jessdekkerreads's reviews
562 reviews
The Lonesome Bodybuilder: Stories, by Yukiko Motoya
Did not finish book.
Did not finish book.
Find myself drifting away from the page, even with the audiobook, I just am not invested enough in these stories to stick it out. Going to pass this on to someone who might enjoy it better.
Woman Running in the Mountains, by Yūko Tsushima
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
3.0
My first for #JanuaryinJapan for #jessandmorgansbookclub & so, I’ll discuss more in depth during our live show on Feb. 5.
“At school she hadn’t actually liked running at all, yet now she could not stop seeing this image of herself. It was not that she was running away. She just wanted to be tough and free to move. A state that knew no emotion. To be allowed to exist without knowing emotion.”
“It wasn’t as if there was anywhere she wanted to go. She simply wanted to be on the move with Akira, by subway or bus, through the vastness of the city. It seemed to her that only by staying on the move could she bring sights to her eyes and sounds to her ears, and remember the softness of her own body.”
Once I read this was a piece of autofiction w/ an introduction by Lauren Groff, about a young mother in the early days of motherhood, written by an infamous Japanese author, I was ready to dive straight in. When interviewed by the Chicago Tribune in 1989, Tsushima stated: “...Women figures I created in my novels also don’t compromise with reality. They may appear stoic, but they are strong enough to search for their own happiness in their own ways. And we see that early on in this novel. Our protagonist, Takiko Odaka, is a young, single mother, living in an abusive household with her parents in the 1970s.This wasn’t common at that time, a child born out of marriage. Thus, Takiko was determined to keep her baby, to find a way to survive, amongst the hardship, all the while not losing her own sense of identity. Takiko was seeking freedom, which she finds amongst the Gardens, surrounded by nature.
Definitely a quiet, slow moving novel, one I enjoyed, but ultimately, may get lost amongst the rest this year, not quite memorable for me, unfortunately; but, I absolutely will read more by this author.
Lost & Found, by Kathryn Schulz
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
5.0
“Love, like grief, has the properties of a fluid: it flows everywhere, fills any container, saturates everything.” [pg. 127]
“...all of us yearn to be seen in our fullness, and never more so than when we fall in love. We yearn for it so much, in fact, that we fear it – or, rather, we fear that if we are seen in our fullness, we will no longer be loved.” [pgs. 143-144]
I will claim now, in the first month of 2023, that Lost & Found will end up on my favorites of the year list, heck, my favorites of all time. Remember how I pushed Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? A Memoir by Jeanette Winterson into everyone’s hands last year?? I will absolutely be doing that again this year but with Schulz’s memoir…. you’ve been warned.
Schulz’s voice is tender, compassionate, vibrant, and meditating; showing us the power of language, of words. Sprinkled throughout are many literary and poetic references: Anne Carson, Frank O’Hara, bell hooks, and more; filled w/ mythology and philosophy, and all kinds of lists (I love a good list).
There’s a vivid contrast of the heartbreaking loss of her father, and the blissfulness of finding love with her wife; mixed w/ stunning nature descriptions, and philosophical prose, all led me to furiously annotating, and tabbing; quickly adding to my favorite memoirs of all time list.
I highly suggest the audiobook, narrated by the author. When listening to her speak about her father, you can hear the sadness in her voice; when talking about C. (her wife), you can hear her smiling as she fondly reflects on the beginning of their relationship, the memories of her introducing C., to her parents
For fans of: H is for Hawk: a Memoir by Helen MacDonald, Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? A Memoir by Jeanette Winterson and the philosophical ideas often presented in Sheila Heti’s writing.
Trespasses, by Louise Kennedy
2.75
*a buddy read w/ @thebarandthebookcase and Noelle*
“It’s not about what you do here, he said. It’s about who you are here.” [pg. 72]
“She had little faith, but enough to feel the badness of it. That she was bringing religious souvenirs home from a dirty weekend with someone’s husband.” [pg. 155]
Our protagonist, Cushla, a young teacher, living at home, caring for her alcoholic mother, pitching in at her family’s local pub, living in a small town in Northern Ireland during the Troubles. Cushla, consumed by a forbidden love affair w/ a married man, surrounded by bigotry and a need to protect a young student of hers after his father is severely beaten, all the while listening to continual news reports which bring about a violent sectarian conflict, a cultural milieu.
Kennedy gives you a real sense of place and surroundings, a clear picture for all the senses, which I appreciated. However, I personally was unable to make an emotional connection to the characters or the plot, both felt distant to me, just out of grasp. I paused to take a nap, and skimmed the last 75 pages. As a lover of historical fiction, I went into this one w/ too high of expectations and maybe that’s where I faulted. Trespasses felt a bit lackluster, predictable and filled w/ cliches.
I will say, I’ve seen many glowing reviews of this one, so I’m definitely one of few who this didn’t work for.