schroedenator's reviews
204 reviews

Finding Faith by Michelle Romano

emotional hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

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

4.0

 ‘Finding Faith’ was such a delightful story, full of romance with a mystery woven throughout. It is mostly set in Arizona, and we get descriptions of some beautiful landscapes. We meet Faith right after a break-up, dealing with some very relatable feelings, and get to follow her journey to discover more about herself and her past. The book also contains a few deaths, mostly off page, which led to some really positive representations of loss and grief. 

 

I was taken out of the story a little few things, mainly multiple names for a person or place and the logistics around Faith’s housing and employment, but most of that is cleared up by the end of the story. I do also wish we spent a little more time with Terese, so we see how they were close enough that she was willing to do so much to help Faith. 

 

I appreciate the shorter chapter length. That, paired with the POV only switching twice instead of frequently from chapter to chapter, made this a really smooth read. It’s compelling enough that I ended up reading most of it in one sitting- I didn’t want to put it down until I knew the truth about Faith and Michael. This was an overall enjoyable read. 

Forest School for Grown-Ups by Richard Irvine, Ulysses Black

adventurous informative lighthearted

5.0

Now, more than ever, people are seeing the importance of a relationship with the great out doors. This is the book for anyone looking to take a step outside their comfort zone and do so comfortably. 'Forest School' a wealth of knowledge ranging from navigation and fire starting to crafting and cooking with everything in between. 
It's great jumping off point for anyone looking to spend valuable time in nature, especially those with zero experience outside, but is also a thorough refresher for anyone with a background in camping or scouting looking to brush up on their survival skills.  Get to know the Forest and all it's inhabitants, as well as best practices for exploring and respecting your surroundings, all from one delightfully illustrated book.
Thank you to Netgalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy.

The Day I Die: The Untold Story of Assisted Dying in America by Anita Hannig

challenging emotional hopeful informative fast-paced

5.0

Death is never an easy subject to discuss, especially in the United States where it’s become somewhat taboo. With the advance of life extending medical procedures we’ve seen the decline of home deaths, and now many imagine death to be something that happens mostly in medical facilities. Hanning has taken her skills as an anthropologist and used them to give an intimate look into how people with terminal illnesses are taking control of the ends of their lives with medically assisted death. 

 

In the most respectful way possible we are introduced to a variety of people with terminal illnesses and their families, as well as physicians and volunteers who give them aid, and get to see how they navigate the process to procure medically assisted death in states where it’s been legalized. The process is lengthy, with waiting periods and very specific requirements for those who are eligible, but there are still many opponents that don’t believe it should be legal regardless of what safeguards are put in place. As we follow each terminally-ill person’s story we get a glimpse at how having the option to cease prolonged suffering on their own terms can dramatically improve the quality of their end of life and how the grief of loved ones who were participants in the process was effected. 

 

I think most people would benefit from reading this book. Due to the subject matter it may be difficult to read, but opening up the discussions around death is helpful for everyone regardless of their age and any prognoses. 

 

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death

Beyond the Hype: The Inside Story of Science's Biggest Media Controversies by Fiona Fox

hopeful informative reflective fast-paced

4.0

Science is a part of the daily news cycle, and nowadays it seems stories get exponentially scarier every day. The science that is reported effects us all in one way or another, but there is more to it than a scientist making a discovery and just telling the world. This book does a great job of pulling back the curtain and showing how science journalism works and how it has evolved with some of the biggest scientific events of the last twenty years. Fox shares how the SMC (Science Media Centre) believes in the importance of having scientists communicating with the media, to help explain the nuance behind their work and help temper expectations for what a study could mean. When the SMC says “the media will DO science better when scientists DO the media better,” they really mean it.

Covid, genetically modified crops, animal testing, and more controversial topics are discussed, but not in a way to provide moral judgement. Instead we see how they were handled and changes they caused.  This book is centered on the UK, the institutions and people that make up the science and journalism covered there, but there is enough context given for most to understand. 

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Mind Food: Plant-based recipes for positive mental health by Lauren Lovatt

3.5

Mind Food is one seriously beautiful cookbook.  You can tell that so much work went into the images and down to every last detail the layout and design make it very easy to read. It’s very clear how much living a mind food focused life has helped Lovatt, and she is very passionate about sharing it in the hopes of helping others improve their own lives. This is a solid mix of recipes, grouped by the seasons to encourage eating seasonally. There is also quite a few pantry staple recipes, like hemp milk and nut butter, which give you the ability to really customize your ingredients to your own taste.

In general it’s pretty sound nutritional advice- that she gives with the endorsement of a registered Dietician Nutritionist- but I don’t know if it’s totally practical for your average reader. It focuses on unprocessed, whole foods, which are good for everyone, but it leaves very little wiggle room for those wanting to follow the lifestyle while living a life not conducive to cooking everything from scratch. There is some information on batch cooking toward the end, but one looking at this as a lifestyle guide instead of just a book of recipes to pull from may still find this lifestyle inaccessible. Also, the ‘Tonic Herbs’ mentioned in the blurb of the book basically mean adaptogen powers, many from mushrooms and roots, which can be very expensive. They are optional in most of the recipes they are in, and do last a long time since the doses are small, but they are expensive. I worry someone reading this book would find they can’t afford a $30+ jar of brown powder and give up on including more whole foods into their diet. It’s the same with CBD oil. It’s used as a drizzle on multiple recipes, so it’s easily omitted, but could give someone the wrong idea that eating more vegetables is expensive.

I tried her ‘Sunshine Cup,’ which was an interesting way to try saffron and learn what it’s flavor is like. ‘Hemp butter’ was fun to make, and doesn’t have too strong of a taste, so I can see it working in a lot of recipes to create a creamy texture. The ‘garlic sprouts’ were fantastic too, but my favorite were the ‘Kale Chips’. The chickpea flour makes such a great breading, and even the veggie haters in my life enjoyed them.

Overall a beautiful book with some good recipes, even if the lifestyle it promotes may not quite be for everyone.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. 

Eating to Extinction: The World's Rarest Foods and Why We Need to Save Them by Dan Saladino

hopeful informative inspiring sad fast-paced

5.0

If ever there was a rallying cry for people to fight against the homogenization of food around the world, this is it.  Saladino shares stories from all over the globe about an incredibly wide array of foods that teeter on the edge of extinction. Every kind of food from vegetables, to beverages, to animals and their byproducts, is effected by reduction of number species, and if changes aren’t made the consequences could be catastrophic. 

Despite the grim nature of the subject all hope is not lost. The foods mentioned all have champions, people working to save the biodiversity we’ve lost with globalization and are working to save traditional, diverse foods and production methods. There are many more endangered foods than those mentioned, but this can be inspiration for others to fight to save their own traditional foodways. 

 

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. 

Our Fermented Lives: Fermentation and the History of How We Eat, Heal, and Build Community by Julia Skinner

hopeful informative inspiring slow-paced

4.75

Fermented foods, and the micro-organisms used to create them, have been a part of human life for thousands of years, and ‘Our Fermented Lives’ gives us a look into not only the many ways they have been essential to different populations, but also how they can still be applicable to us today. The history shows that fermentation wasn’t just a western method of food preservation, but instead a tool for survival used globably. And I appreciate how the blindspots in our knowledge of fermentation’s history were recognized, especially those caused by the biases of those recording and interpreting it. 

 

At the end of each chapter there are recipes for readers to use as a jumping off point on their own fermentation journeys, for everything from sauerkraut to ginger beer to injera. They all have suggestions for ways in which to customize recipes for the reader’s individual taste and use as minimal equipment as possible. I can attest that both the mushroom ketchup and fermented tomato ketchup recipes can garner delicious results, having tried them both in my own kitchen. 

 

This book has something to learn for anyone, whether they have never tried to ferment before or they have been fermenting in their own kitchen for years. I would highly recommend this book for anyone interested in food preservation, sustainability, or food history.

Sunset Beach by Mary Kay Andrews

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

4.0

This was such a fun read that was hard to put down. Andrews did a fantastic job letting all of her characters take on lives of their own- including St.Pete itself. The story switches back and forth between present day and 20 years ago in an easily understood way, and has a very surprising yet satisfying end. 

The Cooking Gene: A Journey Through African American Culinary History in the Old South by Michael W. Twitty

emotional informative reflective

5.0

I don't know what I expected from this book, but it has surpassed anything I could've imagined. Twitty doesn't just give us the basics of southern food. He shares his own history and the journey he went on to learn how his ancestors would've lived and cooked, while also giving us the history of the slave trade and how the Africans stolen from their homes shaped the south and many of its traditions. There is something to learn for anyone who picks up this book.

Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

adventurous fast-paced

4.5