December Books

December feels like it was an eternity ago! If I hadn't kept a list of the books I read, I wouldn't have remember them!


Today I'm linking up with Jana and Steph for Show Us Your Books.



I already talked about this on my last books post, but I met and exceeded my reading goal for the year. I have found so many amazing books this year, and only had one re-read this year.





Rabbitt: The Autobiography of Ms. Pat- by Patricia Williams ( 5* out of 5)

Somebody in the link up suggested this book, as a comparison/companion to Hillbilly Elegy, and I was very happy to have found it. What an amazing book!

Ms. Pat is a comedian who grew up very poor in Atlanta, raised by an alcoholic mother, who was also abusive. By the age of 15, she had two children by a Sexual predator (Her "boyfriend" who was 10 years older than her. ) And by 16, she was selling drugs to provide for her children.

The book deals with very heavy subjects, but Ms. Pat and her co-writer deal with them with ease and light humor. This book was amazing, and I'm glad to have found it.



Turtles All The Way Down by John Green ( 2* out of 5)

Skip this review if you love John Green, or read if you can handle some light criticism.

I wanted to like this book, but I found it very pretentious and overly frivolous. John Green needs to stop trying to be the voice for teenager girls, it's getting creepy. If he wants to write about existential crisis, he needs to use the voice of his 40 year old male self, and write as such. I promise Mr. Green, it's ok to be 40 and still not know where you are going.

This book takes on too many subjects in one, OCD, teen angst, mysteries, teen love, existential crisis, Wookie sex debates and philosophy. I read it because, well, because everybody was reading and because I loved The Fault In Our Stars. The Only part I found realistic, was the struggle with dealing with OCD.


American On Purpose by Craig Ferguson ( 5* out of 5)


Back in 2012, Craig Fergusson got me through a lot of really difficult times. I am a different person now than I was 5 years ago, and wanted to see if I would still love Craig Fergusson and re-listed to his book. And I still love him!

This book is his autobiography, written by him< I say that, because I believe he is a very talented writer. I only wish he would release an updated version and talk about his departure from the Late Late Show and what he is doing now.



The Awkward Thoughts of W Kamau Bell by W Kamau Bell ( 4* out of 5)

This book came up as a suggestion from the library, when I checked out Craig Ferguson's book. I had never heard of W Kamau Bell, but found this book very interesting and thought provoking. The section on the 2016 elections validated for me that I wasn't the only one feeling completely out of place. 

If you haven't read Between the World and Me, this is a good book to read before.



Into The Water by Paula Hawkins ( 3* out of 5)

This book was very confusing from the beginning. I normally don't mind a lot of characters and different points of views, but I couldn't keep this ones straight and couldn't follow the story. Some of the characters were not likable and others were just annoying. The end was convoluted and I figured out the twist at the end from about the middle of the book. 



The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid ( 5* out of 5)

Wow!! The twist on this books ! I don't know why I waited so long to read this one! This book caught me off guard, I thought it would be a frivolous and light read, but the Evelyn Hugo character was captivating, intriguing and a whole person with struggles and faults.
I didn't like the extra story of the writer, it felt unnecessary and it didn't really go anywhere.  I know that it was needed for the extra twist at the end, but I didn't like the writer character.


Refugee by Alan Gratz ( 5* out of 5)

This is one of the hardest books I have found this year. I legit cried so hard for the second part of the book. This book follows the stories of 3 refugees, in 3 different timelines, each of them with their own struggle and all connected at the end, which was a heartbreaking detail. After I read this book, I couldn't allow myself to complain about being tired, or hungry.

I believe more people should read this book.



El Deafo by Cece Bell ( 4* out of 5)
This was a recommendation of the Diverse Book Club in October, but I just got to it in December. This graphic novel had a lot of feelings packed in, and although it was lots of silly moments, it also reviewed the pain and struggle of being hard of hearing and/or deaf.

My son also read this one, and really enjoyed it.





Unqualified By Anna Faris ( 3* out of 5)

I wanted to like this book more, but it was unorganized. She tried to write the book in a advice format, and add her own stories as help/ guide, but it didn't flow well. This was also a sad read, after reading all about her split with her husband, who did the foreword, and whom she references being very much in love with. It just made me feel sad.




Dear Martin by Nic Stone ( 5* out of 5)

This book was very similar to The Hate U Give, and also very relevant for learning about discrimination towards black teenagers. It made me sad and it made me think. If you enjoyed THUG, this book is also for you.


This month has been slow so far, but I have two great books that I'm digging into... one of them is very long, but I am waiting for a lot of books from the library.


Comments

  1. I'm not really interested in Into the Water; I found Girl on a Train just way too obvious for my liking and I don't tend to guess mysteries very well.

    That's awesome you loved Refugee - it's a top favorite of mine from last year and just in general.

    -Lauren
    www.shootingstarsmag.net

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  2. i am not a fan of anna faris, so i will skip her book. that sucks that chris pratt did the foreward and anna faris talks about how in love she is.. i guess she can't really say the truth though, if it came out before they split. i laughed at your john green review. i haven't read that one and not sure i will. i liked his other books but only loved one, so.. eh. love love love Evelyn Hugo. she's amazing. dear martin is on my list.

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  3. I just picked up Dear Martin today and I'm looking forward to it. A lot.

    I LOVE John Green and while I disagree about him trying to be a voice for teenage girls (most of his books are from the perspective of a teenage boy), I do agree that Turtles, plot-wise, was a damn mess.

    Evelyn was one of my favorite books of last year.

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  4. I loved Evelyn Hugo and agree the writer was annoying. A necessary character given the story but she was undeveloped and I cared little for her. But Evelyn. She was magnificent. While I enjoyed Girl on the Train quite a bit, Into the Water doesn't hold the same appeal to me. Dear Martin is on my TBR, He's been getting all sorts of praise today!

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  5. The 7 Husbands book looks like it's up my alley. I am starting to really love when bloggers share books they love! I have 4 books on hold at the library now. I better go pick them up or they will FINE me for not doing so, and then you can't make any holds on books until your fine is paid. Freaking Frederickson!!!!

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  6. I also read Dear Martin in December and loved it. I liked Evelyn Hugo but definitely not my favorite of Taylor Jenkins Reid. I wasn't a fan of Into the Water. I'm thinking I'm going to skip Turtles. I'm not a huge John Green fan and have seen mixed reviews of this one.

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  7. Loved Evelyn Hugo, too. I don't mind Anna Faris (and I love Christ Pratt), but I don't think I could read about their marriage knowing that it's all over now. That's just too sad for me. Refugee is on my list but it just sounds so, so sad.

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  8. I just added Dear Martin based on another blogger's recommendation ... I'm glad to see it here as well!

    I've seen so many great things about Evelyn Hugo, so I'll have to check it out. I've never read anything by Taylor Jenkins Reid, but I know I have several of her books on my "To Read" list.

    I liked Into the Water, but I also wished it had been just a little different. It's been a while since I read it, so it's not completely fresh in my mind, but I remember being a little disappointed with some parts. I guessed the twist pretty early on as well.

    I'm adding Rabbitt and Refugee. I feel like I'll really have to be in the right frame of mind for both of those, though. They sound heartbreaking.

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