Megan
This was a very enjoyable Audible Original audiobook and well worth a listen. Maeve is my favorite little girl! Now, there is a bit of the “not like other girls” trope in here, and Maeve is special and unique because she likes “boy” things and doesn't understand “girl” things and thinks they're dumb and frivolous. However, I reminded myself that this was set in the late 1800s, so I believe these attitudes would be realistic. That being said, this is a story about a djinni in a sardine tin... we don't need realistic. However, Maeve values the differences in her roommate, so she isn't one of those female characters who perpetuates the idea that girls can't be friends with other girls. I think the author is trying to show other girls who listen to this story that liking sports that are traditionally only played by boys, or other “boy” things, is more than acceptable and perfectly normal. There are better ways to do that, so I couldn't give this 5 stars.
But oh dear did I love this story. I loved the “hate to friends” trope and thought it was well executed. The friend group was fantastic, and I really liked how they encouraged each other but never pushed. I absolutely loved that there were actual consequences for these children when they acted like fools and broke rules. Maeve learned some really difficult lessons from those consequences too. I think in general this is a great story for kids, but I would caution parents to discuss downfalls I mentioned with their kids and use it as a learning opportunity. I would hate for little girls who love fashion to read this and feel silly and mindless because of Maeve's opinions.
I think my favorite thing about this author is how much credit he gives to those who have helped him. You don't often hear about all the undergrads who put in hours of grunt work to make research possible. I really appreciated that Dr. Seeley didn't just mention them as an after notes either. He highlighted their work ethic and importance to his successful research.
I'm definitely biased about this book because attending Dr. Seeley's seminar on “The Flight Guidance Mechanisms of Honey Bee Swarms” motivated me more than anything during my second semester of college. His enthusiasm for honeybee behavior is incredibly contagious.
I'm really glad I was encouraged to pick up this book so many years later. Dr. Seeley does a great job of explaining things in layman's terms and answers questions quickly after they enter the reader's mind.
Holy cow, what a wild ride. I have no idea how I didn't know about Randall Woodfield and Diane Downs being penpals.
This book suffers from being so old that there have been a number of updates that aren't included. Aside from that, it's well done.
Seriously consider whether you are comfortable hearing graphic descriptions of rape of women and children before reading. It's horrific and disgusting.
I honestly couldn't remember anything about this series aside from the names of the books. I loved them as a kid. After rereading it as an adult, all I can say is there's no doubt in my mind where a lot of the beliefs I have about pet ownership come from. It's amazing how much the lessons and morals from this series shaped my life.
Aside from the obviousness and slightly dramatic moments that children's books almost always have, this book is fantastic. It touches on a lot of important topics and handles them well. The kids in this series are trusted and supported by the adults in their lives and even given a lot of responsibility. They work hard and care about everyone, and I think they set a great example for young readers. I love that there is a strong female protagonist, a close friendship between a boy and a girl, and a supportive family.
No, y'all are crazy.
If Donna Tartt hadn't included that prologue, I never would've made it past, I don't know, perhaps page 30. The only thing that kept me going was the curiosity of why these asshole kids killed their asshole friend. Once I figured out why, I only finished it because I was curious what the last 60% of the book included. Surely something even better than a friend group turning on one of their own, right? Nope. Not in my opinion at least. Call me stupid, but I don't understand the motivation behind the major event near the end. Just... why? I also absolutely cannot believe a college student from California would be as smart as... uh what's the main character's name again? The one who has no purpose in the story? The one who could be completely eliminated without affecting the plot? Hold on, I'll look it up... oh yeah, Richard. That Richard would be as smart as he is and allow himself to almost freeze to death. Californian's understand cold weather and death by exposure just like people in other parts of the country.
The whole thing was just dreadfully dull.
What a dark and harrowing origin story for Father Christmas. I loved it, but definitely be warned when purchasing this for young readers. It deals with some very heavy topics, but it does so in a fairytale-like way. I think my favorite thing is that everything isn't made perfect. Sure, the magic makes some things convenient, but the sad events don't magically fix themselves. Dealing with neglect, abuse, abandonment, loss, etc. is difficult and I think some kids need to see representation of that, even if that representation is more unrealistic due to the fairytale vibe, to feel less alone. But, I'm not a parent, so maybe I'm overstepping with that statement.
I thought I had read this as a kid, but I'm not convinced this was the same book. That in itself was disappointing but no fault of the author or the book. It was a cute story and one I might have liked in elementary school. It was missing something though, and I found the end to send the wrong message. Jeremy never learns to handle his grief, it's just magically eliminated.
I won an ARC of this book in a Goodreads giveaway. Historical fiction isn't a genre I gravitate toward, but something about this story had me interested enough to enter to win a copy.
It was fantastic. This is a story about girls, about loss, about love, about trauma, and about life. The balance between the two protagonists, whose stories are carefully interwoven and mirror each other in a lot of ways, is exceptional. The relationships feel real and complicated without being lost in the message Laura Ruby is trying to convey. She shows so many kinds of relationships and emotions. I find that authors often attempt to showcase one kind of relationship, such as terrible parents or wonderful parents, siblings who are best friends or siblings who hate each other, etc. But the relationships in this book hit all those notes, with some evolving throughout the story and others staying consistent. It feels very genuine and true to life, at least from my experiences.
Laura Ruby is a refreshingly subtle writer. That's not to say the issues the characters face are subtle (or even the “villains”), but the stance Ruby takes is clear without smacking the reader over the head with it. There's an obvious right and wrong, with clearly heinous acts and awful people, but we experience those through the emotions of the characters. She makes her characters very human, and they struggle in a realistic way. Their struggle is what the audience is supposed to learn from instead of Ruby spoonfeeding us what to think.
I think Ruby's subtlety as a writer is also demonstrated by her portrayal of female roles. Women could/were expected to fill a variety of fairly rigid societal, professional, and familial roles during the 1940s. It's easy to overlook how thoroughly these roles are represented, explored, and often challenged in this book, and that's because Ruby doesn't wave a flag and call attention to every detail she includes. She doesn't straight up say, “Look at how this person faced this consequence, isn't it awful?!” Instead, she shows the experiences of the characters and lets the audience draw conclusions from them. I very much appreciate that because it feels like she trusts the reader to recognize these things on their own.
I can't recommend this book enough and really hope to see more people pick it up. I'm definitely going to grab a finished copy for myself.
This book is every bit as strange and weird as I wanted it to be without ever feeling like it was bizarre simply for the sake of being bizarre. The story flows well and the pacing is fantastic. Even when you think you know exactly what's going to happen in a given situation, there's a slight turn. It's not twisty and turny to the point that you feel like the author was deliberately misleading you though. It was never obscure in a way the compromised my comprehension (a problem I find with a lot of fiction similar to this). I had a general feel for the overarching plot pretty quickly, and, though I guessed some of what was to come, I felt like the journey was totally worth it and delivered much more than I predicted.
This is definitely a book I will reread in the future, but I wouldn't recommend it for everyone.
I believe this is the first official manga I've ever read, at least the only one I can remember. The message is strong and homophobia isn't danced around like it doesn't really happen. The characters face it head on. I loved how the naive questions and earnest acceptance of the daughter forces the father to challenge his own thoughts.
Contains spoilers
This one really wasn't for me. The scariest part of this book was the thought of all the fish smells the characters must have had to deal with. I didn't get the end. I didn't get any of it honestly. I was happy to see very clear consent given by the characters. I'm glad it was short because I wouldn't have finished it otherwise, not that I have any sort of resolution having read the whole thing.
I think I would have loved this book when I was younger. I really liked it, but I agree with the reviews that say the beginning and end are the strongest parts. That beginning was honestly fantastic. I could see what the middle chapters were doing/trying to accomplish, but every chapter felt like its own short story. I wasn't a huge fan of that, but I really liked how some of the relationships were handled. I think Neil Gaiman did a really great job of showing and not telling... He never even tells us big things about certain characters, yet you know those things are true because of what they say and how they act. It's very well done. The end could've gone further than it did, but if this is a middle grade book I'd say it's good where it's at. Overall, I think I would have rated this 5 stars in middle school, adult me is leaning closer to 3 (mainly because of the flow of the middle chapters), so we're going with 4.
If you can put aside the extremely problematic aspects of this book (it's a ‘product of its time' as the kids say), it's quite an interesting read. I don't think I've ever read another classic that takes a stance on animal rights and addresses current (at the time of publishing) animal rights topics. There are some moments where I thought, “Okay Michael Crichton, I see where you got the idea for Jurassic Park.” I'm definitely not the first person to see the parallel there, and I won't be the last. There was also a lot of social commentary about humans and our beastly nature. Like I said, it was interesting.
I can't believe I'm saying this about a contemporary novel, but this is absolutely one of my favorite books of all time. Top 10 if not Top 5.
I did not know what this book was about, other than a small town that loves hockey, and I honestly believe that was the perfect way to go into it. The way Fredrik Backman handled every aspect of this story, from the big moments to the most subtle, is superb.
I can't adequately express my thoughts about this book. For now, I'll just say I loved it and you should read it.
Fun read, but pretty surface level and overloaded with nerd pop culture references. Ray Porter is a great narrator, but other than that I'm honestly not sure why this book is as highly rated/frequently recommended as it is. Not bad, not phenomenal. If you like sci-fi, space operas, or nerd culture and fandom, you'll probably enjoy your time reading or listening to this. I'd say go into it expecting similar vibes to Ready Player One.
Over the Top is exactly what you expect and not at all what you expect. It's a celebrity memoir, but JVN takes it to the next level. He's so open and raw. I appreciated that so much. I feel weird rating it because of the subject and because it's his life story. It was great, flowed well, and had a good balance of laughter and heartache. Some reviewers didn't like a few of the tangents, but they seemed natural to me. But then again, I'm all for a good tangent. I also got to walk away with one of my favorite quotes ever.
“I might look like sixteenth-century Jesus, but sometimes I struggle with being the landlord of Petty Lane.”
“Mindfulness is the fucking problem: my mind is too full.”
There are a number of books out there geared toward helping loved ones understand what it's like to live in the head of someone with OCD. Throw them all away and give them this book. This is what it's like, regardless of the specific obsessions and compulsions.
I recommend both the physical book and audiobook.