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March 17
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Christine
added a quote:
"Knowledge speaks, but wisdom listens"
— Jimi Hendrix
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March 01
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Christine
gave
 
to:
The Virgin Suicides (Paperback)
by Jeffrey Eugenides
bookshelves:
fiction,
own
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in February, 2008
Christine said:
"I got this book from my cousin in San Diego. She had finished reading it and was going to donate it, but I was in need for books to read, so I got it instead.
I think I would have liked this book better if it was written from a different point of...more
I got this book from my cousin in San Diego. She had finished reading it and was going to donate it, but I was in need for books to read, so I got it instead.
I think I would have liked this book better if it was written from a different point of view than 1st person plural. For some reason that really bothered me, although in the context of the book it made sense to write it that way.
I vaguely remember seeing the movie (or parts of it) at some point in my past. I'd actually be curious to see it again - I have a feeling it might be one of those rare instances in which I like the movie better than the book....less
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February 24
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Christine
gave
to:
The Glass Castle: A Memoir (Paperback)
by Jeannette Walls
bookshelves:
memoir,
nonfiction
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in February, 2008
Christine said:
"Wow.
I picked up this book earlier today, and read it just about straight through. The opening chapter immediately got my attention, and it was held throughout the book.
This memoir is so successful in part because the author doesn't wallow in s...more
Wow.
I picked up this book earlier today, and read it just about straight through. The opening chapter immediately got my attention, and it was held throughout the book.
This memoir is so successful in part because the author doesn't wallow in self-pity. I also found it fascinating from a psychological point of view - I kept trying to use my psych degree to come up with diagnoses for the parents of the author - besides the obvious alcoholism of the father.
I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed by this book, and may have to leave a better review later, when it's sunk in a bit. However, I must say it was definitely worth reading, and I went back and forth on whether I should rate it 4 stars or 5....less
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February 23
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Christine
gave
to:
Punching In: My Unauthorized Adventure as a Front Line Employee (Hardcover)
by Alex Frankel
bookshelves:
nonfiction
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in February, 2008
Christine said:
"This book had many fascinating aspects to it. I found the various ways that companies process applications and perform interviews to be really interesting. There is quite a bit of brainwashing (or attempted brainwashing) going on. Although that's ...more
This book had many fascinating aspects to it. I found the various ways that companies process applications and perform interviews to be really interesting. There is quite a bit of brainwashing (or attempted brainwashing) going on. Although that's not really a surprise, seeing it documented in such a way made me pause to analyze various job experiences in my own life.
Although I did enjoy this book, I also felt it to be lacking in analysis. I wanted something more. Perhaps part of the reason is that the author had, amazingly, never worked a front-line retail job before. Because of the short amount of time he spent at each job, I'm not sure he had the experience to really make any better conclusions than he did.
And I became grammatically confused by the use of Starbucks/Starbucks'/Starbucks's and Starbuckses (?!?!) in that chapter. Hrm....less
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February 15
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Christine
gave
to:
Man with Farm Seeks Woman with Tractor: The Best and Worst Personal Ads of All Time (Paperback)
by Laura J. Schaefer
bookshelves:
nonfiction
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in February, 2008
Christine said:
"I picked this up rather randomly at the library. It took perhaps a half hour to read. However, it had little substance - or too much, depending. Most of the ads were from the 1800's - early 1900's, which provides an interesting glimpse into what p...more
I picked this up rather randomly at the library. It took perhaps a half hour to read. However, it had little substance - or too much, depending. Most of the ads were from the 1800's - early 1900's, which provides an interesting glimpse into what people were looking for then (housekeepers and object: matrimony mostly). But after reading the flowery language of the first 10 or so, it does get rather old. Nothing in here was laugh-out-loud funny, although there were a couple of poetic ads.
Although I did find the older ads interesting, I'm surprised this got published without covering a larger selection of modern ads from the internet. My previous experiences with internet dating certainly showed a huge gap in the quality of ads, from utterly charming to utterly charmless. Of course, when I've posted ads, they've been the former - you wouldn't expect less of me, right?...less
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February 13
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Christine
gave
to:
The Logic of Life (Hardcover)
by Tim Harford
bookshelves:
nonfiction
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in February, 2008
Christine said:
"This book looks to be interesting, in a similar vein to Freakonomics.
BUT: I'm on page 4 of chapter 1, and my hackles are already up. Why? Because of the term "regular sex" being used interchangeably with "penetrative sex," ...more
This book looks to be interesting, in a similar vein to Freakonomics.
BUT: I'm on page 4 of chapter 1, and my hackles are already up. Why? Because of the term "regular sex" being used interchangeably with "penetrative sex," specifically excluding "oral sex" as being "regular". It's a little better than if the term "normal sex" was used... but not by much. It seems all the more strange since part of the author's point is that the performance of oral sex is increasing - making it even more "regular."
Going to jump off my high horse for the moment. I'm sure that the author didn't mean to show any judgment by using the term "regular sex," but my studies have made me sensitive to even the possibility. Let's see where this chapter goes...
EDIT
Well, I just finished the book. I thought it was worth reading despite my frustration at the beginning (as documented above) and despite losing interest and skimming the last two chapters. I may go back and read the author's first book at some point....less
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February 10
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Christine
gave
to:
The Milagro Beanfield War: A Novel (Paperback)
by John Nichols
bookshelves:
fiction
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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Christine said:
"I was reminded of this book while reading an article in the paper about "One Book, One Denver." This book was previously selected.
My former roommate lent me the book, telling me it was laugh out loud funny. I found it tedious and bori...more
I was reminded of this book while reading an article in the paper about "One Book, One Denver." This book was previously selected.
My former roommate lent me the book, telling me it was laugh out loud funny. I found it tedious and boring. I actually did not complete this book, which is rare for me. I felt that the book had a single joke that repeated over and over, and yet was supposed to be still be funny each and every time.
Who knows. I still regret the two hours of my life I gave to watching "Napoleon Dynamite" - perhaps the same sense of humor is needed to appreciate this book....less
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Christine
gave
to:
The Children's Hospital (Hardcover)
by Chris Adrian
bookshelves:
fiction
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in February, 2008
Christine said:
"I found the first half of this book fascinating, which makes the tedious second half of the book all the more disappointing.
I may add more to this review later - having finished the book only in the last hour, I haven't absorbed all of it yet. ...more
I found the first half of this book fascinating, which makes the tedious second half of the book all the more disappointing.
I may add more to this review later - having finished the book only in the last hour, I haven't absorbed all of it yet. Alas, at the moment, I mostly feel relief that it's done....less
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February 05
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Christine
gave
to:
Atonement: A Novel (Paperback)
by Ian McEwan
bookshelves:
fiction,
own
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in February, 2008
Christine said:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
*POSSIBLE SPOILER*
When I saw the movie, I thought that Briony truly believed her accusations, while a coworker thought differently due to a flashback scene - she thought that Briony intentionally accused the wrong person. The book seems to support my view - but honestly, I'm not entirely sure that I didn't miss something. There's still a big grey area there....less
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