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greeshma ☀️ | bookstagram

@ifiweresummer

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20+ book recommendations for “she’s got a book for every situation…” because i think i really have a recommendation for every situation out there, this was so fun to make and to go back and revisit what fits the theme and analyze the similarities between my favorite reads!

a quick reading update, halfway through pachinko by min jin lee, and i’m surprised i let it sit on my tbr for over half a decade because i genuinely do get the hype now, it is a multigenerational saga that follows one woman’s journey across countries battling one tragedy after another and i’ve gone down the rabbit hole more than once to fact check and it’s been such a rewarding experience so far, will keep you posted as i make my way through the rest.

what have you been reading? and if you have read any of these titles, feel free to dm so we can yap and i hope you’re all having an amazing weekend~

happy reading,
love, g! 💌 by @ifiweresummer

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a day ago

strange girls, sarvat hasin // everything i loved about this book, notes on why i love reading

- an all-consuming friendship where you can’t decide if they’re just friends or lovers

- they love each other but they’re also terrible at communicating it so they make each other miserable instead

- great characters that are really imperfect, and selfish, and ambitious while also being so annoying and dumb in the hyper-realistic way of college students being college students

- conversations that traverse the realms of art, writing and identity, culture and the limits of it and the ultimate foreign experience looking to belong somewhere, to someone

- and strange, strange girls

this is by no means perfect, i’ve heard people say this dragged in the middle, or they found the prose meandering but well, that’s not me, that wasn’t my experience and i can’t warrant that you’ll feel the same way i do—

but isn’t that the absolute beautiful thing about reading something? that you get to make your own interpretations, you build your own experiences and ultimately see things in a work, that someone else might not, isn’t that what makes reading or consuming media so special, that something about it, speaks only to you and you can only wish that someone else might experience it the same way you did, so i say, take your chance, your next best read is probably just around the corner!

happy reading,
love, g! by @ifiweresummer

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3 days ago

book recommendations for the overstimulated and anxious crowd *sigh

i’m overstimulated… more often than not these days, the ample number of avenues available to me to consume all kinds of media kinda makes it overwhelming and doesn’t help with my very sensitive and anxious nervous system

i zone out, or end up doomscrolling which makes me hate myself and only adds to my growing anxiety that i’m throwing away my days doing absolutely nothing and then i spiral some more and end up doing more-of-nothing for the day

yikes!

but you know what does help, reading, rewatching, journaling— focusing on tasks by breaking them into bite sized pieces, to read books that are slow, that explore the mundane with the kind of appreciation that is calming, to consume media that isn’t making my system race— so i’ve compiled a small list of book recommendations that does just that, tailoring a similar movie recommendations list as we speak but until then~

if you have more recommendations along the same vein, do your girl a favor and send them my way! 🫶🏼✨ by @ifiweresummer

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5 days ago

sigrid nunez came out of nowhere, like a thunder that appears out of the blue startling you, it swept the rug off from under my feet— i mean that in the best way possible— the friend revolves around a writer who’s just lost her closest friend, but in reality he was always more and that intimacy that comes with decades long friendship has more or less affected other parts of her life, now she’s grieving for a friend like a wife should and is burdened with the unwanted dog he left behind in her care without even consulting her once on the matter (that should explain their entire dynamic)

nunez understands the depth of human and canine compassion to such lengths that every scene shared between them was a masterclass in empathy that we extend to the one who’s grieving, we see the relationship between the writer and her grieving canine companion developing alongside the narrative of how the writer and her friend spent decades orbiting around each other in the “will they, won’t they” fashion

nunez also sprinkles in commentary on age old equality dynamics and the plight of being a writer, with the kind of insight that is startling, thought provoking and touching at the same time and i’m eager to dive into more of her works to experience this magic time and time again~ by @ifiweresummer

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13 days ago

this week’s overthinking is sponsored to you by… my overburdened gallery! by @ifiweresummer

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22 days ago

end of august // lattes, golden croissants, & slow reading for me please

phew. that was one hell of a month.

currently reading the possessed by witold gombrowicz, and it’s such a welcome surprise, i’m not a big fan of gothic literature because despite the strong background it’s set in, they tend to somehow let me down by the end, either the plot regresses too dependent on the setting alone or there is a lack of character consistency, but somehow this is standing tall on all fronts (so far) and kudos to @fitzcarraldoeditions for their stellar collection

also finished strange girls by sarvat hasin, and i need more books that talk about all-consuming and obsessive female friendships where you can’t tell if they’re just friends or lovers — give me more of whatever this is, i need more recommendations (!!!)

and as i was drafting this post, i’ve realised it’s been a minute since i last did a monthly wrap-up

so funny, because despite my problematic spending habits and my utter lack of discipline when i step into a bookstore, i’ve finished 18 books since the end of april

*insert drumroll*

💌 so here’s everything i read (& rated):

sula, toni morisson (5)
yesteryear, caro claire burke (4.5)
strange girls, sarvat hasin (4.5)
katalin street, magda szabo (5)
luster, raven leilani (4.5)
the days of abandonment, elena ferrante (5)
the pachinko parlor, elisa shua dusapin (4)
the wedding people, alison espach (4)
mrs.palfrey at the claremont, elizabeth taylor (4.5)
the friend, sigrid nunez (4.5)
almond, sohn won-pyung (4)
the secret history, donna tartt (3)
a kingdom of dreams, judith mcnaught (4)
paradise, judith mcnaught (4)
lord of scoundrels, loretta chase (3)
the apothecary diaries (volume 1-3), natsu hyuuga (3.75)

pardon my messy bookshelf, i’ve limited space and i’m running out of it (this is a plea for help)

happy reading,
(with a promise of being consistent)
love g! by @ifiweresummer

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25 days ago

kinda chic to be perpetually late to trends by @ifiweresummer

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a month ago

part 3 of that “a decision i’m not proud of” post but make it non-fiction

disclaimer: all of these books are not bought at once, this was 6 months in the making (or about) — also do not recommend having a truck load of reads to pick from at your disposal because you’ll get no reading done this way (from experience, the too-many-options-confusion is very real)

reading update: since the last time i gave you an update, i’ve finished 3 books after the days of abandonment by elena ferrante which only cemented my faith in her, ferrante is a force of nature and you can’t tell me otherwise

~ secret history, donna tartt: disappointed, the start was so strong, only for it come crashing in the second half with bouts of too much information and needless conversations, *sigh this was a letdown
~ mrs. palfrey at the claremont: such a welcome surprise, a fun premise, narrated through a cast of eccentric characters that are old, senile, but still child-like in their mentalities, made it even more interesting— highly highly recommend!
~ yesteryear, caro claire burke: wow, wow, i definitely fall into the category of people that adored this and devoured it in under 2 days because i can’t remember the last time i’ve sped through a book like this, contemporary litfics with questionable female protagonists are so back, and i’m sat for it!

happy reading,
love, g! by @ifiweresummer

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a month ago

i hate your taste in books— i don’t care 💌

jumping onto a fun trend i’ve been meaning to do since forever, this was so fun if for no other reason than the fact that i got to see my reading tastes change and evolve from what they once were, to sit back and think if i’d still give some of these the same ratings as i once did *sigh it took some time to get here truly (and i know for a fact that i’ve most definitely forgotten some books, i can atleast think of 3 from the top of my head)

i hope you’re reading, because i’m, like crazy— and if you aren’t, i hope you’re atleast taking your current read everywhere because the security of that decision irrespective of if you have the time to read or not will make all the difference— trust me!

happy reading—
find sometime to look back on your tastes,
it’s fun i promise, &
it’s been a while
so let’s catch up soon—
love, g! by @ifiweresummer

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2 months ago

half a year, a stack of books, and far too many characters who now live rent-free in my head, *drumroll* presenting you my favorite reads of ‘26 (so far) by @ifiweresummer

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2 months ago

here’s the part 2 of that “decision I’m not proud of 🍃” i’ve posted last week!

count on me to always make questionable choices but what was i to do with my internship stipend if not celebrate the end of my internship by buying more books, which is precisely my second favorite thing to do after reading!

also, a huge huge thanks to @luna_thebookstore for procuring books and boasting such a wonderful collection of reads— because really, what would i even do without them? by @ifiweresummer

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3 months ago

july 1-9 // current read, trekking, ft. a note on the privilege of monsoon and being indoors

i’m being swallowed by ferrante’s prose, i’m reading “the days of abandonment” with the kind of feverish rush, that it’s a miracle i’m only a halfway through, i think it’s because i stop and reread passages once twice thrice until my eyes begin to blur, this obsession i’ve with her is all encompassing and really just an abundance of faith because she delivers, all the time, this book is only a reminder that i got to go back and finish the neapolitan quartet

spent a weekend trekking in the woods, yes yes, on my own accord and survived the endeavor too, touched some grass, admired the mountains from afar, and decided to never venture that far into the woods again, amen

summers in india are terrible, so the wait for monsoon has been a heavy weight to carry around, sleepless nights in the hostel because of the sticky heat and the humidity when you’re on the coast is another hell to deal with, so now that monsoon is here, the angry showers are welcome, and i know i’m speaking from a place of privilege, and i’m terribly sorry for everyone that lacks the resources to experience rain as relief instead of a living nightmare; for so many people, it arrives carrying flooded homes, impossible commutes, and another season of uncertainty, and i know its easier to romanticize rain when you know you’ll return to a dry room, clean clothes, and electricity that stays on

these past few days have been made of books, long walks between lectures with an umbrella that’s almost always useless against the sideways rain, cups of hot beverage that somehow tastes better when your hands are cold, and i’m trying to hold on to these small, ordinary joys without forgetting that they are, in many ways, afforded to me, perhaps that’s what this week has been about more than anything else, recognizing that comfort is rarely universal, and that gratitude becomes more honest when it makes room for that truth~

love, g! by @ifiweresummer

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3 months ago