thuglibrarian's reviews
761 reviews

My Glory Was I Had Such Friends by Amy Silverstein

5.0

In the book "Sick Girl" Author Amy Silverstein wrote about her needing a heart transplant at 25. Nearly 26 years later and Amy is indeed a very sick girl (woman) as her transplanted heart is failing and she needs another heart transplant. Although this is a memoir of sickness and health, more importantly, it's about Amy's friends who organize to take care of her at her very lowest. Readers of strong female friendships and/or medical stories will devour this memoir.

The Education of a Coroner: Lessons in Investigating Death by John Bateson

Ken Holmes spent 4 decades being a coroner in Marin County, Ca. and has a myriad of stories to tell. Author John Bateson tells how Holmes has worked in a wealthy community, but one that has a big problem with drug overdoses and deaths due to alcoholism. There is also the many suicides from those who jump off the Golden Gate Bridge. Readers will appreciate the honest, yet reverent way that the author approaches the important job of coroner, minus the gory details.

The Encore: A Memoir in Three Acts by Charity Tillemann-Dick

4.0

Imagine being an award winning classical recording artist, a Soprano whose voice soars to heaven as you sing. Now grasp that you are this gifted singer and have been diagnosed with a fatal lung disease that requires not one, but two lung transplants. This book is the true story of Charity Tillemann-Dick and how she persevered against all odds and is now singing with someone else's lungs. A raw, compelling and inspirational read.

I read an advance copy and was not compensated.

The Flight Attendant by Chris Bohjalian

5.0

You know those authors who churn out book after book, that are all predictable? Chris Bohjalian is NOT one of those authors. Each book stands on its own merit and is not formulaic.
Cassie Bowden is a flight attendant who is a binge drinker, think blackout drunk. (scary thought) We meet Cassie when she wakes up in her hotel room in Dubai. Only it's not her room and she can't remember what happened the night before. Her confusion turns to terror when she discovers a dead man next to her. This is the man she had met on the flight and who she was partying with the night before. She doesn't think she's capable of murder, but she never thought she'd be an alcoholic either. So begins the lies, fear and suspense as neither the reader nor Cassie know who murdered him. Don't read it on a plane.

Educated by Tara Westover

5.0

This *can't put down* book is a mashup of The Glass Castle and Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?" The author grew up in an abusive home and whose father practiced his own brand of Mormonism. When you grow up so isolated you begin to think that what you are witnessing is normal. But abuse is never normal and Tara Westover has written a brilliant memoir on how her soul and eyes were opened. Highly recommend.

I read a review copy and was not compensated.

I Have Lost My Way by Gayle Forman

4.0

YA author Gayle Forman manages to yet again write a novel that crosses over into adult interest. The lives of 3 strangers intersect on 1 particular day, which causes ripples in all 3 lives. A quick read, but only because the writing is spot on..not 1 wasted word.

I read an advance copy and was not compensated.

American War by Omar El Akkad

In the not too distant future the United States is again at war with itself. Fossil Fuels which have decimated the environment are banned, but the states rich in them refuse to comply and thus break away from the states. Biological warfare, drones as killing machines and state against state contribute to make this a prescient novel. Multiple narration and the differing viewpoints combine to make this an absorbing, shocking read of what could be. A must read that will be discussed by all who read it.

I read an advance copy and was not compensated.

I Found My Tribe by Ruth Fitzmaurice

4.0

Ruth Fitzmaurice is the wife of Simon Fitzmaurice, whose book "It's Not Dark Yet" is an international bestseller. Ruth writes from the wife/caregivers point of view as Simon has ALS. It's unique in that she is brutally honest about herself and her feelings in taking care of a sick, loved one.

Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward

5.0

Probably my favorite book of 2017. It's the raw story of Jojo and his toddler sister, Kayla, who live with their grandparents, and occasionally their drug-addicted mother, Leonie, on a farm on the Gulf Coast of Mississippi. Grandma is dying of cancer; and their grandfather provides the quiet, steady strength to run the household and teach Jojo how to be a man. When the white father of Leonie’s children is released from prison, she packs her kids and a friend into her car and sets out across the state for Parchman farm, the Mississippi State Penitentiary, to bring him home. It's a rough read, but so worth it. Great for book clubs

Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay, and a Mother's Will to Survive by Stephanie Land

5.0

Author Stephanie Land writes openly and with humility about her experience with finding herself homeless with a small baby. How did things go south so quickly for Stephanie? Many things contributed to Stephanie finding herself in section 8 housing, including a toxic relationship with her ex-husband, rocky family dynamics and the ever widening divide between the working poor and the
privileged, middle class. However, Stephanie is willing to do almost anything in order to survive, and to provide a stable home for herself and her daughter. Almost anything includes working as a maid, scrubbing toilets, cleaning homes of hoarders, all the while attending college to better herself. Written without an ounce of self pity, merely a reflection of what was.
It'll be on many best books list of 2019. Similar to Nickle and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich.

I read an advanced copy and was not compensated.