Friday, January 30, 2015

Tomboy: A Graphic Memoir by Liz Prince

20256612
4 Stars

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I was going to say “my apologies for this being long and rambly,” but I’m fairly certain 99.9999% of my reviews have become long and rambly so I’m no longer apologizing ; )

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Strange little story . . . Tomboy popped up on my library recommendation list as an option when I had to go on the waiting list for Gracefully Grayson. Why the library would recommend a book to me that had an even longer waiting list than the one I originally intended to request is beyond me. But anywho, I’m a sucker and put a hold on both books. Then I poked around Goodreads and found my friend Erica had already read and enjoyed this story (and wrote an actual review, very unlike the lack of substance and abundance of imagery you are soon to see in this review space). Weird thing is – Goodreads did the “you might like this” thing to Erica too. Those evil librarians, they conspire against us EVERYWHERE! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA – I keeeeeeed, Erica, please don’t hurt me.

So long story even longer, my turn finally came around and I picked up Tomboy with little to no expectations regarding whether I would enjoy it or not. Imagine my surprise when I absolutely LOVED it. Tomboy: A Graphic Memoir is just what claims it to be. This is the story of Liz Prince’s childhood as a tomboy. Liz isn’t gay, she isn’t trans, she just doesn’t like wearing dresses . . . and when you’re a kid that is something that can get you bullied . . .

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Kids are assholes.

Liz’s story tells about how she dealt with bullies,

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^Ha!

negotiated the shark infested waters of puberty, changing friendships and first crushes,

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(Wayne’s World reference? CLASSIC!!!!)

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and eventually found a great group of people who accepted her for who she was. The story also includes some pretty awesome information regarding how much girls kick ass and to make sure to never sell yourself short . . .

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I loved this book. Almost as much as I love the fact that Liz Prince has written all about me for the Adventure Time comic book . . .

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Seriously – who doesn’t love Adventure Time????

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BWAHAHAHAHAHA!

The only downfall is I want every child in the universe to own this book, but it contains some F-bombs that not all parents will be comfortable letting their tweenage child see. If you don’t mind a “dropped bomb” or three, I highly recommend it for kids – be they the bully, the bullied, or the bystander. Even if you don’t want your kids to read it, you parents should read this one too and get a little refresher course about accepting your child for whoever and whatever they want to be. When you give your kid a little leeway when it comes to choosing his/her own path, you end up with an awesome result.

Like a kid who can drink his Saturday morning chocolate milk out of an Iron Man goblet while rocking a Planet Comicon t-shirt . . .

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And participate in the Little League World Series Homerun Derby later that afternoon . . .

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That’s just super . . . man.

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(See what I did there? So clever sometimes.)

Oh, and one more note to all you parents: It doesn’t hurt to let your own freak flag fly every once in a while too. Lead by example and encourage your kid to take the road less traveled ; )

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Thursday, January 29, 2015

Sick Bastards by Matt Shaw

20585082
3 Stars
 
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“This is my family. They’re all mad. We’re all mad.”

I have a couple of friends who enjoy reading with me from time to time. Said friends have been extremely disappointed with my book selections as of late, so I agreed to let them pick my next book. Thus began what forever will be known as the “Mitchell and Hannibal Buddy Read From Hell”. . . .

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Note: It’s really freaking hard to take a selfie with multiple dead animal heads. Someone send me a selfie stick STAT!

Note 2: Mitchell and Hannibal are both men of few words and their typing skills SUCK (you know, being that they ARE ONLY HEADS and all), so this review is going to be extra giffified.

“I started the evening by eating human flesh and then I ended it with dreams of fucking my own sister. After killing someone today, too, I don’t know who I am anymore. I don’t know what I am becoming and exactly how far I’ll go to ensure my own survival.”

My reading partners have a pretty twisted taste in books . . . and that’s why I love them. The title Sick Bastards lets you know this book isn’t going to pussyfoot around. There’s even a warning on the damn thing disclaiming it to be EXTREME, so no whiny crybabies allowed. If you choose to read it and then find your fragile little psyche exploding into eleventy billion pieces, you better suck it up, buttercup.

The story opens with a . . . ahem “family moment?????” . . . if you will . . .

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Which gets interrupted ‘cause it’s time for some eats, yo . . .

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We find out the family are survivors of a nuclear holocaust, doing whatever it takes to survive in a new world filled with mutant humans . . .

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I’m not going to give away any more of the plot. If you want something a lot different from the norm and find jokes like this to be hilarious . . .

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or you're always looking for a way to expand your repertoire of cannibal memes . . .

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This might be a book for you. If you’re like me and my pals, you might even read it during your lunch break . . .

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“Waste not, want not.”

It gets 3 Stars from me simply because there wasn’t enough. I’m not easily offended or grossed out, so having a book rely on shock and awe over substance isn’t going to earn 4 Stars from me. 3 Stars here on Goodreads means “I Liked It,” and I did . . . I just didn’t love it. I’ll definitely be checking out more of Shaw’s stuff in the future, though.

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Doll Bones by Holly Black

15944406
4 Stars
 
I read Doll Bones a couple of weeks ago, but then life got in the way as it sometimes does and I didn’t ever get around to writing a review. BUUUUUUUUUT! I remembered I had not yet reviewed it and made sure to do an “auto renewal” of my library book in order to save all the highlighting and notes about the story that were contained on my Kindle. And then I received notice that my auto renewal failed, but the book was still available for me to re-download (without all of my noted info). *insert sad face*

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Yeah, library, why?

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Have I not cooperated with you and read a couple of seriously pukeable romance suggestions in order to pass your Winter Reading Challenge? Why you gotta be so rude????

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So yeah, this sucks and you’re just going to have to believe me when I say if you have a young’un (this is noted as a “middle grade” story, but if your kid’s reading level is high enough I’d really recommend it more for the higher elementary grades myself) I recommend this one.

Doll Bones is about three friends (Zach, Poppy and Alice) who have spent their childhood imagining a world of fantasy and adventure starring their action figures – all of whom are overseen by the “Queen.” The Queen is an antique doll who holds all the answers to where the adventures will lead the toys, but who is in a locked cabinet and therefor can never tell the trio her secrets. When Zach’s father decides Zach is too old to be playing make-believe and throws away his old toys, Poppy breaks the Queen from her cabinet in hopes it will lure him back to the game. What happens instead is Poppy finds herself haunted by the true story behind the bone china which created the doll and insists Alice and Zach help return the Queen to the cemetery where she was supposed to be buried.

If your kids are anything like mine and have enjoyed coming of age stories like . . .

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or . . .

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They should find Doll Bones an absorbingly quick read. There’s a good chance you parents might even like this one too. Highly entertaining with just enough creepiness to add some thrills to the story, but not to scare the pants off the little ones. Who couldn’t use a little more adventure in their life?

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Tuesday, January 27, 2015

The Girl On The Train by Paula Hawkins

22557272
3 Stars
 
“If I sit in carriage D, which I usually do, and the train stops at the signal, which it almost always does, I have a perfect view into my favorite trackside house: number fifteen.”

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I had requested (and was denied, natch) an ARC months ago, so I was really looking forward to this one.

The blurb tells us this is the story of Rachel, a woman who commutes from the suburbs into London proper via train every day. Said train makes a stop at the same location each day, at a spot overlooking a neighborhood where Rachel gets a glimpse into “Jess and Jason’s” daily lives. When Rachel sees something completely unexpected and “Jess” goes missing, Rachel feels she must share her observation with the police.

I was seriously expecting something great from The Girl on the Train. The blurb itself claimed the story to be a “Hitchcockian thriller” and when I read the synopsis I imagined finding a new version of one of my favorite classics . . .

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Well, that’s not what happened. If you’re looking for a book that is extremely easy to read (I mean, the pages practically turned themselves), this is a home run. On the other hand, if you’re looking for an edge of your seat mystery/thriller?

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Yeah, notsamuch. The “whodunit” was so super obvious to me. We’re talking I had it figured out at less than the halfway point. I kept waiting for some more twists and turns (à la Gone Girl ‘cause errrrrrrything still gets compared to Gone Girl). . . but they never came. All in all, a solid 3 Stars simply for being so readable.

Monday, January 26, 2015

Data, A Love Story by Amy Webb

15783342
1 Star
 
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Ugh. Where do I even begin? This is not a book I'd ever choose to read . . . but I'm doing the library's "romance" challenge in order to score a new coffee mug and this was a suggested selection that I had not already read and one that didn't have a waiting list as long as my arm, so I decided to give it a shot.

Here's the problem I have with memoirs - why do average Joes think their story is the one that should be told . . . and more importantly, that people (beside their friends and family members) would ever be interested in said story????

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This book is supposedly about a woman who managed to "game" the system of online dating in order to land herself a hubby. First, ewwww. Who wants to "game" their way to a marriage? I get pissed off with authors/reviewers who want to game the system at Goodreads for crying out loud. Webb came off as a pathetic, jealous schoolgirl who thought it was soooooo unfair that all the pretty girls were getting "likes" instead of her . . .

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Second, the "gaming" of which she speaks? Not real. Oh, sure she throws in a bunch of algorithms and mathematical mumbo jumbo that nearly bored my drawers off, but at the end of the day? She really only changed her profile from a resume format into something much more approachable (you know, that another human being might actually want to talk to), and dropped a wad of cash on a new haircut, some make-up, and new clothes in order to make her not so frumpy. It reminded me of the gazillions of teeny-bopper flicks that have the "ugly duckling" makeover reveal . . .

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I have no clue what type of person would enjoy this book. Someone who's desperate and hoping some random tips from a stranger will help them hook a big fish on e-Harmony????

Oh, and I can't forget to mention the author has been with her spouse a whopping 8 years. Try doubling that and then adding on a few more to grow on and still feel like you don't have your shit together half the time. Now THAT is reality. Also? Not compromising about some simple things like your spouse enjoying sports (or whatever the case may be) and you fear that will leave you with "too many Sundays" spent by yourself. Just wait 10 or 15 years and you'll be thankful for those couple of free hours on the weekend. And trust me when I say there's nothing wrong with being drug out to the ballgame a few times a year. Beer, brats, bags, and books????

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Don't knock it 'til you tried it.

The only saving grace for this story were the author's admitted love for George Michael . . .

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Right, the musical George Michael . . .

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(although she does claim to be a fan of Arrested Development as well), and that her ideal mate might look a little something like this guy . . .

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Sadly, that wasn't enough to make me rate this shallow bit of nonsense more than 1 Star, so let's focus on Goldblum some more : )

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3 down - 2 to go. The library challenge which does not kill me only makes me stronger!!!!

Sunday, January 25, 2015

Harold and Maude by Collin Higgins

482977
4 Stars
 

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"It's been my experience that it's kindness that matters, and kindness is what the world sorely lacks."

Harold isn't what you'd call your average 19 year old. He spends his free time a little differently than most young men . . .

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When he's not faking his own suicide, he attends funerals in order to pass the time. It's there that he meets Maude, a soon-to-be 80 year old with a real zest for life. As their friendship grows, Maude teaches Harold how to leave his idealizations of death in the past in order to live life to the fullest . . .

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and eventually one of the sweetest (and easily most unique) romances of all-time blossoms . . .

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"I believe that much of the world's sorrow comes from people who know they are this" - she held the daisy in her hand - "yet let themselves be treated as that."

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If you haven't yet experienced Harold and Maude, I highly encourage you to do so. At over 40 years old, the film proves to be timeless. And although this book is simply a novelization of the film, so there's no additional material not contained in the movie version, it's still adorable and a great addition for your library.

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Endless thanks to NetGalley for providing me an ARC of one of my favorite stories