June through August reading notes

Since I started blogging, I have tried to post my reading notes periodically.  A few months ago, I had a lot of fun writing my reading notes in the format of six-word reviews or descriptions.  See that post here.  By the way, that was inspired by the Six-Word Memoir project, which has been around for several years.  This time, I'm not going to restrict myself to six words.  I will keep my notes fairly short, however.

 

Bossypants by Tina Fey
This was a light read and very funny.  I enjoyed Tina Fey's anecdotes from her childhood, from her early days of trying to break into comedy, and - of course - from her career in the entertainment business working on Saturday Night Live and 30 Rock.

Life Drawing by Robin Black
I love Robin Black's writing!  A few years ago, I read her short story collection If I Loved You, I Would Tell You This.  Short stories aren't necessarily my favorite genre, but Black's collection really impressed, moved and entertained me.  I was glad when I saw that she had published a novel.  Life Drawing is mostly the story of a marriage.  It's more character than plot-driven, although it ends in a somewhat unexpected way.

Boxers (Boxers & Saints, #1) by Gene Luen Yang
Saints (Boxers & Saints, #2) by Gene Luen Yang
Gene Luen Yang is a graphic novelist and author of the outstanding American Born Chinese.  These two graphic novels recount, with parallel stories told from different perspectives, the Boxer Rebellion.  I have to admit that I knew next-to-nothing about this period of Chinese history, and I learned a lot from reading these two volumes.  If you enjoy looking at historical events through graphic novels (as in Persepolis, for example), you'll want to read these.

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organising
by Marie Kondo
When I finished reading this book, I posted a fairly long blurb on Facebook.  I'll repost that here:

Just finished reading The Life-changing Magic of Tidying Up: the Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing by Marie Kondo, a bestseller that’s been getting a lot of buzz lately. In the spirit of my recent blog post with six-word book descriptions/reviews, here’s one for this book: “Author clearly does not have children.” smile emoticon On the other hand, I could also say: “Good motivator – get rid of more.” So although I likely won’t start folding my socks in any particular way, nor will I begin speaking regularly to inanimate objects (other than coaxing along aging cars & appliances), I do agree with the message that most of us have way too much stuff. Even Minimalist Mary & family. And I heartily concur with the author's assertion that significantly reducing our belongings (rather than trying to find new & creative ways to organize them), will ultimately give us more time to spend on the pursuits, passions & projects that mean the most to us.

The End of Days by Jenny Erpenbeck
This was structurally quite different, and I found it a bit confusing to keep track of the characters since the main characters are not named.  As the description on Goodreads says:

The End of Days, by acclaimed German writer Jenny Erpenbeck, consists essentially of five books, each leading to a different death of an unnamed woman protagonist. "How could it all have gone differently?" the narrator asks in the intermezzos between. 

It was interesting to read about the characters' experiences throughout the different parts of European history, from the Hapsburg Empire to the height of the Soviet Union, but I had to work pretty hard to stick with this novel.

The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco
I am going to sound like the uninformed parent who takes her four year old to Into the Woods because it's a Disney movie, but then is angry at the movie because it's not actually appropriate for a four year old.  We should try to know what we're getting into when we go to a movie or pick up a book.  I wanted an entertaining medieval mystery (as in the Cadfael mysteries), but I didn't realize this book was so full of Latin and church history.  Still a pretty good mystery, though!

  


Where You Go is Not Who You'll Be: An Antidote to the College Admissions Mania 
by Frank Bruni
I spotted this title on the new nonfiction shelves at the library and was intrigued.  My son just started his senior year of high school, and we're navigating the college application process now.  We are not the target audience for this book as neither we nor our son have been looking at or hoping for Ivy League or other elite schools.  Still, it was refreshing and reassuring to read this.

Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
I was fascinated by the story of this novel's main character Ifemelu, told in the present and the past, about her life in Nigeria and in America.  Along with Ifemelu's story, the plot traverses Nigerian history and politics, the experience of Nigerians and other Africans living in America (and Europe), and the broader topics of race and racism.  I recommend this and plan to read Adichie's other novels too.  Her TED talk is also very good:  The Danger of a Single Story.    

Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
This was, by far, my favorite read of the summer.  The story and characters really drew me in.  The bulk of the novel takes place in the aftermath of a terrible flu that wipes out the majority of the world's population, although there are some flashbacks to the characters' lives before the flu.  Much of the story focuses on a group of survivors called the Traveling Symphony, who travel around the Great Lakes area performing musical concerts and Shakespeare.  This is a beautifully-written novel, and I highly recommend it!

*****

What about you?  What was your favorite summer read?