cghegan's reviews
461 reviews

The Psychopath Test: A Journey Through the Madness Industry by Jon Ronson

challenging dark informative reflective medium-paced

3.5

Ronson capitulates this important narrative by posing important questions about the impreciseness of diagnosis in an imprecise and ever-evolving branch of medicine (and how this science inevitably intersects with and is influenced by societal expectations and morals, human behavior, and pursuit of power): who decides who is ‘dangerous’ and who is being served by or profiting from diagnosing human behaviors? But to be honest, I was overcome at the end by the thought that, “Damnit, I wish someone AFAB wrote a companion piece.” Ronson touches on gender-related points but often the issue of domestic violence felt like an elephant in the room, like an editor said: we couldn’t possibly fit this all in to one book, so don’t go there. There are many illustrative examples of how strangers with violent tendencies / maladaptive behaviors enact violence upon others (and most of them described to be women) and pose a threat to society… less focus is placed on the financial/emotional burden on families. And again: maybe that’s just not what this book is supposed to be. But every time Ronson starts to nod at the topic, he pulls the narrative elsewhere, and that it became a pattern has me chewing the whole thing over…

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Blood

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail

The Memory Palace: True Short Stories of the Past by Nate DiMeo

emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective relaxing slow-paced

3.75

The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel van der Kolk

challenging dark informative inspiring reflective slow-paced

4.5

Simply of the most important books I’ll ever read. It’s hard to get through, at times, but I feel intensely grateful for this monumental synthesis of information.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual assault, Violence, Medical content, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , War

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Incest, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Grief, War

Hiroshima by John Hersey

challenging dark informative reflective sad medium-paced

4.5

I Hate You - Don't Leave Me: Third Edition: Understanding the Borderline Personality by Hal Straus, Jerold J. Kreisman
Did not finish book. Stopped at 8%.

The illustrative examples were written in a way I felt were misogynistic, even after the introductory section addressed ways the writers revised the text to be more expansive and reflective of the fact that people of all genders experience BPD, it is not merely a disorder of “crazy” women. “Stop walking on eggshells” is a similar title with a more balanced and empathetic narrative.

Goodbye, Sweet Girl: A Story of Domestic Violence and Survival by Kelly Sundberg
Did not finish book. Stopped at 15%.

Though trauma is not processed, held, or told in a linear way, the narrative “bounced” in a disjointed, disconnected way that didn’t add to the overall meaning or experience for the reader. For such a profoundly important narrative, I found myself feeling… shamefully, annoyed by the narrative voice. It had more “writerly” tendencies in its confessional than the support group tells I’ve been blessed to attend, but not enough handle on craft and narrative structure to make it a memoir I’m compelled to finish as a reader.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse

Moderate: Animal death, Domestic abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship

It's Not You by Ramani Durvasula

challenging emotional informative reflective slow-paced

3.5

The Quiet Damage: QAnon and the Destruction of the American Family by Jesselyn Cook

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Mental illness, Suicide, Xenophobia, Religious bigotry

Moderate: Addiction, Homophobia, Racism, Toxic relationship, Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail

The Anxious Generation: How The Great Rewiring of Childhood is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness by Jonathan Haidt

challenging informative slow-paced

3.0

The Prospects by KT Hoffman

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

So tenderly and thoughtfully written. I deeply appreciate the author’s keen understanding of the underlying romanticism of baseball and how this is woven in through this genuine, and genuinely sexy love story. I freaking love this book.