msmichaela's reviews
503 reviews

Crook Manifesto by Colson Whitehead

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4.5

This is not my usual genre, but CROOK MANIFESTO is an entertaining look at crime, race, politics and business in 1970s New York. A good vacation read. 
Funny Story by Emily Henry

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4.0

Delightful vacation read. I did not always follow the overwrought descriptions of which minor childhood trauma affected each character in certain ways, and it didn’t spoil my lakeside enjoyment of this novel at all. 
I Am Homeless If This Is Not My Home by Lorrie Moore

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Did not finish book.
Just could not do semi-experimental fiction inside the meanderings of a middle aged white guy’s head. Really bummed to not like this one. 
Such Kindness by Andre Dubus III

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4.0

Page-turner of a novel about a middle-aged man reeling from the after effects of opioid abuse. While I found the MC’s wholesale change of character to be relatively implausible, I still really enjoyed reading this book (in 2 days while laid up with an awful stomach bug). 
Wandering Stars by Tommy Orange

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4.5

Gorgeous writing with effortlessly shifting POVs. The first Thurs was exceedingly slow, but things picked up as the narrative reached the present day. This is a dark novel, shot through with humor and glints of light. 
The Paris Novel by Ruth Reichl

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4.0

Light read with a resolution that was plain as day from the first 50 pages. But it’s a delight to read Ruth Reichl on food and Paris, fairytale endings notwithstanding. 
Fat Talk: Parenting in the Age of Diet Culture by Virginia Sole-Smith

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5.0

Super important read about the e insidious diet culture that hurts us and our kids 
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev by Dawnie Walton

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4.0

I’m not a fan of oral histories, but it’s turns out that a fictional oral history with lots of asides from the narrator/ostensible author is very much up my alley. This novel grew on me—it’s worth sticking with it despite the slow start.