We’re almost at the weekend! Do you have any plans? I’m thinking about participating in the smutathon because I have a lot of unread romance on my e-readers š.
Title: Twisted
Author: Mary Pilon, Carla Correa
Date Published: July 25, 2019
Rating: 4.25/5 stars
Date read: January 25, 2020
Twisted is the story of the sexual abuse faced by over 150 different women at the hands of Larry Nassar. It is told in interview format, some clips are direct interviews of those affected or abused, while other parts are taken from external interviews.
Given the difficult subject matter of this novel, naturally Twisted was one of the most difficult and uncomfortable books I’ve ever read (do know that at times the abuse is explicitly described). I just have such a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that that disgusting man got away with his crimes for years, accusation after accusation led to nothing for so long. This is an extremely heartbreaking, saddening, anger inducing read, but seeing these women come together left me feeling hopeful as well. Highly recommend if you can handle the subject matter.
Title: Winnie-the-Pooh
Author: A.A. Milne
Date Published: October 14, 1926
Rating: 4/5 stars
Date read: January 31, 2020 (reread)
Winnie-the-Pooh is essentially a collection of short stories, following Winnie-the-Pooh and his friends.
I am wondering if I’d have ended up rating this higher had I not listened to the audiobook. While the narration was fantastic, the snorting noises that accompanied piglet every time he spoke started to get on my nerves. Obviously that hasn’t greatly affected my rating or enjoyment of the novel, it’s a pleasure spending time with Pooh and his gang and the mishaps they get themselves into. This is such a enjoyable and funny collection of stories.Ā
Title: The Blythes are Quoted (Anne #9)
Author: L.M. Montgomery
Date Published: 2009
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
Date read: February 10, 2020
The Blythes Are Quoted is the ninth Anne novel and is told in two parts, the first taking place before World War I (and prior to Rilla of Ingleside) and the second taking place after World War I (and after Rilla of Ingleside). The novel is a collection of short stories and vignettes in which Anne is reading poetry to her family, either written by herself or by Walter (Walterās poems are in the second half only).
The tone of The Blythes Are Quoted is bleaker, more dramatic, and more scandalous than any of the other novels Iāve read by L.M. Montgomery (and Iāve read 23/25). It should also be noted that none of the short stories feature the Blythe family (or the Meredith family) as main characters, and the novel is aptly titled because often the characters in the short stories are quoting or talking of the Blythe family. The short stories were pretty miss for me, the only one I particularly enjoyed beingĀ Brother Beware. In contrast, I really did enjoy the vignettes, I loved having a bit of insight into the everyday life of Anne and her family before and after the events ofĀ Rilla of InglesideĀ and getting a peek into what has become of her children. Iām not much of a poetry reader, but I could appreciate most of the poetry in this novel. My heart really goes out to the mothers of this time period, especially those who had to watch their sons go to war and then their grandsons soon after.
If you’ve read any of these books or plan to read them, I’d love to hear your thoughts! Happy reading š.
A Bookish Balance 
I just added Twisted to my TBR. That looks pretty interesting, if really sad.
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That’s great! I hope it resonates with you š (saying I hope you enjoy it somehow feels wrong)
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