hflh's reviews
59 reviews

The Wild Robot Protects by Peter Brown

hopeful reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

One thing I love about the Wild Robot series is the relationships and community Roz builds. There is less of that in this installment. The Wild Robot Protects follows Roz on an undersea journey to the arctic; she meets many new and quirky friends but there's more focus on her journey and the wonderful and unique world of the ocean. Though, there's still strong theme of community, family, and caring for each other.

Brown continues to gently explore serious topics, offering nuanced takes on mining, technology, and violent action. Brown doesn't shy from depicting the damage of resource extraction but he also highlights the necessity of mining for modern tech and takes care to humanize labourers and their families. He also explores the value and consequences of both violent and nonviolent action. 

Appropriately, we get a relatively happy ending.

Once the mining stops, Brown depicts a quick and relatively thorough cleanup facilitated by high tech robots. He balances this by showing lasting damage. Parents of older children may want to use this ending to start a bigger conversation with their kids about the limitations of technology and complexity of cleanups.

 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Animal death and Violence

Period Repair Manual: Natural Treatment for Better Hormones and Better Periods by Lara Briden

medium-paced

2.5

I've never read a book that's so informative yet so unreliable at the same time. This book is a good jumping off point to start your own research or discuss with your doctor, dietitian, or naturopath, but approach it with caution and skepticism.

And I mean serious CAUTION:

• Do not read if you struggle with eating disorders or obsessive behaviours around health. I recommend asking a friend to read and give you the highlights.
• Fact check every single claim, recommendation, and resource before you act on it.

You may learn a lot. The text is readable and informative. Briden goes into great detail on how hormones change over the course of your cycle, how they work and interact in your body, and how this might influence any symptoms you may have. There's also sections that look at specific period symptoms, menstrual conditions, and tips for talking to your doctor.

But not all the claims are reliable. Briden often makes unbacked or exaggerated claims and supports some claims with debunked or iffy research. If you filter the bad reviews on Goodreads, other readers have flagged some errors but still fact check all her claims if you're acting on them.

And the solutions are largely terrible. I'm sure there is some good advice in here, but Briden's two solutions for every situation are (TW: eating disorders)

1. completely eliminate certain foods and behaviours from your diet and 2. introduce supplements.

Although, she does emphasize it's important to eat enough calories, carbs, fats, and proteins. 

It may be good to reduce certain foods from your diet (and maybe eliminate them entirely if they are causing serious medical problems), but

Briden recommends extremes that are most likely unnecessary and I doubt would be recommended by most professionals. Some supplements are necessary and have great health outcomes, but they're expensive, unregulated, and have many unknowns. If you find yourself wondering, "do I need to take this supplement?", please ask yourself, "am I eating enough of X" or talk to a professional before you go the supplement route. There are supplements she recommends that have the same doses as a single serving of food (e.g., brazil nuts for selenium, turmeric latte or curry for curcumin). If you do take the supplement route, go one at a time, watch carefully for improvement, and make sure other lifestyle changes aren't responsible for the results --- save your wallet if you can!

Repetition not so bad. It can be repetitive reading cover-to-cover because Briden pulls from the same suite of solutions for most issues, but the repetition will make referencing back easier as you tackle individual challenges. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Eating disorder

Snug House, Bug House (Bright & Early Books) by Susan Schade, Jon Buller

fast-paced

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

5.0

Informative and entertaining. 

The Cat Who Saved Books by Sōsuke Natsukawa

hopeful lighthearted mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

A simple fable about reading, presence, and relationships.

It was fine. Cute story but the character development is easy. This is great for readers who are primarily looking for a series of lessons on how we should appreciate books (and shouldn’t forget what we’re leaving behind).

Money Shot, Vol. 1 by Sarah Beattie, Tim Seeley

adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

A simple but fun read.

Creatively silly and great art. 

Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree

lighthearted mysterious relaxing fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

As cozy as everyone says with wonderfully loveable characters.

There’s not a lot of action in the traditional sense, but the plot moves quite fast.

Good Boy: My Life in Seven Dogs by Jennifer Finney Boylan

This seems like a well-written memoir, but I think I just hate memoirs.

Untethered Sky by Fonda Lee

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

5.0

Tight, compelling narrative but may be slow-paced for some readers. Rich world and characters. This may be my favourite use of first person in a book. 

This Is What It Sounds Like: What the Music You Love Says about You by Ogi Ogas, Susan Rogers

informative lighthearted reflective medium-paced

3.0

This is a great book for music lovers who want to develop tools to analyze the music they listen to and why they like it. The authors outline a clear and interesting framework for understanding the different aspects of music. I can see this toolkit helping readers gain more appreciation for the music they love (or hate). 

There's a mix of music analysis, neuroscience, and some tidbits of 20th century music history. It's interactive with a website that has activities and playlists to explore your music taste as you read. "Uncovering aspects of your personality" is a stretch; it's more "I tend to like music with this sound because I value authenticity" or "I experience music like this, whereas others experience it differently."

For me, I was mostly bored. I've realized liking my music is enough. I don't want or need to analyze the different aspects of the music I listen to.  

Suing for Silence: Sexual Violence and Defamation Law by Mandi Gray

challenging informative slow-paced

4.5

Very academic so difficult at times but eye-opening and worth reading.

This gave me a lot to think about what I would do if I ever need to disclose sexual violence in Canada (even just to friends and family) or support a loved one going through that process.