Book Report

 

Yet another book report. Because I haven't been writing enough fic. And every book on this report gets an 8 or above because they all were awesome. 

I Came All This Way to Meet You by Jami Attenberg – I’ve read several books by this novelist and although none of them are historical fiction, I love them. Her fiction is page-turning and insightful and filled with “yes!” and “oh interesting” moments. So here is her memoir. And once again, I can’t pinpoint what exactly makes this so good. I don’t know. She’s very forthcoming. It’s nice to just read about this flawed, creative, real human. Grade: 8 

Acceptance by Emi Nietfeld – Another fascinating memoir. The author’s mother – and her only real parent – is neglectful and lives in a “dirty” hoarding house.  So Nietfeld needs help and neither her mother nor “the system” is doing much to give her the foundation she needs. She bounces from institutions to foster homes to her mom’s to being homeless to staying with an abusive boyfriend and back. A few things stuck out for me in this memoir. One – and I think this is one of the author’s main points – is that the fault was always considered to be her own. Rarely if ever was she recognized as the victim of neglectful parenting. Instead she was told over and over again to change her mindset, to take responsibility, to aim high. And she’s a child! I remember a college Anthropology teacher who said that in the US we tend to blame individuals, not institutions. Some folks might read of Neitfeld’d childhood and say ‘wow what a bitch that social worker was’ when truly the fault is a culture that has endless money to spend on “defense” while we overwork and underpay the people who are supposed to help kids. Another eye-opener for me was a comment someone made about her foster parents. Unsurprisingly, her foster parents are….not great. They provide food and shelter, but they call Michaelangelo’s David “pornographic”, they don’t want Nietfeld hanging out with artists or aiming for AP classes. But as someone once told her, ‘Boho, open-minded people don’t become foster parents’. Sad but true. And of course another telling moment is when the author tracks down several girls she knew from institutions who were in similar places, and none are really doing ok mentally or financially. Grade: 8

 

Barn 8 by Deb Olin Unferth – This is a contemporary, off-kilter novel full of dry wit and heart and pain. A young woman decides to hop on a bus to meet the father she’s never known. She ends up in Iowa and then ends up working at an egg farm, and ultimately gets involved in a plot to free the hens from their misery. I die a little bit at sections like this one, describing the work of an undercover investigator at an egg farm: “12 hour days placing the baby-soft beaks of chicks into hot iron guillotines, searing off the tips while the chicks struggled and their faces smoked. Hens. Sweet little puffs.” But the book doesn’t preach veganism for 300 pages; it is a well-written, ingenious, and even hopeful novel. Grade: 8

 

The Light We Carry by Michelle Obama – You expect any book by either Obama to be good. I went in with high expectations. And man, Obama did not disappoint! I was chatting about this book with someone and she asked what I liked about it. I said I liked that it’s very practical and useful. Obama’s first book was a memoir. This one is more like advise from your very smart and very worldly aunt. (Yes, I know she’s only 9 years older than I). The subtitle is “overcoming in uncertain times”, and if you think you could use some help in that area, then this book is for you. Grade: 8

 

Everyone In This Room Will Someday Be Dead by Emily Austin – Holy shit. I read this book in one day. It tore me down and built me back up. I cried at the ending. What’s it about? I will just quote from the front cover. “Meet Gilda. She cannot stop thinking about death. Desperate for relief from her anxious mind and alienated from her repressive family, Gilda responds to a flyer for free therapy at a local Catholic church where Father Jeff assumes she’s there for a job interview. Caught off guard and too embarrassed to correct him, Gilda is abruptly hired…..(even though) she’s queer and atheist.” Simply brilliant and quite a tour through Gilda’s mind and world. Grade: 9