i started this at a dumb time and got like 100 pages in or something and i also thought it was cool. i need to go back and finish it one of these days
We were asked to pick our favorite “Winter/Christmas” book for the faculty board at work, so I picked Less Than Zero and now I have students coming up to me asking to borrow it. I’m very interested in their feedback. I just started it for the first time in probably 10 years
It sucks that BEE is such a piece of shit now, but that book did so much for me in high school, could be a great gateway for some students
Right? I have to preface it by saying “it’s super weird and you might not like it at first” and also that the author has turned into a total piece of shit. I’m about 40 pages in and this still hits like it used to, though. He had such energy back in the day.
Absolutely, I think I was around 14/15 and my librarian (knowing I was one of few who cared) gave me Less Than Zero and The Corrections, quite honestly changed the trajectory of my life Good on you
So excited I found this thread! Gonna take my time reading through and hopefully can find some good books to read (and also can hopefully give some recommendations too!)
This feels like a fitting place to share my favorite books of 2019. I was tempted to be more thorough and divide it by category (nonfiction, fiction, poetry) but that would've been too tedious so this consists of books from all those categories - the cream of the crop from each that stood out to me this year: 1) Someone Who Will Love You in All Your Damaged Glory by Raphael Bob-Waksberg 2) Lost Children Archive by Valeria Luiselli 3) Sabrina and Corina by Kali Fajardo-Anstine 4) A Fortune for Your Disaster by Hanif Abdurraqib 5) The Waterdancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates 6) Never a Lovely So Real: The Life and Work of Nelson Algren by Colin Asher 7) The Bird King by G. Willow Wilson 8) Ducks, Newburyport by Lucy Ellman 9) Democracy May Not Exist but We'll Miss It When It's Gone by Astra Taylor 10) In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machadp 11) Wordslut: A Feminist Guide to Taking Back the English Language by Amanda Montell 12) Empire of Borders: The Expansion of the US Border Around the World by Todd Miller 13) You Know You Want This by Kristen Roupenian 14) Our History is the Future by Nick Estes 15) On Swift Horses by Shannon Pufahl 16) Pleasure Activism by adrienne maree brown 17) Being Numerous by Natasha Lennord 18) My Seditious Heart by Arundhati Roy 19) Paul takes the form of a mortal girl by Andrea Lawlor 20) On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong 21) Feed by Tommy Pico 22) The Word for Woman is Wilderness by Abi Andrews 23) On Fire by Naomi Klein
how'd you like ducks, Newburyport? my roommate is planning on reading that soon and I was gonna pick it up after but it looks intimidating. thanks for posting this, there's a few things here that I'm interested in picking up
I just tend to gravitate more towards genre fiction (mystery/thriller) And stuff that's more for the masses than Pulitzer worthy
lots i liked and lots i’ve had my eye on in here, thanks for sharing! i am in a very long line for ducks, newburyport at my library
added Ducks as I've heard some good things about it. I'm generally into literary fiction (especially those with a more lyrical edge to them)... not so much genre fiction or nonfiction. Can someone specify which of these fit that vibe? Want to add to my goodreads list.
Ducks took me a long while to complete but it was worth it. For a story that's mainly told in run-on stream of consciousness prose, I was impressed at how well done the whole thing was. I hope you eventually get around to Ducks soon! It's like slipping into a black hole of prose! That's the type of fiction i'm drawn to as well. From my list, Sabrina and Corina fits that description -a powerful short story collection focusing on a multigenerational Latinx family in the Denver area. Fajardo-Anstine's a great writer, blending poetic prose with gritty realism. Same goes for On Swift Horses. I liken it to Baldwin's Another Country but set in the 1950s West. On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous is also a stunning work of literary fiction. Same applies to Coates' Waterdancer.
In The Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado blew me away too. It's a memoir that also deconstructs the memoir genre. It's an intense a read for the most part since it deals with Machado's time in an toxic abusive relationship. With her surreal lucid prose, she immerses you in that experience. It's intense but highly recommended.
Loved On Earth so damn much... was def one of my faves of the year. Thanks for the suggestions- will make sure to add them to my (long-ass) list
this is great, thank you. helped me pick a few gifts actually plus I have A Fortune for Your Disaster on order, cannot wait for it to arrive. They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us is the best book I've read in the past 5 years
Got this for Christmas. I’m excited to read it. Also I’m almost done with White Teeth and it has been continuously growing on me. I recommend it to anyone who hasn’t read it or hasn’t finished it.