This one was fascinating and very engaging to me. It was quite in depth, but I can understand how the author felt invested in her research and probablThis one was fascinating and very engaging to me. It was quite in depth, but I can understand how the author felt invested in her research and probably hated to pare down. I also loved the premise for why Worsley chose to write this book--she worked at Kensington Palace and passed these portraits of people from the Georgian Court (both royalty and servants) and wanted to know who they were. So she found out! It's the kind of thing I'd love to do myself, and the book she turned out shows both her skill as a researcher and as a writer. I've been surprised since reading this book at how many pieces of knowledge gained from it have come up. It's a great introduction to the time period (one I wasn't super familiar with) in addition to the royalty. Anyway, if you have any interest in the life and times of English royalty, or just like getting a sneak peek into a very different way of life, you'll enjoy this book....more
I loved this book. The author has had many unique experiences that are well told under the theme of "brushes with death." The title and the first storI loved this book. The author has had many unique experiences that are well told under the theme of "brushes with death." The title and the first story definitely gave the impression that the author nearly DIED or should have died seventeen different times. That's crazy! And as it turns out, while she can legitimately claim more than a couple of experiences that could have easily resulted in her death, most of the stories are not that. I did have fun mentally chronicling my own "brushes with death," though. Like, "Someone I know has a severe peanut allergy, and if I had a severe peanut allergy, this peanut butter sandwich could have KILLED me!" Some of them were a bit of a stretch, but her writing was excellent and compelling to read, so I'll forgive the couple of chapters that were definitely more "brush" than "death." On a separate note, I thought her description of miscarriage was one of the best I've ever read. ...more
This book should be required reading for any BYU student. Also, I recommended it not because of the writing (which was painful to read at times, and nThis book should be required reading for any BYU student. Also, I recommended it not because of the writing (which was painful to read at times, and needed additional editing both for prose and grammar) but because of the content. The authors put in some work to compile these stories from various sources and original documents. I think any LDS young people in the "courting" stage of life would benefit from reading this book because, holy cow, these are not picture perfect courtships! A surprising number of modern-day prophets had courtships that were frustrating, confusing, demoralizing, and (occasionally) depressing. A few were nice and simple, but for the most part, they seemed to struggle (on both sides) with the same spiritual and emotional uncertainties that I feel like most sensible people are weighted with when trying to make that ETERNALLY significant decision of whom to marry. A few of them were truly shocking in how long they stuck with (what I would have considered to be) a doomed courtship. So, I think it would give dating-age people some hope that things needn't progress perfectly in order to end up with a happy marriage. I also recommend reading this to anyone else because it's pretty interesting and a quick read....more
First: the title. What a dumb title, right? NO! It was explained (late in the game) as an Aluetian saying meaning hard times, uncomfortable things (thFirst: the title. What a dumb title, right? NO! It was explained (late in the game) as an Aluetian saying meaning hard times, uncomfortable things (the wind) don't flow continually like a river. They come and then they stop. The hard times won't last forever. It's a beautifully expressed thought and also an appropriate title for the book. This book earned a rare 5 stars from me because it truly met my stringent standards for a 5-star book: I was entertained, I was educated, and I was moved. The story was compelling, both happy and terrifying, and the ending was one of the rare type where I didn't hate the author for disappointing me because I felt like it wasn't their fault. Like, sometimes that's how life happens, and in this case, that's how it happened. There was a silver lining. I was very intrigued by the history covered regarding the US occupation of the Aluetian islands during WWII. What a neglected area in both our common knowledge and story telling! It was fascinating. This is a great book for...everyone. I think anyone would like this. Highly recommend....more
This book was like a pathogen that took over my brain for the three days it took me to finish it. They were three busy days, so the only time I could This book was like a pathogen that took over my brain for the three days it took me to finish it. They were three busy days, so the only time I could read it was before bed, thus my dreams were full of zombie encounters and my waking thoughts full of anticipation and conjecture. It's good I went into this book completely blind to the topic matter, otherwise I most definitely would have stayed away. I hate horror, don't particularly like zombies or apocalyptic subject matter, so based solely on the summary, I would have labeled this book "Not For Me." But the writing, and the characters! I truly truly loved the first quarter of the book. It was such a tantalizing mystery (again, since I didn't know the premise going into it) and to get to follow Melanie on this journey of self-discovery (and what a self to discover) was so fascinating. Obviously there's some suspension of disbelief with this kind of thing, but I thought the author did a pretty good job of making the whole scenario seem as realistic as possible. Like yeah, maybe this COULD happen, and if it did, what would it be like? It was very interesting. I did not love the last third of the book. Maybe that's because it was 2:00 am and I was super tired and just trying to get done with it so I could bid farewell to my zombie dreams, but it was both sad, predictable, and depressing. I mean, you don't think this kind of thing is going to end well, but you HOPE it will, or why keep reading? I guess bittersweet is the more appropriate description of the ending, but from the human point of view? Definitely depressing. The one thing I liked about it is that no one in the story was really right or wrong. Everyone was a bad guy by turns and everyone was following their own interests (or what they thought to be the "right thing") with a firm belief that the means they were using were justified by the ends. It was a good reminder that you should consider the ramifications of your actions, even if you think you're doing the right thing. Anyway, I put this on my "Danielle Recommends" shelf, but I do so with some qualifiers. If you like a good adventure story, and don't mind a little language and violence, you'll probably like this. If you're a writer and want a good example of changing POVs and how to keep the story moving, this is also a good way to spend your time. I don't regret reading it, but it lacks the full five stars because I don't think it left me particularly uplifted. ...more
First off, major kudos to Vawter for writing a phenomenal book for young male readers. There aren't many out there, and this one sets a gold standard.First off, major kudos to Vawter for writing a phenomenal book for young male readers. There aren't many out there, and this one sets a gold standard. That being said, this is a great book for all readers. I had a hard time putting it down, and have thought back to it frequently; a true mark of a five-star book. There were so many things I loved about this book, but here are just a few: 1. Little Man. Watching him grow up over the summer incited a parental pride in the young man he was turning into. 2. The characters. Some of our interactions were so brief, and yet none of them felt shallow, or manufactured or uninteresting. Seriously, how many mentions did Big Sack even get? And yet I feel like I could read a whole book about just him and enjoy it. Rat's mom...I could go on. 3. The writing. I love when a narrative style matches the story perfectly as it does here. Little Man was an incredibly believable and sympathetic narrator. 4. The story. It was honestly the great writing and voice of the narrator that kept me eagerly turning the pages, but this story had the feel of To Kill a Mockingbird where there is drama and plot twists, and never a dull moment. Still, the real stars are the characters and how they make sense of these extraordinary events. 5. The stuttering. Wow. It was so enlightening to get inside the mind of someone with a speech impediment. I think this middle-schooler age group all struggles with feeling deficient or inferior for whatever reason, so this particular problem is just an archetype for whatever makes the reader feel less-than his peers. Such a good lesson in empathy. Also, I appreciated that the stuttering didn't steal the show. I think so many reviewers mention it because it's unique, but it's really not the whole story. Just a little side story of a personal experience with this. When I was a child, I couldn't say my "r" sound. This wasn't a huge deal, and was probably adorable to adults, rather than annoying, like a stutter would be, but still I was self-conscious about it. On the first day of fourth grade, the teacher called us up one by one to sit on a stool in front of the class and answer some questions about ourselves. One of the questions was "What is your favorite color?" I was stewing and stewing about this, waiting for my turn, because my favorite color was burgundy (a popular shade, in the mid 90s) but I knew "buhgundy" would make my classmates laugh, so I tried to come up with a suitable alternative. Maroon was out (mawoon), as was Brick Red (bwick wed), and even plain old red, for the same reason. I can still remember the inner humiliation I felt as I owned "yellow" as my favorite color (in reality, probably my least favorite), simply to avoid the ridicule of my peers. I can only imagine what it would be like to have to make that kind of little soul-searing compromise on a regular basis. 6. Constantine Spiro. I bet he knew a thing or two about being ridiculed by his peers. Anyway, what a great character. I love that he called Victor "Messenger." And of course, who can help feeling an affinity for a fellow bibliophile. I wish everyone appreciated those of us with more robust vocabularies like Victor appreciates Constantine. "Mr. Spiro used words in strange ways but it was easy enough to tell what he was talking about. He made what he said sound important like he was talking to a grown-up." LOL. Very few grown-ups talk like him, but I wish more did. As I said, I could go on about the many things I loved about this book, but the takeaway for you is that you have no excuse for not reading this book. My only disappointment is that my nine-year-old son probably needs to wait a couple of year before reading this in order to avoid the more mature (appropriate for an 11 or 12 year old) content. I'll look forward to sharing it with him....more
This was a sobering book, but definitely worth reading. The author says she primarily wrote this book to be descriptive rather than proscriptive and tThis was a sobering book, but definitely worth reading. The author says she primarily wrote this book to be descriptive rather than proscriptive and that's accurate. It's mostly just descriptions of interviews and experiences with foster children and foster parents (and some social workers) in the New York City foster care system. In the epilogue she talks about how all these social programs (food stamps, foster care, juvenile justice, homelessness, poverty in general) are all interconnected. She talks about how social workers either get burned out and leave (low pay, high stress, long hours) or stay and become hardened and disillusioned. You can't blame them. I felt ready to throw up my hands at the futility of it all after getting to know just a few foster kids in this book. They enter adulthood under educated, unprepared to manage their time or finances, and with lackluster role models at best. The majority end up homeless. It's uncommon to find a case where drug or alcohol addiction isn't a factor. It's just a big web of problems, and even the best of intentions and interventions only seem to be putting a bandaid on a leaking dam. I read this book because I might want to be a foster parent someday, especially to teenagers who have never experienced the stability and unconditional love of a normal family. This book definitely made me think twice about that, although I have some years yet before I'll be in a position to make that decision. On the upside, I'm sure this book made me more sympathetic to people in less fortunate circumstances than myself (the deck really is stacked against them), and made me want to hug my kids a little tighter and be a little more patient. Surely good things....more
A quick, amusing, and often hilarious read. Demetri Martin is perceptive, clever, smart, and silly. I enjoyed this book very much, and was just sad thA quick, amusing, and often hilarious read. Demetri Martin is perceptive, clever, smart, and silly. I enjoyed this book very much, and was just sad that it wasn't longer. BTW, just for fun, try typing in "This is a Book" in the Goodreads search engine, and see what it does with that. You can just see the website thinking "...but they're all books!"...more
I read this with my eight-year-old son, and we both enjoyed it. He really wanted me to give it five stars, so that tells you how much he liked it (a sI read this with my eight-year-old son, and we both enjoyed it. He really wanted me to give it five stars, so that tells you how much he liked it (a serious compliment from a reader who prefers comic books). Piecing together the mystery was a lot of fun, and the new vocabulary and different kinds of correspondence gave us several opportunities for discussion. At the beginning of the book, I commented on how unrealistic it was that there was a fifth grade class with only 7 or 8 students in it. Later on, as we learned more about the history of Dry Creek, Jacob concluded that the reason the class was so small was because everyone had moved away when the spring dried up, so that was probably all the fifth graders left in the whole town. The book never said that, but I thought that was a good connection for him to make. Even if you're not reading this with a child, it was a well done, quick read and would probably be enjoyed by adults as well. We're looking forward to reading the other books in the "Regarding" series....more
When I'm at the library and I haven't prepared by consulting my Goodreads "to read" list, my go-to strategy for finding a book I'll like is to peruse When I'm at the library and I haven't prepared by consulting my Goodreads "to read" list, my go-to strategy for finding a book I'll like is to peruse the "Book Club" section. Having found this one there, I had no foreknowledge or expectations going into it. It was a very quick and enjoyable read. The author's voice was unobtrusive and genuine. I liked the setting of the Depression-era Dust Bowl (call me materialistic, but I was gratified that our protagonist was comparably well off so that we didn't have to feel too discouraged and depressed). The main theme of friendship among women (especially women of such disparate ages) was sweet without being saccharine (probably because the characters and relationships felt real) and I very much enjoyed the "mystery" of the plot that gave me a good excuse to rush to the end. My main (silly) complaint is that the author seemed at odds with herself over revealing information. It's a first-person narrative, and yet our protagonist depicted and described herself in ways that were intentionally meant to lead the reader astray, so that when the truth came out, we were surprised. But, of course, the narrator knew the truth all along, so it was strange for her to respond to information or exchanges the same way the reader would. I understand the bind the author was in, so I can't judge too harshly, but there was more than once that I had to look back and say, "I don't think she really would have said that/acted that way, knowing what she had to have known." Like I said, not really that big of a deal. It was really a fun read and I'm sure would make a great book club choice for a group of close friends....more
I picked this up because it seemed like a catchy title. I did NOT read the plot summary on the back...if I had, I probably wouldn't have read the bookI picked this up because it seemed like a catchy title. I did NOT read the plot summary on the back...if I had, I probably wouldn't have read the book. What I did read was the author bio: "Riley Noehren is the acclaimed author of zero bestselling novels. Gravity vs. the Girl is her first official work of fiction, but she has been lying to herself her entire life. Riley resides in Los Angeles where she enjoys consistent weather." I just loved that, and figured her sense of humor would come through in the book. I was not disappointed, and I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the story, even though I guess technically it was a "romance" or "chick lit" which are normally not my thing. It was not a perfect book, but it was far superior to a lot of the other fiction out there, and I was abundantly grateful to the author for writing a book where each character felt real and believable (again, so uncommon this this genre), the romance was secondary to the main character's journey of redemption and self-discovery, and (most shocking of all) there was no profanity (seriously, zero!) and no sex scenes. I wish all the other authors of contemporary fiction would take note--it can be done, and the book doesn't have to suffer for it. Anyway, I recommend this book to anyone of my demographic. I'm sure you'll enjoy it. I have to include a paragraph that rang so disturbingly true to me, and also made me laugh: "Although you'd never know it from her crazy hair and dated fashion sense, the teenager was a bit of a perfectionist, and perfectionists are ill-suited to managerial positions because they are incapable of delegating to nonperfectionists. Most high school students are nonperfectionists. No two of them will twist a paper streamer the same way. The inconsistency is maddening--some are tightly wound, while others barely twist at al. Roughly eighty percent of a class president's responsibilities involve overseeing the twisting and hanging of paper streamers; the remaining twenty percent is a combination of balloons, shouting, clapping and metal cash boxes."...more
Getting to read this book was serendipitous. It wasn't available from my library (like, the entire Salt Lake County Library system) so I requested it Getting to read this book was serendipitous. It wasn't available from my library (like, the entire Salt Lake County Library system) so I requested it through inter-library loan...and then forgot to pick it up! I was distraught, but refused to request it again, since I'm sure there's some underwriting going on there, and I had squandered my chance. Then, at a fair in another county, my booth was next to the library book sale booth. They had this book for sale for 50 cents! I thought about donating it to my county library when I finished (I don't know that it's still in print) but decided I wanted to keep it. I found this book fascinating. Shirley Temple Black had a very interesting life, and she told her own story well, spending a (mostly) adequate amount of time on the topics she knew would be of the most interest to her readers. There were definitely some gaps where she didn't elaborate as much as she could have, but I guess that's her right when sharing her personal experiences. It was sad to read about her late teen and early adult years when she was really taken advantage of by her parents and husband and didn't seem to know she could stand up for herself. But she definitely found her own person, and became a wonderful adult. I'm happy she got to go on to have a happy life. My daughter did her 3rd grade wax museum as Shirley Temple and it turns out those ringlets make any little girl adorable! (My daughter has always been adorable, but that hair...seriously!). Anyway, if you can find a copy of this book (or borrow mine) I definitely recommend reading it....more
I literally picked this up off the library shelf for the sole reason that the Maeser building at BYU was my favorite building. That's a pretty good reI literally picked this up off the library shelf for the sole reason that the Maeser building at BYU was my favorite building. That's a pretty good reason to read someone's biography, right? As it turns out, I learned SO much about several topics I'm interested in, and I'm sure this book will stay with me for years to come. Maeser was truly an inspiration. He was an intelligent, devoted, humble and loving man, willing to work hard and sacrifice both recognition and monetary recompense for the sake of a cause he believed in. He embodied a style of teaching in which the master makes himself the example for the students to follow. He asks nothing of his students that he isn't willing to do himself. There were so many lessons I learned from this book about how to be a better teacher and about the heavy personal responsibility I bear to fulfil that calling well. I loved reading about Maeser's conversion story in Germany, and the political history lesson I received about German unification (I had no idea about the religious suppression that went on there). It was also a fascinating and in-depth look at Utah politics in the decades leading up to statehood. I was shocked at the level of antagonism that non-members exhibited toward the church, but I was also enlightened by how messy the politics were when it was all mixed up with Brigham Young acting as both a religious and political leader. This was not a quick read (I mostly read it on Sundays, and during the drier parts I might go several weeks without picking it up), but I highly recommend it. This was obviously a labor of love on the part of the author, and yet with so much information and details, I was very impressed with how organized and focused the writing was. Footnotes were very helpful in keeping the story moving. I will never think of Karl G. Maeser (and his beautiful building) without thinking of my mentor in teaching, Jerry Jaccard. I gave him this book as a gift because it felt like every other page was describing him. He, too, inspires his students to carry on as lifelong learners and to teach every subject with love and the objective of leading learners to truth, rather than cramming information down their throats. He and Maeser are both inspirations to me....more
3.5 Stars. The subject matter was great (it lives up to its title), the writing less so. To the author's credit, she sounded real and (presumably) lik3.5 Stars. The subject matter was great (it lives up to its title), the writing less so. To the author's credit, she sounded real and (presumably) like herself. It seemed like she wrote this more because she had fascinating experiences to share, not because she had literary ambitions. So, overlook the occasionally clumsy writing and forced-feeling dialogue, and you'll love hearing about the dangerous, dramatic, mundane, and harried life of a National Park Ranger. Seriously, if you thought these guys just looked at trees and checked on your campsite registration (as I did), this book will quickly convince you otherwise. I enjoyed hearing about parks I had visited (Grand Canyon and I believe Zion made a brief appearance) as well as ones I've never seen (Yosemite and Denali). It definitely gave me a different perspective on my recent trip to the Grand Canyon (who knew OVER-hydration was as big of a problem for hikers as dehydration?) It was a quick read, and worth your time if you enjoy books that allow you to walk in someone else's shoes (without the physical hazards). A couple of complaints: I'm not sure when this book was published, but it seemed like the early to mid 2000s. Whereas most of the action takes place solidly in the 90s, so it felt a little dated in that regard. I also had mixed feelings on how much the author brought up the politics of the National Park Service, and especially gender biases. I think equal treatment and pay for women is important, so it's valuable to hear about someone on the front lines of that battle, so to speak, but at the same time, she often came across as whiny when talking about the prejudices of male co-workers and supervisors, and when talking about herself as a supervisor, there seemed to be a bit of a "so there!" tone about it that was off-putting. I just didn't feel myself rallying behind her, so those sections were a bit of a distraction. Finally, she promises in the beginning of the book that one of the characters we meet will die at the end. This felt like a contrivance to keep us reading, or possibly an attempt (suggested by an editor?) to create an overarching theme to what is really just a collection of interesting anecdotes. The truth is, I was least interested in this book when the author waxed "big picture" and reflective on me, instead of just telling the stories. The death was interesting (and sad) but I didn't feel it needed the build up through the rest of the book that it received. So, a long review for what is really a quick and just slightly-better-than-average read. If you pick this one up, you could have been through the introduction by now. :)...more
This book transcends genres. It's technically YA and fantasy or supernatural fiction, but for me it was just a good read with a story and characters IThis book transcends genres. It's technically YA and fantasy or supernatural fiction, but for me it was just a good read with a story and characters I cared about. Gaiman made it easy to suspend disbelief and accept this world. I liked how he never explained the "rules" so to speak, and just let the reader discover them as they went. That takes a lot of faith on the author's part, and I always appreciate it. A few things I didn't love: the malevolence and back story of the bad guy/guys never felt clear to me, making the climax feel slightly forced. A few additional side characters and sub-plots felt undeveloped or unfinished, so that I wondered why they were there in the first place. Also, I liked pronouncing his name as "Bode" rhymes with "road" instead of "Bod" rhymes with "rod" but that's just me, and I guess I don't get to choose. Although, if your pronounciation is ambiguous (I'm looking at you, Hermione Granger before the movies came out), you should really let us know how you expect it to be pronounced before we decide for ourselves, and then disabuse us of our chosen pronounciation halfway through the book (or series, Hermione). Just sayin'. Anyway, I enjoyed this book and recommend it for a fun, escapist read....more
I feel like this book should be required reading for anyone who has or will ever have children, ever spends time with children, has ever seen childrenI feel like this book should be required reading for anyone who has or will ever have children, ever spends time with children, has ever seen children, or has ever been a child. I seriously loved it, and will be forever grateful to my son's preschool teacher for literally making it required reading for parents. So much of what she said just made perfect sense based on my experience with my own children. Before reading this book, I believed that phonics is how children learn to read. You start with simple (inane) sentences, reading aloud slowly and painfully, and stopping to sound out the difficult or unfamiliar words. I never stopped to think about the fact that this is NOT how I actually learned to read, and it's certainly not how my two reading-aged children (7 and 5) learned to read. I never taught them to read. They both just...started reading, well before Kindergarten. Now, I understand why. They were immersed in books and stories and words, and so it was natural for them to make sense of those words on the page and read the stories themselves. As Fox explains, adults don't read by sounding things out, we read based on our knowledge of the world, and the context of the story and the sentence. Children who are good readers do the exact same thing. It's madness to make them stop the story so they can "sound out" a word they don't know. It takes all the joy out of reading, and turns it into torture, which is probably why struggling readers don't seem to improve when they get "extra" attention at school. Instead, it just turns reading into something to dread. I listened to this book on CD, and it was wonderful to hear Mem Fox demonstrate reading with dynamics and enthusiasm and just making it interesting. I always took pride in my ability to read a story out loud, but this book has seriously revolutionized the way I read to my kids. It's more fun for me and for them, and her suggestions are so simple and easy to implement. I love it. I could go on for a long time about all the things I took away from this book that I absolutely love, but just one more thing that made so much sense to me. I'm a Kodaly music teacher, and the reason I love the Kodaly concept so much is because its over-arching principle is that music should be a joy for the student. Everything we do comes back to that. If music is a joy, learning to read, understand, and create music is gratifying and delightful. The way we make music a joy is by going from whole songs to the parts that make up a song (notes, rhythms, etc.) We teach parts from the joyful experience of the whole the child already has. The theory of reading that Fox explains here is the exact same concept. You start with stories, with whole books, from the time children are very young. Most people love to hear a good story. So you instill that love of stories in your children, and then (always in a fun, enjoyable, playful way) you help them identify the sentences that make up that story. And then the words, and then the letters and the sounds. So reading makes sense. It isn't backwards, building from sounds up to stories, because that isn't the way we experience things in life! Anyway, I loved how that philosophy totally matched what I've seen in using Kodaly to teach music. Anyway, I seriously, seriously want you to read this, especially if you have children! It is excellent. ...more
The memory of these books suddenly came back to me a short while ago when I was trying to think of chapter books that my 7-year-old son might enjoy. IThe memory of these books suddenly came back to me a short while ago when I was trying to think of chapter books that my 7-year-old son might enjoy. I bought the series for him, and he has loved them. Even better, his five-year-old sister has been begging me to read them with her (we take turns reading aloud) and they are a delight to share. If you've never read any of the Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle books, you definitely have to. Much better if you can share them with a child, but I think most adults would get a kick out of them all on their own. I do have to say a word about my amusement at the clearly dated social norms illustrated in these books. They were written in the late 40s and it's sometimes hilarious the way family life is portrayed. Every husband reads the paper and responds "Yes, dear" to the inane prattlings of his wife; every wife stays at home and bustles about her housework, has a snack ready on the table when the children get home from school and ALWAYS cooks no fewer than four breakfast items every morning. (Seriously, every morning meal I'm like, "Wait, in our house, ONE of those things would be breakfast. Why are they serving courses here?") My very favorite June Cleaver moment is in the short story "The Bully" in which the mom washes her face, straightens her hair, and puts on her "grocery store" skirt and sweater in the afternoon before going shopping. Can you imagine people in our day "getting ready" to go to Wal-Mart? In this same story, another mom helps out the neighborhood club by painting a sign for them, because she "used to be" an artist. Because, ya know, she couldn't possibly be an artist AND a mom. She gave up that foolishness when she had kids. Anyway, there are several gems like this, but I find it more amusing than offensive. Kids probably won't even notice. They just love the magical "cures" Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle comes up with for the common childhood ailments of "Fighter-Quarrelitis" and the "Never-Want-to-go-to-Bedders" etc. A really fun series....more
If you liked Hatchet...(or maybe just THINK you liked it, because you haven't read it since junior high, and you remember that a hatchet featured promIf you liked Hatchet...(or maybe just THINK you liked it, because you haven't read it since junior high, and you remember that a hatchet featured prominently, and being stranded in the wilderness, but not much beyond that) then you'll love Gary Paulsen's TRUE LIFE adventures in the woods of Minnesota and Alaska! That's how I felt this book was being marketed, but as it turns out, I really did like the grown-up, non-fiction version of Paulsen's writing better. He occasionally waxed poetic (with odd, clipped sentences, and repeated words), but it wasn't often enough to cause great annoyance, and the anecdotes he shared of living life on the edge of the frozen North more than made up for the style quirks. This was a short book, and a quick read (just one day for me) and despite not loving snow, cold, dogs, or wild animals that much, I found this book fascinating. The last third is an account of Paulsen's running of the Iditarod and as I read, I imagined what it would be like to meet Paulsen at a cocktail party or something and be able to corner him and pepper him with questions about "What was that LIKE?!" and maybe monopolizing him for an hour or so as he recounted various harrowing experiences for you. It was like THAT, only from the comfort of my own couch, and without being an obnoxious stranger. So, everything good about reading memoirs. Anyway, I recommend this for a quick read and a fascinating look at a way of life that feels so antiquated and foreign it's hard to believe there are really people who live that way. ...more
I quite loved this book. However, my sister (whose literary taste I trust implicitly) did not so much love it, which leads me to conclude that this onI quite loved this book. However, my sister (whose literary taste I trust implicitly) did not so much love it, which leads me to conclude that this one just happened to strike me at the right time. Aside from my possible bias, Ava's voice was real and believable for a 12-year-old (maybe 13? Can't remember), which is something very difficult to pull off, but always gratifying when it's done well, because I fondly recollect the innocence, curiosity, and unearned authority of my own voice at that age. This book definitely gets dark. Luckily, it happens near-enough the end that I was too invested to chuck it. And really, despite that, I still loved the whole thing. I liked all the characters, I liked the quirky setting, I LOVED the way the reader was trapped in Ava's doubt over whether her sister's delusions are real or imagined. I did NOT love most everything that happened on the mainland. I understand why we needed the brother's story told from his POV, but it didn't hold me the same way Ava's part did. Also, I kind of hated everyone around the brother (and their language) and the entire situation made me super depressed. Anyway, if you're interested in improving your writing, I highly recommend this book as an excellently crafted novel, with great dialogue and action. And for the every-day reader, even if you think you might not love this as much as me, I would still recommend giving it a try....more
I highly, highly recommend this book. I understand that the subject matter (at first blush) might be a little off-putting, but it's precisely for thatI highly, highly recommend this book. I understand that the subject matter (at first blush) might be a little off-putting, but it's precisely for that reason that you should read this. Breasts are under-studied in medicine and academia, and their impact on the rest of women's bodies is underappreciated. I learned a ton from this book, (not least of which is that we have a lot more to learn about breasts). I appreciated the author's tone (credible without being pedantic) and her writing was easy to read. So, the author talks a lot about our exposure to harmful chemicals, and how those chemicals end up in our breast milk and being passed to our children (and even grandchildren, through our daughters), which was a frightening thought. I don't think the author was fear-mongering, and I think it's something valuable to have on the radar. Unfortunately, the realities of modern life are such that avoiding exposure is virtually impossible. She seems to think greater government regulation and oversight are the solution, but it seems like studying and documenting the impact of these chemicals on our health is the work of decades, and even then, how can anything be conclusive? But anyway, she makes a good point that we shouldn't sit placidly by, assuming everything our food is packaged in, our couches filled with, and our babies playing with, is safe. I found this book eye-opening and only moderately depressing (probably because as a normal person, and a mother, the author shares her readers' frustration with and ambivalence toward a source of harm we are powerless to stop). There were also other subjects related to breasts covered, including breast implants (fascinating) and breast milk (it truly is miraculous). I really enjoyed this book and will gladly read anything else Florence Williams chooses to write. As a side-note, the back cover features two dome-shaped storage tanks (looking very nuclear or chemically-oriented in purpose), of course meaning to call to mind the connection between breasts and environmental hazards. Anyway, shortly after reading this book I saw those domes! It was just west of the I-5 freeway in California, driving between Carlsbad and LA. It did look like a refinery of some sort, and I don't think I was jaded by my reading into thinking these look like breasts. I'm pretty sure anyone passing by on the freeway would have had the same thought. [image] Anyway, I think if you give this book a chance, you won't be disappointed, and you'll never look at breasts the same way again....more
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