I’ll admit that the main reason I listened to this book (yes, listened to it) was because it was three hours long and I was making a last ditch-effort to catch up with my 2023 Goodreads reading challenge (which I have now completed!). What began as a means-to-an-end resulted in the discovery of a hilarious…
Category: Book Reviews
Janesville
When General Motors closed their plant in Janesville, Wisconsin, an entire town – its infrastructure and the lives of its inhabitants – was upended. Janesville is not alone in experiencing the vacuum a factory closing can have on the livelihood of a community, but Janesville had gone through this before and recovered, so why should…
The Meaning of Everything: The Story of the Oxford English Dictionary
As much as I love words, I’ve never given much thought to their origins or their standardization, and I’ve never considered a time before a dictionary, before a comprehensive “rule book” of words. The Meaning of Everything is a story of just that: a story of the world before, and during the creation of, the…
Unmasked: My Life Solving America’s Cold Cases
In this memoir, Paul Holes details the nitty-gritty reality of solving cases, specifically those that have gone cold. With his hunt for the Golden State Killer taking center-stage, Holes takes the reader through his career solving various cases and the impact it had on his professional and personal life. I find crime-documentaries gripping and fascinating,…
The Sun is Also a Star
Natasha is running out of time. She’s trying to hold her family, and their life in the US, together, and she’s running out of time. Daniel is trying to keep his head down and be a dutiful son, easier said than done when you have the heart of a poet and the planned future of…
Dopesick
This account of the opioid crisis in the United States is eye-opening, heartbreaking, and has radically altered the way I see drug addiction. In a feat of investigative journalism, Macy takes the reader into the heart of Appalachia, where affluent and poor communities alike are struck by the impact of opiods. Digging into the science behind…
One Italian Summer
I’d like to start by congratulating the designers who managed (in my opinion) to capture the feel of summer on the cover. Really, a job well done. Katy and her mom, Carol, have always been close. Carol is her go-to on everything from what to buy and which hotels to book. Carol has always been…
Heroes of the Frontier
For many, Alaska is the last frontier, but for Josie and her two kids it’s the first chance to be free, to explore, to heal. Escaping from a series of emotionally damaging events, Josie takes Paul (age 8) and Anna (age 5) on a spur of the moment adventure into Alaska in a recreational vehicle…
Storm in a Teacup
When looking at two eggs – shell and all – how can you tell which one is hard boiled and which isn’t? This, among other everyday phenomena, is a mystery that Helen Czerski unpacks in Storm in a Teacup, using the laws of physics to explain our daily life. If you’re thinking, “my brain hasn’t worked…
Big Little Lies
If you didn’t think that kindergarten politics could be life or death, then you’ve clearly never visited the Pirriwee primary school. This year, the annual trivia fundraiser night ends with ambulances and an accident. Or was it? As an investigation ensues, it becomes apparent that the children at Pirriwee aren’t the only ones not telling…