Tag: book review

Fail Fail Again Fail Better by Pema Chödrön

I enjoy reading the occasional commencement speech, especially from authors I admire. I think my all time favorite is the one George Saunders gave at Syracuse in 2013, on kindness. I don’t usually seek out commencement addresses in print, but I made an exception for Pema Chödrön. She’s an American-born Buddhist nun, she’s incredible and wise, and her… Continue reading Fail Fail Again Fail Better by Pema Chödrön

Did You Ever Have a Family by Bill Clegg

The TLDR version of this post is: Run, do not walk, to your bookstore or library and get Did You Ever Have a Family by Bill Clegg. // At their core, all our reactions to tragedy are about regret. Regret for what happened, even if we didn’t cause it. Regret for an altered future we… Continue reading Did You Ever Have a Family by Bill Clegg

Goodbye Stranger by Rebecca Stead

I don’t normally post stand alone reviews of middle grade or kid’s lit books here, mainly because they don’t make up a huge percentage of my reading, and I also like to pretend my reviews reflect some semblance of a strong identity as a reader. But I guess the biggest reflection my book reviews show is… Continue reading Goodbye Stranger by Rebecca Stead

Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

The front cover of Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates displays this quote at the bottom: “This is required reading.” – Toni Morrison That pretty much sums it up. It’s the most powerful book I’ve read in a long time. I wish that everyone would read it. It’s been very well received in… Continue reading Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Citizen: An American Lyric by Claudia Rankine

I read to escape. I read to learn. I read to be entertained. I read to armchair travel. And I read to understand the lives of other people. That’s probably the most important reading I do. Understanding enables compassion and empathy – two of the most important human traits that can make the world a… Continue reading Citizen: An American Lyric by Claudia Rankine

The Truth According to Us by Annie Barrows

The Truth According to Us is a new June release from Annie Barrows, one of the co-authors of the mega-popular 2008 novel, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. I really enjoyed reading Guernsey, but I haven’t always enjoyed follow up novels from authors who’ve penned runaway “book club” bestsellers. (For example: Ape House, Bellman… Continue reading The Truth According to Us by Annie Barrows

So You’ve Been Publicly Shamed by Jon Ronson

In the past few years there has been a lot of critical introspection and analysis about how social media (and the internet in general) impacts the quality of our lives. It clearly can do a lot of good, both for society and individuals. And it also can do a lot of harm. There are a lot of articles,… Continue reading So You’ve Been Publicly Shamed by Jon Ronson

H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald

I’ve been having trouble thinking about how to tell you about H is for Hawk. It’s a difficult book to describe, because it’s unlike anything else I’ve ever read. (It can be done though, because Kathryn Schulz’s review of it in the New Yorker is fantastic.) Let’s start with an oversimplified list of the main topics: Helen… Continue reading H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald