I had no idea who this woman was until I read Birdie and Harlow (I came across this book in the “coming soon” section of the library’s website) but apparently she had a popular blog for a long time that seems to be defunct now. I thought it might be fun to read a light … Continue reading
Category Archives: memoir
Exit Interview: The Life and Death of My Ambitious Career by Kristi Coulter
I don’t even think I realized Exit Interview was about Amazon until I checked it out of the library, it was a “coming soon” title and the author seemed familiar so I put it on hold. The cover should have been a little clue but I think I thought it was just about office work. … Continue reading
The Golden Ticket: A Life in College Admissions Essays by Irena Smith
The Golden Ticket: A Life in College Admissions Essays by Irena Smith was the rare book that really surprises me with it’s content. In retrospect I can see how the title can be read both ways–her life written in the style of college admissions essays or her life in college admissions essays. It is a … Continue reading
50 Pies, 50 States: An Immigrant’s Love Letter to the United States Through Pie by Stacey Mei Yan Fong
The book is cute and has a ton of novelty pie recipes in it if that is your thing. The essays about her life growing up were the strongest most cohesive parts of the book. However big takeaway for me was how many references to beer and drinking there were. Nearly every story about a … Continue reading
Unraveling: What I Learned about Life While Shearing Sheep, Dyeing Wool, and Making the World’s Ugliest Sweater by Peggy Orenstein
Honestly, I was a little disappointed by Unraveled. I almost didn’t request it because I had her confused with the odious Peggy Noonan and thought what a waste of a good idea on her! Then I realized my mistake and waited weeks to get it. I thought this would be a real book highlight of … Continue reading
Congratulations! The Best is Over by Eric R. Thomas
Honestly, I read Congratulations! The Best is Over as soon as I was offered the galley because I was baffled that a man who said he grew up in Baltimore could get so much wrong about the city and state of Maryland in his last book. In this one he admits he has no sense … Continue reading
Owner of a Lonely Heart by Beth Nguyen
I always love her memoirs and writing in general and this one filled in some gaps in her life’s story. I love how she writes about her biological mother and how fraught that relationship is. She writes very honestly about her father and how he has changed into a very different man with her children … Continue reading
We Should Not Be Friends: The Story of a Friendship by Will Schwalbe
I agreed with the title, they should not be friends but not for the reasons the author seems to think. Maxey is an interesting, accepting, loving larger-than-life character. I enjoyed reading about his interesting and passionate life quite a bit. However, I never got a great feel for the author at all. What did he … Continue reading
Fatty Fatty Boom Boom: A Memoir of Food, Fat, and Family by Rabia Chaudry
I didn’t read her first book until right before I picked this one up. As I read it, I thought she really should have made it a memoir about how she became obsessed with Adan Syed during what seemed like many low points during her life. She talked a lot about her personal life in … Continue reading
Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing by Matthew Perry
I will say up front I never really watched Friends, have no real interest in Friends, and even when it was first airing I felt it was an oddly retrograde throwback show to an imaginary all-white NYC where no one really had to work to live. That said, it was impossible to avoid reading about … Continue reading