Mini-reviews: Summer 2017

As has been clear, I have not been posting much here. For REASONS sure (he's still adorable). Which means, as mentioned previously, I am super behind on reviews. Like super behind. Like we're officially over 12 months behind on some books. Whooops.

Because I am so far behind (so far) I want to do some mini-reviews to try to get up to speed. Some of these I may write full reviews about, others it may just be the minis*.

I last did a mini-review roundup last September. Some of those books got full reviews, others, not so much. I was thinking, to give these mini-reviews some structure I'll stick to books read in a given month. That'll also help me keep track of how much I have to do (a lot). This ALSO gives me an excuse, for this first roundup, to just repost the ones I did before but include the Gif rating. I was planning on reposting those few mini-reviews I had done before but adding the Gif rating and TURNS OUT, with the exception of one book, they're all from the same month. So. Nice way for me to ease into things. Also the small one is making noises so I should probably see what's up.**

So here are some mini-reviews for books I read last summer that never got their own full reviews

July 2017

Grotesque by Natsuo Kirino
A very slow, very quiet book which is odd considering the topic is about a woman who is murdered. Relationships between sisters, and some stuff about sex workers and the seedy underbelly of Japan. There are even multiple POVs and unreliable narrators and stuff I usually like but not in this case. It was just...strange and pretty boring and difficult to follow and meh.
Gif Rating:

August 2017

My Boyfriend Barfed in My Handbag...and Other Things You Can't Ask Martha by Jolie Kerr
It's a book about cleaning. And how to clean. And it was great. This is not like Marie Kondo's which was more a way of being with some advice that no, I am not thanking my purse every day. This is more practical instructions. Part of it is her tackling different projects (deep cleaning the kitchen, tackling clothing stains) and another part is her answering questions and she is SUPER nonjudgemental and will provide advice for cleaning your sex swing because dammit, cleanliness is important. Thank you, Glynis, for the reco. And I'll prob do a full review of this one. Eventually.
Gif Rating:

One Day We'll All Be Dead and None of This Will Matter by Scaachi Koul
Another collection of essays by a funny lady. Perhaps not quite as successful as others in this category, but still entertaining, especially a story about the power clothing can give you and a particular skirt. I was expecting it to be a bit less memoir than it was but that's FINE and it was still entertaining.
Gif Rating:

*If it's a mini-review only, that means the book was fine. It wasn't a favorite (or else I'd want to write about it and convince you all to read it) and it wasn't horrible (or else I'd want to write about how awful it was and steer you away).

**Though, did you know that babies can cry in their sleep? Like full on yelling, in addition to all of the other noises. And I promise, he's actually asleep. This Friends clip is an accurate portrayal of what his sleep is often like. It is...unnerving. Babies are weird.

The Glitch: Live in the world of data, not delusion

I was very generously given a copy of this book, The Glitch, in exchange for an honest review and it has taken me until now to actually get that finished. I am sorry and if I can please buy your forgiveness with some pictures of the current distraction.

Adorable, right? All is forgiven?

So anyway, The Glitch. I saw this book around the bookernet and it seemed intriguing. Shelley Stone is a type-A executive to the extreme. She ran a company making a device called a Conch that's basically Google glasses but it's worn in the ear and tells you things (people's names, the weather, restaurant reviews) rather than showing them on a screen right in front of the eyes. Except people seem to like the Conch. She takes 2am conference calls, repeats various axioms to herself throughout the day, takes standing naps to maximize her time, keeps a note reminding her to "be likeable" because it's not something that comes naturally. I'm not saying I've known people just like her but I have seen (and worked with) people that could have inspired her, with the characteristics just dialed up to 11.

You may think that this is what the book will focus on BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE. Shelley meets a mysterious person who seems very, very interested in Conch who seems to keep showing up around Shelley and her family. Then a woman shows up who seems to be Shelley from the past. She looks like her, has her scar, and knows things about Shelley's past. And then there seem to be some issues with Conch that don't make sense.

Had the book been more of a satire of Shelley, I think I would have enjoyed it more. I only say this after the fact because otherwise, all of that other mystery and intrigue and sci fi-ness would draw my attention. Indeed it did when I read the description. But honestly, it didn't pan out the way I wanted. Not even the way I wanted, but in a way that was particularly interesting or that ultimately paid off.

I did really like the ridiculousness of the tech industry and Shelley's craziness, especially when she brings her executive style to her home. Because if there's one thing young children (she has 2) love, it's business jargon. And while Shelley isn't really the most likeable person, I did appreciate a female character that is allowed to prefer work to family. She doesn't hate her family but she loves her work and that's where she thrives.

Ultimately I liked the writing but felt like there were a lot of ideas going on here and many of which just didn't really work out.

Gif rating:

Title quote from location 1727

Cohen, Elisabeth. The Glitch. Doubleday, 2018. NetGalley.

July Reading Wrap Up

There isn't much to report in terms of reading this month. Because I only read one book. One and a half books but I guess if I don't finish the book it doesn't count. So one book.

BUT I did other things in July. Such as have this guy show up

He showed up 3 weeks early, because when do things go according to plan? I mean, it wasn't really his fault, it was more on me. And there were complications with the the birth (again, on my end, he was fine) so I didn't get a lot of reading done in July. I thought I would cos there was a lot of time just sitting around while I was at the hospital but a lot of that time was spent staring at a blank wall (which was about the amount of mental energy I was willing to exert much of the time). We'll see how August goes. So far, eh, but I'm working on it. Kinda

Anyway, hey some really boring stats for July

Number of books read
1
Agorafabulous by Sara Benincasa

Number of pages read
279

Fiction
0%

POC authors
0%

Female authors
100%

US authors
100%

Rereads
100%

Book formats
ebook: 100%

Where'd I get the book
Kindle/Audible: 100%

Decade published
2010s: 100%

Resolution books
0%

June Reading Wrap Up

I know I'm late with this. I mean, when am I not at this point. And right now we are close to go time with the whole pregnancy thing so it's probably not going to get better soon. Know that I promise I am not going away. It may be a hiatus but not disappearing.

Anyway on that, here's how my June reading went. Getting stuff done with a lot of re-reading because right now I just want to read stuff I know I love. Not that I've recently been disappointed by books I've read but it's always a possibility and right now I don't need that.

With that's let's see how I did

Number of books read
5
Brain on Fire by Susannah Cahalan
Attachements by Rainbow Rowell
Exit West by Mohsin Hamid
The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion
Hope Never Dies by Andrew Shaffer

Total pages read
1,426

Fiction
80%

POC authors
20%

I know, small sassy girl. I know

Female authors
40%

US authors
60%

Book formats
ebook: 40%
paperback: 60%

Where'd I get the book
gift: 20%
indie: 40%
Kindle/Audible: 40%

Blogger reco
60%

Rereads
40%

Readalong/bookclub
20%

Decade published
2010s: 100%

Resolution books
40%
Exit West by Mohsin Hamid (POC author, non-US author)
The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion (non-US author)

Meaty by Samantha Irby: I am excited because I am thirty years old and I don't have a man in my life

I was scanning through NetGalley and saw a copy of Samantha Irby's earlier collection, Meaty available. And since I enjoyed We Are Never Meeting in Real Life so damn much I thought I'd see if I could get a copy of this. And a copy was granted, in exchange for an honest review.

I can't decide which of two books I like better. It's hard to say since really they're both similar. They're both collections of essays about her and her life. They're hilarious and vulgar and a times touching (did I tear up while reading one about her mother? MAYBE. Was it followed up not long after with an essay about diarrhea? MAAAYBE) 

She has essays about dating ("How to Get Your Disgusting Meat Carcass Ready for Some New, Hot Sex"), medical issues ("The Many Varieties of Hospital Broth"), family ("My Mother, My Daughter"), money ("I Should Have a Car with Power Windows By Now"), pop culture ("Elena Tyler: AKA Why I Can't Be Mad at Lena Dunham"). What I'm saying is Irby has range.  

And she's relatable. I mean, look at the way she talks about her Crohn's Disease

And I know a lot of things suck, and so many people are going through so many terrible things, but to me, in this goddamned moment, nothing is worse than this gross-ass shit disease. Yes, there are worse things, but since those things are not currently happening to me, this bullshit is the worst thing that has ever happened to anyone in the history of ever.

This is how I feel about any bad thing that happens to me, regardless of how serious. It's times like this you realize how truly connected we all are.

This book is hilarious. Thinking about it, I may like it better than WANMIRL. Maybe. It's close. But they're both pretty great and if you like funny ladies, give them a try.

Gif rating:

Irby, Samantha. Meaty. Vintage, 2013. NetGalley

May Reading Wrap Up

I know. I only posted ONCE in May. And it was one of these wrap ups. I'm disappointed. I wanted to get some more writing done and I could/should make more of an effort to do so. But I'm tiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiired. I am going to (try) to stop feeling guilty about not getting writing done and just accept that for a little while, this is how it's going to be. I'll have a couple reviews and I'm thinking I'm gonna try to do some mini-review posts to get caught up. (ALSO I'll have you know I wrote some posts for the Frankenstein readalong and then never posted them because who knows why. I think I forgot and then was so far back and just. I need a nap)

But hey, since I can do some stats, let's do that

Number of books read
3
And a Bottle of Rum: The History of the New World in Ten Cocktails by Wayne Curtis
Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan
The Glitch by Elisabeth Curtis

Total pages read
1,189

Fiction
67%

POC authors
33%

Female authors
33%

US authors
67%

Book formats
ebook: 33%
paperback: 67%

Where'd I get the book
Indie: 67%
Netgalley: 33%

Review books
33% (and now I have 2 books I really need to review)

Rereads
33% (gotta get ready for the Crazy Rich Asians movie! Also, great beach reach. And I read it on the beach. I was on a )

Books by decade
2000s: 33%
2010s: 67%

Resolution books
33%
because of Crazy Rich Asians (POC and non-US author) but it feels sort of like cheating since it's a re-read. But not so much that I'm not going to count it.