Welcome to my half-assed book reviews
I love to read. I have set a yearly goal through Goodreads for the past few years, though the idea of writing coherent reviews is daunting. So here are my half-baked thoughts on books as I read them. Have you read any of these? I would love to hear your thoughts.
RECENT READS
Lessons in Chemistry
You Are Not Alone by Hendricks and Pekkanen
Lessons in Chemistry
How do I love thee, let me count the ways... Mulitfacted an dlovecharacters, important themes, just a little magical realism (but not really, I mean dogs DO talk), perfect prose. A clever book and premise (chemistry/cooking/
City of Likes
You Are Not Alone by Hendricks and Pekkanen
Lessons in Chemistry
The ultimate palate cleanser: fun but with a big heart. If you love New York and like picking up names that have been dropped, you'll have fun turning these pages. It's zeitgeist without being overly cliche because of the protagonist's droll one-liners (hello Jenny Mollen herself). I've followed her for years, reading her first two memoirs and riding her crazy train on Instagram (I mean that with love). I read it in less than 24 hours. And as a cautionary tale about social media addiction, it didn't have the intended effect on me. Maybe it's my age, because I put it down thinking, how can I use social media to shake off this cloak of invisibility?
What I Googled: Jenny Mollen, Jenny Mollen's sister in law, Jenny Mollen's dog, Why are there so many weird line breaks throughout, Is City of Likes self-published?
Takeaways: Be present for your people; know that social media is always, always filtered through some lens, either literally or figuratively
You Are Not Alone by Hendricks and Pekkanen
You Are Not Alone by Hendricks and Pekkanen
You Are Not Alone by Hendricks and Pekkanen
This was a page turner, even though I felt a little guilty reading it because the plot is a little ridiculous, but it has all my favorite ingredients that provide an excellent escape: written in different points of view, NYC-based, characters in cool outfits so I feel like I’m reading a magazine or watching an easy show. It’s a palate cleanser after heavier, more cumbersome reads.
Takeaways: Sometimes it's fun just to read for entertainment.
Crossroads by Jonathan Franzen
The Rural Diaries by Hilarie Burton Morgan
You Are Not Alone by Hendricks and Pekkanen
THIS IS MY KIND OF BOOK. And yet, I hesitate to shout it from the rooftops because I don’t know that it’s the kind of book that I’d recommend to most. I mean, it’s meaty and dense, and very engaging with sophisticated and brilliant writing that just positively nails the way people think (at least this person). I’d call it character driven, though there is enough tension and detail about their actions that you really want to know what will happen even though it’s not plot-driven, if that makes sense. It’s about a family in the 70s, a church, a youth group – fascinating to anyone who has been associated with any of the above.
What I Googled: “Ending of Crossroads,” “What does ending of Crossroads mean?”, Jonathan Franzen (I forgot how much I adored his writing, and learned this is the first of an expected trilogy), various songs that were quoted throughout, the map of the U.S.
Takeaways: The human condition is complicated and Jonathan Franzen is a master of capturing the intricacies of the human heart.
The Rural Diaries by Hilarie Burton Morgan
The Rural Diaries by Hilarie Burton Morgan
The Rural Diaries by Hilarie Burton Morgan
This was an Audible listen for me. I laughed, I cried, I fell a little bit in love with a celebrity who seems so even-keeled, not in-your-face political. A person who just wants to live a happy, balanced life that includes lots of family time, home improvement projects and cooking. And she’s married to the guy from The Walking Dead! And she’s from Virginia! Who knew? And, now that I’m curious about this person, we’re going back to binge-watch One Tree Hill.
What I Googled: One Tree Hill, The Walking Dead, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Peyton Sawyer.