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cmclarabee's reviews
627 reviews
Bookends: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and Literature by Zibby Owens
3.0
This book jolted me out of a long reading slump, so I’m grateful to Zibby Owens for writing it. I’m not a fan of podcasts in general so I hadn’t heard of her until her newest anthology, Being Jewish Now, caught my interest. Looking forward to reading that soon. Owen’s’ voice (metaphorical—I read it in paperback, not audio) in Bookends grated on me at times, and I don’t think it quite lands the way she meant for it to. I enjoyed it overall, though, and as a librarian, I can only applaud her efforts on behalf of books and authors, though like other reviewers, I wish there were more to the many book mentions.
Embracing Hope: On Freedom, Responsibility & the Meaning of Life by Viktor E. Frankl
4.0
I’ve admired Viktor Frankl’s work since I encountered it in college 30+ years ago. This updated and rounded out my impressions of him, and I especially enjoyed the foreword by his grandson and introduction by Tobias Esch. Some of the material (especially the last section) got a little more into the weeds than I was prepared to go, but I nonetheless gleaned some valuable insights there, too.
The Life Impossible by Matt Haig
1.5
I really hope that The Life Impossible is the perfect book at the perfect time for someone else. Though I adore Matt Haig and will always give his books a chance, this one fell entirely flat for me. I’m marking it as read even though I mostly skimmed the second half.
Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver
5.0
Better late than never? Maybe right on time? Bless you, Barbara Kingsolver, for clearly showing the hardship without voyeuristically lingering for too long on the more unsavory details, as so many authors seem to feel compelled to do today. Demon is also a fully developed character, and not just a stand in to illustrate the evils that Big Pharma hath wrought.
Israel Alone by Bernard-Henri Lévy
5.0
It took me a long time to get through this slender volume, but it was well worth sticking with it. Bernard-Henri Levy’s knowledge of his subject is encyclopedic and his outrage is righteous, but there is a poetic wistfulness in his writing too—a love for his people and its traditions that he pines for the reader to understand. I do understand, and share his outrage too.
We All Want Impossible Things by Catherine Newman
5.0
SO good! My only quibble was with the confusing character names, specifically Jude and Jules, with the third J name of Jonah thrown in for good measure.