Inês 2024 Reads - Any way the wind blows

Hi and welcome to my first thread in this group!

I'm Inês, 38, from Portugal.
Since the beginning of last year i decided to use fully my local library and, that way, focus on reading books properly (instead of waiting to bump into them like i did before). I haven't been the most avid reader but i know i love books and reading stories. I got into this personal game of not knowing if something will be available there, which i've been enjoying it.
I somewhat struggle to pick favourites (for anything). I feel like a lot of books i read, i see something meaningful in them. On the other hand, it's easy for me to point out something that made me put down a book.
My reviews will be, i suspect, how the book made me feel and what stood out for me.

I should have started this thread earlier (beginning of the year).

2023 Reads / Some info

Total: 33
Read: 26 / 2023 Reads Personal List
DNF: 7 (four of them i haven't abandoned them and i might give them another try; the other three, i have no intention to give them another try)
Tags that stood out: fantasy; classics; humour; dystopia; sci-fi

Books purchased but still unread: The Fire Next Time, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman
My library during the last weeks of the year had a book sale. I went there convinced i was going to get a fiction book. I walked out of there, unexpectedly, with these two non-fiction books. I want to read them soon.

Currently reading:

2024 Reads – January

● Anxious People
● I Want My Hat Back
● The Door-to-Door Bookstore ❤
● The House of the Spirits ❤
● Chicken Soup with Rice

DNF: What You Are Looking For Is In The Library

February

● Status Anxiety
● Vaivém
● Fly by Night - DNF
● Bom Sono, Boa Vida

March
● The Ringmaster's Daughter
● Animal Farm ❤
● The Noise of Time

April
● Flowers for Algernon
● The Terrible Thing that Happened to Barnaby Brocket ❤
● A Doll's House

May
●

❤ - books that made an impact on me and are still filling my thoughts.

I'm so glad you made a thread on Club Read, Inês. Although by no means necessary, it's nice to have a place for folks to follow your reading journey.

My reviews will be, i suspect, how the book made me feel and what stood out for me.
This type of review is often the best, IMO, for helping others decide whether they would like to read it or not.

I love library book sales for the serendipitous finds I make.

Looking forward to your thoughts of Anxious People, a book I quite enjoyed, but then I am a Backman fan.

Happy to see your thread here. I like your hearts. James Baldwin is a hero of mine, as a person and a writer. Hope you enjoy The Fire Next Time. For what it’s worth, note that his fiction is much easier to read than his essays, and equally or even more, meaningful.

Welcome to the group! One of the fun aspects of Club Read is that everybody has his/her/their own style of review writing. Where in Portugal do you live? My wife and I visited your beautiful country about a year and a half ago.

Lovely to meet you! I'm another one who loved Anxious People. I look forward to reading your reviews.

>3 labfs39: Thank you! I saved (marked as favourite) your reply when i made the first post in the "Introductions". I want to read more books from this author and i know there's a couple more at my library. This was the first one i read from him. These are the ones available:

- My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry
- Britt-Marie Was Here
- Us Against You (Beartown series - 2nd)

My eyes were going for the Us Against you but, now that i'm aware it's part of a trilogy, i'm not sure what to do.

>6 WelshBookworm: Thank you!

>4 dchaikin: I've noticed that his book If Beale Street Could Talk is a very "busy book"! It never stays at the library for too long. I've been wanting to start with that one but, by the time i look for it, it's gone. The other book available, Another Country, is usually there.

>5 rocketjk: Thank you! The town is called Fundão, known and somehow famous (?) for its cherries! And not that far away from the border with Spain. Hope you enjoyed your visit! :)

>7 dicentra8: I would advise against the Us Against You, as I believe it's important to read Beartown first (which I did, but Beartown is the one book by Backman that I didn't like so I didn't continue on with the trilogy). Are you able to interlibrary loan books (ie ask your library to borrow a book from another library)?

>9 dicentra8: We loved Portugal. We spent several days in Lisbon and several days in Porto and rented a car and drove around the Serra de Estrela, staying in a beautiful hotel we got lucky enough to find with a room available in the town of Manteigas, which I see via Apple Maps is only 37 miles by car from Fundão! We took day trips and hikes from there. I see by the Wikipedia page you linked to that Fundão has a particularly strong Jewish history. My wife and I were very interested in that aspect of the area and drove up one afternoon to see Trancoso. All in all a wonderful visit.

>8 dicentra8: Beale Street was made into movie recently. Another Country is sometimes considered pornographic. Baldwin can make his points in odd ways. I liked them both. Look for Giovanni’s Room.

>2 dicentra8: I loved Chicken Soup with Rice. Read it to both of our kids many times. Back when I was working and had to submit monthly reports, I would put something on the top like, "In March the wind blows down the door." I had one manager who immediately sent me back a message saying, "It spills my soup upon the floor." Clearly a well-read man.

I've been staring at a copy of The House of the Spirits for years and have never picked it up. I'll be interested to see what you have to say about it.

Anxious People
Started: 2024/01/03 Finished: 2024/01/07
Translated to Portuguese

I avoided picking this book since the first day i went to my local library to set an account, mostly due to the “netflix series” sticker. After i finished, i was glad that i ignored it and still gave it a try.
While i was reading the book i kept having this thought that grew stronger: “the author has lost someone and is still dealing with how that makes him feel”. The emotion of guilt and not doing enough / could have done better is present in more than one character.
I also thought that the author shows sensitivity of when to be humorous (“Worst hostages ever. You're the worst hostages ever!”) and when to be understanding about people. This worked well for me because it didn't make some heavier themes feel too overwhelming. And simultaneously, it left me thinking about the character's lives.
The twists all worked really well with me because i saw none of them coming!

★★★½

The Door-to-Door Bookstore
Started: 2024/01/10 Finished: 2024/01/13
Translated to Portuguese

I just went to this book with the words “feel-good” and “light” in my mind, and felt like i got hit by something else. I also felt pleasantly surprised that the author didn't just talk about books in a positive light or imposed a “right way” to handle a book.

Carl is a senior employee at a bookstore that is responsible for the home-delivery service, something that gives joy and meaning to his life. This service is seen as unnecessary by Sabine (his best friend/mentor daughter, currently the bookstore's owner). Sabine is more concerned about where she can cut costs and make the small bookstore look more appealing/modern. This is the start of a growing tension between these characters (there's also another, more personal, reason for Sabine to treat Carl with some resentment).

There's nice moments throughout the story, but even when things seem calm then something awful happens. There was times when i felt my heart beating a little too fast of how worried i felt with the situations. You meet Carl's clients seeming peculiar at first and then this more serious situation in their lifes start unveiling.

★★★★½

>13 Jim53: Working on that review for The House of the Spirits. I can say that it wasn't an easy book to digest (lot of heavy, violent things happen through the story). But at the same time, i really enjoyed.

The House of the Spirits
Started: 2024/01/16 Finished: 2024/01/27
Translated to Portuguese

One of the most striking feelings was how the descriptions (feelings, behaviours, atmosphere) felt so vivid that my brain wouldn't struggle to make images of it (for better or worst...). There's really some images that i could happily live without them. Some really felt gruesome.

It's a very stirring story that follows 3~4 generations of a family. But somehow it always links down to Esteban Trueba. I enjoyed the jumping between the omniscient narrator and Esteban Trueba's own thoughts. There's always something happening and yet i could enjoy this slower feeling of time passing (the older generation not being there, the younger ones growing up, things like cars appearing for the first time).

For the epilogue, trying to be vague and not spoil it, I still feel these conflicting feelings about it. You know what the character is saying to be, to some extent, true and probably right... but then I have doubts... if I went through those experiences, would I be able to think that way?

★★★½

What You Are Looking For Is In The Library
Started: 2024/01/29 DNF

I picked this one up because I wanted to compare it with The Door-to-Door Bookstore (i thought they had a similar theme). This didn't go too well. I was only able to finish the first short story.

I did notice something about how I take some things while I'm reading a story.
Dealing with an uncomfortable character's behaviour, usually doesn't put me off from keep reading the book. However, if it comes from an omniscient narrator it really makes an impact on me and I'm unable to move forward. I think this is what happened here.

The first story follows Tomoka (21 years old, womenswear sales assistant). The part that i couldn't get past was how this character (an employee) was getting the full responsability for not figuring out how a customer was feeling. But you also see this customer storming through the store and calling that employee (Tomoka) a liar and making a huge commotion. Yet, there's no responsability around how the customer behaved towards the other person. It just felt like "Tomoka should be more considerate and guess how the other person was feeling. The customer did nothing wrong."
I have worked in a supermarket so that might have influenced how i took that part of the story. It really made me feel upset.

Quoting a reply from Joe (JoeB1934):

You have also hit on the very significant fact that every reader arrives at a book with unique to them experiences and personal situations when they pick up a book.

>17 dicentra8: I still haven't read anything by Allende, but feel that I should.

>18 dicentra8: I like how you describe your reaction to the book. I haven't read it, but I'm wondering how much is a cultural difference, in addition to a personal reaction. I'm often stymied at the portrayal of Korean office culture, for instance, where bosses often hit their underlings.

>19 labfs39: This was my first book I read from her. It left a strong impression on me to keep her in my mind. But I also feel like I need a small break from stories that give me strong emotional reactions (although I seem to have a tendency to pick those often).

Definitely the cultural difference too. It's interesting because I've spent some time with Japanese (I spent almost 10 years learning the language on a daily basis, and trying to get to know more about their culture). Related with books, I really enjoyed Sweet Bean Paste and Convenience Store Woman, which made me think that maybe the cultural difference wouldn't interfere with me enjoying the story. Now I'm not so sure.

>20 dicentra8: I need a small break from stories that give me strong emotional reactions (although I seem to have a tendency to pick those often).

I hear you, Inês, I'm the same way.

Did you live in Japan for a while? That's a long-term project, for sure. I am wishlisting both the books you recommended. Thanks!

>21 labfs39: No, I've never been to Japan. I had plans to use a scholarship (along with the self-study I was doing). Things got more complicated, specially with the amount of money it requires.

Status Anxiety
Started: 2024/02/02 Finished: 2024/02/09

Some mixed feelings about this non-fiction. The first part of the book, Causes, really grabbed my attention and I was enjoying the themes explored. On the second part, Solutions, it was like everything somehow felt apart.
The main focus in the book is around how people have felt compelled to reach a higher status. I somehow made the wrong assumption that the Solutions would be how to handle and/or to have a better understanding about anxiety and social status. But it was more about aspects present in our society that had, to some extent, a positive impact in lowering the levels of anxiety. I think that at this point I was getting slightly tired and the more I kept reading, the more I kept thinking that I really just wanted to be done with the book.
Overall, it had some interesting points of views and a lot of examples.

★★

Vaivém
Started: 2024/02/12 Finished: 2024/02/13

“Vaivém” is the portuguese word for spaceship. This is a very small book of random memories (sprinkled with a couple of poems) that follow the theme of someone's journey, mostly the journey of moving from the hometown to Lisbon. The author grew up in Fundão (where I live) and you can sense her fondness for her roots. It was a quick but very pleasant read.

★★★

February Update - the weird roller coaster

Album on repeat: Yann Tiersen - Dust Lane (2011)

#1 observation: when my reading isn't going that great, I spent more time searching and adding books to my TBR.
#2 observation: last year's February didn't look great as well. I only got one book I enjoyed, Brave New World. Sapiens gave me the longest paper cut I've ever had, after years of not having one.

Fly by Night : had every theme, from the synopsis, I wanted to read at the time. I really wanted some fantasy/adventure to light things up. I only managed to read 24 pages... a lot of stubbornness, out of spite, picking up the book. Just to make the same decision of putting down for good. The writing made me feel that I wasn't allowed to enjoy the story (this started affecting me on the first chapter). Conclusion: it wasn't for me, i let it go but still feel bothered by it.

Then I found out I was following the wrong (unofficial) facebook page for my local library! This issue is all fixed now and long gone.

The other that isn't is that I had The Trial by Franz Kafka on my TBR. I actually had the book with me, but at the time decided to return and read it later... it's GONE. Someone took it and hasn't returned it. That, or the library didn't update the online catalog. But it isn't there anymore on its shelf. I remember seeing it once (when I was x-raying the shelves) but now it isn't there anymore.

Nice things to end with:

I'm weirdly enjoying currently reading The Ringmaster's Daughter by Jostein Gaarder. I probably searched the author when I was trying to keep with the threads here, and the author was mentioned. Not sure which one but thank you!

I found a new bookstore of second-hand curated books that just opened where I live. It made me happy. I'll have to pay a visit soon.

Bought by impulse a nice new notebook and a set of 4 magnetic bookmarks, that I thought were post-it with cute cat paws. I really should read the package more carefully when I do these impulsive buys. It even says in the back “The perfect gift for book lovers”.

>25 dicentra8: Fun update, Inês! Sorry you didn't get more reading done, but you had lots of other bookish things going on.

I enjoyed Gaardner’s Sophie’s World, which is novel serving as a history of philosophy. (Maybe something kafKaesque happened to The Trial.)

The Ringmaster's Daughter
Started: 2024/02/24 Finished: 2024/03/04

Petter, the main character, narrates his own life story and also adds, at the very beginning, that his life might be in danger. He's a very unlikeable person that's good with words and imagination. At some point in his life, when he needs to get more money and make a living, he creates a web to sell his ideas and synopsis to people who can't figure out what to write.
The way he does this is actually really clever. First point: no one will admit out loud to everyone that they're buying ideas/synopsis created by someone else. Second point: Petter only makes a deal with one client at the time, leading that client to believe that they're the only one with access to that service.

During the first chapters I struggled with the showcase of the stories that Petter had created (sometimes they would go for 3~4 pages). The stories themselves were interesting but I wasn't seeing the point of them being there. I only started enjoying when I knew a little bit more about Petter's life and saw a glimpse of it in the stories. It gave me the feeling that he was using them as a coping mechanism.

Then it was all the questions coming to my mind: is this person, as they state, being generous to other people by selling their ideas/synopsis? Or does it feel like those self-help gurus that take advantage of people who are desperate to succeed?

Finally, I wasn't ready for the dark/uncomfortable revelation on the last chapter. It has an open ending which adds some hope that things might get fixed, although it may take a long time.

But I did enjoy this story way more than I was initially expecting.

★★★

Just found out that March 26 is now, in Portugal, the Portuguese Book Day.


Illustration: Gonçalo Viana

This is a good excuse to not abandon the idea I got of making a list and try to read more portuguese authors than I usually do. It's slightly embarassing that apart from the ones I read while I was in school, I didn't keep up with other portuguese authors. I just wanted to make a small effort and slowly start changing that.

The ones that I made a mental note (from school time) that I enjoyed them were: Fernando Pessoa, Florbela Espanca and Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen.

* I might edit this post later to include some lists that portuguese publishers and my local library compiled for that day. Not sure if most of those books were translated to other languages.

>29 dicentra8: I look forward to your lists. Even if certain titles aren't translated, I can keep a lookout for the author. Sadly the only Portuguese author I've read is Saramago, although I have read four of his books.

>30 labfs39: Funny thing is that I never read Saramago! This is interesting. I have a feeling that his work only started being recognized and added to the "school readings" after he won the nobel prize.

More on the "school readings" from my time, I think I would be fine with him than Eça de Queirós. Eça de Queirós became my only aversion from that time (really disliked his book). The first I read from him had the whole first chapter describing the living room (some room). I thought I was someone that would never use summaries ever (I thought it was really embarrassing to do that)... and that was the first and only time I used them during school.

Animal Farm
Started: 2024/03/14 Finished: 2024/03/15

I knew I was going to enjoy this book because the story (lessons) behind mixed with animals in a farm. It took a long while to finally read it!
I still can only said that cats are way too smart! Maybe George Orwell would fit into a cat person nowadays. The cat in his story definitely saw things going a certain way, vanished just before everything turned really bad. I envy, in some ways, that cat.

Random, amusing detail: a few days before I started reading the book, I was watching The Incredible Dr. Pol episodes and, without being aware, I got the excruciating sounds of pigs in my mind. My mind used those sounds to fill a certain part of the story and it was awful!

Edit: I said that I knew I was going to enjoy this book but it really became a "I should have read this before! I really liked it!".
I'm also pleased that the portuguese translator decided to insist on its original/literal translation of the title. The one known in Portugal is "The Triumph of the Pigs"...it's almost like a spoiler for the story!

>32 dicentra8: Your review makes me want to reread this. It's been decades.

>33 labfs39: I feel like I've been way late for it (since it's the first time I read it). But I have to say that, considering I've been in a phase of "I feel like I can't read anything", it was a small book that really made me feel glad I read it. I can see myself picking up that book later and read it again. It kind of felt slightly more precious for that reason.

>34 dicentra8: Sometimes we need something different to get us out of a reading rut. I'm glad Animal Farm worked for you.

>31 dicentra8: Which book by de queiros do you hate? I read The Maias several years ago, and loved it. But then I love "big" 19th century novels.

>36 arubabookwoman: Precisely that one, The Maias. When I was going through the summaries the story did sound interesting. But that first chapter is all I can remember really disliking it and I was never able to pick the book ever again.

Fun post on Animal Farm. And interesting about the Portuguese name. We had to read this in 6th grade (age ~11) and then again in high school.

Several years ago I spent a day with a formerly active member of Club Read, deebee1, during a trip to Lisbon. We first met in front of Livraria Bertrand, and what struck out most in my mind was the large collection of recommended new works of fiction by Portuguese authors, especially women, and her comment about how few of them are ever translated into English; IIRC deebee told me that if they were translated into another language it would be more likely Spanish, for obvious reasons, or French.

I've read a ton of Saramago, but I also have several books by António Lobo Antunes, most of which I haven't read yet. One book of his I loved is The Fat Man and Infinity: And Other Writings.

I bought Pessoa: A Biography by Richard Zenith last year, I think, who is one of the two people who translated The Book of Disquiet into English. Hopefully I can get back to it this summer.

>16 dicentra8: >17 dicentra8: I'm trying to do some catching up. I appreciate your taking the time to review this one. It sounds intriguing but not fabulous. I won't purge it yet but there's no telling when I'll get to it. I have a lot of books in this category.

May: the catching up

This is going to sound like a second (more detailed) introduction. When I say I don't feel like I qualify as an avid reader it means: I always felt like a magnet for books/magazines nearby me but I never went full on to search/purchase them. I always, kind of, waited/relied for them to appear at the right time.

Last year I finally put my pet peeves around my local library, and made an account there. First year conclusion: discovered a lot of great books, felt like I was flowing through it.
This year (second year) so far: what the hell is happening?!

It all seemed to fall apart since February... I don't know why, I just know it happened around that time. Since then the sequence is always the same: loan 2~3 books; when I loan them I feel 80~90% interested in reading them; when I arrive home that interest just somehow vanishes; try to read the first pages of, at least, one of them; realize that there's always this feeling of annoyance when reading them; give up and return all the books so I can start afresh.

There's been, luckily, some books that I read and really enjoyed this year... so I can't complain that much.

Reviews behind:
- The Noise of Time
- Flowers for Algeron
- The Terrible Thing That Happened to Barnaby Brocket
- A Doll's House

>39 kidzdoc: That has been one thing that has been on my mind. How do I talk/review books that I read that other people won't be able to get (since there isn't a translation available). Specially with (european) portuguese books, they rarely get translated... unless, I assume, they've won some kind of award or became known outside of Portugal.

>42 dicentra8: I for one don't mind reading reviews of books that haven't been translated yet. I like knowing about a country's literature, and sometimes I can find other books by that author that have been translated or have the author in mind for when they are. Also, I don't mind if reviews are written in another language. I just right click, chose translate to English, and muddle through. Several of my French LT friends write their reviews in French and then we discuss them in English. Whatever works for you.

I hope you find some books that trigger your reading mojo. In the meantime, it's nice to hear from you!

>42 dicentra8: Great point, Inês. I can't speak for everyone, but I am particularly interested in world literature, and learning more about quality books that haven't been published in the English speaking world yet. Sometimes these books are published here, with different titles, and other times they are published in translation months or years later. Knowing about them puts them on my radar screeen for future reference as well, along with literary prizes that gain them much greater attention.

>43 labfs39: Right, Lisa. Google may not be a perfect translator, but it works pretty well, at least in my opinion.

>42 dicentra8: I just talk about the book - I had reviewed a few Bulgarian books in the past that way. These have even less chance of being translated than Portuguese ones but I write for my own recollection/memory aid so I just treat it as any other book.

I got a little sidetracked and lazy with some reviews. But I also didn't want to have that as an excuse to start skipping them, so I'm still going to write something...what I can still remember from those books.

The Noise of Time / ★★★½
Started: 2024/03/27 Finished: 2024/03/29

I might say that I do know nothing about this person, Dmitri Shostakovich, and that's how I started reading this book. For me as a whole, it felt like I was reading about a person slowly vanishing through their life. If someone asks my thoughts on strict regimes/dictatorships, I could imagine they're an awful experience to go through. Reading that experience (even if it's somehow a certain take, fiction, from the author who wrote it, with some/a lot research behind it), you really can't stop thinking "this is really too awful...". The exhaustion, confusion, humiliation, manipulation/coercion, feeling trapped and so on... I could feel those while reading it.

I think that this is also my first time reading something that used free indirect discourse. I searched for this a few days ago and I think this is the term for it. For the first time without knowing, it got me really confused! I was almost to give it up but decided to be stubborn about it. Right now, I'm glad I read and finished this book, in a positive way!

I'll leave a link for an article I found about The Benefits of Free Indirect Discourse.

Flowers for Algernon / ★★★★
Started: 2024/03/30 Finished: 2024/04/05

I had this book somewhere still in my mind, since I saw an episode of the tv show Person of Interest, and I found a copy displayed in my local library. I didn't even think twice and grabbed it.

The theme/feeling of a person vanishing persisted while I was reading this, in a slightly different way. With the addition of the feeling "terrible family environment" around it. Actually the latter one was the hardest to read through it and the one that had the most impact on me.

I couldn't still agree that higher intelligence equals better tastes/preferences. While lower intelligence means mundane, lower tastes/preferences. But, I was still surprised while reading, how Charlie's way of behaving changed after he started becoming more intelligent. Seeing this character going from someone genuinely kind/hard-working to someone that began feeling really unpleasant to be around. It really got me questioning about how we perceive people. Why did he suddenly felt so unpleasant to me when things were "better" for him? And at the same time, things weren't "better" for him and he was aware of it.

The Terrible Thing that Happened to Barnaby Brocket / ★★★★
Started: 2024/04/09 Finished: 2024/04/11


"Going for a walk" by illustrator Oliver Jeffers

This one really got me, in a way. Barnaby from the moment he was born can't have his feet touching the ground, he is always floating. He really wants to please his parents wishes of being just a normal child, but he just can't. He just keeps floating and getting unwanted attention, all the time.

Mixed with some travel adventure around the world (that at one point ends up in the middle of space), Barnaby finds both pleasant and unpleasant things in his way. The reader also gets a tiny taste of how some things that happen in the past, can still haunt a person's behaviour in the present.

For everything I was expecting from this story, I felt like I got a lot I wasn't expecting.

>46 dicentra8: I love Julian Barnes. He’s long been one of my favorite writers, and I too enjoyed The Noise of Time.

A very big thank you for the link explaining “ Free Indirect Discourse”. I usually enjoy books that use this method but was unaware there was a name for it. The article you linked to was excellent.

>48 dicentra8: This looks like something my niece would like. I requested it from the library.

>43 labfs39: >45 AnnieMod: I fully agree! I too like to read reviews about books that are only available in languages I don't understand, both because I find it interesting in and of itself, and also because then I can make a mental note in case they - or other books by the same author - ever become available. And I write about books only available in French for myself and for people who think like me :-)

>36 arubabookwoman: Not to gang up on Inês, but I loved O conde d'Abranhos by Eça de Queirós and have The Maias on my TBR ;-)