Book Report

[stormkeeper_lovedoris]

 
I must be on a roll. Despite writing a ton of fanfic, I also have enough books for a report.

The Lightest Object in the Universe by Kimi Eisele – I wanted to start out by saying something like “this was a nice read”, but “nice” is an odd adjective for a story that takes place post-apocalypse. But maybe it fits anyway? In this novel, things have fallen apart in the not-to distant future. Beatrix and Carson love each other but they live on opposite ends of what was the US, and there are no more planes or busses to get you from one coast to the other. There’s no way to communicate either.  Meanwhile a charismatic preacher has a functioning radio station that is broadcasting to anyone who can pick it up and encouraging people to join his group. I love that the book shows a vision of a post-industrial world that is mostly not too bad, though it’s realistic enough that it’s not like everyone is walking on sunshine all day either. This novel was been compared to “Station Eleven”; I’d say it’s not quite as monumental as Station Eleven but still really good. Grade: 7

 

Difficult Conversations by Stone, Patton, and Heen – This book tells you everything you need to know to prepare for and work through difficult conversations. There are tons of scenarios and examples. I’m keeping this book so I can use it when needed. One passage that really stood out for me: “You can't move the conversation in a more positive direction until the other person feels heard and understood. And they won't feel heard and understood until you've listened. If the other person becomes highly emotional, listen, and acknowledge. When they say their version of the story is the only one that makes sense, paraphrase what you're hearing and ask them some questions about why they think this. If they level accusations against you, before defending yourself, try to understand their view.” Grade: 8

 

I Promise Not to Suffer by Gail D. Storey – A memoir of a woman who hiked (part of) the Pacific Coast Trail with her husband. Yep, I do love reading about folks who make treks like this. The author intersperses her tale with bits about her marriage and her family life. It was…okay. It kept me company on a flight but was nothing special. Grade: 6

 

Home, Land, Security by Carla Power – A journalist looks at why people join groups like ISIS, and what can be done to rehabilitate them. It’s hard to make this topic super-engaging (admit it – when most Americans hear “the Middle East”, they instantly scroll on by), but the book is really worth a read and it’s not painful at all. There are so many compelling stories in here, like the young woman in Indonesia who comes from a wealthy family and is generally happy in life. She gets radicalized online and convinces two dozen of her family members to trek with her to Syria. As you can guess, they get there and see that it’s not the paradise they were promised. They were told there’d be free healthcare, and any man who didn’t want to go into combat could do other jobs. All lies, of course – and everyone they meet there is angry and unpleasant. So the two dozen family members soon must find a way to get smuggled back out of Syria. Carla Powers searches for some good deradicalization approaches and finds a few, but none are easy. Denmark and Germany seem to have the best bets. (The US? No need to write it. Our approach sucks). I would’ve loved to have read more about approaches to dealing with right-wing terrorists, who the author admits are more of a threat than Islamic ones, but that is just not the focus of this book. Grade: 7

 

Outlawed by Anna North – This is a book of historical fiction, though the historical part also has some fantasy to it. The setting is the American “Old West” but a flu has killed off much of the population, and “barren” women are even more hated and ostracized than in actual history. The main character, Ada, is cast out when she fails to become pregnant and when a few babies in her village die. She finds a band of outlaws, mostly women and a few nonbinary folks who are outcasts as she is. They try to make their own community. Just from the preceding sentences, this novel should’ve been awesome. And at times it was. But the pacing was uneven, because at other times the book is a bit of a slog. I’d still say worth reading though. Grade: 6

 

Also, adding on one book that I skimmed through…

 

Be An Outrageous Older Woman by Ruth H Jacobs – I got this book from a Little Free Library, and it was first published in 1993. I paged through it; didn’t read all of it. You know what? I think I love books that were written pre-internet. To state the obvious, what an earth-shatterer the internet was! In any case, I think the best way to approach this book is to think of it as if it’s written by your quirky, wise, fun, weird Aunt. She’s giving you tips and ideas from her own life; some of them land, some don’t. The main theme is to enjoy your old age and learn how to advocate for yourself and others. I really loved the sections on how to find more meaningful things to do, and how to make new friends. Those themes are timeless, internet or no. There’s also a decent section on sexuality. This was a fun book to skim. (Side note about the book having been published in 1993. Growing older is so weird. Like I remember a ton about 1993, remember it like it was yesterday. But it was already 30 years ago. Sometimes my head explodes a bit if I dwell on this stuff).