Reading Reviews- February 2014

Wonder Show by Hannah Barnaby

     This reminded me a little of The Night Circus, but it was less about magic and more about finding where you fit in.  This was the author's debut novel and she definitely has storytelling talent.  I read it in 3 sittings, but only because I was forced to do other things required by life :)

Verdict: I will be on the look out for more books by this author.

Your Network is Your Networth by Porter Gale

    

     I started listening to a new podcast "Glambition" and the author was a guest.  Something about the title of the book appealed to me, so I bought it (I rarely buy books).  Each chapter has short practical exercises.  I did find myself skimming through the "real life" stories because I thought they were rather extreme examples of success (i.e. woman takes a swing dance class and then choreographs the famous Swing Khaki Gap commercial).

Verdict: This book was just what I needed to help me examine what is up with my life.  If you like stories, this book is full of it.  If not, they are easily skimmed and there is an end-of-the-chapter summary so you can double-check you didn't miss anything important.

Why Men Fake It by Abraham Morgentaler

     The author is a medical doctor but he is also I really insightful person into human nature.  I was genuine surprised at how much this book about men explored gender issues in today's changing world. The doctor explaining medical stuff with stories and humor.  I listened to this as an audio book and found myself laughing out loud.

Verdict: Great read for men and woman. Bonus-turns out chivalry isn't dead.

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

     This is a book about Germany during WWII and is narrated by the Grim Reaper. As you can imagine, he was very busy during this time and pretty depressed. I didn't like it or dislike it.  It just didn't stand out as special or unique.  I feel like I have read this story before.

Verdict:  The book is about to become a movie, so there is a lot of buzz about it. I mostly likely will not see the movie.

EZ Anatomy and Physiology by Barbara Krumhardt

     It was either this or the Anatomy for Dummies and I never like the Dummy books. This book was part of channeling my inner nerd and looked manageable compared to regular anatomy textbook. I liked that each chapter had quizzes with fill-in-the-blank, multiple choice and T/F,so you got to review the chapter material three times. Although, I stopped taking the quizzes after chapter 2 :)

Verdict:  I would prefer a cartoon version with songs, but this book is in definite second place.

Bossypants by Tina Fey

     I was fortunately to get this as an audio book, read by Tina Fey! It is an autobiographical tale told with lots of exaggeration and humor.  It is almost like a comedic version of Lean In(much more relatable), giving career and life advice to woman.

Verdict: Loved it!

Soy Sauce for Beginners by Kirstin Chen

 

     I read this based on a nods from Amazon reviewers.  I really disliked the main character and found the whole story stereotypical and unrealistic. For example, her friend sleeps with the guy she is seeing and she kinda strugs it off.  Ummm no... that is not how girl code works!

Verdict: It was like I was reading a different book then the reviewers on Amazon?

A Grumpy Cat Book by Grumpy Cat

 

     I do enjoy the Grumpy Cat on people Facebook's post, so I thought this book would be a fun read.  Do you know Grumpy Cat also has his own website, TV shirts and mugs!

Verdict: Grumpy Cat's owners are brilliant!