It's been many months since I've written book reviews, so here's a little catch on the past YEAR in no particular order!
The Hip Chick's Guide to Macrobiotics by Jessica Porter
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I wasn't totally ready for all of this, but I was curious to learn more about Macrobiotics. My biggest takeaway was to chew food more thoroughly in order to help experience the food on a fuller level as more flavor is released the more you chew. It also helps you feel less tired, since by the time you swallow, the food is thoroughly broken down leaving your body with less work to do. I wouldn't mind revisiting the book again and possibly gleaning more valuable information from it.
The Future of Us by Jay Asher
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Bear in mind, this is a book for Young Adults, teens, it's not going to be deep or overly involved and there's going to be an element of sappiness. That said, I thought it was a great read. The year was 1996, Emma and Josh are Juniors in High School (just like I was in 1996!). Emma's dad just bought her a new computer as a parting gift before leaving with his new family for Florida. Emma's neighbor and lifelong friend Josh keeps getting the AOL cds in the mail so he thought he'd bring it over to Emma, the only person he knew with a personal computer. (Remember those days?) Emma endures dial-up and upon loading discovers something called Facebook. She realizes she is seeing herself 15 years in the future. She pulls Josh in to make sense of this, and as the days move on they realize all of their actions, no matter how minor, cause a ripple in their future. Emma is not happy with the future she sees, but Josh is thrilled so he doesn't want anything to change.
The book was a nice throwback to that time since I could completely relate to the cultural references. Although the author gives the "rich girl" Sydney a pocket cell phone, and NO ONE in 1996 had a cell phone, but I had to remind myself it was a work of fiction. I also found it interesting to think about if our future was laid out for us, how would that change our current actions? I can say with certainty if I knew in high school where I would be today I would have been much more confident! But would that have then changed where I am today? HMMM, deep thoughts. A quick and light read, worth checking out.
The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon by David Grann
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Fascinating story within a story. An explorer went missing in the 1920's along with his son and son's friend. Dozens of people have tried to find him, and disappeared in the process. Hundreds have disappeared while looking for the explorer and/or the Lost City of Z, a fabled, yet not documented civilization along the Amazon. An English reporter, not the explorer type, David Grann, becomes obsessed with the story and decides to set out himself, despite the mortal track record of his predecessors.
This book was a great change of pace and both adventurous and fascinating, as tales of surviving along the Amazon are not mainstream.
The Secret Lives of Wives: Women Share What It Really Takes to Stay Married by Iris Krasnow
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This was a fun audiobook. Light yet insightful, it gets you thinking about the meaning of the commitment and we should not be too quick to judge the relationships or motivations of others.
In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin by Erik Larson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
This book was fascinating and riveting, for the first half. Then it lost steam, and I reached my saturation point and gave up after about 70% completion. It was powerful and insightful to hear about the climate in German during Hitler's rise in power, a period I knew nothing about.
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
I twice picked up this book, read for three weeks, let it expire before finishing. Obviously not enough of a page-turner for me to complete so I won't try again (but it has cute potential!).
Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I'm not sure how I feel about this book, but then again, I am not the target audience. It's a juvenile fiction read, and the author wanted to raise awareness about suicide. I can see it leading to some interesting classroom discussions, but the explicit content may be too prohibitive. Nearly the entire time I was reading it, I was annoyed at Hannah Baker's "reasons" for committing suicide. I wanted to finish the book to see if there was any true catastrophe, but they never came and maybe that's the point. Sure she had a crappy week with several very crappy things happen. Hannah references her former reputation but the reader never learns any more about it. Hannah's parents' involvement in her life is a not emphasized, nor is her school activities. Maybe these omissions lead to more mass appeal and relatability.
The format of the book is its most appeal attribute. The book goes back and forth between 7 cassette tapes in which Hannah explains all of the events that lead to her own suicide, and Clay's experience listening to the tapes. Clay was in love with Hannah, and could not figure out how he fit in, but was terrified to find out. Ultimately Clay learns to be more responsive to cues which he uses in the last paragraph of the book. People tried to help but not aggressively enough, and her downfall was sudden and subtle. I would recommend this book for any one with teenagers, anyone who is a teenager or works with teens. I felt, Reconstructing Amelia, was better at describing bullying of teens and harassment.
View all my reviews
The Hip Chick's Guide to Macrobiotics by Jessica PorterMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
I wasn't totally ready for all of this, but I was curious to learn more about Macrobiotics. My biggest takeaway was to chew food more thoroughly in order to help experience the food on a fuller level as more flavor is released the more you chew. It also helps you feel less tired, since by the time you swallow, the food is thoroughly broken down leaving your body with less work to do. I wouldn't mind revisiting the book again and possibly gleaning more valuable information from it.
The Future of Us by Jay AsherMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Bear in mind, this is a book for Young Adults, teens, it's not going to be deep or overly involved and there's going to be an element of sappiness. That said, I thought it was a great read. The year was 1996, Emma and Josh are Juniors in High School (just like I was in 1996!). Emma's dad just bought her a new computer as a parting gift before leaving with his new family for Florida. Emma's neighbor and lifelong friend Josh keeps getting the AOL cds in the mail so he thought he'd bring it over to Emma, the only person he knew with a personal computer. (Remember those days?) Emma endures dial-up and upon loading discovers something called Facebook. She realizes she is seeing herself 15 years in the future. She pulls Josh in to make sense of this, and as the days move on they realize all of their actions, no matter how minor, cause a ripple in their future. Emma is not happy with the future she sees, but Josh is thrilled so he doesn't want anything to change.
The book was a nice throwback to that time since I could completely relate to the cultural references. Although the author gives the "rich girl" Sydney a pocket cell phone, and NO ONE in 1996 had a cell phone, but I had to remind myself it was a work of fiction. I also found it interesting to think about if our future was laid out for us, how would that change our current actions? I can say with certainty if I knew in high school where I would be today I would have been much more confident! But would that have then changed where I am today? HMMM, deep thoughts. A quick and light read, worth checking out.
The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon by David GrannMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Fascinating story within a story. An explorer went missing in the 1920's along with his son and son's friend. Dozens of people have tried to find him, and disappeared in the process. Hundreds have disappeared while looking for the explorer and/or the Lost City of Z, a fabled, yet not documented civilization along the Amazon. An English reporter, not the explorer type, David Grann, becomes obsessed with the story and decides to set out himself, despite the mortal track record of his predecessors.
This book was a great change of pace and both adventurous and fascinating, as tales of surviving along the Amazon are not mainstream.
The Secret Lives of Wives: Women Share What It Really Takes to Stay Married by Iris KrasnowMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
This was a fun audiobook. Light yet insightful, it gets you thinking about the meaning of the commitment and we should not be too quick to judge the relationships or motivations of others.
In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin by Erik LarsonMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
This book was fascinating and riveting, for the first half. Then it lost steam, and I reached my saturation point and gave up after about 70% completion. It was powerful and insightful to hear about the climate in German during Hitler's rise in power, a period I knew nothing about.
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel JoyceMy rating: 2 of 5 stars
I twice picked up this book, read for three weeks, let it expire before finishing. Obviously not enough of a page-turner for me to complete so I won't try again (but it has cute potential!).
Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay AsherMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
I'm not sure how I feel about this book, but then again, I am not the target audience. It's a juvenile fiction read, and the author wanted to raise awareness about suicide. I can see it leading to some interesting classroom discussions, but the explicit content may be too prohibitive. Nearly the entire time I was reading it, I was annoyed at Hannah Baker's "reasons" for committing suicide. I wanted to finish the book to see if there was any true catastrophe, but they never came and maybe that's the point. Sure she had a crappy week with several very crappy things happen. Hannah references her former reputation but the reader never learns any more about it. Hannah's parents' involvement in her life is a not emphasized, nor is her school activities. Maybe these omissions lead to more mass appeal and relatability.
The format of the book is its most appeal attribute. The book goes back and forth between 7 cassette tapes in which Hannah explains all of the events that lead to her own suicide, and Clay's experience listening to the tapes. Clay was in love with Hannah, and could not figure out how he fit in, but was terrified to find out. Ultimately Clay learns to be more responsive to cues which he uses in the last paragraph of the book. People tried to help but not aggressively enough, and her downfall was sudden and subtle. I would recommend this book for any one with teenagers, anyone who is a teenager or works with teens. I felt, Reconstructing Amelia, was better at describing bullying of teens and harassment.
View all my reviews
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