Review: Go Ask Alice

Go Ask Alice by Beatrice Sparks
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

Man, I'm torn about this book. At first I liked it. Then I hated it. Then, as a parent, I was horrified. Then I was back on board. Then, the ending.

Really not sure what to rate this one yet. I'll be back.

Ok, now I'm back.  Still not loving it.  I am going to give it 1.5 stars, but I'm rounding down in this instance because this would serve as a cautionary tale for NO ONE in this day and age.  It is dated and has not stood the test of time.  Alice, you need to look inside yourself for the answers, and the answer to this one is, get your shit together.  Please.

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Review: Tell the Wolves I'm Home

Tell the Wolves I'm Home by Carol Rifka Brunt
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

My heart is hurting over this book. I need a tissue. And a hug.

This book hit all of the right notes with me. Coming of age story with a quirky, misfit heroine. Dysfunctional family dynamics that seem true-to-life. Love. Introspection. Grief. What can I say? I like a few tears in my books (sometimes).

Set way back in ye old 1987 (gads, I was in high school, folks. This isn't historical fiction!), AIDS was a scandalous, secret "gays only" disease. Times were different then. June loved her uncle, and after he dies she finds out she only knew parts of him. Walk with June as she tries to discover who he really was, who she really is, and bring some tissues, because you will need them. Unless you are a robot, then you will be fine.

Loved it. 4 stars. Going to hug my kids now.


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Review: The Opposite of Loneliness: Essays and Stories

The Opposite of Loneliness: Essays and Stories by Marina Keegan
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Marina Keegan was only 22 when she was died in a car accident. Newly graduated from Yale and ready to continue her budding career as a writer, we are left with a collection of work from her short life. Half of the book is short stories, and the other half essays. You can see glimmers of what she would have potentially grown into as a writer. Her voice, as you would expect, is very young. She's in college; her life has barely started. I liked some of the stories, didn't like some others. These are stories that wouldn't have been published under other circumstances.

Overall, three stars, but I'm having a hard time separating the tragedy of a life cut short from the actual work, so actually 2.5.

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Review: Mortality

Mortality by Christopher Hitchens
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Life is short. Cancer sucks. Please remember that, my friends, and make the most of every moment.

Regardless of whether you agreed with Christopher Hitchens or not, this is a powerful read. Disease can strike anyone, anywhere, anytime. We can do all of the right things--exercise, eat healthy foods, get enough rest--and still get sick. We can do the wrong things--smoke, drink, overeat, eat unhealthy foods--and stay healthy. The body is a mystery at times. And you aren't guaranteed tomorrow.

Diagnosed with esophageal cancer that had spread to his lungs and lymph nodes, Hitchens chronicles his mortality in this short read. If cancer has touched your life in some way, I think this book will speak to you. It's worth the hour of your life. 4 stars.


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Review: The Bronze Horseman (The Bronze Horseman #1)

The Bronze Horseman by Paullina Simons
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I have been wanting to read this book for a long time. Glad I finally got around to it. It's a great piece of historical fiction and romance. There is something for everyone packed into these 900 pages. War. Love. Death. Starvation. History. Hope. And a cliffhanger to lead you right into book 2.

Tatiana meets Alexander by chance, and falls for him before realizing he is her older sister's boyfriend. Bad luck, Tatiana. Alex wants to end it with Dasha and be with Tatiana, but she won't allow it. They suffer in silence (mostly) through war, poverty, and terrible life in Russia. There is always hope that these star-crossed lovers will make it, and that sustains you through the cold Russian winters.

A really great book. Worth every hour I invested in it. Now to track down book 2.

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Review: Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor (Friday Harbor #1)

Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor by Lisa Kleypas

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Now I want to visit Friday Harbor. I enjoyed this cute, cheesy romance about love and second chances.

Meet Mark. He loses his sister in an accident and is suddenly the father to his niece, Holly. He's doing the best he can raising her with his brother.

Meet Maggie. She's a widow who owns a toy store at Friday Harbor. For those of you who are not new to the romance genre, I'll just bet you can guess what happens next! But I won't spoil it for you. I'll let you find out for yourself.

Maggie makes me a little crazy with her waffling and hot/cold reaction to Mark. He sounds like a saint wrapped up in a hot, coffee-roasting, lumberjack body. Grrrrr! Yummy.

It's cute. It's sappy. You might tear up a little at the end. I'm not saying I did, because I just had something in my eye. You can't prove otherwise.



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The Storyteller

The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I'm a little bit wrecked right now. Excuse me while I gather my emotions to write this review...

Ahem. Yes, this book is wonderful. You bounce between the past and the present. We get to see the awful events of the Holocaust through two different sides, and we learn about them both with Sage as she struggles with acceptance and forgiveness. Forgiveness for herself, and for the past of others. And along the way is a beautiful fairy tale, an allegory of love and guilt, that ties the entire book up with a bow.

This book was great. I'm a big Jodi Picoult fan, and this one did not disappoint. At all.



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A Monster Calls

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This book! So many feels. I have a knot in my chest a day later just thinking about it.

I run the risk of spoiling this story if I say too much, but it's about a boy who is coming to terms with his mother's cancer. It's amazing. The illustrations are haunting and perfect. The balance of grief, anger, and hope is perfectly struck. It seems like a children's book, but wait! It's so much more. Layered and deep and nearly perfect. Mothers will relate. Anyone whose life has been touched by cancer will relate. Read it. Read it slowly, immerse yourself in the illustrations, and then grab a box of tissues and read it again.



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