November

She Said: Breaking the Sexual Harassment Story That Helped Ignite a Movement by Jodi Kantor, Megan Twohey
Never have I ever...finished an audio book in just one day. Never. That is how compelling, fascinating, shocking, mind-blowing this book is. Written by the reporters who blew the lid off Harvey Weinstein and his sexual harassment and abuse for decades, these two women and their editor are just simply BADASSES. Step by step, this book takes us through the process, showing us their work on Trump and Kavanaugh as well. But it is Weinstein who is the center of this investigation and it will quite literally blow your mind. You will hear of people you viewed as heroes who are small, dark characters in reality. And you will see true heroic women who risked it all in order to do what is right. If you're a woman, read this book. If you know a woman, read this book. If you've been harassed or abused or assaulted, or know someone who has, read this book. If you are desperate for truth in today's world, read this book. It is a masterpiece of journalistic investigation, the power of the press, and the inspiration of true heroes who were willing to put it all on the line to expose the truth. Wow. Just wow.

The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell
Having read previous solid thrillers by Jewell, I know she constructs plausible plot lines, creates tension, and develops interesting characters. In her latest, she continues her streak. Set in England as always, Libby is a young woman, just turning 25, whose life as a kitchen designer is staid and rather boring. Yet when she receives a letter telling her that her birth parents left a home for her to be given on this birthday, it sets into motion a long deliciously twisted trail of who Libby really is as well as her intriguing family members. This is an easy read that will keep you turning pages.

Twenty-One Truths about Love by Matthew Dicks
This delightful book consists of lists, one after the other, written by a quirky, unique, hilarious man who has quit his teaching job, opened a bookshop, and has a wife who wants a baby. His observations on life are spot on and made me laugh out loud, particularly ones about teaching and selling books:
“Read more. It allows you to borrow someone else’s brain, and will make you more interesting at a party.”
“The single greatest thing you can do to guarantee your future success is to read a lot.”
“If the childhood version of yourself would hate the adult version, you suck at life.”
“Darth Vader killed billions of innocent people then saved his only son. This did not make him a good guy. Just a selfish practitioner of nepotism.”
“The most important lessons taught by teachers have little or nothing to do with academics.”
“The best administrators understand that teachers are more knowledgeable about instruction than they could ever be.”
His list called The Worst People in the World
“ ‘Let’s start off with an icebreaker’ are words no human has ever wanted to hear.”
“I’m looking for a blue book. Tiffany blue. It’s about a woman I think.” Yup - I had customers in the bookstore who expected me to find this!
“The youngest skydiver ever was four years old, but that doesn’t mean that he was brave. He just had assholes for parents.”
“You should be required to read a book for every ten selfies you take.”
“What you permit, you promote.”
“A person is more than a person. A person is the promise of everything that person can be.”
'Nuff said. Buy this book for everyone you know:)

Yale Needs Women by Anne Gardiner Perkins
In 1969, the president of Yale decided it was time to admit women. Was that due to his enlightenment that women were equal to men? Or due to his acknowledgement of their ability to compete in an academic setting with men? Nope. It was because they were losing male students to Harvard because...yep, Harvard had women. This book chronicles the four years of those first female students: the constant fight for little things, like locks on bathroom doors, and big things, like blind admissions regardless of gender and hiring more female professors (one had to really search hard for any females as professors, much less in leadership roles at Yale). Historian Anne Perkins follows six intriguing women and weaves in the social, cultural, and academic happenings that impacted this first class of Yale women. At times, I found the statistics to drag the story down a bit, but each time I found my interest waning, she picked it back up and returned to the six women of focus. All together, an intriguing non-fiction of how far we have come, and how far we still have to go, when it comes to equal rights. 

The Chestnut Man by Soren Sveistrup
Looking for that next dark, creepy, murder mystery written by a Scandinavian author, the kind that reminds one of Girl with the Dragon Tattoo series? Here it is...two detectives - one female badass cop with an independent streak and no bullshit about her + an interpol cop with a history, quirky behavior, and an insatiable curiosity, some seriously dead bodies (as in, mutilated, gory, yeah you get the picture), a Danish minister whose daughter disappeared the previous year and is presumed dead (wait for it...), and some fingerprints that point the cops in 'interesting' directions. Throw in a few psychopaths, some stalking, a collection of chestnut dolls, and you won't be able to put this one down. Just like Girl, it is long but that is because the author really develops the plot and the characters so it is all worth it, as the final third of the book is fairly mind-blowing. 

Amy and Isabelle by Elizabeth Strout
Per previous blog posts, it is obvious I am an Elizabeth Strout fan (ie. Olive Kittredge, Olive Again, My Name is Lucy Barton, Anything is Possible). This was her very first book. Does it show? A bit, as the tension is weak but wow, it still shows the depth of her writing talent and her ability to draw characters that makes one feel as if we are inside their heads. It is the story of a mother and her daughter and the choices one makes in life. Yep, that's about it - see what I mean about tension? However, I was completely engrossed in this book, wondering where these two women's lives would go. If you like Strout, it is definitely worth the read.