Book Review: Bread and Wine: A Love Letter to Life Around the Table

Bread & Wine: A Love Letter to Life Around the Table, with Recipes by Shauna Niequist
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was my first Shauna Niequist book that I have read. I came across a recommendation from a blogging friend (Annie B. Jones) who enjoyed it and decided that I too wanted to read this book. Part of what was compelling was the fact that there were recipes included throughout the book and the promise that they were fairly simple to make - something that I am constantly looking for.

And I wish I could put a finger on it about what is so compelling about this book, but the proper words elude me. Maybe it is it's sweet simplicity - great vignettes throughout with great recipes. Maybe it is the joy that Niequist is wonderful at conveying about the act of creating a meal and then sharing it with loved ones. Whatever it is, it has inspired me immensely and gotten me in the kitchen, actually cooking for myself. That sounds like it shouldn't be that big of a deal - after all, cooking isn't that new of a thing or some great novelty. But for me, a single woman who comes home most nights, after solving problems or navigating stressful waters with clients or coworkers all day and only a few hours to go before falling asleep, somehow cramming in time with friends or high school girls - cooking has remained something just out of my grasp. It's not that I can't cook or follow a recipe - it's that it is the last thing I want to try to do and wait to eat until 9pm after a long day at the office (and also why all working mothers have my utmost admiration).

Anyway, this book has been very inspiring and gotten me in the kitchen, creating meals - and I love it. It's gotten me thinking more about actually planning meals and stocking my kitchen so that there are things to eat. I have felt more adventurous about trying new things and being ok if they don't turn out great - it's all part of the process. Which is exactly what I think Shauna herself would say.

It's a great book about love and cooking and has some really great recipes. Honestly what more does one need?

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Book Review: Quiet

Quiet: The Power Of Introverts In A World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I strongly believe that this is an important book for people to read. I was pretty hesitant myself before picking it up - I had seen Susan Cain's TED talk, which was interesting, but I wasn't sure if it would be interesting enough to hold my attention through an entire book. I was very wrong though.

Through research and interviews that Cain compiles, she makes a compelling case for introverts everywhere and provides a voice to people who the world thinks are just "different" or "shy". And because (especially in America) we are conditioned to hear the loudest voice in the room, these people are unconsciously written off because of their personality. Introverts are cast as "anti-social" and not liking to be around people, which is one of the many myths that Cain dispels about this segment of our population - which, according to which research you believe makes up either a third or half of our population.

Part of what the book so interesting to me was the many different approaches and topics that were addressed in the book: Introverts in the workplace & space - how can they survive in the new "open" work environments (something that I myself have struggled much with); Introverts in modern-day evangelical churches - Are churches set up in a way that only allows for extroverts to worship; Introverts and biology - can you tell whether a child will be an introvert or extrovert soon after they are born?; Introverts and personal relationships - how to navigate different personalities in relationships; and Introverted children and how they do (or don't) succeed in school and how parents can help them.

If there's any complaint that I would have about the book, it would be the style with which it is written - it read like a Malcolm Gladwell book to me - lots of overarching statements with some compelling antecedent research. However, when flipping through the appendix, you do find that this book was well-researched and thoroughly thought out.

Again, I think this is an important book for people to read because of the understanding of different personalities it will provide you - which will help you in relations with coworkers, parents, children, friends, and spouses. And if you are an introvert or are not sure, you'll learn more about what makes an introvert and what makes an extrovert from this book.

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Book Review: Life of Pi

Life of Pi by Yann Martel
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Haunting.

If I had to sum up this book in one word, that is the word I would use. A week later, and every time I think about it, a gamut of emotions is conjured - confusion, awe, wonder, disbelief. This book marries beautiful writing with an incredible story, that sweeps you up in the end and leaves you feeling a bit breathless, because you can't quite believe what you have just read.

The author, as I said, has a way with words. His ability to craft together words and string sentences piece by piece into a beautifully woven tale allows you, the reader, to simultaneously enjoy and reject the journey that he is taking you on. You reject it because it is so horrific what the main character, Pi, experiences - and the art lies in the fact that you never quite understand the stark horror he lives in until the closing of the book, because of the way the story is told. It is a remarkable and impressive feat to capture this boy's journey is such a masterful way.

And if anyone can help me to understand the line, "And so it goes with God", I will be very grateful. Highly recommend this book.

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Book Review: Beautiful Outlaw by John Eldredge

Beautiful Outlaw: Experiencing the Playful, Disruptive, Extravagant Personality of Jesus by John Eldredge
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I read John Eldredge's latest book earlier this spring but am just now getting around to reviewing it.

I know that there are a lot of critics of John's books and his style of writing. However, in my opinion, there isn't another writer out there that makes the heart of Jesus more accessible. Beautiful Outlaw is Eldredge's examination of the personality of Jesus, which he purports often gets overlooked by Christians. I would have to agree, especially in the way that Eldredge presents it. By re-examining passages in the Bible, he points out different aspects of Jesus's personality - his playfulness, cunning, humility, extreme generosity, captivating honesty and authenticity. And best of all, how all of these personality traits are still evident in our own life. Eldredge asserts that if we allow Jesus to live within our lives, these traits become more and more apparent to us.

I really loved this book. It is a very easy read - the writing won't blow you away - but its content is so powerful. You can't read this book and come away without being affected and wanting to know more about this amazing Son of Man, Son of God, Jesus.

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Book Review: Catching Fire

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I delayed reading this book for a long time. I read The Hunger Games in 2009 and was mesmerized by the dystopian story, as well as its fast-paced plot. And I feel like Catching Fire captures some of the same pace of The Hunger Games with unexpected twists and turns coming at you with the turn of a page.

What I found the most engaging about this book was the further development of the relationship between Katniss and Peeta, which stopped so abruptly at the end of The Hunger Games. I could feel Katniss falling for this man who is good and loves her unconditionally, two things which she wishes were true of her (when it comes to her relationships with Gale and Peeta).

The true purpose of Catching Fire,in my opinion, is to lay the foundation for the next book. By touring through all the Districts on the Victory Tour, Katniss and Peeta show the reader the unrest that is lurking beneath the surface of the country, Panem. As they travel through the Districts, it becomes clear that they have solidly become symbols of defiance against the Capitol and its evils, (which is represented the most by the Hunger Games) but it is only a foreboding of the story that will fully unravel itself in the final and third book, Mockingjay.

In all, I found Catching Fire very engaging. It broadened the scope of Collins' story, setting up the third book, and it's own plot twists and new batch of characters provided for an entertaining read.

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Book Review: The Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I had the idea to re-read this book in the hopes of being able to join in Out of Print's twitter book club - but I was too late in actually reading it to do so. But for some reason instead of putting it back on the shelf, I decided to crack open this book that I hadn't looked at since high school.

Fitzgerald's prose blew me away. The lyricism, the rhythm, and the contempt - yet care - that he has for his characters makes for a work of art that I never could have comprehended when I was seventeen. I was blown away during this reading.

What was most surprising about this story in reading it now is how similar i found Fitzgerald's commentary on the American society in the "Roaring Twenties" to be to our own current society. The mannerisms of the characters, the descriptions of the party scenes at Gatsby's mansion - these elements bear a striking resemblance to our own culture in its present state. It made me wish I was in a high school or college English class so that a discussion about its intricacies could have taken place and further enlightened me to appreciate the words I was reading.

And I have to admit that in reading this I was imagining the cast of the new Gatsby film being done by Baz Luhrman. I can only imagine what that movie will be like in his hands. It's almost guaranteed that most will hate it and few will love it.

All in all, I am so glad that I dusted this book off the shelf and read it again. It has inspired me to want to dust off more classics and enjoy the carefully crafted words between their pages.

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Book Review: Out of My Mind

Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It is hard to properly explain the magic of this book. From the opening line to the closing pages, Out of My Mind is a work of art that is both important, beautiful, and timeless. The author, Sharon Draper, has written many books. I know this only because I had the pleasure of hearing her speak at a conference that I was working. Little did I know that her keynote was only the tip of the iceberg of the power that she possessed.

This book is about a girl named Melody with severe cerebral palsy. She cannot walk. She cannot feed herself. She cannot move. Most of all, she cannot talk. But she hears everything, sees everything, and understands everything. Her memory is a photograph and she treasures knowledge and learning. No one believes in her capabilities though. Instead of seeing who she is on the inside - a brilliant girl - they all see her on the surface. Kids at school only see her looks or her odd shouts or her inability to feed herself. There are a few champions that come into her life and recognize the fact that she is trapped inside a body that betrays her full capabilities.

The thing I did not expect from this book was the way it touched me. Draper has crafted a tale that touches the deepest part of ourselves. It asks us to look inside of ourselves and see us through Melody's eyes. How do we interact with those who have no way of communicating with the outside world? With those who have been born into a world of struggle and disability that we have no idea of truly comprehending? They are hard questions, but questions that need to be asked because those who are handicapped are all around us.

The book is a breeze to get through - the reading level of the book is meant for anyone in grades 4 or above. But I am so glad that even though it is a "children's book" I picked it up and read it because it taught me something and opened my eyes even more to a world that I largely forget. And I hope that at some point, everyone will have a chance to pick up this book and have their eyes opened as well.

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Book Review: A Whole New Mind: Why Right-Brainers Will Rule the Future

A Whole New Mind: Why Right-Brainers Will Rule the Future by Daniel H. Pink
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I finally finished this book this week, and would have done so sooner if I hadn't left it at home during a business trip (some other books took priority). I really enjoyed my first Daniel Pink foray. I believe that he makes some really relevant points, and when I consider that this was first published in 2006, it is evident that he was on the forefront of the tidal wave of change that the marketplace has gone through.

Mr. Pink's thesis mainly boils down to the fact that because of Asia, automation, and technology the economy has changed. If a product or service can be made cheaper, better, or faster by any of those three factors, your field of work may be in trouble. The "left-brain" logical, analytic mindset that has dominated the American economy ever since the time of Henry Ford, has been outsourced and can be done just as well or better - AND cheaper - abroad than in the US. The so called "Knowledge Worker" is made irrelevant - all the engineers, the doctors, the service workers, manufacturers - can be provided for less cost by India or China than they can in the US. So what is a US knowledge worker to do?

This is where the brunt of Pink's work comes in. His supposition is that an American worker can no longer just be contained to the left-brain, analytic mindset that is taught in school - he/she must broaden their perspective and mind and use the long dormant and much maligned "right-brain" skills. By bringing a creative outlook to their analytic skills, the New economy worker has an opportunity to bring meaning and purpose to the widgets they produce - in fact, Pink argues that even in order to survive in the new economy, workers MUST bring their right-brain skills to work with them - otherwise consumers will not pay attention or buy the workers' products or services.

There are six areas that Pink outlines - three that jump to my mind right now are Design, Symphony, and Meaning - that workers must learn to employ within their skill sets in order to create products and/or services that people will want.

One of the neat things that sets this book apart is that Pink includes a host of exercises and steps for incorporating or learning each of the six areas that he highlights. Instead of just listing "six steps to a right-brain mindset", he gives you an action plan for how to incorporate these different areas into your life.

I thought it was an easy read, very easy to understand, with a compelling argument. If you're interested in learning how to augment your set of skills with "right-brain" creative qualities, I highly recommend it. And even if you're not, I still recommend the book because you should learn how to incorporate these ideas into your current set of skills - otherwise, you'll be left behind as the marketplace moves forward.

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Book Review: One of Our Thursdays Is Missing

One of Our Thursdays Is Missing by Jasper Fforde
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

When you read a Jasper Fforde novel, you have to be prepared to enter into a completely fantastical realm of novel reading. The book twists and turns at the drop of a hat, and just when you think you may get an inkling of an idea of where the story might be headed you are distracted by a sarcastic rant on the state of books and writing disguised as part of the plot. This is what I would call the Monty Python of novel writing, and I hope the author wouldn't be offended by that comparison, as it is meant in the highest regard. Dizzingly smart, completely droll, often crazy, Fforde's writing highly entertains this (one of 6*) reader.

This actual novel is a continuation of sorts of his popular "Thursday Next" series. But Fforde is so smart in that he doesn't try to make another sequel - instead he constructs a novel that references and uses aspects of the series so that readers of the other books have some familiarity, but it is different from the other series. To give you an idea, the main character is not Thursday Next, but the written Thursday Next. And if you can wrap head around that, then you are well on your way to making your way through the book.

Sprinkled with antecedents, such as the written Harry Potter forever mad at having to now be associated with looking like Daniel Radcliffe, and a dangerous encounter in a "mimefield", and a plot line that involves a war between "Racy Novel" and "Women's Fiction", the novel can almost at times get a bit lost in its own cleverness. But the genius of Fforde is that he knows it, and suddenly you're thrust back into the plot through a clever break thru of the fourth wall. It is such a pleasure to read such creative writing.

Part improvisation, part mystery, part comedy, and a thousand other parts, this book, as most of Fforde's books do, defines genres. Just don't tell the Council of Genres that*.


*Recommend reading the book to get these references. But do so at your own imagination's peril :).

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Book Review: Inheritance

Inheritance by Christopher Paolini
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

*Sigh* I start this review off with a sigh because that is how I felt each time I picked up the book to read it. I have anxiously awaited the release of this book for the sheer fact that I wanted to see how the series ended. I had really enjoyed Eragon, and then Eldest, and when Brisingr came out was ready to see how the series concluded. However, when Christopher Paolini changed the game and made it a 4 book cycle instead of 3, I believe it embittered me toward the fourth book from the get go. I was annoyed that I had to wait another three years to see how the story would end. And I really did not want to wade through another Brisingr, which would have been much better with sharper editing and fewer pages. So imagine my dismay when my pre-order book arrived and I discovered that it was 850 PAGES!!!

Really? 850 pages? The story couldn't be wrapped up in fewer than 850 pages?

But I was determined to see how it all ended (though I had forgotten much of how it all began because of the delay in between books). It took 250 pages for the story to really pick up and only then, halfway through the book did the story become compelling.

I don't want to take away too much from Paolini's creation - for he did create it, and I have a lot of admiration and respect for those who create stories. But, I believe that there is as much power in EDITING your story as there is in creating it. And here is the rub for me. There was WAY too much detail and superfluous sentences in the midst of long-winded descriptions for me. If the description does not move the story along, why include it? Why include an encounter with giant snails? Why draw out the ending of the tale (and make it eerily similar to the end of LOTR?)? Why all the chapters about Nasuada's torture and giving us hope for her escape - yet never realizing that hope? Why a whole chapter on Eragon healing a baby born with a cleft lip? It is instances like these that I did not understand, but muddled through, in order to continue on with the larger story.

I also was annoyed that Paolini spent the last three books fleshing out the character of Angela, and yet still (in 850 pages!) still did not provide her origin story or who she was. I also was mildly annoyed that King Orrin didn't prove to be a spy of Galbatorix's, because the story seemed to be going in that direction - and I'm pretty good at guessing the direction of stories.

It is a good story - I wont' deny that. But I will remain perturbed that I had to suffer another 850 pages to get to the end of the story. I guess now I can go tackle War and Peace.

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Book Review: Closer Than Your Skin: Unwrapping the Mystery of Intimacy with God

Closer Than Your Skin: Unwrapping the Mystery of Intimacy with God by Susan Hill
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is a book that sneaks up on you. It starts off slow and whiles its way through vignettes of the author's childhood. But as this memoir moves on, something begins to happen to your soul. As I read along the pages a long-suppressed desire of hearing and seeing God on the move awoke. Through example after example, and story after story, the author relates this quiet power that is accessible to all believers - but something that we so often suppress and ignore. Why do we question the ways that our God can communicate with His people? Why do we not believe that He can reach out to us in a dream, through a song, a fleeting interaction with a stranger? This books served as an awakening call - one that I am sure that I will have to be reminded of, as the jadedness and bitterness of life creep back in. But for now, I am enjoying the stretching of my faith and the realization that God is bigger than the box that I constantly seem to put Him into.

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Book Review: Such a Pretty Fat

Such a Pretty Fat: One Narcissist's Quest to Discover if Her Life Makes Her Ass Look Big, or Why Pie is Not the Answer by Jen Lancaster
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

After finishing, "You Had Me at Woof", I wanted to continue reading some light-hearted, easy-to-read books, especially after having my brain stretched by Malcolm Gladwell. In doing so, I turned to Jen Lancaster and this memoir about her travails with the world of dieting and exercise.

H-I-L-A-R-I-O-U-S. This woman is kind of my soulmate. Her writing just hits the funny bone nerve in my body and I was laughing out loud at multiple parts. Jen somehow managed to capture everything I have ever thought about exercise on paper. And in the process of doing so, she puts together some crazy antecedents about barking dogs, reality tv shows, her neighbors, and her drives through the "hood" (otherwise known as a trip to the ATM machine). Her relationship with Fletch, her husband, is precious and so real - I love them both.

This being my third Lancaster memoir, I have to admit that they start to get a bit one-note. I don't think I could read another one right away, but one every once in a while it is like a well-deserved dessert - key lime pie, perhaps?

Bottom line, this was a fun, great read, with lots of laughs. And there's no downside to that!

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Book Review: Brain Rules

Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School by John Medina

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Let me be clear - I am not a science person. My education in the public school system doomed me with uninspiring science teachers (with a few notable exceptions) and as such this whole field failed to ever capture my imagination enough to want to learn more about it. Mostly it was just boring and tedious and failed to ever touch that realm within my head that goes "Wowwwww...I want to learn more about that...". Even attending UVA and the science classes there failed to ever create a spark that ignited a flame, a desire to learn more about the subject.

However, as an "adult" I have to come to appreciate the field of science. The intricacies of the human body and universe that we live in, to me, point to the unbelievable creativity, complexity, and mystery of God. Which is why I found myself completely fascinated by this book all about the brain.

I had no idea how incredibly complex, mysterious, and unbelievably fascinating the organ known as our brain is. It is unbelievable the amount of processes and neurons it is taking me right now to type out this sentence, much less for you to be able to read it. Did you know that what our eyes see really is just the brain "Seeing" for us based upon prior experience and patterns? That the rasoen yuo can raed tihs stenecne is bcaese the bairn is fllinig in the wrods besad uopn porir epereixcne. The words just typed out should make no sense whatsoever to you - yet you can read that entire sentence because your brain is automatically compensating for what should be there. Fascinating, isn't it??

This book, written by the neuroscientist John Medina, breaks down the 12 "rules" that our brains are governed by. Covering such topics as Exercise, Sleep and Stress and their effects upon the human brain, as well as short and long-term memory and our innate ability to learn and explore, Medina presents what could be overwhelming and complex material in an easy-to-understand, read, and digest manner. It is fascinating to discover some reasons and rules about the way we think - something that we take for granted each and every day. On a personal note, I found this book highly enlightening based upon the fact that an aunt had a horrific car accident in which she suffered significant brain damage. Reading this book only highlights the miracle it is to see how much she has been able to heal and regain functions of her brain that could have easily remained permanently damaged. I highly recommend this book.


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Book Review: Love & War

Love and War: Finding the Marriage You've Dreamed Of by John Eldredge

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I decided to not review this book immediately after reading it, because I wasn't sure how to approach it. Now, about a week later, I'm still not sure I have any better idea of how to describe it, but the fact that it has stayed with me for over a week's time, is telling to me as I usually churn and burn through books and their content. There are few books that resonate deeply within my heart - and while I don't know if this book is to that kind of status, I did really, really appreciate it.

It's interesting reading a book on marriage as a single person. The couple of other books on marriage that I've read this year ("Flux" by Peggy Orenstein and "Committed" by Elizabeth Gilbert) have always left me deeply questioning whether or not I really wanted to enter into this commitment. The hardships and realities that come with marriage are all too apparent in a Western culture like ours today in which about 50% of all marriages end in divorce. And those books put up a big red warning flag on the "fairytale" romances and endings often portrayed by Hollywood and Jane Austen that I have always loved. And to be honest, what girl doesn't want the fairytale? Of course there is a desire for a knight in shining armor - even the most independent of us have to admit that once in a while (I mean, come on, Beyonce "Ms. Independent" Knowles even married Jay-Z!).

What John and Stasi do though, in addressing the realities of hardships in marriages, is also provide tools and context for how to get through the hard stuff, and also why there is hard stuff. The Eldredges have always been upfront about the spiritual warfare and battle that goes on in our lives (See "Waking the Dead", "Epic", "Sacred Romance", "Captivating", "Walking with God"). But what they remind us - and what I think is one of their biggest gifts in my opinion - is that we are fighting a spiritual battle and NOTHING is spared from this war of attrition. Satan wants to see the ruin of marriages and hurt hearts and vows and agreements to never love again - because then he completely takes us out of the battle. I think the complacency component and routine that marriages can fall into walk a dangerous line in forgetting this fact.

What I also think that they do very well is to also emphasize the unbelievable and beautiful love that occurs in marriage - and how that gives us a glimpse into God's love for us. The grace and love that can come out of a marriage in seeing two people learn how to love beyond faults and baggage and the sin that is inherent in each of us, is a taste of heaven.

One of the best pieces of advice that I think they also provide is the idea of a shared adventure between the partners - something that is bigger than both the husband and wife that helps them focus their attention on not just each other, but on the kingdom at large. For example, the shared adventure/passion that the Eldredges embarked on is the creation of Ransomed Heart Ministries - a ministry that seeks to help men and women discover the heart of God and heal hearts while doing so. For others it could be the feeding of the poor, or the fight against the slave trade, or bringing the message of Christ to high school kids. It's not so much what the adventure, the vision is, but that it is shared between the husband and wife.

John and Stasi are very open and honest in this book. You won't find very many book or movie references here, which might appeal to some or jar other longtime fans that have come to expect that from them. I, for one, found it a highly intriguing and heart-engaging book. It caused me to ask questions of my own heart and views on marriage and come to realize that I have a hard time believing that anyone could love me beyond all of my baggage and selfishness. And if that is true, what does that say about my belief in God? It is something that I will continue to ruminate over. But all in all, I do highly recommend it and would encourage those who are married or thinking of getting married, or people who have ever thought about marriage in general, should go and pick up this book. I don't think you'll regret doing so.


**Many thanks to the publisher for the free copy of this book**



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Book Review: The Thoughtful Dresser

The Thoughtful Dresser: The Art of Adornment, the Pleasures of Shopping, and Why Clothes Matter by Linda Grant

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Wow. It has been a looooong time since I reviewed any kind of book. And when I started this book, I didn't think I would ever finish it, but last night in the wee hours of the morning when I should have been sleeping I got to the end. Hallelujah - I finally finished a book!

I really, really enjoyed this book. As I have gotten more involved in the style blog community - both with my own blog and in reading others, I felt like this was a good time to explore some deeper thoughts on fashion and style in general. And this book did not disappoint. The author's premise is that all depths are covered by a surface and that the surface matters. That what you wear and how you dress sends a message to the outside world, one that is seen and judged by every person that you encounter.

I was surprised at the depth of the writing of this book. The author, Linda Grant, certainly can turn a pretty phrase and in my opinion is very well-written. The way that the book reads is also very interesting. Rather than carrying one cohesive thesis throughout the book, it is more like a series of articles covering differing topics and areas within fashion and its surprising depths and impact upon women and their views of themselves and the outside world. And Grant does a great job convincing the reader of fashion's necessity to the lives of people - no matter what hardships we go through. She begins the book examining fashion and the Holocaust. Not two topics you would ever think would go together, but Grant does an admirable job in showing how the two actually converge.

The other thing that I loved about the book was Grant's look back into history at fashion - particularly how the world has changed from post World War II to present day. It not only is a great look at the history of fashion, but also a look at women's history post-World War II as well. And it is surprising to discover that even as women made strides to "liberate" themselves and assert our rights, we actually have become trapped by images forced at us of models with pre-pubescent bodies wearing high-fashion clothing and told by the high-fashion design houses that this is what is considered "beautiful". It is a fascinating look back and helps one to realize that this hasn't always been considered the standard of beauty.

The other thing that is fascinating about the book is how seriously women take beauty. And how we cope through unthinkable tragedies by tending to this basic human desire that we have - to look beautiful. It makes sense to me, especially after reading John and Stasi Eldredge's Captivatinga couple years ago, but it is very interesting to see Grant come to the same conclusion.

All in all I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It definitely broadened my view on the importance of fashion and style and any time my worldview is broadened, I am a fan.

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Book Review: Rumor Has It

Rumor Has It: Some people just can't keep a secret... by Jill Mansell

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I picked this book up as a lark in the bookstore yesterday and started reading it when I got home. Five hours later, I was reaching the end of one of the most enjoyable, light-hearted, fun, entertaining reads I have read in a while. While this book might be in that oft-derided genre of "chick-lit", it transcends it with its intelligence, irony, snark, sarcasm, and a cast of lovable characters in a small English town named Roxborough. In a Cranford meets Jane Austen meets Helen Fielding kind of way, the girl and the guy do get together in the end, but the journey there is so enjoyable you don't care about any of the cliches that might be within the story.

The narration of the actual book is interesting in the fact that it jumps from character to character from time to time. Most of the book is told by Tilly Cole, but every so often the next chapter comes along and you get a different point of view. While this may sound pretty jarring, the way that Mansell weaves everything together makes for a fluid story when all is said and done.

This is a very British novel. Loads of irony, snark, and sarcasm and it is delightfully funny even in the most hard, painful moments. Life and death are all treated with the same aplomb. One of the playful ironic touches comes in the naming of some of the main characters. There is character named Jack, who's love in life was named Rose. Jack and Rose. Titanic anyone? It's a playful liberty taken by the author and I fully appreciated it.

This is my first foray into a Mansell novel and I'm looking forward to the next one. I can only hope it's half as good and fun as "Rumor Has It" has been. Honestly, the worst thing I can say about the book is that it's title shares the same title of a terrible movie with Jennifer Aniston, Kevin Costner, and Shirley MaClaine. Hopefully if this book is ever made into a movie, it will be more along the lines of "Bridget Jones" rather than a second-rate romantic comedy with Jennifer Aniston!

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Book Review: When the Game Is Over, It All Goes Back in the Box

When the Game Is Over, It All Goes Back in the Box by John Ortberg

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Like one reviewer said, this is classic John Ortberg. Successfully weaving bits and pieces of humor, stories, and personal antecedents into a book about meaningful life stuff, Ortberg does a great job of carrying his theme, "Games as life metaphor" throughout the entire book. There were some parts that seemed abrupt or I didn't quite get the placement or use of a particular story or the particular story just didn't transition well into the next part. But all in all it was a good book. I have to admit that it took me an entire month to read the book, but that was more because of me leaving off at different times and not picking things back up again.

What I'll take most from the book are the following quotes:

"People go through life, get stuff, and then they die, leaving all their stuff behind. What happens to it? The kids argue over it. The kids - who haven't died yet, who are really just pre-dead people - go over to their parents' house. They pick through their parents' old stuff like vultures, deciding which stuff they want to take to their houses. They say to themselves, "Now this is my stuff." Then they die - and some new vultures come for it. People come and go. Nations go to war over stuff, families split apart because of stuff. Husbands and wives argue more about stuff than any other single issue.

Prisons are full of street thugs and CEOs who committed crimes to acquire it.

Why? It's only stuff. Houses and hotels are the crowning jewels in Monopoly. But the moment the game ends they go back in the box. So it is with all stuff." - pgs 84-85

"The world gets pretty tired of people who have Christian bumper stickers on their cars, Christian fish signs on their trunks, Christian books on their shelves, Christian stations on their radios, Christian jewelry around their necks, Christian videos for their kids, and Christian magazines for their coffee tables but don't actually have the life of Jesus in their bones or the love of Jesus in their hearts." pg. 115

"One of the primary barriers that prevents people from wanting to know God is joy-impaired Christians." pg 132

"Physician Bernie Siegel wrote, 'I've done the research and I hate to tell you, but everybody dies - lovers, joggers, vegetarians, and non-smokers. I'm telling you this so that some of you who jog at 5am and eat vegetables will occasionally sleep late and have an ice cream cone.'" pg. 132

"I think the greater danger is, as Paul put it, that the world will "squeeze you into its own mold." The danger is that you will lead a respectable, decent, nonscandalous, busy, tired, human-powered life. That is unspeakably sad. We all want to pursue the kingdom of God. We just don't have the time." pg. 132

"Discovering what is needed to fulfill the meaning of your life is not the same thing as being successful, and it is never easy. But deep in our souls we know an easy mission is not what we were made for. It will not thrill us. No one ever went to see a movie called Mission Not So Difficult." pg. 175

"We are not just physical stuff; we are spiritual beings. And our deepest hunger is spiritual. We hunger for meaning. We hunger for love. We hunger for redemption." pg. 196

"That's the world in which we live: we sell what nobody needs. But the problem of the human heart is: we need what nobody sells." pg. 197

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Book Review: Committed

Committed: A Skeptic Makes Peace with Marriage by Elizabeth Gilbert

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Elizabeth Gilbert's follow up from her beloved "Eat, Pray, Love" is a great romp through the institution of marriage. A mixture of opinion, facts, interviews, observations, historical interpretation, and memoir, "Committed" is probably not what most people expect from the woman who penned EPL. Weaving together both a personal narrative of her and her fiance's travels and ordeals with the US Immigration Service and reflections on what it means to be married, Gilbert offers an interesting look at the biggest commitment that two people can make to one another.

I enjoyed this book. I thought it was funny at times, poignant at others, and all around interesting. It has been some time since I last read "Eat, Pray, Love", so I didn't find myself disappointed with the tone, or subject matter, or the style of how the book was written - all that meaning to say, I wasn't trying to compare this book to EPL. And I'm glad that I didn't, because I think this book should be appreciated on its own feet. If EPL didn't exist, I think this book would be received as the interesting read it in fact is. It gave me lots to think about and reflect upon, and it was really interesting to read in light of all the other material that I have recently been reading about women, marriage, careers, and life.

I don't agree with everything that Gilbert says or presents as fact in the book - and I'm sorry, the history nerd in me would like a works cited page and footnotes for all the research and works cited throughout the book. The Acknowledgments section just didn't cut it for me. But then again, I am a big nerd.

But I do believe that anyone that is contemplating marriage or thinks about being married or would like to be married or is married, should take an afternoon or two and read this book. The last chapter was probably my favorite, since it was really in that chapter that I heard Gilbert's "voice" really come alive again, the way that it was in Eat, Pray, Love. All in all, a great read.

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Book Review: Chains

Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
My good friend recently wrote on her book review blog that the world of young adult literature contains much real fiction and is not just littered with the likes of books like The Babysitters Club, Saddle Club, or angsty teen vampire/werewolf tales (though I will always maintain a love and special place in my heart for Twilight). Upon finishing this novel, "Chains", there is no denying this fact. In fact, maybe some adult fiction writers need to take a page from this book and craft together a feat of story such as this one.

Told from the point of view of a young slave girl during the American Revolutionary War, the ironies of the institution of slavery during America's fight for "independence" slaps the reader in the face. The book is filled with gut-wrenching pain for this girl to find freedom - which is literally stolen from her at the beginning of the book. Freed upon the death of her master, the nephew who inherits all of his aunt's property, promptly takes Isabel and her sister Ruth and sells them back into slavery. And so begins the long and arduous journey to freedom that Isabel is desperate to find once again.

There were so many emotions that I encountered while reading this book - sadness, outrage, hurt, injustice, pain - and yet, I could not put the book down. I essentially devoured it. Extremely well-written, the author's command of prose is almost daring. She moves her story forward at a fast pace, while yet poetically describing the anger and pain that Isabel experiences throughout her journey in New York City. The quotes that open each chapter highlight the irony that runs rampant throughout the book - that a country fighting for freedom from tyranny does not extend that same hope to all men - because they aren't even viewed as human beings.

I wish I had read this book after reading "Bury the Chains" by Adam Hochschild last year, which remains one of my all-time favorite books. And then followed this with "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett. I feel like these three books all speak to the same theme and open up a new world of understanding on a subject that seems to be glossed over all too often. Understanding our own depravity towards other human beings can never be told too often in my opinion. It is sickening and that is why books like "Chains" remain more than relevant today.

*The author is going to be releasing a follow-up to this book in the fall of this year called "Forge"Chains!*

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Book Review: If You Have to Cry, Go Outside: And Other Things Your Mother Never Told You

If You Have to Cry, Go Outside: And Other Things Your Mother Never Told You by Kelly Cutrone

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I didn't intend to read this book over the weekend, but happened to pick it up and just couldn't put it down, and so over the course of a few hours on a Saturday afternoon, I found myself at the end of it, a little bit wiser and entertained.

Basically the book is a little bit autobiographical, giving details of Kelly Cutrone's life and how she got into the PR/publicity business. Along the way she includes details of what really makes a life worth living. I would categorize it as a hybrid business/life advice book. Some of her life advice I took with a heavy grain of salt - being of a different belief system and worldview, I'm not really into "making up your own religion." But I do (obviously) believe that we are here on this earth to live for a higher purpose than sex, drugs, rock & roll, fame, and money. Those things and the pursuit of them are very costly and in the end don't bring the things they promise. These words of wisdom have a little bit more truth to them coming from someone like Kelly Cutrone, who's life is based in that world, than it would from me, a small-town country girl with city leanings.

What I really appreciated from the book was learning more about Kelly's background and how she rose to be where she is now - owner and CEO of People's Revolution, a premiere fashion publicity firm. I loved her when she appeared on "The Hills", a breath of fresh air with her no-bs approach to working, even with cameras rolling in her face. I really enjoyed her own foray into reality television with her show "Kell on Earth", as it showcased what a formidable businesswoman she really is. In her book, she downplays some of the wisdom and knowledge that she has gained over the years, but the proof is in the pudding - she owns and runs one of the most successful fashion PR companies in the world, People's Revolution. Her business advice is what I appreciated the most - from lessons on how to "fake it to make it", the importance of a personal brand, and how to communicate via phone versus email - something that is a lost art (I'm the first to admit my fear of the phone).

Written succinctly and in a very easy to read manner, I would recommend it for a good beach read. However, for those with more conservative tastes, be forewarned - Kelly is not your typical, demure, "refined" woman - she is a B.I.T.C.H. "Babe In Total Control of Herself".

(*Also, as a side note, it was very interesting to read this book right after reading "Flux:Women on Sex, Work, Love, Kids, and Life in a Half-Changed World". Kelly would have made an interesting case study in that book, and some of the things she discusses about being a powerful career woman (both the difficulties and advantages of) coincided with the themes and discussions in that book.)

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