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oashackelford's Reviews (352)
If Walls Could Talk offers a look into history and into all of the items in the home that we now take for granted. Lucy Worsley will take you through the four main rooms in the house that have been around for most of history, the bedroom, bathroom, living room, and kitchen, and walk you through the room's different purposes throughout time, as well as different inventions that changed each room. Worsley offers us a look into the way that things used to be done, and how we functioned before the advent of electricity and modern convenience.
I liked this book a lot and I liked the way that the author introduced and brought you through the changes of each of the rooms. Since I listened to an audio book version of this book I will admit that at times the discussion seemed to meander, but I soon realized that it was because of the way that the reader was reading the chapter titles, I just wasn't noticing them clearly. I do disagree with the conclusion of the book, that we will one day have to return to a more mediaeval style of living because we will one day run out of resources, I think that there is some really good research being done into more renewable resources, so I think things will change again rather than revert, but I do still think that it is a good idea to know where our ancestors came from and how they did things to help inform us when things do get tough.
I liked this book a lot and I liked the way that the author introduced and brought you through the changes of each of the rooms. Since I listened to an audio book version of this book I will admit that at times the discussion seemed to meander, but I soon realized that it was because of the way that the reader was reading the chapter titles, I just wasn't noticing them clearly. I do disagree with the conclusion of the book, that we will one day have to return to a more mediaeval style of living because we will one day run out of resources, I think that there is some really good research being done into more renewable resources, so I think things will change again rather than revert, but I do still think that it is a good idea to know where our ancestors came from and how they did things to help inform us when things do get tough.
Kyle Keeley loves games more than anything in the world, and his favorite game maker is Mr. Lemoncello. So when Kyle finds out that Mr. Lemoncello is building the towns new library, he enters the essay contest to try and win a spot to be one of the first twelve people to get to experience the new library. Being one of the first twelve people to go to the new library is great, but things get kicked up a notch when they get a chance to be a part of a library lock in and Kyle gets to play Mr. Lemoncello's latest game, escape from Mr. Lemoncello's library.
I started reading this book to my son, and we really didn't know what to expect, but I loved every second of this book. it definitely gives a lot of nostalgic Willy Wonka vibes, but for people who love games and libraries. I wish the library from this book were real, that would be amazing. I can't wait to start reading the next one to my son :)
I started reading this book to my son, and we really didn't know what to expect, but I loved every second of this book. it definitely gives a lot of nostalgic Willy Wonka vibes, but for people who love games and libraries. I wish the library from this book were real, that would be amazing. I can't wait to start reading the next one to my son :)
Juana is the daughter of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain, and third in line to both of her parents thrones. As was customary at the time, Juana is married off so that the Spanish crown can strengthen its alliances across Europe. The book covers Juana's life and eventual fall into madness that the history books tell us about, but from Juana's point of view.
I wanted to like this book, I really did, but Juana's inaction in her own life is infuriating. Juana as a character just seems to let everyone else make her choices for her and seems to be watching her own life from the sidelines while everyone disrespects her. I understand that this book is based on a historical figure and the author is bound by the real world parameters of her life, but this was the most frustrating book that I have read in a long time. Nothing about it is romantic, and you can't even argue that in the end Juana won because she was being left alone, because, sure she was being left alone, but she is trapped and not really living her life at all. That isn't freedom. You can't even really say, "well historically women have just had to put up with a lot." People had women for queens and rallied behind them. It is hard to believe that she wasn't a little bit mad, because if she was sane then why would she sit back and just let her life happen to her instead of taking charge of her own life. I did not enjoy this book at all and I wish I had my time back.
I wanted to like this book, I really did, but Juana's inaction in her own life is infuriating. Juana as a character just seems to let everyone else make her choices for her and seems to be watching her own life from the sidelines while everyone disrespects her. I understand that this book is based on a historical figure and the author is bound by the real world parameters of her life, but this was the most frustrating book that I have read in a long time. Nothing about it is romantic, and you can't even argue that in the end Juana won because she was being left alone, because, sure she was being left alone, but she is trapped and not really living her life at all. That isn't freedom. You can't even really say, "well historically women have just had to put up with a lot." People had women for queens and rallied behind them. It is hard to believe that she wasn't a little bit mad, because if she was sane then why would she sit back and just let her life happen to her instead of taking charge of her own life. I did not enjoy this book at all and I wish I had my time back.
The Anthropocene Reviewed is a series of essays written by John Green about any given topic that exists on the planet Earth. Some are more mundane, like the essay about Dr. Pepper, and others more meaningful, like the essay about the Picture of the Three Farmers, and at the end of each essay John gives the subject a rating on the five star scale. Unlike other people's ratings, John states that he doesn't think that the five star mark should only be given to perfect things, rather, it should be given to the things that give him joy and are truly five stars to him.
I really loved this book. I have been really into the short story, or short essay format recently, because I can read a little bit here or there without having to commit to a large amount of reading time. but the thing that I really loved about this book is that John relates the subject of each essay back to his own life and how the context of his life gives the subject meaning. Some of the essays are more lighthearted, and others are heavier but the running theme throughout the book seems to be hope, both the things that give us hope and the things that take hope away. Another thing that this book does well is it gives us the context of time. Sometimes when we lose hope, we have no idea how long it will take us to get it back, John offers the context of time, showing that often we have no idea how long a trial will last, only that we are in it in this moment, so, when you can, you find hope in any way, shape, or form that you can.
Another thing to love about this book is John's mastery of the English language. All of his essays have a poetry to them. The way that he writes about feelings, or moments in time, makes the reader slow down and feel the moment, in a way that we rarely do in real life. Reading this book offered a lot of little quiet moments of peace.
I give the Anthropocene Reviewed five stars.
I really loved this book. I have been really into the short story, or short essay format recently, because I can read a little bit here or there without having to commit to a large amount of reading time. but the thing that I really loved about this book is that John relates the subject of each essay back to his own life and how the context of his life gives the subject meaning. Some of the essays are more lighthearted, and others are heavier but the running theme throughout the book seems to be hope, both the things that give us hope and the things that take hope away. Another thing that this book does well is it gives us the context of time. Sometimes when we lose hope, we have no idea how long it will take us to get it back, John offers the context of time, showing that often we have no idea how long a trial will last, only that we are in it in this moment, so, when you can, you find hope in any way, shape, or form that you can.
Another thing to love about this book is John's mastery of the English language. All of his essays have a poetry to them. The way that he writes about feelings, or moments in time, makes the reader slow down and feel the moment, in a way that we rarely do in real life. Reading this book offered a lot of little quiet moments of peace.
I give the Anthropocene Reviewed five stars.
Late one night in Savannah, Georgia a man named Jim Williams shot and killed Danny Hansford, a young man in his employ. Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is considered to be a non-fiction retelling of the events of the crime and subsequent trials that followed that reads more like a narrative than a non-fiction book. The author, John Berendt, weaves himself into the story in order to make the interesting characters he meets in Savannah stand out a little better, and to put himself between the characters accused of crimes.
This was a really interesting book for me in that I have never read a non-fiction book that read so much like a regular book. I will say though that I did not appreciate the liberties that the author took with the story, because I find myself having to google the events of the trial and some of the characters that he writes about to try and understand where he exaggerated things to make the story more interesting. But the story of the crime and the trials is really interesting. I enjoyed that he went into detail for each of the four trials laying out what was swaying the jury and the different pieces of evidence that worked for and against Jim Williams. I almost wish that he had cut out the side characters and just focused on the trial. The characters of Emma, Joe Odom, and the Lady Chablis, while interesting, didn't add enough to the trial to have been worth taking up nearly half of the book. I think that the author included them to try and paint a broader picture of Savannah, but I mostly just wanted him to stop stalling and get back to the trial. All in all it was a good read though, and I found myself making time to finish the book.
I wish I could give this book 3.5 stars, since I don't think it was as bas as a three star book, but not quite as good as a four star book, as I can't give half stars though, I will have to give it four stars.
This was a really interesting book for me in that I have never read a non-fiction book that read so much like a regular book. I will say though that I did not appreciate the liberties that the author took with the story, because I find myself having to google the events of the trial and some of the characters that he writes about to try and understand where he exaggerated things to make the story more interesting. But the story of the crime and the trials is really interesting. I enjoyed that he went into detail for each of the four trials laying out what was swaying the jury and the different pieces of evidence that worked for and against Jim Williams. I almost wish that he had cut out the side characters and just focused on the trial. The characters of Emma, Joe Odom, and the Lady Chablis, while interesting, didn't add enough to the trial to have been worth taking up nearly half of the book. I think that the author included them to try and paint a broader picture of Savannah, but I mostly just wanted him to stop stalling and get back to the trial. All in all it was a good read though, and I found myself making time to finish the book.
I wish I could give this book 3.5 stars, since I don't think it was as bas as a three star book, but not quite as good as a four star book, as I can't give half stars though, I will have to give it four stars.
Mica is working in the bookstore when she meets the hottest guy she has ever seen in her life, and he is in the store looking for a book by her favorite author! And he seems interested in her! Her friends Zee, Barry and Rage all think that this guy seems to good to be true, and they might be right. Ever since Sam came to town weird things have been happening to Mica and her friends. But Sam is the most interesting thing ever to happen to Mica, even if her gut is telling her that something is off. Who listens to their guy anyways, he can't be that off right?
I thought this was an okay read, but I think that the book could have benefitted from a little more world building to make the big moments feel more earned. Mica and Zee spend a lot more time with Sam and learning about him than they do looking into their own families secrets, so towards the end of the book when they start learning their secrets those moments feel like explainers used to justify the action currently taking place rather than earned information that the characters learn how to use to their advantage. As a reader it is too hard to make accurate predictions about the characters because they don't know enough or find out enough information to tip the reader off in any direction, except, of course, for the big obvious twist in the book.
I just think that if the characters had the option to learn about and use the information given to them, instead of trying it out on the fly without knowing anything, then the book would have been better.
It seems like the author was trying to leave room for a sequel, but I think she would have been better served building up the world in this book a little bit better so that if there was a sequel I could have been more excited about it. It's not a bad read, but it also won't stay with me, and I probably won't read the next one, if she writes one.
I thought this was an okay read, but I think that the book could have benefitted from a little more world building to make the big moments feel more earned. Mica and Zee spend a lot more time with Sam and learning about him than they do looking into their own families secrets, so towards the end of the book when they start learning their secrets those moments feel like explainers used to justify the action currently taking place rather than earned information that the characters learn how to use to their advantage. As a reader it is too hard to make accurate predictions about the characters because they don't know enough or find out enough information to tip the reader off in any direction, except, of course, for the big obvious twist in the book.
I just think that if the characters had the option to learn about and use the information given to them, instead of trying it out on the fly without knowing anything, then the book would have been better.
It seems like the author was trying to leave room for a sequel, but I think she would have been better served building up the world in this book a little bit better so that if there was a sequel I could have been more excited about it. It's not a bad read, but it also won't stay with me, and I probably won't read the next one, if she writes one.
Hope has been sick with cystic fibrosis her entire life. Between being smothered by her mom and never really being allowed out of their apartment, Hope feels the need for something, anything to happen to her to liven things up. Then she gets an invitation to a warehouse from something called the society. Being invited to a secret club where they must perform dares is crazy enough, but there is a 100,000 dollar prize on the line for the girl who lasts the longest, and Hope and her family could really use the money to pay for all of her medical bills. It seems okay at first, until people start getting hurt. Now it seems that if Hope and her new friends don't hurry, more than just their reputations will be at stake.
I really liked this book and all of its twists and turns. I thought that the characters were well thought out and well built. You know enough about them to sympathize with them, but not enough to understand why they are doing the dares until you are further in the book. The mastermind is carefully placed in the book so that you can't quite figure out who it is, but when you go back and read it again, it makes sense that they were the mastermind the entire time.
There is only one thing that I didn't like about this book and it was
I think that this is a good read, but don't expect it to rewrite the genre. If you like twisty thrillers that put you on the edge of your seat and entertain you for a few hours, than this is the book for you, but if you need something mindblowing, then this isn't it.
I really liked this book and all of its twists and turns. I thought that the characters were well thought out and well built. You know enough about them to sympathize with them, but not enough to understand why they are doing the dares until you are further in the book. The mastermind is carefully placed in the book so that you can't quite figure out who it is, but when you go back and read it again, it makes sense that they were the mastermind the entire time.
There is only one thing that I didn't like about this book and it was
Spoiler
The envelope at the end of the book. I got all excited thinking that there was going to be another book after this one, but it seems like the envelope was just put there to freak out the main character and now there will be no follow up, but I also don't see how the killer would have gotten it there in the first place because she was on trial at the time and was being detained. That was a little bit annoying and I do wish that she just would have left that bit out, I think I would have liked the book just a little bit better.I think that this is a good read, but don't expect it to rewrite the genre. If you like twisty thrillers that put you on the edge of your seat and entertain you for a few hours, than this is the book for you, but if you need something mindblowing, then this isn't it.
Peter Grant is enjoying his last week of being a London Police Constable before becoming a glorified desk jockey when he meets a ghost who can tell him all about a murder that he witnessed. Desperate to avoid desk duty, Peter follows up on the ghosts claims and finds them to be accurate. In an attempt to get more information, Peter attempts to meet with the ghost again only to run into a fellow Police officer. Luckily for Peter, the officer believes that he can see ghosts, unfortunately for Peter, ghosts are the least of London's supernatural problems. The officer takes Peter on as an apprentice and offers to teach him magic and how to deal with the supernatural side of the law.
I liked this book a lot, although I do feel like I need to re-read some sections of the book because I am a little confused on some of the details. On the whole, I thought that the supernatural crime element of the book was fascinating. Like all of the best books detailing magic, the magic in this book seems to abide by a set of rules and isn't the answer to every problem that you come across. Another thing that I liked about the magic in this book is that every interaction with magic, no matter how small, comes with a price. I like that the characters can't just do massive spells at the drop of a hat, and I think that it adds to the realism that grounds the book in its modern timeline.
I liked this book a lot, although I do feel like I need to re-read some sections of the book because I am a little confused on some of the details. On the whole, I thought that the supernatural crime element of the book was fascinating. Like all of the best books detailing magic, the magic in this book seems to abide by a set of rules and isn't the answer to every problem that you come across. Another thing that I liked about the magic in this book is that every interaction with magic, no matter how small, comes with a price. I like that the characters can't just do massive spells at the drop of a hat, and I think that it adds to the realism that grounds the book in its modern timeline.
PC Peter Grant is still learning the basics of magic when he starts following cases of Jazz musicians who are dying of "natural causes". To him it looks like magic is involved. Meanwhile, other men are dying having their genitalia bitten off, and mysterious reports of a faceless man are popping up around town. In addition to this, Nightingale has found evidence of a magician who practices black magic around London. Grant has his plate full as he continues to navigate the complicated world of being both a magician, and a cop.
I thought this was a really good follow up to Rivers of London . I thought that this book furthered Peter's magic career at a realistic pace (somewhat set by the first book), while still having fun and interesting mysteries to solve. I did think that it was refreshing that he is a magic user who can't automatically use all of magic just because his power manifested.
The mysteries in this book are always well written, but usually there are two mysteries that don't always have anything to do with each other, and sometimes that makes it hard to follow which thread Peter is working on at any given time. I think that the idea is that as a cop you are never just working on one case, but sometimes I do wish that the mysteries were a little more closely connected.
I like this series and I am looking forward to reading the next one!
I thought this was a really good follow up to Rivers of London . I thought that this book furthered Peter's magic career at a realistic pace (somewhat set by the first book), while still having fun and interesting mysteries to solve. I did think that it was refreshing that he is a magic user who can't automatically use all of magic just because his power manifested.
The mysteries in this book are always well written, but usually there are two mysteries that don't always have anything to do with each other, and sometimes that makes it hard to follow which thread Peter is working on at any given time. I think that the idea is that as a cop you are never just working on one case, but sometimes I do wish that the mysteries were a little more closely connected.
I like this series and I am looking forward to reading the next one!
Ernest Cunningham is a writer with a complicated family dynamic. Having seen his brother murder a man, and having turned him over to the police hasn't exactly endeared him to his family. His aunt Katherine suggested a family reunion to help welcome Ernest's brother home. Of course this reunion is at a remote ski lodge in the mountains, and of course someone is going to die this weekend. The question is who? The other question of course, in a family of killers, is who is responsible?
I love mysteries and I especially love the golden age of crime fiction, so when this book was described as a cross between Knives Out and Agatha Christie I had to check it out. The author pokes a lot of fun at what typical mysteries do throughout the book as a way to throw you off the right line of thinking, while still following all of the rules laid out in the prologue. I thought that this was such a fun tongue in cheek way of writing the book, and it also made it really engaging. I finished this book in a day and now that I am done I am looking forward to the sequel.
I love mysteries and I especially love the golden age of crime fiction, so when this book was described as a cross between Knives Out and Agatha Christie I had to check it out. The author pokes a lot of fun at what typical mysteries do throughout the book as a way to throw you off the right line of thinking, while still following all of the rules laid out in the prologue. I thought that this was such a fun tongue in cheek way of writing the book, and it also made it really engaging. I finished this book in a day and now that I am done I am looking forward to the sequel.