Review: City of Lies

City of Lies by Sam Hawke
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Great debut epic fantasy that teen readers will appreciate. Character-driven action from two POVs--siblings Jovan and Kalina. Jovan is the Chancellor's proofer--tasting all food to make sure it isn't poisoned. Kalina, with a history of illness, is given her chance to shine when the city is attacked by its own rebelling countrymen. This is the kind of book that makes you stay up late to finish--wonderful mystery, too.

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Review: Rick Steves Paris 2018

Rick Steves Paris 2018 by Rick Steves
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Love these guidebooks because I can skim to find the sections I need. Great information about blending in (as much as it's possible for Americans to do so) and cool little places to see. I find the information about things like the skinniest house in Paris and neat old medieval streets interesting.

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Review: Run the Storm: A Savage Hurricane, a Brave Crew, and the Wreck of the SS El Faro

Run the Storm: A Savage Hurricane, a Brave Crew, and the Wreck of the SS El Faro by George Michelsen Foy
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Not interesting enough to really keep my attention. The narrator made my attention wander instead of grabbing me into the narrative. I couldn't help but compare this to other "storm" or "disaster" nonfiction and it didn't hold up.

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Review: In The Shadow of 10,000 Hills

In The Shadow of 10,000 Hills by Jennifer Haupt
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I felt like I was reading a white savior version of the genocide of Rwanda, and then that made me feel bad. Sure, it was good. But....

On Disk 2, track 9 at 1:25, the phrase "thirty kilometers away" was repeated.
I questioned the accent of her dad on disk 3, track 7.
By disk 8, my mind was wandering. I felt like the mystery of the young doctor was being dragged out unnecessarily and the whole story about Henry was so detailed and sappy. Yep, he took pictures.

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Review: Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics: A 10% Happier How-to Book

Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics: A 10% Happier How-to Book by Dan Harris
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

The narration is horrible--I didn't make it past Disk 1. There are pauses in odd places, which shouldn't happen since the writer is the narrator. The pacing destroyed this audio.

Portions narrated by Jeff were much better, although I'm not a fan of the whole "welcome to the party" thing.

It was difficult for me to continue listening when I found out that Harris meditates for 2 hours/day. That's not normal, right?

I did love the quote "A concentrated mind is a happy mind" since I call doing puzzles my version of therapy. It does make me happy.

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Review: Speak No Evil

Speak No Evil by Uzodinma Iweala
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

If this book only centered around Niru like Part I, I would have given it 5 stars, but Part 2 is narrated by Meredith. In the audio version, I was okay with it because I had to know what happened to the main character. But I was a tad frustrated. I wanted to hear from O.J., the older brother, perhaps instead.

Niru is Nigerian-American, and Harvard bound. He never has lived up to his older brother's perfection, and now he can't bring himself to even kiss his girlfriend Meredith. When he finally admits to himself that he's gay, he has such a difficult time with the guilt. He does his own share of mental gay-bashing, since his family and religion do the same, and even travels with his father to Africa to get the evil spirits pushed out of him.

This would be an easy push to older high school kids--track star, college admissions, first love, pressure from peers to drink, pressure from parents to succeed, and immigration. This really reminded me of an Alex Award read. The last bit throws in police brutality and white lies/black lives which seemed a bit rushed and added in?

As for the audio version, I didn't hear any mistakes. I loved the Nigerian accents from family members, and was glad a different narrator was used for Meredith. I think the audio really elevated the book, judging by the Goodreads reviews.



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Review: The Trauma Cleaner: One Woman's Extraordinary Life in the Business of Death, Decay, and Disaster

The Trauma Cleaner: One Woman's Extraordinary Life in the Business of Death, Decay, and Disaster by Sarah Krasnostein
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I expected this to be a book about someone who cleans up murder scenes and hoarders' houses, but it really is more about the personal life of the cleaner. Sure, you'll hear some stories about feces and too many cats and people with mental illness, but Sandra is the real hit of the book. Sandra was born into a boy's body, was adopted, and had a horrible childhood. Her adult life is full of ups and downs, but this is a real "pull-your-britches-up" kind of story, full of persistence and goodness. With some cussing. Sarah, the author, obviously loves getting to know Sandra, and I'm glad she chose to give her her tale. I appreciated the researched moments, since Sandra often mis-remembered parts of her past, and, ew, the hoarders. The author really focused on how fine the line is between different types of mental illness, comparing her own grief and depression to one of the hoarders. The line that hit me was "the difference is how strong we are when we are loved."

It surprised me how much I liked this one--the listening went quick. On disk 3, track 8, swathes was pronounced "sway-ths" so is that an Australian thing? The Australian accents weren't TOO Australian (no Outback here) which was good. The narrator really demonstrated strong emotion during Sandra's assault and the aftermath--made me start the waterworks.

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Review: I Am, I Am, I Am: Seventeen Brushes with Death

I Am, I Am, I Am: Seventeen Brushes with Death by Maggie O'Farrell
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Whew. These seventeen essays (out of chronological order so a few bits are repeated) will grip you and give you the feels. Heartbreaking section about miscarriage, and the many times she addresses how she is trying to protect her daughter will hit hard with all mothers. It ends with "She is" and, yes, those daughters are worth everything.

As for the audio version, the Middle English (just a few lines) was fantastic and I didn't hear any mistakes. So much emotion--it made me choke up while listening to it in the car.

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Review: Failure Is an Option: An Attempted Memoir

Failure Is an Option: An Attempted Memoir by H. Jon Benjamin
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

While I admire this guy's ability to read his own work for his audio, I was at a complete loss when I started. I had no idea who this guy was and had downloaded the audio online so I had no filler papers to read about. It wasn't until the end of the book that he mentions Archer and Bob's Burgers, so clueless readers like me are very clueless. Throughout.

I rarely laughed, and I'm all about shit jokes. But I just didn't find it funny. I also don't want to be his friend and feel sorry for those who are, because he doesn't seem very loving or caring. He's a selfish asshole. I honestly wondered why he had even been asked to write a book--are voiceover artists really that successful in this day and age? People are buying this stuff and finding it funny? Huh. Guess I'm old. The chapter about the president pets stuff was horrible and the fillers where he sarcastically tried to interview academics just felt sad. I didn't understand the purpose of the book. To entertain? To tell his life story? Neither felt successful.

As for the audio production, he obviously does accents okay, and there were a few occasional odd spaces between words, but I imagine he was trying to be funny. I didn't hear any skips or anything, but his voice was so droll and I was so bored that I just wanted it to be over already.

I'm not usually this grumpy about memoirs, but I was mad that I had to listen to this on my drive.

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Review: Dancing On The Grave

Dancing On The Grave by Zoë Sharp
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Give this a go if you like Happy Valley/Last Tango in Halifax/Harlen Coben/Lee Child/murder mysteries.

I'll read anything by Zoe Sharp--her mysteries/procedurals usually have strong kickass female main characters, and I love that in a field that's swamped with the other gender. This is a standalone though, and I wasn't sure if I would love it since it didn't have my fav character Charlie Fox. Instead I got Grace, who is a quieter woman, but strong and determined to be an excellent forensic investigator in the Lake District of England. She's got a bit of a past (ex-husband, job switch, difficult coworkers) and is forced to work with DC Nick Weston on a baffling case. A dog ends up shot, and then the people connected to the dog start dropping like flies. Really, they do, since a sniper is responsible. Turns out that there is a military connection (yes--I love military conspiracy stuff), and Grace and Nick must figure it all out.

I even loved the fleshed out secondary characters of Edith, a troubled teenager, and Patrick, the troubled sniper. Both had some serious stuff going on in their heads, yet I felt like I connected with them. I wouldn't mind seeing either Nick or Grace in another title--I like them and their friendship/understanding of each other.

Thank you to the author for providing an eARC of this title!


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Review: The Displaced: Refugee Writers on Refugee Lives

The Displaced: Refugee Writers on Refugee Lives by Viet Thanh Nguyen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Dang. This quick little book of 17 essays will punch you in the gut. Some, of course, are better than others, but, overall, this will give you the feels. I admit that I didn't really understand the complexities of asylum seekers, migrants, and refugees. Living in small town central Illinois, I don't see many of any of those, or at least it doesn't seem like I do. But after reading this book, I feel like I know a bit more. I loved how the Pulitzer Prize winning editor included essays from writers all over the world who became refugees--Ukraine, Bosnia, China, Vietnam, and, yes, Mexico. Their tales are all different, but all are heartbreaking. This book would serve as a great book club read and an easy lead-in to local people telling their refugee stories at libraries.

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Review: Noir

Noir by Christopher Moore
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Rough conversation of what I remember from listening to this book:

Girl: How do you like your drink?
Guy: I like my drinks like I like my women.
Girl: Drunk and naked?

I snorted. This book is full of one-liners and quips, like most noir. I couldn't help but picture guys in suits and fedoras and girls in sexy dresses. But it's just not my thing. The best part of the audiobook was the afterword where I got to hear why Moore put certain historical things into the book that takes place after WW2 in San Francisco.

Throughout the entire book, I heard tons of mouth sounds like clicking. The accents were great, but I heard the clicking while listening in my car and in my earphones. So annoying. At 017, 15:30 the narrator sounds like he's talking through a tunnel. This was an audiobook with amazing narration, but the production could have been better. Getting rid of those clicks would have made this perfect. Need an example? Go to 005 around 5-6 minutes and listen carefully.

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Review: What Should Be Wild

What Should Be Wild by Julia Fine
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I love fantasy and love magical realism, but the combo didn't click for me in this audiobook. Maisie is from a long line of mysterious women in the woods, but she feels like she is cursed. Anything she touches dies or comes back to life, so she has to be extremely careful about everything, especially the people she loves. Her story was almost enjoyable, but the chapters were interspersed with older tales of women who disappeared--gratefully or not--into the woods and how the magic grew darker over time. I could have done without the love triangle though--it didn't fit.

Audio notes:
008. 2:04. "tears of her skirt" pronounced as crying instead of rips
019 Chapter 9. 10:00. "curs" crossing has a metallic sound
I feel like I've heard this narrator a multitude of times--she's very competent. But it was hard to make this book engaging because it dragged in places.

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Review: Rick Steves London 2018

Rick Steves London 2018 by Rick Steves
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Thank you, Rick Steves, for always telling me where the clean public toilets are!

I also appreciate how his writers tell readers little things to look for, like particular narrow streets or cool churches to pop into. I don't tend to take the advice about restaurants or hotels, but I always read the sections about touristy places to see how I can make them easier to visit. I star the places on a Google Map I've created for the trip, add the hours open and little notes in the notes section, and I'm good to go. I always add a lot of markers to the map, since I never know where I'll be in the mood to wander off to. Fun stuff!

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Review: Every Note Played

Every Note Played by Lisa Genova
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Get the Kleenexes ready.

And make sure you listen to this in audio because it will give you THE FEELS.

Richard is a concert pianist at the top of his game--he's performing in the huge halls and getting all the beautiful women. But when he suddenly starts to lose dexterity in his hands his life is shattered--he's diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's disease, ALS. I've always heard of ALS and didn't know much about it, but, whoa, you'll learn all about it in this novel. Richard tries to make it on his own but he needs help quickly as his body starts to give out. His ex-wife, Karina, visits him and is shocked with his decline. Without speaking about it, he moves back into their family home and she takes care of him. As someone who recently nursed someone through ICU and rehab, this part hit home. I was bawling in parts of the book that wouldn't bother some people, but the emotional exhaustion is easy to remember. Care taking is hard. Karina and Richard had a history and a child, but there is so much drama and regret and words that need to be said.

This book is hard to categorize. It isn't a romance. It isn't a disease story. It isn't a music tale. It's just a darn good LIFE HAPPENS story. No regrets, people.

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Review: Warlight

Warlight by Michael Ondaatje
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I know I'm in for a rough road when the first sentence of the Goodreads summary is "In a narrative as mysterious as memory itself..." Um, yes, this book is a mystery alright. I love the concept--what the homefront of WW2 was like when the main character's mother is away being a spy for Britain. But it was just too literary for me and I wanted more action and less talking.

Perhaps it would be less mysterious in print format? I had a difficult time knowing what year it was, since the main character is always flashbacking to his childhood. I liked learning about the characters who took care of him when his mom was away, but I had a hard time connecting all of them.

I love BBC and Acorn TV and brooding characters on British mysteries so I can't believe I couldn't get into this audiobook. Very disappointing for me, although the narration was great.

Disk 2. I'm still completely lost. He's living with a guardian? His mom is in prison? What?
Later on Disk 2. I'm so bored. He's sneaking into houses? Having sex with lots of women? How old is he now and when did he grow up?
What is "The dotter?" (I had to google it--he's saying "The Darter")


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Review: The Monk of Mokha

The Monk of Mokha by Dave Eggers
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is an example of a great audio production and narrator making the audiobook better than the print book. I don't care a bit about coffee (I was very bored during Disk 3), but I learned so much about it after listening to this! Who doesn't want to eat/drink products that are produced in other parts of the world with workers making a living wage?

I knew nothing about Yemen. I still don't know much, but I feel like I'm a bit more knowledgeable about the country and wish that the fighting could calm down over there. The Yemani-American this book is about just wants to import coffee made in Yemen, but it's a difficult process. This true story really picks up toward the end when the author is traveling back and forth to Yemen and trying to make their coffee the world's best again. Deals with immigration, labor laws, trade, fake terrorism, etc.

Listening Notes:
Disk 2 Track 7. 5:58 Speaking very quiet after "Italians."
Chapter 20. E. I couldn't hear the mutters after 20-30 seconds. I had the volume turned up to 40 in my car and still couldn't hear/understand.
Chapter 23C. That airport scene is so freaking frustrating.
Chapter 34B. Hilarious Obama voice! Spot on!

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Review: The Monk of Mokha

The Monk of Mokha by Dave Eggers
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is an example of a great audio production and narrator making the audiobook better than the print book. I don't care a bit about coffee (I was very bored during Disk 3), but I learned so much about it after listening to this! Who doesn't want to eat/drink products that are produced in other parts of the world with workers making a living wage? This true story really picks up toward the end when the author is traveling back and forth to Yemen and trying to make their coffee the world's best again. Deals with immigration, labor laws, trade, fake terrorism, etc.

Listening Notes:
Disk 2 Track 7. 5:58 Speaking very quiet after "Italians."
Chapter 20. E. I couldn't hear the mutters after 20-30 seconds. I had the volume turned up to 40 in my car and still couldn't hear/understand.
Chapter 23C. That airport scene is so freaking frustrating.
Chapter 34B. Hilarious Obama voice! Spot on!


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