livelyghost's reviews
119 reviews

So Late in the Day: Stories of Women and Men by Claire Keegan

emotional reflective slow-paced

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

5.0

Set me on fire in the best way possible. Keegan’s writing is concise and exquisite, with big feelings and pictures in a few well-chosen words. The order the stories were presented in was fantastic, and The Long and Painful Death provided great and quiet satisfaction. One of my favorite authors. 

The Great Displacement: Climate Change and the Next American Migration by Jake Bittle

informative sad medium-paced

3.5

I enjoyed learning more about the actions taken by local and federal governments that got us into the mess of losing housing to climate change, but was also hoping for more on what is being/could be done to get us out. Unfortunately we either don’t seem to be doing much of anything or it wasn’t a particularly strong part of the book. It definitely highlights how complex a problem housing people in general can be, and adding in shifting water and fire on top of it creates chaos that seems to make homeowners suffer the most. I was waiting for the call to action or a hopeful moment in this book, but it wasn’t much. We have plenty of work to do. 

The High Mountains of Portugal by Yann Martel

emotional sad slow-paced

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

3.5

Thinkin a lot about apes and bodies in suitcases as metaphor. 

The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman

funny lighthearted mysterious reflective medium-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

4.5

Solutions and Other Problems by Allie Brosh

emotional funny fast-paced

4.0

Allie Brosh is one of the few authors who have made me laugh out loud while reading. I saw that she had published a second book only recently and picked it up as soon as I heard about it. A speedy read that runs the gamut between struggles with grief, the absurdity of child neighbors, and accepting your weird-ass self in the pointlessness of it all. 

Lives in Ruins: Archaeologists and the Seductive Lure of Human Rubble by Marilyn Johnson

adventurous informative inspiring medium-paced

4.0

The Humans by Matt Haig

adventurous emotional funny mysterious fast-paced

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

4.5

Gwen and Art Are Not in Love by Lex Croucher

adventurous funny lighthearted slow-paced

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

3.0

I enjoyed the sprinkles of humor and learning more about the story of King Arthur, but it was hard for me to enjoy any of the personalities in this book. A fun plot and writing, but I just never really got as into it as I hoped I would. 

Today Tonight Tomorrow by Rachel Lynn Solomon

hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

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

4.0

The Man Who Loved Books Too Much: The True Story of a Thief, a Detective, and a World of Literary Obsession by Allison Hoover Bartlett

slow-paced

3.0

A long look at a man who constantly believes he is the victim in his own life who steals art to make himself feel better. Did he need a whole book? Probably not - he seems more like a sad kind of person than a complex one - but true crime fans may enjoy exploring the similarities between his mindset and those of more famous criminals.