All posts tagged: book review

The Quick and the Dead

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I will be honest – I was not looking forward to reading this book, but I have been on an unintentional hiatus and I just didn’t want it to last any longer. So here I was, holding my Kindle, Stiff on the screen, simply dreading reading a book about dead bodies when I so recently had to confront the reality of death in my life. That being said, here’s the good side. Roach’s writing is engaging, the topic is (admittedly) interesting, and I even found myself chuckling more than just a bit – she seems to have a delightfully dry, witty sense of humor and it comes across clearly in her writing. I truly do understand the value in using human cadavers to study most of the things Roach wrote about, and it really is fascinating what important information and learning can come from the science of the dead. Also, it was a fast read – just what I needed to break the hiatus. And here’s the bad side. Not really bad, I suppose. More like… …

Fast and Loose with Stiff

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It took me longer than I’d expected to finish(ish) this one. I was excited to read this one, but it came at a busy time… the holidays, my brother’s wedding, the onset of winter illnesses for every member of my family. Ya know, the usual December/January stuff. So, I started off strong, but things kind of tapered off toward the end. I definitely enjoyed what I read, and learned a lot. There is a surprising amount to learn from cadaver “lives.” But I guess that’s what I liked most about this book, not only was it well written with a healthy lighten-the-mood sense of humor, but you could jump around with the chapters if needed. For example, I didn’t really have an interest in reading about plane crash cadavers. As a nervous flyer, I thought I’d do us all a favor by avoiding that one. But “Crimes of Anatomy,” “Holy Cadaver,” and “How to Know if You’re Dead” were my personal favorites. But, admittedly, there were a few more chapters at the end that I didn’t read. …

Stiff: An Interesting Case for Coping with Humor

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  As a physician and, I guess more specifically, someone who has participated in a gross anatomy lab, I have a specific point of view about human cadavers.  I will start by saying this – the book provides some truly interesting history on the matter.  For that point alone, I would say Roach’s book is a worthy one. Albeit, it is not one for everyone. The subject is a bit – um – macabre.  If you didn’t know that from the cover, I’m not sure reading is for you. Now what I really took away from this book is that how we deal with things that make us uncomfortable is rather universal. I often wondered why I wasn’t more bothered by anatomy lab my first year of medical school. I didn’t particularly want to get physically sick or feel overwhelming guilt. But I also didn’t want to feel how I did – like it was normal. There was nothing normal about what I was doing. History may suggest otherwise. Personally, though, gross anatomy lab was …

What the…

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Ok so I’m disturbed. Which is, I guess, the point of this book. But if the only point of the book is to disturb people, then I guess it is a success.  I’m not sure that tawdry is a driving force enough for me in my reads.  For my TV, absolutely.  I agree with Katherine C.  I was hoping for a more purpose to all the characters decisions and actions – some meaning to it all.  Not just money because that seems too easy.  I’ve got to be honest – I was just thinking that this must be the BEST lifetime movie. The absolute best.  I mean, right Katherine C.? I like my TV dumb and mindless and overly dramatic.  (AKA Real Housewives of Vanderpump Rules – Chopped edition. Also just in case you have also read this far…anything where they cook cupcakes – I’m all over that.) The problem is is that while reading the book, I just thought about that 1. icky and 2. I gotta get my hands on the lifetime movie. So …

Deeply Disturbing

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Whoa. That was … interesting. Somehow it felt very 70’s. I’m not sure why. Were the 70’s filled with child abuse and incest? This book would make you think so. Yikes. So yeah, Flowers in the Attic was very dark. I guess that’s to be expected considering the fact it’s about a narcissistic mother who locks her four children in an Attic for years. There’s that tiny happy part in the beginning, and then you just drudge for hundreds of pages through the poor lives of these innocent children living like abused zoo animals. It was pretty sad at parts, and really disturbing at others. And to what end? I’m not sure. I feel like for a book to have such dark and disturbing content there should be a reason for it… a particular message, lesson learned, or necessary story to tell. But with Flowers in the Attic there didn’t seem to be a need for half of it… like when Chris feeds them his blood. Really? Although, I will say I liked the ending. It …

Pleasantly Surprised

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Hi all! Sorry I’m a little behind the curve this month. Non-stop coughs and stuffy noses have kept me preoccupied. But I’ll get to the point. I really enjoyed our October book! I didn’t have many expectations. Until voting on this as our October selection I hadn’t even heard of this book. But it was a pleasant surprise. I thought it was a great story, and it was very well written. It was hard to read at times, considering it was about the abduction of a daughter, and the subsequent but inevitable decline of a formerly nuclear family. But I was on the edge of my seat the entire 375 pages. I loved how the author referred to certain characters as just “he” or “the boy.” It gave the characters just enough anonymity to build relatability. But at the same time, he managed to write the characters with such depth and realism. I love when a writer can tell you so much in just a few words. And that’s what it was like reading Descent. Johnston …

A [Thrilling] Ride Through the Rockies

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Most of the time when I pick up a suspense novel I expect writing that’s okay, but nothing too notable–which never bothers me, as long as I’m entertained. So I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked Tim Johnston’s way with words. He does a phenomenal job of depicting each personality, describing the environment, drawing out the tensions–allowing you to really absorb yourself in the story , despite the fact that it’s not your typical edge-of-your-seat thriller. While the story starts in a dramatic fashion, the majority of the novel is a very slow burn, setting up the characters–and I consider the Rocky Mountains to be one of them–in a way that makes you in no hurry to get to the end. In fact, the way in which Johnston incorporates the book’s setting is something at which he’s particularly skilled. There are still some things I’m working through–Caitlin’s mother, recurring themes that I don’t know what to make of, Sean and his role in the family–all signs that this is a book I won’t …

Descent – It’s Decent

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Honest to God, I thought this book was called Decent. I actually told someone I was going to start a book called Decent. And he said, “are you sure that is what it is called?” Aptly, this is what I ended up thinking of the book. Descent is decent. First of all, I must admit to something. I did not actually read this book.  I decided to take advantage of the free Audible book and try it as a “book on tape.”  This allowed me to listen to the book as I walked my dog, traveled to work, or took the subway. I have listened to books on tape on road trips before but never on my phone. I found this a great way to enjoy a book when my schedule isn’t really allowing for it.  Admittedly, it did take a little bit out of the enjoyment of the book.  Listening to a man’s voice speak as a woman – yea not so much. Let’s start with what I enjoyed about the book. The beautiful writing …

I Read a Classic and I Agree

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I, much like Katherine C., somehow made it this far in life without having read this American classic. It has never been that I didn’t want to or didn’t intend to. Perhaps I was afraid of not liking a classic. Or perhaps, much like the concept of cleaning out my closet, eating more greens, and timely filing of taxes, reading To Kill a Mockingbird has had a permanent place on my back burner. Until now….thank you fellow Kathryns for pushing me over the edge.

Slow on the Uptake

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I’ve finally finished our September read and my final opinion of this one is FAR from where I thought it’d end up. To Kill a Mockingbird has been on my list for a long time. But for reasons too long and boring to explain, it was never covered in any of my English courses. I’ve been hearing for years about what a classic it is, and I’ve always wanted to cross it off my list. I’m very glad I finally did. However, it took me a lot longer to get through than I thought it would. Truly, it wasn’t until about 200 pages in that I started to like it. Those first hundreds of pages were entertaining, yes. But they seemed aimless. Meandering stories of a young girl and her brother going on playful adventures in the summertime. Although, with the scene set for such a childhood, it makes what happens in the later half of the novel that much more powerful. It just takes a little while to see what all those stories are leading up to… 200 pages to …