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writesdave's reviews
360 reviews
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Fun romp through a sports romance. Tomfoorde writes well, surely did her homework on the worlds of high-end food and professional baseball, and as a bonus flips the playboy athlete-gets-tamed narrative on its ear a bit, this time the single-dad baseball player falls for the never-will-commit nanny—or did it go the other way? Find out yourself.
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
lighthearted
medium-paced
It was odd to read this 15-year-old book about happiness having read more recently the work of Stulberg and Magness on the fool's errand of pursuing happiness, but Rubin did her homework and offers actionable suggestions to improving one's life. Wide swathes of it are devoted to happiness within marriage and parenthood, which doesn't apply to me, but anyone can find good stuff here.
Personally, I think I realized that I want to pursue contentment, moment to moment rather than an overarching happiness in all matters. So thanks for helping me clear that up, Ms. Rubin.
Personally, I think I realized that I want to pursue contentment, moment to moment rather than an overarching happiness in all matters. So thanks for helping me clear that up, Ms. Rubin.
adventurous
dark
emotional
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I don't get to travel much anymore, so I grabbed this collection of stories off the dusty nether regions of my shelf. Interesting mix of stories set solely in New Orleans' Vieux Carré, so I should say something here—the one time I visited New Orleans, I stayed out of the Quarter because I knew the other neighborhoods were more compelling and richer than the tourist trap Quarter, so I suppose I read it with the hope of a wider view of New Orleans. Oh well, I guess I'll seek out a different book. This was nonetheless fun.
adventurous
challenging
informative
relaxing
medium-paced
Some oldies but goodies in this compilation, some hidden gems as well. Depressing to read this and see how far SI has fallen—and how far short I fell myself.
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
For a "classic" of literature, this left me lacking, and I'll acknowledge that I probably am not smart enough to truly grasp it. In fact, I'll use the same overall line that I used in my review of "Gatsby": I just don't get it. The prose is beautiful and the story compelling, but... I don't know, it didn't live up to the hype. And don't get me started on an entire chapter of a sermon about what happens when you *don't* walk the straight and narrow hand-in-hand with one certain religion, even if that chapter offered context for why our protagonist strayed from the flock. Overrated. Maybe I'll read it again sometime.
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I honestly didn’t know what to make of a “fictional memoir,” because I didn’t want to label Exley a loser on the level of the narrator. Oh well. Mediocre white dude muddles through life, pissing away every opportunity to set things right, alienating everyone who loves him, and descending into copious quantities of alcoholism and madness—just like a writer. I give it 3.5 stars with the mathematically sound roundup.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
What an odyssey. What a tale.
adventurous
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Listening to two geniuses discuss the craft of one of them brings a certain pleasure, especially when one of the greatest musicians of all time insists he has never discussed or thought about his craft in this way, while the other just asks questions and lets the recorder run.
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
What a brutal, amazing, beautiful, awful read. Add this to the canon of war novels that serve as cautionary tales, to put it mildly.
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
A nearly definitive manual for creativity, ?uestlove has the wide-ranging chops and rolodex to give even boring MFs like me a road map for the creative life. Mandatory for artists of all kinds.