librosconcafe's reviews
276 reviews

The Reading Life: The Joy of Seeing New Worlds Through Others' Eyes by C.S. Lewis

informative inspiring relaxing fast-paced

5.0

Good insights and ideas on the subject of reading. I would rate it a little lower, but the author didn’t put these together..Each chapter has been drawn from multiple works to make this one book. 

Murder Your Employer: The McMasters Guide to Homicide by Rupert Holmes
Did not finish book. Stopped at 51%.

The premise was good, but I lost interest. It was hard to follow at times based on the switch of characters and going in and out of diaries. 

Columbine by Dave Cullen

dark informative medium-paced

4.0

Based on the research and amount of new information I learned, I give this book 4 stars. I can’t believe the Cassie story wasn’t true after all of this time. I remember my church and Christians everywhere in the south accepting her as a martyr without ever questioning anything. So that was crazy to find out. It’s also sad to see the story of the student who actually shared about her faith, but she lived. And then she gets ridiculed by Christians and mostly everyone else too. 

The author obviously did a lot of research for this and I applaud him for that. Sometimes the chronology of the chapters were hard to follow. There wasn’t a clear plot and you’re constantly jumping from character to character. So sometimes you can get mixed up about who the author is talking about. That’s the only drawback I have. 

The Road by Cormac McCarthy
Did not finish book. Stopped at 40%.

I’ve had like 3 DNF’s in the last month, what is this? 

I had heard great things about this one, but it didn’t grip my attention. There are no chapter breaks and each scene is so short. It doesn’t feel like you go very deep into any of the characters or the setting. I thought about finishing it, but I’m done reading books I’m not into. 

Five Survive by Holly Jackson
Did not finish book. Stopped at 44%.

I just lost interest and I wasn’t too into the characters thus far. 

The End of Her by Shari Lapena

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.25

Not a single Shari Lapena book has let me down. This one had some parts that I didn’t see coming, the ending especially. A good quality read.

Fool Me Once by Harlan Coben

mysterious tense medium-paced

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

2.5

It started off well, but it was confusing for me to follow at times. 

The Hundred Years' War on Palestine by Rashid Khalidi

dark informative inspiring sad medium-paced

5.0

Read this book RIGHT NOW! It is so well researched and cited. It provides a context to the Israel-Gaza war that the western media completely blocks out. This has been going on even since the late 1800s. I have learned so much and have a greater sympathy for the Palestinian cause.

Stolen Focus: Why You Can't Pay Attention—and How to Think Deeply Again by Johann Hari

challenging hopeful informative inspiring medium-paced

4.5

This book was SO interesting!! I learned so much more than I was expecting to. I had no idea so many factors could go into how we focus. I learned that there is so much more than our phones keeping us from focusing. The author really researched everything and almost half of the book is citations for the sources used. 

When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi

emotional inspiring sad medium-paced

4.25

A deep, reflective work. It’s very sad as well. It was inspiring to learn all the author learned about death during his time as a doctor but then as a patient too. It makes you want to make each moment of your life count. I would’ve read more if it were longer.