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justicepirate's reviews
1279 reviews
Fierce: How Competing for Myself Changed Everything by Aly Raisman
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
3.0
I enjoyed watching Aly Raisman's routines and skills in the Olympics she was in. It was good to learn a little about her life. She has been blessed with a good family, has worked hard on her sport, and wrote a book that wasn't too bad. I have read books by her fellow teammates in the past. They all have very different stories, and hers is not less special than theirs. I am glad I finally read this. She seems like a nice lady. I am actually glad in the lack of things she wrote about Larry Nasser in this, but still explaining that she was abused. I think that is a small part of her story and that he should not take away from all her accomplishments. I am glad that she explained how much better she was treated by other doctors to let her know that Larry Nasser was doing things that seemed off.
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual assault
Know My Name by Chanel Miller
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
When the Brock Turner news came out, I wrote an article about it on a blog for the non-profit that I am with that fights human trafficking. It was tragic to hear later on about how short his sentencing was for the assault against Chanel. She had gone by another name due to being anonymous to protect her identity, but she has written this to let us know her side of the story. I had read what she wrote that was released to the public after the sentencing went through, to give a glimpse of her own feelings, but now, in her book, I am really grateful to learn more. Considering the hardships she has gone through; I appreciate her candidness and her willingness to move forward the best to her ability. I will say, towards the end, she did repeat stuff she had already shared with us, but I understand why. She did get a little political at points, but that is because it was in association to the time period and what she was going through.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault
The One and Only Ruby by Katherine Applegate
informative
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
My older children and I read The One and Only Ivan several years ago when it came out. We loved it. There was a lot of beauty in it. We actually all have read several of Katherine Applegate's books and love her way of captivating us with her stories. She is one of our favorite children's authors. Now, I did not read the second book yet from this series, but my second older child did and said there wasn't really much to worry about other than one character. I read this book aloud to my family little by little each night.
The problem we had with this book, is it is basically told from a baby elephant's perspective and therefore was aimed for what seemed to be a younger generation of children than the rest of the series. It was definitely a more childish feel to it. There were things that were a little heavy in it. The story wasn't bad, it just didn't captivate us enough. It was also shorter. The only issue that Ruby was dealing with was facing a new stage in her life that she didn't know she was ready for. She then backtracks through her memories when she was very small. This is where things got to be a little bit darker, but it was handled as a way to teach children about what goes on in the wilderness for some elephants. There is always a message that is meant to come across in Katherine Applegate's books, and this was part of her message.
It wasn't bad, we liked it, but we feel it lacked a bit, is all.
The problem we had with this book, is it is basically told from a baby elephant's perspective and therefore was aimed for what seemed to be a younger generation of children than the rest of the series. It was definitely a more childish feel to it. There were things that were a little heavy in it. The story wasn't bad, it just didn't captivate us enough. It was also shorter. The only issue that Ruby was dealing with was facing a new stage in her life that she didn't know she was ready for. She then backtracks through her memories when she was very small. This is where things got to be a little bit darker, but it was handled as a way to teach children about what goes on in the wilderness for some elephants. There is always a message that is meant to come across in Katherine Applegate's books, and this was part of her message.
It wasn't bad, we liked it, but we feel it lacked a bit, is all.
The Art of Making Memories: How to Create and Remember Happy Moments by Meik Wiking
informative
slow-paced
2.0
I had read Meik Wiking's other books (The Little Book of Hygge and The Little Book of Lykke). I had liked those books. This book was a bit boring but made sense for him to write considering he has his business where they calculate happiness around the world in different forms. Memories are important and keep us connected to ourselves and our families and friends. I felt like most of what was mentioned in this book were things that we all pretty much knew about. We all know how to make happy memories. I think there should have been more in-depth conversation in this though.
Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson
challenging
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
This was an interesting way to write an autobiography, in a sort of prose form.
Jacqueline was born to a family that was split not too far into her life. She grew up in various parts of the country before her mom settled her with her siblings in New York City. She keeps this book as easy to understand for a child learning about what a brown/black girl may have gone through growing up during the Civil Rights Movement when voting rights were granted to brown/black people. She also talks about growing up in a Jehovah's Witness family.
While the main idea of this book shows that Jacqueline's hope for herself was to become a writer, and that many people didn't support this idea she had, but she didn't give it up, I feel like there were not enough understanding of things.
There was a portion of the book where I gasped because of something she wrote about her little brother, but then later on it was as if she tricked us and said that thing was just for that moment but not for all time. I'm trying to write this part without spoiling what went on, but it really threw me for a loop with her sort of "take back" for it.
I have questions left. She doesn't really talk much about her father after a certain point and I would have loved to have learned more, unless she did her best to not talk about pains of not being around him enough.
This was very well written, even if I am not a big prose fan.
It was a story to give hope to those who may be growing up in a similar situation as she. I did like it. It was on my to-read list probably longer than most all the other books! If I were in middle school, I don't think I would have enjoyed it, and it was written for them. I would have turned my head trying to understand the references she had to music (even though at forty years old, I knew all the references, but I just feel like a kid who is 12 today would not understand a lot of them). I think this would have been better aimed for an older audience.
Jacqueline was born to a family that was split not too far into her life. She grew up in various parts of the country before her mom settled her with her siblings in New York City. She keeps this book as easy to understand for a child learning about what a brown/black girl may have gone through growing up during the Civil Rights Movement when voting rights were granted to brown/black people. She also talks about growing up in a Jehovah's Witness family.
While the main idea of this book shows that Jacqueline's hope for herself was to become a writer, and that many people didn't support this idea she had, but she didn't give it up, I feel like there were not enough understanding of things.
There was a portion of the book where I gasped because of something she wrote about her little brother, but then later on it was as if she tricked us and said that thing was just for that moment but not for all time. I'm trying to write this part without spoiling what went on, but it really threw me for a loop with her sort of "take back" for it.
I have questions left. She doesn't really talk much about her father after a certain point and I would have loved to have learned more, unless she did her best to not talk about pains of not being around him enough.
This was very well written, even if I am not a big prose fan.
It was a story to give hope to those who may be growing up in a similar situation as she. I did like it. It was on my to-read list probably longer than most all the other books! If I were in middle school, I don't think I would have enjoyed it, and it was written for them. I would have turned my head trying to understand the references she had to music (even though at forty years old, I knew all the references, but I just feel like a kid who is 12 today would not understand a lot of them). I think this would have been better aimed for an older audience.
The Devil's Half Acre: The Untold Story of How One Woman Liberated the South's Most Notorious Slave Jail by Kristen Green
dark
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
2.0
Let me explain why I rated this book as I did.
I abosolutely loved all the research done on this. There is a lot of information on slavery, what people went through while in slavery in the 1700s-1800s, as told by the author.
There is information on Harriet Jacobs, Solomon Northrup, Harriet Tubman, Henry Box, Frederick Douglas, and others. The problem is not what was told about the slave trade at all, the problem is that most of these people have autobiographies that I have already read. This is supposed to be a book specifically about the well-known slave jail and holding place of slaves in between sales called "The Devil's Half Acre" in which I wanted information on.
This book does its best to talk about the life of Mary Lumpkin, who was the forced child bride slave of Robert Lumpkin. She had many of his babies for him and left everything of his to her in his will. Eventually the jail became a school.
This book would be very short, since there are implied understandings of Mary Lumpkin's life. There are too many assumptions about her made by the author. I wanted facts and actual history, not a "perhaps" put in here and there.
If you want a book that has great information about the slave trade and what people endured as their children were pulled from their breasts and sold, then this is for you. If you are hoping to learn about Mary Lumpkin, just skip it. There isn't enough information.
I abosolutely loved all the research done on this. There is a lot of information on slavery, what people went through while in slavery in the 1700s-1800s, as told by the author.
There is information on Harriet Jacobs, Solomon Northrup, Harriet Tubman, Henry Box, Frederick Douglas, and others. The problem is not what was told about the slave trade at all, the problem is that most of these people have autobiographies that I have already read. This is supposed to be a book specifically about the well-known slave jail and holding place of slaves in between sales called "The Devil's Half Acre" in which I wanted information on.
This book does its best to talk about the life of Mary Lumpkin, who was the forced child bride slave of Robert Lumpkin. She had many of his babies for him and left everything of his to her in his will. Eventually the jail became a school.
This book would be very short, since there are implied understandings of Mary Lumpkin's life. There are too many assumptions about her made by the author. I wanted facts and actual history, not a "perhaps" put in here and there.
If you want a book that has great information about the slave trade and what people endured as their children were pulled from their breasts and sold, then this is for you. If you are hoping to learn about Mary Lumpkin, just skip it. There isn't enough information.
The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This is a historical fiction story for middle grade aged children. I'd say, age 13 and up is a good age for this, as there is some violent situations mentioned that might be too much for younger kids.
Nisha is writing a diary to her deceased mother. She has grown up in India, but as she is writing in the diary, the country is being split into Pakistan and India. She lives on the Pakistan side, but her father in a Hindu, while her mother was Muslim. The family is figuring out where to go, how to go there, and what home will look like for them.
It was a well written story. It doesn't talk a lot about the situation that occurred in 1947, but it tells enough from an understanding of a 12-year-old, and I appreciated that. Some children just are thrown into situations without really fully comprehending what is going on around them.
Nisha is writing a diary to her deceased mother. She has grown up in India, but as she is writing in the diary, the country is being split into Pakistan and India. She lives on the Pakistan side, but her father in a Hindu, while her mother was Muslim. The family is figuring out where to go, how to go there, and what home will look like for them.
It was a well written story. It doesn't talk a lot about the situation that occurred in 1947, but it tells enough from an understanding of a 12-year-old, and I appreciated that. Some children just are thrown into situations without really fully comprehending what is going on around them.
Ready or Not by Cara Bastone
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
This is about a woman who becomes pregnant with a man she didn't really know at all but decides she will have the baby. She wants him to know and be involved in the child's life but has no idea how he'll take the news. She also has a best friend she grew up with closely. This best friend has an older brother she grew up with that is like another best friend to her too. They are there to support her and help her along the way. It is a romantic tale that has a lot of wonderful character development. The plot is well written, and I enjoyed the story. I did not appreciate all the usage of bad language, as I feel it takes away from good writing in general. I know most people talk the way the characters do, but I don't even like that. I had seen this book recommended on Goodreads, Barnes and Nobles, and a couple of BookTubers, so I thought I'd give it a chance when I saw it in the New Book section at my library.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy, Sexual content, and Cursing
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
There is a lack of books written in a way that you are transported inside of them, but this one is one of them.
I really loved this story. It didn't beat around the bush about what city living would have been like for that time. It had some raw situations brought up, such as: affairs, losing children after they are born, drunkenness, teen pregnancy, child molesters in the streets, murder, hunger, death in families, different cultures (immigration and 1st & 2nd generation Americans), and more. It also had hope.
Francie is a young girl who is growing up in Brooklyn in pre-WWI era. Her mother has been raising her (with the advice of her mother) to become intelligent so that one day she can get out of the poverty that they live in. She loves learning and writing, especially. The book talks about her parents and her own life along the way. More books need to be written as well as this one was.
I really loved this story. It didn't beat around the bush about what city living would have been like for that time. It had some raw situations brought up, such as: affairs, losing children after they are born, drunkenness, teen pregnancy, child molesters in the streets, murder, hunger, death in families, different cultures (immigration and 1st & 2nd generation Americans), and more. It also had hope.
Francie is a young girl who is growing up in Brooklyn in pre-WWI era. Her mother has been raising her (with the advice of her mother) to become intelligent so that one day she can get out of the poverty that they live in. She loves learning and writing, especially. The book talks about her parents and her own life along the way. More books need to be written as well as this one was.
Famous for a Living by Melissa Ferguson
adventurous
funny
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I will say right off the bat that I appreciate that this had no bad language/foul words and no sexual scenes in it. While this is a romantic tale of sorts, it doesn't focus on romance, but more the building of growth in the main character.
There is a theme throughout this book about content creation as an influencer with a heavy online presence and what that can do to your life and how to balance it. There is even a part after the book is done to see if you have a phone addiction (very strange).
Although I enjoyed this story and found it sweet, it was an average story. I did like learning about the characters and the things that went on in the book. I would have liked to have seen more of the uncle and niece relationship, since it is obviously important. There were not enough interactions between them in the story, in my opinion.
There is a theme throughout this book about content creation as an influencer with a heavy online presence and what that can do to your life and how to balance it. There is even a part after the book is done to see if you have a phone addiction (very strange).
Although I enjoyed this story and found it sweet, it was an average story. I did like learning about the characters and the things that went on in the book. I would have liked to have seen more of the uncle and niece relationship, since it is obviously important. There were not enough interactions between them in the story, in my opinion.