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Special Feature: Matrimony, Inc.: From Personal Ads to Swiping Right, a Story of America Looking for Love by Francesca Beauman
If this title doesn’t grab you then I don’t know what will! I don’t read a ton of non fiction books but this one jumped out at me and I think it would be a fun read or even a fun gift for the upcoming holidays. This could easily be the book I give me history loving intellectual family members and friends this year! Back in the late 1990s meeting someone online and dating them sounded so desperate and taboo but now in 2020 it’s how most people meet and fall in love. I don’t think twice when my friends talk about their Tinder matches when in the 1990s I…
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Special Feature: That Was Awkward: The Art and Etiquette of the Awkward Hug by Emily Flake
Is there anyone out there who is truly a hugger or is it just something you have acquired a taste for over the course of your life? For me, it’s something I’ve had to cultivate. I am not a big hugger and there is nothing more awkward than when someone asks if they can hug me because they know I am not a hugger. I mean, yes it’s fine if you hug me but now you made it awkward by asking and pointing out that it’s obvious that I don’t like it. Basically, hugging is such an awkward situation and that’s why I had to laugh when this book popped…
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Review: Horror Stories by Liz Phair
I don’t read a ton of non fiction, especially memoirs. It’s just not a genre that really appeals to me, but on occasion reading biographies or memoirs about Princess Diana, Kate Middleton, or other famous modern women cross my mind frequently. But as I said, it’s usually a genre that I pass on—though I rarely get pitched a memoir, I almost always skip it. However, I have a mega girl crush on Liz Phair and when I was pitched this book, I may or may not have fan girled hard. Her music was the soundtrack of my youth/high school years and when I saw this book was coming out, I…
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Review: Ribbons of Scarlet: A Novel of the French Revolution by by Kate Quinn, Sophie Perinot, Laura Kamoie, Stephanie Dray, E. Knight, Heather Webb, Allison Pataki
Epic was the first thing that I thought of when I saw this book. There are six different writers in this book and that fact alone suggests that this book was going to have a huge scope. But to be honest, the amount of authors that contributed to this book, made me a little nervous. There are a number of powerhouse writers here and all of them independently successful and excellent authors, but how would their varying styles work together and mesh into one novel? That was my biggest hold out on this one. I know that many of these same authors have collaborated together to write multiple other works—but…
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Review: Crescendo: The True Story of a Musical Genius Who Forever Changed a Southern Town by Allen Cheney and Julie Cantrell
This was a book that I debated and debated and debated about. I wasn’t sure that I wanted to read it since it’s a non-fiction book. But then I also kept seeing so many great reviews about it that I felt like I was missing out on something wonderful. I kept putting it off and ultimately decided to wait and see how my July reading shaped up and promised myself that if I had some time, I would try and squeeze this one in. My mom is a pianist and its always such treat to hear her play so I felt like in a way, I owed it to her…
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Review: Becoming by Michelle Obama (Audiobook Version, Narrated by Michelle Obama)
The amount of times I ugly cried during this book was obscene. Let’s just get that out of the way right off the bat. Have tissues ready. When I saw this book was coming out, I wasn’t waiting with baited breaths like everyone I knew, mostly because I’m not really into biographies and I am not all that into politics. However, when the reviews started pouring in on this book, my interest grew more. I ended up deciding to try Audible and with my free book credit, I snagged this book and for one reason—it’s narrated by the author.
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Review: Love Poems for Married People by John Kenney
Poetry isn’t really my genre. Something about it always makes me feel so inadequate and most of it just seems to go over my head. I do have a few poems (and when I say a few I mean like 4) that I like but by and large, poetry just isn’t for me. This book showed up for review about three weeks ago and the minute I tore it open, I was literally laughing so hard. The poems in this book are perfect for married couples. If you have been married—even for a couple of months—this book will resonate with you. I have been married for fifteen years and we…
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Review: Conan Doyle for the Defense: The True Story of a Sensational British Murder, a Quest for Justice, and the World’s Most Famous Detective Writer by Margalit Fox
If you are like me, you probably only think of Sherlock Holmes when you hear the name Arthur Conan Doyle. I had no idea that he was like a real life Sherlock as well! When this book came across my desk for review I was immediately intrigued because the more I thought about it, I knew basically nothing about the man who created the world most famous detective. It actually makes sense that Conan Doyle was a real life detective, he obviously wrote with such authority on the subject that it’s embarrassing that I didn’t put it together before. This book caught my eye and I immediately wanted to learn…
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Review: Spies of the Midnight Sun: A True Story of WWII Heroes (World War Two Series Book 3) by Samuel Marquis
It’s not very often that I read nonfiction or just plain history books. A book really needs to stand out for me or be in my specialized interest area, for me to review it. I have a Masters in History so reading history nonfiction is something I did for a long time and while I like it, I still have flashbacks about college papers and thesis critiques. So that’s what I thought I was getting into with this book….nonfiction. Dry, scholarly, researched history. I mean, it has ‘true story’ written right in the title—and I just assumed that it would be an informative book, but devoid of personal stories—which I…
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Review: I’ll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman’s Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer by Michelle McNamara
This book was on my radar well before the Golden State Killer’s capture in April 2018. My sister had listened to the audiobook when it first came out in February 2018 and raved about it to me. But like a big sister, I listened and promised to read it soon. But honestly, I had no real intention. I love true crime, but Ann Rule is the true crime queen for me, and no one can come close. Basically, I haven’t branched out to any other true crime authors so my intention of reading this book was minimal. Then the news hit in April that he had been arrested and this…