Passatempo: Limões na Madrugada de Carla M. Soares

Boa noite, Encruzilhad@s!

Ainda agora o ano começou e hoje já andamos a discutir qual de nós as duas ia comprar o primeiro livro do ano. Tecnicamente a Catarina ganhou mas a Cláudia diz-se injustiçada porque o livro foi uma pré-encomenda (e por isso não conta!).

Se estão a ter uma discussão parecida com os vossos amigos (e não querem perder mas o fim do ano levou-vos os trocos!) não se preocupem porque nós, em conjunto com a Cultura Editora temos para oferecer um exemplar de Limões na Madrugada de Carla M. Soares.

Tal como nos nossos passatempos anteriores para se habilitarem a ganhar este livro só tem de preencher o formulário abaixo e rezar/cruzar os dedos/ cantar o só-li-dó e esperar que tenham sorte! Os resultados do passatempo saem dia 18 de Janeiro no dia de aniversário do blogue.

Atenção: Neste passatempo uma das condições é fazerem like na página de Facebook do Encruzilhadas Literárias e da Cultura Editora.

Leiam mais sobre o livro abaixo e preencham o formulário para participar.

Ansiosa por regressar à Argentina, mas presa a Portugal, distante do homem que ama e da mulher com quem vive, Adriana está perante um dilema universal e intemporal: manter-se comodamente na ignorância ou desvendar o passado da família, como se de um caso policial se tratasse, enfrentando assim aquilo de que andou a fugir toda a vida, por mais doloroso que seja. 

Num jogo magistralmente imaginado pela autora, entre a vida atual de Adriana e os ecos do Portugal antigo, machista e violento dos seus pais e avós, esta história, de uma família e dois continentes, é uma viagem entre o presente e o passado, uma ponte sobre o fosso cultural que separa as gerações, um tratado sobre tudo aquilo que a família pode fazer à vida de um só indivíduo. 

Entre a sombra e a luz, deixando que por vezes os silêncios falem mais alto do que as palavras, Limões na Madrugada é um romance sobre o amor incomum, o poder da família e a necessidade da coragem.

Regras do passatempo
1) O passatempo decorre até às 23h59 do dia 18 de Janeiro de 2018.
2) Todos os dados solicitados (incluindo Nick de Seguidor) devem ser devidamente preenchidos e completos.
3) Só será aceite uma participação por pessoa.
4) O passatempo abrange todo o território português (Portugal Continental e Ilhas).
5) O/A vencedor/a será sorteado de forma aleatória (random.org), sendo o resultado anunciado na página do blog e o contacto efectuado por e-mail.
6) O Encruzilhadas Literárias e/ou a Editora não se responsabilizam pelo extravio ou danos causados pelos CTT nas encomendas enviadas.
7) Todos os dados pessoais guardados, para efeitos de passatempo, serão eliminados após entrega do prémio ao vencedor ou vencedora.
8) Para a participação ser válida os participantes tem de pôr um "gosto" na página de Facebook do Encruzilhadas Literárias e da Cultura Editora.

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Review: An Almost Perfect Christmas, by Nina Stibbe

 
An Almost Perfect Christmas
by Nina Stibbe

Edition: 2017
Pages: 234
Publisher: Penguin Books UK

Summary:
"My mother is not a foodie. But for as long as I can remember, once a year, she becomes possessed of a profound and desperate need to serve up a perfect roast turkey. Faced with a walk into the village though, she might think 'oh, f*** it' and decide to get a frozen one from Bejams on the 23rd and leave it to defrost in the downstairs toilet for not quite 48 hours."

From perennially dry turkeys to Christmas pudding fires, from the round robin code of conduct to the risks and rewards of re-gifting, An Almost Perfect Christmas is an ode to the joy and insanity of the most wonderful time of the year.

Rating: 3/5

Review: 
I will start this review by saying that I received an online copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange of a honest review.

Who doesn't like a good Christmas book? I try to read a different one every year around holiday's time. This year I've choose "An Almost Perfect Christmas" by Nina Stibbe because I was in the mood for a stress relief and non fiction book. 

Nina brings the reader different and funny stories from her Christmas memories and reminds us why this time of year can bring such a love/hate relationship to everybody. Because of course we love the blings, the charity spirit and the willingness to make all around us happy and complete. But we also can't forget the screaming, the last minute changes, the skipping ingredients after the shops' have closed and all the plans and preparation which most of the times doesn't have any other function that never being followed. Her mother and the story about the Christmas Turkey is a perfect example of that!

With different approaches and intentions, some of Nina stories were hilarious, others were insightful, some created empathy and others the desperation and empathy of having been there before. Nevertheless it's a great book to relax around this time and a good reminder of what's missing in our lives or in our Christmas preparation list. 

I must say I've enjoyed some of the chronicles more than others, as you probably imagined. It's not difficult to imagine why, since we all have our own personal stories. Searching through these pages, I found some moments I could identify with and I laughed with the author because of them. In the end, who never had a big drama around Christmas gifting in their families (Nina's family is way better imagining thematic and justifications for shifting the gifting rules!).

It's a light read we all can appreciate on these busy moments we are going through, but don't deceive yourself. Nina's life it's not perfect and she doesn't have any problem showing it. I guess the nostalgia takes also part on these amazing Christmas cocktails and, of course, it couldn't be missing here. 

If you are looking for some reading suggestions, try this not so perfect Christmas, as they all should be.

Cláudia

About the author:
 

Addicted to the library Claudia loves to read on the move and we can usualy find her sitting in a train or bus reading while commuting to and from work. But don't be fooled she is also keeping an eye on the landscape and all around her. She is an avid defender of sustainability and volunteering and it's as easy to find her starting a new project as it is to find her chatting with her friends. She is a dreamer and loves good stories so she keeps looking for them in her personal life.

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Review: No Time to Spare by Ursula K Le Guin

No Time to Spare
by Ursula K Le Guin
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Released on: 5th December 2017

Synopsis:

Ursula K. Le Guin has taken readers to imaginary worlds for decades. Now she’s in the last great frontier of life, old age, and exploring new literary territory: the blog, a forum where her voice—sharp, witty, as compassionate as it is critical—shines. No Time to Spare collects the best of Ursula’s blog, presenting perfectly crystallized dispatches on what matters to her now, her concerns with this world, and her wonder at it.   

On the absurdity of denying your age, she says, “If I’m ninety and believe I’m forty-five, I’m headed for a very bad time trying to get out of the bathtub.” On cultural perceptions of fantasy: “The direction of escape is toward freedom. So what is ‘escapism’ an accusation of?” On her new cat: “He still won’t sit on a lap…I don’t know if he ever will. He just doesn’t accept the lap hypothesis.” On breakfast: “Eating an egg from the shell takes not only practice, but resolution, even courage, possibly willingness to commit crime.” And on all that is unknown, all that we discover as we muddle through life: “How rich we are in knowledge, and in all that lies around us yet to learn. Billionaires, all of us.”

Rating: 4/5 stars

Review:

I received this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Ursula K. Le Guin has been one of my favourite authors since I first read "The Earthsea Cycle" when I was a teenager. After finishing Earthsea I proceeded to tackle the rest of her works and found myself shifting my point of view on main things. I like the way she tackles humanity without apologies and shows us things as they are and as they could be.
"No Time to Spare" is a collection of essay's that the author made on her online blog.  As Le Guin states in the introduction she realised by reading Saramago's blog that she could have a space where she could express her views on ageing, belief and literature without necessarily having to interact with her readers. (However I find that Le Guin always interacts with me in a way or another as I keeping learning to see things through different eyes!)
I like the way Le Guin writes and tackles these issues with sincerity and honesty. I enjoyed her essays on ageing the most as I think it's something that's not often spoken about or when it is, it's always with a silver lighting which is the opposite of what Le Guin does. This is not to say that Le Guin doesn't take a positive approach but that she as a very "things are what they are" approach to it. On one of her essays she talks about people being the "age they fell" and not "the age they are" and she made me laugh when she stated “If I’m ninety and believe I’m forty-five, I’m headed for a very bad time trying to get out of the bathtub." I suppose I enjoy these essays as they give me a better understanding of my grandmothers and their ageing process, and how, no matter how young they feel, their bodies won't conform to it.
I enjoyed immensely these essays and would recommend them to anyone, even if you have never read Le Guin before as I think they are a beautiful insight into the author's mind.

 Cat

Known bookaholic with a bit of a book hoarding issue. Cat loves books and everything that's related to them. She has a personal GoodReads account and she believes the world is a better place for it (AKA no more repeated books from relatives as gifts!). She now lives in the UK and can often be found anywhere books are sold.

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Review: Hortense and the Shadow by Natalia O'Hara and Lauren O'Hara

Hortense and the Shadow 
by Natalia O'Hara and Lauren O'Hara
Publisher: Penguin Random House UK Children’s
Released on: 

Synopsis:

A haunting, original fairy tale from two dazzling debut picture book talents, in the spirit of Neil Gaiman and Carson Ellis. 

Hortense is a kind and brave girl, but she is sad--even angry--that her shadow follows her everywhere she goes. She hates her shadow, and thinks her shadow must hate her too. But one cold, dark night, when bandits surprise her in the woods, Hortense discovers that her shadow is the very thing she needs most.

This stunningly illustrated story stirs the soul with its compelling, subtle exploration of self-esteem, self-identity, and finding inner strength.

Rating: 4/5 stars

Review:

I received this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Natalia and Lauren O'Hara are two sisters who love fairy tales and that sent out to write their own. Hortense is their first picture book and if it is a taste of what's to come then we are in for a treat.

Hortense's story is everything a fairy tale should be; here we have a little girl who lives in the woods and gets along with every animal and plant. She is not afraid of wolves or even of the darkness of the night, what Hortense fears the most is her shadow.

No matter what she does or where she tries to hide Hortense's shadow follows her everywhere and maybe that's not necessarily a bad thing as our heroine is set to find out.

This is not so much a story about facing your fears as it is a story of acceptance. Hortense hates her shadow because "Everywhere she went, it went. Everything she did, it did. And every time night fell it grew, tall and dark and crooked.". The Shadow is part of Hortense, even if she doesn't want to admit it and it's important that our heroine understands that and learns to live with her. And the story gets the point across in a delicate and beautiful manner. 

I have to admit that I did congratulate the publisher on their choice for the illustration. Lately when checking the children section I see more and more illustration that seem like a variation of Quentin Blake's and  Tony Ross's (that already look a lot like Quentin Blake's in my opinion!) which only blends the books into one big collection. And makes Christmas shopping a nightmare for adults who don't know exactly what their children want to read.

Hortense's illustrations are different. They are whimsical, they certainly do not look like Quentin Blake (please be assure I have nothing against his illustrations!), which automatically sets this book apart. These are a different type of drawing and the colour pallet used is soft and snowy, just like the woods where our heroine lives.

For me it's important to fall in love with the pictures in a picture book as they set the mood for the story. And these illustrations achieve just that!

Beautifully and whimsicaly illustrated this is a cute and short fairy tale with a very important message. 

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Opinião: A Ilha das Quatro Estações, de Marta Coelho

A Ilha das Quatro Estações

de  Marta Coelho
 

Edição/reimpressão: 2017
Páginas: 424

Editor: Clube do Autor

  

Sinopse: 

Aqui não são permitidos telemóveis, computadores nem tablets. Só te resta viver. Onde todos os sonhos são possíveis.
Este é o livro com que todos os jovens se conseguem identificar, uma história atual e relevante sobre os receios, as paixões, as fragilidades e a força de quatro jovens à procura de um novo rumo.
Cat sentia-se sem rumo e não queria ver ninguém.
Tiago só desejava poder voltar a viver como antes.
Misha isolara-se do mundo à sua volta.
Rute precisava de vencer uma batalha muito dolorosa.
Os seus caminhos cruzam-se na ilha e, juntos, preparam-se para enfrentar os seus demónios pessoais. Mas há quem tenha outros planos para eles… Será que a tua vida pode mudar quando tudo parece correr mal?

Rating: 2,75/5

Comentário: "A Ilha das Quatro Estações" foi lido durante o verão, em plena época de praia e calor, como a capa do livro aludia. Esta sinopse prometia, especialmente porque criava uma aura de mistério, um livro de acção, descoberta, e muitos segredos para ser desvendados.
O que me seduziu foi o contexto e ambiente do livro. A ilha isolada, como "centro de recolha" de adolescentes com vidas ou passados problemáticos, a proibição de contacto com o mundo exterior, o desafio de serem colocados à prova perante os seus temores individuais... Passada a leitura, esta ilha continua a parecer-me interessante, mas muito pouco explorada. O facto de turistas circularem pelo mesmo espaço dos jovens e de não se aprofundar o funcionamento do programa e a assimilação da presença de dois públicos separados (para além de uma explicação relativamente às tarefas diárias dos participantes) soou-me a pouco.
As personagens são engraçadas, e apreciei o facto de serem abordados temas tão diferentes como a perda, a violência doméstica, a depressão e o stress pós-traumático. Ainda assim, acho que qualquer uma destas valências merecia um maior destaque em detrimento do romance, que acabou por ocupar um espaço excessivo no enredo, pelo menos ao nível da sua representação.
Algumas das relações com as personagens secundárias pareceram-me um pouco inverosímeis, e apesar das interacções daí resultantes contribuírem para o desfecho (que de alguma forma, já esperava mas fiquei satisfeita por ver acontecer) senti-as um pouco montadas sem grande estrutura.
Este grupo de adolescente ganha por não funcionar segundo uma tipologia padrão, com espaço para definirem características individuais e crescerem à medida que as páginas vão avançando, e espera-se que o próximo livro lhes fala jus e ajude a delimitar ainda mais a sua individualidade.
Por fim, não deixa de ser um livro leve e que se lê rapidamente, com potencial de entretenimento. Infelizmente não me senti rendida a 100%, porque procurava algo diferente (isso ou cada vez mais não me encaixo neste discurso adolescente). Ainda assim, julgo que Marta Coelho venha a gastar espaço no género Young-Adult em Portugal e vejo-a a encaixar-se num registo que siga a minha linha da Maria Teresa Maia Gonzalez, embora com uma abordagem mais leve.

 

Cláudia

Sobre a autora:
 

Maratonista de bibliotecas, a Cláudia lê nos transportes públicos enquanto observa o Mundo pelo canto do olho. Defensora da sustentabilidade e do voluntariado, é tão fácil encontrá-la envolvida num novo projeto como a tagarelar sobre tudo e mais alguma coisa. É uma sonhadora e gosta de boas histórias, procurando-as em cada experiência que vive.

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