experience in the MFA program at Brown, although I am usually hesitant to draw a direct connection between an author's life and writing. This one is just begging to made, though. And that she's using this fantastical satirical style (continued in comments)

A taxi driver in modern times in Beijing begins receiving letters and stories from an obsessed person claiming to be his soulmate who has been reincarnated with him multiple other times, detailing their previous lives together but refusing to reveal his or her identity. We learn about these past lives and betrayals as well as the dark secrets in the current life of Driver Wang. The writing is lush and descriptive (continued in comments)

It's been a while since a book has been truly hard for me to put down and I find myself wondering about where it's going throughout the day. I am pleasantly surprised to find that's the case with this book! (Black cat included in photo in honor of October 1!)

I'm reading Bunny on my Kindle so here's a photo of some actual bunnies to accompany my blurb. I'm about 12 chapters in and so far it is an easy read but perhaps a bit sophomoric? I was expecting dark and subversive but am underwhelmed at about 30% in. Keeping an open mind, though! Buddy read with @Susannah

I'm not sure what I just read here, but it was certainly different. I've heard it referred to as magical realism, but there was no consensus reality operating here at baseline. It was like reading a transcription of a night's worth of dreaming, with people, locations, ideas all flowing in and out with no purpose. The writing is beautiful and Oyeyemi is clearly brilliant, but if you want a book with an actual plot, I would not pick this one up.