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A review by dawnlizreads
Dear Reader: The Comfort and Joy of Books by Cathy Rentzenbrink
4.0
A thoughtful poignant memoir that explores Rentzenbrink's relationship with reading and how books have shaped and influenced her.
At first, I thought this was going to be a sweet nostalgia fest like Lucy Mangan's Bookworm. But. actually, this is more about Rentzenbrink using books to build a life for herself. I loved Rentzenbrink's honesty. Books gave her comfort and inspired her, but they didn't stop her from having disastrous relationships or from struggling.
As with her phenomenal memoir, The Last Act of Love (about the aftermath of her brother's horrific accident), Rentzenbrink never pretends to have all the answers and that's refreshing. Sometimes when an author, in a memoir, talks about a tragedy, they can imply that "everything is wonderful" now that they're "over it". Rentzenbrink doesn't do that. She fully acknowledges that her brother's death has had a lasting impact on her life and still affects her.
Having looked at the books Rentzenbrink talks about, I realised she and I have very different tastes in books. I found that quite funny - that someone could be as (if not more) passionate about reading as I am but have a completely different view about what books they find comforting! Just goes to show how diverse reading is and that people read for different reasons,
At first, I thought this was going to be a sweet nostalgia fest like Lucy Mangan's Bookworm. But. actually, this is more about Rentzenbrink using books to build a life for herself. I loved Rentzenbrink's honesty. Books gave her comfort and inspired her, but they didn't stop her from having disastrous relationships or from struggling.
As with her phenomenal memoir, The Last Act of Love (about the aftermath of her brother's horrific accident), Rentzenbrink never pretends to have all the answers and that's refreshing. Sometimes when an author, in a memoir, talks about a tragedy, they can imply that "everything is wonderful" now that they're "over it". Rentzenbrink doesn't do that. She fully acknowledges that her brother's death has had a lasting impact on her life and still affects her.
Having looked at the books Rentzenbrink talks about, I realised she and I have very different tastes in books. I found that quite funny - that someone could be as (if not more) passionate about reading as I am but have a completely different view about what books they find comforting! Just goes to show how diverse reading is and that people read for different reasons,