I'm a Tidy Freak now...

Spark Joy: An Illustrated Master Class on the Art of Organizing and Tidying Up

By: Marie Kondo

Genre: Non-fiction/ Self-Help

Pages: 291

Published: 2016

Read:  January

2.5 out of 5 stars

After reading The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, I felt this is just a condensed, abridged edition. Also was confused why it’s called the illustrated version when I didn’t feel it had very many more illustrations than the original edition. The few extra it offered, which were the ones that didn’t involve the KonMari method of folding, weren’t that exciting, cute or inspirational. If you read The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, I feel there is no need to read this one and if what you desire is the condensed version pick up, The Life Changing Manga of Tidying Up: A Magical Story. It’s a great quick read and on my ideal bookshelf.

Another 1st for me - A Political-Based Book

Becoming

By: Michelle Obama

Genre: Autobiography

Pages: 426

Published: 2018

Read:  January

3.5 out of 5 stars

I am probably the most unpolitical person I know. I have never watched a debate or a presidential address and don’t even follow the news much. I was under the impression (although not sure why), that this was a book more about “becoming” a woman versus Michelle becoming Michelle. It was definitely more biographical then I expected. I found a lot of it pretty mundane, but so well written I didn’t have the desire to give up.  I feel Michelle didn’t lead a very rough life. Although she did her best to not brag, some parts were definitely just that.  She claims to have grown up pretty poor, but her parents still sent her to Paris in high school with her class and she managed to go to Harvard. Doesn’t sound like a rough life to me.

The part of the book I found most interesting was, ironically, after Obama moved into politics and eventually ran for President. Michelle was and still claims not to be into politics and focused her efforts on improvements for children – better school lunches, better education, healthy food habits, etc.  She grew as a woman, as a mother, and a role model for woman to look up to. I did find this empowering. Although not my type of autobiography, I am glad I read it and I did in fact learn a bit about the political world. 

Craving more...

Stitches

By: David Small

Genre: YA Graphic Novel/Memoir

Pages: 329

Published: 2009

Read:  January

3.5 out of 5 stars

I have mentioned in previous reviews that I struggle with National Book Award Winners. However, I have always enjoyed graphic memoirs – So why not?   Small didn’t have a great childhood, I won’t deny that and it’s a great accomplishment that he came out on top. But, so many other children have it worse. I wonder if it really was worse than he portrayed or if Small choose not to indulge more detail because it was a graphic novel. Or did he feel that he truly suffered as much as other children.

Either way, I craved more – did he Grandma continue to abuse him or just suddenly stop as it seems from the book? What was his mother’s reaction when he walked into the bedroom and saw her with her lesbian lover? I felt what Small endured was minimized by his brief overview. Most of all, I want to know if there was more or did he mean to keep us guessing. Even his author note, while informative, didn’t answer my questions.

2nd Time around was better!

Darius the Great is Not Okay

By: Adib Khorram

Genre: YA Realistic Fiction

Pages: 316

Published: 2018

Read:  January

3 out of 5 stars

This is my second reading of this book. I reread it for a Battle of the Books challenge with librarians. I did enjoy it more the second time around. My favorite aspect of the story is that the protagonist is a male dealing with depression. There have been a lot of YA books dealing with mental health in the past few years, but not with male characters. I think it’s important for male teens to see they aren’t alone. I also appreciate the fact that it was multicultural and educational. It was almost like a nonfiction book inside a fictional story. But this also negatively impacted the story, the Persian facts often interrupted the story line. Most would have been better included in back or even a companion book to this novel. Khorram did include an afterword about the seriousness of depression with links to websites for additional information or help.

I am a happier person...

The Minimalist Home

By: Joshua Tucker

Genre: Non Fiction

Pages: 256

Published: 2018

Read:  January

3.5 out of 5 stars

I was one of the many that jumped on the bandwagon when the Netflix show, Tidying Up with Marie Kondo aired. I started by decluttering my bedroom and haven’t wanted to stop. I was skeptical about it changing my lifestyle and the claim that it improves your entire attitude. I am here to tell you it really does work; I am a happier person. So when I ran across The Minimalist Home while working, I decided to give it a try. The “Becker Method” as he calls it is almost the complete opposite of the Konmari method. He declutters, or minimizes by room, versus item. I have adopted my own method, by doing a combination of both methods. It works for me.

As far as Becker’s book, I did not care for the way it was structured. He went through the method room-by-room, which lead to a lot of repetition. It became annoying to read really quickly. I did appreciate his introduction to the minimalist theory and the benefits of downsizing your house. However, I feel that Kondo’s book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up was a much better written and enjoyable book to read.

Christian Novel - A first for me in several years

The Memory Book

By: Penelope J. Stokes

Genre: Christian/Historical Fiction

Pages: 304

Published: 2004

Read:  January

4 out of 5 stars

I definitely judged this book by its cover when I bought it. The cover (and title) were extremely eye catching to me. I had no idea it was a Christian novel.  Not that I minded, I’m Christian, just haven’t read one in years. I can definitely see some readers not believing Phoebe’s story if they don’t believe in God. This book did not take me long to read and it definitely held my interest. It was a very unique premise, well written and I felt believable. The reason being is my brother was in a horrific accident years ago and after he woke up from his coma he explained to our parents that he had a very realistic and visual dream. It was not a religious “I saw God” dream. The dream was actually about him and friends bowling, but he said it had more of a “real feeling” than normal nightly dreams. This is exactly how Phoebe tells her story and why I could believe Phoebe’s explanation. I definitely recommend this book to Christians and others with a belief of a greater power.

An Entertaining and Helpful Self-Help Book

I Really Didn’t Think This Through: Tales from My So-called Adult Life

By: Beth Evans

Genre: Non-fiction/self help

Pages: 192

Published: 2018

Read:  January

4 out of 5 stars

Evans can help any reader with anxiety in a fun, entertaining way. This book is especially good for teens and young adults, but I read it as a woman in my 40’s and still enjoyed it. It will crack you up, while providing you with knowledgeable and useful advice. If interested, she has a fantastically entertaining Twitter and Instagram account with many more illustrations. As a Young Adult Librarian, I will be talking this book up to my patrons for sure.