When life hands you changes galore, what do you do? Well, apparently NOT blog for about six months....or at least the time it takes to uproot your life in Atlanta and resettle back home again in Indiana. That's what I do, at least. However, you DO keep reading even if it's slowly. A page here, a chapter there. Before you know it you've read another book. Sure, sure....maybe it took the ENTIRE SUMMER, but you did it. Persistence wins the race....or, at least, finishes the book!
In the midst of moving and trying to fit my life (and that of my husband and two dogs) back into a one-bedroom apartment, many of my books and book-logs have gone into storage. Without my books around I feel a tad bit lost...not at all like a librarian! Without my book logs I've managed to lose track of many of the books I've read over the past 8 months. However, below are the ones I KNOW I've read and a few reviews of the ones that really stood out!
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Wild by Cheryl Strayed - This is the story of Strayed's 1,1000 mile journey, alone and unprepared, along the Pacific Crest Trail, a rigorous and challenging trail running from Mexico to Washington. At the time, Strayed was 26 years old and, effectively an orphan looking for her place in the world. After her father abandoned her, her siblings, and her mother at a young age, her family clung together and formed a tight-knit unit. However, after her mother was stricken with cancer and died quickly, Cheryl's family was torn apart, each left to go their own way in the world at much too young an age. Add to the mix an early marriage followed by an early divorce, and Cheryl was at a cross-roads looking for her own path. She found it on the PCT. The book wonderfully joins stories of her life with her experiences on the PCT as the only woman through-hiker on a year with record snowfall and other interesting challenges. Completely unprepared, she finds that she does indeed have all the strength it takes to make a journey of a thousand miles....even in boots that are too small with a Monster on her back.
I enjoy memoirs and biographies of all sorts, and this was one of my recent favorites. I learned quite a lot about nature (did you know that the PCT is longer than the Appalachian Trail? No? Me neither!) and simply about how to cope with losses far greater than I've experienced. Since I recently lost my father, many parts of the book struck a chord within me, especially as she struggled to find meaning in her mother's life....and death.
Just last week I saw a related article in the news about how her writing her book helped her find a long-lost sister....NPR -- The "Wild" Story of Cheryl Strayed and Her Long Lost Sister
Enemies of the Heart by Andy Stanley - Having watched his father, Charles Stanley, for many years on television on Sunday mornings, and having worked in Alpharetta, GA, where his church is, I was very familiar with Andy Stanley before reading this book. Now, after reading it, I am very mad at myself for not ever having visited his church in person while I had the opportunity to do so! Mr. Stanley is a wonderful writer and, one can assume, speaker as well.
This book is about the four emotions that are dubbed "enemies" of the heart....emotions that, if not held in check or confronted head-on, will lead to afflictions of the heart. Guilt, Anger, Greed, and Jealousy are the emotions that Stanley posits will lead to heart "sickness" without fail. Through Bible passages and examples from his own life, he provides wonderful examples of how each of these emotions can corrupt relationships and lives to the point of disrepair.
I'd recommend this book to anyone, whether you think your heart is "afflicted" or not. Just being aware of how these emotions can creep into our everyday lives will put you on alert for the first signs of sickness!
Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand - An amazing book by the author of Seabiscuit, Unbroken is the story of Louis Zamperini, one of the fastest rising stars of long distance running during the early 40s. Already a medalist in the '36 Berlin Olympics as a teenager, he was quickly on his way to more Olympic glory and within sight of the first 4-minute mile. However, all of those plans were derailed, like those of so many of our Greatest Generation, when Japan attacked the U.S. at Pearl Harbor that fateful December morning. Louis' dreams of running quickly evaporated and, instead, he was called into war.
Orange is the New Black by Piper Kerman
I picked up this book a few months ago in Barnes and Noble, but didn't buy it. My interest had been piqued as the memoir is my favorite genre. However, a few weeks later I happened across the same title in my Netflix queue. I decided to watch (since it was free) and fell in love with the characters in the made for Netflix adaptation of this true life story. Of course, then I had to read the book. And, as is usually the case, I would up confused. The two were nothing alike outside of the original premise; but, still, I loved them both on their own separate merits. I think you might, too!
Orange is the New Black is the story of Piper Kerman, a veritable WASP yuppie living in Upper Manhattan in the 90s. You know the type. Blonde, wealthy, graduate of Smith, with a great job and a boyfriend...the things every girl wants. However, this doesn't seem to insulate her from paying the piper (PUN!) when her past comes calling. As a young 20-something Ms. Kerman was involved with a woman who was heavily into the drug trade and while globe-trotting and living an exciting life she, just once, happened to launder a suitcase full of money for her lover. Fast forward 10 years and the police came calling. Piper decided to plea her sentence instead of going to court so that she wouldn't risk a longer sentence. In the end she wound up doing 15 months in a federal women's prison (minimum security, of course).This book is not only her story, but the story of so many of the women she met. There is Natalie, her roommate. There is Pop, the Russian cook and mother to all. And so many others, too many to mention.
The book is intriguing, enlightening, and, at times, downright sad. Kerman takes on some of the bigger topics not often addressed: federal minimum sentences of minor drug offenses, lack of preparation for re-entry into society, and institutionalization, just to mention a few. Kerman does an amazing job of translating the story of so many different women, one of which nearly anyone can identify with. I'd recommend this book, highly, and in a heartbeat!
The Jesuit Guide to Almost Everything by James Martin, S.J. - I mentioned earlier that at the end of last school year I moved back to Indiana. Well, that move found me accepting a position at a Jesuit Preparatory School. What? Well, that is kind of what I thought immediately after I'd made the decision. What does a librarian do when confronted with new and unfamiliar situations? She goes directly to the library (that was a trick question, of course). In order to be prepared, I read this book over the summer so I'd know exactly what the Jesuit tradition of Catholicism was. And it was, indeed, and informative and helpful book! I learned all about the story of Ignatius, his conversion, and his formation of the Society of Jesus. It was incredibly useful to have all of the terminology down BEFORE I began work. It's a big like speaking another language.
I enjoy memoirs and biographies of all sorts, and this was one of my recent favorites. I learned quite a lot about nature (did you know that the PCT is longer than the Appalachian Trail? No? Me neither!) and simply about how to cope with losses far greater than I've experienced. Since I recently lost my father, many parts of the book struck a chord within me, especially as she struggled to find meaning in her mother's life....and death.
Just last week I saw a related article in the news about how her writing her book helped her find a long-lost sister....NPR -- The "Wild" Story of Cheryl Strayed and Her Long Lost Sister
Enemies of the Heart by Andy Stanley - Having watched his father, Charles Stanley, for many years on television on Sunday mornings, and having worked in Alpharetta, GA, where his church is, I was very familiar with Andy Stanley before reading this book. Now, after reading it, I am very mad at myself for not ever having visited his church in person while I had the opportunity to do so! Mr. Stanley is a wonderful writer and, one can assume, speaker as well.This book is about the four emotions that are dubbed "enemies" of the heart....emotions that, if not held in check or confronted head-on, will lead to afflictions of the heart. Guilt, Anger, Greed, and Jealousy are the emotions that Stanley posits will lead to heart "sickness" without fail. Through Bible passages and examples from his own life, he provides wonderful examples of how each of these emotions can corrupt relationships and lives to the point of disrepair.
I'd recommend this book to anyone, whether you think your heart is "afflicted" or not. Just being aware of how these emotions can creep into our everyday lives will put you on alert for the first signs of sickness!
Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand - An amazing book by the author of Seabiscuit, Unbroken is the story of Louis Zamperini, one of the fastest rising stars of long distance running during the early 40s. Already a medalist in the '36 Berlin Olympics as a teenager, he was quickly on his way to more Olympic glory and within sight of the first 4-minute mile. However, all of those plans were derailed, like those of so many of our Greatest Generation, when Japan attacked the U.S. at Pearl Harbor that fateful December morning. Louis' dreams of running quickly evaporated and, instead, he was called into war.
As an Air Force bombardier, Louis' life quickly turned for the worse when his plan went down into the Pacific Ocean in May of 1943. Surviving leaping sharks, a quickly deflating raft, thirst, and starvation, Louis was driven to the limits of his endurance he'd so painstakingly honed as a runner. But that was just the start of Louis' trials. Louis was saved from sure death in the ocean, but by a foe much greater....the Japanese. From that moment on Louis battle of desperation and survival begins. Using the skills of a racer he uses his hope, resolve, and humor to triumph through the darkest days as a POW.
Written flawlessly by a world-renowned writer, the reader cheers Louis on from the start and never stops pulling for the rebellious underdog, Louis Zamperini!
Orange is the New Black by Piper KermanI picked up this book a few months ago in Barnes and Noble, but didn't buy it. My interest had been piqued as the memoir is my favorite genre. However, a few weeks later I happened across the same title in my Netflix queue. I decided to watch (since it was free) and fell in love with the characters in the made for Netflix adaptation of this true life story. Of course, then I had to read the book. And, as is usually the case, I would up confused. The two were nothing alike outside of the original premise; but, still, I loved them both on their own separate merits. I think you might, too!
Orange is the New Black is the story of Piper Kerman, a veritable WASP yuppie living in Upper Manhattan in the 90s. You know the type. Blonde, wealthy, graduate of Smith, with a great job and a boyfriend...the things every girl wants. However, this doesn't seem to insulate her from paying the piper (PUN!) when her past comes calling. As a young 20-something Ms. Kerman was involved with a woman who was heavily into the drug trade and while globe-trotting and living an exciting life she, just once, happened to launder a suitcase full of money for her lover. Fast forward 10 years and the police came calling. Piper decided to plea her sentence instead of going to court so that she wouldn't risk a longer sentence. In the end she wound up doing 15 months in a federal women's prison (minimum security, of course).This book is not only her story, but the story of so many of the women she met. There is Natalie, her roommate. There is Pop, the Russian cook and mother to all. And so many others, too many to mention.
The book is intriguing, enlightening, and, at times, downright sad. Kerman takes on some of the bigger topics not often addressed: federal minimum sentences of minor drug offenses, lack of preparation for re-entry into society, and institutionalization, just to mention a few. Kerman does an amazing job of translating the story of so many different women, one of which nearly anyone can identify with. I'd recommend this book, highly, and in a heartbeat!
