kamrynharned's reviews
146 reviews

Phenomenal Woman: Four Poems Celebrating Women by Maya Angelou

3.0

Cut & Thirst: A Short Story by Margaret Atwood

emotional funny reflective fast-paced

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

4.0

This short story reminded me of why I love Margaret Atwood, but upset me because it needed to be longer.  I have only read two of her short stories so far, and maybe short stories just aren’t for me, but I also think that when you love a writer AND the concept of their story, you would rather have it in novel form. Three charming elderly women navigate the grief of aging while plotting revenge for their wronged friend… loved it!  Atwood is a star when it comes to character development. You feel like you know each character personally and she only spent 50 pages on the whole story. 

My Evil Mother by Margaret Atwood

dark medium-paced

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

2.0

Something about a teenage girl mad and embarrassed by her witch mother? I read the whole thing in one sitting 2 days ago and could not tell you how it ended. Least favorite Margaret Atwood in the books! 

The Collected Regrets of Clover by Mikki Brammer

challenging emotional funny inspiring fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

All I heard about this book was “it’s about a death doula” and that was all I needed to hear. I was so excited to pick this up, and I don’t think it disappointed! It managed to be a feel-good book about death, which is something I’m convinced the world needs more of. I’m also very difficult to please with romance, and I appreciated the twists and turns that you felt like you were taken on along with Clover - as she starts to dislike certain characters, so do you. There was a lot of discussion surrounding death and grief, some of which I wish had been said without being said. Basically, the whole book is just feels like flip-flopping between the narrative and the commentary on death. It also definitely played into some common stereotypes. Antisocial girl has no friends, family or life, and by the end of the book she’s got it all.  The characters in this book just didn’t intrigue me (besides Leo & Claudia), but I didn’t dislike them either.  I loved her writing style - it played out like a movie in my mind, and she added the perfect amount of quirky, personalizing details to the character and the story line. Clover’s childhood backstory was well-done, but I did feel like the romance toward the end was too fast. 

Marvin's Room: A Play (Plume drama) by Larry Kramer, Scott McPherson

challenging emotional funny fast-paced

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

4.5

A free library book success.  This play was winsome, quirky, challenging and sad.  The humor was perfectly understated.  It highlighted the challenging undercurrents of relationships so well, and beautifully displayed the satisfaction that can come from a life of service. It makes me wonder why some plays take off and become classics (like Our Town) and why some receive some acclaim when they come out but fizzle quickly. To me, this had all the ingredients for a classic. I also found it so meaningful to read the play with an understanding of the author’s own terminal diagnosis - it felt like I was watching him process his own terminal condition and what it would mean for his loved ones.  I would love to see this play performed, but in the mean time, this is a new favorite that has earned a place on my shelf. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer

Send Bygraves by Martha Grimes

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

4.0

I had to give this charming little book a 4 star, because even though I have absolutely no idea what it meant or what happened (even after reading countless reviews) I’m just still delighted this book exists. Not even being a poetry buff, I found the idea of a mystery in prose to be so entertaining, and it’s even more than a stereotypical mystery story - I get the feeling you’re not supposed to know what to think. A mystery novel that never solves the mystery… unless I’m just stupid. Perhaps a re-read or 6 will change something, but I enjoyed myself nonetheless!

A Patch of Blue by Elizabeth Kata

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

3.0

Pretty explicit domestic / sexual abuse - not fun. 
Pretty cute premise - fun.
Pretty questionable banter (“dad”) - not fun.
Pretty sweet moments of a blind girl experiencing the world for the first time - fun
Pretty annoying main character archetype + terrible ending + racism + totally spoiled plot twist by the cover and the synopsis - not fun
So overall - more not fun than fun, but it actually did hold my attention.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content and Domestic abuse

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

medium-paced

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

3.5

This story was beautifully written. It pulled you into the experiences of the characters - the experience of being a twin, the experience of being very black, and the experience of being white. The experience of being in loving relationships and the experience of being in dangerous ones - all of them complicated.  This book touched on its themes without being preachy. There were some beautiful quotes that stuck out to me while listening to the book, which doesn’t happen often.  While the characters were well developed, and jumping timeline and POV was well-done, the book just didn’t make me feel anything. The characters and the storyline didn’t do anything for me, and I don’t think I’m going to remember much about it in a few months. 

“People thought that being one of a kind made you special. No, it just made you lonely. What was special was belonging with someone else.”

“Her death hit in waves. Not a flood, but water lapping steadily at her ankles. You could drown in two inches of water. Maybe grief was the same.”

A Severe Mercy by Sheldon Vanauken

fast-paced

5.0

Recommended by both Aspen & Helena, I knew I was going to fall in love with this book. Rather than fall short trying to explain all that this book accomplishes, I’ll try to list the things that made me feel, in the many senses and depths of the word:

• The blissful ignorance of pre-married lovers made me laugh (“Of course, we’ve talked about everything that needs to be talked about!”)
• The adoration of simplicity and beauty made me want to move to the country, lay in the grass and watch the clouds
• The way the formed dreams and then made them reality was inspirational - they weren’t simply poets with their heads in the clouds. 
• The incredibly moving conversion story of both Davy and Sheldon moved me deeply and satisfied a yearning that I think I’ve felt for a while - to know what it feels like to encounter God for the FIRST time, to make that step from darkness to light. 
• The community they had in Oxford challenged me to broaden my hospitality and deepen my expectations for the kinds of conversations that can be had among friends
• His letters from C.S. Lewis left me in awe - of his ability to speak directly and succinctly, but in such beautiful prose
• The stories of Davy ministering to those in the hospital left me inspired 
• The strengthening of their love through hardship and sickness made me want to cry
• The death of Davy was exactly the way death SHOULD be - so for someone who has seen both horrible and beautiful deaths, I was incredibly satisfied, and oddly, the main emotion I felt wasn’t sadness. Perhaps that was the authors intent?
• Sheldon’s reflections after death made me have to put the book down occasionally - not because I was bored but because I was processing. His thoughts on grief, the necessary death of love, the meaning of time, and the Severe Mercy of Death made me feel like I had just been bettered.  It made me feel thankful - thankful that I can face future deaths in my own life with hopefully the same voracity and wholeness of grief, and thankful that I have a love that will one day be so shattering to lose.
• All of the poetry in this book was inspiring and stunning.  I wanted to sit and bask in the words, but I was so enamored with the story that I had to keep moving forward. I think my favorite poem was “Dying” (pg 167)
• And finally, an honorable mention to every gorgeous sentence that made me feel the warm fuzzies. There were a lot of them.

The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride

medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This book initially drew me in because of its name.  I broke my sacred “No buying until you’ve read it” rule and impulsively bought this for my mom while we were in Alexandria.  Of course I had to read it, and I’m glad I did.  While it struck a bad nerve once or twice and went on a preaching rampage (one of my biggest pet peeves), the characters in this book truly came alive for me.  I feel endeared to all of them, but I do believe Chona & Monkey Pants will stay with me forever.  It was truly masterful how James McBride wove together the intricate and complex community that was Chicken Hill - including politics, religion, personality and profession. I thought it was brilliant how the author started with the mystery that is wrapped up in the end, but the character development, background setting and community building was all so engaging I honestly forgot about the mystery for most of the book. If being nit-picky, I do wish that the author hadn’t waited so long to get to the main climax and had gone into more detail about

the rescue of Dodo

While we are still left wondering about Moshe and Paper, the ending was truly lovely. To love and to be loved. That is the goal.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia