Book Review: Will by Will Smith

Book: Will by Will Smith

Genre: memoir

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

For book club in July, we decided we'd have a "memoir" month, and each of us would choose a different book and then share what we learned about our person. I loved this idea! It was awesome! 

Funny thing though was, two of us choose this book! HA! 

Anyway, I got this book for Christmas from one of my kids and so I decided to go ahead and choose it for my book. (I had so many others I wanted to read too... next time!) 

This book, of course, came out just before his big faux pas at the Oscars. But having that incident in my head (and I'm sure in everyone's head who reads this book) makes the book even more interesting. 

Bottom line though is, I loved this story so much. He is not a perfect person by any means, but his thoughts and outlook on life are very interesting. I tabbed so many spots to share at our book club, but we ended up doing it on zoom (that was back when we had covid at our house for a minute) and it just didn't work as well. Maybe I can share some of those with you all here and now?

Talking about the look on his grandma's face when he played the piano in public for the first time:

"But I was only playing for one person. And the look on her face... I still struggle to describe it. The words "pride" or "approval" are pale and inadequate. I can only say I've been chasing that look in the eyes of every woman I've ever loved ever since."

Talking about his first girlfriend:

"The look in Melanie's eyes became the substitute for Gigi's (grandma's) approval. I've always needed a woman to achieve for. When I performed, I was now performing for Melanie...... If she was happy that  meant I was a good person. If she was unhappy, that meant I was a monster."

Talking about his dream, that he didn't even realize he had :

"I need to know what the goal is," JL asked.

"The goal is not to be broke. To be able to have fun, to be able to travel and live how we want. To not have the IRS taking our stuff no more." 

 "So that's FIVE goals...but what is the dream? What are we trying to build? What do you want?"  JL said. 

 "I want to be the biggest movie star in the world."

  "Now THAT'S a goal, " JL said.

 Talking about working on that dream:

 

 Anyway. And so it goes. Fascinating the way things have gone up and down for him. And how he got all the gigs he got and yeah. Totally fascinating. I recommend if you are at all a Will Smith and even if you aren't. 

Can't wait to read the rest of the memories on my pile!

Book Review: They Called Us Enemy by George Takei

 Book: They Called Us Enemy by George Takei

Genre: Graphic memoir

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★

This was the other book we read last month for book club. (If you've been paying attention, we've been reading two books per month through the summer. It's been an interesting endeavor!)  I found it to be very interesting in learning about what happened to George Takei's family during World War II and how they ended up in the interment camps. 

It's a great look from a young boy's point of view. He didn't understand a whole lot of what was going on, but he sure did feel the pain from his parents. He makes a big deal about the fact that he really questioned his father later on... and wanted answers to why they did what they did and suffered what they did.

But as a young boy, he adapted well and the whole experience was quite an adventure actually. And it turned out they felt very safe in these camps and built up quite the life for themselves. That was one of the most interesting parts to me... that once they were freed and let out to go about their lives again... that was almost a worse adjustment than going in. And they felt very afraid of everyone. 

But yeah. It's so depressing the way we all have treated each other over the years. And so scary that this sort of thing very well could happen again. I'm glad George Takei has taken this experience and made it sort of his life's campaign.

Anyway, another great book and story that I never would  have read except for book club! I love that!

Book Review: Born a Crime by Trevor Noah

Book: Born a Crime by Trevor Noah

Genre: autobiography/memoir

Rating:  ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

So I didn't really know what expect with this book, but wow, I really ended up loving it. I know this dude is popular out in the news/comedy world, but I don't really know him... I think I may have watched exactly one video of his. So I was like, hmm... do I CARE about his childhood? Other than it will be interesting to learn about South Africa?

Well, turns out he is a fabulous storyteller ( of course he is... thus the comedian in him!) and he can tell it like it is and with such heart and honesty. I really loved it. 

And at the end when we got to more about the relationship he has with his mom... yeah. That got to me. There was a little weepiness. I am a sucker for mom/son relationships.  

This is basically him telling stories from his childhood and a bunch of crazy memories of growing up in a very turbulent environment that is South Africa. He was still very young when Apartheid ended and we learn that meant things just got worse. But the biggest theme from all these stories is that he really struggled with where he fit in. He describes three groups of people: whites, blacks and coloreds. And he didn't fit in with any of them. So he would pick and choose depending on the situation. He has learned a ton of different languages, so he would pick and choose that also, depending on the situation. 

It's all quite fascinating. And sad. Also inspirational for celebrating the human spirit. 

Anyway, like I said, I really ended up enjoying it and it was quite eye opening to learn about. 

We'll be discussing this one in book club next week, stay tuned for how that turns out!

Book Review: Educated by Tara Westover

Book: Educated by Tara Westover
Genre: memoir
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 

I've been hearing about this book for quite awhile now. When it lost in our book club voting I decided to not wait any longer and just read it now. And once I got started, I pretty much devoured it.

It's a story about the author's strange and crazy upbringing, and how she escaped it to finally go to school, and then she becomes an amazing scholar breaking all odds to even get a doctorate from Cambridge.

She grew up on a farm and junkyard in Idaho where her parents, but especially her dad, had some crazy ideas that included doomsday thoughts, paranoia, literally translations from the scriptures, and no fear of danger. They didn't believe in doctors, school, or things like getting birth certificates. Basically, he wanted to live off the grid where the government couldn't find him and stock piled food and weapons for the day they did.

The problems arise when he or someone in his family gets gravely injured and they just hope they get better with no help from the doctors. It happened so many times. Also, there's the issue of physical abuse from her brother which no one would believe. (She actually didn't tell anyone about it until later, but they all knew it was happening and just looked the other way.)

So when she was about 16 she decided she needed to get out of there, and the only escape was to go to college. So she studied on her own, stuff she'd never learned up till then, so she could take the ACT. And she need. And she passed. And she got in.

Coming to college was like stepping out into a completely different world and it took her a long while to adjust. But once she did, she embraced this new life, and would have liked to figure out how to mesh her two lives, but it turned out to be pretty impossible. She documents her struggle with that and how for nearly a year she did nothing but watch TV in the midst of her depression over it. So sad.

So, like I keep saying... it's very fascinating and there's so much to think about and talk about, but it's also quite depressing. It's hard to read about the rift between a daughter and her family... even if that family is crazy!

Among all the crazy things, it's a bottom line tribute to learning and how we have an innate desire to learn. And how if we don't go to school, at some point, we crave it. And how some people will do anything to get the education they want so bad.

I'm kinda sad our book club decided not read it because I've been so compelled to talk about it and everyone here is getting sick of me now!! LOL! I'm sure our book club discussion would have been quite interesting.

Let me know if you've read it and what you thought and if you too needed to talk about it a lot afterwards. :)

Book Review: The Girl With Seven Names by Hyeonseo Lee

Book: The Girl With Seven Names by Hyeonseo Lee
Genre: NF Memoir
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 

What a fascinating story. And totally different from the one I read a while back of the boy who also got out of North Korea. (Every Falling Star.) Different and yet the same.

In this situation, our girl is part of a quite well off family. During the famine, they had food. They had things. They had each other. (In the other story, the boy was starving and his whole family disappeared when he was only 12.)

And when it came time to "escape" I found it interesting that she did it accidentally. She simply walked across the ice on the river to have an adventure before she turned 18. The guard on the North Korean side liked her, so he helped her. And passed her off into the hands of a dude on the China side that knew her and he helped her from there. It was so easy!

But once she got to China, it got crazy. Her mom (who had no idea she was doing this, she totally sneaked out without her mom knowing) called her (because she was at her relative's house) and told her to not come back. That she was going to report her missing and do not come back!

So her adventure that was supposed to be for a day, turned into more than 10 years. All this time she thought she would be going back home at some point, but then finally realized that she should just go to South Korea once and for all. (South Korea was the enemy, so this was a hard thing to decide!) And she was able to get a real passport and just flew there and said, hey, here I am!

I am making light because like I said, it was easier for her than for some because she had a LOT of connections. Even though she suffered a lot during those 10 years and had to continuously change her identity and continuously run from the cops and be on her guard all the time.

But the real craziness comes when she convinces her mom and brother to join her. She thought she had it all planned out but then everything went wrong. This is the part of the story where I was especially on edge and forgetting to breathe. Seriously, the crap they went through is CRAZY!

And after all that was over, they both (the mom and brother) wanted to go back!! This is what is also so interesting to me, that the life in South Korea which should seem so blissful to them, is not really, since they are used to things so totally different. The mom wanted to die at home, and the brother left his girlfriend there and that was HARD. So hard. Anyway.

Still, the biggest eye opening thing is just reading about what life was (is?) like in North Korea. It's crazy that people live like that. Even the "well off " ones like our girl's family. It's so hard to imagine that one person, essentially, can turn a country into this. The author of this book makes a point that it's because the people there believe they have no rights. So they do nothing about it. If they realized that they actually have rights, they would rise up and revolt. But they don't believe it, so they don't.

In her new life, she has begun to fight for their rights. And has been doing all sorts of things to that end. She has become famous talking all over the place. She rose to fame especially after she gave a TED talk about five years ago. Here's that:




Other observations. The nature of people... there are some amazing instances in her story where strangers totally helped, and without them, the end of this story would have been totally different. There are some really bad people in the world, but there are also some really really good people. Also, I am impressed at how South Korea deals with the people coming from the North. They have a holding spot where they basically introduce them to the world and teach them how to live in society before they turn them loose. It might seem weird at first, but it's really amazing how they take care of them. They even get money for a time as they are trying to find a job and get on their feet.

Anyway. There are a ton books of  North Koreans telling their stories. And I'm sure they will all be different and yet the same. I really hope that some day the situation changes and that the dreams of all these people will come true and that the two Koreas can be united and families can all be together without fear.

Book Review: The Orphan Keeper by Camron Wright

Book: The Orphan Keeper by Camron Wright
Genre: novel based on a true story (is that it's own genre? Sort of a novelized memoir?)
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★


Hey it's our book club book and book club isn't happen for another week and a half and I have the book read already! Things are CHANGING around here!! LOL.

I loved this guy's other book, The Rent Collector and this book has had it's fair share of buzz (man I seem to be catching up on all the buzz lately.. well some) and so the book club voted it in and here we are!

It's about a boy who grew up in India until he was about 8 years old, and then bam, one day he was kidnapped and sold to an orphanage where he was then adopted to an  American family, which happened to be located here in Utah. This is that crazy crazy story!

Because later when he grew up, he went back and found his Indian family! With hardly ANYTHING to go on. He had no idea what city to look in... and we are talking INDIA here! It's really an amazing story. And I loved it! I devoured this book in fact.

The story is novelized to fill in all the missing blanks from when he was a kid and to change around a few characters, but if I'm understanding correctly, it's basically following exactly what happened. Someone just took him off the street one day when he was waiting for his dad and they took him to an orphanage. Luckily, it seems he was treated well and life was actually better for him, but still... his family! His mom! He even tried to escape at one point, but went back to help the sick girl that needed his knowledge because he knew what plant would help her.

When he arrived in America, he tried to explain to his new family that he still had a family, but it took awhile for his English to be good enough to get through to them. And once it did, they tried as best they could to figure it out, but everything led to a dead end. So after awhile, they gave up.

So it wasn't until he was in college that he started feeling a draw to his country. He meet some wonderful people and they helped him get back (mostly.. he had some resistance too.) And once he was there, he went off just some small clues and started combing the area to figure it out. The way he finally ends up finding them is... amazing. And yes, I cried.

Anyway, his life has turned out be be pretty good in the end.  And he has been able to live sort of teh best of both worlds. But he still struggles. Because of this question: Is it good that he was kidnapped and taken from his family? Because look at what he has now... and how he has been able to help the people in India... so, was it good thing?  Ah, it hurts my heart to try and answer this question! I'm sure we will discuss at book club and find all the answers!

The book was beautifully written. Sometimes a touch too flowery in description for my taste, BUT I did devour it and could hardly put it down, so it's obviously engaging and paints a wonderful picture of what life must have been like in India... and afterwards... for this guy.

Book Review: Every Falling Star by Sungju Lee

Book: Every Falling Star: The True Story of How I Survived and Escaped North Korea by Sungju
Lee
Genre: YA NF Memoir
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Lately I've been hearing a lot about these types of books, stories from North Korea. And while I've been a bit scared to read them, I've been very curious and interested too. So finally I tracked this one down at the library and proceeded to devour it.

This one is told almost like a novel, but in the voice of the author as he remembers his childhood days. Life was pretty good for him for the first few years. They lived in the capital city in North Korea and his parents had good jobs and they had good things and lived comfortably. His dad was sort of "high up" in the government if I understand correctly, but must have done something "wrong" because one day everything changed.

(Sungju, as a kid, never knew what happened, and then finally, years later, he was told, but he still can't reveal what it was because there could still be repercussions to family members.)

One day, his dad came home and said, let's pack, we are going on vacation.

They left their apartment and comfortable living and headed to a small town more north where their life slowly unraveled. After maybe nearly a year, they had run out of food. Jobs weren't working out. Sungju quit school. And finally his dad said, "I' going to China to find food, I'll be back in a week."

Of course, he never came back.

After months of waiting, his mom said "I'm going to aunt's house to find food. I'll be back in a week."

Of course, she never came back.

Sungju was barely 12 years old.

You see, a famine was going on due to the invasion of the US on North Korea. Yes. And everyone was starving. And now Sungju, as this little kid, had to figure out how to survive.

He went to his friend's house and together they perfected the art of pick pocketing and swiping from merchants. Eventually, they gathered other friends and formed a gang of seven street boys. They traveled from town to town, fighting other gangs for the territory, and learning better and better ways to steal stuff. Sungju was dubbed their leader and he had to do all the fighting. (Thanks to learning taekwondo back before life changed.)

Anyway, and so it goes from there... four years on the streets. He was even in the kids jail for awhile, a place no one survives. But he and his gang busted out. This lasted until he was 16 years old. And his parents never came back.

But then one day....

Okay see, I can't tell you exactly how it ends, because that would be a spoiler, even though you know the ending! I want you to read it!! But, let's just say, I couldn't put it down last night and read until the wee hours to see how it all ended... crying all the while.

Amazing story. It's hard to believe that this stuff is truly happening to people, regular people, right now. It's not like it's in the past and over with... like...right now. This kid is my own son's age. This happened to him just a few years ago (years 1998 to 2002 to be exact). And it's still happening. All because these people happened to live on the wrong side of a line drawn in the sand when leaders were dividing up the spoils of war.

I don't know what the future holds for this country, but I'd love to see them unified some day as a one Korea,  with South Korea going in,  putting their arms around their brothers, and helping them to recover.

Sungju is doing great today. But it's one of those stories where he was so angry that it took him more than a year to find himself after being rescued. He could have gone either way. But there was a specific moment where he decided he wanted to live a good life and chose the better path. I'm so glad he did and happy that he is able to tell his story now with such a positive tone and feeling of hope. Yes, it's truly an amazing story that while to us seems so crazy and powerful, and yet, is basically the story told by everyone living there.

SUNGJU LEE

Book Review: Furiously Happy: A Funny Book About Horrible Things by Jenny Lawson

Book: Furiously Happy by Jenny Lawson
Genre: Memoir
Rating: ★★★☆☆

We read this one for book club last month/week. Thankfully it appeared on my Kindle in the nick of time so I managed to read it as we were coming home from the trip and in the few days before book club. I really wanted to see what all the fuss was about!

And... I'm still not sure what all the fuss was about. Sure, it's a funny. But in a weird way. Most people at book club found it hilariously funny, but I found it only mildly funny. I've learned my kind of funny usually doesn't seem to match everyone else's kind. It's a weird thing. I've learned to deal.

I thought the book would be more about the author's journey with anxiety, depression and other such things. But, while she mentions these things, most of the book was more just snippets of the strange little moments in her life and strange little thoughts that go on in her head. It was like reading someone's Twitter. Where you have a bit more than 140 characters to use.

And I enjoyed some of them. Most of them I thought were just sort of silly and dumb. And but there were moments that made me smile. (Not sure I ever LOLed like everyone else said they did. Maybe at the kangaroo in the dark in Australia. Maybe a little at the stupid people on the plane. Probably because I was fresh from traveling too?)

So, I felt like, wait, where's all the funny things about dealing with anxiety? I don't know. I guess this is how she deals, thinking up these random things. It did get a little more serious and had some profound-ish thoughts about mental illness toward the end. So, I guess it did address the issues after all.

You know all the random thought blog posts I've done? This book was just that... random thoughts that really didn't have anything to do with each other. Who knew you could do a random thought book? I mean... I might have to look into that!

Book Review Thoughts: I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai

Book: I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai
Genre: Memoir
Rating: ★★★★☆


It's a crazy story, this one about a girl who was shot in the head on her way home from school in Pakistan. But the complication of the politics of the story as made me always shy away from reading this book. But since we are discussing it tonight for book club, I managed to read it!

And yes, my prediction was correct. While fascinating for the most part, the politics of this region and all the things going on here make my head spin. It's so complicated and hard for me, a person with little or no political sense, to grasp. The culture bits are fascinating and yes, the culture is wrapped up deeply in the politics.

But mostly, while reading... I just kept thinking... BUT WHY??? WHY WHY WHY? It's so hard to understand!!!

I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know Malala though and find her rise to fame (even before the incident) to be interesting. To do the things she and her father did in the face of all the crap going on over there is pretty incredible.

And then I find the fact that she survived this shooting to be even more amazing. I think she survived because she was able to get some special treatment... I think if she had just been a "normal" kid with no ties to the right people, she would have not made it. Which makes one ache for all the normal kids.

The other thing I found interesting is that I was so relieved for her and her family when after the shooting they found themselves living in England, totally free to do whatever they wanted! No more fear! But still, they weren't happy because they missed their home and culture and friends so bad. What a hard hard thing.. to be torn between the familiar on one hand and freedom on the other. I really hope this country gets it figured out soon so people can live happily ever after there once and for all. I'm not sure it's ever going to happen.

Bottom Line: Everyone should read this I think, if only to understand the fear and terror the people have to deal with in that part of the world.

Other Reviews:

I love how down to earth Malala and her father sound, yet they are making an extraordinary difference in their country. From One Librarian's Book Reviews

The way her story was told was very grounded in reality, very humble. This is one girl's story. And, yes, in some ways she is extraordinary. But in other ways she's ordinary too. From Becky's Book Reviews

...but most importantly, this is a record of a little girl's triumphing over the Taliban, and that, in my opinion, is a great read anytime. From Reading on a Rainy Day

Despite her youth, Malala is already a true hero, but her work is far from done yet. From The 3R's Blog

Book Review Thoughts: Smile by Raina Telgemeier

Book: Smile by Raina Telgemeier
Genre: Graphic Memoir
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

In an effort to read more widely, the book club has been adding graphic books to our lineup recently. This particular book is our February choice. It's one I've seen floating around for years, I remember it way back from my book fair days, which was a long time ago! It's fun to finally read it!

Basically, the author who is an amazing artist, has illustrated and documented her middle school years, which are defined by the fact that she has to get major orthodontic work because of an incident where she fell and knocked out her front teeth. It does sound quite traumatic and had I been her, I wouldn't have suffered through it quite as well as she did I'm afraid.

And her friends! Sheesh, what terrible friends! I was happy to see that even as a kid, she realized this pretty quickly and made changes. I think most kids would have just been devasted and wallowed in self pity.

It was fun to see the historical and cultural references she made to stuff going on in the world. This was during my "lost years" where I wasn't paying attention to much of anything since I had just entered my life as a mommy with little babies. So while I can't say totally that I related, I did enjoy experiencing it with her.

Bottom Line: I found it to be very fun and a fabulous way to preserve a bit of one's life story!

P.S. I was so happy to see they included a real life picture of the author as she looks today... smiling! So we could see how her smile turned out all these years later!

Other Reviews:

Something I love the most about this book - well, maybe it's just Raina Telgemeier - is the power of storytelling through comics, even stories from your own life. From The Blue Bookcase

What I really love about this book is how well Telgemeier captures tween angst. The accurately portrays many of the struggles tween girls are faced with, from fake friends to body image issues. From The Reading Zone

I really liked the artwork; it’s pretty straightforward panel-based narrative, but I like Telgemeier’s style of drawing, and the book is really bright and colorful throughout. From Fyrefly's Book Blog

I really enjoyed the nostalgia I felt while reading. From Jenni Elyse

Movie Review: Unbroken

Movie: Unbroken
Genre: Memoir/Drama
Starring: Jack O'Connell, Takamasa Ishihara, Domhnall Gleeson
Rating: PG 13
My Rating: Two thumbs up

As you know, this movie, based on the book Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand, portrays the experiences Louis Zamperini has when his plane crashes during WWII and he is taken prisoner by the Japanese.

I must admit, I was very nervous to see this movie. I've just read the book and I knew what to expect and it's not pretty. I was worried about sitting through a movie that portrayed such terrible things.

And for the most part, I was right. I squirmed a lot during the movie and felt tense and anxious. That's not to say it wasn't a good movie. They did an awesome job, but it was so hard to watch this stuff! I told everyone afterward I would so much rather read it than watch it. Plus, in the reading you get so much more. Sadly, as well as the movie was done, it had to leave so much out and you only got a glimmer of some of the best (ie. more positive) stuff. That was frustrating to me.

Also, I was disappointed at where the movie ended and it felt very abrupt. I wanted it to go into his issues after he got home and how he got through all that. Sigh. Maybe part two? :)

The key moment of the movie when he proves
he can't be broken! It's gut wrenching!

But that being said, the guy they got for this part was phenomenal. Loved him! And the guy who played the bad Japanese guard? Wow... he was also awesome, but how hard that must have been for him? I mean, we'll all hate him for life now! (Or love him.) I can't even imagine what that was like for him.

I was fascinated enough to look up an interview. It's awesome. You should watch. (I guess he's a famous rock star too? Who knew.)




Anyway, in the end, I really did enjoy the movie. But as is usually the case, the book is better!

Here's the trailer if you haven't seen it yet:

Book Review Discussion: As You Wish by Cary Elwes

Book: As You Wish by Cary Elwes (subtitle: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride)
Genre: NF Memoir
Rating:★ ★ ★ ★ ★
For: Fun
From: Bought at the book signing

Short Synopsis: If feel like I've talked your ear off about this book already, but have yet to do an official review. So, as you know I'm sure, this book is about Cary's experience being picked for and then acting in the wonderful 1987 movie, The Princess Bride. It starts when he describes how he got chosen for the part and all the feelings he had. He was a mere 23 years old or so! And then he describes meeting all the other actors and what they were like. Of course, he tells many interesting incidents and stories about shooting the movie and what life was like on the set. Awesome!

My Response: Awesome! Ha. I have gushed and gushed already about this book, but this is all mostly because I've been such a huge fan of this movie from day one when it came out in the theater. So to have this behind the scenes look has been a blast for me and then on top of that to have met and seen this actor twice this past year and get a feel for what he's like (which is way different from what I'd thought all these years by the way!) has just been stuff to gush about.

Some fun stories I loved from the book to tease you with:

• when Cary broke his foot and limped through a few scenes.
• when Cary meet and fell instantly in love with Buttercup
• when Andre let loose some gas during a scene and everyone couldn't stop laughing
• when Mandy (Inigo) and Cary practiced their guts out for the "world's best sword fight."
• when one of the ROUSs was arrested the night before his big scene
• the awesomeness of filming in a real life castle
• the not so awesomeness of filming in English weather
• singing on the set with Mandy, Rob Reiner and Chris Sarandan
• when Cary laughed so hard at Billy Crystal that they had to bring in his rubber dummy to stand in for the scene
• how the Fire Swamp is the first scene they shot and the sword fight is the last. Interesting.

And on and on it goes. 

Bottom Line: I've said it before and I'll say it again, if you love the movie, you'll love this book. I promise.

Let's Talk About: What's your opinion on actors writing a book on their experiences? I must admit, when I first heard he was doing this, I sort of rolled my eyes and felt skeptical. Well, in the end, it was too fun to pass up!

Other Reviews:

As You Wish is a love letter to a film that really has stood the test of generations - and as a fan myself, that made this audio a great listen. Knowing what I know now, I have to go watch the movie again. From The Book Nest

His book is not a self-serving bit of megalomania (a worry I had since it is written by a Hollywood star!) but more of a tribute and a very touching personal recollection of what could be described as the best job of his life. From Beth's Book Nook Blog

One of the things that shines through the pages is how beloved André the Giant (André Rous­si­moff) was. The author seems to genuinely like André, as well as much of the crew, and the stories about him are both endearing and entertaining. From Man of la Book

The biggest surprise for me was how much training the actors had to have for the big sword fight scene. From At Home With Books

The sword fight, just for fun:

Book Review Discussion: Maus Vol. II: And Here My Troubles Began by Art Spiegelman

Book: Maus Vol.II: And Here My Troubles Began by Art Spiegelman
Genre: Graphic Memoir
Rating:★★★★☆
For: Fun 
From: Bought for my daughter for school years ago

Short Synopsis: This one started where the other one ended, with our family getting thrown into Auschwitz. We are taken through all the experiences they had here, being separated, figuring out ways to see each other, using skills to his advantage and how much it helped, and sometimes hurt, all the worries about the ovens and the showers. And how it all ended.

My Response: I loved the flashing back and forth between the dad "now" as an old grandpa and dealing with his son and his wife that left and old age, and the dad as the young guy surviving in a concentration camp. The contrast is really amazing between the onery old guy and the competent and resourceful young one. Anyway, such a sad and crazy story, as they all are and once again I'm always left wondering how people made it through these things. I truly did enjoy this graphic art way to tell the story. Quite effective really, and I was surprised how well I actually enjoyed this method.

Bottom Line: Read this.. first the first one and then the second. Just do it.

Let's Talk About: The old Vladek is pretty ornery and mean. But do you blame him? How would you expect a survivor of the Holocaust to act during the rest of their days? I mean... really.

Other Reviews:

Overall, however I think this set of novels is unmatched when it comes to the history of WWII from the perspective of the common Polish Jew. I will be forever marked by it. From You've GOTTA Read This!

Spiegelman adds to the documentation of Holocaust survivors with his father's story, and in the end, makes the story even more real by including a copy of an actual photo of his father. From Bookish

Reading it reminded me of an interview I did with a holocaust survivor when I worked at a daily newspaper. I remember being shocked by how angry he was. In my naïveté I assumed he would feel only gratitude for the fact that he survived, but there are some wounds that you can never truly forgive. From Avid Reader's Musings

If you thought the first one was heart-felt and moving, wait until you get to this one. From Becky's Book Reviews

Book Review Discussion: Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand

Book: Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand
Genre: NF Memoir
Rating:★★★★★
For: book club
From: I read a library copy, but I have my own book too!

Short Synopsis: Louis Zamperini was a wild child... but when his brother got him into running he was able to focus his energy and he became one of the best runners ever. He went to the 1936 Olympics after only training for a couple of years. He had dreams of going back in 1940 and taking the gold. But before that could happen, WWII started and Louis enlisted and became a bombardier, flying in planes over the Pacific. One time when he was asked to go on a search for a missing plane, his own plane also went down. He, along with two other guys, survived on a raft for 47 days (well, one of the other guys didn't make it.) And then, he was captured by the Japanese and held as POW for two years. He did make it home, but he never made it back to the Olympics.

My Response: Wow, what a story! It's taken me so long to get to this one and I feel bad about that...but we've had plans for years to read it for book club and so I was waiting until that happened. It finally happened! And just in time for the movie this Christmas! I knew the story would be a pretty unbelievable one but still, I was surprised at the things this guy had to endure and am so impressed that he came out of it so well. I found it interesting that he still struggled, that it took him four years or so of crap before he could pull himself out it and live again. It's quite the inspirational story.

The writing is amazing too and I will read anything this author writes. She blows me away with her ability to take a story and make it so readable. And all with such thorough and overwhelming research. I don't know how she does it. I wonder what subject she'll be writing on next?

Bottom Line: Everyone should read this. Everyone. If you have't done it already, put it one your list!

Let's Talk About: If you HAVE read this book, what's the most amazing thing you think he had to survive? The POW stuff? The sharks? Being shot at? Starving? Disease? What's the biggest worst thing? It's hard to pick, don't you think?

Here's Louis with Angelina Jolie who directed the movie.
He died just this past July at 97 years old. 

Here's Louis the runner. 

Here's Louis going to war.

And here's Louis finally coming home, hugging his mom.
This picture makes me tear up!

Other Reviews:

Hillenbrand is a gifted author, one who carefully uncovers the essence of what it means to be human in the face of cruelty, degradation, and hopelessness. Although graphic at times, I could not stop reading this amazing book. From Caribousmom

I admit I wondered if there was some exaggeration in the book, too, but by all accounts the author did flawless research. From Books on the Brain

You will want to cheer for Louie; cry for him; fight for him; and save him. From Alison's Book Marks

What I didn't quite expect to be as emotional was the final section which focuses on his return to the States after the war is over. Those months and years where he had to get on with his life, to return to a "normal" life, his mental and emotional struggles. From Becky's Book Reviews

Here's the trailer for the movie which looks amazing and makes me weepy especially after reading the book:

Book Review Discussion: Laughing At My Nightmare by Shane Burcaw

Book: Laughing at my Nightmare by Shane Burcaw
Genre: NF Memoir
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
For: Review
From:  Received for free from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions are my own. (Released Oct. 14, 2014)

Short Synopsis: Shane, the author of this book, was born with spinal muscular atrophy that causes his muscles not to grow or work. This book is his story and how he's lived his life so far (he's only 22 years old or so) with an amazing positive outlook... by laughing and using humor to get through it all. Lots of stories. Lots of jokes. Lots of stuff to think about. This whole thing began after Shane started a blog one day, posting silly and funny things that he has to deal with. It became hugely popular and has now grown into a non-profit organization to help people overcome adversity by using humor.

My Response: I really enjoyed this! Granted, it has some cursing language here and there, and some sex talk and some lewd and crude stuff... but still. It's Shane just saying how it is, you know? And answering, basically, all the hard questions that people will be wondering about. So beware of that if that sort of thing makes you leery, but that being said, the message here is to live your live, no matter what it hands you, with a positive outlook. We all need this message. And the thing is, when all of us "normal" people read this (normal meaning someone who can get up and walk around whenever we want) it will be awfully hard to find ANYTHING to complain about afterwards. It will make you look at your life in a whole new light. And one more thing... can I just say.. his family is amazing. AMAZING I tell you! I mean, he talks about them a lot and you can tell he appreciates them, but I think we need to make a huge deal about how totally awesome they are. 


Bottom Line: I totally enjoyed it and took from it this message... JUST LAUGH! :) 

Let's Talk About: The power of positive thinking. Do you believe in it? Can simply thinking "I can do this thing" really help? Can the opposite be true? If you think so much "oh woe is me, I can't" actually make it come true? I tend to thing so, yes. I think it's an amazingly powerful thing!

Other Reviews:

Shane handles his situation with humor and a "you-only-live-once" perspective on life. From Teen Reads

There are so many morals you can discuss in this book, that I kind of wish I could study it in school. From Boarding with Books


And finally, here's a little look at how this all got started and what made me want to read his book:

Book Review Discussion: Maus: A Survivor's Tale Volume 1: My Father Bleeds History by Art Spiegelman

Book: Maus: A Survivor's Tale Part 1 by Art Spiegelman
Genre: Graphic NF Memoir
Rating:★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
For: Book club
From: Book club library set

Short Synopsis: The author sits down and interviews his dad about their experiences during WWII. This is the stuff leading up to their imprisonment in a concentration camp. The rest of the story is in Part 2. It's all harrowing and terrible and gut wrenching.

My Response: I wasn't overly fond of the drawings themselves. I mean, I could take them or leave them. But the story was powerful and sad and crazy. My favorite parts, however, were back in the "present" (the story was written in the 70s I think) and seeing the interactions between the son and the dad. I loved the dad's cute accent. And loved that the author decided to leave that in and let us enjoy it. Some parts of the story were very hard to read. And the dad told it so matter of factly. I wonder if that's how he really told it, and if he had to distance himself from things that way just in order to get through the telling. And also, I'm with the author and feel pretty furious about the throwing away of the mom's diary. Say what????

Bottom Line: I can see why this one gets so much attention. It's yet another wonderful, terrible Holocaust tale. And yes, I'll for sure be reading the rest of the story. I think it's in my house somewhere.

Let's Talk About: What do you think about a story such as this being told in graphic (comic) form? Strange I think. Very strange. But still, I guess it can make it even more a powerful story to actually SEE it as the author would like us to see it. The animal thing I just think is weird. I don't get why he decided to do that. Just... weird.

Other Reviews:

While I read this, I found moments to laugh, but there are also many moments to cry. From Historical Tapestry

There’s a good reason Maus has won nearly every award that can be bestowed on graphic novels. From Little Read Reviewer

I cannot possibly recommend Maus I and II enough. If you are new to graphic books, this would be a perfect place to start, and if you are an old pro with the genre – why haven’t you read these yet?? From Book Addiction

To say much more would come across as trite but suffice to say that Spiegelman never trivialises Vladek’s experiences but articulates them with brutal honesty and creativity that emphasises rather than detracts from the horror whilst also presenting it through an accessible medium. From Paperback Reader

Book Review Discussion: Skinwalker Ranch: The Path of the Skinwalker by Ryan Skinner

Book: Skinwalker Ranch: The Path of the Skinwalker by Ryan Skinner
Genre: NF Memoir
Rating:★ ★ ☆☆☆
For: Fun
From: The library

Short Synopsis: So this guy, Ryan, has a strange experience out in the middle of nowhere Utah one night. After that, he's obsessed and he learns that there's a place near Fort Duchesne Utah where strange things happen all the time. So he begins to investigate. This book is the story of what first happened to him, and what happened to him during a couple of times that he camped on the ranch. For those interested... some of the strange stuff he sees are: blue floating lights that come up out of the ground, bigger lighted orbs that circle overhead and charge at him, voices in the sky that speak a strange robotic language, a wolf that emerges out black smoke, power lines that furiously wig out, creatures that appear out of the orbs of light, sounds and lights that are there one second and gone the next, etc. etc. etc.

My Response: I'm researching skinwalkes... yes. It's crazy I know. And fairly spooky. But I wanted to learn more about how others see them, or portray them, or what they think. This ranch here in Utah is named for the Skinwalker, but the stuff that goes on there is mostly alien, UFO, other worldly related. Spooky stuff for sure, but I still haven't heard any stories that are truly about the Skinwalker, which is a Navajo folk legend about evil shape-shifting witches. So, this book was disappointing in that regard. Plus, it had many problems. No editing at all (I've never read a book with so many mistakes!) and extremely strange writing. (And what do you think about the author's last name in regard to the subject matter? Now THAT's what's weird!)

Bottom line: Interesting as far as the stories go, terrible as far as the writing goes, and the fact that I'm still not sure if he has any idea what a skinwalker is.

Let's Talk About: When it comes to other worldly phenomenon, what do you think? Do you say yay or nay? Do you believe that we have aliens among us? How would you explain the strange goings on at Skinwalker Ranch? An elaborate hoax that someone's been keeping up on for the past 50 years? Or truly a mystifying enchanted haunted place?

Other Reviews:

There really are no other reviews on blogs that I can find. But you can always check out what the people on Amazon have to say!

A little clip from a SYFY show:

Book Review Discussion: Ezra and Hadassah: A Portrait of American Royalty by Heather Young

Book: Ezra and Hadassah: A Portrait of American Royalty by Heather Young
Genre: Memoir
Rating:★★★★★
For: Review
From: Sent to me for free by the author. All opinions are my own.

Short Synopsis: This book follows the story of Ezra and Hadassah (later called Rex and Heather) as they are taken from their biological parents, placed in foster care, and are then adopted by abusive parents. Heather recounts all the feelings she goes through as things beyond their control continue to happen to them. While her own story is heartbreaking, she focuses even more on the story of her brother who, being mentally challenged, suffered even more at the hands of their adoptive parents as she, being too young and too scared, stood by and watched. Later, when she was able to escape the situation, the paths of her and her brother cross again and what follows is an amazing inspirational end to all that went on before.

My Response: I must admit, I was a little nervous to read this book. Reading about abuse is not my favorite thing, you know? And then when I understood that my LDS church played a big role, I was even more nervous. But I was assured that it might not be what I think, so I gave it a chance. Of course, once started, I couldn't put it down. I was completely wrapped up in this story and anxious to find out what happens with Heather and Rex. It's one of those stories that as you are reading it, you can hardly believe it's true and that someone actually lived this stuff. And how can people do these things to kids? And why... why why WHY do they adopt kids when they have no idea how to deal with them? Why? What can their motivation even be? And why adopt special needs kids at that? I so don't get it but I imagine it happens all the time.

It's also one of those stories that while you are reading it, you wonder, how can this ever end happy? How do people survive such things? But that's the reason for the book in the first place... to show and inspire the rest of us that life, no matter how bad it seems or hard it is, can get better and everyone can come to find peace in the end. And the church, instead of actually being the bad guy in all this, ended up truly helping these kids. It took some time, and it bugs me that it took that time, but church members and leaders pulled through there in the end. Yay for that.

And can I just add here, yay also for Heather's husband! What a saint he must be! My hats off to him!

Bottom Line: I totally enjoyed this book, even with its hard subject matter. It was written in such a way that it wasn't overly emotional, or graphic, or "woe is me." It was direct and matter of fact and I think that made it easier for me to read. At the same time, it drew me in made me feel invested from the very first page.

Let's Talk About: How do you feel about reading hard subject like abuse? Do you tend to shy away from it? Or do you expect, like I did, to somehow be inspired by it? Do you feel like it's a fine line there between the hard stuff and the good stuff? Do you usually feel it's worth it in the end?

Other Reviews:

Ezra and Hadassah is a memoir about endurance in tragic circumstances and, above all, about the roles other people play in our lives, from the villains to the unexpected and beloved heroes. From Literary Inklings

Not since The Help has a book struck me with such force. From Goodreads Reviews

She and Rex are my new heroes along with the good people who finally entered their lives, including some good friends and families, a teacher, a Bishop, and her own husband. From Goodreads Reviews

I especially loved reading about Rex as an adult.It is amazing to see that he grew into such a caring,compassionate,wonderful human being who always looked for how he could help others. From Goodreads Reviews

Book Review Discussion: The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe

Book: The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe
Genre: NF Memoir
Rating:★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
For: Book Club
From: The Library

Short Synopsis: This is the story of how the author started reading books with his mom in a two person book club during the last couple years of her life so they would have something to discuss while sitting for hours during cancer treatment. In between the discussions of books, he talks a lot about all the things his mom accomplished during her life, so it's actually more a tribute to his mom than it is a book discussion book.

My Response: Really a fun book to read. Actually, it took me awhile to get into it but the last half flew by. It is hard to read about the realities of cancer, but it was awesome to see this family's devotion to their mom and the way they made the last few years really mean something. The book discussions were fun too and totally makes me want to add a few to my list. I think at book club we decided for sure to add Crossing to Safety to our read some day list.

Bottom Line: Great book club book. We had lots of discussion. There were many favorite quotes and passages that everyone flipped to and read during our meeting. It's a great homage to books and moms!

Let's Talk About: While I haven't thought about an "end of your life" book club, I've often wanted to do a family book club, a sisters/mom books club, or a mother/daughter book club. However, I've only managed the "normal" neighborhood book club up to this point. Have any of you been successful with "specialty" book clubs and how does it work for you?

Other Reviews:

The story of Mary Anne’s illness and how she and her family handled everything really hit home for me, though, and I ended up being more interested in her story than I was about their book club. From Between the Covers
I could literally have filled a post or two on all the wonderful quotes about the joys of reading and bookshops, debates about certain titles, cosy books and confronting and even the debate over e-reader vs. real paper books in your hands – as the book has all of these and more – From Savidge Reads

It's inspiring, but not in a saccharine way. I loved it and have already picked up a few of the books that Will read with his mother. From Avid Reader's Musings

A beautiful book about the relationship between a mother and her son and their bonding over books. From A Bit Bookish

Book Review: Turning This Thing Around by Keith Maginn

Book: Turning This Thing Around by Keith Maginn
Genre: Memoir/Self Help
Rating:★★★☆☆
For: Review
From: ebook from the author

It seems I've been a little magnet for small and simple memoirs this year. I've enjoyed getting these little glimpses into other people's lives... real people's lives. Maybe I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed lately with my own life problems, but it's nice to read how other people have overcome their issues and what helped them along the way.

This particular book is about the author who, as a young man, realized that he'd been suffering from several mental health issues all his growing up years which in turn caused some pretty painful physical side affects. As a teenager, he just covered it all up, but later on during his twenties, and after a painful end to a relationship, he finally understood that things were pretty serious and he needed help.

The first thing he did was to reach out to friends and family. Three cheers for this step! It makes me crazy when people suffering from such issues tend to turn away from those who want to help them the most.

Then, he got a therapist. And he mentions,and I tend to agree, that we should probably all have one!

And then he learned how to meditate and do yoga. This is the bit that fascinates me. It seems like such a simple way to "fix" your brain and emotions, and yet the author said this was the biggest thing that helped him. It's something we can all do, right? I'm thinking I just might give it a try, because calming my brain would be really nice right about now!

There were many other things he did and as he says, he is still in the process of figuring things out but he feels like, compared to where he was just a short time ago, life is looking very very up!

Bottom line: I enjoyed this short, sweet and simple tale of one person's road to emotional healthiness.