I read Isaacson's biography about Jobs and loved it. I picked this up one day in our school library while waiting for a staff meeting to start. I was I read Isaacson's biography about Jobs and loved it. I picked this up one day in our school library while waiting for a staff meeting to start. I was delightfully surprised at how well this pulls in the really interesting facts of Jobs' lifetime and puts it into a stunning graphic form that is extremely accessible for middle-schoolers and visual learners alike....more
If you are super conservative, this read is not for you, but if you are willing to have an open heart and mind and hear what Glennon is saying, then yIf you are super conservative, this read is not for you, but if you are willing to have an open heart and mind and hear what Glennon is saying, then you will be stoked by her ideas. This is a really empowering read....more
This is easy read jam-packed with a lot of great practical information and pedagogical knowledge about "how to" engage students in English education.This is easy read jam-packed with a lot of great practical information and pedagogical knowledge about "how to" engage students in English education....more
Although the writing had moments of brilliance the overall premise of this story was problematic. I listened on audio, so an actual read may have beenAlthough the writing had moments of brilliance the overall premise of this story was problematic. I listened on audio, so an actual read may have been a little easier to follow. I struggled keeping interest because the whiny American journalist drowned out the actual story of the 30 girls. What could have held poignancy got snuffed by bad storytelling tactics including but not limited to jostling awkwardly back and forth between two seemingly unconnected characters, the complete neglect of the more interesting stories like those of the school nuns, and the awful pacing....more
Fascinating read, and I don't even like ballet. Li Cunxin made me feel like I lived with him in rural China, and I got to experience America with him Fascinating read, and I don't even like ballet. Li Cunxin made me feel like I lived with him in rural China, and I got to experience America with him from a newcomer's perspective. This book filled me with gratitude for my freedom, capitalism, food to eat, my own bed, and hot clean water from the tap. I also learned a lot about confidence: it's gained by problem-solving. Who knew?!...more
I hope my college professor doesn't see this, but I honestly couldn't even finish this book. it bored me to tears. and I'm a nature-lover and historicI hope my college professor doesn't see this, but I honestly couldn't even finish this book. it bored me to tears. and I'm a nature-lover and historical fan. I really hope the end was better because this read like a long newspaper article sprinkled with phone book all crafted by a monotone....more
I want to write alluring object description that is transcendatlist just like the great Annie Dillard. She's my new favorite. I love her writing styleI want to write alluring object description that is transcendatlist just like the great Annie Dillard. She's my new favorite. I love her writing style...more
Some of the ideas gleaned from this book have been helpful in my happiness but most of them are no-brainers. I never read Rubin's first happiness projSome of the ideas gleaned from this book have been helpful in my happiness but most of them are no-brainers. I never read Rubin's first happiness project book and I probably never will. By following Rubin's blog I believe I would love her in person but her writing is very intelligent which means it is really slow and drawn-out reading for me. I do LOVE that she is a lover of kids lit. What's not to love about that?...more
What a fascinating piece of American history the dynamic twins Eppie and Popo are aka Abigail VanBuren and Angela Landers. I enjoyed this YA non-fictiWhat a fascinating piece of American history the dynamic twins Eppie and Popo are aka Abigail VanBuren and Angela Landers. I enjoyed this YA non-fiction read immensely probably because the the fact that two sisters without college educations were able to help define culture the way that they did is totally awesome to me.
I so wish I could land a job writing an advice column. What fun that would be. I could tell Americans to "wake up and smell the coffee" too.
It broke my heart when reading towards the end of the book of Angela Lander's divorce. I really wish that when Angela's paper found out her sister was helping her write the advice column they would have just invited her in so these sisters wouldn't have had to feud and could have had a collaborative effort. Nonetheless they both are fascinating and inspiring.
I debated in my mind during the whole read: Angela or Abigail? My decision was easy: Abigail. Hello, her husband was a millionaire and didn't cheat on her. And she was the sister known for the quippy one-liners: my kind of girl....more
Excellent book about a fascinating part of American history. For 381 days until 12/21/56 the blacks in Montgomery, AL boycotted the public buses. At gExcellent book about a fascinating part of American history. For 381 days until 12/21/56 the blacks in Montgomery, AL boycotted the public buses. At great personal sacrifice these brave men, women, and children put the modern civil rights movement into action.
This fascinating simple read celebrates the civil rights heroes MLK, Rosa Parks, and Ralph Abernathy, but also sheds light on others not as well known: JoAnn Robinson, Claudette Clovin, and Reverend Robert Graetz ( a white pastor with an all black congregation.)
The photos are fascinating and the reading light, but I closed this book feeling proud of the freedom walkers and inspired with Christian love and non-violence....more
Here is my word one review of this book: fascinating. Absolutely fascinating.
Reading this book made me feel like I was being embraced at the smart kiHere is my word one review of this book: fascinating. Absolutely fascinating.
Reading this book made me feel like I was being embraced at the smart kid table. Even though I only got a low 20 on my ACT it no longer mattered, the smart kids were more than willing to share with me their secrets. Even though I didn't know it before I joined them for lunch, I really needed to know all their secrets. You see the smart people are the ones who get willpower. Because they ever so intellectually understand the research; they know what they have to do to drink milk not soda, avoid the desserts all together, and most importantly NOT say anything EVER that is going to be offensive. (Well, I guess I did kind of know I needed that last one.)
I would love to follow around the author of this book: Kelly McGonigal, Ph.D. and a professor at Stanford. I want to watch her every move and I want to question her incessantly at how much of the information she uses from her research to guide her every day decisions. I laugh as I imagine the endless scenarios: Starbucks (are you getting that coffee just because you didn't get enough sleep last night?), Checking e-mail (Are you checking it out of habit, is this what you really want to be doing right now?), Vending machine (Are you not getting the healthy option just because it's there?). Read the book. You'll quickly understand.
All kinds of interesting people find their own willpower by attending McGonigal's seminar, and for the rest of us less-interesting folks who can't afford to go to California, there is the book. I think I would prefer to attend the seminar, but the book sometimes just has to do the trick because it's all we've got. I did a quick read of this book for this review, but the next time I pick it up (and there will be a next time) I plan to read it as it was originally intended: a self-guided master through a willpower challenge in my life. I think the book will be much more powerful when used a bit at a time towards a real-life obstacle, especially for those of us from the lower end of the IQ spectrum who (cough cough) have a hard time retaining all the amazingly fascinating information.
Great read and I highly recommend it to everyone, but especially those of us that are sick of fighting the same battles of willpower over and over again. And really, isn't that all of us? Even the kids at the smart table had to learn this for themselves; they just did it before the rest of us suckers.
Do you want to change the world? Do you want to have more powerful interpersonal relationships? Do you want to explore into your own soul to make sense Do you want to change the world? Do you want to have more powerful interpersonal relationships? Do you want to explore into your own soul to make sense of your life? Do you want to live whole-hearted? Do you want to rid yourself from shame? Do you want to understand men and women better? Do you want to give your heart a hug?
I thought I would do something different this time and give you a list of questions for this book review. This book is so jam-packed with the "hard stuff" that I don't even want to dare pretend that I get it all. I will be reading it repeatedly until I have absorbed and memorized every nugget of wisdom. I wish every other person on the planet would do the same. It would seriously bring world peace and most certainly would give everyone inner peace. I'm not kidding, It's that powerful.
I was proud to be a part of this book campaign. I was thrilled. I mean I jumped up and down when I got the e-mail confirmation and cooked a fancy dinner for my family when it arrived in the mail. I have been pouring over its pages and sharing parts with my hubby every chance I get. I have compromised my facebook relationships with the overabundance of quotes from this book. I just can't stop. It's too totally amazing not to share. YOU HAVE TO READ THIS BOOK. If you don't want to buy your own copy, borrow mine. I can't share it though for at least another month until I have it memorized.
I had a powerful experience at work last night, using the principles learned in this book. I was substitute teaching a class at the therapeutic boarding school where I work. I gave the kids a reward for every half an hour of hard work. We listened to a song of their choice (with my approval). One boy chose a powerfully emotional song about a girl who wanted to be with her dying boyfriend forever. I loved it. Another boy in the class didn't. He started to shame the song choice kid. I stopped him and talked with the whole class about "shaming" and talked with them about giving people space to be who they are, even if they are wrong or different. I then turned to the shamer, and told him how much I loved him and admired him and that I would hope other people would give him space to love what he loved. He got teary-eyed. He turned to the other kid and said, "Dude, I am so sorry, I don't like that song, but it's cool if you do."
World peace, people. World peace.
A huge thanks to marriage counselor friend John Morgan who turned me on to Brene Brown just months ago. He shared with me her talks from Ted. I was hooked. Brene is a researcher and has a PHD and LMSW. Her life's work is shame and vulnerability. Here are her videos. Watch them both. Come back if you have to. They will make you understand why you need to read this book. Even if you aren't into that psychological mumbo-jumbo, you need to be. ...more
Carnival Girl was a fantastic read. The touching and intriguing memoir chronicles the life of author Sonja Herbert as she is raised in post-World War Carnival Girl was a fantastic read. The touching and intriguing memoir chronicles the life of author Sonja Herbert as she is raised in post-World War II Germany with her nomadic large family who works the carnival circuit. Can you imagine living in a camper with five siblings forever? You move on a weekly basis and long for a permanent home like those of the children that you usually only get to know for a week. This was Sonja's upbringing. Sonja vividly portrays throughout her beautiful memoir how much she just longed for a normal life, but I am so glad that God had something else in mind for her because it made for an intriguing and enlightening read.
I don't want to give spoilers but I will tell you that at some point late in the book Sonja is introduced to two American Mormon missionaries. However Sonja's interest in the Mormon church is a side-story and I do believe that this book can be enjoyed by any person, religious or not. In fact, if you aren't religious, you will probably relate well to Sonja's parents: one a bitter atheist and the other an a-typical Catholic.
Something that I enjoyed the most from this book was Sonja's great faith from a very early age and how God strengthened her to endure and taught her to be comforted in some really hard circumstances. I also related to some of Sonja's confusion to when her prayers weren't answered.
I imagine that Sonja's mother is dead by now, and so it won't be too disrespectful to say it, but as a mother of 4, I truly marveled at how much of a burden her children were to her. Of course, I have never raised 6 kids in a caravan while also running a carnival, but part of me was so sad that Mutti (Sonja's mom) never seemed to enjoy her children. However I also related to Mutti. I recently found I out that I am pregnant at 38 with number 5 and I swear this snippet from the book could transcend through time to my bedroom just a few nights ago:
"From our caraven, Mutti's loud voice rang out with a harsh edge. 'I can't believe this happened again,' she said. 'I'm almost forty!' 'Maybe you should see someone,' Vati ventured. 'That's dangerous.' Mutti's voice wavered. 'Besides, it's the end of the winder, and we don't have that kind of money. Later it will be too late.' A pause. 'Don't cry,' Vati said. 'It's not the end of the world.' 'What do you know?' She sobbed. 'I can't believe you'd do that to me again.'"
Not just in this small chapter that I related with so well, but throughout the book I was drawn to Sonja, her family, her circumstances. They were most peculiar, sometimes heartbreaking, but always extremely fascinating and educational.
I highly recommend this book to all my readers. I don't think anyone would be disappointed in learning all about the carnival girl of all carnival girls....more
"I was upset. I was frustrated. But I didn't want to kill myself, as was reported. I look back at stories and headlines written about me at the time. "I was upset. I was frustrated. But I didn't want to kill myself, as was reported. I look back at stories and headlines written about me at the time. They'd say things like 'Vanessa's dark days or Vanessa's hit rock bottom.' I knew it would be tough, but I also never doubted I would succeed. When you know this, you don't have dark days, you don't hit rock bottom. You just have days when you want to scream at people: 'You have no idea what I can do!'" I just love this quote by Vanessa no page 66.
Vanessa Williams is an extremely talented American icon. After reading this book, I have no doubt that the reasons she has accomplished all that she has are her determination and confidence, her God-given talent, and her wonderful parents. I really enjoyed this book. I don't follow pop culture very much, but I remember so vividly when our first black Miss America was robbed of her title. I really enjoyed reading Vanessa's side of the story. I also enjoyed reading about all that Vanessa has accomplished including Broadway, TV, and a successful recording career: all while also being a caring and involved mother of 4.
Perhaps the best of this book, the part that really made it unique, was that all the stories were told from the perspective of Vanessa and her mother. This was my favorite part. I loved their dynamics, I truly related to their mother/daughter relationship from page 1. When Vanessa was a girl her mother told her to never ride doubles on a bike, she did, and she was severely hurt. Funny, same thing happened to me. Everyone needs a mother like Helen and everyone should listen to her, and if they don't believe me then they should read this book and learn from Vanessa's mistakes. ...more
This was a very thorough biography of the life of Steve Jobs. I enjoyed it, but a lot of the technological details and history left me a little bored.This was a very thorough biography of the life of Steve Jobs. I enjoyed it, but a lot of the technological details and history left me a little bored. Yeah, I am not that geeky or smart. I care more about people and their relationships than the evolution of an industry. And yes I just admitted that online. Steve Jobs sucked at people and relationships. I feel sorry for the man. I really do. I also feel sorry for his children.
Jobs was crazy. After reading the book I am prepared to give an unofficial diagnosis of BiPolar Type II with a side of Social Retardation. It is absolutely amazing to me that he was able to accomplish what he did in his life.
I also gained an aversion to the raw diet craze. This man was a total hippy. He never ate meat, he stunk of B.O., he went without shoes, he smoked pot and he died of cancer in his 50's. All the more reason to me not to follow his lifestyle. He also was way in to Zen Buddhism and considered himself spiritual in nature (some of which he also contributes to LSD - not to be confused with LDS) yet he completely lacked the most basic tenets of living a peaceful and fulfilling life.
Everybody has strengths and weakness. I thank Jobs for my Iphone and I pity him for the things in life he missed out on because he never got it....more
Let me start this review by telling you that I got married 10 days after we decided to tie the knot. The day after deciding that we didn't want to waiLet me start this review by telling you that I got married 10 days after we decided to tie the knot. The day after deciding that we didn't want to wait any longer, I ran into a local wedding-dress shop and asked for something simple and cheap. I tried on one dress off the clearance rack and said "I'll take it." I shopped alone and I called my then non-official fiance (he never really proposed) and asked him if he would o.k. me using $200 from my paycheck to buy the blasted dress.
I felt it appropriate to start this review with my own wedding dress story as this book is a compilation of wedding dress stories. In The Magic Room Zaslow did a great job of telling the story of Becker's Bridal in Fowler, Michigan. In this teeny tiny barely thriving US town, there are a few constants, Beckers is perhaps the most impressive, only outlasted by the loyal long-standing families that reside there.
Even though I am not much of a romantic, I really enjoyed this book. I thought the author did a great job of interlacing the stories of various recent brides with the stories of the Beckers' royal family. For five generations the Beckers have faithfully served a very large portion of the bridal industry within the United States, many times selling dresses to mothers who years later bring in their own daughters to the same shop to purchase a dress of their own.
Unexpectedly, I learned a lot about the worldwide and US trends of marriage in this book. Zaslow has a knack for making statistics interesting, statistics like "25% of first-time brides have children. Another 7 to 8 percent are pregnant" and "forget the seven year itch, UofM researchers have found that more divorces now happen in the fourth year of marriage than any other."
Overall, this is a great book jam-packed with various intriguing biographies, families' dreams and losses, wedding magic, and like it says on the cover it's mostly "a story about the love we wish for our daughters." Indeed, I do hope to one day take one of my four daughters to this magic room or at least one just like it in my own region of residence....more
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