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ambercook714's reviews
480 reviews
About a Boy by Nick Hornby
5.0
I didn't really mean to read this book--I just thought the movie was so-so and didn't know much Nick Hornby. My brother-in-law had it when we were staying with Brian's family over Christmas, and when we got snowed in, pickings were slim. Turns out that I couldn't put it down. I've since scooped up all of Hornby's books for my ridiculously large to-read stack.
Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books by Azar Nafisi
2.0
I really, really wanted to like this book. I love the premise, but the author's prose wore on me after just a few chapters. I didn't feel engaged with the women she was talking about, as much as I tried.
The Nanny Diaries by Emma McLaughlin, Nicola Kraus
3.0
This seemed less like a comedy to me and more like a tragic tale of a neglected little boy. I was expecting something light-hearted but found myself really sad!
How to Be Good by Nick Hornby
3.0
This book raises a lot of interesting questions that it never really answers. Ambiguity is part of the big questions, I guess, but I still felt a little wilted at the end of this one. Still, a bad Nick Hornby book is better than most folks' good books.
Sylvester and the Magic Pebble by William Steig
5.0
OK--this is sort of cheating, but this one is one of my all-time favorites. I'm counting down the days until my son's old enough to enjoy it!
Belly Laughs, 10th anniversary edition: The Naked Truth about Pregnancy and Childbirth by Jenny McCarthy
3.0
I'm usually too embarassed to admit I read Jenny McCarthy's books, but they were a real savior for me toward the end of my pregnancy. My brain can only hold so much worry, so it was wonderful to read something really light on the topic in short, easy chapters.
Empire Falls by Richard Russo
5.0
A friend gave me an autographed copy of this book, which I would never have picked out on my own. A thick book by a man about a male protagonist wouldn't normally call my name, but I LOVED it. A really engrossing story with a great sense of place.
Straight Man by Richard Russo
4.0
Another great Russo novel, set in the world of college education. I laughed out loud A LOT. One kink is that Russo (and not just his characters, I think) has a misogynist streak. His female characters are always one-dimensional and unlikable, and I'm not quite generous enough to say that it's an intentional commentary on men's understanding of women (although I hold out hope that maybe it is--I love Russo too much to stop reading him!).
The Sex Lives of Cannibals: Adrift in the Equatorial Pacific by J. Maarten Troost
4.0
Really a pretty fun travel book (and disappointingly little about sex or cannibalism), but it sure was fun to see people's faces when I was reading it in an airport.