Book Reviews Archive

Yes, I read them – all three books: 50 Shades of Grey, 50 Shades Darker, and 50 Shades Freed. I try to give everything a fair shake and I’m (usually) not above trying popular bestsellers because sometimes they’re worth it.

I can’t believe a week has gone by without posting! I hate not updating the blog for that long. I started a freelance job in an office last week and that, along with some doctors appointments and other work, left me with little time for fun stuff (like writing book reviews!).

Have the tissues ready. This is not your typical teenage love story Seventeen-year-old Hazel is our straight-shooting, badass heroine. She was diagnosed with Stage IV thyroid cancer and lung tumors at thirteen.

  When Freedom came out in 2010, Jonathan Frazen appeared on the cover of Time magazine with the headline “The Great American Novelist.” (Subhead: “He’s not the richest or most famous. His characters don’t solve mysteries, have magical powers, or live in the future.

  Funny story about my acquisition of this book. I was at the Hobart Book Village snooping around the shops and I kept seeing this book. Because I couldn’t go home with five bookstores worth of merchandise (and I was going a little wild that day),

  This book – wow. I don’t read a lot of non-fiction (I’d love to read more), but if all non-fiction were written like this, I’d be devouring it on a daily basis.

  I’ve seen this novel floating around used bookstores so I picked it up while visiting the Hobart Book Village. I was intrigued by the title – Everything Beautiful Began After.

  I feel a bit conflicted about this book of short stories. The collection comprises eight stories, two of which were very strong. The others, not so much. I’m going to be purposefully wishy-washy in this review because that’s how I felt about this collection.

  This book received a lot of press when it came out in 2011. Jeffrey Eugenides had received the Pulitzer Prize for fiction, as well as a bunch of other awards, in 2003 for his second novel, Middlesex (which is fantastic).

  Ahh this book. This book. It’s not a happy novel, or one with a promising ending, or one that’s particularly optimistic. However, I continually find myself coming back to this novel (or suggesting it to others) when I want to read something that is well-written, inclusive, and filled with love.