gerikatz

I am in no way a YA, so not the target audience for the book. I appreciated the LGBTQ representation, the Jewish supernatural themes, and the historical research that went into the novel. The writing, though, was overwrought, clunky, imprecise, and if I can quibble, some really weird word choices were repeated throughout the book that made me wonder about the editor’s skills. I listened to the audiobook, and the narrator was extremely distracting, trying to mimic accents it sounds like he’d never heard before, and chewing the scenery in the process. As for the plot, it feels like the author read Devil in the White City and said “let’s make it Jewish!”

The author believed his work would disprove the racial basis for antisemitism and thus end antisemitism itself. Unfortunately his work and that of others has been picked up and misused by some antisemites and white supremacists. It has also been used by some anti-Zionists to argue against the conclusion that Jews are indigenous to Israel. The author argues that Israel’s right to exist originates with the UN mandate rather than a genetic or historical connection to the land, so he wasn’t taking an anti-Israel approach. Fascinating book with some questionable conclusions but worth the read.

An exhaustive, science-based explanation of the biology of menopause, the symptoms, and the treatment options. She calls out the patriarchy of prior medical approaches, quackery, profit-driven “wellness” scams, and the ethical conflict of MDs who sell supplements. My only critique is that the book only refers to women; I wish there had been information about the impacts and treatments for trans men and non-binary people, including those who use hormone therapy or have had surgery.

MN Attorney General Keith Ellison’s personal account of how his office convicted former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin of the murder of George Perry Floyd. Even though the murder was videoed and millions of us watched it happen, this case was hardly a slam dunk. The insight into Ellison’s legal and political skills plus his deep care for justice and human dignity makes this a must-read.

I have studied European history and the Holocaust and been a consumer of true crime for many years, so I was surprised I had never heard of this case until a podcast (The Catalyst by Amber Hunt) covered it. It's a fascinating story, and thoroughly researched work of history, but the writing was uneven and disjointed at times. I was most disappointed with the epilogue. The author noted that the section was entirely speculative, so I wish he had actually speculated a lot more on the why, in addition to the how. What in Petiot's life may have turned him into a killer? Who was he working for? Why did the Gestapo release him from prison? Without evidence, it's impossible to come to definitive conclusions, but I would have appreciated educated guesses from the author who spent a significant amount of time with the primary sources for this case.

I found this book disappointing. If this is the first book about the Tudors you've ever read, you might find it worthwhile.

The thorough research is poorly served by shlocky, overwrought writing.

Through a 21st century lens, Thomas Seymour was a pedophile predator. At the very least he was a creep and a sex pest who assaulted the daughter of a king repeatedly. He groomed her, made his wife complicit in the abuse, and got away with it. The author did amazing work piecing together primary sources to tell this story and the broader story of Seymour's hamfisted attempts to gain power, but the epilogue diminishes that accomplishment. The final pages ignore Seymour's predatory nature and instead sound like a romance novel, lauding a man who refused to take no for an answer, considering his highest accomplishment the fact that he got closer to deflowering Elizabeth I than any other man.

This is a sweet little book by a lovely Swedish woman who describes herself as between 80 and 100, about her experiences cleaning out after the death of loved ones, and again for herself before she moved to a smaller home. Don't read this for a revolutionary new technique to declutter; read it for the charming stories about her life, the recipes, and the comfort it brings if you are doing this work yourself. I found it very soothing to read as I was cleaning out my mom's apartment after her passing.

I'll read anything Marcie Rendon writes. This was probably the best of the three Cash Blackbear books so far.

3.5. Pleasant mystery layered with the normal struggles between the generations of a family. I appreciated the detailed descriptions of the environment, flora and fauna of the Elkhorn Slough, a part of California I now want to visit.

This was a rollicking good time. My first taste of British history as an American was a college class that began with the Glorious Revolution. (And the Monty Python version of the Civil Wars). I wish this book had been around then to lend important context about the decades that led up to the reign of William and Mary.

The best book I've read all year, maybe the last 5 years. I don't have words beyond that.

Amanda's book is a gift to every nurse who worked through the pandemic, and to all of us non-nurses who didn't. She describes the whiplash of going from caring for desperately ill and dying patients at the hospital, and then driving home past bars with lines of people out the doors.

On one hand, this is a classic tale of grit and determination. An inspiring testament to the strength of the human spirit. On the other hand, it's yet another tale of an overconfident white man who dragged himself and an entire crew into a life threatening situation in order to feed his own ego.

Finally read this, almost 20 years after it was published. While some of the science she reported on is no longer new or controversial, the book still holds up, mostly for the behind the scenes glimpses into the worlds of the study of decomposition, anatomy, and crashes. The chapter on the effect of bullets on the human body is upsetting when you think about the relaxation of gun laws (specifically assault rifles) since it the book was written.

I've always loved Erik Larson's nonfiction books. He's a master storyteller, so it makes perfect sense that his fiction would be gripping and beautifully written.

I'd actually give this a 3.5. I wanted to like this book. I love libraries and book people and history of public institutions. But this book just never caught my attention. It was well written and researched, but the narrative just never went anywhere. It took me months to finish. It felt like it should have been a New Yorker article instead of a 300+ page book.

I've read all of Curtis's books with my younger child, and this has to be the most evocative, heartbreaking, inspirational of them all. I love all of his books, but this one includes a scene so moving that I will never forget it.

Fiction and non-fiction about slavery isn't new or rare, and much of it feels like trauma porn after a while. This book is relatively unique in my experience, set in a (real life Canadian) colony founded by escaped enslaved people and their children born in freedom. Our hero Elijah is born in freedom in Canada, a rare narrator in children's literature.

I really loved this book. Perfect specimen of historical fiction.

What a wild ride. I highly recommend the audio book (27 hours long; it's an investment, but would have taken me years to read the book with my eyeballs, so, worth it.)

So much has happened since this book was published in 2018; I hope the author writes an updated version. Can protests ever be the same after things like the violent repression of anti-police violence protests? Can matches on Washington go back to “normal” after than Jan 6 insurrection? This book was an interesting look inside the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom and the 2017 Women's March on Washington, with attention paid to the impact of race and gender on mass mobilization. It answers the question “what good do marches do” with thoughtful consideration. It just feels like this book comes from a different, simpler time, and requires an update.

I read this to my eight year old who gave the book 4 stars. He said if it hadn't been so sad and set during the Depression he'd have given it 5. He laughed his head off at a lot of dialogue, and the ending was very satisfying for both of us. (I loved it too, and would give it a 4.5 myself.)

Read this to my 8 year old who loved it. I remember loving it as a kid but had completely forgotten the whole story so I enjoyed it with him. A white male author writing a fictional account of a real indigenous woman is cringe, of course.

Gorgeous.