The Hypnotist's Love Story

The Hypnotist's Love Story by Liane Moriarty
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I picked this up because I just love Liane Moriarty, and I can't seem to help myself. This book really has the strangest premise, but I will apparently fall into a Moriarty rabbit hole whenever the opportunity presents itself. "What Alice Forgot" and "Big Little Lies" are much more compelling, but I still appreciated the way that Moriarty gives so much depth to her characters. I can't tell you to rush out and read it, but I am not sorry that I did. It was a perfectly acceptable summer read.

As always, happy reading--

What Alice Forgot...Again

What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

July 19, 2017
I don't usually reread books so soon after reading them the first time, but I really loved this book and I just needed to fall into Moriarty's well told story again. I love these characters and both Alice and Libby's conflicts resonate with life right now. If you haven't picked one of her books yet, you really should. They are exactly what summer ordered.

Happy reading--

ps. I would definitely suggest the Audible audio version. The Australian reader is fantastic. I wish she narrated my own life.

Textbook Amy and Wandering Powell's

Textbook Amy Krouse Rosenthal by Amy Krouse Rosenthal
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Dear Amy--

After revisiting your Encyclopedia over the fourth, I decided that I wanted to make your Textbook Amy my "Powell's purchase". That simply means that when my husband and I were going to Powell's City of Books in Portland, I was going to let myself buy one book. Sounds ridiculously arbitrary, but I have a book buying "problem", and I liked the idea of going with a book in mind. As I'm sure you know, Powell's is delightfully huge, and we wandered the store for ages....

Here's the best part though: in the kids section, Seth and I were studying all sorts of books. There are so many talented illustrators that you can't help but want to touch each cover. We stopped though and laughed at a book called "Duck! Rabbit!" because of one of our favorite "How I Met Your Mother" episodes about the very same debate. And then the book was by you, and it seemed too seredipitous to leave behind.

So I left Powell's that day with two books. One about you and one about a creature that I tend to think looks like a duck. I read "Textbook Amy" on the plane ride home from that trip while Seth slept beside me. And I cried knowing that you had died and felt more poignantly your wonder and appreciation of the simple and the grand. You make me want to be more appreciate of people and the little things that make up our days.

Anyway - thought you'd appreciate the random anecdote. We miss you and appreciate all the pieces of your infectious spirit that you left behind. Can't wait to read your thoughts on heaven.

Love,
Jaclyn

ps. A book store that takes up a city block really is a wonder. Counting down until we can go back. 

Alexander Hamilton

Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

First, I have to say that I feel so proud of myself for getting through this book. Am I allowed to say that? I never read straight historical non-fiction, and I never would have expected to enjoy this book as much as I did, despite the fact that I love history and Chernow is clearly a gifted historian. But this is a remarkable book that only makes me think more highly of Hamilton's vision and work ethic, not to mention my increased awe of Lin Manuel Miranda's Hamilton. To see how many lines and details of the musical were drawn from real letters and speeches was just awesome.

One of the big takeaways for me, besides being even more obsessed with the musical, is how astonishing it is that the American experiment was successful. With unbelieveable hamartias in each of the founding fathers, Hamilton included, and just so much ego, I am blown away by what it took for the United States to come into being. The complexities and nuances of how every bit of the constitution, the financial system, etc came to being seem miraculous. It was a stark reminder that no individual history - hero or villain - is just that one great or one horrendous moment that they are most remembered for. Just as I do not want to be judged for one day or one trait, the founding fathers and their often overlooked wives, were not perfect. Far from it from Chernow's descriptions, but they still did build this great nation that I am so proud to be a part of.

I was surprised to find myself tearing up in the conclusion of this epic book. I've known since that "Got Milk" commercial from the late 80s or early 90s, that Burr was going to kill Hamilton, but it felt so tragic and so unnecessary as I lived the final days and hours with the Hamiltons. More so, I felt weepy as the details of Eliza's fifty years as a widow unfolded. She was an amazing woman, and I'm glad for the chance to have gotten to "sit with her" as she told of her Hamilton.

Happy reading-- It's worth it!

Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life - Round Two

Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life by Amy Krouse Rosenthal
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

July 17, 2017
I picked this book up again because it was sitting on my mom's nightstand in Tahoe. After finishing another book that I loved and that had a happy ending, I wasn't quite ready to get into my other books with much darker, more intense themes. And so, I revisited Amy and her encyclopedia. I loved her book just as much as I did the first time, though I found myself almost in tears a few times thinking about how she had recently passed away.

Amy's candor and ability to describe the often mundane details of life with humor and wonder are just delightful. Cliche as it may be to say, rereading Amy's book was like revisiting an old friend who is dearly missed by many. Not to mention that Amy's writing makes me want to be a better journaler and writer myself - her seemingly random selection of details shows that the simple elements of life really are some of the most beautiful aspects of life. After finishing I started my own alphabet of potential entries. So far it includes Fire Sign, Tahoe, baby dreams, IUI, and book critic. I haven't added to it again, but I like the goal of looking at my days and weeks with more simple wonder and awe. It really is a wonderful life--

Happy reading--

The Sun Is Also A Star

The Sun Is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Things that I love about this book in no particular order:
*the cover - its colors and textures specifically
*the shared narration
*the insights into passing characters
*the various formats Yoon uses to tell the story (aka not all straight narrative prose)
*the specific visual details that make the story all the more tangible
*the resolution
*the well-expressed raw desires of each of the characters
*the fact that I can recommend this book to adults and teenagers without questioning whether either group will like it
*the whole story takes place in a day

Things that I didn't love about this book:
*it ended

Happy reading and happy summer--

Ps. It is one of great joys of life to read in the summer...especially when I finished this book on the couch in Tahoe with Seth fast asleep beside me. Perfectly delightful.