Well, it is officially July and a few days ago we passed the halfway mark for the year! This time has gone by quickly, but I have managed to stay on top of my goal. In fact, I am actually ahead of schedule! Phew! I have a feeling as the holidays start rolling around, my production speed may decrease. Which is why I plan on taking full advantage of my upcoming vacation next week, and reading as much as possible between the hiking, fishing, and horseback riding. Don't you worry, faithful reader - I will meet, if not surpass, my goal of 40 books this year! I am starting to get down toward the end of my little pile of books to read though... so feel free to lend me a book or offer another suggestion for my future reading endeavors.
Signing off for a week now, but I'll be back soon with a stack of hopefully positive book reviews for you!
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Better: A Surgeon's Notes on Performance
by Atul Gawande
If you told me that I would enjoy a book written by a surgeon, I would probably snicker a little bit when you turned away. I read surgeon's notes every day at work - they are dry, incredibly over-descriptive, and not all that mind-consuming, honestly. But my sister gave me two of Gawande's works, and after reading the first (Complications), I was hooked. Better is a book that focuses on improvement, on moving forward, and how best to do it. As someone in the medical world, I found it very interesting and applicable to my work. But Gawande gives examples and suggestions that can apply to everyone in any field or life-stage. His use of real-life case studies makes the possibly dry topic of improvement actually engaging. He writes using interesting case studies to demonstrate his points, including: infections and handwashing, vaccinations in the third world, military medical care in the field, ethical decisions and malpractice, cystic fibrosis, and childbirth... to mention a few. He advocates being open to change, always looking for areas in which you can grow and improve in your practice and as a human being. For example, one point that has really stuck with me since reading this is his section on "diligence". In my profession as a nurse, there are many little seemingly minor actions and procedures that we must follow a million times a day. But every little action contributes to the well-being of my patients, I must be diligent in my practice. I also must be diligent in my life, to work hard to accomplish the tasks I have undertaken, to be persistent. Gawande has seen and learned so much, through his writing I feel that he must be one of the most interesting men alive. The book really is not so much about only improving the medical practice, but improving as humans. Gawande has a great deal of insight to offer, and I would happily give either of his books to any friend of mine, regardless of their interest in medical affairs/cases. I think we can all find something to learn from in his works.
If you told me that I would enjoy a book written by a surgeon, I would probably snicker a little bit when you turned away. I read surgeon's notes every day at work - they are dry, incredibly over-descriptive, and not all that mind-consuming, honestly. But my sister gave me two of Gawande's works, and after reading the first (Complications), I was hooked. Better is a book that focuses on improvement, on moving forward, and how best to do it. As someone in the medical world, I found it very interesting and applicable to my work. But Gawande gives examples and suggestions that can apply to everyone in any field or life-stage. His use of real-life case studies makes the possibly dry topic of improvement actually engaging. He writes using interesting case studies to demonstrate his points, including: infections and handwashing, vaccinations in the third world, military medical care in the field, ethical decisions and malpractice, cystic fibrosis, and childbirth... to mention a few. He advocates being open to change, always looking for areas in which you can grow and improve in your practice and as a human being. For example, one point that has really stuck with me since reading this is his section on "diligence". In my profession as a nurse, there are many little seemingly minor actions and procedures that we must follow a million times a day. But every little action contributes to the well-being of my patients, I must be diligent in my practice. I also must be diligent in my life, to work hard to accomplish the tasks I have undertaken, to be persistent. Gawande has seen and learned so much, through his writing I feel that he must be one of the most interesting men alive. The book really is not so much about only improving the medical practice, but improving as humans. Gawande has a great deal of insight to offer, and I would happily give either of his books to any friend of mine, regardless of their interest in medical affairs/cases. I think we can all find something to learn from in his works.
The Help
by Kathryn Stockett
This is a book that I have been meaning to pick up for a while.... but nothing gets me motivated like seeing a preview for the movie version. If you are a "reader", then you know that you MUST read a book before seeing the movie version or it will be ruined for you. So I borrowed a hardback copy, opened up the pages, and felt myself being completely sucked in. I was worried that Stockett's book would skirt around the real issues, or address them in a condescending way, but she very artfully describes the complex relationships between black and white women in the south during the mid century. She mixes light and humor with impossibly dark and painful situations. Every few chapters, the book changes focus to one of the three main female character - Skeeter (the young white woman who wants to write about the real world of "the help"), Aibileen (the one who believes that change is possible and agrees to help Skeeter, despite great personal risk), and Minnie (the comic relief, but also the one with some of the greatest insight into the life of the "help" and black women in the South). While reading, I came to love aspects of each of these characters, but none more so than Minnie. She has an anger for her situation in life, an interesting relationship with the woman she comes to work for, and an underlying compassion that drives her to help those around her. The book is beautifully written and gracefully handles a complex subject that I think many of us would like to deny ever happened/happens. Pick up your own copy before you head to the movie theater this summer.
This is a book that I have been meaning to pick up for a while.... but nothing gets me motivated like seeing a preview for the movie version. If you are a "reader", then you know that you MUST read a book before seeing the movie version or it will be ruined for you. So I borrowed a hardback copy, opened up the pages, and felt myself being completely sucked in. I was worried that Stockett's book would skirt around the real issues, or address them in a condescending way, but she very artfully describes the complex relationships between black and white women in the south during the mid century. She mixes light and humor with impossibly dark and painful situations. Every few chapters, the book changes focus to one of the three main female character - Skeeter (the young white woman who wants to write about the real world of "the help"), Aibileen (the one who believes that change is possible and agrees to help Skeeter, despite great personal risk), and Minnie (the comic relief, but also the one with some of the greatest insight into the life of the "help" and black women in the South). While reading, I came to love aspects of each of these characters, but none more so than Minnie. She has an anger for her situation in life, an interesting relationship with the woman she comes to work for, and an underlying compassion that drives her to help those around her. The book is beautifully written and gracefully handles a complex subject that I think many of us would like to deny ever happened/happens. Pick up your own copy before you head to the movie theater this summer.
Monday, June 13, 2011
Where She Went
by Gayle Forman
I read Gayle Forman's first book, If I Stay, earlier this year... and it has stayed with me over the past few months. It's a touching story of life, love, and the grief that comes when you are left behind. So here I should issue a warning that if you have not read the first book in the series, reading this review will definitely reveal some SPOILERS for you. MAJOR SPOILERS. Okay, take a breath and here we go!
Where She Went takes place a few years after the first book, after Mia has gone to school in New York and Adam has made it famous as a rock star. After being separated for that time, their lives intersect for one night in New York. Secondary to losing Mia, Adam lost all joy in life, despite his apparent success. Reading from Adam's perspective is so compelling, and your heart breaks for him as you read his story. You follow him through the loss and pain after the accident with Mia's family, through her recovery and his life without her, and finally to the moment when they come together and face everything between them. My review? I love this book. I read it in under four hours, and was completely consumed by the world that exists around Mia and Adam. These books are so beautiful, and draw the reader in so completely, that I feel like giving a copy to everyone I know. They're written for a young adult audience, but deal with such complex issues that I am confident readers of all ages will find something to love.
I read Gayle Forman's first book, If I Stay, earlier this year... and it has stayed with me over the past few months. It's a touching story of life, love, and the grief that comes when you are left behind. So here I should issue a warning that if you have not read the first book in the series, reading this review will definitely reveal some SPOILERS for you. MAJOR SPOILERS. Okay, take a breath and here we go!
Where She Went takes place a few years after the first book, after Mia has gone to school in New York and Adam has made it famous as a rock star. After being separated for that time, their lives intersect for one night in New York. Secondary to losing Mia, Adam lost all joy in life, despite his apparent success. Reading from Adam's perspective is so compelling, and your heart breaks for him as you read his story. You follow him through the loss and pain after the accident with Mia's family, through her recovery and his life without her, and finally to the moment when they come together and face everything between them. My review? I love this book. I read it in under four hours, and was completely consumed by the world that exists around Mia and Adam. These books are so beautiful, and draw the reader in so completely, that I feel like giving a copy to everyone I know. They're written for a young adult audience, but deal with such complex issues that I am confident readers of all ages will find something to love.
Divergent
by Veronica Roth
If you have been living under a rock, then you might not know about the wave of futuristic dystopian society novels that have been hitting the young adult section. The pinnacle of this genre is perhaps the well-known Hunger Games series. (Side note: If you have NOT read this book series.... turn off your computer right now and get yourself to the nearest bookstore, library, or friend's house to get yourself a copy! ... I'm not kidding. Do it. Right. Now.) For those of you still reading this entry, Divergent is a mix of the Hunger Games and The Giver. Which makes it fantastic. In this society, you are born into one of five factions that dictates your lifestyle, personality and actions. At the age of sixteen, however, you have the choice to stay with your faction, or choose a new one to join. For Beatrice, the initiation experience leads to her leaving home and re-naming herself Tris. As she deals with changing factions, she learns about herself and the commonalities/differences between the different factions. Through it all she finds a strength in herself that she doubted she possessed. This, plus an intriguing hero and the discovery of an underhanded plot to destroy the current factional system adds up to a dynamic book that had me staying up way past my bedtime. So while you're out getting yourself a copy of the Hunger Games, make sure that you pick up a copy of Divergent too!
If you have been living under a rock, then you might not know about the wave of futuristic dystopian society novels that have been hitting the young adult section. The pinnacle of this genre is perhaps the well-known Hunger Games series. (Side note: If you have NOT read this book series.... turn off your computer right now and get yourself to the nearest bookstore, library, or friend's house to get yourself a copy! ... I'm not kidding. Do it. Right. Now.) For those of you still reading this entry, Divergent is a mix of the Hunger Games and The Giver. Which makes it fantastic. In this society, you are born into one of five factions that dictates your lifestyle, personality and actions. At the age of sixteen, however, you have the choice to stay with your faction, or choose a new one to join. For Beatrice, the initiation experience leads to her leaving home and re-naming herself Tris. As she deals with changing factions, she learns about herself and the commonalities/differences between the different factions. Through it all she finds a strength in herself that she doubted she possessed. This, plus an intriguing hero and the discovery of an underhanded plot to destroy the current factional system adds up to a dynamic book that had me staying up way past my bedtime. So while you're out getting yourself a copy of the Hunger Games, make sure that you pick up a copy of Divergent too!
Just Like Heaven
by Julia Quinn
Julia Quinn's latest, and much anticipated, novel debuted at #2 on the New York Times Best Sellers List. There's a reason. What I really love about Quinn is that she not only writes brilliant romance, but her books are hilarious! Sometimes her characters make me laugh so hard, that I draw stares from the non-readers around me. But trust me, she is hilarious. Since I have such high standards for Ms. Quinn, I was a little nonplussed by her last novel which lacked her signature strong relationship. However, Just Like Heaven marks a return to the more vintage Julia Quinn Bridgerton-series style writing. Our hero and heroine have known eachother since early childhood, and after facing death and revealing secrets, come to realize that they truly love one another. And during all of this, they eat a lot of sweets, attend/participate in a horrendous musciale, and finally escape the loneliness they each face in their lives. My one critique would be that the reader is expected to accept the strength of their relationship based on reports of the past, while not much relationship development actually occurs in the course of the story. But Quinn makes it entirely believable and manages to have me laughing again. This is definitely a must read if you are a fan of her work.
Julia Quinn's latest, and much anticipated, novel debuted at #2 on the New York Times Best Sellers List. There's a reason. What I really love about Quinn is that she not only writes brilliant romance, but her books are hilarious! Sometimes her characters make me laugh so hard, that I draw stares from the non-readers around me. But trust me, she is hilarious. Since I have such high standards for Ms. Quinn, I was a little nonplussed by her last novel which lacked her signature strong relationship. However, Just Like Heaven marks a return to the more vintage Julia Quinn Bridgerton-series style writing. Our hero and heroine have known eachother since early childhood, and after facing death and revealing secrets, come to realize that they truly love one another. And during all of this, they eat a lot of sweets, attend/participate in a horrendous musciale, and finally escape the loneliness they each face in their lives. My one critique would be that the reader is expected to accept the strength of their relationship based on reports of the past, while not much relationship development actually occurs in the course of the story. But Quinn makes it entirely believable and manages to have me laughing again. This is definitely a must read if you are a fan of her work.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
To Taste Temptation
This book took me about six months to finally finish up. An upper class English woman can't bring herself to marry the "classless" upstart American, until their lives are at risk and she finally realizes her mistake. True love prevails. End story.
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