Book Review of Born a Crime by Trevor Noah

I'm sure most of my readers are familiar with Trevor Noah. Born a Crime is his humorous memoir of growing up with a white Swiss father and a black Xhosa mother in South Africa during apartheid, when a relationship with someone of another race was punishable by prison sentence. Needless to say, Noah has an engaging story to tell. And, with his trademark wit and sharply sardonic cultural observation, he tells it well.

Born a Crime doesn't feel like a book, so much as it feels like a collection of essays, each chapter independently delving into a different facet of Noah's childhood, which is of stark contrast the young experiences of many of his readers. In addition to his honest portrayal of his upbringing and the political climate in which it happened, Noah also brings the personality of a lovable rascal--so different from that of the typical memoirist, which is refreshing and helps the book come alive. Many people who grow up to write their memoirs were quiet readers, social outcasts, nerds, or dealt with abusive situations at home. Noah's bent toward juvenile delinquency and his uniquely honest way of relating to his mom help make his portrayal of his childhood self a triumph.

Ultimately, when one picks up Born a Crime, one is signing on for many things: a small, but painless, civics lesson in apartheid, a carefully-curated selection of Noah's most meaningful or entertaining boyhood memories, and all of it served up with the treatment of Noah's personal humorous style, which will bring audiences back to his narrative again and again. This book fills all of the promises it has made, and more. 

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

Book Review of The Cruelty by Scott Bergstrom

The Cruelty by Scott Bergstrom comes out today, and there are lots of reasons why you should buy it. Answering "yes" to any of these questions, for example. Do you always want to know where the kick ass protagonist of a story you otherwise enjoyed got the skill that saved her life, and feel like it is a cop-out if she just suddenly seems to have the right bit of information at the crucial moment? Do you like books that deal with complex problems of society in thoughtful and non-dismissive ways? Do you appreciate characters with more to them than meets the eye, and stories where you aren't sure who can be trusted? That said, I hate the two cover designs I've seen.

Anyhow, Gwendolyn Bloom is a complicated protagonist who comes by all of her skills and knowledge honestly, which I really appreciate. She and her story both have plenty of grit... much more than the publisher's publicity team seemed to think when they chose to market this title by including a "discover your own spy name" meme sheet with my ARC. Because, this isn't a "discover your own spy name" kind of story. This is an "if Gwendolyn Bloom can think nine steps ahead of all of the adult players in the very dicey international situation in which she becomes embroiled when her father suddenly disappears, then maybe she will get out alive" book, cutesy spy names nonwithstanding.

The most apt description I can come up with is: a YA version of Alias, but even that falls short, as the stakes feel so much higher, and Gwendolyn Bloom is much more of a solo agent than Syndey Bristow ever seemed. Ignore the bad cover design and the silly marketing plan, and look forward to meeting a polyglot protagonist who is as well-read as Hermione Granger and as snarky as Veronica Mars. The Cruelty comes out today.

I received a review copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

Book Review of Father's Road, Written by Ji-yun Jang, Illustrated by Tan Jun

Father's Road, Written by Ji-yun Jang and Illustrated by Tan Jun is a picture book about the Silk Road. It is presented with a glossary of terms, a map, and a timeline of events in the back because it is part of the Trade Winds series, self-described as "an educational series featuring stories set in key periods in the history of economy and culture." The cover, featuring drab colors and a less than lush illustration begins to depict one of my problems with the book, which tells the story of young Wong Chung and his journey on the Silk Road with his father, who works as a trader.

As an adult, I enjoy picture books because I like looking at different styles of illustrations. I see picture books as a way to explore the work of various illustrators, and experience their personal ways of putting me into the story the author is trying to tell. Unfortunately, in the case of Father's Road, Tan Jun failed at this. I didn't feel I was enmeshed in the story at all, because I kept marveling at how drab the colors were and how bleak and unfinished the illustrations looked (as if concept sketches, rather than completed pieces of art, were used in the final book). I wondered how the most exciting scenes in the story (a skirmish with bandits, a wind storm in the dessert) were depicted in such a boring, washed-out way. There are many colorful items being trade on the Silk Road, but readers of this book never get to enjoy them fully because of the bleak color choices Tan Jun used.

Obviously, the other main component of a picture book is the narrative, and Ji-yun Jang's narrative had some glaring flaws. For one thing, Wong Chung's father never seems to give any kind of clear or helpful direction to his son until it is too late, or Wong Chung is going to ignore it for plot purposes. For another, when Wong Chung does finally get clear direction from his father (...after not being told to do things like ration his water or keep his mouth closed so sand won't get in it--really? I'm supposed to buy that?), he immediately ignores it to provide medical assistance to a child of the bandits who have just attacked him, his father, and their crew. Instead of any negative consequences for disobeying the one clear instruction from his Dad, Wong Chung is rewarded for this choice. Such a narrative thread for a picture book intended for young children is bizarre and will probably just confuse them about ideas like listening to their parents, especially because Wong Chung is then praised for his bravery (he was brave for ignoring his Dad?).

Ultimately, Father's Road completely missed the mark. I'm all for historical picture books, but picture books should put the reader into the story and not be confusing to young readers. This one failed on both counts.

I received a free copy of this book from LibraryThing in exchange for my honest review.

Book Review of Mexico: Stories by Josh Barkan

Mexico, by Josh Barkan, is a collection of short stories, each about a character who is trying to lead his or her life until crime intervenes. I received a review copy from Blogging For Books in exchange for my honest review. The cover, a design which would be beautiful, if a bit twee for the subject material, has large, distracting ink blots obscuring much of the illustration. I wonder if the intent was to contrast the potential beauty of Mexico with the ugliness of the crime depicted in Barkan's stories contained herein, showing how it detracts from the otherwise pretty setting and culture. If so, it wholly fails, leaving me as the reader with the impression that the goal was a cover design reflecting an American tourist's conceit of Mexico, rather than the gritty reality Barkan seems so desperate to convey.

Flipping inward, my experience as a reader did not improve. The first story features a chef running his own restaurant in Mexico City who is caught unawares when El Chapo appears at his restaurant, demanding the finest meal he has ever eaten, but prepared with only two ingredients, and threatening to kill him if it doesn't meet that standard. As El Chapo's security detail and attendant thugs take over the restaurant and terrify its staff and diners, the chef indulges in dull reflections about his wife and young son, not seeming to experience the kind of panic for one second that would've lent even a small amount of verisimilitude to this situation, which is improbable, at best. From there, my doubt mounted when the chef settled on Wagyu beef garnished with human blood. After tasting his own and determining it too bitter and salty, Barkan then presumes I will buy that the mother of a young girl in the dining room will allow her daughter to be mutilated for the chef's purposes, without any threats or explanation beforehand? At that point, a spaceship landing in the kitchen would've been more realistic, and less disturbing.

However, my biggest issue with Mexico: stories is that it feels like it was written by an outsider. The author of this book might have observed the land, the people, and the culture, but I get the feeling that he does not understand them. It feels much more like this book was written by someone who lives part time in Roanoke, Virginia than by one who lives part time in Mexico City, though his author bio says he divides his time among the two. It showcases the simplistic view of Mexico that it's a nice country which could be great if there were no crime. Gee, you think? I'm pretty sure there's a little more to it than that. Ultimately, my problem with Mexico: stories is that it wasn't written by somebody from Mexico... and that's how it reads.

Book Review of Lola by Melissa Scrivner Love

Lola by Melissa Scrivner Love is far from my normal fare. It is grittier than some of my favorite YA "issue books," set an an ultra realistic (and ultra depressing) place, and it deals with experiences to which I thought I would never be able to relate. But, I like to stretch myself as a reader because, occasionally, those stretches outside of my comfort zone pay off more than I could've ever predicted, teaching me about the world and myself, and introducing me to a book so wonderful that it almost defies description. So, that notion, combined with the intriguing jacket copy calling Lola the protagonist "an unforgettable woman who combines the genius and ferocity of Lisbeth Salander with the ruthless ambition of Walter White" and the description that, while Lola appears to be the submissive girlfriend of gang leader Garcia, she is actually the one pulling the strings, I was interested enough to give it a try. Also, the cover is just brilliant, and features gorgeous texturing and debossing which isn't evident from the picture, but feels great in your hands.

It is marketed as a thriller, but it doesn't feel like one. Instead, it is a study in character, a tour through the landscape of a South Central LA neighborhood where a new washer and dryer might breed suspicion or envy, a look at how gang turf warfare isn't simply the endless string of gunfights Hollywood has made it out to be, but can be as strategic as a chess match, a constant examination of personal ethics as the ideal versus a practical situational response, and a breakdown of what it is like to exist as a woman who has the power so often reserved only for a man... just as long as her power is kept a secret. I didn't read Lola (all in one sitting, staying up several hours past when I'm normally in bed) because I wanted to know how it ended, I kept reading Lola because I wanted to spend every last page I could inside her head.

So, don't read Lola because you enjoy gunfights, because you are always on the lookout for the next incarnation of West Side Story, or because you hope it will get your adrenaline pumping. Read Lola because Melissa Scrivner Love has crafted a character so strong, so strategic, so astute, and so compellingly realistic that you wouldn't be surprised if you ran into her at the grocery store. Read Lola because this is a book about what living in a man's world costs a woman, and what she stands to gain by embracing the invisibility that status confers upon her and using it to her advantage. Read Lola because this is a book about a woman who scrubs floors on her hands and knees for people who have treated her worse than an animal, a woman who pretends to defer as she serves coffee and cookies to men who think they call the shots, but a who is actually just pretending to be meek and servile until the time is right. Lola might just be the most unconventionally feminist character I have ever encountered, and she is unforgettable.

Lola by Melissa Scrivner Love comes out on March 21.

(P.S. As a sidenote for all of my fellow Kiki Strike fans out there, I'm pretty sure Lola was who Kiki Strike wanted to be when she grew up. You know, when she said, "Dangerous.")

I received a copy of Lola from the publisher via Shelf Awareness in exchange for my honest review.

Book Review of The French Chef In America: Julia Child's Second Act by Alex Prud'Homme

In The French Chef In America: Julia Child's Second Act, Alex Prud'Homme (fully qualified to write on the subject because of his relationship to Child as the grandson of her husband's brother) captures her essence. For those who read and loved My Life In France, which he authored with Child herself, Prud'Homme considers this a sequel, of sorts. ...and, like the subject herself, it is delightful.

Readers will notice certain differences between this and the standard biography right from the start; it has a more lively conversational tone, entertaining pictures are interspersed throughout the book instead of grouped together in one middle section, and Prud'Homme's own familial relationship with Child adds a level of personal warmth and friendly regard not usually lavished upon most biographical subjects. These traits combine to make reading The French Chef In America a tasty morsel, worthy of Child's own kitchen.

For those with an interest in Julia Child, the American historical and political landscape of the 1970s, and Child's most meaningful personal relationships, including her marriage to Paul Child, her friendship with editor Judith Jones, and her unoffical sisterhood with her co-author Simca Beck, this book will serve to delight and inform. Highly recommended.

Thank you to Blogging For Books for providing this free review copy in exchange for my honest review.

Book Review of The Last Of August by Brittany Cavallaro

The Last Of August, Brittany Cavallaro's second book in the Charlotte Holmes trilogy, was the 2017 release I most anticipated reading, and it exceeded my expectations soundly. Though I had no doubt that Cavallaro would do the traditions of Homes and Watson justice in this refreshing new incarnation (she is a devoted Sherlockian, to be sure), I wondered how she would managed to amp up the already palpable tension twixt the two. Fear not, fellow readers who have preordered the book and are poised to run to the mailbox and check for your copy: The Last Of August will leave you with just one lingering question--how will the trilogy's last volume close this amazing relationship arc? But, let's just fangirl about the artful cover for a second, okay?

...I really love how it shows vignettes from the mystery, and somehow seems to convey the motion even though it uses still images. They come alive! Oh, and speaking of that mystery? It takes the reader to fascinating locales. There are no shortage of plot twists along the way. And, as usual, Watson's hunger to solve the case and prove himself to Holmes is predictably endearing.

On a more serious note, I'd been wondering how the Holmes/Watson relationship dynamic would move forward, given Charlotte's obvious PTSD. I trusted the author not to gloss over emotional/psychological fallout from the events of A Study In Charlotte, and I was curious to see how these two vastly different characters would each deal with this issue when attempting to relate to one another in the midst of solving a second mystery together. Without giving any spoilers, I loved that things did not go perfectly, and I also appreciated that the struggle to connect after trauma was portrayed in a very realistic and sensitive way. Cavallaro really knows her characters and subject matter.

I wasn't lucky to snag an ARC of this on my own, but I WAS lucky enough that a kind lady by the name of Brianna shared hers with me. So, Brianna, thanks for letting me borrow your ARC, thus enabling me to write this review! You are full of awesome. If I get an ARC of book 3, I've got your back.

The Last Of August comes out on February 14th, so it isn't too late to preorder a copy. I wouldn't hesitate! I'm already looking forward to reading this book again.

Book Review of Girl In Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow

I loved Girl, Interrupted. I also really enjoyed Everything, Everything, whose author, Nicola Yoon, has great things to say about this book. So, I thought there was a good chance I'd really enjoy Girl in Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow, and I requested a free review copy from Blogging for Books. However, that was not the case.

My dislike began with the cover design. I don't care for pink, but this shade is muted enough that it didn't sway me one way or another. However, I feel like the red lines clash rather painfully with it. Additionally, I'd be most interested to see a font (which is obviously supposed to mimic handwriting) that looks like a teenage girl, such as Charlotte, the protagonist of Girl In Pieces, might actually use. The handwriting used in the cover design, however, is more akin to that of a middle-aged male who works in science or engineering... which would be apropos if there was such a character documenting Charlotte's trials in the book, but there isn't.

As for the actual story, the narrative moves slowly, and in a frustratingly disjointed fashion. There are details which either aren't clarified enough to make sense, or simply don't line up at all, such as the fact that it says Charlotte was left somewhere naked, wrapped in a sheet, but then a scene is described where those who found her are cutting her clothes off of her in order to treat her medically. These confusing inconsistencies piled up until they overtook the character and her story, making it impossible for me to invest in either.

If you're looking for a YA novel about mental illness, I'd encourage you to read this article and check out any of the books recommended therein: I've read most of them, and enjoyed all of those. 

Book Review of The Only Thing Worse Than Me Is You by Lily Anderson

I heard about The Only Thing Worse Than Me Is You by Lily Anderonfrom literary agent Eric Smith's Twitter feed several months ago and have only now worked my way up the hold list at the local library. I'm glad I stuck with it because it really lived up to Eric Smith's blurb, which reads "This is the kind of book that would get lost with you in a comic-book shop. It would stay up late with you for a midnight-release movie. It would let you practice your movies in a fighting game before things got started. Basically, this book is the geeky best friend you've always wanted." It also says some more things, but you get the idea.

The Only Thing Worse Than Me Is You is a YA Geekmance, and the stuff that dreams are made of. The cover, however, is not. I thought the cover design left much to be desired, and I would've preferred to see comic book versions of the main characters, instead of the photo.

In addition to the glowing comments of Eric Smith, whose opinion I greatly respect, I was particularly excited to read this book because I really enjoy good YA geekmance, and it is scarce. (I did have another good find in that subgenre recently, however. Review of Geekerella to come shortly.) I also like YA versions of Shakespeare plays, and this was an especially nice retelling of Much Ado About Nothing. Also, the nerdy cultural references were completely on point. From Sarah Vowell to Firefly, and Harry Potter to high-pressure academics, I was nodding in recognition for most of the book.

Well done, Lily Anderson! I'm going to purchase a copy of this gem to live on my bookshelf right next to Dramacon and The Summer I Became a Nerd. I suggest the rest of you do the same!

Book Review of Mamaleh Knows Best: What Jewish Mothers Do to Raise Successful, Creative, Empathetic, Independent Children By Marjorie Ingall

I had my doubts when I first requested a free copy of Mamaleh Knows Best for review from Blogging For Books. I've read a few different books on the topic of Jewish mothers, and found them to range from sorely lacking (at best) to completely offensive and wildly off-base (at worst). So, to be honest, I was expecting the worst, but my fears were far from realized. I did not, however, love the cover design.

But, as I began reading, I was immediately impressed by Marjorie Ingall's cultural and aesthetic literacy, her breadth of knowledge about topics ranging from Jews in the context of World History to Yiddish, and the Talmud to jokes on sitcoms. Not only did I want to hear what she had to say about being raised by a Jewish mother and being one herself, but I enjoyed her take on pretty much everything from pop culture to the nosy motorcycle mechanic across the street. In fact, not only have I already made a mental note to seek out Ingall's other writing, what with a new subscription to Tablet Magazine becoming the late addition to my Hanukkah wishlist, but I also found myself wishing Marjorie had been in my Hebrew School class. ...and my cabin at Jewish sleepaway camp.

While many readers may pick up Mamaleh Knows Best because they are interested in parenting advice, it is worth noting that I fully enjoyed the book, and I don't have kids. It can also be read as an entertaining and informative look at Jewish history and culture, and it has certainly earned its place in my permanent collection!

Highly recommended.