The Anthropocene Reviewed

 

Title: The Anthropocene Reviewed

Author: John Green
Genre: Non-fiction, History, Memoir, Short stories, Science, Essays

Summary: A deeply moving and insightful collection of personal essays.

The Anthropocene is the current geologic age, in which humans have profoundly reshaped the planet and its biodiversity. In this remarkable symphony of essays adapted and expanded from his groundbreaking podcast, bestselling author John Green reviews different facets of the human-centered planet on a five-star scale—from the QWERTY keyboard and sunsets to Canada geese and Penguins of Madagascar.

Funny, complex, and rich with detail, the reviews chart the contradictions of contemporary humanity. As a species, we are both far too powerful and not nearly powerful enough, a paradox that came into sharp focus as we faced a global pandemic that both separated us and bound us together.

John Green’s gift for storytelling shines throughout this masterful collection. The Anthropocene Reviewed is a open-hearted exploration of the paths we forge and an unironic celebration of falling in love with the world.

Rating: Excellent

Why I Like It: So interesting! Kept my attention & learned so much. Indianapolis was mentioned a lot.

Other: Audio, read by the author

Reviewer: Patsy

Brown Girl Dreaming

Title: Brown Girl Dreaming

Author: Jacqueline Woodson

Genre: memoir

Summary: Jacqueline Woodson, one of today's finest writers, tells the moving story of her childhood in mesmerizing verse.
Raised in South Carolina and New York, Woodson always felt halfway home in each place. In vivid poems, she shares what it was like to grow up as an African American in the 1960s and 1970s, living with the remnants of Jim Crow and her growing awareness of the Civil Rights movement. Touching and powerful, each poem is both accessible and emotionally charged, each line a glimpse into a child’s soul as she searches for her place in the world. Woodson’s eloquent poetry also reflects the joy of finding her voice through writing stories, despite the fact that she struggled with reading as a child. Her love of stories inspired her and stayed with her, creating the first sparks of the gifted writer she was to become.

Rating: Very good

Why I Like It: I enjoyed the style of her writing. It is all in poem but with her style of poem writing, it was very easy to listen to and so well done. Loved the history I learned from it!

Other: Audio, read by author who did an excellent job!  Award won: 
John Newbery Medal, National Book Award for Young People's Literature and
NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work - Youth / Teens.

Reviewer: Patsy

Until Tuesday: A Wounded Warrior and the Golden Retriever Who Saved Him

Title: Until Tuesday: A Wounded Warrior and the Golden Retriever Who Saved Him

Author: Luis Carlos Montalván, Bret Witter (Writer)

Genre: nonfiction, memoirs, dogs

Summary: From Goodreads:

A heartwarming dog story like no other: Tuesday, a lovable golden retriever, changes a former soldier's life forever.
A highly decorated captain in the U.S. Army, Luis Montalván never backed down from a challenge during his two tours of duty in Iraq. After returning home from combat, however, his physical wounds and crippling post-traumatic stress disorder began to take their toll. He wondered if he would ever recover.
Then Luis met Tuesday, a sensitive golden retriever trained to assist the disabled. Tuesday had lived among prisoners and at a home for troubled boys, and he found it difficult to trust in or connect with a human being--until Luis.
Until Tuesday is the story of how two wounded warriors, who had given so much and suffered the consequences, found salvation in each other. It is a story about war and peace, injury and recovery, psychological wounds and spiritual restoration. But more than that, it is a story about the love between a man and dog, and how, together, they healed each other's souls. (less)

Rating: Very Good!

Why I Like It: I didn’t know much about service dogs & post-traumatic stress disorder. So amazing & interesting!

Other: Audio - Luis Carlos Montalván, author

Reviewer: Patsy

"All But My Life: A Memoir"

Title:  All But My Life: A Memoir

Author: Gerda Weissmann Klein

Genre:  Memoir

Summary: (from Amazon) All But My Life is the unforgettable story of Gerda Weissmann Klein's six-year ordeal as a victim of Nazi cruelty. From her comfortable home in Bielitz (present-day Bielsko) in Poland to her miraculous survival and her liberation by American troops--including the man who was to become her husband--in Volary, Czechoslovakia, in 1945, Gerda takes the reader on a terrifying journey.

Rating: Excellent

Why I Like It:  I wasn’t familiar with this much detail information of the Holocaust.  So, it was very interesting, inspiring, informative, sad, heart wrenching, etc.  It made me realize more that we certainly have very little to complain about & so much to be thankful for!

This autobiographical account of the Holocaust, All but My Life (1957), was adapted for the 1995 short film, One Survivor Remembers, which received an Academy Award and an Emmy Award, and was selected for the National Film Registry. I watched it on YouTube.  Also very good!!

Other:  listened to it on audio

Reviewer:  Patsy

Don't Sing at the Table: Life Lessons from My Grandmothers

Title: Don't Sing at the Table: Life Lessons from My Grandmothers

Author: Adriana Trigiani

Genre: Non-fiction, memior

Summary: From Amazon ; "No one ever reads just one of Trigiani’s wonderfully quirky tales. Once you pick up the first, you are hooked.” —BookPage

New York Times bestselling author Adriana Trigiani shares a treasure trove of insight and guidance from her two grandmothers: time-tested, common sense advice on the most important aspects of a woman’s life, from childhood to the golden years. Seamlessly blending anecdote with life lesson, Don’t Sing at the Table tells the two vibrant women’s real-life stories—how they fell in love, nurtured their marriages, balanced raising children with being savvy businesswomen, and reinvented themselves with each new decade. For readers of Big Stone Gap, Very Valentine, Lucia, Lucia, and Rococo, this loving memoir is the Trigiani family recipe for chicken soup for the soul

Here is another review I wholeheartedly agree with:

Fans of Adriana Trigiani's novels will recognize the women in her non-fiction book- her grandmothers Lucy and Viola have appeared in many of the characters in her fiction. Not only does Trigiani do a marvelous job of recounting the fascinating life stories of these women, she uses their lives to write a primer for living your own life.
Women like Lucy and Viola are the people who made this country great, and they jump off the pages in this delightful book. They have more than their fair share of troubles, (both of them are widowed), but their sheer will and strength of character will inspire other women to persevere and succeed as they did.
Although she is an Italian immigrant, Lucy moves to Minnesota and takes on the stoic characteristics of American mid westerners. She loses her husband at an early age and raises her three children on her own, all while running her own business. Viola was a pistol, running her own clothing factory, raising her family, entertaining friends in her lovely home, traveling.
Both women had terrific advice for their granddaughter, and the way that Trigiani structures the book, first telling their life stories, then sharing the how living their lives were examples we could all follow today, makes this book so enjoyable.

Rating: Very good.

Why I Like It: It's memoirs of her Grandmothers so I could see where she got her ideas for her book “The Shoemaker's Wife.” The author is a very good story teller & does a lot of research for her books. Other: Read this one since I couldn't find it in audio. Still enjoyed it.

Reviewer: Patsy

Garlic and Sapphires

Title: Garlic and Sapphires: The Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise
Author: Ruth Reichl  
Genre: Memoir
Summary: From Amazon: "Ruth Reichl, world-renowned food critic and former editor in chief of Gourmet magazine, knows a thing or two about food. She also knows that as the most important food critic in the country, you need to be anonymous when reviewing some of the most high-profile establishments in the biggest restaurant town in the world—a charge she took very seriously, taking on the guise of a series of eccentric personalities."
Rating: Good
Why I Like It: This book is really interesting to learn how a family food critic would go around New York and wear disguises. She really cared about the common person having a good experience at a restaurant.
Reviewer: Brigette

This Time Together - Laughter & Reflection

Title: This Time Together - Laughter & Reflection
Author: Carol Burnett
Genre: Memior
Summary: From Booklist: Comedy legend Burnett looks back fondly on her long and successful career in short, easily digestible chapters that part the curtain on her private life. Told in a chatty, intimate way, the stories encompass the star’s childhood; early days as an actress doing bit parts in New York City, appearing on game shows and various variety shows; her 11 years hosting The Carol Burnett Show; and life after the show ended its run. Readers will enjoy the comical reminiscences included, such as how she once used her famous Tarzan yell to disarm a mugger, funny interactions with fans who recognize her on the street, and the origin of famous scenes from the show, such as Scarlett O’Hara in a curtain-rod dress. Burnett doesn’t shy away from sad subjects and occasionally touches on personal losses. She also dishes about her famous costars and friends, including Jimmy Stewart, Lucille Ball, Cary Grant, Julie Andrews, and, of course, Carol Burnett Show regulars Harvey Korman, Tim Conway, Vicki Lawrence, and Lyle Waggoner. Fans of both the show and the actress will enjoy this mostly lighthearted though sometimes poignant look back at Burnett’s career. --Kathleen Hughes Rating: Good, enjoyable, sometimes lol.
Why I Like It: Funny, always interesting. Easy to follow.
Other: Audio, read by Carol Burnett which made it very entertaining!
Reviewer: Patsy

How Starbucks Saved My Life: A Son of Privilege Learns to Live Like Everyone Else

*Title: How Starbucks Saved My Life: A Son of Privilege Learns to Live Like Everyone Else
*Author: Michael Gates Gill
*Genre: Memoir
Summary: (From Wikipedia) In his fifties, Michael Gates Gill had it all: a mansion in the suburbs, a wife and loving children, a six-figure salary, and an Ivy League education. But in a few years, he lost his job, got divorced, and was diagnosed with a brain tumor. With no money or health insurance, he was forced to get a job at Starbucks. Having gone from power lunches to scrubbing toilets, from being served to serving, Michael was a true fish out of water.

But fate brings an unexpected teacher into his life who opens his eyes to what living well really looks like. The two seem to have nothing in common: She is a young African American, the daughter of a drug addict; he is used to being the boss but reports to her now. For the first time in his life he experiences being a member of a minority trying hard to survive in a challenging new job. He learns the value of hard work and humility, as well as what it truly means to respect another person. Behind the scenes at one of America’s most intriguing businesses, an inspiring friendship is born, a family begins to heal, and, thanks to his unlikely mentor, Michael Gill at last experiences a sense of self-worth and happiness he has never known before.
*Rating: Very Good
Why I Like It: This book has a lot of interesting history and human interest stories mixed together. Nice light reading
Other: Micheal Gill also wrote another book a couple years after this one: How to save your own life : 15 lessons on finding hope in unexpected places. Library Journal review: Born with a silver spoon in his mouth, Gill (How Starbucks Saved My Life) managed to lose everything he had, then come back with a new appreciation for people and the ordinary moments of life. In his engrossing second book, he offers advice for weathering the downs. His suggestions range from listening to other survivors and accepting help to laughing more and taking leaps of faith. While other writers often weave too much ego into their message, Gill has created an engrossing work without boosting himself. Bound to please and encourage.
I listened to this book on audio which was read by the author. He did a good job. It is also interesting & easy listening.
*Reviewer: Patsy

Forever Liesl: A Memoir of The Sound of Music

Title: Forever Liesl: A Memoir of The Sound of Music 

Author:Charmian Carr 

Genre: Memoir
Summary: Review from Barnes & Noble: The magic of The Sound of Music lives on in the minds and hearts of everyone it has touched. Now, Charmian Carr, who in 1965 captivated moviegoers as Liesl "Sixteen Going on Seventeen" von Trapp, tells what it was like to be a part of the film that has become a cultural phenomenon. It's all here: from how she got the role (and why she almost didn't) to romances on the set and wild nights in Salzburg; from the near-disaster during the gazebo dance to her relationships—then and now—with her six celluloid siblings. Charmian offers stories from fans and friends and a treasury of photographs. And she reveals why she left acting, what she learned when she met the real von Trapp children; and how The Sound of Music has helped her get through stormy times in her own life.
Rating: Very good
Why I Like It: I don't remember why I got this book to read but I thoroughly enjoyed it! Maybe I read an article because I know this is the 50^th year since The Sound of Music was released. I do recall that when the movie first came out, it was a very big deal! Grandma Dunipace really liked it & maybe even went to see it more than once! I have not watched The Sound of Music for many years but look forward to seeing it again soon!
Other: It might be interesting to eventually check out other books that were written about The Sound of Music.
Reviewer: Patsy