#BookReview: Lost In Ideology by Jason Blakely

‘Comparative Religions’ For US Politics Should Be Required Reading For Every Voter In An Election Year. The title of this review basically sums up the entire review. This truly is a well written “comparative religions” type text, except for US political thought rather than the various global religions traditions. Showing the history and development of each “map”, as Blakely calls them, (but without much documentation – more on that momentarily), Blakely does a remarkably balanced job of showing each school of thought in as close to a neutral fashion as may be possible – extremists within any given school may think he didn’t present “their” side good enough, or perhaps shows “their” enemies in too good of a light, but from an objective-ish position, I stand by my statement of just how neutral he really is here. And yes, I really do think this should be required reading for every US voter before really even deciding who ultimately to vote for in any given election, as this book is truly a solid primer on the various ideologies used throughout the US and their various offshoots and intersections. Truly, it will allow each individual to better understand even those they disagree vehemently with, and ultimately a voter that better understands everyone is a better informed voter, period, who ultimately would at least have the ability to make a more fully informed decision.

Indeed, the *only* problem with this book – and thus the star deduction, as it *is* something I deduct for in all instances – is the lack of documentation. Even if I were willing to slide from my 20-30% standard (and as I’ve mentioned in previous reviews, I am openly considering this with every new book), this book clocking in at just 12% documentation still feels a bit light for all of its claims, no matter how well balanced.

Still, again, every voter should absolutely read this book before making any electoral decisions going forward, whether that be in 2024 or for the next several years – until this book is invalidated by future changes, whenever that may be. Very much recommended.

This review of Lost In Ideology by Jason Blakely was originally written on December 22, 2023.

#BlogTour: Am I Allergic To Men by Kristen Bailey

For this blog tour we’re looking at . For this blog tour, we’re looking at Am I Allergic To Men by Kristen Bailey.

One Of The Most Hilarious Books I’ve Read Recently. Ok, so maybe it takes being an (elder) Millenial myself and the oldest of three brothers, but for me the comedy of this book was dang near off the charts. Yes, Lucy is a mess. Yes, she is fiercely independent and 100% committed to living her life her way – and you know what? It totally works. There is a touch of 13 Going On 30 vibes with both the opening sequence (which, contrary to the description, is *not* when Lucy wakes up from a coma – that happens later) and when she initially wakes from the coma, but in all honesty if you like that kind of comedy you’ll probably enjoy this book. One main point that the reviewers who *didn’t* like the book commented most on were that it wasn’t a romance, well, it isn’t currently marketed that way. Maybe it was initially, but it isn’t now at publication day. It is a “women’s humorous fiction”, and that category is spot on. The other was that it was part of a series – and it is, though Amazon doesn’t really mention this. (Goodreads does though.) That said, there was enough here that I didn’t even pick up on this until reading the reviews *after* reading the book myself. So now I’ll need to go back and read those tales, since I thought they were *upcoming* while reading this. In the end, I absolutely stand by the title of this review – this is absolutely one of the funniest books I’ve read in quite some time, and if you need a laugh, I very much recommend picking this one up.

Which Sister Are You? Take this interactive quiz created by the author and find out…

Below the jump, the various “publisher details”, including book description, author bio, and social media links.
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#TwelveDaysOfRomance #BlogTour: The Shoe Diaries by Darby Baham

For this entry in the Twelve Days Of Romance blog tour series, we’re looking at a tale that is, at its core, essentially a Black Sex And The City. For this blot tour, we’re looking at The Shoe Diaries by debut author Darby Baham.

Essentially A Black Sex And The City. This story is essentially Sex And The City, but replacing the mostly white cast with a mostly black one and replacing the “city” in question with DC. Same shoe fetish (though possibly amplified here?), used remarkably well as a plot device in this particular case. Same big oops moment with a former flame early on, only for the book to ultimately become a second chance romance later – with an interesting interlude in between. Minor discussions of the HBCU life and the central character wanting to be much more radical as a professional journalist than the “stodgy old white men” are allowing her to be, but at least here said “old white dudes” aren’t thinly veiled racist caricatures, as so many similar novels from less talented authors have done. (The desire to be more radical is more central than the HBCU mentions, to be clear.) Overall a strong tale that will clearly play well with a couple of demographics in particular, but may not be something that will play as well in a more general audience. Still, excellent book and very much recommended.

(Also, I should note that I’ve never watched a single full episode of anything in the Sex And The City franchise and only know the *general* plot from it being in the zeitgeist so much.)

After the jump, an excerpt followed by the “publisher details” – book description, author bio, and social media and buy links.
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