Stefanie Savva

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30/07/2018
Stefanie Savva

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thebookmenagerie

Weekend vibes ___________________________________

Weekend vibes

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Let’s talk So… I would love to hear your opin

Let’s talk

So… I would love to hear your opinion on the following: I really love aesthetic pictures on bookstagram. I love scrolling through beautiful posts, I enjoy taking those pictures myself and I think it’s cool presenting books and reading in such a way.

Yet, I find myself struggling to keep up with taking pictures that would fit my grid and sometimes it feels more like a chore. I guess my question to you is, how important are aesthetics to you when it comes to bookstagram? And do you prefer looking at beautiful pictures or do you engage more with captions?

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Currently reading We are not calling this a read

Currently reading

We are not calling this a reading slump… we are calling this extremely-slow-yet-enjoyable reading. Kitchen is 150 pages and I’ve been reading it for a couple of weeks. Then Burning Questions arrived and I do adore Atwood so I started reading that one as well, even though I should have just finished the first one. And since I’m only able to read 5-10 pages a day, it seems like both will take me ages to get through.

Anyway…. What are you all reading at the moment?

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World Book Day Firstly, let me just say that this

World Book Day

Firstly, let me just say that this is heavily inspired by @literallyl0uise ‘s post about World Book Day which you should definitely check out ☺️

To celebrate World Book Day, I’m reposting one of my favourite memories of last year. Visiting The British Library 2014 at Tate Modern made my heart swell with so many emotions. The installation is an ode to the power of words and stories. It celebrates both books and people and reminds one of why we share narratives as well as how the written word can bring us closer.

In celebration of the power of books and words, I would like you to share with me a writer, a book, poem or play that has changed your life.

I’ve tagged some people whose thoughts I would absolutely love to hear on this one!

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February wrap up This month’s very small wrap u

February wrap up

This month’s very small wrap up reflects how tiring and busy February has been. Despite not having read a lot, both books I managed to finish have been brilliant. I did love Open Water more than Mayflies mainly because it is so beautifully written that I don’t think much else could have taken the top spot. Both books deal with friendships/relationships, loss and love but do so in very different ways.

Q: have you read either of them? What are your thoughts?
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Mayflies - review I’ve finished Mayflies a few

Mayflies - review

I’ve finished Mayflies a few days ago but only now got around to putting my thoughts together. I usually review books almost straight after finishing them which makes this review an interesting exercise for me.

This book broke me emotionally. There are scenes that kept coming back to me as flashbacks over the past few days which I think marks how well O’Hagan created these characters. I did not connect with them from the beginning and even thought I found the first part of the book very entertaining, I was not really invested in any of them. This does not in any way mean that the writing is bad - I just felt that a lot was happening fast, there were a number of references that I did not get and while I was enjoying the plot I couldn’t really remember much about each individual.

Once the book turns from the past to the present, the build-up from the first half really pays off. The characters are older and their lives are very different from the dreams they had when younger. The impending death of one of them contrasts how invincible they felt as young adults. Despite all these changes, their relationships remain strong and the narrative follows their efforts to make sense of one’s mortality with the help of their memories and love. I found this story to be a great exploration of male friendship and loss.
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Q: what have you been reading Hello friends! I no

Q: what have you been reading

Hello friends! I now my posting has been sporadic but I haven’t been reading much. These are the four books I wanted to read over my half-term break but I have started a single one so… 🤷🏻‍♀️
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Q: Any exciting life updates? It’s almost half

Q: Any exciting life updates?

It’s almost half term and I can’t wait to be able to wake up a bit later, read good books, eat delicious food and give myself a chance to recover.
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Open Water - review If you haven’t read Open W

Open Water - review

If you haven’t read Open Water, stop reading this review and pick up a copy right away. This book deserves all the praise it’s been receiving.

Nelson writes about love and race and trauma and friendship in the most poetic of ways. I love narratives in the second person and this one is probably one of the best examples. I found that in the centre of the narrative there were deep questions about selfhood and identity treated with intimacy and introspection.

I had to stop a couple of pages in and pick up a pencil to start annotating which is rare for me. Nelson’s language is so poetic it almost feels fragile. There is a clear rhythm running through which intensifies the themes of voice and being seen. There were moments when my heart stopped, when I felt out breath.

I need Caleb Azumah Nelson to write more!
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Harry Valentine’s Giveaway To celebrate Love on

Harry Valentine’s Giveaway

To celebrate Love on Tour coming to the UK, Mr Harry Styles’s 28th birthday AND Valentine’s Day, myself and Chloe from @by_mouldyspud are running this little giveaway. The winner will receive a beautiful handmaid pair of Mrs Styles earrings as well as a copy of one of Harry’s favourite books - Love is a Mixtape.

To enter:

- Make sure you follow @thebookmenagerie and @by_mouldyspud
- Like the picture and leave a comment telling us which is your favourite Harry song

The giveaway is open only to UK residents. Closing day: 14th of February.
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Treacle Walker - review This was my first Alan G

Treacle Walker - review

This was my first Alan Garner so I did not know what to expect. Since finishing the book I have read a little bit about his work and I am definitely interested to read more.

Treacle Walker is a rhythmical, vivid tale about Joseph who lives alone (we never find out where his parents are or if he has parents) and wears an eye patch. Joseph follows a mysterious rag and bone man and finds himself in a magical wonderland .

It’s a strange story which I am not sure one can completely make sense of. It reminded me of Piranesi in its treatment of time and its blending of myth. I do think I would have enjoyed it even more if I was versed in Garner’s work as I feel a lot was lost on me. But overall a delightful little book.
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January wrap up Q: What’s the best book you’v

January wrap up

Q: What’s the best book you’ve read in January?

What a start to the year! I’ve read 12 book this month. Six of them were novels/novellas, two short story collections, one play and three were non-fiction. Three of them (The Invisible Gorilla, Daisy and the Six and Breakfast at Tiffany’s) are not pictured here since they were audiobooks.

My favourite this month was Daisy and the Six. I found it captivating and kept thinking about it whenever I was not listening to it. I also really enjoyed discovering Hiromi Kawakami and fell in love with Didion’s The Year of Magical Thinking.

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Q: Do you prefer short stories or novels? I’m c

Q: Do you prefer short stories or novels?

I’m currently reading my second Murakami of the year and so far really enjoying it. Short stories used to be my favourite type of fiction in the past but in recent years I have been reading more novels. It might have something to do with the fact that it’s easier to lose yourself in a longer story but novels seem to satisfy my escapism a lot more.

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Loveless - review I’ve picked up Loveless whil

Loveless - review

I’ve picked up Loveless while I was looking for books dealing with identity that I could use in my teaching. And this sounded perfect. It’s young adult fiction about a Georgia who starts university worried about being left behind in the topic of love. As she starts her new life at Durham University, she goes through a journey of self-discovery.

Loveless is based on Oseman’s experiences in university and it offers, in my opinion, a great portrayal of what it is like to be a teenager/young adult in Britain today. The story is very much of the now in its references - viral proposals, TikToks, fan fictions etc. There were points when I felt the references were too much on the nose but I’m sure those would be received differently by the target audience.

I feel that I say this way too often, but the book could have ended a couple of chapters earlier. The chapter Grand Gesture was so profound its treatment of love and friendship and for me that was the ending - that’s where the true message of the story lays. It was great getting the loose ends tied at the end but not completely necessary. Again, this might be more of an ‘adult reader’ thing rather than an actual storytelling issue.

This was the first time I read a story about an asexual, aromantic character and I loved the chance to look at the world through their eyes. I have multiple extracts that I would like to use in lessons and I am so thankful for Oseman writing these stories.

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A Passage North - review Having now finished A P

A Passage North - review

Having now finished A Passage North I can understand why it was nominated for the Booker Prize. Arudpragasam can write beautifully. I cannot praise his command of language enough. I’m not going to lie, this was a hard slog but not because the story is not compelling, but because this novel has some of the longest sentences I have ever read.

Both so much and nothing happens in this story. We follow Krishan on his trip to the north of Sri Lanka to attend the funeral of his grandmother’s carer. On this trip he contemplates his difficult relationship with is country’s turbulent past and reflects on his experiences of the war as he was watching the events unfold from afar.

The main plot is interlinked with Krishan reminiscing his brief relationship with Anjum, which he is still mourning. This gives the story a strong contemplative sense as the main character tries to make sense of his life. Both him and the country are in a sort of limbo, between places, bodies, past and present, life and death. And it is this contemplative tone that makes this both a rewarding and tiring read.

In the centre of the plot is loss in its many forms and with each story the reader is taken on a philosophical journey. So much happens in the little moments when Krishna does not physically move but does so introspectively. Once you reach the end of the narration, there is this big exhale in the act of letting go or better the act of realising that at some point you will need to let go.

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The Confession - review I’ve read The Muse by

The Confession - review

I’ve read The Muse by Jessie Burton a few years ago and absolutely loved so it was time for me to return to her writing.

The Confession moves between the 80s and the 2000s, exploring the complex lives of three women, Elise, Connie and Rose.

Elise meets Connie, a successful writer, in 1980 and the two fall in love and begin a relationship full of red flags. Connie seems overprotective but also distant while Elise is a nineteen years old who worships Connie and depends on her financial and emotionally. I loved all the parts set in the 80s, following the two women to the US as Connie’s novel is being turned into a movie. Watching Connie become lost in the glamorous life of Hollywood and observing how Elise feels more and more out of place made for a very compelling read.

Meanwhile we also follow Rose, who has been haunted all her life by the void of her missing/dead mother. In her thirties she questions the path her life has taken and decides that the time has come to confront her demons and solve the great mystery of her childhood.

Just like The Muse, in The Confession Burton blends the timelines beautifully and creates a page turning mystery. There is anticipation as the reader tries to put together the events and figure out the question in the middle of the story - what happened to Elise?

I only have one criticism which is hard to explain without spoiling the plot. When we finally get to the answer of what might have happened, it feels a bit underwhelming. I kept wondering whether or not it made sense that this was the reason why things turn out the way they do. Other than that, a nice read!
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Q: Are you reading anything interesting/exciting t

Q: Are you reading anything interesting/exciting this Sunday?

I’m halfway through A Passage North and I have to say that it’s not what I expected. I thought it would be more plot- driven but instead it’s a very philosophical book. I do really like how Arudragasam constructs sentences and I keep reading back through them to appreciate their beauty.

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The T-shirts I love - review You have to love th

The T-shirts I love - review

You have to love the audacity of this book! The fact that someone thought “you know what, let’s get Murakami to go through his old t-shirts, take pictures of them, write short essays and charge £15 for it.” It’s just so absurd that it makes me laugh. Yet, here I am, with my copy of this book, trying to put my thoughts in order. So, random thoughts:

1. This is for the hardcore Murakami readers. For those who want a glimpse of how he lives his life, those who enjoy trying to piece together where he draws inspiration from.
2. The essays go beyond t-shirts. They are about travelling, running, visiting record stores and bookshops, finding inspiration and questioning why we find certain things interesting.
3. The chapter ‘Meaning Unknown’ makes it obvious that Murakami is in his 70s. But in a cool, charming way.
4. This man can write. And I’m willing to read anything by him. Including his shopping list.
5. He talks more about the t-shirts he doesn’t wear instead of the ones he does. And I’m sure someone will find a way of pulling a metaphor out of this.
6. In the year 2122, a PhD student will pick up this book while trying to deconstruct one thing or another about the Wind-Up Bird Chronicles. Oh, how I wish I could experience that!
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People from my Neighbourhood - review I’ll be

People from my Neighbourhood - review

I’ll be honest with you - I only picked this one up because it was short and I was looking for quick reads. But I am so glad I did because what I discovered was a truly magical book.

Now, I don’t know how I’ve never came across Hiromi Kawakami before because her writing is exactly what I love. She explores everyday social interactions through fantasy and magical realism. In this collection we follow the residents of a neighbourhood for an undefined period (could be days or years) as they experience love, loss, corruption and violence. What I loved the most about these stories was their tenderness and ambiguity.

Once you enter this world it’s hard to stop reading and I found snippets of these stories coming back to me days after reading them. While the stories are interlinked, they also work well independently. If you ask me though what each of them is about I would struggle to answer. Despite the short length of each tale, they are full of symbolism and meaning and in a way they need to be digested slowly.

Okay, off I go now to buy everything Kawakami has ever written!
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The Days of Abandonment - review This was my fir

The Days of Abandonment - review

This was my first encounter with Elena Ferrante and what an introduction this was.

The Days of Abandonment is the story of a woman abandoned by her husband, trying to get a grip of her new life within the four walls of her apartment and with her two children. If you’ve been here a while you’ll know that I love an unreliable narrator and the protagonist definitely falls in that category. The narrator, is incapable of finding a way to live her life and find her identity away from being a wife. She slowly falls apart to the point when one begins to whether or not she needs to be institutionalised.

The drama in this story is commonplace and recognisable: a woman who has given everything to man, who has supported him through his college education, who stayed at home, raising his children while he made a career for himself. Ferrante takes this ordinary drama and turns it into an extraordinary tale. There is so much release when she breaks out of bounds and attacks her ex-husband, when she loses all control and throws herself on her male neighbour. Step by step the story becomes more tragic and hilarious.

I’ve read this around the same time I’ve read Niightbitch and the two complimented each other greatly. This idea of the ‘stink of motherhood’, of women becoming unhinged and shedding off all responsibility is becoming one of my favourite things to read about.

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My book reviews

A Thousand Ships
16th August 2020
This has been a year of reading classical retellings for me. After finishing Circe, The Silence of the Girls and The Song of Achilles which were all books I deeply enjoyed, I was craving for another similar tale. I had seen A Thousand Ships on Instagram and after a conversation with my local bookseller, […]
Girl, Woman, Other
11th August 2020
It’s now been a week since I have finished Girl, Woman, Other and the story has stayed with me as vividly as when I was reading it. Evaristo is a brilliant storyteller who understands how narratives work and can manipulate them in order to create new perspectives. The plot follows twelve women who are all […]

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