Pros: Interesting concept, distinct voice.
Cons: Too sci-fi for me, too outlandish of a concept, and I just generally disliked the entire book.
One More Thing: Stories And Other Stories – B.J. Novak
A woman true from every angle, beautiful and spontaneous and grounded and funny and wise, a person as worthy of my permanent admiration as a sunset or a song, a partner in crime at the beginning and a partner in punishment later, for the child with the crayons – I’ve always figured that I needed to advance farther, first. – Sophia
It is an inside joke of history that its most exciting adventures inevitably end their careers as homework. – J.C. Audetat, Translator of Don Quixote
Pros: Funny; quick read; relaxing; quirky stories.
Cons: Nothing particularly special stood out to me; not memorable; I have no desire to revisit and reread anything in the collection.
A Thousand Mornings – Mary Oliver
It’s impossible not / to remember wild and want it back.
– Green, Green Is My Sister’s House
He was positively drenched in enthusiasm, / I don’t know why. And yet, why not.
– I Happened To Be Standing
And after the leaves came / blossoms. For some things / there are no wrong seasons. / Which is what I dream of for me.
– Hurricane
He wanted a body / so he took mine. / Some wounds never vanish.
– Hum, Hum
Favorite poems:
– Poem Of The One World
– Three Things to Remember
– “For I Will Consider My Dog Percy”
Pros: I love Mary Oliver; I loved this poetry anthology and as I was thumbing back through it, I desperately wanted to reread it. It’s touching and heartfelt and sincere and relatable.
Cons: It wasn’t long enough and wasn’t terribly upbeat. I could have used with more of a mix, although I did like the more serious tone/theme.
Saint Anything — Sarah Dessen
“Eric problems.” She sighed. “They’re like first world, but even more privileged.”
Pros: Heartwarming; quick read; good for a beach day or a “me” day.
Cons: Not super memorable. To be honest, it blurred together with the other Sarah Dessen books I read and I don’t remember much about it.
Read Bottom Up: A Novel – Neal Shah & Skye Chatham
I mean, you have been saying that you’re looking for someone who is gonna call you on your shit… though there’s a huge difference between what you “say” you’re looking for and what you “are” looking for.
Madeline, on the other hand, has been cool and accommodating and seems well-adjusted and seems to like you, which you now don’t even know how to process, because you’re so conditioned to only like girls who treat you like shit.
Anyway I am a combination of “us” and “them”. I don’t wake up seeing forever but I also acknowledge it as a real destination.
Emily is pretty cool btw. Potentially too much of a real person for me right now, but when I’m looking for something serious in the next 8-10 years, I would like to revisit that.
You know, they’re all assholes until one isn’t. I’m so sorry to say that both our asshole quotas have been, I think, unreasonably high. I think it should have ended at 26. I’m not saying I wanted to be taken off the market at 26 because um, no thank you. But I just think that 26 has a nice end-of-the-bs-from-guys-who-don’t-know-what-they-want vibe. Like you can rent a car at 25 and then the next milestone should be “yay! 26! You’re free from games!!”
Pros: I loved that this book were email exchanges back and forth; I loved that they were funny and sincere and that I could read them in little snippets; I loved that it felt like a conversation between friends / new lovers; I loved that it felt both relatable and sincere. Overall, I just straight-up loved it.
Cons: I wish it had been longer so I could’ve enjoyed it longer. Also, I wish it had a sequel.
Humans of New York: Stories — Brandon Stanton
This isn’t really the type of book that can have highlights and lowlights, I feel. It was a hand-picked collection of stories from HONY creator, Brandon Stanton. Much like PostSecret, some are funny, some are heartwrenching, some are inspiring, and all are authentic and amusing. These stories are paired with a portrait of the teller, which makes them so much more interesting. No names are included. I love it.
This is a literal copy and paste from my first post, but it’s essentially the same thing, just different photos and stories.
Humans of New York – Brandon Stanton
This isn’t really the type of book that can have highlights and lowlights, I feel. It was a hand-picked collection of stories from HONY creator, Brandon Stanton. Much like PostSecret, some are funny, some are heartwrenching, some are inspiring, and all are authentic and amusing. These stories are paired with a portrait of the teller, which makes them so much more interesting. No names are included. I love it.
We Should Hang Out Sometime – Josh Sundquist
The best word to describe me in her vocabulary was “interesting”. “Interesting” is the word you use to describe the color of month-old Chinese takeout noodles in your refrigerator. It’s the word you use to describe your superweird aunt and uncle who live in a bomb-proof nuclear fallout shelter with a stash of atomic weapons and a twenty year supply of canned goods. (91)
If I had learned something from Lilly, it was that you can’t force something that isn’t there. A girl either likes you or she doesn’t. So now I was taking the Whole Foods approach to finding a girlfriend: I was going to let it happen organically. (278)
Pros: Funny, full of original thoughts, included amusing graphs/charts, made me feel like I’m not the weirdest person ever for being single at 24, made me feel like I’m not the weirdest person ever for having all of these awkward stories that just keep happening to me with men.
Cons: I liked it, but I didn’t love it. Sometimes it feels like he’s trying too hard to be funny, rather than “taking the Whole Foods approach” to humor and letting the stories be funny on their own. This is a little bit frustrating, because the stories are totally funny enough on their own and with some, but not all, of the commentary.
Heart to Heart – Ed. Jan Greenberg
Poems I loved: Naming, Or, There is no such thing as an Indian
Pros: I enjoyed the bridge between fine arts and poetry in this book, pairing each poem with one piece of American artwork. I also enjoyed how the poems spanned different regions, ethnic groups, cultures, beliefs, and experiences. It also featured several poets that I love, including Naomi Shihab Nye.
Cons: I wasn’t that in love with any of the poems, unfortunately. I’m still generally in love with the concept of the book, however.
The Museum of Intangible Things – Wendy Wunder
Pros: The idea of intangible things, the close friendship, the rite of passage that is a Great American Road Trip, the intricate and eccentric female characters. Also, I read it so rabidly that I didn’t even stop to choose quotes that I like — a good indication that it was well-written and captivating, although not beautiful writing.
Cons: This book broke my heart out of nowhere. I didn’t predict what was going to happen and because of that, it hurt even more when it did happen.
A Love Affair with Literature 