Maiden Voyages: Magnificent Ocean Liners and the Women Who Traveled and Worked Aboard Them

Maiden Voyages: Magnificent Ocean Liners and the Women Who Traveled and Worked Aboard Them by Siân Evans
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This book was promoted as being an "engaging and anticdotal" history of woment who traveled or worked on the Ocean Liners so popular during the early 1900s.
There were certainly spots of that, and they were wonderful. I enjoyed reading the vignettes of both the wealthy and the working class. But this was not the majority of the book. So much of the book was history and tangent and nothing to do with ships, travel, or woment at work or play. That was disappointing.
Also, there were many redundancies in the text as well as some organizational issues.

I appreciate the review copy from NetGalley and the publisher. Clearly, my review is my own thoughts. I just wish the book would have more stories and life aboard the liners and less of all the other stuff.

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The Residence: Inside the Private World of the White House - Kate Andersen Brower

The Residence: Inside the Private World of the White House by Kate Andersen Brower
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I read Upstairs at the White House by JB West earlier this year. This was a nice companion read to carry work in the White House into the 21st century. Definitely a different perspective in the writing, a bit more gossipy (which I don't mind), and interesting.

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Dissenter on the Bench: Ruth Bader Ginsburg's Life & Work - Victoria Ortiz

Dissenter on the Bench: Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s Life and Work by Victoria Ortiz
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This wasn't a book so much about her dissents. It was more a biography of her life with her life experiences (sometimes loosely) linked to some of the cases she sat for (some that she was a dissenter but others not).
The organization was wonky to me in this book and parts were redundant. That makes me lean more towards 2 stars. But I did enjoy learning more about her and her path to the Supreme Court.

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Black Elk Speaks - John G. Neihardt & Black Elk

Black Elk Speaks by Black Elk
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is the story of Black Elk as told by John G. Neihardt. It's the "as told by" that knocks my rating down from 5 stars. According to the notes in the appendix (which I was grateful for), Neihardt took quite a bit of poetic license in extrapolating what he thought Black Elk meant by what he said or felt at various times.

Black Elk lived from 1863 to 1950, although this book wraps up shortly after the Indian Wars were concluded (read: the US government and people got their way and most of the native lands). Black Elk was a medicine man and holy man of the Oglala Lakota tribe. He was cousin to Crazy Horse. This is his experience woven through the background of the greater Native experience.

Again, I'm aghast at all of this being skipped in history teaching in our schools.

This book was readable. It did have several prefaces and introductions. And oh so many appendices. Honestly, I skimmed some of those.

A valuable read for anyone.

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The Good Neighbor: The Life and Work of Fred Rogers - Maxwell King

The Good Neighbor: The Life and Work of Fred Rogers by Maxwell King
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

It pains me to give this book 1 star. I was so looking forward to reading it and am a fan of Mr. Rogers and his work. This book does not do him justice.

I was a bit put off straight from the prologue where King refers to Fred Rogers as being feminine in nature. He does this several times throughout the book in different ways. I just don't see Rogers as that way. Caring? Yes. Calm? For sure. But not feminine.

The book is poorly organized and could have used a good dose of editing. The timeline is sort of chronological but also bounces back and forth some. Dates are mentioned randomly in some parts where as other sections where a date would be helpful to the reader, there is none. SO. MANY. Redundancies. The book would have been half the length if all the unnecessary repetition of information was deleted. Some sections and details were inadequately or poorly explained. Others the author went into overdrive on details and explanations that didn't add anything to the narrative of Fred Rogers life and work.

Had this not been the book chosen for both my book clubs this month, I would have quit it before I was halfway through. In fact, if you're in my local book club I give you full permission to quit it and still come to the meeting.

I wanted to love it. It is Mr. Rogers, after all. Disappointed.

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Return to Dignity - Marilyn Skinner

Return to Dignity: Stories of Hope, Faith, Courage and Transformation by Marilyn B. Skinner
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Inspiring stories of women who's lives have been changed through Living Hope Ministries.
They were hard to read at times. Not just for some of the content; what some of these ladies when through is horrific. But the way the stories were written themselves. I don't know if that is because maybe they were told orally and then written down without much editing. But the narrative timeline in each story bounces around some, and there's repetition.

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This Blessed Earth: A Year in the Life of an American Family Farm - Ted Genoways

This Blessed Earth: A Year in the Life of an American Family Farm by Ted Genoways
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I picked up this book because there was a lot of buzz over it when the governor of Nebraska refused to endorse it as the "One Book, One Nebraska" pick for 2019. I purely wanted to see what all the fuss was about. Otherwise it wouldn't have even been on my radar.

This books is both a look at one family farm during a year as well as a look back on farming history and innovation in general. There's even brief glimpses of what the future of farming might be. I'll be the first one to say I know nothing about farming. Genoways does a good job of making the more technical aspects accessible. It was far more interesting than I had hoped for when I picked it up.

I do think (although need to research to confirm) the issue Nebraska's republican governor had with the book. There are a couple of pages in the epilogue that talk about President Trump and how he won with the votes of many farmers who are now being negatively affected by his administration's policies.

A side note, the author picture on the back cover is a bit creepy.

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Girl, Wash Your Face - Rachel Hollis

Girl, Wash Your Face: Stop Believing the Lies About Who You Are so You Can Become Who You Were Meant to Be by Rachel Hollis
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

Rachel Hollis tackles 20 lies people (particularly women) believe, some truths that can counteract them, and some tips on what helped her through the debunking in her life.

I wanted to love this book. I really did. Especially since everyone I know has loved this book. But I just didn't. I didn't love it so much that I almost abandoned it multiple times, but kept pushing through because there must be some reason everyone else is giving it 4 and 5 stars. And there was some redemption at the end when a few of the topics were deeper.

I will admit, I had some reservations going in to the book. I listen to the podcast Hollis does with her husband, Dave, and her communication style just really isn't my cup of tea. I keep listening because I can relate to Dave Hollis's approach a bit more. So that might have colored my reading as well.

I have gone back and forth between 1 and 2 stars on this review. There were a couple of nuggets I took away, but I think the things the things that grated me in reading outweighed those. The whole book comes off as a long humble-brag. Rachel Hollis has certainly accomplished a lot in her short life thus far. I don't discount that. The tone of the book was off-putting to me though.

Her story of her then boyfriend/now husband was alarming. The mistreatment she allowed herself to endure for months to keep him followed by a clear demarcation and boundary setting by telling him not to contact her again. Then hours later accepting him back into her life, jumping to their marriage. Now I'm hoping we aren't getting the full picture and there was a lot of good boundaries set and couples therapy between him showing up at her door and their marriage. But I don't really know that because it's skipped over. The book basically reads: I called and told him not to contact me again...He showed up at my door...He's my husband.

Scriptures taken out of context. Wanting a thousand dollar purse because it "represented the kind of woman I dreamed of becoming." What kind of women is that...the superficial kind who determines who women are based on a purse? Saying not to set limits to your dreams and then having several dreams of her own to accomplish before 40. It goes on.

There were some basic truths I could get on board with in some of the chapters. But the delivery wasn't for me. And the other issues in the book were just too much for me to settle on more than a star.

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Never Give Up Hope: Waging War with Cancer - Craig Davis

Never Give Up Hope: Waging War With Cancer by Craig Davis
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The author, Craig Davis, has survived brain cancer not once but three times. This is his story.
In exchange for an ARC, I have promised my honest opinion.
The writing isn’t stellar, but Craig doesn’t claim to be a writer. And I did read an ARC; that I understand has changed drastically between the ARC and final release. So I’m assuming this has improved and that many of the jumps or parts that left me with questions have been corrected.
It is definitely heartfelt and passionate in his belief of God healing him each time. You get a little background on his life, and then Craig steps you through the high and low points of his journey from the initial diagnosis in 2012 to the most recent the summer of 2018. He focuses on God’s fingerprints throughout it all. And I love that. While you’re in the midst of trials, it’s sometimes hard to see Him moving. But hindsight…it shows his handiwork all over the place.
I love Craig’s faith and passion. The hope that he wants to pass along to others who are fighting their own battles – whether they be cancer or something else.
I enjoyed the Facebook posts that were inserted throughout the text to give an “in the moment” look at what was happening.
Definitely a book that’s worth a read. And at just over 100 pages, it’s a quick read at that.

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The Boys in the Boat - Daniel James Brown

The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics by Daniel James Brown
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

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In the case of this book, third times a charm.

This book is the compelling story (after you're about 60 pages in) of the US rowing team that when to the Berlin Olympics in 1936. But it's not just a look at the team. It's a look into the Depression, Germany as they ramped up towards WWII, the individual men, as well as an in depth look into the sport of rowing itself.

As mentioned, this was my third time attempting this book. I tried to read it a few years ago and didn't get past the first couple chapters. More recently, I tried the audio version. I struggle with audio books in general; this one was no exception. So when I picked it up this third time, I determined to give it until page 65. And I'm so glad I did.

I had no idea the sport of rowing and collegiate rowing in particular was so interesting. The book did a good job of explaining most of the terms, although I did have to google "catching a crab." The personal stories of the rowers' backgrounds that was interspersed with the technical explanations and race descriptions made the whole book even more engaging.

While I appreciate and understand the insertions of what was going on in Germany at the time, I found they pulled me away from the momentum of the over all rowing story.

I'm glad I gave the book another chance. Just goes to show that sometimes it can be a good book, but it's just the wrong time for reading it.

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You, Your Child, School: Navigate Your Way to the Best Education - Sir Ken Robinson

You, Your Child, and School: Navigate Your Way to the Best Education by Ken Robinson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

So this book wasn’t exactly what I was hoping for. But perhaps (probably) my hopes were too high. I did not turn the final page with a clear answer on where to send my kiddo to kindergarten - or really even ideas on how to get an answer.
It was interesting. My background is in education, so not much new to me information. But good reminders nonetheless.
I did skim the last 50+ pages in an effort to finish before it needed to go back to the library.
Probably a 2.5 for me.

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The Class: A Life-Changing Teacher, His World-Changing Kids, and the Most Inventive Classroom in America - Heather Won Tesoriero

The Class: A Life-Changing Teacher, His World-Changing Kids, and the Most Inventive Classroom in America by Heather Won Tesoriero
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

I am usually a sucker for inspiring teacher stories. And I usually try to push through books for review (Thanks, NetGalley and Random House) even if I don’t enjoy it. However, this book (sort of) focusing on Andy Bramante and his super smart, motivated Greenwich students just was not my cup of tea. I abandoned it 30% of the way in.
Some of my issue was with the writing itself. There was weird time and pacing throughout and no clear organizational method. It seems like it would be organized by Andy or individual students as that was used for the chapter names. However, in those chapters they’d take lengthy tangents to other students, random information, or jumps in time. It was just poorly organized, making it hard to follow and get into a reading groove. Pieces of information are redundant. I got it the first 5 times that one competition is only for seniors. Add in the contradictions, and I just couldn’t do it any longer.
Then there’s my question regarding the point of the book. Is this about an inspiring teacher or an ad for Greenwich, CT? A lot of times it seemed like the latter.
Maybe it got into this after I quit, but what makes Andy a successful, effective teacher? The reasons brought forth in the first part of the book are that he’s working with gifted kids who are motivated and have parental support. Plus, he has a background in the sciences outside of teaching, leading to additional resources and connections for his students. But what is it about *him* that makes him such an exceptional teacher? What sets him apart that other teachers can emulate?
Some of the research the students were conducting was really interesting. However, overall, this book was a miss for me.
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The Read-Aloud Family - Sarah Mackenzie

The Read-Aloud Family: Making Meaningful and Lasting Connections with Your Kids by Sarah Mackenzie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I liked this book by podcaster Sarah Mackenzie. The first sections are a reminder about how important reading aloud to your kids are, even once they can read for themselves. I borrowed a copy from the library but definitely want to purchase one to have on my shelf. She presents 10 questions you can use for book club type discussions with any book. And then there are book lists at the back, broken out by level, along with activities to keep your kiddos hands busy while you read. A great resource to keep handy.

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This Is Me: Loving the Person You Are Today - Chrissy Metz

This Is Me: Loving the Person You Are Today by Chrissy Metz
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

Chrissy Metz is one of the stars of the hit TV series, This is Us. Love the series. Didn't love her book.
I couldn't decide if it was trying to be a self-help book or a memoir (so shelved as both). It probably did a better job being a memoir than self-help, but part definitely had more the self-help feel. Those sections were very trust and confidence in self, if you believe it and speak it and do good, your dreams will come true. While I agree that self-confidence and trusting your gut are good to an extent, this was a bit out there for me.
I did enjoy reading about her path to success in Hollywood.
Triggers: Some language

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Just As I Am: The Autobiography of Billy Graham

Just As I Am: The Autobiography of Billy Graham by Billy Graham
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Whew! This book took me awhile to get through. Longer than I had even anticipated when first realizing it's length. I think I had it checked out from the library three or four different times getting it finished. There were a lot of names throughout, which made for some tedious reading. It was also sort of chronological but not really. So that made it hard to follow at times.
I'm glad I read it. I did really enjoy the more personal aspects that he wrote about. Shortly after his death, a blogger I read mentioned what a disservice he did to his family through his ministry and if that was really what God called him to. And I have been pondering that ever since. I was glad that he did address this towards the end of his autobiography. It helped me understand where his heart was on that issue.
Just amazing to read all that happened through the life of this one man who chose to surrender to God and act on what he believed God was telling him.

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American Eclipse: A Nation's Epic Race to Catch the Shadow of the Moon and Win the Glory of the World - David Baron

American Eclipse: A Nation's Epic Race to Catch the Shadow of the Moon and Win the Glory of the World by David Baron
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

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So I originally picked this book off the library showcase bookshelf around the time of the total solar eclipse of August 2017. Life happened. More books shifted in. So I finally got around to listening to the audio book on a road trip all these months later. And it was good. I didn't really go in with expectations, and I think that helped.

The summary on the flap indicates the book follows three scientists (well, one was more an inventor) in their pursuit of the 1878 total eclipse in the western US. However, it was so much more. It references several total eclipses, many more in the astronomical field, and a whole slew of scientists. I'm glad I listened to it or else I fear I would have been bogged down with some of the details and science. Although I found most of the science accessible.

It was an interesting book. Worth the read/listen.

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Reading People: How Seeing the World Through the Lens of Personality Changes Everything - Anne Bogel

Reading People: How Seeing the World through the Lens of Personality Changes Everything by Anne Bogel
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book wasn't quite what I expected. I don't really know what I expected. Maybe more literary references tied into personality types? But it was still good.
Definitely a book you want to read with pen and paper in hand to jot notes, personality tests to take, etc.
I'm looking forward to diving into the resources section at the back and discovering more.

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How the Other Half Lives - Jacob Riis

How the Other Half Lives by Jacob A. Riis
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This is not the version I read. Okay, I gave up after reading about four chapters in. But my version of the book was by LibriVox, which gave me the idea to look for free audio. I got through the book, and it wouldn't have happened any other way. It was tough reading. I don't know if it was the small text or dense pages or the content. Probably all of the above. I fared much better upon switching to the audio (although it was weird with the different narrators - and varying quality of the recordings). Still, I think I didn't really grasp all of what Riis was conveying. And, really, a lot of the issues with tenements in New York back then are still with us today in the inner cities of America.

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