66/100

The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch

My review

rating: 2 of 5 stars
I feel bad giving this book a lower review. I am just basing it on entertaining value.



It really broke my heart to read this book and hear the story, especially since I knew that Randy Pausch had died a few months ago. I really respect him because his outlook on life was truly amazing. I hope his kids are proud of him when they grow up.


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65/100

Handle with Care by Jodi Picoult

My review

I am really torn about how to review this book. First of all, the main focus of the book is a girl named Willow, who has osetegenesis imperfecta, or brittle bone disease. This is the disease that has affected my brother his entire life. It was bizarre to read about it in a popular book and it was uncanny how like my family it was.

I love Jodi Picoult's writing style and I like hearing the story from the different characters' perspectives. And although I usually like the twist endings, I HATED the ending of this book!


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64/100

The View from Mount Joy: A Novel by Lorna Landvik

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
Once again, I really like Lorna Landvik. But this was not my favorite book of hers. I still liked it, just not as much. Joe Andreson is the main character, who we follow from his high school years, to his mid-life. I liked Joe, but I really hated how he kept going back to perfect Kristie Casey. His relationship with his best friend Darva also seemed underdeveloped to me, and I was hoping that they would've eventually wound up together. With all that being said, I found parts charming (the supermarket contests, Joe's relationship with his family), sad parts (Flora being an orphan) and parts being compelling.


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63/100

Mother Warriors: A Nation of Parents Healing Autism Against All Odds by Jenny McCarthy

My review

rating: 2 of 5 stars
Since I read and enjoyed Jenny McCarthy's other books, I figured I would try this one when I stumbled upon it at the library. At first,I was kind of turned off because I knew Jenny's stance on vaccines being a contributing factor to autism. As this was not my belief, I thought this book might be a little too "crunchy" for me. But once I got into it, I thought it was actually really inspirational. Even though I felt terrible for the stories contained, it really had a positive outlook. And honestly, I found myself questioning some of my beliefs. Some of the stories seemed too coincidental to not at least have some truth to the vaccine debate. I would like to investigate it much further when I have kids.


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62/100

The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman

My review

rating: 1 of 5 stars
I tried to give up on this book twice but because of the great reviews, I kept plodding along. I began to skip sections on the Hmong culture just so I could finish the story about Lia. Lia was a young Hmong girl who moved to the US with her family. She suffered from a seizure disorder that medical professionals could not control since her parents spoke no English and were often non-compliant with treatment. I understand the basic premise of loving parents at odds with the medical community who are trying to help her and the whole culture clash, but I thought the book was dreadfully boring.


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61/100

Your Oasis on Flame Lake by Lorna Landvik

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
I picked this book up at the library because it is written by Lorna Landvik, author of Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons. Since I liked that book so much, I was excited to read something else by her. The book is told from the perspectives of five different people: Devra, Devra's husband, Dick, their daughter Darcy, Devra's best friend BiDi and BiDi's husband, Sergio.

I liked that this story was realistic in that sometimes people have affairs even though they still love their spouses, and sometimes bad things happen to people and they don't always get over it right away. I enjoyed reading this book and would highly recommend it to others.


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60/100

The Longest Trip Home: A Memoir by John Grogan

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
This is another book I read at school, although rather than it be a middle school required reading, it was a book a teacher was reading that she didn't feel like continuing.

This was the life story of John Grogan, author of Marley and Me. I loved loved loved Marley, and this book was okay, but not nearly as captivating. I think it was because it was a little hard for me to relate to erections and extreme Catholicism. But overall, I found it very enjoyable, although there was sadness involved.


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