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3.82 AVERAGE
3.82 AVERAGE
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
emotional
funny
reflective
slow-paced
slow-paced
I just loved this charismatic, meandering, exquisitely New York collection of vignettes.
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
The writing style reminded me a lot of Joan Didion. I enjoyed how viserally Veronica Gornick described New York, her feelings of isolation, her relationship with Leonard and her mother, and the complexity of friendship and how this changes through life. I really connected with some parts, other parts I found tone deaf and a bit pretentious. Good overall though.
Some quotes that I underlined:
"I've always been pulled around by forces beyond my control. I'd do what people expect of me, and then I'd get anxious. For years I knew no condition but anxiety. One day I realised that the anxiety had formed me. After that there was no surprises."
"In useful solitude I am there, keeping myself imaginative company, breathing life into the silence, filling the room with proof of my own sentient being."
Some quotes that I underlined:
"I've always been pulled around by forces beyond my control. I'd do what people expect of me, and then I'd get anxious. For years I knew no condition but anxiety. One day I realised that the anxiety had formed me. After that there was no surprises."
"In useful solitude I am there, keeping myself imaginative company, breathing life into the silence, filling the room with proof of my own sentient being."
"The habit of loneliness persists. Leonard tells me if I don't convert the loneliness into useful solitude, I'll be my mothers daughter forever"
A small slight memoir that really captures the arty/intellectual spirit of NYC. I liked her wry observations and conversations with her friend Leonard, but it was the little bits of her interactions with the people of New York that she captures so well. Some stories I kinda glazed over though. 3.5 stars.
slow-paced
there were some rly good quotes and stuff but overall was rly slow and a lil pretentious. also SO much casual racism and like xenophobia which wasn’t cool. idk it had some good moments but overall not my fav
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism, Xenophobia
reflective
medium-paced
que se calle ya por dios he tenido suficiente //
a sense of the world belonging to everyone but me
a sense of the world belonging to everyone but me