Surviving Your Stupid Stupid Decision to Go to Grad School

Surviving Your Stupid Stupid Decision to Go to Grad School by Adam Ruben

My rating: 1 of 5 stars
Received: Library
Published: 2010
Publisher: Three Rivers Press
Recommended Age: 16+
Genres & Themes: Nonfiction, Humor, (Almost) Self Help, Academia, Grad School

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REVIEW:

I was about to finish this book. Literally, I was at 88% and it would have taken me maximum 30 more minutes to finish it. But then the author made yet another slut-shaming comment and I thought, ‘‘That’s it. The way this arrogant guy talks about women is just disgusting and I’m done.’’ Reading this book was a stupid, stupid decision. And you know what, it’s really shitty and selfish to tell your wife-to-be that you’re almost done with grad school when you know it’s a lie and to focus on academia during your honeymoon.

A Mind Spread Out on the Ground – Alicia Elliott

A Mind Spread Out on the Ground by Alicia Elliott

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Penguin Random House Canada
Published: March 26th, 2019
Publisher: Doubleday Canada
Recommended Age: 15+
Genres & Themes: Nonfiction, Essays, Indigenous Issues, Canada, Racism, Coming of Age, Poverty, Sexual Assault

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REVIEW:

I try to read both fiction and non-fiction books with a variety of themes – love, friendship, family, coming of age, racism, discrimination, abuse – but I think this is the first time I read essays from an indigenous author. I know she’d rather I didn’t label her but I needed to mention this because I try to read everything and anything and yet it’s very rare I encounter written works from native peoples. This has to change for me. I need to actively seek them out, because reading about poverty, abuse, sexual assault, racism and discrimination from different perspectives provides you with new understandings of these issues. If I only read about social issues discussed by white authors or African Americans as I tend to do, I am limiting myself to specific perspectives.

Sisters First: Stories from Our Wild and Wonderful Life

Sisters First: Stories from Our Wild and Wonderful Life by Jenna & Barbara Bush

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Received: Hachette Book Group Canada
Published: October 24th, 2017
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Recommended Age: 14+
Genres & Themes: Nonfiction, Memoir, Family, Siblings, Sisterhood, Coming of Age

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REVIEW:

This is what I like to read about: Family members loving each other and caring about each other and being there for each other. It simply warms my heart. You often see ‘‘perfect’’ families in movies, and it’s true no such thing exists, but you can have glorious bonds with those you are related to, that I am sure of.

Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup

Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Penguin Random House Canada
Published: May 21st, 2018
Publisher: Knopf Publishing Group
Recommended Age: 16+
Genres & Themes: Nonfiction, Business, True Crime, Science

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REVIEW:

A company that set out to save lives… only to put those same lives in danger with its malfunctioning technology.

What a scary and fascinating story. It’s hard to believe that Theranos really happened because you think that nowadays it’s easy to spot liars and lying technologies… but it’s not that easy after all, especially if the person duping you is as charismatic as this Elizabeth Holmes is.

I’m Just Happy to Be Here: A Memoir of Renegade Mothering

I’m Just Happy to Be Here: A Memoir of Renegade Mothering by Janelle Hanchett

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Hachette Book Group Canada
Published: May 2018
Publisher: Hachette Books
Pacing: Normal
Recommended Age: 15/16+
Genres & Themes: Adult, Memoir, Nonfiction, Parenting, Mental Illness, Addiction

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BLURB:

At 21, Janelle Hanchett embraced motherhood with the reckless self-confidence of those who have no idea what they’re getting into. Having known her child’s father for only three months, she found herself rather suddenly getting to know a newborn, husband, and wholly transformed identity. She was in love, but she was bored, directionless, and seeking too much relief in too much wine. Over time, as she searched for home in suburbia and settled life, a precarious drinking habit turned into treacherous dependence, until life became car seats and splitting hangovers, cubicles and multi-day drug binges–and finally, an inconceivable separation from her children. For ten years, Hanchett grappled with the relentless progression of addiction, bouncing from rehabs to therapists to the occasional hippie cleansing ritual on her quest for sobriety, before finding it in a way she never expected.

And Now We Have Everything: On Motherhood Before I Was Ready

And Now We Have Everything: On Motherhood Before I Was Ready by Meaghan O’Connell

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Hachette Book Group Canada
Published: April 10th, 2018
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
Recommended Age: 15+
Pacing: Fast
Genres & Themes: Adult, Memoir, Non-Fiction, Parenting, Childbirth, Relationships

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BLURB:

And Now We Have Everything is O’Connell’s brave exploration of transitioning into motherhood as a fledgling young adult. With her dark humor and hair-trigger B.S. detector, O’Connell addresses the pervasive imposter syndrome that comes with unplanned pregnancy, the second adolescence of a changing postpartum body, the problem of sex post-baby, the weird push to make “mom friends,” and the fascinating strangeness of stepping into a new, not-yet-comfortable identity.

One Day a Dot: The Story of You, the Universe, and Everything

One Day a Dot: The Story of You, the Universe, and Everything by Ian Lendler

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Received: Raincoast Books
Published: April 17th, 2018
Publisher: First Second
Genres & Themes: Picture Books, Children’s Books, Science, Non Fiction, Evolution

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BLURB:

One Day a Dot is a beautiful and vibrant picture book that uses the visual motif of circles as to guide young readers through the stages of life on Earth.

The Life-Changing Manga of Tidying Up: A Magical Story

The Life-Changing Manga of Tidying Up: A Magical Story by Marie Kondō

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Received: Diamond Distributors
Published: 2017
Publisher: Ten Speed Press
Recommended Age: 12+
Genres & Themes: Manga, Educational, Organization, Lifestyle, Cute

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BLURB:

From the #1 New York Times best-selling author and lifestyle/cleaning guru Marie Kondo, this graphic novelization brings Kondo’s life-changing tidying method to life with the fun, quirky story of a woman who transforms her home, work, and love life using Kondo’s advice and inspiration.

Brazen: Rebel Ladies Who Rocked the World

Brazen: Rebel Ladies Who Rocked the World by Pénélope Bagieu

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Received: Distributor
Published: March 2018
Publisher: First Second
Recommended Age: 12+
Pacing: Normal
Genres & Themes: Graphic Novel, Biography, Feminism, Coming of Age, Art, Science, History

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BLURB:

Throughout history and across the globe, one characteristic connects the daring women of Brazen: their indomitable spirit. Against overwhelming adversity, these remarkable women raised their voices and changed history. With her one-of-a-kind wit and dazzling drawings, celebrated graphic novelist Pénélope Bagieu profiles the lives of these feisty female role models, some world-famous, some little known. From Nellie Bly to Mae Jemison or Josephine Baker to Naziq al-Abid, the stories in this comic biography are sure to inspire the next generation of rebel ladies.

This Is Just My Face: Try Not to Stare – Gabourey Sidibe

This Is Just My Face: Try Not to Stare by Gabourey Sidibe

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Borrowed
Published: 2017
Publisher: HarperCollins
Recommended Age: 14+
Pacing: Normal
Genres & Themes: Nonfiction, Memoir, Humor, Coming of Age, Body Image, Mental Health, Celebrity

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BLURB:

Sidibe’s memoir hits hard with self-knowing dispatches on friendship, depression, celebrity, haters, fashion, race, and weight (“If I could just get the world to see me the way I see myself,” she writes, “would my body still be a thing you walked away thinking about?”). Irreverent, hilarious, and untraditional, This Is Just My Face takes its place and fills a void on the shelf of writers from Mindy Kaling to David Sedaris to Lena Dunham.