Brain on Fire

Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness by Susannah Cahalan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It totally grabbed in the way that books about foreign illnesses and diseases do. What Cahalan went through in a month, most people could not handle going through in a longer time period. It was interesting that this illness is still quite rare, and treatment can be successful in most cases. A big kudos goes to Cahalan for letting, us readers, into a very critical and scary time of her life. I was very impressed by the bedside manner of her doctor, Dr. Najjar. Without his help and passion to find out what was happening to Cahalan, she may not have survived the experience or been able to return to her life and identity. Information in the last few chapters was a little repetitive. Still, a very interesting and thought provoking read.

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The Final Testament of The Holy Bible

The Final Testament of the Holy Bible by James Frey
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I am a self-profound Atheist, but when I was reading the bio on this book it reminded me of Frey's other book Bright Shiny Morning. Since I loved that book, I thought this would be an interesting choice because of it's relation to religion and the comparison in how the story was told from the view points of various characters. I was quite surprised at how much I enjoyed this book and the way that one character in the book was the sole purpose for how the other characters were linked. The story is written on the premises that this gentleman is the Messiah, and that he is to bring change and love to the world. Even though there is an intertwining of religions, it focuses on the fact that essentially all religions are based on the same philosophy of promoting change and love. When you are reading you feel like you get to know each character on a deeply personal level, and how the premise of the story relates to them directly and indirectly. A well written piece of literature that if you are curious about religion but do not believe in it, you may want to explore this avenue.

As much as OPRAH bashed Frey for A Million Little Pieces and My Friend Leonard, he continues to prove her wrong by turning out fabulous writing that poses questions to topics that are of high priority. Kudos to Frey for continuing his love of writing.

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A Piece of Cake

A Piece of Cake by Cupcake Brown
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I found this book captivating and it captured life in the Ghetto like no other book I read. There were lots of situations or occurrences that happened to Cupcake that I could relate to. It was nice to hear how she struggled with addictions all her life and then decided one day she was going to make the change. Cupcake was able to settle her differences with God and eventually have a very practical relationship with him. At times she was unable to believe the amount of help she would get when all she did was pray. (I FOUND THIS A BIT HARD TO READ SINCE I AM COMPLETELY ATHEIST AND DON'T BELIEVE IN GOD, BUT IT WAS NICE TO SEE HOW IT HELPED CUPCAKE)The best thing about this book was that all the hardships Cupcake faced paid off in the end and she became a success in more ways then she could every imagine.

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RE-READ ALERT Let's Pretend This Never Happened

Let's Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir by Jenny Lawson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book was an absolute hoot. Jenny Lawson has the funniest interpretation of things, and the pics embedded in the chapters are quite hilarious. My favs were: James Garfield (the wild boar), Hamlet von Schnitzel (the mouse in shakespearan garb) and of course Jean Louise (The Cuban Alligator wearing a beret and is an amputee). Lawson gives such inanimate objects a personality and actually considers them true friends. Sounds kooky but it makes the book different then many others. The book was like the Glass Castle and Shit My Dad Says combined but with a little more outrageous flair. Definitely had me laughing out loud a lot when I was reading it. A nice break from the harshness of reality.

NOV 19, 2013

JUST FINISHED READING THIS BOOK FOR THE SECOND TIME. JUST AS FRIGGIN HILARIOUS AS IT WAS THE FIRST TIME.

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The Chimps of Fauna Sanctuary

The Chimps of Fauna Sanctuary: A True Story of Resilience and Recovery by Andrew Westoll
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book was a book that touched so many different emotions. There was the happiness and joy when you could read about the chimps enjoying their encounters with the people at the sanctuary and making friends. There was sadness and heart breaking stories about what it was like to be a lab chimp and all the tests and crappy life instances they were subjected to. There was anger at the people who kept insisting that chimp research is a necessary process, when in reality there is so many differences and reasons why chimps do not make proper candidates for testing. It leads one to think there are plenty of people available in the jail systems, etc. that would make for perfect candidates and we would be testing on our own species so there would be no differences. The chimps truly do have a huge amount of personality and human traits. The Quebec government is and made a huge mistake when they decided to stop allowing fauna to accept chimps to live out their lives in a calming and peaceful setting. There is a page in the back that states websites that you can go to to support the saving of the chimps and make a donation but it still left me thinking there must be something more I could do. (I'd love to take a trip to the sanctuary and actually meet all the staff and whatever chimps are left....it would be a life changing experience).

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The Dinner

The Dinner by Herman Koch
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Although this book was slow to start, once you found out what the issue involving both families was, it was quite shocking. This book kind of looks at todays society and I could definitely see young teens/adults par-taking in the activities that happened in this book. There was a lot of negative feelings divulged from the book, ie. anger, rage, frustration, insecurity, paranoia. It gave an interesting view of what 'blind rage' might entail and seem like. The book was bizarre, I will say that. On the other hand, it gave gritty descriptions that I just was not expecting, which is something I love. My suggestion is you would have to read the book to get what I mean because my description isn't doing it justice. The only reason I am giving it a 4 stars is because the beginning was quite slow but in all honesty the book deserves a 4.5 because once you get past a certain point you can't put the book down.

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Silver Star

The Silver Star by Jeannette Walls
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

As usual Walls slams another one out of the park. With her quirky sense of humour and witty characters this book is a must read (like her other two). The mum, Charlotte comes off as a bizarre, free spirit that just decides she is going to stop being a mother and go to San Diego, leaving Bean and her sister Liz to fend for themselves and there's no notice of when she is coming back. Bean and Liz decide to make the trek from California to Virginia via bus and the stories begin to unfold. When arriving in Virginia, they find their Uncle Tinsley and he provides them with shelter and positive living experiences. Like the other books that Walls has written the families are more than their fair share of dysfunctional. The best part of this book was the significance of the Silver Star. It was heart felt and touching. Everyone needs to have one token they hold dear to themselves and the significance is worth millions more then the item itself.

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