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3.83 AVERAGE
3.83 AVERAGE
I gave up reading this book after 72 pages. I just couldn’t get into it.
This book is not one that will stick with me or that I will return to, but it left me with a smile on my face. This is a journey story of sorts - only in reverse as 85-year-old Lillian walks through the late-night streets of New York, reflecting on the city she loves. The book gives a Mad Men-esque vibe, but lighter and with more dry humor. Lillian's advertising poems hearken back to the old Burma-Shave ads with their rhyming couplets.
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I just can’t get over how beautiful the writing is in this book. I have never read a book with such a poetic flow.
I personally don’t even like poetry! But the author managed to use her background in poetry and make it into a beautifully written fiction novel. It appeals even to those of us who don’t have the patience to read poetry, especially the rhyming type. That’s talent!
The main character, Lillian, is a poet herself so of course, that just makes this story even better!
This is a story told by an 80 something-year-old woman as she casually takes a stroll through the streets of her beloved Manhattan on New Year’s Eve. The vibe of this book is as if you were sitting in your grandma’s house next to a warm fire with some hot chocolate as she tells you the story of her interesting life. The good times and the not so good times.
Throughout her stroll, Lillian is looked at and treated how she seems – a vulnerable elderly woman walking down the streets of Manhattan when those streets aren’t what they used to be or as safe as they should be. But Lillian is fearless, armed with her natural ability to influence, negotiate, and charm everyone she meets.
When we look at an elderly person, we tend to only see them for what they are at that very moment. We sometimes forget to recognize that they have decades of a life behind them, experiences they have been through, and those experiences have made them who they are today. When we meet someone, elderly or not, it is wise to remind ourselves that we never know their life story or what they are or have gone through. This book is a great reminder of that as we get an inside view of the life of an 85-year-old.
Lillian at one time was at the peak of her career as the highest-paid advertising woman in America in a job that she adored. As we “listen” to her tell her story, we learn how changes in life plans can take a turn in the wrong direction, and the right direction.
I wish Lillian was a real person! While I read this I connected completely with her character, even going as far as to say I have experienced similar trials in my own life. Nearly 50 years apart in age, I still think she and I could be friends, probably due to her still young personality.
BONUS: This book is full of history! When I think of historical fiction books I tend to think of 18th and 19th centuries. But this is historical fiction throughout Lillian's life which is practically the entire 20th century (she was born in 1899).
I loved this book. I listened to it via audio and the narrator, Xe Sands, is AMAZING. I am off to find other audiobooks that she narrates because she is now one of my top narraters to listen to!
If you’re looking for a cozy read, get this book.
I personally don’t even like poetry! But the author managed to use her background in poetry and make it into a beautifully written fiction novel. It appeals even to those of us who don’t have the patience to read poetry, especially the rhyming type. That’s talent!
The main character, Lillian, is a poet herself so of course, that just makes this story even better!
This is a story told by an 80 something-year-old woman as she casually takes a stroll through the streets of her beloved Manhattan on New Year’s Eve. The vibe of this book is as if you were sitting in your grandma’s house next to a warm fire with some hot chocolate as she tells you the story of her interesting life. The good times and the not so good times.
Throughout her stroll, Lillian is looked at and treated how she seems – a vulnerable elderly woman walking down the streets of Manhattan when those streets aren’t what they used to be or as safe as they should be. But Lillian is fearless, armed with her natural ability to influence, negotiate, and charm everyone she meets.
When we look at an elderly person, we tend to only see them for what they are at that very moment. We sometimes forget to recognize that they have decades of a life behind them, experiences they have been through, and those experiences have made them who they are today. When we meet someone, elderly or not, it is wise to remind ourselves that we never know their life story or what they are or have gone through. This book is a great reminder of that as we get an inside view of the life of an 85-year-old.
Lillian at one time was at the peak of her career as the highest-paid advertising woman in America in a job that she adored. As we “listen” to her tell her story, we learn how changes in life plans can take a turn in the wrong direction, and the right direction.
I wish Lillian was a real person! While I read this I connected completely with her character, even going as far as to say I have experienced similar trials in my own life. Nearly 50 years apart in age, I still think she and I could be friends, probably due to her still young personality.
BONUS: This book is full of history! When I think of historical fiction books I tend to think of 18th and 19th centuries. But this is historical fiction throughout Lillian's life which is practically the entire 20th century (she was born in 1899).
I loved this book. I listened to it via audio and the narrator, Xe Sands, is AMAZING. I am off to find other audiobooks that she narrates because she is now one of my top narraters to listen to!
If you’re looking for a cozy read, get this book.
An enjoyable stroll around New York past and present with a funky old lady!
52 Book Club 2024 - #49
I wish I liked this book more than I did. Lillian is a complex, intriguing, entertaining character - I love love love that she's allowed to be harsh and so very graciously nasty at times, not always following society's rules while adhering strictly to good graces. Her story is layered and rich, and very compelling. But I think with this (audio)book I've realized - I just don't like character-driven novels. I get bored waiting for something to happen. While this was very well-written and quite unique, I found my mind drifting or easily distracted while listening. The reader was charming and put a lot of personality into the role, so I don't think it was the listening instead of reading - I wonder if I had read the book whether I would have finished it. So I guess I took my own journey with this one.
And yes I'm calling Manhattan a city that starts with M; this book is so relentlessly about the city itself that I'm counting it. (besides, the difference between city and borough is a political one; Manhattan definitely checks all the boxes of City.)
I wish I liked this book more than I did. Lillian is a complex, intriguing, entertaining character - I love love love that she's allowed to be harsh and so very graciously nasty at times, not always following society's rules while adhering strictly to good graces. Her story is layered and rich, and very compelling. But I think with this (audio)book I've realized - I just don't like character-driven novels. I get bored waiting for something to happen. While this was very well-written and quite unique, I found my mind drifting or easily distracted while listening. The reader was charming and put a lot of personality into the role, so I don't think it was the listening instead of reading - I wonder if I had read the book whether I would have finished it. So I guess I took my own journey with this one.
And yes I'm calling Manhattan a city that starts with M; this book is so relentlessly about the city itself that I'm counting it. (besides, the difference between city and borough is a political one; Manhattan definitely checks all the boxes of City.)
A charming, witty, moving story of a woman's long life, told as she takes a long walk through Manhattan on New Year's Eve 1984. A wonderful novel that was especially good on audio!
My full review:
http://bookbybook.blogspot.com/2017/05/fiction-review-lillian-boxfish-takes.html
My full review:
http://bookbybook.blogspot.com/2017/05/fiction-review-lillian-boxfish-takes.html
Lillian was a super interesting character and enjoyed reading her talk about her life while seeing she's still the same unique person in the current time. But it felt like a book where the character carries it more than the story
slow-paced
Storyline was okay, but did enjoy the reminiscing of NYC