I admit, a good 90% of the reason I wanted to read this book was the title. It’s a genius, a masterstroke in fact. But ultimately it turned out to be, if not quite the high point of the book, it was certainly one of the very few noteworthy moments. Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoyed this, but when something is described as “wry, hilarious and profoundly genuine” and has a gushing jacket quote from A.M. Homes, well, you’re setting the bar terribly high […]
A Book to Truly Envy
This book was a CBR recommendation from Alannaofdoom and I wasn’t disappointed. In fact, I’m calling it now as one of my top five books for the year. Nothing to Envy is based on the lives of North Korean defectors, whom Demick reported on extensively during her time working as the Los Angeles Times Bureau chief in Korea. Her book focuses on six individuals, all from Chongjin. It is beautifully written, at times reading like a fictional novel rather than a journalistic work of non-fiction. […]
“Do you have to find the evil in yourself in order to truly recognize it in the world?”
After binge-watching the Netflix original series “Orange in the New Black” in only three days, I knew I had to read the book to compare the real accounts of Piper Kerman to the dramatized television series of Piper Chapman. I’ve always liked books better than their movie or television counterparts, and because I enjoyed the series, I expected to like the book more. I wasn’t disappointed. Without going into too many details because of the differences between the two versions, the basis of the story […]
In not Out of Africa
Alexandra Fuller had one hell of a childhood growing up in Rhodesia/Zimbabwe, Zaire and even a couple of years in Malawi. Her family came from Britain originally, but the family viewed themselves as African. White African. Thus bringing with them all sorts of proper manners and plenty of prejudices. She grew up during the Zimbabwe’s civil war for independence. The book opens with this conversation that took place with her mother when Fuller was about six: Mum says, “Don’t come creeping into our room at […]
How To Succeed in Business (by Being A White Guy)
During a training on equity and social justice, the leader showed a bit of Simon Sinek’s talk on “Starting with Why”. She only showed a couple of minutes, but I was intrigued enough to buy his book. [ted id=848] The Good The underlying concept is interesting and I think pretty useful. While the book is focused on success in the business world, I think the concept is sound when applied in other sectors and even one’s personal life. The theory is this: most companies can […]
Still Foolin’ Em: Billy Crystal at his Best
Comedy is often built on tragedy. Memoirs are a form of literature that often mines a person’s tragedy to create universal feelings in the reader. Billy Crystal’s Still Foolin’ Em: Where I’ve Been, Where I’m Going, and Where the Hell Are My Keys is a brilliant memoir from a supremely funny man. Much like Steve Martin’s Born Standing Up it serves as both a career retrospective piece as well as means for Crystal to show some of the events that shaped the performer we see. My first memory of […]
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