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awellreadwoman's reviews
274 reviews
This Book Will Make You Kinder: An Empathy Handbook by Henry James Garrett
2.0
I REALLY wanted to like this book. I bought it at the end of 2020 and it was my most anticipated read. The illustrations made me laugh and if the book only had those, I would’ve rated it a lot higher. However, this book spent more time saying what it was going to talk about than talking about it. The author took something that could’ve been beautiful and life changing (which I believe was his intent) and turned it into 30% insightful and 70% political agenda. While I agreed with many of his statements, I felt like I was being lectured by him as he stood on some moral high ground (something he claimed he was not doing). As someone who was hoping this book would be a nice break from the politics and hatred in tv, this book only made me feel that fear and dread even more.
Robin by Dave Itzkoff
4.0
Although his death still feels so recent (and it honestly is). I remember that when he died, it did not hit me as hard as it should've. While most of the world seemed to stop when the news of such a loss traveled, I was too young to really comprehend what a legend we lost. Now, after appreciating most of his work, my heart falls into pieces. Every time I laugh or my heart is warmed in one of his movies, my heart also breaks. This book celebrates the joy, laughs and lessons we all leaned from Robin and mourned the new world without his lightness. It was Robin's death that brought on much needed conversations about mental health and how it looks differently in everyone. Robin is a shining example that depression does not always look 'depressing' on the outside. This book was heartbreaking, beautiful and well written... and yet it still does't completely give Robin the justice he deserves. Wherever he is at now, I hope he feels understood and admired for exactly who he is (without the charades and characters).
Swimming Lessons: Poems by Lili Reinhart
4.0
I love poetry. I love it's honesty and it's vulnerability. As someone who writes poetry, I found this book to be just that. Her poetry is much like R.H. Stine and Rupi Kaur. While I found myself thinking that many of the poems were not unique and much like any other poem I've read on pinterest or instagram, I reminded myself that this is her first collection and for that, it is pretty impressive. While I might be biased because I am such a fan of Lili's, there were also many poems in there that I believe to be some of my favorites I have ever read. I would love to see her go more in depth into her feelings and write longer pieces but I understand that just may not be her writing style. Overall, this is worth the read!
Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb
5.0
I LOVED this book. I already want to read it again. I have never read a book with so much humanity.
There were many quotes that stood out to me and there are some that I probably liked more than this but I feel as though it sums up the book so well..
“But many people come to therapy seeking closure. Help me not to feel. What they eventually discover is that you can’t mute one emotion without muting the others. You want to mute the pain? You’ll also mute the joy.”
With the patient, Julie, I knew from the very start that her story would be my favorite. Her dignity and strength while handling some of the most unfair cards a human can be dealt was nothing short of amazing. She is more joyous and appreciative that most people who have a seemingly perfect life. I was inspired by her story and her life and most importantly, her vulnerability.
John was a different story. I wanted to hate him from the very beginning. He was abrasive, rude, and very unlikeable. Lori, however, did not let this stop her from seeing the pain and hurt that made him this way. His story, that took a while to work out, made me see through the mr-big-stuff attitude and see his vulnerability and it was... beautiful. His relationship with his family was soft and loving and I loved when he started to embrace that part of himself. it was refreshing to see his story through and see him start to learn to forgive himself. It was nothing short of magical.
And Lori... Lori's story taught me that it was okay to fear the future. I felt relieved to know that I wasn't the only one who self sabotaged when I was repressing unwanted feelings. I learned a lot about myself while reading about others. This book was beautiful and you will be a better person after reading it.
There were many quotes that stood out to me and there are some that I probably liked more than this but I feel as though it sums up the book so well..
“But many people come to therapy seeking closure. Help me not to feel. What they eventually discover is that you can’t mute one emotion without muting the others. You want to mute the pain? You’ll also mute the joy.”
With the patient, Julie, I knew from the very start that her story would be my favorite. Her dignity and strength while handling some of the most unfair cards a human can be dealt was nothing short of amazing. She is more joyous and appreciative that most people who have a seemingly perfect life. I was inspired by her story and her life and most importantly, her vulnerability.
John was a different story. I wanted to hate him from the very beginning. He was abrasive, rude, and very unlikeable. Lori, however, did not let this stop her from seeing the pain and hurt that made him this way. His story, that took a while to work out, made me see through the mr-big-stuff attitude and see his vulnerability and it was... beautiful. His relationship with his family was soft and loving and I loved when he started to embrace that part of himself. it was refreshing to see his story through and see him start to learn to forgive himself. It was nothing short of magical.
And Lori... Lori's story taught me that it was okay to fear the future. I felt relieved to know that I wasn't the only one who self sabotaged when I was repressing unwanted feelings. I learned a lot about myself while reading about others. This book was beautiful and you will be a better person after reading it.
Weird But Normal: Essays by Mia Mercado
5.0
Mia made me feel understood like no other book/author has. There wasn’t a single chapter that didn’t make me laugh out loud. Being a girl from the Midwest who grew up catholic and had a deep desire to fit the “good girl” mold for most of my life, I found her essays to be very relatable (almost to a t). She reminds us that those things that keep us up at night and make us feel like an undesirable freak are some of the same things that the people we admire or idolize are feeling too. We are all weird and it’s TOTALLY normal.
Okay Fine Whatever: The Year I Went from Being Afraid of Everything to Only Being Afraid of Most Things by Courtenay Hameister
3.0
If I could give halves, this would be a 3.5! While this book made me laugh and the author was very likeable, I felt as though this would be a book I would soon forget about after reading it. As someone who loves and reads many memoirs, this one did not stand out above the rest. However, the authors bravery in facing many of the things she chose to do in her project inspired me to want to do the same!
Carrie by Stephen King
4.0
Stephen King is a master of making something gory and NOT cheesy... which is a surprisingly hard thing to do. I remember watching Carrie at a VERY inappropriate age AT MY GRANDMA’S HOUSE! It is my many inappropriate encounters of horror at such a young age that has made me into the reader I am today. I don’t just love Stephen King and horror novels, I crave them (not in a psychopath kind of way but in a “I need some excitement and mystery that I lack in my own life” kind of way). While I hope I never have pig blood dumped all over me or have powers induced by my rage that would pretty much destroy a whole town, I love reading about it. Carrie was a lot more easy to read than it was to watch but it was just as psychologically terrifying. I believe also, that the gore isn’t what made it so scary (again, refer to my inappropriate encounters with horror to see that I am numb to gore and blood and therefore can’t tell you...by you I mean normal... what is and isn’t scary), to me it was the religious mania undertones that was truly horrific. We have seen that kind of mania in our news and in our history textbooks. Stephen King is a fiction author but his references and his characters motives are not too far off from some kind of truth. Im so glad I finally read this book (and it’s all grandmas fault that I broke my rule of watching the movie before the book)
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
4.0
This book was almost a 5 star for me. While I love a lengthy read, I want it to be necessary length. There were many chapters I felt to be “fluff” and unnecessary to the overall plot. That aside, I loved this story. I loved the characters and the mystery and a world I have never experienced. It gave me a sense of nostalgia for memories and places I have never felt. There was magic sprinkled throughout these pages despite the fact that this novel isn’t sci-fi or anything to do with magic. This is by far one of the most creative ways to talk about grief and the grieving process without necessarily talking about it. I knew about 20 pages in to this 800+ page book that I would love this book and my gut was proven right!
Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell
5.0
This book was a thrill to read. It kept me on my toes. I saw many people say that it was way too predictable... and in some ways it was. However, predictability does not always bother me and sometimes I find it flattering to the reader to make them feel so smart. It made me feel like being a detective was my calling. lol. The plot and the characters were a solid 9/10. This was a bestseller in 2020 for a reason!