This year, I have a goal to read 52 books (one per week). I am ahead of schedule, but I'm sure it will make up for a dry spell later on. The following are my brief reviews of the first five books I have read this year.
1) Me Before You
By Jojo Moyes
This was my first time reading a book by Jojo Moyes. Her wit is so fun. I wanted to put some beautifully-crafted sentences in my pocket for safekeeping. The first-person protagonist was hilarious and sarcastic. This story took place in an English village, and I am OBSESSED with England, so that worked well for me.
This book deals with a high-power (single) financial prodigy in his mid-thirties who tries to adjust to life with quadriplegia after being struck by a vehicle in the street. A disenchanted underachiever of a young woman takes a job of being his companion during the daytime and, at the request of his mother, keeping the man's spirits up after his accident. Several moral questions follow, such as whether village life is good enough for a young person with massive potential; whether the safety of an unfulfilling, but predictable, relationship is more valuable than confident celibacy; and (SPOILER) the ethics of assisted suicide. Therein lies the struggle.
Struggle isn't bad; it helped me evaluate my opinion. I feel more confident knowing my views, having read this book.
I gave this book 3.5 stars, knocking off an entire star for the ten-ish f-bombs I scratched out of my copy of the book, and another half star just because. It's subjective, naturally. There was a lot of swearing and taking of the Lord's name in vain, which made me squirm (leave my Savior alone, please!).
I'll wait for a glowing review of one of Moyes' books from a trusted friend before reading more of her works, unless I am in the mood for some controversial soul searching and have a scratching pen at the ready. Overall, I am glad I read this book.
2) The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You're Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are
By Brené Brown
This is my first Brené Brown book. Is it self help? Is it spiritual? I don't know. But I highlighted a lot of great one-liners in it.
I learned a lot from this book. It's a playbook for lay psychology nerds like me, who like to know how we build our stories and process emotions and stuff. I'm making it sound technical, but it's not. There are plenty of anecdotes from the author, admissions of her own folly, and conversations she has had with her own therapist. In this way, I felt like the author, a researcher, did not always seem authoritative on her own subject. But I appreciate her candor in expressing her continuing work toward loving herself as she was made.
There are ten "guideposts" for embracing one's imperfection. I found these interesting and wanted to study them more. Overall, I feel like the book gave me an extra nudge to heed the inner wisdom I was already sensing, but was afraid to act upon.
Read other reviews to get a sense for this book because I am doing a rather poor job. But I decided that if I ever take a trip somewhere, this is the kind of book to take with me on the plane. I think I could make it a serious study for a few weeks, no problem.
I gave this book four stars because I wanted to love it, but things like foul language and select juvenile diction and lack of authority kept it from wowing me. I would still recommend it.
3) Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper
This novel is about a ten-year-old girl whose body prevents her from expressing her inner genius as she is unable to talk or walk. (It is later revealed that she has cerebral palsy, which is what I was sensing.) This girl expresses her frustration at being labeled and being unable to speak for herself. Her intelligence is later discovered, and we get to see what she is able to accomplish with her able-bodied peers. The adjustment is fraught with frustrating difficulties, which I feel is reflective of disabilities in general.
I really appreciated this book as a look into a perfectly functioning brain within a handicapped body. It made me happy that I have worked with people using the same tone of voice, no matter how old or how intelligent. The girl in this book wanted to be included. Is that so hard to do with people we meet?
The author, a mother of a handicapped child, recommends that when we see someone who isn't, say, usual, that we should say hi and introduce ourselves instead of pretending not to see. This book drilled that thought into me. I hope to look at everyone with more love from now on.
I gave this book four stars. I really liked it.
4) The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis
This book is legend, right? This was my first read-through. It was fine.
This book is a collection of letters by Screwtape, a master demon, written to his nephew Wormwood, a newer demon engaged in trying to persuade a certain male, mortal "patient" to get on the road to hell through numerous, oldie-but-goodie-type demon tactics. Screwtape sometimes praises, sometimes chastises, but always closely appraises the patient's status and tells Wormwood how to use Christian strengths to turn the patient from "the Enemy" (Christ) and toward "Our Father Below" (Satan).
It really was a fascinating two-hour read. If it had been my own copy of the book, it would have been dog-eared by the time I finished. You see easily that Satan, though tricky, is not very interesting with his tactics, though they are successful if one isn't careful.
I was invested in the well-being of the patient, as war had just broken out after he become a Christian. Would it be too much? Was it all "a phase?" Would Wormwood succeed? I couldn't wait to find out.
Truly, I had a hard time listening to a demon talk for nearly 200 pages. Maybe it was a negative energy I assumed. Maybe it was a sudden vulnerability I felt. Maybe I was hormonal and tense. But I was relieved when I finished. I gave this book four stars. If I hadn't felt that shift in energy so acutely, perhaps it would have gotten a perfect score and gone in my private collection.
5) The Dollmage by Martine Leavitt
I only discovered Martine Leavitt's works last fall, and I am forever altered. Every book I have ever read from her just rocks my world, and The Dollmage is no different. It got a perfect five stars and is going into my exclusive private collection of favorites.
The Dollmage is the village's wise woman and storymaker. She creates people and things before they happen, using carefully selected materials and adding them carefully to her secret miniature model of the village. As she has now aged and childless and her powers wane, it is time to find a successor. On the day appointed for the successor to be born, two very different girls arrive, both with Dollmage power. But the village can only have one Dollmage. Who will it be? Through years of training, the question remains.
Told by the aged Dollmage as a legal testimony to her people before a village member's execution, this story is told by a deeply flawed character in fascinating prose. I was sitting around the fire with everyone else.
Leavitt is a gifted wordsmith, and her nuggets of timeless wisdom are poetry. She looks where others will not look and damning insecurities become merciful gifts in her carefully-crafted offering. She somehow turns weaknesses into strengths within her characters. It's really beautiful.
As is The Dollmage. I don't think it is in print anymore; I had to buy a used copy from Amazon...but the one penny I spent almost represents how priceless this work really is. Highly recommend.
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