Monthly Archives: August 2020

August 25, 2020 · 9:52 am

The Risk of Us by Rachel Howard

I am a foster mom currently in the process of adopting six little siblings. I don’t know if because of my situation that the subject matter is very relevant to me, or just because the writing is very compelling and well done, but I couldn’t put The Risk of Us down. So much of it seemed so real and relatable. None of my kids have had anywhere near the behaviors or abuse level the little girl in the story experienced, but there was so much in there that we or people we know have dealt with. I really felt for the couple wondering if they were doing the right thing and whether they could really commit to this particular little girl. The narrator was brutally honest even with her own failures. The writing style and choice to use second person was a bit unique and I think it was very effective. The book is relatively short and reads fast. Whether you are a foster-adopt family or not, I highly recommend The Risk of Us.

5 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2020: 45
Pages Read in 2020: 12,177
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August 22, 2020 · 8:27 am

Black Women in Science by Kimberly Brown Pellum, PhD

Black Women in Science is full of short bios on some inspiring Black women who have done extraordinary things in various fields of science. Each one ends with ideas to learn more and think about their own spot in science and the world. It is aimed at young Black girls with the hopes of motivating them to become whatever they dream they can be. I highly recommend it!

5 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2020: 45
Pages Read in 2020: 11,979
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August 19, 2020 · 9:26 am

There There by Tommy Orange

Told from many points of view, There There tells the story of urban Indians living in Oakland California. The last few chapters are very short. I found that to be very effective as its telling about a very chaotic few minutes. The only thing I didn’t like about the book is it just ends. It doesn’t wrap up any of the storylines. That made for an extremely depressing end. I recommend it to all adults.

4 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2020: 44
Pages Read in 2020: 11,857
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August 15, 2020 · 10:14 am

Beautiful Justice by Brooke Axtell

At just seven, the author was raped by her manny and then trafficked by him, selling her to other men. Because of her experience, her self-esteem was very low and she made some poor choices and eventually had to escape from a domestic violence situation. Beautiful Justice is written primarily to survivors of gender violence. Throughout the book, she tells her story and talks about how she has healed from the abuse. She gives concrete examples and ideas on how other survivors can heal as well. Her path to healing involved a lot of new agey sorts of things, but is clear that her path is hers and others paths do not have to look like hers. This book is well written. It reads fast and gets right to the point. I strongly recommend it to survivors of all kinds of gender violence looking for help on their path to healing.

5 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2020: 43
Pages Read in 2020: 11,565
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August 12, 2020 · 10:19 am

Kings of Broken Things by Theodore Wheeler

Covering the time period leading up to, during, and just after the Omaha Race Riot of 1919, Kings of Broken Things is a solidly mediocre book. It’s not especially engaging nor is the writing very good. A couple of the storylines are good, but for the most part it’s just not an interesting book. If you really want to read a book about this event, this one is good enough, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to read it.

3 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2020: 42
Pages Read in 2020: 11,344
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August 9, 2020 · 1:29 pm

We Are Not Refugees by Agus Morales

The word refugee has a very specific meaning. Most displaced persons in our world are not actually refugees. There are many terms for them based on where in their journey they currently are. This book seeks to tell the stories of those non-refugee displaced people.

The book jumps around a lot. It goes from one continent to another and back, from one time period to another and back, and jumps around from person to person, sometimes revisiting those that were introduced chapters before. It also fails a bit at what it claims to do. The author uses a lot of words, often repeating the same thing over and over, to talk about the types of displacement, why they are displaced, where they go, where they want to be, but doesn’t use very many words to actually tell the true stories of those who are displaced. The writing is good and the concepts are told well if you ignore how repetitive it is.

Overall, We Are Not Refugees does serve an important purpose and that is to help people to understand that when we use the term refugee we often are not using it correctly at all. More importantly, it shows that displaced persons are human beings with stories and lives. I recommend it to anyone interested in the plight of people who must leave their homes due to war, violence, or persecution.

3 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2020: 41
Pages Read in 2020: 11,008
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August 4, 2020 · 6:47 pm

Talented by Alexandra Moody

Talented, the second book in The ARC series, picks right up where the first book left off. You get to learn along with Elle about how things are on the surface and what she thought was tainted but actually is talented really means. The end is a bit of a cliffhanger and left me really wanting to know what happens in the third book. I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys young adult dystopian.

5 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2020: 40
Pages Read in 2020: 10,737
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August 3, 2020 · 3:06 pm

The Lioness of Morocco by Julia Drosten

The Lioness of Morocco is a well-paced historical fiction. While it wasn’t quite a can’t put it down sort of book, I did look forward to picking it back up whenever I was able. The only thing that really bugged me, and this could be related to it being a translation, is it included phrases in various languages, but every time a Muslim referred to deity it said God instead of Allah. This seemed a bit odd to me and after a while began to annoy me. It seems like at least some of the time it should have said Allah. Otherwise, though, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys good historical fiction.

4 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2020: 39
Pages Read in 2020: 10,519
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