Doctors Actually Listening to their Patients

What a novel idea, am I right? As a patient with a rare collagen disorder, I appreciated that Dr. Clifton K. Meador wrote a book about actually listening to his patients and understanding the mental problems aren't totally separated from the physical. I've spent a shocking amount of time in hospital waiting rooms and doctor's offices, and on more than one occasion been misdiagnosed. There's nothing more frustrating in the world than being told there's nothing wrong with you, or being prescribed the wrong medication for the wrong ailment. The only doctors I've never had problems with have been my physical therapists, they're all about preventative medicine and they're basically baller. So hats off to you guys. Dr. Meador's Symptoms of Unknown Origin is refreshing; it's not full of too much medical mumbo jumbo - so even if you're not a doctor it's relatively easy to follow along. This book is a very different take on the medical world, focusing on the patient's symptoms instead of starting with preconceived biases. I can't really say that I enjoyed reading this book, but again, I'm not a doctor. But the fact that it exists gives me hope that the medical field is moving in a direction that is more respectful and understanding of how patients and doctors can work together to be able to find cures to diseases and disorders that they previously couldn't.

What Exactly is a Concerto?

I stopped playing piano when I was eleven because I didn't want to practice. To this day, I totally regret it. The music is beautiful and I love hearing it played. However, I couldn't tell you the difference between a concerto or a sonata. The Lost Concerto by Helaine Mario is all about the music. The story she has crafted is a fascinating thriller with short chapters full of action that keep the pages turning. Mario's metaphors are a liiiiiiiiiiittle heavy handed. I get that the book is about music. I get it. I promise. It's very obvious. But there's a musical metaphor on almost every page. It's a little excessive. It adds to the kitschy nature of the story, but it's also beating the dead horse. Perhaps if I was more musical, I would have appreciated the use of metaphor in a way that propelled the story forward. But sadly, I do not know what a concerto really is, and so a great number of the comparisons were lost on me.

The Lost Concerto has a lot of freaking characters. (Spoilers!!) And I'm still not quite sure how old Michael is. I'm pretty sure if he fought in 'Nam, he might be too old for our main character Maggie. But, he's adorable and showed great character development. All of the characters were well done, your bad guys were super evil, some of them were sneakily evil, and your good guys were good, and sometimes a little bad. Everything you want in a suspenseful thriller. Sometimes it was a little tricky to follow the point of view, but it made it a more interesting read than had it only been from one perspective.

I may not know what a concerto is, or how to properly use it in a metaphor, but I know a good book when I read it. Mario drew me into this crazy mixed up world of music, and kept me reading until the last note was played. (See what I did there?)

The Librarians?

After getting completely sucked into the TV show "The Librarians" this past year, super human librarians aren't that out of the norm. However, super hero, god-like, serial killer librarians - well that still came as a shock. The Library at Mount Char is a suspenseful read, with more twists and turns than a water slide. I wasn't quite sure what I was getting into when I started reading, and when I finished about 48 hours later - I'm still turning over the story in my mind. A quick and exciting novel, this book completely sidetracked me from everything I was supposed to be doing: homework, helping my boyfriend pack, eat, sleep... the usual. Hawkins clearly put a lot of effort into making this story flow together; each cog in the plot fell together perfectly in the end. Almost a little too perfectly if you ask me. Everything was very perfectly explained, and I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop. If you like a story with a very neat ending, you're gonna love this book. Which is not to say I didn't love it. I mean, I couldn't put it down. The language is funny, readable but not too simplistic. Hawkins makes quite a few plays on words, which I also enjoyed greatly. A fun, distracting book with some crazy plot twists - definitely a great book to read curled up on the couch on a rainy day. I'll be definitely keeping my eyes out to see what Steve Hawkins cooks up next.

Courtesy of Blogging for Books

I am a strong independent woman!

Kate Bolick has created a new kind of historical memoir, and become an awakener herself. I started this book thinking it would focus more on the author herself, but in reality she provided a series of mini biographies of famous "single" women. Each chapter focuses on a famous historical woman, who affected Bolick's life in one way or another. Open, honest, and funny - Bolick has crafted a fascinating story about the lives of single women throughout the past two centuries. She provides a different outlook from the traditional stereotype of the elderly spinster lady. Throughout her book, she weaves a story of "spinsterdom" that isn't sad and lonely but a story about women taking control of their lives and using their skills to empower themselves and lead lives that aren't devoid of social interactions but instead incredibly full. For any single women out there, or those coupled, this book is an excellent read for a perspective on life that doesn't make every women think that the only way to fulfill her life is through a heterosexual romantic relationship.

Courtesy of blogging for books :)

The Room is Real. Or it isn't. Or it is? Or it isn't?

The Room by Jonas Karlsson is weird. It's a weird book. I'm not upset that it's weird. I'm weird and like weird things. But it was totally weird and not at all what I was expecting. Granted I'm starting to think that "not what I expected" and "not something I would normally read" but "totally loved" are all starting to be a part of my vernacular when referring to books I am reading because of BloggingforBooks. The back of the book is sort of misleading. I started reading thinking that I was going to read a book about a guy that basically finds adult Narnia in an office supply closet. Instead, I got a story about a guy that is woefully socially awkward who may or may not spend the entire book hallucinating. I'm still not sure what happened at the end of this bad boy. Was the room a real place? Was there a government conspiracy cover up? Did he ever make out with that receptionist? It's all very confusing. The end of this book left me with a lot of unanswered questions. I keep going over it in my head and cannot for the life of me decide if he was a crazy person or if there was something else happening. Karlsson wrote The Room in really short little chapters, so I kept misjudging how much I had read and accidentally finished the book in about four days. Super quick read. Good, but quick. If you're in the market for a strange, thought provoking book that you could read on an airplane or waiting in the doctors office - this is the book for you! If you want a more cut and dry story that makes sense and has a main character that is likable, then not so much. Bjorn (our anti-hero) is a total weirdo, but a really interesting weirdo. Karlsson does an excellent job of portraying office life as a microcosm of human experiences, and touches on many different day to day interactions but makes them slightly off kilter. Totally weird, but totally interesting.

Happy DEAR Day! I hope the like four people who read this are enjoying their Sunday with a good book and a cup of tea. (I'm getting down on some short stories by BJ Novak in between homework assignments and sips of iced tea). May your books be long and your mugs never empty.

As always - courtesy of Blogging for Books via Random House (Thanks guys) 

Kleptomaniacs, Drug Cartels and Family

Prayers for the Stolen isn't the kind of book I would normally gravitate towards. But I am so happy I did. It follows the story of a young girl living in rural Mexico, whose life is anything but normal. I don't want to give too much away, but her story is fascinating. I know very little about the city and rural politics of Mexico. But this story gave me an insight into the struggles that exist just across our borders. Ladydi, our heroine, lives in a small town where next to no men live and the women live in constant danger. Her town is constantly under siege from chemical bombings, and raids by drug cartels. This isn't exactly a happy story, but there is beauty in it. It's amazing how these families have managed to survive for so long in such a difficult environment, and how they have almost evolved to survive in such a climate.

This novel is beautifully written and thought provoking. Jennifer Clement brings the reader into a world of danger and she shows you the the beauty that you can find among scorpions, alcoholics and murder. Above all else, this is story about the lengths that family will take to protect one another and the things anyone will do to survive.

Book courtesy of Blogging for Books

Books Are Delicious!

As evidenced by my first blog post. I love Ruth. She's pretty awesome in every way. So, I'm a little ashamed that it took me so long to finally read Delicious! her first nonfiction book. My big sister scored me a copy of it at BookCon, so I really should have finished this book about a year ago instead of a month ago. 

It's a surprising narrative, following the story of a young aspiring journalist. Combining food, history, romance, family drama and an eclectic score of characters, Ruth paints a fascinating story about Billie and her life in New York. I've always loved Ruth's ability to write about food in such a way that you really feel like you could be eating or smelling whatever it is that's being described. The main character, Billie, has an incredible ability to pick out flavors and spices from anything that she eats, and gets wrapped up in the foodie world of NYC. I couldn't help but getting wrapped in her back story and how she comes into herself while working at Delicious! a food magazine. I don't want to ruin too much of the story (yunno if anyone out there is actually reading this) but the historical aspect of this story if fascinating. Billie discovers letters from a little girl to the editor of the magazine, letters that were written during WWII. They're absolutely adorable. 

If books could always combine food, history, and romance - I would be a happy camper. Ten out of ten, Ruth. Ten out of ten.