Dima

Amy Cameron is a musician-turned-marketing director in a struggling theatre in Edinburgh. She is absolutely unhappy with her work and her social life. When an email finds its way to her by mistake, she strikes a friendship with the person she thinks it was intended for. And it doesn't hurt to embellish a little bit when she talks about herself - after all, they're strangers who will never meet. But as things progress between them, the embellishments become bigger, and eventually, she will have to come clean.
This was a quick and fun novel to go through. I liked that Amy decided to take charge of her career and go on with opening the bar. I also liked to see the supporting group of coworkers around her. I did NOT, however, like her friend group. I understand that people in different stages of their lives have different interests and priorities, but the dismissiveness of her friends was a bit too much. I was also happy when she turned down the position in the orchestra. Her realizing that she deserves better was a good sign of growth. Her relationship with Harry was also very sweet. Support and friendship come in all shapes.Another thing I liked in the book was the motivation that both Amy and Cameron have unknowingly given each other. It felt that both were stuck in jobs that were making them miserable, and they just needed the push to go out and do the things that would make them happy.I could have done without the deceptions, though. One thing that I'm still trying to wrap my head around is Amy's reaction to Cameron's last email saying that he had something to confess, too. I felt that it was a bit too strong given that she has knowingly been lying to him. And her confidence that he would not show up was unfounded based on his emails with her.
Finally, as big of a fan as I am of epistolary novels, this was not my favorite. The email exchanges droned on a lot, and they did not discuss things that were of interest to the characters or the plot. I get that Amy is a fan of penguins and Cameron wanted to provide her with information he thought she would like, but from the story's perspective, I think we could have done without most of the email contents. It would have been more relevant if they tried to discuss their careers or events that were happening in their personal life while trying not to give away their lies.  But, all in all, this was a fun book to read.

In April 25th, 1955, 642,987 women shed their skins and became dragons. Alex was only a child, and her aunt was one of these women. That event had a big impact on Alex and her little family. It raised a lot of questions her young brain could not answer. And she now has a little sister, who up until recently was just her cousin. But Alex did not have an aunt! Because there were no dragons. And no one was able to talk about them. Until they came back, and they could no longer be ignored!
I listened to the audiobook last year, and I read it again this year. It is one of the books that raise a lot of feelings in me. I love to see a world where women don't put up with being put down and limited due to their gender. Becoming dragons is the perfect metaphor for letting the fire inside them flare up.  And seeing how their transformation did not have the same results everywhere. Some dragons were so angry that they burned everything and everyone that hurt them. Others stayed back and continued to live with their families. And others just decided to leave and go away to find their own destiny. 
With the dragons' return, we can see a society that is trying to slowly adapt to make room for these giant creatures. Just like society had to adapt to allow for women to take part in education and the workforce. However, it didn't seem that the change was enough. One of the things that don't sit too well with me is that a big chunk of society did not change. They continued to be the close-minded little people they had always been. Alex's dad is the biggest example of that. As hurt as he was by his wife's death, he turned around, abandoned his daughters, got married, and started a new family as if nothing happened.
But I guess that is a reflection of the real world we live in. Misogyny did not subside just because women were given equal rights to men.  Up until this day, even among the most educated, well-intentioned, and self-proclaimed “progressive” men, you will find hints of them thinking that women are less than.  When women were told that they belonged in the workplace, no one told the men that they belonged at home. This ended up with women being expected to work inside and outside of the home, while the expectations of men did not change. And I think this story reflects that but in a more positive way.

Miranda, a comedian living in Toronto, has just lost the baby she adopted a month earlier. After months of grieving, her family stages an intervention and sends her off to her exiled uncle's island grief resort. On the way there, the boat she's on gets shipwrecked, and she arrives at an extremely kooky neo-Pagan circus! And once she arrives mayhem ensues. Between the colorful grieving attendees in her cohort, her eccentric and meddling wizard of an uncle, her ethereal aunt, and the resort's enthusiastic staff, Miranda would rather be anywhere but there.
This book is first and foremost a comedy and should be read as such. The characters are exaggerated cartoonish versions of what they may otherwise be. And if you go into the book expecting anything else, you will be disappointed, and you will not have given the book its fair chance.  But that's not to say that the book doesn't deal with hard-hitting and heavy topics, in the best way possible.  The book starts with us seeing Miranda lose the baby that she had adopted 30 days earlier because the birth mother changed her mind. The book showcases the horrors of the Canadian adoption system, which are mind-bogglingly ridiculous. 
We also learn about Miranda's struggle with IVF and lost pregnancy, although this topic isn't discussed in detail.  Being set in a grief resort, we have people dealing with their own losses. Miranda's cohort is dealing with all kinds of grief, like the loss of a parent, excommunication from a family, living with the aftermath of a botched plastic surgery, and teen pregnancy. And each of these grieving people is comedic in their own right, while also presenting a real view of loss. Being a comedy did nothing to make the discussion of these topics any less serious. This whole farce is run by Miranda's uncle, who is a legitimate wizard, and her auntie, who is eccentric in the most hippy ethereal way. And these two love nothing more than meddling, with the best possible intentions. And her uncle's main target is setting up Miranda and the very hunky New York chef, Scott. I was very skeptical of Miranda's and Scott's relationship at first. She was very clear that she had no interest in him, and it felt like he was still trying to befriend her, with no instinct of self-preservation. But things clicked for me when they decided to fake dating to get her uncle off their backs. And as we all know, fake dating always leads to true love! 

Teddy was the undefeated Answers! player with 76 wins, until Max showed up, stole his heart and his victory, and continued to gain more money in prizes in her 38-win streak than he did in his 76 games! Teddy was able to gain back some of his pride in the annual tournament when he managed to defeat Max. But, they remain tied, and they really dislike each other. Now they have another chance to face off in the Ultimate Answers! Tournament against Hercules McKnight, the all-time undefeated champion.
If you thought that things should go smoothly, you thought wrong. Maxine is ADHD, so she does not have the capacity to prepare for the game the traditional way. And Teddy's game strategy is very safe which could risk him his win. And they both need to win the games leading to the finale if they want a chance at beating McKnight - who is not who the world seems to think he is.  And that is all the motivation these two extremely different people need to form this extremely unlikely alliance. 
This book will always have a place in my heart because it contains the best ADHD depiction that made me feel seen and represented. I don't think I highlighted passages as much as I did think “That is so me”. Not only did I see myself in Max, but I also felt a kinship with Teddy because I am a rule follower, I am currently working on my graduate degree, and I love finding new ways to teach that will get through to my students. So, if you're a woman with ADHD, or in Academia, or both, you will enjoy this book!  AND you will learn some trivia, which is, like Max, one of my love languages!

This play follows Nora, a married woman whose seemingly loving husband, Torvald, thinks is not very careful with money.  When a secret that Nora has been keeping for years threatens to come out, she tries to hide it from Torvald and resolve the problem on her own. Unfortunately, her efforts do not succeed, and her life begins to unravel and she is faced with the reality of what her husband's priorities are.
I was not expecting a powerful play when I started listening to this. My first thoughts were that Nora seemed to be sneaking behind her husband and was in fact squandering money. But it became quickly clear that that was only Torvald's narrow and ignorant perception of her. My heart was broken for her when she decided to stay away from her children believing she was poisoning their lives with her secret. And I felt betrayed when Christine went back on her plan of helping her. However, as it helped reveal Torvald's true person which led Nora to leave him, I could find it in me to forgive her.