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chapter 15: logging this because this chapter made my jaw literally drop at that sudden anachronism - so beautiful, unexpected, devastating, and hopeful all at the same time. a reminder of how good literature can feel like a punch to the gut. manila, i love you already, always have, and nolledo makes me love you more.

i normally never use this function but this tome is the biggest literary undertaking i've taken on in years. luckily for me, this book is so incredibly immersive and beautiful and alive

i can't believe how much more i'm enjoying this as a reread (and i already quite adored it the first time)

barely started my reread but my heart is already aching. goD these books changed me, left me with a kingdom-sized hole in my heart. i'm still bitter so few people read this !!!

slavery is wrong, period. i have yet to see anyone contest that. but i simply can't stand self-righteous westerners talking over us about an issue that is, at its core, about filipinos and our relationship with u.s. imperialism! i had some us american "explain" my native language to me lol. do these western liberals not realize how much they sound like they're gonna pull out the manifest destiny on us any minute now?

i wanted to finish it in time for the anniversary (today!) but all the interviews are so heavy that i can only manage a handful of pages every sitting.

lbr no one will ever codeswitch like that in the presence of a non-speaker but i am thoroughly enjoying thinking i'm fluent when i understand a string of italian words lol (i am most decidedly not)

this is so much fun omg? their dynamic is so reminiscent of amy/dan from veep!!! and the whole quirky farmer parents thing is too relatable sigh

One of my fave things about these books is the recurring characters (the gaffer, the pathologist, the tech, etc.). It's a pretty subtle detail but it's so great that despite their different reception to each protag, they remain true to their character every time. 10/10 world and character building tbh.

i'm listening to the audiobook and listening to an irish narrator makes for such a fun experience lol. also, i really adore stephen, antoinette and their partnership. kind of a more realistic and far likeable rob-and-cassie thing they got going on in there

I'm gonna go ahead with this over All the Light We Cannot See because while the writing in the latter is breathtaking, I need something fast-paced and Saigon has a special place in my heart so,

i find that maggie nelson and i share, i dunno, the same thought patterns. this is pretty short but it's taking me so long, partly because i want to savor it, but also because i find it so raw that it gets too heavy to read more than a few pages in one sitting.

not really feeling rob as a narrator, which is odd, as he's quite interesting but he just doesn't have the emotional gravity and realism the others did? he feels so... detached. maybe this is on purpose. and maybe i feel this way because i just found out frank mackey (my fave tana french character!!!) is in the second book which i am now itching to get my hands on

it's hilarious to me how obviously in love tana french is with donna tartt's "the secret history" when she wrote this lmfao

i've only read the secret place prior to this and while i loved the dynamics explored there (boarding school friendships + detective partnerships!!!), i am the BIGGEST sucker for dysfunctional sibling dynamics. if this keeps up i'll be sobbing through the entire book, i bet.

this is... really something, imo

i'm crying, this is Far Too Much. i just want all of them to be happy @god

"canicula di anna" feels tailor-made for me ugh anne carson, you are absolutely brilliant

i'm unable to go through a sitting without crying, is this normal y/n?

i'm unable to go through a sitting without crying, is this normal y/n?

getting tons of the goldfinch vibes from this

this is actually proving to be a tough read for me? these men are like heroes to me and reading from the pov of their kids and hearing that they weren't the best dads is... jarring to hear. certainly humanizing but i guess it's hard to take in that they understand and accept them when i myself haven't made peace with my daddy issues yet l o l

i love my boys so much......currahee.......

i love my boys so much......currahee.......

lmao @ web going on about finding hitler's liquor collection disappointing and mediocre but unbeknownst to him it's only because nix got to it first lmfao look at these ivy league-educated self-proclaimed wine connoisseurs