theresidentbookworm's reviews
3256 reviews

This was one of my Salvation Army finds (five books for a dollar, can you believe that?), and I definitely didn't regret it. To Sir, With Love is like the older, British version of The Freedom Writers, a movie that I adore and a book I look forward to reading. Mr. Braithwaite really paints the picture of what the school he is teaching at and the students there are like. You learn about his troubles as an African American British citizen and realize that racism isn't exclusive to just this country. I was immediately grabbed in and brought along for the ride. I watched as Mr. Braithwaite taught his class how to respect him, respect each other, and eventually respect all people. The transformation of his students was touching, and I was really proud of all of them at the end. My favorite part in particular was when none of the students wanted to take flowers they had bought for a classmate's dad's funeral to the kid's house because he's colored, not black, colored, and Pamela volunteers. The end just made me cry. It was a very good memoir, and I really want to see the movie. My only complaint was that I think that his romance with another teacher was unnecessarily included. I just frankly wasn't interested. Otherwise, an excellent read that I would highly recommend.

Purchased on my trip to Savannah, my first thought after reading it was that it all had to be true because no one could invent people this off the wall. I definitely threw away a lot of my stereotypes about the South. Must see the movie to compare. Awesome book!

For some reason, I have an odd fascination with eating disorders. I love reading both fiction and nonfiction about them. This read, however, I discovered at random when I saw it in a bookstore with my friend. I didn't buy it then though. It was a couple months later when I picked this up. Reading it was such a huge eye-opener for me. I read about Kitty's anorexia and saw that there were people around me that needed help.

My heart goes out to Ms. Brown and her husband Jamie. Their will and determination to be apart of their daughter's treatment was probably what saved her. I fell in love with this family and felt every setback and triumph with them. I held a soft spot for Emma, who handled her family's difficult situation with maturity beyond her years. Kitty is a very lucky girl, and I pray that she is still alright.

I was also interested by the family-based treatment approach explained in this memoir. Before reading Brave Girl Eating, I had only heard of eating disorder patients being treated in inpatients facilities or at outpatient facilities with little to no parent involvement. Reading this was a breath of fresh air. I agree with Ms. Brown that this is a sensible way to treat anorexia. Brave Girl Eating also served as a great resource when I had to write a research paper for English last year. Five stars and highly recommended for anyone who has a family member with an eating disorder or just wants to learn more about this method of treatment.

Where found: I picked this up on a whim in B&N.

Positive: I found this memoir both inspiring and well-written. Ms. Rhodes-Courter's narrative is tightly woven together and extremely detailed. From her move to Florida with her mother and brother to her adoption by the Courters, Ms. Rhodes-Courter is honest and real. Three Little Words makes you want to follow Ashley from the beginning to the end of the novel.

Negative: There weren't many things wrong with this memoir, but I did notice a few little things. 1). Since it was a memoir and only Ashley's side of the story is told, some her biological family members seemed one-dimensional. I wanted to know more about her mother and little sister. I also wanted to point out that, while Ms. Rhodes-Courter's story is sad, she also could've been much worse off. She was adopted by a loving family and given opportunities kids dream of having.

Recommendation: Definitely give this one a try, but buy it in paperback. Also remember to have some tissue handy, especially if you're overly sensitive like my mother, who balled her eyes out while reading this book.

Instead of writing a review, I recommend reading this article from the New York Times (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/26/magazine/how-jeannette-walls-spins-good-stories-out-of-bad-memories.html?pagewanted=all). I can't express my thoughts on this book without being angry or mean, and I feel like the reporter here offers interesting insight and perspective on Jeanette Walls and her mother. Enjoy!

Inside flap: Way too long to write! Sorry! Here's a link to it on B&N though.
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/audition-a-memoir

My mother, a huge fan of The View, happened to have Barbara Walters' memoir Audition in our library, so I decided to read it. Surprisingly, I actually enjoyed it. I started it not knowing much about Ms. Walters, and by the end I had much more respect for her by the end of this memoir. Her childhood recollections were clear and descriptive, and the story of her career inspiring. I was especially interested by the people she's interviewed in her lifetime. Hollywood movie stars, important political figures... She covered all the biggest scandals in the last forty years. While this wasn't an extremely well-written memoir, it was enjoyable and I recommend it if you like The View.

Hm... Levi Johnston, the infamous baby daddy and ex-finace of Bristol Palin. When my mom handed me this book and said I had to read it, I thought she was insane. Of course, then she explained to me that most of the book completely trashed the Palins. We're not big Palin fans at my house. Story: When I was in the eighth grade, I had a magnet with a picture of Sarah Palin on it that said Smiling gives you wrinkles. My history teacher loved it so much that I gave it to him when the year ended.

Obviously, he's not winning the Pulitzer, but Levi definitely has something to say. I'm not sure how much of this book was true, but it was amusing to say the least. Sarah Palin must've been fuming when this came out. Which, of course, makes me laugh. This doesn't really deserve two stars because it was totally pointless and I wasn't really interested until the chapter when he started dating Bristol but I gave it anyway because he should get two points for both pissing off Sarah Palin and making her look bad at the same time. (Not really that hard of course, but good job anyway!) I recommend only for amusement purposes. Get it from someone else if you can. If you can't, steal it from the bookstore. They won't mind anyway. I mean, he's a nobody. It's not like he's Brad Pitt or something.

Though along the same realm of Anne Frank's diary, Nina Lugobskaya's diary is vastly difference. While Anne's diary is hopeful and beautifully written, Nina's diary is more cynical and contains her day-to-day life. Of course, Anne was stuck in the Annex while Nina could go out and about, so we learn more about Stalin's Russia in her diary than we do Hitler's regime in Anne's. Anne and Nina are very different girls. Anne Frank was pretty, charming, the type of girl everyone liked, especially boys. Nina Lugovskaya, on the other hand, was much darker, more cynical, and isolated from others. She was a bit of an outcast, which makes her diary read like a real teenager's. It really isn't fair to compare the two diaries, though, since Nina didn't get to edit hers beforehand like Anne did.

Nina, while often moody and selfish, is a shrew observer, and you really get to see what Russia was like at the time. You learn about the day-to-day life there: school, shopping, and the police knocking down your door. Nina's father had been sent away for suspected suspicious activities and so she, her mother, and two older sisters were on their own in terms of money and food, both of which there was never enough. The most passionate you ever see Nina is when she's ranting against Stalin. I could really see the political climate and how it was going to turn out. Nina, though dreaming of being a writer as a kid, ended up being a painter. Like Anne, this is her only testimony to us. I'd recommend!

I was at a garage sale with my mom when I stumbled across this. Recognizing the author's name and knowing it was only costing me 50 cents made this an instant sell.

While I can say I haven't wasted 50 cents, I can't say I would buy this full price. Maya Angelou is a wonderful writer, to be sure, but maybe this isn't her best work. This is my first time reading her, and I'm not sure that she lived up to the hype. There are some beautiful snippets in here, verses that just grab your heart, but it felt more like self-help than anything else. My favorite line was this: “You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them. Try to be a rainbow in someone else's cloud. Do not complain. Make every effort to change things you do not like. If you cannot make a change, change the way you have been thinking. You might find a new solution.” It's a good line to live by, and the best way to begin this letter.

I also liked the title and her take on it: "I gave birth to one child, a son, but I have thousands of daughters. You are black and white, Jewish and Muslim, Asian, Spanish-speaking, Native Americans and Aleut. You are fat and thin and pretty and plain, gay and straight, educated and unlettered, and I am speaking to you all. Here is my offering to you."

If you like Maya Angelou, I'd recommend. If you've never read her before, try something else first.

In case you guys haven't noticed, I am a 1920s junkie. It is a serious problem, I'll admit it, but I just can't help it. I love it all: the glamor, the intrigue, the literature, the clothes, the music... In my next life, I will live in 1920s Paris or New York. I will exchange witty barbs with Dorothy Parker and get Getrude Stein's advice on my writing. Until then, I guess I'll just have to settle with reading fabulously detailed accounts like The Red Leather Diary.

When I first read the back cover of The Red Leather Diary, I knew I had found a gem. It really read more like novel for most of it. What a spectacular story! Just the story of how Lily Koppel found the journal could be fiction it's so unbelievable (in a good way). I loved how Koppel had little snippets from Florence's diary and then expanded on them or tied them in somehow. Honestly, I wanted to be Florence. To walk in old New York, to see all those plays and read like she did and go to Europe and explore. Florence Wolfson came right off the page. It was easy to like her. She was brilliant, restless, and full of spirit. I could relate to her. I admired her. I loved how specific her depiction of New York is. I felt like I was in 1920s New York.

Florence Wolfson certainly had an interesting life. I have mixed feelings about the lesbianism, but at least it wasn't brushed under the rug here. I had never actually heard of lesbians existing in the 1920s so it was interesting for me. I loved hearing about all of Florence's romances. Nat was my favorite, maybe because I knew she'd end up marrying him and maybe because he just sounded cute.

Lily Koppel got the break of a lifetime by finding the diary, and she took advantage of it. She's a great writer with an eye for detail, but it helps that she had such amazing source material. Probably the most fascinating and realistic portrayal of the 1920s I have ever read, I definitely recommend.