Confessions Of A Bookaholic
Fun and Flirty. I loved going back to Red River Valley with this book (it has been a couple of years since I’ve read Alexander’s books). Very easy read, if a bit of an unrealistic rapid resolution at the end. But hey, do you really expect realism in your popcorn romance books? 😀
This review of It’s In His Smile by Shelly Alexander was originally published on May 13, 2018.
Very Thorough Research. This book both predates and succeeds (and even cites) Radley Balko’s stronger work RISE OF THE WARRIOR COP: THE MILITARIZATION OF AMERICA’S POLICE FORCES. While it cites *volumes* more incidents than Balko’s work, and is thus very illuminating because of it, this book has a fatal flaw that is lacking in Balko’s work – namely, that it constantly comes at the issue of police brutality as a form of racial and/ or class warfare/ oppression. Its discussions of Anarchism and the optimal state of having no police force whatsoever is great (and lacking in Balko’s work), but that strength isn’t enough to overcome the flaw of being so hyper-biased throughout. Still, like Michelle Alexander’s THE NEW JIM CROW (which this book also cites), this book – initially written roughly 8 yrs before Balko’s, and updated 3 yrs after Balko’s – is a GREAT read for any who seek the truth that in America, police truly are the enemy of us all.
This review of Our Enemies In Blue by Kristian Williams was originally published on May 13, 2018.
Fascinating. This book is a fascinating tale of Gene Kranz’s early years at NASA, where he rose from being one of the initial Flight Controllers for the first Mercury missions to being the Lead Flight Director for both the first Lunar landing and the Apollo 13 explosion. The story ends after the Apollo program is scrapped, and the book then introduces its singular MASSIVE flaw, that resulted in me docking it a star. In the final chapter, Kranz takes himself from the hero just doing his job of his experience with Apollo to the bitter old man who just retired 20 years later when he is writing this book and making “recommendations” about the state of NASA during the 90s. His critique of the early days of the International Space Station in particular sounds particularly hollow nearly 20 years later, while former ISS Commander Scott Kelly is still being studied after his Year In Space mission (which contrasts nicely against some of Kranz’s early missions of putting Alan Shepherd in space for just 15 minutes). Overall a great book, just ignore the last chapter to have a happier experience.
This review of Failure Is Not an Option by Gene Kranz was originally published on May 13, 2018.
I Finished It. Going into this book, I was thinking it would be something dramatically different based on what I had heard of the Amazon show. Instead, I got a fairly bleak look at a world where Nazi Germany won WWII, with the Big Reveal literally in the last few pages of the book. Knowing Dick is one of the legends of science fiction, I expected some actual science fiction here and all I got was alternate history. It was a good book for what it was, just wasn’t what I was expecting.
This review of The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick was originally published on May 2, 2018.
Read After Mine. Absolutely read this book after you read MINE by Brett Battles. This one tells the story of how the Reclaimer came to Earth and how it wound up at the facility in Colorado. Short (roughly 1/3 the length of MINE) and told in a couple of different ways, it sheds light on the initial attempts to understand the Reclaimer. Very enjoyable read that adds depth to MINE.
This review of Mine: The Arrival by Brett Battles was originally published on May 1, 2018.
Not my usual fare, but great nonetheless. Took me a while to get into this book, due to it staying in the kid years for quite a bit, but then it picks up and turns into a solid action/ mystery with a nice twist at the end. Stick with it early and you’ll be rewarded later. 🙂
This review of Mine by Brett Battles was originally published on April 30, 2018.
Mesmerizing. I only knew of Padma Lakshmi due to her work on Top Chef, but that was enough to get me to buy and eventually read this book. In it, she paints the story of her life beautifully, even during the worst of tragedies. This is a very well told autobiography, even if you’ve never heard of her before. Very highly recommended.
This review of Love, Loss, and What We Ate by Padma Lakshmi was originally published on April 22, 2018.
Passionately Poignant Prose. Prepare yourself for the most intense roller coaster of this trilogy. Prodigious tale to wrap up the trilogy, but suffers from the same need of an editor as its predecessors.
This review of The Other P-Word by MK Schiller was originally published on April 18, 2018.
Freaky Fiance Fate. In The Other C-Word, we get a bachelorette party scene where the mother gets drug out to the party by all of her daughters, one of whom is the bride. Little do we know that mom actually meets someone that night. This tale begins a year later, when mom – the lead of this book – runs into this same man again. We get a flashback to show what happened that night from mom’s perspective, and then we’re back to the present day to see mom’s new relationship. Overall a great addition to this series, with more at stake than the first book, from a variety of angles. Still needs an editor though.
This review of The Other F-Word by MK Schiller was originally published on April 17, 2018.
Constantly Clever, Complete. And no, I’m not going to *c*ontinue with the C’s. But this was a great tale of a very broken girl and the man who brings her out of her shell. Loved the constant play with words, reminiscent of one of my favorite scenes from How I Met Your Mother. Epilogue felt a bit rushed though, as did the ending generally. Still a great tale, looking forward to the continuation.
This review of The Other C-Word by MK Schiller was originally published on April 16, 2018.