In Cold Blood by Truman Capote

considered a pioneer of the true crime genre, this book details the grisly murders of a small town family from different perspectives. wasn't a big fan of the structure at first but once I got used to it I was impressed. Capote was able to capture the horrific case in an objective voice that also took a deep dive into the murderer's psyches. important book for sure and while I didn't love it, I can understand the praise it gets

8/10

El Buen Mal by Samantha Schweblin

new collection of short stories by the celebrated Argentine author Schweblin. while not horror, these stories are offputting and do a good job of creating anxiety in the reader. that said, there were just a few stories I found really memorable and I was a bit disappointed by this. I like her other short story collections much more

6.5/10

Pachinko by Min Jin Lee

guess I'm just a sucker for multi generational family dramas and this highly celebrated novel got the job done. from pre WWII up to the late 80s, Lee tells the story of a Korean family and their experience as immigrants in Japan. a lot of interesting themes of being a foreigner, accepting the choices you've made, and trying to fit in while still preserving your culture. a bit emotionally manipulative at times and I really loved the first half but thought the second half, especially the last third, didn't quite stick the landing. still a moving and well written novel that I'd definitely recommend

8.5/10

everytime i go to barnes and noble i see the cover of in cold blood and feel tempted to buy it

what parts of pachinko specifically didnt hit for you

I'm nitpicking cause I thought it was really good, but the last third of the book where it focused on Solomon I found a bit underwhelming. just didn't really care about his character and then his decision to go into the Pachinko business I felt like could've been fleshed out more

I think it can be difficult to end multigenerational stories like this and I didn't really get a sense of closure to the book compared to other similar novels I've read

So at the end I have no idea what to truly make of this. I think the first several parts are fantastic. The main character Archie is fantastic in all aspects (there are 4 different versions) and his love interest Amy is even better. But, the ending is kind of weird although not so entirely unexpected. I think the author might have gone too deep in their own bag. But I will say the middle of the book, from maybe sections two to five are just terrific

is it any similar or comparable to east of eden in describing generational trauma?

somewhat, it does take you through generational traumas but I'd say in EoE it was more focused on family dynamics, while in Pachinko so many of the character struggles are a result of being immigrants in a xenophobic country

If you haven’t yet you should watch the In Cold Blood movie, incredibly tense, amazing acting performances and one of the best looking movies I’ve ever seen. Oh yeah and it has a Quincy Jones soundtrack.

yea I've heard good things about it, definitely wanna check it out. already got a lotta adaptations on my plate tho lol, still gotta finish the Lonesome Dove miniseries and start the Pachinko show

I’ve read a bunch of good s*** lately. I gotta do a write up later.

I feel like I’ve been on a legendary run. I’m genuinely loving everything I read this year.

Kind of a dry read, wanted to be finished earlier than I was but I’m glad I stuck through. Very informative.

Nice lil short story from Bradbury. Scarily relevant to the times we’re in.

This was great, I remember reading this in high school and it's stuck with me since then. Creates a creepy atmosphere like little else I've read. It would be interesting to read it again now that VR is far more "real" than it was 10+ years ago

Just finish Blood Meridian, the first book I’ve read in ages.

It really was an incredible book and a solid challenge to get me back into the medium. McCarthy’s writing style, if you’re not familiar with it, is defined by an almost complete lack of punctuation save for periods and the occasional comma, along with extremely long and winding run on sentences. You have to retrain your brain to be able to understand what’s being talked about and who’s doing the talking without having to re-read paragraphs over and over. I don’t think I hit that level of confidence with the book until I was 75% through it, which is one of the many reasons Blood Meridian definitely warrants a revisit from me down the line. The difficulty and strangeness is compounded by the use of old, regional vocabulary, many exchanges being completely in Spanish, and the fact that there really is no overarching plot. All of that to be said, I think it’s absolutely worth the challenge. I’ve never read something with such a surreal atmosphere, and The Judge is obviously one of the most fascinating fictional characters of all time.

@Tubig @Kopain @Jerry_Seinfeld

Great write up that articulates the strangeness of mccarthy’s style. It rewires your brain but in doing so makes other writer’s dialogue feel so overwritten by comparison.

2666 by Roberto Bolano

5/5 - An absolute classic. The study of art & literature, science, poverty, mathematics, science, evil, legacy and celebrity culture is simply astonishing. There is a cosmic energy around this novel that just puts its claws into you. The fifth part is a masterpiece in writing. I’ll think about this all the time.

It may have been a mistake to read this after Infinite Jest because the themes and writing felt so incredibly rudimentary and on the nose to me. I loved his descriptions of the landscape but that was it really.

Sorry in advance for the long post.

This trilogy blew me away and sold me on Sanderson. Will definitely be continuing the Cosmere - 5/5 ⭐️ 4.5/5 ⭐️ & 6/5 ⭐️ respectively

A story about a robot built to kill but would just rather stay home watching tv. Murderbot just like me fr - 3/5 ⭐️

Found this slow at first but once it picked up I needed to know what happens next. Really weird story tbh lol - 3.5/5 ⭐️

This was our KTT Book Club read for April! This book is everything I love about literature. Loved the tangents and the etymological aspect. - 5/5 ⭐️

Almost DNF'd this in the first 100 pages and so glad I didn't. Cool premise that I think was well explored. Felt like a weird modern fusion between a Brontë novel and a Grimm fairy tail. - 4/5 ⭐️

I LOVED this. Felt like a GTA campaign in the best way possible (minus all the GTA satire lol). SA Cosby became an autobuy author with this. - 5/5 ⭐️

RF Kuang did her job and created possibly the most unlikeable main character OAT! June Hayward, you raggedy b****!!!! - 5/5 ⭐️

This was our KTT Bookclub May read. I loved the tone of the story and the vibes. This is a really beautiful story about humanity's resiliency and how art transcends time. - 5/5 ⭐️

This was both one of the most unique takes on vampire lore and a scathing condemnation of colonialism. Historical fiction through and through. Probably the most challenging and rewarding story I've read so far this year. - 4.5/5 ⭐️

Holy world building!!!! This felt very slow at times for Sci-fi but I loved the writing and Ruocchio's choice to write this in classical english. Approaching this how I approach Victorian lit really helped my enjoyment of it. The philosophical musings and tangents that the main character goes on really complement that style of writing. Can't wait to continue with this series as I heard it gets exponentially better. - 4/5 ⭐️

you've been putting in work

S.A. Cosby does not miss. actually I found out about him from this thread's early days and have read everything he's written ever since

he's got a new book about an organized crime family coming out in a few weeks too, can't wait

Broo S.A. Cosby is a master storyteller. I’m currently reading All The Sinners Bleed rn and I’m already blown away!

Gonna try catching up on his other 2 before the next release

Gonna give this a read

This book blew my mind when I finished. I spent so much of my time reading trying to figure out how the 5 parts tie into each other, and still don't really have an answer for that. But the feeling of coming from The Part About the Crimes into The Part About Archimboldi was like cresting a mountain and coming down the other side into a peaceful valley. I have to wonder if part of the point of the book (or the structure) is just the experience of reading the book.

That said Bolano is my favorite author and I loved his prose in 2666 so it's not like it was a chore to read by any means.

I understood Part IV to be Bolano commentating on modern day media and violence. He deliberately chose to reveal the crime’s detail first, similar to we read news headlines. Only then would he go into the backstory of the victim highlighting that they were more than just a victim, more than a statistic.

The more you progress through Part IV, the more you become numb to the crimes, it felt like reading another headline, I felt myself wanting to skip to the detectives to see if they had made any advances in the case because the women just kept on dying. It’s just incredible writing.

That entire part to me felt like it was asking why and how are these killings happening & how come no one is doing anything about it? It was a remark on poverty, societal classes and modern media more than finding out the killer.

The structure of 2666 is nothing short of genius. The first part, where Liz Norton’s letter to the other 2 critics is laced between the plot is another stroke of brilliance.

Paradise by Fernanda Melchor

3.5/5

Dark short novel about Polo, a 16 year old caretaker at a gated community, and Franco, a teenage gooner who convinces Polo to rob Franco's female crush/fantasy woman staying in the community. There's more to it, but yeah, it's a lot. Fernanda's other novel, "Hurricane Season," is darker and crueler. This is also very dark because it deals with trapped individuals, whether trapped in poverty (Polo), or gang life (Polo's cousin). It is by no means a beach read. You've been warned.