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Book Report
Sep. 28th, 2015 08:03 pmBook Report
Girl in the Woods by Aspen Matis – I have such mixed feelings on this book. In summary, it’s a memoir of a young woman who decides to walk the Pacific Coast Trail (PCT) as a way to work through the fact that she was raped soon after she arrived at college. I’ll do what I rarely do: divide my review into pros and cons.
Pros – Well, I love a good travel memoir, and I especially enjoy reading about women who trek the PCT or the Appalachian Trail solo. Parts of the book were very fast-moving and intriguing. Most of the time, the discussion of her rape was handled well; Matis hits the nail on the head when describing how she ends up being the one who is blamed, her rapist gets off scot-free, and how those close to her just don’t want to discuss it.
Cons – There’s the obvious comparison to the best-selling “Wild” by Cheryl Strayed, which is much better written; sometimes this book feels like it was rushed to market in the wake of “Wild”’s success. Also, sorry to say it, but Matis is so annoying. She’s whiney and self-obsessed, and I doubt I’d like to spend time with her. Ever. There are also a lot of short, choppy sentences in here and the book goes on too long and gets repetitive. It gets even more annoying when she meets the man of her dreams - I'm all for hearing about a strong relationship but her narrative really loses steam then. There's too much fail here.
Grade: C- because I think only people who also love reading PCT hiking stories are going to be able to stomach this, and it just made me want to re-read “Wild” instead.
When We Were Strangers by Pamela Schoenewaldt – Such great storytelling and beautiful prose! This novel of historical fiction tells of a young woman who leaves a small, Italian town in the mountains in the 1880’s, to seek a better life and escape a bad family situation. The book made me appreciate and wish to know more about my Italian great-grandparents who also made this journey. I was intrigued by every step of the protagonist’s trip, the kindness and dangers she encounters as she makes her way alone from the village to the port and onto a ship bound for the US. Grade: B+
Gather At The Table by Thomas Norman DeWolf and Sharon Morgan - Thomas Norman DeWolf is the descendent of slave-owners, and Sharon Morgan is the descendant of slaves. They meet each other through their anti-racism work and interest in genealogy, and decide to take a journey through 21 states, tracing slave routes, learning what they can about their ancestors, and thinking about how to dismantle racism. It’s an important topic and the prose is well-written. The authors bring up topics that so many Americans seem like they’d rather not dwell on, let alone discuss. However, I will say that as a book, “Gather At the Table” definitely has some flaws. I kept waiting for the authors’ road trip but they don’t depart until the book is like 60-70% finished. So yeah, there’s a lot of preamble and maybe a bit more on the authors’ family histories than was needed, but I am glad I read it. Grade: B
The Power of Nice by Linda Kaplan Thaler – Every now and then, it’s good to listen to a “light” audio book that is not going to disrupt your world but does contain some positive reminders and nice anecdotes. Here’s that book! The author uses a bit of data but mostly good stories to describe how being nice ultimately helps you, your career, and your life. I felt like I instinctively knew most of this stuff, but the reminders didn't hurt. Grade: B
Ice Cream Social: The Struggle for the Soul of Ben & Jerry’s by Brad Edmondson – Exactly as the title implies, this was a great history of the legendary Ben & Jerry’s. Socially responsible business is a thing that’s meant a lot to me for decades, and it was fascinating to read about the evolution of this company. Doris and I did the Ben & Jerry's tour during our one trip to Vermont many years ago, and I still remember the day in year 2000 when a coworker said to me that Ben & Jerry’s had been sold to (the big, bad, corporate giant) Unilever. This book gives you the whole scoop. Grade: B+
Girl in the Woods by Aspen Matis – I have such mixed feelings on this book. In summary, it’s a memoir of a young woman who decides to walk the Pacific Coast Trail (PCT) as a way to work through the fact that she was raped soon after she arrived at college. I’ll do what I rarely do: divide my review into pros and cons.
Pros – Well, I love a good travel memoir, and I especially enjoy reading about women who trek the PCT or the Appalachian Trail solo. Parts of the book were very fast-moving and intriguing. Most of the time, the discussion of her rape was handled well; Matis hits the nail on the head when describing how she ends up being the one who is blamed, her rapist gets off scot-free, and how those close to her just don’t want to discuss it.
Cons – There’s the obvious comparison to the best-selling “Wild” by Cheryl Strayed, which is much better written; sometimes this book feels like it was rushed to market in the wake of “Wild”’s success. Also, sorry to say it, but Matis is so annoying. She’s whiney and self-obsessed, and I doubt I’d like to spend time with her. Ever. There are also a lot of short, choppy sentences in here and the book goes on too long and gets repetitive. It gets even more annoying when she meets the man of her dreams - I'm all for hearing about a strong relationship but her narrative really loses steam then. There's too much fail here.
Grade: C- because I think only people who also love reading PCT hiking stories are going to be able to stomach this, and it just made me want to re-read “Wild” instead.
When We Were Strangers by Pamela Schoenewaldt – Such great storytelling and beautiful prose! This novel of historical fiction tells of a young woman who leaves a small, Italian town in the mountains in the 1880’s, to seek a better life and escape a bad family situation. The book made me appreciate and wish to know more about my Italian great-grandparents who also made this journey. I was intrigued by every step of the protagonist’s trip, the kindness and dangers she encounters as she makes her way alone from the village to the port and onto a ship bound for the US. Grade: B+
Gather At The Table by Thomas Norman DeWolf and Sharon Morgan - Thomas Norman DeWolf is the descendent of slave-owners, and Sharon Morgan is the descendant of slaves. They meet each other through their anti-racism work and interest in genealogy, and decide to take a journey through 21 states, tracing slave routes, learning what they can about their ancestors, and thinking about how to dismantle racism. It’s an important topic and the prose is well-written. The authors bring up topics that so many Americans seem like they’d rather not dwell on, let alone discuss. However, I will say that as a book, “Gather At the Table” definitely has some flaws. I kept waiting for the authors’ road trip but they don’t depart until the book is like 60-70% finished. So yeah, there’s a lot of preamble and maybe a bit more on the authors’ family histories than was needed, but I am glad I read it. Grade: B
The Power of Nice by Linda Kaplan Thaler – Every now and then, it’s good to listen to a “light” audio book that is not going to disrupt your world but does contain some positive reminders and nice anecdotes. Here’s that book! The author uses a bit of data but mostly good stories to describe how being nice ultimately helps you, your career, and your life. I felt like I instinctively knew most of this stuff, but the reminders didn't hurt. Grade: B
Ice Cream Social: The Struggle for the Soul of Ben & Jerry’s by Brad Edmondson – Exactly as the title implies, this was a great history of the legendary Ben & Jerry’s. Socially responsible business is a thing that’s meant a lot to me for decades, and it was fascinating to read about the evolution of this company. Doris and I did the Ben & Jerry's tour during our one trip to Vermont many years ago, and I still remember the day in year 2000 when a coworker said to me that Ben & Jerry’s had been sold to (the big, bad, corporate giant) Unilever. This book gives you the whole scoop. Grade: B+
