Unorthodox: The Scandalous Rejection of my Hasidic Roots
By Deborah Feldman
Back to my theme of different life perspectives, memoirs, and autobiographies. This one was pretty good. Reminded me of Growing Up Amish, as it was a journey through the realization of being trapped in an oppressive lifestyle, and finding ones way out.
The story was interesting, with unexpected twists and turns. Feldman painted an emotional picture of what it was like to be raised in the Samtar community in New York. The characters she developed were intense and interesting, yet I would never want to be related to them. I am impressed by her resiliency and courage to do the things she did growing up (especially reading all of my favorite books!).
I also read the reviews on Goodreads after I finished the book. I agreed with most of the positive reviews. One things that caught my eye from a negative review is that the reviewer mentioned that this book would have been more effective if Feldman had waited longer to write it after her escape from her lifestyle. I readily agree and disagree with this. There wasn't a lot of depth and complexity to the story at the end. I missed her insight, along with the details from her departure andeginning of the new life. However. This book contract was the reason she was able to get out of the lifestyle with limited education and no money. I will accept that as a fair trade for this book. Years in the future, I hope she adds on a long afterword to help tie together the ending.
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Book 8 - The Hobbit
The Hobbit
JRR Tolkien
Classic. That's all.
This isn't my first reading of The Hobbit, but it definitely has been a while. I would like to see the movie when it (hopefully) comes out on Netflix. However, I can't do such an epic story justice without rereading the book.
The adventure was wonderful, and I loved every second of it. I plan to reread the rest of the Lord of the Rings series in the near-ish future, and then have my own little movie marathon!
JRR Tolkien
Classic. That's all.
This isn't my first reading of The Hobbit, but it definitely has been a while. I would like to see the movie when it (hopefully) comes out on Netflix. However, I can't do such an epic story justice without rereading the book.
The adventure was wonderful, and I loved every second of it. I plan to reread the rest of the Lord of the Rings series in the near-ish future, and then have my own little movie marathon!
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Book 7 - The Bluest Eyes
The Bluest Eyes
by Toni Morrison
To me, Toni Morrison is a new classic. I remember first reading Beloved in 11th grade English. I may have been the only one who liked the book--my classmates weren't too fond of it.
This is my third Toni Morrison book. I have one more in my current stack, and a few of my unread books are on the library's e-book collection. Ok, so I have to confess, the library is in walking distance of my apartment. Somehow, I am too lazy to walk over there to pick out books. Figures.
Anyway, on to the feature. I enjoyed the tangled story of The Bluest Eyes. Again, Morrison paints a beautiful picture of racial tensions and social issues. Each chapter was like it's own story, yet played a huge role in the overall picture.
When I have some free time, I'd like to read some literary critiques of this book to see what the experts think. I'm still not sure if I got all of the messages from the book.
This might need to go on my "to read again" shelf...seems like the kind of book where you don't see the picture until at least the second time through.
by Toni Morrison
To me, Toni Morrison is a new classic. I remember first reading Beloved in 11th grade English. I may have been the only one who liked the book--my classmates weren't too fond of it.
This is my third Toni Morrison book. I have one more in my current stack, and a few of my unread books are on the library's e-book collection. Ok, so I have to confess, the library is in walking distance of my apartment. Somehow, I am too lazy to walk over there to pick out books. Figures.
Anyway, on to the feature. I enjoyed the tangled story of The Bluest Eyes. Again, Morrison paints a beautiful picture of racial tensions and social issues. Each chapter was like it's own story, yet played a huge role in the overall picture.
When I have some free time, I'd like to read some literary critiques of this book to see what the experts think. I'm still not sure if I got all of the messages from the book.
This might need to go on my "to read again" shelf...seems like the kind of book where you don't see the picture until at least the second time through.
Book 6 - Growing Up Amish
Growing Up Amish: A Memoir
by Ira Wagler
While on the theme of different life perspectives, I thought I'd read this memoir. It was not what I was expecting, but nonetheless I enjoyed it.
Hearing about the rumspringa in the Amish community, I thought the youth either left and came back, or left for good. I did not think about the mental implications of leaving the only life you know. For me, easy, I could do that life and leave it without much thought. But, if I had to leave my current life in front of my laptop and dive headfirst into an Amish life without contact to my family and friends...yeah, that would be very difficult.
I appreciated the honestly of the experience, and the expression of emotions throughout the journey. However, at the end, I was left wanting more.
What is Ira doing with his life now? Luckily, he alluded to a blog somewhere in the book. I found it (www.irawagler.com) and perused it a bit. I am impressed that one of his favorite authors is Thomas Wolfe. I, too, quite enjoy Wolfe's writings.
Definitely fit well with my unintentional "life perspectives" theme!
On the bonus, I was able to "check" this book out of the library on my iPad through a special app. Coolest thing ever! I intend to first look for e-book versions of books at the library.
by Ira Wagler
While on the theme of different life perspectives, I thought I'd read this memoir. It was not what I was expecting, but nonetheless I enjoyed it.
Hearing about the rumspringa in the Amish community, I thought the youth either left and came back, or left for good. I did not think about the mental implications of leaving the only life you know. For me, easy, I could do that life and leave it without much thought. But, if I had to leave my current life in front of my laptop and dive headfirst into an Amish life without contact to my family and friends...yeah, that would be very difficult.
I appreciated the honestly of the experience, and the expression of emotions throughout the journey. However, at the end, I was left wanting more.
What is Ira doing with his life now? Luckily, he alluded to a blog somewhere in the book. I found it (www.irawagler.com) and perused it a bit. I am impressed that one of his favorite authors is Thomas Wolfe. I, too, quite enjoy Wolfe's writings.
Definitely fit well with my unintentional "life perspectives" theme!
On the bonus, I was able to "check" this book out of the library on my iPad through a special app. Coolest thing ever! I intend to first look for e-book versions of books at the library.
Sunday, February 17, 2013
Book 5 - The Brooklyn Follies
The Brooklyn Follies
by Paul Auster
I had never heard of Paul Auster until very recently. My Finnish penpal of 6 years is an aspiring librarian, graduating in May; oddly enough, we have never discussed books. In my most recent letter to her, I asked about the books/authors/genres she liked. The reply listed familiar names such as Jane Austen, and then an unknown--Paul Auster--her favorite author. I immediately texted my Dad, the bibliophile, to ask if he's heard of this author. He had (of course), and said Auster's style is not for everyone. He was coming to visit for my birthday, and brought along a book he thought I'd like.
Well, I liked Paul Auster's style. The book was an easy read for a lazy Sunday, but had enough complexity to keep my brain entertained. The language was not difficult, and the story flowed well. The plot was well constructed, and very believable. I am convinced that these people actually exist in Brooklyn. Plus, Auster's first-person writing was comical, and alluded to events in the future. I liked this blatant foreshadowing.
I am adding another one of his books (to be determined) to my list of books to read.
...although, I really want to know what happened to Marina. Mr. Auster, details please?
by Paul Auster
I had never heard of Paul Auster until very recently. My Finnish penpal of 6 years is an aspiring librarian, graduating in May; oddly enough, we have never discussed books. In my most recent letter to her, I asked about the books/authors/genres she liked. The reply listed familiar names such as Jane Austen, and then an unknown--Paul Auster--her favorite author. I immediately texted my Dad, the bibliophile, to ask if he's heard of this author. He had (of course), and said Auster's style is not for everyone. He was coming to visit for my birthday, and brought along a book he thought I'd like.
Well, I liked Paul Auster's style. The book was an easy read for a lazy Sunday, but had enough complexity to keep my brain entertained. The language was not difficult, and the story flowed well. The plot was well constructed, and very believable. I am convinced that these people actually exist in Brooklyn. Plus, Auster's first-person writing was comical, and alluded to events in the future. I liked this blatant foreshadowing.
I am adding another one of his books (to be determined) to my list of books to read.
...although, I really want to know what happened to Marina. Mr. Auster, details please?
Monday, February 11, 2013
Book 4 - My Life in France
My Life in France
by Julia Child & Alex Prud'Homme
This book was on my "to read" shelf on Goodreads, and I stumbled across it in a used book store last week while shopping with my Dad. I love used book stores, and sometimes I come out with quite the stack. This time, it was a lovely birthday stack of 4 exciting books. My Life in France is the first of these four books.
I absolutely loved this book. I intend to read it again sometime in the future. I saw Julie & Julia in theaters with my Mom, and fell in love with this Julia Child. Around the same time, I started to develop a love of cooking and baking. While I'm not even close to the level of someone like Julia Child, her cooking show made way for one of my favorite things, the Food Network!
Julia Child's story is filled with hopes, dreams, and disappointments, clearly articulated through anecdotes about cooking. I thoroughly enjoyed every page of this autobiography.
by Julia Child & Alex Prud'Homme
This book was on my "to read" shelf on Goodreads, and I stumbled across it in a used book store last week while shopping with my Dad. I love used book stores, and sometimes I come out with quite the stack. This time, it was a lovely birthday stack of 4 exciting books. My Life in France is the first of these four books.
I absolutely loved this book. I intend to read it again sometime in the future. I saw Julie & Julia in theaters with my Mom, and fell in love with this Julia Child. Around the same time, I started to develop a love of cooking and baking. While I'm not even close to the level of someone like Julia Child, her cooking show made way for one of my favorite things, the Food Network!
Julia Child's story is filled with hopes, dreams, and disappointments, clearly articulated through anecdotes about cooking. I thoroughly enjoyed every page of this autobiography.
Thursday, February 7, 2013
Book 3 - The Autobiography of Malcolm X
by Malcolm X and Alex Haley
His life perspective is so radically different from my own, it made for an interesting read. Alex Haley did an excellent job unbiasedly chronicling Malcolm X's life, which was made more apparent by the final section of the book. There were many twists and turns that I wasn't expecting, and clearly were not foreshadowed.
I will say that the book seemed to drag on toward the end because of the many important happenings in the latter years of Malcolm X's life. I did not realized his humble beginnings, law school aspirations, stint as a junkie and criminal, and subsequent convert to Islam. I feel much more educated.
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