February 2018 Book Review

Shout out to my fellow readers!  I love book review day and hope you do too.  February has come and gone and I filled it with 9 books and I really enjoyed this batch.  So, as with each month, I’m sharing my ratings and my reviews.

My Lovely Wife in the Psych Ward by Mark Lukach

With some experience working with individuals with mental health disorders, I think this book did a good job of portraying someone suffering with a mental health diagnosis and how the family struggles with her.  I didn’t feel like it was awe inspiring on the topic, which maybe I was hoping for, but I did find myself empathizing with the characters.  I gave it 3 stars.

Nobody’s Cuter Than You:  A Memoir about the Beauty of Friendship by Melanie Shankle

Last month, I loved Church of the Small Things by Melanie Shankle and so I wanted to read/listen to another one of hers.  My girlfriends mean so much to me, so I loved this book’s topic and how the author shares about her friends with their stories that were everything from hilarious (of course, because it’s Melanie Shankle), heartwarming, relatable and emotional.  If you like that kind of memoir, pick this one up and I say listen to it on audio because hearing her read her own book, adds to the fun.  Also, like in the memoir, if I accidentally baked cornbread muffins with bug spray instead of cooking oil spray, I would totally have made my besties come over and try them to confirm too.  And they would have done it.  That's what besties are for!  I gave this 4 stars.

The Last Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine

Well, this book has been raved about in so many forums and by so many people.  Reese Witherspoon included.  This book is a juicy thriller about a woman with a plan to breakup a golden couple who had it all.  I was fully entertained and wrapped up in the character and her scheming ways (#scandalous) however, I found it predictable.  I usually don’t see twists coming early in books, but I did in this one, although gratefully, that didn’t take away from the enjoyment of seeing how the story unfolded.  I gave it 4 stars.

My Story by Elizabeth Smart

I knew this one would be hard to read, to hear Elizabeth Smart recount the details of her kidnapping.  I remember when it happened in real life, but didn’t know all the details.  It was horrific to imagine living through what she did but of course, it’s also a story of resilience because she’s a survivor who is doing well today.  It was hard to learn that there were several opportunities for her to speak out during the time she was held captive, where she could have potentially be found earlier.  I realized more about what happened to her psychologically by reading her book.  I gave it 3 stars.

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

Another recommendation by Reese Witherspoon.  I seem to be enjoying her book choices.  I went on to pick this for my book club pick this month.  A story about a quirky young lady and the friendships she makes, I found it to be entertaining and thoughtful.  And again, the universe draws me to books that have a character tied to foster care.  I cry every time that happens.  There was more depth to this one than I expected too.  And by the way, Reese (first name basis because we love the same books) is producing this as a movie!  I gave it 4 stars.

The Antelope in the Living Room:  The Real Story of Two People Sharing One Life by Melanie Shankle

Because I love her, I was so glad there was another of her books that I could read/listen to this month!  Equally hilarious to her others, and always great, wholesome lessons for life’s important relationships, I loved this one too.  This one focuses on her relationship with her husband and what they’ve been through and it was great fun.  I wonder what her husband thinks of how she describes him.  I equally want to meet him now, as much as I want to meet her.  His reaction to the animal that throws the toast at her - that alone, makes me want to talk to him.  So funny.  I gave it 4 stars.

Hello, Sunshine by Laura Dave

I read Eight Hundred Grapes by this author in January.  I didn’t like this one as much because I thought the main problem resolved itself too easily – no fun in that.  The main character is a beloved television food star who gets found out to be a fake.  They're not even her recipes!  Her life starts to unravel from there.  It did have some good parts with the juicy drama about what else everyone starts to find out about her.  I gave it 3 stars.

The Girl with Seven Names:  A North Korean Defector’s Story by Hyeonseo Lee

This is a true story and I learned so much about why people flee North Korea.  I really had no idea the details about the country and I found this eye-opening.  Although this wasn’t an immigration story, I am always moved when thinking about people who are in search of better opportunities so much that they have to leave their homes.  As someone who immigrated to the United States, that’s an important topic to me.  This story though, also stood out in the way that she had to change identities so many times that at one point she describes herself as walking around as no one, almost invisible.  I thought about some of our homeless clients who describe that same feeling.  This book really made me think, and seek further cultural competence for North Koreans.  I gave it 4 stars for that reason.

The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah

Full disclosure, Kristin Hannah can probably do no wrong with me after she wrenched my heart in The Nightingale (my favorite book of 2016) and then my book club named her Winter Garden our favorite pick of 2017.  She obviously gets us.  This one does not disappoint and is vying for another award this year with us.  The writing in The Great Alone is beautiful and so full of description that I think it should be made into a movie.  I could literally picture the scenery in Alaska (although I’ve never been) and felt like I had already met the characters (although I don’t know anyone named Large Marge).  Everything was so real and just came to life in this book!  The storylines were complex – covering everything from a veteran’s Post Traumatic Stress after serving in Vietnam, a couple’s domestic violence and connected secrets, a mother and daughter bond, the loyalty of community, and the depth of friendship and love through grief and pain.  When I wasn’t reading it, I couldn’t wait to get back to it.  I gave it 5 stars!  It also checks off another one of my 2018 Book Bucket List – “Read a Book That’s New This Year.” 

Well, that was a full February!  Can’t wait to hear what others are reading and get into more great books in March. 

And if you're just catching up and want more reviews or more about how I do #booklife, check out these links:

I'm on Goodreads, you can add me here. 

For the complete list of everything I read in 2017, click here.

Find out which books I named my absolute favorites of 2017 here.

And check out my fun Book Bucket List Challenge of 2018 here.

I am keeping a running list of the books I'm reading this year and their star ratings on my home page here.

Happy Reading, everyone!