I love listening to memoirs narrated by their authors and Casey Wilson did a fabulous job in this audiobook. The beginning of the book had a lot of moments and stories that had me laughing out loud, sometimes with tears. The book falls a little flat halfway through, but it was fun and worth the listen.

The Bedwetter: Stories of Courage, Redemption, and Pee by Sarah Silverman

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funny lighthearted reflective medium-paced

2.25

I really enjoyed the beginning of the book when Sarah reflects on her childhood and adolescence- lots of laugh out loud moments. However, the book really soured for me with her continued use of the r-word and as she began recounting tales from her adulthood, racial slurs against the Asian and Black communities. I get that it was a little more socially acceptable 13 years ago to use words as such and comedians loved to market themselves as "edgy" by using jokes for seemingly nothing more than just shock value, but it still irked me. Using the hard r? Seriously? Absolutely not, even in 2010.

Not sure if this next part is actually a spoiler but I'll still tag and hide it-

She even talks about how she pushed to use the word "n*****" on a big network TV talk show interview and when they wouldn't concede, she settled for "c****" instead. Then she acted like she was shocked when members of the Center for Asian Americans in Media were (rightfully) upset about the use of the slur in her interview and seemed to try to play the victim in the situation. The author also talks about how she made malicious comments about two white female celebrities who were going through really difficult and very public private issues while hosting award shows, and how sorry and regretful she felt afterwards. She seems to praise herself for apologizing to them (as she should have, the comments were hurtful and unwarranted) and growing from that experience, but mentions nothing about realizing how hurtful and wrong it was to use racial slurs against minorities, even when she was made aware to the harm. Really frustrating and irritating.

Listening to this book wasn't a total waste of time, but I won't be recommending it to anyone.

The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 47%.

I enjoyed what I had read so far, I just took too long of a break from it and had a hard time getting back into it. Nothing to do with the book at all!

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin

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adventurous challenging emotional hopeful inspiring sad 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? Yes

4.0

Catherine House by Elisabeth Thomas

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dark mysterious sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I loved the lush and dark academia-esque imagery in this book, the author did a great job of making you feel as though you were in the Catherine House. However, I was disappointed with the lack of plot. The story had a lot of potential to have a much rounder and more exciting story, but it fell flat. It was worth reading to me for the setting, though.

Create the Style You Crave on a Budget You Can Afford: The Sweet Spot Guide to Home Decor by Desha Peacock

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informative inspiring relaxing medium-paced

4.5

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emilycdennis's reviews 177 reviews

emilycdennis's reviews
177 reviews