Eros, Philia, Agape by Rachel Swirsky


Title: Eros, Philia, Agape
Author: Rachel Swirsky

Genre: Fiction

Love/Hate?: Love times infinity
Rating: 5/5
Did you finish?: Finished, reread, finished again!

One-sentence summary: Poignant break up of a marriage. (Ha, that's my sneaky summary.)

Why did you get this book?: Free sample from the Sony eReader store

Do you like the cover?: N/A

First line from book: Lucian packed his possessions before he left.

Review: Oh.My.God. I didn't know what to expect from this short piece of fiction but wow -- what I got just blew me away. In just a brief number of pages (31 on my eReader), Swirsky created a story that touched upon so many themes: marriage, abuse, heartbreak, parenthood, AI, soul ... Her writing is so readable, one just inhales the pages, and then suddenly, I was at the end, very nearly screaming for the story to go on. No wonder this was a Hugo and Locus finalist. So good.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Mailbox Monday, Feb 6

Image
Seen both at Mailbox Monday -- hosted in February at Metro Reader -- and The Story Siren, my Mailbox Monday/In My Mailbox. What an insane week! And by insane, I mean, amazing. This might win for the most arrivals in a week since I've started blogging. Honestly, my jaw is on the ground -- I'm blown away and super excited to read all these. What did you get this week? Read any of these?


For Review






No One is Here Except All of Us by Ramona Ausubel
Forgotten Country by Catherine Chung
West of Here by Jonathan Evison
The Gods of Gotham by Lyndsay Faye
Poor Richard's Lament: A Most Timely Tale by Tom Fitzgerald
Until the Next Time by Kevin Fox
Heading Out to Wonderful by Robert Goolrick
Enchantments by Kathryn Harrison
Blue Asylum by Kathy Hepinstall
A Lady Cyclist's Guide to Kashgar: A Novel by Suzanne Joinson
All Woman and Springtime by Brandon Jones
The Red Book by Deborah Copaken Kogan
The Coincidence Engine by Sam Leith
The Lola Quartet by Emily St. John Mandel
The Siste…
Read more

Mailbox Monday, May 21

Image
May's Mailbox Monday is hosted at Martha’s Bookshelf. I think this week I got the most books ever in a week and I'm flabbergasted. My picture of the stack doesn't even include all the e-ARCs, obviously -- what a week! I feel like a kid at Christmas -- just giddy with delight. I don't even know where to start! What did you get this week? Read any of these? As usual, click a cover to learn more about the book (link will open in a new tab/window). Do you still like this format or is it getting too image heavy? Should I switch back to the list?


For Review








Read more

When We Danced on Water by Evan Fallenberg

Image
Title:When We Danced on Water
Author: Evan Fallenberg

Genre: Fiction (Israeli / Contemporary / Historical - WWII)
Publisher/Publication Date: Harper Perennial (6/2011)
Source:TLC Book Tours

Rating: Liked immensely. Intensely.
Did I finish?: YES, in less than one day - Monday morning to Monday night.
One-sentence summary: Teo, an eighty-five year old ballet dancer, is inspired to find passion - and some lost memories of his youth - upon meeting a lovely 40-year waitress in Tel Aviv.
Reading Challenges:Eastern European, Historical Fiction

Do I like the cover?: Yes - it has this bittersweet feel that is very reminiscent of the novel's tone and matches one of the key settings of the story.

I'm reminded of...: Michael Ondaatje

First line: He said, "Where's Rona."

Do... I think this book would be perfect for book groups?: YES. It's slim and a quick, beautiful read, but covers great topics like obsession versus passion, commitment to art, and the thin line between public/pr…
Read more

Weekend reads, and my fourth anniversary

Image
Today is my 4th blogiversary!

And as it turns out, I'll be also going into my 10th year tracking what I've read. (From 2004 through 2009, I tracked in a notebook then transferred to a private livejournal account. January 3, 2010, I posted my first review here!)

I went from having read 46 books in 2004, to a lifetime low of 4 books read in 2008 (that was the year I got married -- I was very preoccupied!), to reading over 100 books yearly since 2011.

Having this blog has been a wonderful gift: it's been a delight meeting so many interesting and passionate readers, and I've been introduced to authors and genres I would never have discovered on my own. I'm grateful for all of you-- thank you for making my life richer and more interesting!

This weekend I will be digging myself (and that red car!) from New England's first blizzard/nor'easter.  Other than that, however, I'll be continuing my reading streak -- finishing up Linda Bamber's Taking What I…
Read more