REVIEW - Lessons in Chemistry

OVERVIEW

So I am one of those very picky readers who has specific genres, authors, and book styles. I have been reading since I was in Kindergarten (thank you, Mark Andrews) and I knew what I liked even back then! HA!

This book has been labeled with multiple genres - historical fiction, humor, and humorous fiction. Personally, I do not think any of these genres apply. The most accurate genre that I have found for this book is quirky tragicomedy.

The book goes back in forth between the a bit in the past to the present time for the book, i.e. the late 1950s/early 1960s and the middle 1950s. It was based primarily in a fictional city on the coast of California at a research facility.

The book style reminds me of a lot of "cutesy" books that I have read in the past. There are a lot of triggering events in the very beginning of the book including rape and suicide which makes this book not funny to me. So I am a little confused as to why it gets tagged with a humor genre.

OVERALL REVIEW: 4.0 stars

Writing: 4.0 stars

This was a debut novel for Bonnie Garmus. This book won the Goodreads Choice Award - Nominee for Best Historical Fiction (2022) and Winner for Best Debut Novel (2022). 

Personally, I am puzzled by the Best Historical Fiction as I don't think that it was indicative of life at all in the 1950/1960s. It just didn't read to me like a well-researched historical fiction novel like I am used to reading. Plus, there were many other nominees in the 2023 Best Historical Fiction category that I am shocked did not win.

Character development: 4.0 stars

The character development of the three main characters and secondary characters was a deep dive. We did see into some of their thoughts including the dog (which I loved). I do understand why the main characters were so strong, but it made them difficult to like which hurt the storyline to me. 

The main character is Elizabeth - it is all about her, all the time. The secondary characters are her significant other, Calvin; her daughter, Mad; and her dog, six-thirty. 

There are many tertiary characters from Elizabeth's graduate advisor at UCLA to the Chemistry Chair at her job to her neighbor, Harriet. The first two characters play ugly villainous parts in Elizabeth's life and the third character was a true friend who allowed her to shine and fly.

Storyline: 3.5 stars

The storyline was not believable to me. Yes, Elizabeth was a brilliant chemist, but her behavior would not have been tolerated then or now because she didn't have the research or degrees to justify it. Her partner on the other hand was a Ph.D. who was a renowned name - his quirkiness would have been allowed as he brought in grant and donor money. 

The main locations were coastal California, Cambridge, UCLA, and Iowa.

Memorable/Informative: 3.5 stars

It just wasn't memorable or informative to me. I did learn a new term that I had never heard previously: abiogenesis. Definition of abiogenesis

Book cover: 3.5 stars

Boring and not eye-catching

Book title: 4.0 stars 

It was a good choice

Gut feeling: 3.5 stars

I never know what to expect when I read a uber-popular book! 

Suggestions: 

A list of the literature mentioned in the book would have been nice.

RECOMMEND

BOOK INFORMATION

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus 

400 pages

This was a library book from LAPL

Release date of 04/05/2022

INFORMATIONAL LINKS

Bonnie Garmus

My Goodreads review

Doubleday

Los Angeles Public Library

Happy reading,

Dorothea 💜

 

My next audiobook read is...

 Atomic Habits by James Clear

Taylor Swift Concerts

Well, as you may know, Taylor Swift is performing SIX concerts at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California to finish up the U.S. leg of her Eras Tour.

My daughter and I were so lucky to get tickets for THREE nights!! We are going tonight, Thursday, August 3rd, and Monday, August 7th with pretty good seats. When the stage was completed on Tuesday (a day early, BTW), the obstructed seats were released. We scored some obstructed seats for the FINAL night on Wednesday, August 9th! The bonus is that we are going with some friends that we made at the My Chemical Romance concert at The Forum last October. Life is full of serendipity sometimes. 

So I may or may not be reading as it is going to be VERY, VERY late nights! Of course, I will post if I finish a new book or audiobook. I'm on the hunt for a new audiobook, if you have any recommendations!!!

See you all on the other side!! 

Happy reading,

Dorothea 💜

My next read is...

 Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

Happy reading,

Dorothea 💜

DNF - The Golden Gate

I will not be finishing The Golden Gate by Amy Chua. This just wasn't the right book for me at this time!

Happy reading,

Dorothea 💜

P.S. I started this book this afternoon and decided to DNF. So it is two quick posts to say that I am reading it and then another post explaining the DNF.

My next read is ...

 The Golden Gate by Amy Chua

Happy reading,

Dorothea 💜

REVIEW - Hello, Molly! AUDIOBOOK

SPECIAL NOTE

This is a new and different format for memoirs. I will also be updating my format for fiction books. This is a continual work in progress to find exactly what works for me and you!

OVERVIEW

Molly Shannon had been a big deal in the late 90s on Saturday Night Live. However, I have never liked her type of humor as it is just silly and juvenile to me. I liked her, but didn't love her!

Interestingly, she discusses in this book that she really is serious about how her comedy is treated and that she really wants to be true to it just like one would be to drama. I really liked this very amazing thought, but I still don't like her humor after knowing this or reading this memoir.

Also, I have recently read some very good historical fiction and this memoir was not in the same league. This may have been unfair to this memoir so consider this when reading my review.

OVERALL REVIEW: 3.0 stars

Narrator: 3.0 stars

Molly Shannon and Sean Wilsey (contributor) 

Writing: 3.0 stars

The writing was really lovely at times and just weird at other times. She had some moments when she mentioned so many names of people at one time that I had no clue who they were. The celebrity name-dropping really bothered me. 

The chapters about her mother were so beautiful. I could really feel the pain of her loss in her family of origin. But on the other hand, she used her loss of her mother as a reason to excuse her and her father's bad behavior.

Other chapters, I absolutely detested like the hotel scene in Time Square and the chapters that included shoplifting and scams. It was like she still found this behavior funny. It was not!

She ended the memoir with a great chapter on how she raised her kids to find joy in life. I loved it! It is very evident that she is an amazing mother!

Character Arc: 3.0 stars

The story begins with a family tragedy and ends with how generational curses can be broken. Her family on both sides were recent immigrants to the U.S. from Ireland. The identity of being an Irish Catholic was consistent throughout the memoir - it was a beautiful reminder that we ALL are immigrants from somewhere.

However, the chapters were inconsistent to me and all over the place. I especially did not like her NYU and Los Angeles years at all. Yes, we all do stupid stuff when we are young, but I felt that she glorified it and was proud of some of these stupid things. Plus, I didn't get what some of it really had to do with the arc of her life. 

Memorable: 3.5 stars

It was meh. 

Entertaining: 3.0 stars

It didn't have me laughing out loud which I would have expected from her. 

Book cover: 5.0 stars

I LOVE it! 

Book title: 5.0 stars 

Just so perfect. 

Gut feeling: 3.0 stars

I had no clue as to how I would feel about this memoir. So I was in the middle!

Suggestions: 

Molly Shannon was OVERLY animated at times during the narration. Maybe, tone it down a little. I understand that, but it was annoying when I was drifting off to sleep. 

Lukewarm RECOMMEND

STATISTICS

Hello, Molly! by Molly Shannon 

7 hours 5 minutes listening length

Listened as an audiobook from the library

Release date of 04/12/2022

INFORMATIONAL LINKS

Molly Shannon

My Goodreads review

HarperCollins

Los Angeles Public Library

Happy reading,

Dorothea 💜

REVIEW - A Council of Dolls

SPECIAL NOTE

This is a new and different format for fiction. The format was also recently updated for memoirs. This blog is a continual work in progress to find exactly what works for me and you!

OVERVIEW

I just cannot imagine how I read another amazing book ARC!! This historical fiction book was just amazing. Another book in the running for my Book of the Year 2023. 

The writer is a female Native American author and she wrote a beautiful love letter to the strong women in this book. There were THREE very strong women who lived in different and important times in Native American history in the U.S. 

The book works backward in time which is a nice and unique change and ends in somewhat current times. The three main characters are Sissy (born 1961), Lillian (born 1925), and Cora (born 1888). Each of these women lived in a different, difficult time for Native Americans, but there is an invisible string of their dolls and their love that surrounds them. 

The book was so beautifully written even with the horrible and devastating events that occur in this book. It also made me so disgusted that we treated these dignified and beautiful Native Americans so horribly. Unfortunately, there is no change in their mistreatment with the continual breaking of long-standing treaties. So very convicting.

OVERALL REVIEW: 5.0 stars

Writing: 5.0 stars

Mona Susan Power has a beautiful and powerful voice in her writing. The time and events in this novel were not pleasant to read or write. But, it was her gorgeous writing with so much character development that helped me understand and love this book. I cannot wait for what else she will write. 

Character development: 5.0 stars

The character development of the main characters was so intense and thorough. I could feel all of my senses viscerally engaged as I read. Interestingly, they were the main characters in the current chapter and then secondary characters in the following chapter. 

There were many secondary characters in the book. The partners and friends of the main characters also were thoroughly explored. The three dolls that connect all of the main characters are given voices to understand so much of the history.

Of course, the United States government, white Christian patriarchy, and many evil institutions were horrible tertiary characters that invaded all parts of the novel.  

The character development was thorough, but not overdone. It was perfection.

Storyline: 5.0 stars

The storyline goes backward in time to end in the recent present. The three main characters each have a doll that is an integral part of their lives and binds them together. Without the dolls as the main fabric of the story, it would not have been as rich and meaningful. 

Sissy, the daughter, was a young child during the American Indian Movement and was born off of the reservation. Lillian, the mother, was born on the reservation and attended Indian Boarding schools closer to home which helped spur her activism for her people. Cora, the grandmother, was born during the time of the murder of Native Americans for their land and when children were forced to attend Indian Boarding schools far away from home. 

The main locations were Chicago, North/South Dakota, Eastern Pennsylvania, and Minnesota.

Memorable/Informative: 5.0 stars

I had no idea that there were so many Indian Boarding schools. I need to research if there are any locally here in California. 

Unfortunately, California did not avoid having its own horrors. We had the legacy of the mission system which enslaved the Native Americans and forced them to convert to Christianity. 

I am not sure which was worse.

Book cover: 4.0 stars

Beautiful

Book title: 5.0 stars 

It is exactly what the dolls represented

Gut feeling: 3.5 stars

I knew very little of Native American history. Now I want to read and learn more and not the whitewashed history.

Suggestions: 

A glossary of the Native American words used. I could figure out more of it, from context but it would have been a nice touch.

HIGHLY RECOMMEND

BOOK INFORMATION

A Council of Dolls by Mona Susan Power 

304 pages

This was a Kindle ARC from Book Club Girls via NetGalley

Release date of 08/08/2022

INFORMATIONAL LINKS

Mona Susan Power

My Goodreads review

Mariner Books

Book Club Girls

NetGalley

Happy reading,

Dorothea 💜

July 2023 Reading Wrap-up

Hi, everyone!!

This was an AWESOME book month! But my reading has slowed down a bit as I have been doing some great television bingeing hiding from the heat and humidity!! Currently, I am bingeing NYPD Blue – I love police dramas! Any suggestions for me!?!

Okay, so, this month AGAIN, I have another contender for the best book of 2023!! It is How to Say Babylon by Safiya Sinclair!

So now I have THREE books in the running for the best book of 2023:

·      The Wind Knows My Name by Isabel Allende (May)
·       Lady Tan’s Circle of Women by Lisa See (June)
·       How to Say Babylon by Safiya Sinclair (July)

Three months in a row with outstanding books. For July, the majority of books were 4.5 stars!! I hope August is just as good with another 5-star book!!

 

STATISTICS:

6 e-books; 1 audiobook

ARC (Advance Reader Copy): 1 e-book NetGalley link

Amazon Prime First Reads book: 1 e-book Amazon First Reads link

Library books: 4 e-books and 1 audiobook Los Angeles Public Library link

Audio listening time in July: 5 hours, 59 minutes

Pages read in July:  2217 pages

 

BOOK RATINGS with BOOK COVERS:

5.0 star books (1)

How to Say Babylon by Safiya Sinclair - Review HERE

 

4.5 star books (5)

The Midford Affair by Marie Benedict - Review HERE

The Spectacular by Fiona Davis - Review HERE

No Time Like the Future by Michael J. Fox (audiobook) - Review HERE

The Beach at Summerly by Beatriz Williams - Review HERE

Good Night, Irene by Luis Alberto Urrea - Review HERE

4.0 star books (0)

3.5 star book (0)

 

3.0 star books (1)

The Life That She Wanted by Anita Abriel - Review HERE

If you want to read my full review of any of Jul's books, there are individual review links under the book covers!

  

I look forward to reading and reviewing more great books for you in July!! 

Have a Happy National Dog Month! I love almost every single dog that I have ever met!!! 🐶

  

Happy reading, 

 

Dorothea 💜

 

P.S. For a reminder about my book ratings, this link is HERE.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My next read is...

A Council of Dolls by Mona Susan Power

Happy reading,

Dorothea 💜

 

REVIEW - Good Night, Irene

OVERVIEW

I had seen a mention on one of author Jamie Ford's social media pages about Luis Alberto Urrea and this book! So I added it to my To-Be-Read list on Goodreads. When the library let me know this novel was available, I was so excited to read it!! 

This is my first book by Luis Alberto Urrea. However, it will not be my last! This novel is based on the ARC (American Red Cross) Clubmobiles specifically in Europe during WWII. The three young women who served in each Clubmobile were meant to be morale boosters for the American troops by serving donuts, coffee, and smiles. These women did not simply serve from safe locations, but many went very near to the front lines, concentration camps, and many other horrific locations. A lot of the young women were injured physically and mentally from their personal war experiences. Unfortunately, most of these heroines are now lost to us as well as the information on the service that they performed during WWII. 

The three main characters are Irene (AKA Gator) and Dorothy (AKA Dot) plus the important impact of the war on all of the individual characters that they encounter. 

REVIEW: 4.5 stars

Writing: 4.5 stars

The writing was incredibly lovely, but the storytelling was the part that really hooked me. Yes, it is rare to have a writer who can do both - writing and storytelling well. Luis Alberto Urrea does both tasks magnificently. 

I really wanted more of the stories of the young women of the Clubmobiles. That is also another sign of a well-written novel - I want more!

Character development: 4.5 stars

The character development was very strong. We knew the back stories of the two main characters as well as the lives that they lived during WWII while on and off duty. Also, the deep friendship between Irene and Dorothy was fully explored.  

There was the additional primary character of the war which really made me feel that I was there with all five of my senses activated reading about the horrors. I know that war was Hell, but this novel really made me feel it!

The secondary characters were also interesting and developed as well as secondary characters should be. Not overdone, but just right! 

Storyline: 4.5 stars

This historical fiction novel really laid out all that the young ladies in the Clubmobiles had to endure from getting to Washington D.C. to Liverpool to mainland Europe during WWII. I had not considered some of the horrors that they had to endure on their journies to serve the servicemen of our country and the Allies. 

The storyline had a lot of twists and turns. I had no clue how the story would end. It was a surprise ending that had me guessing until almost the very end!

Book cover: 4.0 stars

I think that there was a lot of opportunity for the cover of this novel to be so much more!

Book title: 5.0 stars 

Perfection!!

Gut feeling: 4.0 stars

I had no clue as to how I would feel about this novel. But, I knew that Jamie Ford would not lead me astray! 

Suggestions: 

A map of where the women of the ARC Clubmobiles traveled would have been interesting if it was even possible.

Highly RECOMMEND

INFORMATION/LINKS

Good Night, Irene by Luis Alberto Urrea 

465 pages

4 days to read it (I could not put it down)

Read as an ebook from the library

Release date of 05/30/2023

Luis Alberto Urrea

My Goodreads review

Little, Brown and Company

Los Angeles Public Library

Happy reading,

Dorothea 💜