Lisa Eckstein > Recent Status Updates

Charming, fun, and funny!

Fascinating mix of stories and time periods going on within this novel.

Great start! I love the narrator's voice and the fun cast of characters we're meeting.

Completely engrossing so far!

I am past the halfway point of this book (through graduation), and I'm increasingly frustrated by it. Too much is summarized rather than coming to life in scenes, and what does occur feels random and unconnected. I know a lot of my friends liked this book a lot. Any insights? Am I missing something?

This book seems oddly paced, with many parts rushing by in summary when I'd expect there to be scenes, but it's entertaining.

"Suppose it really was a school for magic. Was it any good? What if he'd stumbled into some third-tier magic college by accident?" This story is rather charming.

Fantastic

"My sister could be so beautiful if she just took care of herself -- combed her hair, got some sleep every once in a while. She’s like a picture of our mother that someone crumpled up and tried to smooth out again." I love that sort of cleverly written observation.

Loving this! Great narrator, fascinating story.

Finally getting to this series that several friends have raved about. Excellent right off the bat!

I liked the fourth story pretty well, but I think I'll have to try a Murakami novel to get a better sense of why he's popular.

This is my first time reading Murakami, though I've long been curious about his writing. The first story was okay, the second didn't do much for me. We'll see how the rest of the collection goes.

Wonderful all the way through. It's so rare to find a collection in which every story completely captures my attention.

An excellent, thought-provoking set of essays.

"There are more similarities between the writing of men and women than there are differences. Aren't we all just trying to tell stories? How do we keep losing sight of this fact?" YES YES YES!

Beautiful, engrossing short stories. Glad I finally got around to reading this collection!

I'm really enjoying the combination of personal essay and (pop) cultural criticism.

Great start to this book of essays, and I'm excited to read on!

This book of poetry is by an old friend of mine. I'm not much of a poetry reader, but I'm enjoying these.

Powerful but often strange.

"His name was Clifton and he was black and they shot him. Isn't that enough to tell? Isn't it all you need to know?" This funeral scene, Jesus.

I'm enjoying the mix of political intrigue with more personal plots, and the worldbuilding continues to be excellent.

"'Look at him,' I called to the angry crowd. 'With his blue steel pistol and his blue serge suit. You heard him, he's the law. He says he'll shoot us down because we're a law-abiding people.'" This book was published in 1952 but is feeling uncomfortably current.

"Dammit, white folk are always giving orders, it's a habit with them. Why didn't you make an excuse? ... My God, boy! You're black and living in the South--did you forget how to lie?" While some of this story has been a bit odd so far, there's a lot of powerful stuff in here.

A richly developed world and an intriguing story.

I've been meaning to read this book for a long time. Glad I've finally started. Fascinating.

"'Come on,' George called. He was looking at her as if she were a knife. Or a sandwich. Or a knife about to cut open a sandwich. She liked the way he was looking at her."

Must drag myself away from this book so I can get something else done!

Odd and funny and touching, just like I expect from Netzer.