Willowdean Dickson aka Dumplin’ is fat. She’s ok with that though - at least she would be if her pageant-obsessed mom would ease up about it, anyway. She’s got more confidence and swagger than most high school girls I’ve known who were half her size and isn’t afraid to love herself, no matter what the rest of the world might think.
Then she meets Bo, the hottie from work. Their secret-for-no-real-reason romance makes Will feel overwhelmingly self-conscious for the first time. In an effort to reclaim her self-love and get her mojo back, Will enters the Miss Teen Bluebonnet Pageant along with a few misfit friends.
I loved this book for its honest look at how overweight women are looked at in today’s society. Is Willowdean a flawless character? No. She’s sometimes petty, sometimes selfish and sometimes mean. But she’s also relatable, no matter what you weigh.
I absolutely and wholeheartedly recommend this one for anyone who’s ever had their confidence shaken or felt like an outsider. Julie Murphy is going on my list of authors to watch.
Monday, March 21, 2016
Wednesday, March 9, 2016
Did You Ever Have a Family
Early on in the story, a main character overhears a catty group of lunching ladies gossiping about her tragedy. "How do you recover from that? How would you even begin?" As it turns out, she tells us, you don't ever recover. You just learn to survive.
Did You Ever Have a Family is a story about tragedy. What would you do if your entire family was gone in an instant? How would you react?
The story follows June, Lydia and an assortment of others. Each chapter is told from a different character's perspective and by the end, you have the full story of what really happened the night June's house exploded, killing her daughter, her daughter's fiance, her ex-husband and her current boyfriend -- Lydia's son. It's hard to say much without giving everything away, just know that it's a really good book but a little bit of a slow read because it's so detail-rich.
I've been hearing bits and pieces about this one for a year now and am really glad I finally got the chance to read it. Bill Clegg is incredibly talented and I can't wait to read more by him.
Did You Ever Have a Family is a story about tragedy. What would you do if your entire family was gone in an instant? How would you react?
The story follows June, Lydia and an assortment of others. Each chapter is told from a different character's perspective and by the end, you have the full story of what really happened the night June's house exploded, killing her daughter, her daughter's fiance, her ex-husband and her current boyfriend -- Lydia's son. It's hard to say much without giving everything away, just know that it's a really good book but a little bit of a slow read because it's so detail-rich.
I've been hearing bits and pieces about this one for a year now and am really glad I finally got the chance to read it. Bill Clegg is incredibly talented and I can't wait to read more by him.
Sunday, February 28, 2016
Before I Fall
I mentioned at the beginning of the month that I was starting on Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver and that I'd been led to believe I'd either love it or hate it. I loved it. It seems weird to call a book that is clearly not set in reality as we know it realistic, but that's the best descriptor for it that I can come up with. It was really real. For all that it was about a girl stuck in the worst Groundhog Day loop ever, it somehow rang true for me.
Before I Fall is the redemptive afterlife story of a mean girl. Sam has a great life as one of her high school's most popular girls. The thing is, she's not a very nice person. She's shallow and bitchy and way too concerned with what people might think vs. what she really wants. All that changes when she's killed in a car accident. That's when she starts living the last day of her life over and over (and over) again.
Sam starts to realize that she hasn't always been the nicest girl and that her actions have had consequences. She begins trying to live each repeated day as a better version of herself, partly because she wants to find a way out of the loop and partly because she seems to finally want to be a better person. Sam is a deeply flawed character who is simultaneously likable and unbearable because of those flaws.
I'd recommend this one for anyone who was a mean girl, was victimized by mean girls or who just likes well-written young adult fiction.
Friday, February 26, 2016
Me Before You
It turns out there are some definite upsides to being sick. Example: lots of reading time. Lots of Netflix time too, but let's not get into that.
I've been sick a lot lately. Nothing serious, it just seems like this is going to be one of those years. I don't know about you, but I feel like my susceptibility to viruses comes in waves. One year it feels like I catch every. single. cold. that goes around. And then I'll have 3 or 4 good years where I hardly get sick at all. This year is shaping up to be a sick year. So I have that to look forward to.
Because of feeling like crap, I took Monday and Tuesday off work this week and mostly stayed in bed, reading. Word to the wise? Me Before You is so not a book to read when you have a cold. You're already all mucus-y and when the tears start to fall? It's just disgusting. I learned this the hard way. You're welcome.
Me Before You, by Jojo Moyes is one of those books I resisted for a long time. It's been all over my Instagram feed as a must-read, OMG, this book changed my life, seriously you guys - you have to read it, overly hyped up book. I have this perverse tendency to shy away from hype. So every time I'd see an artfully arranged copy of the book, posed with a fern or some river rocks or whatever, I'd roll my eyes and scroll past. After all, some of the people recommending this book liked Twilight, so... yeah.
Somewhere along the way though, I started to get curious. And then I stumbled across the movie trailer and that was it:
I've been sick a lot lately. Nothing serious, it just seems like this is going to be one of those years. I don't know about you, but I feel like my susceptibility to viruses comes in waves. One year it feels like I catch every. single. cold. that goes around. And then I'll have 3 or 4 good years where I hardly get sick at all. This year is shaping up to be a sick year. So I have that to look forward to.
Because of feeling like crap, I took Monday and Tuesday off work this week and mostly stayed in bed, reading. Word to the wise? Me Before You is so not a book to read when you have a cold. You're already all mucus-y and when the tears start to fall? It's just disgusting. I learned this the hard way. You're welcome.
Me Before You, by Jojo Moyes is one of those books I resisted for a long time. It's been all over my Instagram feed as a must-read, OMG, this book changed my life, seriously you guys - you have to read it, overly hyped up book. I have this perverse tendency to shy away from hype. So every time I'd see an artfully arranged copy of the book, posed with a fern or some river rocks or whatever, I'd roll my eyes and scroll past. After all, some of the people recommending this book liked Twilight, so... yeah.
Somewhere along the way though, I started to get curious. And then I stumbled across the movie trailer and that was it:
I can't tell you how embarrassed I am that it took a movie trailer to get me interested, but there it is.
Over the weekend, I picked a copy up at my local Half Price Books and proceeded to devour it. It's been a long time since I've been so totally absorbed by a book. I was almost glad to be sick because it meant that I didn't have to have such long gaps between bouts of reading.
Me Before You is the story of Lou Clark and Will Traynor. Lou's a bit of a mess. She's newly employed and directionless when she gets a job as Will's caregiver. Will is a quadriplegic who has given up on life and is waiting to die. Lou brightens Will's world and Will introduces Lou to the possibility of more. And then it's over and I'm a sobbing mess.
If you liked The Fault in Our Stars or Bridge To Terabithia or My Sister's Keeper or any other book that made you ugly cry, you'll love this one. I loved it so much I gave it one of my rare 5-star reviews.
Now, on to the sequel!
Monday, February 15, 2016
January Wrap-Up and February TBR
Ok, is it just me, or is this year FLYING by? I swear, it was just Christmas and now it's the middle of February? No. Stop.
That said, I'm behind. I know I'm behind. I know that this is, what, the third month in a row that I'm behind on my wrap-ups and TBR lists? So this month things are going to be different. I've overextended myself and I'm going to attempt to simplify.
In the last few months both my book reviewing commitments and my yarn-dyeing business kind of started blowing up all at once. Funny how that works, isn't it? One day you have all the time in the world, the next you have 10 books to read by the end of the month (and you don't want to blow it because you want the publisher to take you seriously the next time around) and you have shop commitments you hadn't anticipated. Yarn dyeing takes a lot of time y'all.
Plus there's my day job which I won't talk much about here except to say that it's about 4 times more stressful than it needs to be. So that's awesome.
All that, coupled with some health problems over the last year have led to one very stressed out blogger.
I'm getting better though. I'm making a dent in my to-do lists, I've applied for another (lower stress) position inside my current company, and my health issues are getting better by the day. This week I finally feel like I can catch my breath and as though all those commitments aren't quite the chore that they have been. Now the key is to not overload myself again!
So. Despite the title of this post, there is no January wrap-up other than to say that I finished all the original Oz books and have now moved on to finally (!) reading The Count of Monte Cristo. It's been on my TBR list for.ev.er. and I'm always a little embarrassed to admit I haven't read it yet.
February's TBR is that I'm working through a pile of books to review - most are due to publish in early March, so those reviews are coming soon. I managed to get to the library tonight for the first time in a long time and picked up Did You Ever Have a Family and Before I Fall; both of which I have been assured I will either love or hate.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to snuggle up in bed with an advance copy of Peter Straub's new short story collection. It's called Interior Darkness and it comes out tomorrow, February 16. I hope you'll check it out. It looks like it's going to be a good one.
That said, I'm behind. I know I'm behind. I know that this is, what, the third month in a row that I'm behind on my wrap-ups and TBR lists? So this month things are going to be different. I've overextended myself and I'm going to attempt to simplify.
In the last few months both my book reviewing commitments and my yarn-dyeing business kind of started blowing up all at once. Funny how that works, isn't it? One day you have all the time in the world, the next you have 10 books to read by the end of the month (and you don't want to blow it because you want the publisher to take you seriously the next time around) and you have shop commitments you hadn't anticipated. Yarn dyeing takes a lot of time y'all.
Plus there's my day job which I won't talk much about here except to say that it's about 4 times more stressful than it needs to be. So that's awesome.
All that, coupled with some health problems over the last year have led to one very stressed out blogger.
I'm getting better though. I'm making a dent in my to-do lists, I've applied for another (lower stress) position inside my current company, and my health issues are getting better by the day. This week I finally feel like I can catch my breath and as though all those commitments aren't quite the chore that they have been. Now the key is to not overload myself again!
So. Despite the title of this post, there is no January wrap-up other than to say that I finished all the original Oz books and have now moved on to finally (!) reading The Count of Monte Cristo. It's been on my TBR list for.ev.er. and I'm always a little embarrassed to admit I haven't read it yet.
February's TBR is that I'm working through a pile of books to review - most are due to publish in early March, so those reviews are coming soon. I managed to get to the library tonight for the first time in a long time and picked up Did You Ever Have a Family and Before I Fall; both of which I have been assured I will either love or hate.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to snuggle up in bed with an advance copy of Peter Straub's new short story collection. It's called Interior Darkness and it comes out tomorrow, February 16. I hope you'll check it out. It looks like it's going to be a good one.
The Case of Lisandra P.
The Case of Lisandra P. by Helene Gremillon is yet another book hyped as "the next Gone Girl", so of course I had to read it.
Lisandra P. is dead and her psychoanalyst husband, Vittorio, has been arrested for her murder. One of his patients, Eva Maria, doesn't believe Vittorio could have killed her and sets out to help him prove his innocence. Her investigation takes the reader through fascinating taped sessions with Vittorio's patients and into the lives of people who knew Lisandra and who may have had motive to kill her. The taped sessions offer some of the novels best moments and show off Gremillon's ability to give each character a unique voice.
This book is more than just a murder mystery - it is also a history lesson on some of the darkest moments in Argentinian history. The stories told are heartbreaking and chilling and the book is worth reading for the Miguel section alone. I will definitely be seeking out more by this author and am most likely going to find myself completely sucked into reading about the more recent history of Argentina...
I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Lisandra P. is dead and her psychoanalyst husband, Vittorio, has been arrested for her murder. One of his patients, Eva Maria, doesn't believe Vittorio could have killed her and sets out to help him prove his innocence. Her investigation takes the reader through fascinating taped sessions with Vittorio's patients and into the lives of people who knew Lisandra and who may have had motive to kill her. The taped sessions offer some of the novels best moments and show off Gremillon's ability to give each character a unique voice.
This book is more than just a murder mystery - it is also a history lesson on some of the darkest moments in Argentinian history. The stories told are heartbreaking and chilling and the book is worth reading for the Miguel section alone. I will definitely be seeking out more by this author and am most likely going to find myself completely sucked into reading about the more recent history of Argentina...
I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Monday, January 25, 2016
The First Order
Jeff Abbott is quickly becoming one of my favorite suspense authors. I've always liked him and I've read nearly all of his books at this point. His standalone novels are great (Panic being a particular favorite of mine), but his Sam Capra series is where he really shines.
The First Order is the fifth Capra book and (spoiler alert!) I highly doubt it will be the last. Capra is a classic good guy who's not afraid to kick ass and I don't think anyone will be getting tired of him anytime soon - hopefully Abbott has many more great Capra stories to tell.
The First Order picks right up from the cliffhanger ending of the previous installment, Inside Man. Sam has discovered that his older brother Danny may not have been dead for the last 6 years after all. The novel takes us through his search for his long lost brother and inside the politics of the new Russian oligarchy. The book starts out heavy on adrenaline and never lets up until the end.
I look forward to the next Capra book.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
The First Order is the fifth Capra book and (spoiler alert!) I highly doubt it will be the last. Capra is a classic good guy who's not afraid to kick ass and I don't think anyone will be getting tired of him anytime soon - hopefully Abbott has many more great Capra stories to tell.
The First Order picks right up from the cliffhanger ending of the previous installment, Inside Man. Sam has discovered that his older brother Danny may not have been dead for the last 6 years after all. The novel takes us through his search for his long lost brother and inside the politics of the new Russian oligarchy. The book starts out heavy on adrenaline and never lets up until the end.
I look forward to the next Capra book.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Saturday, January 16, 2016
Armada
I love Ernest Cline.
I shouldn't - I'm not really his target audience at all. I'm approximately the right age, but my interests are all wrong. I hate video games, I'm not that into sci-fi and I've never been much for 80's nostalgia (the 90s were my decade, thankyouverymuch).
All that said, I love Ernest Cline. He's just a good story-teller. His first book, Ready Player One is one of my all-time favorite books. I've recommended it to more people than I can count and I'm so excited that it finally looks like the movie is really going to happen.
Armada, his second effort, is good, but it's not quite the powerhouse that Ready Player One was. But that's not really a criticism, honestly. It's like saying Pet Sematary wasn't as good as The Stand. Pet Sematary was really good, but The Stand was great. Armada is good, but it doesn't have the depth that Ready Player One did. It's good. Really good. It's just not great.
Armada tells the story of Zach Lightman, a high school senior in Beaverton, Oregon who has always dreamed of adventure. Zach is a gamer - a really good one. He's ranked 6th in the world in his favorite space flight simulation game Armada which means that when aliens attack for real, he's one of the first to be recruited to fight them.
Armada is a fun, fast read. I was totally supposed to be reading a book for review when I picked it up and told myself I was just going to read a chapter or two to get a feel for it. Of course I got 100% sucked in, shoved aside the review book and spent several nights reading Armada way past my bedtime, finally finishing up at around 1:00 this morning.
I recommend this one for anyone who likes sci-fi, 80's pop culture references, thought Ready Player One was genius, or who appreciates well-written, off-beat stories.
Wednesday, January 6, 2016
Loose Ends
Obviously the holidays took a lot out of me this year! I am so behind in almost everything in my life right now that at this point, I'm just going to combine a whole lot of what should have been individual posts into this one. Thanks for bearing with me. Hopefully things will settle down soon and I'll be back to a normal schedule.
First up - December wrap-up. I finished quite a few good books in December. I've got standalone reviews up for most, so I won't re-hash. I'm still working my way through the Oz books - I'm on book 11 now and let me tell you - they just keep getting weirder. Also? Not such a fan of continuity, that L Frank Baum. I'm just saying... Don't get me wrong, I'm loving them, or else I'd stop reading them, but I feel compelled to point out that if these were written today, you'd have fans howling over errors in canon as the books go on. He truly just made it up as he went along and changed his universe to suit his needs. You kind of have to admire that, in a way.
Next - January. I've gotten a good start to my reading year. I've pledged 100 books in this year's Goodreads challenge. Last year I'd pledged 150, but life got in the way and I just couldn't do it. 2015 was a bad year for me, personally and I had some medical issues that made it hard to focus my attention on much of anything for a good chunk of the year. I'm back on track now, but taking it easier this year.
Also - a few short and sweet reviews:
Movie Star by Lizzie Pepper by Hilary Liftin - OMG, such a fun read! I devoured this one! It totally fed my love of celeb gossip and kinda sorta seemed like a plausible behind-the-scenes post-mortem on the whole TomKat thing. Definitely recommend this book.
The Royal We by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan - I've loved the authors' blog, www.gofugyourself.com forever, it seems like and I always read their books as soon as I have the chance. This one was really good. It's similar to Movie Star in that it's a fictionalized retelling of the whole Will and Kate story. Only this time it's Nick and Bex. And Bex is an American. I recommend this one, but I'm not quite so gushing over it as I was for Movie Star. Some parts felt a bit drawn out and I wasn't 100% satisfied with the ending - maybe there's a sequel planned? - but overall, it was great.
After the Crash by Michel Bussi - I received a copy of After the Crash from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Honestly? I loved this one. (I am really starting off my year right - three books in a row that I have really enjoyed!) After the Crash is a fast-paced suspense novel that begins with a plane crash in which all on board are killed - except for a 3-month old baby girl, found in the snow outside the wreckage, thrown from the plane. What at first seems to be a miracle for one family quickly turns into a nightmare for two. Turns out, there were two babies on that plane - both girls, both born within two days of each other. Set in the days before DNA testing could have solved everything quickly and easily, the mystery of who the little girl really is eats away at both families. Full of twists and turns and excellent writing, this one was hard to put down and is recommended for anyone who loves a good mystery/suspense novel. I look forward to reading more by Bussi.
Finally - January TBR. This month I'm focusing on finishing up the Oz books and making my way through the STACK of piled up ARCs I need to get through. Wish me luck!
First up - December wrap-up. I finished quite a few good books in December. I've got standalone reviews up for most, so I won't re-hash. I'm still working my way through the Oz books - I'm on book 11 now and let me tell you - they just keep getting weirder. Also? Not such a fan of continuity, that L Frank Baum. I'm just saying... Don't get me wrong, I'm loving them, or else I'd stop reading them, but I feel compelled to point out that if these were written today, you'd have fans howling over errors in canon as the books go on. He truly just made it up as he went along and changed his universe to suit his needs. You kind of have to admire that, in a way.
Next - January. I've gotten a good start to my reading year. I've pledged 100 books in this year's Goodreads challenge. Last year I'd pledged 150, but life got in the way and I just couldn't do it. 2015 was a bad year for me, personally and I had some medical issues that made it hard to focus my attention on much of anything for a good chunk of the year. I'm back on track now, but taking it easier this year.
Also - a few short and sweet reviews:
Movie Star by Lizzie Pepper by Hilary Liftin - OMG, such a fun read! I devoured this one! It totally fed my love of celeb gossip and kinda sorta seemed like a plausible behind-the-scenes post-mortem on the whole TomKat thing. Definitely recommend this book.
The Royal We by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan - I've loved the authors' blog, www.gofugyourself.com forever, it seems like and I always read their books as soon as I have the chance. This one was really good. It's similar to Movie Star in that it's a fictionalized retelling of the whole Will and Kate story. Only this time it's Nick and Bex. And Bex is an American. I recommend this one, but I'm not quite so gushing over it as I was for Movie Star. Some parts felt a bit drawn out and I wasn't 100% satisfied with the ending - maybe there's a sequel planned? - but overall, it was great.
After the Crash by Michel Bussi - I received a copy of After the Crash from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Honestly? I loved this one. (I am really starting off my year right - three books in a row that I have really enjoyed!) After the Crash is a fast-paced suspense novel that begins with a plane crash in which all on board are killed - except for a 3-month old baby girl, found in the snow outside the wreckage, thrown from the plane. What at first seems to be a miracle for one family quickly turns into a nightmare for two. Turns out, there were two babies on that plane - both girls, both born within two days of each other. Set in the days before DNA testing could have solved everything quickly and easily, the mystery of who the little girl really is eats away at both families. Full of twists and turns and excellent writing, this one was hard to put down and is recommended for anyone who loves a good mystery/suspense novel. I look forward to reading more by Bussi.
Finally - January TBR. This month I'm focusing on finishing up the Oz books and making my way through the STACK of piled up ARCs I need to get through. Wish me luck!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)