Review: Brooklyn

Brooklyn by Colm Tóibín
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The preview for the movie they made of this looked really good so I wanted to read this first. It was okay. Pretty low drama. Could have been the story of any immigrant from that time so it makes an interesting time capsule tale. Toibin is such a beautiful writer, any story he weaves is worth reading.

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Review: A Man of Character

A Man of Character by Margaret Locke
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was fun, not the most well-written, but entertaining and an interesting idea.

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Review: Poison or Protect

Poison or Protect by Gail Carriger
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Fun, short book back in the realm of adult readers. So you know what that means, little more smutty grown up entertainment. Not bad at all for a novella. I will definitely read the next one.

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Review: Lily and the Octopus

Lily and the Octopus by Steven Rowley
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I really adored this book. It was sweet and whimsical and very real. What I should have done before reading it was read a plot summary so that I knew "octopus" was code for "brain tumor." I might have been better prepared for how much it made me cry. Part of that may have been due to the fact that my own dog died in February, and he also had a brain tumor. You think you're done grieving and then you read something like this and realize a part of you will always grieve your loss, it will just be done in different ways. I think this book would have touched my heart even if I couldn't relate to it so thoroughly. As it did, it was really powerful.

This review is in exchange for a free e-galley received from Netgalley.com.

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Review: Manners & Mutiny

Manners & Mutiny by Gail Carriger
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Delightful ending to a very fun series. This is probably the best book of the lot. Carriger returns to top form with this book. She is such a unique and entertaining author, I really enjoy reading her books.

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Review: The Dog's Mind: Understanding Your Dog's Behavior

The Dog's Mind: Understanding Your Dog's Behavior by Bruce Fogle
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Someone recommended this book to me. They said it was the best book about dogs they'd ever read. This was interesting and insightful but not the best I've read.

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Review: The Raven Boys

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was interesting. Good story idea, fun characters. I have a feeling subsequent books will be better as it felt like much of this story was setting the stage for the rest of the tale to come.

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Review: The Girls

The Girls by Emma Cline
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This held my interest. I was really curious to see what path the characters would take to lead them on their journey (since the plot summary kinda tells you what to expect). I really didn't see what all the hoopla was about this book though. I kept hearing that it was one of the "must read" books of the summer and I just didn't think it was all that.

This review is in exchange for a free e-galley from Netgalley.com.

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Review: The Phantom Tollbooth

The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I wonder how I would have liked this if I'd read it as a kid. It's a great story. The "monsters of ignorance" seem particularly pertinent right now.

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Review: Approval Junkie: Adventures in Caring Too Much

Approval Junkie: Adventures in Caring Too Much by Faith Salie
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I feel like I should know this author since I used to listen to WWDTM all the time, I instant recall. Not that it really matters.
I wasn't sure I was going to be on board with this book at first. It begins with a lot of talk about the eating disorder she had when she was young. She talks about it from the mind frame she was in during the time, which is a bit disturbing. If you can keep in mind the premise of the book, it's easier to get past this but I just had trouble keeping that perspective. After that section of the book, it gets easier to follow her rhythm. It's a good story. It's a different take on a lot of the self-love books that are currently trendy. This feels more raw and honey.

This review is in exchange for a free copy received from bloggingforbooks.com.


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Review: Midnight's Children

Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I've had this book sitting on my shelf for 10 years or so and just never gotten to it. Then I decided to buy a ticket to a Rushdie reading going on later this month so I figured I better read at least one of his books before I went.
Not really sure how to describe this. It was very difficult to get in to at first. It was a lot of work. Mainly because it is just so dense and rich, not a bad thing. You do get into a rhythm after a while and it goes smoother and I found myself pretty wrapped up in the world. There's a great element of magic to it and Rushdie has a wonderful sense of humor that I wasn't aware of before now. The only thing this came close to reminding me of was 100 Years of Solitude.

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Review: Love Is All You Need: The Art and Science of Non-Training Your Dog

Love Is All You Need: The Art and Science of Non-Training Your Dog by Jennifer Arnold
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

First off, I read the e-book, not the audio cd. I couldn't find the proper format listed for this title.

This book arrived to me with perfect timing. I brought my puppy home a few days before I started reading this and it just really resonated with me. I've never been one for dog obedience school (although I think they probably help in certain circumstances) and didn't do much training with my last dog. I wanted to have a happy relationship with him but I still wanted him to be doggy. I feel like people want their dogs to be a bit too much like people in their training methods. This book is not a training manual. It's not a how-to book. What lies at the heart is encouraging a strong bond with your dog, and all the rest will follow. I took a week off work to spend with my new puppy. Although we have been working on house training, the rest has just been bonding time. It's going great. Couldn't be happier.

This review is in exchange for a free e-edition from Netgalley.com.

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