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Woman at Point Zero by Nawal El Saadawi, 142pp [translated from Arabic]
I was not in the right frame of mind for this book. I understand the importance of this book and I can understand why is a really good book but I was not feeling it. I appreciates some parallels on when the main character was feeling love and really enjoyed how that was describes and her use of black and white in descriptions. But I was not moved by the story, couldn't go deep in it, or get too emotional with it. I don't think I read it at the right time.
What If: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions by Randall Munroe, 296pp
Bear was reading this book last year and even shared some chapters with me. I'm not typically a science person but I can understand science and math to follow the arguments and it was interesting to me. My Dad, in complete coincidence, gave it to me for New Year so I started reading it and a lot of it was really fun. I think my favorite bit of speculation was what would happen if all people in the world were in one area and jumped at the same time. The answer - nothing would happen to the planet, we can't really move it or affect it this way looking at physics but it would be a disaster for human population to stay in one area afterward without logistical support and with collapse of society. Some questions are pretty silly but it was actually interesting to read about physics and math behind the answers. A fun book for sure.
Time of Contempt by Andrzej Sapkowski, 493pp [Witcher Book 2] [In Russian, translated from Polish]
The second Witcher novel. It will be the basis for the third season of the Witcher and I like to be a bit ahead of the series. Plus after I watched Season 2 of the Witcher (which I liked a lot), I kept wanting more. I read it in Russian since the translation is better. It took a bit to get into in since Sapkowski has this strange writing style sometimes and jumps from place to place.
( spoilers ) Overall, I ended up enjoying the book, even with a slow beginning. Can't wait to see in on screen in Season 3.
The Secret to Superhuman Strength by Alison Bechdel, 233pp [Graphic novel]
I requested the book from the library when I found out it existed since I really enjoyed "Fun Home" and I liked "Are you my Mother" enough and own both. This one is supposed to be about exercise and the culture's shift in exercise from the 60s to today but it was really about Bechdel dealing with her mortality and struggles in her life to find a spiritual/physical balance and looking for it through skiing and karate and yoga and running. She weaves stories of transcendentalists, especially the life of Margaret Fuller, and the poets like Wordsworth and Coleridge, and also Jack Kerouac and Buddhism. It is an autobiography but with an emphasis about finding something bigger than oneself. And looking beyond the self. It reminded me of when I was teaching Thurman in Expository writing and his Buddhist ideas of there being no self. I really enjoyed this graphic novel. (And read some to Olivia when she saw it on my bedtime table and wanted me to read some to her, who now wants to take karate at some point).
Dirty Daddy: the chronicles of a family man turned filthy comedian by Bob Saget, 330pp
After Bob Saget died, I discovered that he published an autobiography around 2014, so I picked it up. I knew his type of humor and was prepared for dick jokes and there were a lot of those. It is not a typical autobiography - he is mostly trying to explain how he used humor to cope with a lot of death from a young age - three of his uncles died of heart attacks when quite young, and he lost his two sister as well. His humor, which he says comes from his Dad, really helped him cope. He talks a lot about his parents and how he rose in comedy business. There is not a lot about his wife or daughters, other than the traumatic birth of his first daughter. He doesn't even mention them by name, most likely to protect his privacy. There is a focus on his work in comedy, Full House, America's Funniest Home videos, Aristocrats etc. It was kind of a personal autobiography on his thoughts about coping with things and life in general but not going deeply into the details. And lots of dick jokes. I did like the book but it was a bit strange for a book of this kind. It did capture his spirit though. And made me sad at times when he joked about being 80 and what he would do. It was written before he met his second wife so at least he really did get a lot of happiness at the end.
The Switch by Beth O'Leary, 328pp
Last year I read "The Flatshare" and it was a cute relaxing read, so when I wanted something light to finish off January I thought I would read something light by this author and got "The Stwich" from the library for my Kindle. And it was really fun. Leena is a 29 year old successful business person who has been reeling for the last year from the death of her sister and having a panic attack at an important meeting. She gets forced to take a two months leave from work and goes up to her grandmother's house in Yorkshire. The grandmother, 79 year old, Eileen, is trying to look for love again after her husband left her for another woman. Leena introduces her to online dating and then suggests that Eileen moves to London for these two month to Leena's flat while Leena stays in Yorkshire village and takes over Eileen's various responsibilities including planning a May Day Fair and looking after her mother. So the two women switch their lives and heal and discover themselves and of course find love. The eventual love interests were very clear right from the beginning but there are fun detours for them. The only plot I didn't care for is the one with Leena's boyfriend.( spoilers ) Otherwise it was lovely to see Eileen engage the people in the building and build a community and affect everyone's lives for the better with her meddling. And I liked all the characters in the village - it was nice to have older people as well and in romantic sub plots too. It was just a lovely light book, just what I needed to cheer me up. On a random note, in the US, when someone quits their job, they typically give two week notice but in UK it is apparently two months, so that threw me a bit.
I was not in the right frame of mind for this book. I understand the importance of this book and I can understand why is a really good book but I was not feeling it. I appreciates some parallels on when the main character was feeling love and really enjoyed how that was describes and her use of black and white in descriptions. But I was not moved by the story, couldn't go deep in it, or get too emotional with it. I don't think I read it at the right time.
What If: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions by Randall Munroe, 296pp
Bear was reading this book last year and even shared some chapters with me. I'm not typically a science person but I can understand science and math to follow the arguments and it was interesting to me. My Dad, in complete coincidence, gave it to me for New Year so I started reading it and a lot of it was really fun. I think my favorite bit of speculation was what would happen if all people in the world were in one area and jumped at the same time. The answer - nothing would happen to the planet, we can't really move it or affect it this way looking at physics but it would be a disaster for human population to stay in one area afterward without logistical support and with collapse of society. Some questions are pretty silly but it was actually interesting to read about physics and math behind the answers. A fun book for sure.
Time of Contempt by Andrzej Sapkowski, 493pp [Witcher Book 2] [In Russian, translated from Polish]
The second Witcher novel. It will be the basis for the third season of the Witcher and I like to be a bit ahead of the series. Plus after I watched Season 2 of the Witcher (which I liked a lot), I kept wanting more. I read it in Russian since the translation is better. It took a bit to get into in since Sapkowski has this strange writing style sometimes and jumps from place to place.
( spoilers ) Overall, I ended up enjoying the book, even with a slow beginning. Can't wait to see in on screen in Season 3. The Secret to Superhuman Strength by Alison Bechdel, 233pp [Graphic novel]
I requested the book from the library when I found out it existed since I really enjoyed "Fun Home" and I liked "Are you my Mother" enough and own both. This one is supposed to be about exercise and the culture's shift in exercise from the 60s to today but it was really about Bechdel dealing with her mortality and struggles in her life to find a spiritual/physical balance and looking for it through skiing and karate and yoga and running. She weaves stories of transcendentalists, especially the life of Margaret Fuller, and the poets like Wordsworth and Coleridge, and also Jack Kerouac and Buddhism. It is an autobiography but with an emphasis about finding something bigger than oneself. And looking beyond the self. It reminded me of when I was teaching Thurman in Expository writing and his Buddhist ideas of there being no self. I really enjoyed this graphic novel. (And read some to Olivia when she saw it on my bedtime table and wanted me to read some to her, who now wants to take karate at some point).
Dirty Daddy: the chronicles of a family man turned filthy comedian by Bob Saget, 330pp
After Bob Saget died, I discovered that he published an autobiography around 2014, so I picked it up. I knew his type of humor and was prepared for dick jokes and there were a lot of those. It is not a typical autobiography - he is mostly trying to explain how he used humor to cope with a lot of death from a young age - three of his uncles died of heart attacks when quite young, and he lost his two sister as well. His humor, which he says comes from his Dad, really helped him cope. He talks a lot about his parents and how he rose in comedy business. There is not a lot about his wife or daughters, other than the traumatic birth of his first daughter. He doesn't even mention them by name, most likely to protect his privacy. There is a focus on his work in comedy, Full House, America's Funniest Home videos, Aristocrats etc. It was kind of a personal autobiography on his thoughts about coping with things and life in general but not going deeply into the details. And lots of dick jokes. I did like the book but it was a bit strange for a book of this kind. It did capture his spirit though. And made me sad at times when he joked about being 80 and what he would do. It was written before he met his second wife so at least he really did get a lot of happiness at the end.
The Switch by Beth O'Leary, 328pp
Last year I read "The Flatshare" and it was a cute relaxing read, so when I wanted something light to finish off January I thought I would read something light by this author and got "The Stwich" from the library for my Kindle. And it was really fun. Leena is a 29 year old successful business person who has been reeling for the last year from the death of her sister and having a panic attack at an important meeting. She gets forced to take a two months leave from work and goes up to her grandmother's house in Yorkshire. The grandmother, 79 year old, Eileen, is trying to look for love again after her husband left her for another woman. Leena introduces her to online dating and then suggests that Eileen moves to London for these two month to Leena's flat while Leena stays in Yorkshire village and takes over Eileen's various responsibilities including planning a May Day Fair and looking after her mother. So the two women switch their lives and heal and discover themselves and of course find love. The eventual love interests were very clear right from the beginning but there are fun detours for them. The only plot I didn't care for is the one with Leena's boyfriend.
( spoilers ) Otherwise it was lovely to see Eileen engage the people in the building and build a community and affect everyone's lives for the better with her meddling. And I liked all the characters in the village - it was nice to have older people as well and in romantic sub plots too. It was just a lovely light book, just what I needed to cheer me up. On a random note, in the US, when someone quits their job, they typically give two week notice but in UK it is apparently two months, so that threw me a bit.
