Fantasy, Fiction, Horror/Thriller/Suspense, Mystery

Ninth House by L.B.

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4 stars. Wow. This was a raw metaphor for greek life on college campuses across the nation with their white-entitlement, detrimental hazing rituals, and blatant disregard for anyone besides themselves. Bardugo caught Brock Turner in every evil, vile act he ever escaped because he was “a kid with a promising future” and showed us how many of those people go under the radar for years only to become the Brett Kavanaughs of the world. Why read a book about WASP kids dabbling in stuff they don’t understand? Because the main character is a BA POC and she investigates beautifully. Also spooky ghosts, real life problems, and twists and turns! READ IT! I mean it was slow going at times, but entirely worth it. Bardugo is becoming more of a favorite with every book I read.

Biography, Book Review, Non-Fiction

First: Sandra Day O’Connor by E.T.

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4 stars. I should have read an autobiography. With how much mansplaining goes on in this world, I should have taken it from the woman herself, but this was the highest rated book on Sandra Day O’Connor and I heard a NPR special on it once, so…here we are.

Again, as with My Own Words, I learned so much about the United States government. Republicans get a win with appointing the first female supreme court justice (despite the appointing president being a racist). Anyway. SDO is an inspiration, a ranch girl turned government official in the highest courts in the land! She was tough and headstrong, she was also willing to overlook party lines and make friends (and frenemies) with all sorts of other powerful people.

SDO paved the way, she denied secretarial jobs offered her after law school by sticking to her guns and forging ahead until she was taken seriously. Because, really, how much is that to ask? We’re women, not animals!

Thomas has a clear way of writing that leaves no questions unanswered. The organization was strict and easy to follow, I felt like I was growing up in the eastern Arizonan desert along side the Day children and attending Stanford.

Time to head on over to My Beloved World by Sonia Sotomayor. k bye!

Book Review, Memoirs/Autobiography, Non-Fiction

The Glass Castle by J.W.

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3 stars. I am amazed with how many stories a person can remember from early childhood. My earliest memory is playing in a closet with lamp when I was like seven. So call me skeptical when someone claims to remember vivid details from when they were three, especially when the majority of the book is before the age of eight. It just seems like an exaggeration and slightly less believable when, as an adult you’re writing a book which your estranged parents and siblings can’t verify or fact check with their memories. This book is outlandish and crazy. And I hope it’s all true, since I hate to doubt people’s motives, but I also feel pity for someone who experienced such a tumultuous childhood that really was abusive and neglected. Alas, it was well written. I was going to read Educated as a follow up, but I can’t take that much insanity so close together.

Book Review, Children's Fiction, YA Fantasy

Race to the Sun by R.R.

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4 stars. Roanhorse builds a fantastic world. My mom grew up on the Navajo Reservation and I often read books about the Hero Twins as a kid (think Monster Slayer by Vee F. Browne). So besides that, I don’t think I’d really ever read a fiction book that focused on indigenous culture, it was wonderful to read an “own voices” book filled with delightful imagery and real challenges with a VERY teenage narrative flair. I loved it! I wish the struggle was a little more “real” just because splitting up and never hearing about how they each got their tokens for Spider Woman was rather frustrating. I would have very much liked to get insight on those side adventures or not have the team split up in the first place. Aside from that I was so proud of Nizhoni when she passed the trials that I didn’t even really care about the last battle, though it was intense but too fast paced.

RECOMMEND RECOMMEND RECOMMEND!

Biography, Book Review, Memoirs/Autobiography, Non-Fiction

My Own Words by R.B.G. w/ M.H. & W.W.W.

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4.5 Stars. I was slightly disappointed whenever I saw the pronouns she or her because if you write a book in your own words shouldn’t it be in first person not third or a combination of first and third? Anyway. Despite that tiny flaw I was enthralled! I have learned so much about our supreme court system and the early fighters for gender equality in the US through reading this book. Granted, I knew next to nothing upon picking up this book, but I still learned a great deal, like 0-100 in a few days. And it was so simple too! If I’d had this book in my AP high school government class, I think I could have actually had enough courage to take the AP test. Or maybe not, the only part I remember from that class was the economics section and I only remember that because I wrote the greatest literature review ever on how judeo-christian beliefs have structured our spending patterns in the United States that was, honestly, thesis/dissertation material (and somehow I didn’t study that in college??) WOW. Now I’m rethinking all my life choices.

Back to the matter at hand, RBG is an amazing woman and upon reading her autobiography/biography hybrid thing I have decided to read autobiography/memoir/biography things about all our female court justices. And maybe I’ll actually buy them instead of getting them from quarantined library stacks or off Libby. (God Bless the creators of Libby/Overdrive).