Your world grows with every opportunity: SO GAY FOR YOU.

So Gay for You: Friendship, Found Family, and the Show That Started It All by Leisha Hailey
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

It was wonderful to revisit THE L WORD in Leisha and Kate's memoir. It made me want to re-watch the (original) show!

The portion of this memoir that talks about how Kate, Leisha, and the gang were cast on THE L WORD, how they spent their time on set, and the completely otherworldly experience of changing lesbian television was easily my favorite part. It was incredibly interesting to hear their perspectives on the show's classic scenes and infamous guest stars. The cast immediately bonded, and I loved reading how so many of them became friends for life, especially Kate and Leisha.

The rest of the book is really just a very fast skim of the two women's lives -- everything gets a quick gloss. The AIDS crisis; let's cover it in 5 lines, etc. It might have been better to go more in-depth on a few areas rather than try to cover everything. Still, the book is structured to show the light parallels between Leisha and Kate's lives, allowing it to move quickly.

Neither woman pulls any punches, especially when it comes to THE L WORD sequel (Kate especially). As mentioned, they don't go too deep into anything, but it's easy to tell how they feel about most topics.

This is a great read for any L WORD fans but those looking for a more in-depth memoir may find it lacking. Still, everyone will enjoy how Kate and Leisha's humor and obvious friendship shine through their narrative. 3.5 stars.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and St. Martin's Press in return for an unbiased review.

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Lured to the ends of overwhelm: SUNSHINE GIRL.

Sunshine Girl: An Unexpected Life by Julianna Margulies
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

My wife and I have been re-watching ER from the beginning, so when I saw this book on my shelves, I picked it up!

This is an interesting memoir, told mainly in a linear fashion. It picks and chooses life moments to highlight, centering around the childhood idea that Margulies was told she's a "sunshine girl," always trying to keep the peace and make everyone happy.

Margulies spends a lot of time on her unstable childhood, discussing her divorced parents, including her flighty mom and reserved father, whom she rarely saw. She and sisters were always moving, often living overseas and away from their father, and she craved stability and normalcy. She had a fascinating childhood and her desire to keep the peace continued into her adult relationships, keeping her in a toxic partnership far too long.

Margulies is very introspective and feelings-based, going into great deal about these important events and moments in her life, often small things that stood out. There's not necessarily a lot of detail about her acting or the shows she was on, which was a little disappointing since I'm in the middle of my ER binge and wanted details.

If you like memoirs driven by character and emotion, versus celebrity status and name-dropping, you'll enjoy this one.

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And I have scars that you can't read: ENOUGH ALREADY.

Enough Already: Learning to Love the Way I Am Today by Valerie Bertinelli
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I know very little about Valerie Bertinelli, with the most of my exposure coming from the Kid's Baking Championship. I can't remember why I grabbed this book, honestly, but I read it as part of my own "read your shelves" challenge.

In ENOUGH ALREADY, Bertinelli says "enough already" to dieting, putting her past hawking Jenny Craig behind her, apologizing for pushing weight loss on her public. She's focusing on inner happiness now, working with a mind coach to discover self-joy and sharing her tips with her readers.

It still feels like Bertinelli's weight thoughts are the focal point of her book, though, and while I understand that she's attempting to right past wrongs and love herself as is, the "I need to lose those last 10 lbs" desire gets to be too much after a while. It's suffocating when everything is brought back to the need to lose weight and makes Bertinelli's pivot to happiness at any weight ring a bit hollow.

Where the book shines is anywhere else. Bertinelli's memories of her ex-husband, Eddie Van Halen; interactions with their son, Wolfie; sharing recollections and recipes. She ties many of her recipes to memories and discusses food that she remembers from her childhood to cooking for Eddie to recipes made on her Food Network show. The talk of how food has brought together her various families over the years is fun.

Bertinelli touches on grief, with the recent loss of her parents and her ex-husband. I don't think we get full honesty, but she definitely shares a lot of herself. She seems like an over-protective mom and regular, relatable person many times. Other times, she tries to be "just like us," but--like many celebrity memoirs--it's hard to take advice from someone with a happiness coach who is renovating two homes, etc.

This is a quick read but the focus on weight bogged it down for me. The personal stories and recipes made for worthwhile reading, though.

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Can I handle the seasons of my life: I PROMISE IT WON'T ALWAYS HURT LIKE THIS.

I Promise It Won't Always Hurt Like This: 18 Assurances on Grief by Clare Mackintosh


It doesn't feel right to rate Clare Mackintosh's non-fiction book about grief, as much of it focuses on the death of her young son, but this is a poignant read and very helpful. Mackintosh wrote it after a tweet about the anniversary of the death of her five-month-old son, Alex, went viral. The book is part memoir/part self-help, with 18 chapters that walk through dealing with grief--with the ultimate promise that we can all make progress with grief, on our own time, at our own pace. She uses stories from her own life, especially losing Alex, as examples. The result is a sad story, but also a hopeful one, and I think many who have been through a loss would find this helpful; I did.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and Sourcebooks in return for an unbiased review.

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It's just the heavy hand of time kinda wears away the shine: THE LAST SEASON.

The Last Season: A Team In Search of Its Soul by Phil Jackson
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

The theme of my reading this year seems to be finding books on my shelves that didn't age well!

It's not exactly Phil Jackson's fault here, as obviously things do change with the passage of time, but in this case, a lot happened, and context matters. But first, we have to deal with the fact that this is, in fact, not Phil's last season, which I didn't really realize when grabbing this book. I figured it was about his last season with the Lakers, but no, it's his last season coaching Kobe and Shaq, which is entirely different.

This means we're reading about Phil coaching a disgruntled, jealous Shaq, who will be traded after the season ends, and a young, angry, Kobe, who has trouble fitting into Phil's famed triangle system. Even worse, the book times itself with the accusations of rape against Kobe in Colorado. At the start, Kobe and Phil seem to truly hate each other, and the book is filled with Phil's criticisms of Kobe. Obviously Phil doesn't know that in twenty years this troubled, talented man will be dead, nor does he realize that they'll reach a friendship (and two more championships) before then, but there's still something slightly gruesome about reading so much hatred against someone beloved who died too young.

THE LAST SEASON is told in a diary-type format, which you need to embrace to truly enjoy it. Each section is short and dated, and Phil mentions how he kept more detailed journals in anticipation of this being his potential final season. My favorite portions covered details about other players in the league, as I'm a huge basketball fan, and this was an era when I truly loved the game. Getting those little tidbits and insights about players I remember so well was fun. Hearing Phil talk about the triangle versus selfish basketball, his coaching philosophies, anything about the Bulls, and how basketball changed since he started playing with the Knicks was all really interesting. Plus, I had forgotten about how Karl Malone and Gary Payton joined the Lakers for this season in search of that elusive ring.

Through these entries, it's clear how brilliant Phil is, how he became such a winning coach, and how much work he put into his coaching. You could pick up little pieces of what others always marveled about--the hours working with Tex on the triangle; meditating with his team; using psychology and counseling to work with the players. He approached basketball and coaching fully and with his whole heart, while still admitting that it was a game and not his entire life--he had his kids and there was a world out there that wasn't his coaching gig. And that explains why he was so hurt when he couldn't reach an agreement with the Lakers (and Kobe) to remain their coach.

I think if I'd read this book in 2004, I would have enjoyed it greatly, even if it would have pulled me between Phil and Kobe, both men that I very much like. Reading it now, with Kobe gone, was hard. Reading a book where Gigi wasn't even born yet--knowing what would happen to Kobe and his daughter--was hard. This isn't a narrative story, per se, but more little entries and snippets over a season. If you're a huge basketball fan, you'll enjoy it, but be prepared for some sadness too. 3.5 stars

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You're the strongest person in the room: BROKEN HORSES.

Broken Horses by Brandi Carlile
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A great memoir for music fans

BROKEN HORSES is Brandi Carlile's story. She grew up poor in Seattle, moving constantly as a child. Her family was musical, giving Brandi a love of music as a young child. She knew was gay since she was a teen--something that wasn't always appreciated in her rural town. She tells her story from childhood, where her love of music began, to coming out, to her marriage and life with her two children, to her musical successes.

"I was a mean, scrappy little trailer girl with the wrong clothes and a very sensitive soul that I was hiding behind a bravado that I had developed performing onstage."

I adore Brandi Carlile and have for a long time. Having such a talented out singer in our community makes us all feel proud. "See her, she's one of us!!" Having followed Brandi's career from the beginning, I know a decent amount about her. Hence my problem with a number of celebrity memoirs I read: if I read a memoir about someone I really love and already know a lot about them, if they write a fairly superficial memoir, I only learn so much.

Don't get me wrong, Carlile has written a good and interesting book. She's a fascinating person, and I enjoyed learning about her rather wild journey. I didn't know much about her childhood, so I found those pieces to be the most intriguing. She was a wild and tough kid, who was so musically talented from the beginning. Imagine being one of the people who heard her perform in a pageant or talent show when she was a young kid or teen!

After going through her coming out story, Carlile talks about her musical career, and it's all really amazing, but sometimes feels fast and glossed over. I always love knowing the history of songs, but would have liked knowing more details about things. We skip over full albums, time periods, and more. And, as many celebrity memoirs do, it often feels a bit preachy and overly me-oriented at times (something she'll laughingly and freely admit to). When we get to her meeting her wife, it's a fun story, but also really quick. Still, it's so nice to see a queer woman's story so normalized, and to have someone talk about gay motherhood so matter of factly.

Overall, I'm so glad Carlile decided to share her thoughts on her life. She's such an amazing individual who has lived such an intense and fascinating life so far. I wish she had gone more in-depth with her stories at times, but this is still a great book and certainly worth your time. At some point, I hope to get the audio version, as she sings versions of the songs she discusses in each chapter.

I read this book as part of my new reading project--choosing books off my shelves based on their Goodreads rankings. This is my second book of the project, forcing me out of my comfort zone and to try books in genres I don't usually read!

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Stubbornness and pride: WHEN THE GAME WAS OURS.

When the Game Was Ours by Larry Bird
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I am a huge NBA basketball fan, with a special love of the game from the 80s--00s. I also really love journalist Jackie MacMullan, so when I received this book through a bookswap, I was quite excited. Obviously it probably appeals to a particular set of people, but if you love NBA basketball and detailed retellings of events that already occurred, then this book is for you. Larry Bird and Magic Johnson recount events to MacMullan, starting from childhood and going through their multiple NBA championships (and a bit beyond). The focus is on their similarities--and the fact that they rose up in basketball at the same time, became fierce rivals, but also friends.

I'll confess that the bulk of the Magic and Bird rivalry was just a little ahead of my time. I fell hard for the NBA with the Chicago Bulls and MJ (both parents being from the Chicago suburbs), so, of course, I knew Bird and Magic, and saw them play a bit, but I missed most of their true heyday.

Still, I found this book absolutely fascinating. I learned so much I didn't know--especially about Magic and the racism he faced, about Magic and Kareem, and about Larry's background. It was intensely detailed. I loved how similar the two were in some ways--both so basketball-minded--yet so different in their personalities (Magic so open and brash, Larry so private and shy).

I also loved how much the late David Stern appeared in this book. I hadn't realized the depth of how much David came up with Bird and Magic in the league--combining their success with his amazing acumen to build the league into what it is today. MacMullan and Magic's discussion of Magic's HIV diagnosis is amazing (and heartbreaking) and the way Stern reacted is honestly visionary.

Overall, if you don't like basketball, you probably wouldn't gravitate to this book, yet it's so informative and factual, that if you love learning new things, I would still recommend it. It's not a fast read--I usually read one or two chapters a night after finishing whatever fiction read I was reading that evening--but it made up for it in how compelling and factual it was. Certainly worth a read and a huge find for any basketball fan. 4+ stars.

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I'm playing it cool like a lovestruck girl from my old high school: SCRAPPY LITTLE NOBODY.

Scrappy Little Nobody by Anna Kendrick

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Anna Kendrick has been acting (and singing) since childhood, and her autobiography chronicles her growth as an actress and person, as told in little snippets and essays. Grouped in assorted themes, we hear from various stages of Anna's life, spanning her childhood to present day, and learn how Anna, a tiny scrappy kid, became a famous, Oscar-nominated actress. The book touches on her fame, as well as her personal thoughts and feelings.

I've always enjoyed Kendrick and have seen several of her films (and heard her sing about a million times, thanks to my young children and the popularity of the film, Trolls) but didn't know a lot about her early career. Her autobiography does a good job of filling in some of the gaps of Anna's childhood career (working on Broadway at twelve - who knew?!), but isn't told in any chronological order, so we don't get a sense of any real span of her career from Point A to B. Most of the book is told in short little bits. Many of them are quite funny stories, and there are some truly laugh out loud moments. In many cases, Kendrick is a very relatable person, who seems like the type of friend you'd like to hang out with. At other points, she seemed a bit whiny, and for me, the book spent too much time with her protesting about some of the travails of being in the celebrity industry. I can only take so much "woe is me" from famous people who write books about their lives.

The book is on more solid ground when we're reading about Anna's early life, where you gain a true admiration for her talent, and with her silly and snarky stories about her misanthropic personality (misanthropes unite!). Still, the jumping back and forth in time makes it hard to get a true trace on the arc of her life at times, and beyond some of the complaining and expounding on the travails of award shows, press junkets, and the like, there wasn't as much about her post-fame life as I was interested in.

If you like Kendrick's films, or her twitter feed, you'll probably enjoy the book and its organization, even if you find yourself wishing for a little more at the end. She's led an interesting life so far, and I'm sure another autobiography down the road would be quite intriguing.



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Shine my life like a light.

Wildflower by Drew Barrymore

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Wildflower is a series of short series, in no particular order, that Drew Barrymore chose to tell the story of her life. She's quick to say that Wildflower is not a memoir, but just a look at her life in story form. The stories range from looks inside her childhood, to memories of her father, to recollections of Barrymore's travels and work with with the U.N., to more recent tales of her transition to motherhood.

This book is not amazing, but it's certainly a fun and entertaining collection of stories from Barrymore's life. They showcase how crazy her life has been and provide some insight into the unique life she's led. Since it's not a true memoir, we don't hear about every step of her life-- a lot of her wild teen years are skipped over, for instance. Instead, the stories hit on moments that resonated with her, or moments that were memorable in her life. She's not a world-class writer, but the vignettes shine with her voice and the joie de vivre that comes across in her films, too. She's led an interesting and amazing life, and it's fun to get even an a small glimpse into her world. Reading about her daughters, Olive and Frankie, was meaningful to me, as a mother of two daughters myself. I also found it particularly heartbreaking to read the stories about her husband, and how much he and his family means to her, in light of their recent split.

Overall, this is a very quick read, with some fun insight into an interesting actress. If you like Drew, or her films, you'll enjoy this book.



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Say I gave to the house dealer.

Chasing Perfection: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at the High-Stakes Game of Creating an NBA Champion by Andy Glockner

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Andy Glockner's book is a "behind the scenes look at the high stakes game of creating an NBA champion." It delves into the fairly recent evolution of statistics (big data analytics) and its impact on professional basketball. How is the NBA-- a league of big money and big outcomes -- using this potentially massive amount of data to its advantage? Is it the players, the coaches, the teams, the front offices looking to benefit? How can big data and statistics fit into the traditional paradigm of the NBA as we know it?

I nabbed an advanced copy of this book, because I'm a sports fan and a big NBA fan. I thought the book was going to take a look at the 2014/2015 season and how stats impacted it, but I don't feel that it exactly delivered on its promise. That's not to say it's not a good read. It's certainly enjoyable if you like basketball, particularly the NBA. If you're a fan of statistics and numbers related to your sports, you'll love the book, as it's chock full of data. In fact, so much that it reads like a term paper sometimes. My biggest issue, in fact, was that is was almost a little too dry and statistics heavy, with an outline that jumped around in organization, making it hard to follow and stay engaged. Still, the book is extremely well-researched and you'll pick up a lot of good tidbits to impress fellow sports fans.

Overall, it was amazing to read about the impact of statistics on the NBA and how what would take the video and tape guys hours (probably days ages ago) can now be compiled in seconds by companies with algorithms and computer programs. Glockner introduces to us to several of these firms, including SportsVU, and does a good job explaining their evolution. (Perhaps too good a job - it gets to be a bit much at times.)

Some of my other issues were that, at least in my ebook edition, some of the graphics were hard to read, as all the lines and charts were hard to read - the lines were basically all the same color.

To me, the book was best when Glockner mixed his use of stats with anecdotes and real stories. I'm not exactly sure billing it as a quest to find the most "perfected player" is true, or even a look at the 2014/2015 season, but the stories were fun. There's a short bit on University of Kentucky Coach Calipari's hire of Joel Justus in the analytics realm and how that led to UK's much talked about platoon system for one season - quite a fascinating portion of a chapter. Further, the Colorado State basketball program is a good anecdotal example use of SportsVU and is far less dry than the more stats heavy or less conversational chapters.

Again, the book also gets you thinking: just like any other advantage in sports, stats often help those programs with more money; for instance, the Duke Blue Devils being the only team able to use the SportsVU system in their practice facility (this stuck in my craw, being anti-Duke and all. Go 'Hoos!) It also talks about how young players are showing worse movement than ever (very scary). And, a lot of the book is mind boggling with its repercussions; for instance, a company at the combine is predicting player injuries before these kids are even in the NBA (leading to great questions about who gets that data, what do they do with it, what does it mean for the kids or the teams scouting them, etc.)

Glockner goes into the biomechanics pieces of stats, with some fun and fascinating bits weaved in. He discusses how the company P3 can tell how a player is "off" in his mechanics, for instance, with their amazing system of measurements. This leads to a great Phoenix Suns and Grant Hill anecdote and the resurrection of Grant's career (again, book had more pull to me when it was aligned with an actual team or player that made it seem more real).

The epilogue is what I thought the whole book was about (Golden State using stats to win), but was actually very brief (basically one bit about an assistant who subbed in someone). It's amazing story about how stats can alter an entire NBA finals, but goes out with a whimper.

Overall, it was a good book, but I confess I probably bumped my rating up to a 3-star simply due to my love of basketball. Some of the chapters just seem hodgepodge - as if a bunch of players were just thrown in to talk about stats with no rhyme or reason; it's interesting, but seems random and nonsensical. Are these the most perfected players we were promised? If so, it's not really made clear. The Kyle Korver story near the end of the book finally ties a lot of the book's themes together (analytics, P3, etc.) in a story form, which was interesting and compelling in its format and how I wish more of the book had been presented. Combine that with a little too many numbers for a casual sports fan and the jumping around in organization and there was definitely something lacking. Still, this well-researched novel will appeal to the rabid stats fans and those who want more history about how the burgeoning field of big data analytics is changing the NBA as we speak.

I received an ARC of this novel from Edelweiss (thank you!); it is available for U.S. publication on 3/8.

Also, if you enjoy books about the NBA, I recommend Roland Lazenby's recent non-fiction piece on Michael Jordan.



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So I go back and forth forever, all my thoughts they come in pairs.

I recently finished two very different books. They were each a little tough to read, though for rather different reasons.

All My Puny Sorrows by Miriam Toews

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This was a tough novel to read. Which isn't to say it's bad. It's not. At all. In fact, it's lovely and lyrical and beautiful. It's just tough. It chronicles the tale of two sisters, Yolandia (Yoli) and her older sister, Elfrieda (Elf). Yoli grows up in the shadow of the talented Elf, who is a famous pianist and an amazing free spirit. Yoli adores her from a young age, as Elf is the only one she knows who has the will and strength to fight against their religious Mennonite upbringing.

As adults, it seems like Elf has it all together - a loving partner, a successful career as a famous pianist, while Yoli is struggling - she's divorced (she's working on number two) and working to stay afloat as an author and raise her two kids.

However, underneath, we learn Elf has a great sadness, as the book covers her suicide attempts, including one as she is about to embark on a concert tour. Yoli rushes to her sister's side, but struggles to help her.

Overall, as I stated, the book is lovely, despite its sad subject matter (my heart hurts that apparently much of this is autobiographical for Toews). Having lost a loved one to suicide, reading a lot of this was very hard, indeed. I was very drawn to Yoli - she is a well-written character and you find yourself rooting for her, as she deals with her sister, her mother, and her crazy life. Even fragile Elf is beautiful. The girls' mother is quite a character; I loved her deeply. She was a trip.

I had to power through this one - sometimes all the bad things happening were overwhelming. The strength of character pulled me through it. I found myself a little frustrated at times ("why am I reading this?!"), but it truly is lovely, and if you've dealt with mental illness in any way (either yourself or with someone you love), while it will hurt, it's also a worthwhile read.



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 Not That Kind of Girl: A Young Woman Tells You What She's "Learned" by Lena Dunham

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Full disclosure about my review of this book: I have always just liked Lena Dunham and harbored secret fantasies of us becoming friends. I'm sure this influenced my review somewhat. I'll admit that I would have liked to have read a bit more about how she got into the business, versus just random thoughts, but I also recognize that wasn't really the purpose of this particular book.

I also had to remind myself that Lena comes from the oversharing generation. There is a lot in this book that could potentially make you cringe, but if you know her work on Girls or anything else, it won't really come as a surprise. Overall, I found her writing style easy to read, and interesting, if not particularly amazing. I also enjoyed the chance to see any parallels between her life and Girls.

If this hadn't been an ebook I borrowed from the library, I definitely would have dog-eared some of the pages where she talks about how a woman deserves to be treated. There's certainly a lot to be learned from many of her pages, and I found a lot of what she said to be fascinating, if not disturbing, at times.

It was an easy, quick read and gave me some good insight into her life. (And I still want to be friends with her. And Lamby.)



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And his mouth so quick to mock.

 True to my word, I read a book about Michael Jordan after my last couple of less than fruitful reads.

Michael Jordan: The Life by Roland Lazenby

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I'm a huge Michael Jordan fan, so I was excited to read this book. It was definitely a worthwhile read, especially if you're a basketball, MJ, or Chicago Bulls fan. The level of detail is amazing, and I learned a lot about Michael's early years, especially, as well as some great facts about his college selection process, his first deals with Nike and such. If you're a sports geek, you'll eat this stuff up.

The book picks up speed once Michael joins the Bulls and sort of blows through his Championships. I get it - there are plenty of other reads about those events (including some by Lazenby himself, I believe), but I wouldn't have minded a few more details about some of his years with the Bulls.

If those years go by quickly in the book, his time after the Bulls is really glossed over. For me, that was the one real disappointment of this biography. That's sort of the part of MJ that's such a mystery and it was a little sad not to know more about what he's up to these days. There is, however, some great information about his time with the Wizards organization.

All told, even when some of the years pass by quickly, the book is a worthy read. I think it presents a pretty fair portrait of Jordan. He's recognized as a hero to many, but Lazenby certainly brings in quotes and perspectives from all sides, including those who don't always sing his praises. You learn a lot about MJ's childhood and family make-up and how it created the determined, competitive individual that he is. If you're a fan, there are some quotes that will make you laugh out loud and other passages that will fascinate you. And there are plenty of little tidbits you can trot out at dinner parties... (ok, ok, maybe just with your other sports nerds friends. But there are lots of fun stories and facts throughout the book!)

By the end you'll know a lot about Michael, but still be left wondering a bit. But perhaps that's the key to Jordan all along.



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Promise me you'll stay with me and keep me warm tonight.

 I've been reading some random books lately. Of these four, I'd probably recommend Marisa de los Santos' newest novel.

I've actually loved Marisa de los Santos since I read Love Walked In eight or so years ago. She has a lovely, poetic way with words and The Precious One doesn't disappoint there. It's told in the alternating voices of two sisters: Taisy, a grown woman, who has always wondered why her domineering father, Wilson, was never a true father to her, and who has been basically estranged from him since 18, and Willow, her 16-year-old half sister, Wilson's pride and joy.

After Wilson suffers a heart attack, he summons for Taisy and her twin, Marcus. Only Taisy -- still longing for the fatherly approval she could never attain-- comes. There she learns that Wilson wants her to write a book about his scholarly life. As she embarks on that quest, she learns more than she bargained for about her father, her halfsister, her stepmother, and herself.

Here's the thing about this book. Much of it is incredibly implausible. It's kind of insanely implausible. There's a line where Willow, who is truly this pure, kind child of 16, after being isolated her entire life by her father, is talking to a school friend and asking how anyone could possibly be so nice. That's how I feel about half the characters in the book. Willow, said friend, Luka, Taisy... we also meet Taisy's high school boyfriend, Ben, whom she abandoned when the Wilson craziness happiness. Even he's amazingly nice.
They're all so kind and amazing and introspective. Well, except for Wilson, who is a completely horrible person: even after you learn about his past, he's just an ass.

But it doesn't matter if the characters seem a little too nice, or things happen a little to easily. There's definitely adversity, and poor Willow is certainly put through the wringer in a short period in this book. You find yourself rooting for her (she's just so nice, dammit) and Taisy (she's just so feisty and kind, dammit!) and for their relationship(s). There's also a beautiful moment, where things sort of come full circle, and you find yourself amazed about de los Santos' writing all over again.

It's a pretty book, and a romantic book, and a slightly improbable book, but still a good read nonetheless. Rated 4 stars here, probably truly a 3.5 rating (there's a little de los Santos nostalgia that goes into that rating).

(Note: I received a free ebook copy of this novel from Edelweiss in return for a honest review.)


In a bit of a turn from de los Santos' romantic novel, I tried Amy Poehler's memoir, Yes Please. I wasn't sure how to feel about this book. In some ways, I appreciated that it was more serious than some of the other "funny people" memoirs going around. I am not a huge fan of books written by silly people full of silly things that pretend to tell the story of their life. What's the point? At least Amy makes an attempt to write a memoir, chronicling bits and pieces of her life and actually detailing true thoughts and feelings about things, rather than just jokey things that have no meaning. I found myself sort of rushing through some of the silly lists and spending more time on the actual writing, though some of the funny bits were good - fake acceptance speeches and the like.

The problem is that the book jumps around a lot and never really delves too much into anything. Not wanting to cover her divorce - okay, I get that. There is a really sweet chapter on her sons, which was lovely. You get a rough chronicle of how she became a kid from New England who wound up in New York by way of Chicago. But there's not a lot of detail. I also, selfishly, wish there had been more Tina Fey.

I enjoy that you get the impression that Amy is a deep person with deep thoughts - and isn't even perhaps always nice. She's not afraid to tell stories that don't necessarily flatter her. You get an idea of her as multifaceted person - actress, writer, mom, etc., and not just someone who tells funny stories. There are also some good stories that feature celebrities, which you are always looking for in a celebrity memoir. Finally, there's a fun bit annotated with notes by Parcs & Rec creator Mike Schur. He and Amy talk about a holiday gift Mike gave all his family and friends containing every email, text, and phone message he received during the Red Sox's successful World Series run in 2004. I was left thinking I want to read *that* book.

Anyway, the book just felt a little flat to me, as if it was missing something. It was a little disjointed in its presentation and content. Because it jumps the line between serious and funny, you're left without a full idea of who Amy is, but yet it's not funny enough to just make you laugh and forget all the other flaws.


I'm not exactly sure how I feel about Ian McEwan's The Children Act. Certainly a 360 degree turn from Poehler! I didn't particularly like it or dislike it. In the beginning, the novel seems to be the story of Fiona, a high up respected family court judge in London, and her husband, Jack, who comes to her, asking for an open marriage.

However, the story quickly drifts away from that thread and is pulled abruptly toward Fiona and her cases, particularly a 17-year-old boy, Adam, a Jehovah's Witness, who has leukemia. He needs a blood transfusion, which goes against his religion (and that of his parents). It's an interesting case, and Adam makes for an intriguing character (via the snippets we learn of him), but we never really get to understand quite why Adam grows to have such power over Fiona.

By the end of the novel, without revealing the ending, I felt a bit deflated, and left wondering why I'd read the story to begin with. It was certainly well written, but it seemed a bit pointless at times, and I didn't find Fiona or her husband that likable, and didn't get to learn enough about Adam or anyone in her other cases.


Last book of this group was Joyce Carol Oates' Jack of Spades. This book was certainly a page turner and a quick read, although I really just wanted it to be over.  Andrew J. Rush is a successful mystery author -- married with a wife and three grown children. He also secretly (not even known to his wife and children) writes under the pseudonym Jack of Spades - and these books are dark, violent thrillers.

The book starts with Rush receiving a court summons that a woman in nearby locale is accusing him of stealing - basically plagiarism. He feels threatened and slowly, the unbidden Jack of Spades within Rush starts coming out.

The book is peppered with Stephen King references and I don't typically read King's more dark novels, so I can't say if there's a comparison here. Overall, I didn't find the book scary, or even that psychologically interesting, but a bit stupid. While a character in a novel like this shouldn't be likeable, per se, you should have some sort of admiration for their cunning. Instead, I just found Rush annoying and stupid.

Oates provides us with a back-story that is supposed to explain Rush's pathology, but it seems thinly constructed. The whole premise just seems off. I can't imagine someone not picking up on this guy and his behavior, his wife not just walking out, his kids not just taking their mother away, etc. It was just not my cup of tea.

(Note: I received an advance ebook copy of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.)