There are cats, African gray parrots, and a woman obsessed with a dog in this book. I mean, what more could I ask for? The book is a bit sweet, so if a saccharine book turns you off, this isn't for you. It asks questions about forgiveness and second chances and what family looks like. I liked it a lot. 5/5 stars
Line of note:
"Books won't solve my problems, Harriet."
"No, but they give your problems perspective. They allow your problems to breathe." (page 64)
Things I looked up:
Across from there, an art museum with an ugly sculpture out front. A squat, rusted seven. The number seven. It looks famous. (page 44)
 |
| Seven by Robert Indiana in front of the Charles Shipman Payson Building which is part of the Portland Museum of Arts in Portland, Maine. |
flibbety (page 78) - I don't know. This is from "dressed in one of her crinkled, flibbety tops in a cloudburst of color." Flibbity (note that there are two of the letter i, not an e in the second vowel spot) is to produce from nothingness, but I can't find it with an i and an e.
Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Lee Masters (page 19 and then a lot more) - This book is central to the plot of How to Read a Book and now I sort of want to read it.
Hat mentions (why hats?):
...and a weird store that sells only hats. (page 104)
The weird store that sells only hats doesn't call. (page 106)
...the one in the hat. (page 185)
Wearing little Danish hats. (page 226)
Frank tipped an imaginary hat...(page 263)
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Have you read Spoon River Anthology? Seen the Seven sculpture? Do you know what flibbety means?
Sometimes you just NEED a super sweet book, you know? I like to read things like these in between some of the heavier things, so I'll put this on my list.
ReplyDeleteYes, it is sort of an in between book. And I'm on a real streak of books I'm loving, so it fit right in.
DeleteI would think flibberty is from flibberty-gibbet- someone who is talkative, ditzy, and flighty. So I imagine it's a light, floaty sort of top.
ReplyDeleteI have tried Spoon River Anthology- I live near that river and I felt it would be meaningful. Not my cup of tea however. Maybe I'd have Moore patience with it now. But I'm trying Gone with the Wind right now and have no spare reading energy for anything else challenging.
My understanding is that flibbertigibbet isn't a compound word, though, so you don't take the parts of it as standalone words. I could be wrong, though!
DeleteFlibbety makes me think of the song from Sound of Music, "How do you find a word that means Maria? A flibbertigibbet!" So, given how they see Maria, unsettled, sort of? Not that it makes sense to me to describe clothing that way.
ReplyDeleteHa! I went to flibbertigibbet, too, but it's basically talkative or flighty. Like you say, though, it doesn't help to describe a shirt!
DeleteThis looks like a charming book, a palate cleanser between more intense courses. Thanks to The Sound of Music I know what a flibbertigibbet is, but not what flibbety means.
ReplyDeleteSo many people know flibbertigibbet from SoM! I had no idea!
DeleteOoh! This is on my summer TBR. I got nervous when you described it as "sweet", but since you give it 5/5 I'll definitely read it. If my library hold ever comes in.
ReplyDeleteIt's sweet, but it does touch on harder topics. It's not just fluff.
DeleteI am glad you enjoyed this one! I also gave it 5 stars. It was sweet but still had a good amount of depth to it which I appreciated. I didn't want the book to end!
ReplyDeleteRight? I wanted to hang out with them for a bit longer, too.
DeleteI'm so busy that it is unlikely I will read this or the last book you posted, but I feel like I have gotten something just from your reviews and their delicious covers - thank you!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome. If you ever have time to read a good book or two, you'll know where to look.
DeleteLove that quote... I so love this post with the highlights of the book. I tend to see authors that use the same word or color or something throughout.
ReplyDeleteI just look for hats. It's a quirk.
DeleteI am also a fan of "The Sound of Music" (though it took me many years to fully appreciate), so yes to your last question!
ReplyDeleteI honestly don't think the definition of flibbertigibbet helps to describe the shirt, to be fair.
DeleteI'm off to order this from the library.
ReplyDeleteYay! I think you'll like it.
DeleteOh, I LOVE Spoon River Anthology! I had a class set of it for my Creative Writing II students. I always wanted to teach it in Honors 10, but there was simply no room for it in the curriculum. It's a wonderful, haunting little collection. I imagine it as a sort of ghost story, each person stepping forward from the grave, telling his/her story, then receding to the abyss once more.
ReplyDeleteBased on your comment and this book, I ordered Spoon River Anthology from the library. We'll see how it goes.
DeleteI have not read the river book or the how to read a book book and I agree with some other commenters that it sounds like it would be good between heavier subjects. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on it.
ReplyDeleteI think this would be a good book club book, too. Not too heavy, but not too light.
DeleteI have that book on loan right now but have not started it yet! I have never read Spoon River, I have been to Portland but did not see the seven, and I had no idea what flibbety meant!
ReplyDeleteIt's Portland, Maine. Have you been to Portland, Maine?
DeleteMy reading and watching tastes skew dark, but sometimes I get heartily sick of reading and watching people be shitty to each other, and this kind of thing hits the spot right then. From context, I'm guessing the author intended 'flibbety' to mean ridiculously frilly and colourful? And maybe she just decided that is what it WOULD mean?
ReplyDelete