Review: Finding Me: A Decade of Darkness, a Life Reclaimed by Michelle Knight with Michelle Burford

Genre: Memoir
Publication: 03/10/2010 by HaperCollins
Pages: 356 Pages
Format: Paperback
Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars
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Goodreads Summary
“The day I disappeared in 2002, not many people even seemed to notice. I was twenty-one, a young mom who stopped at a Family Dollar store one afternoon to ask for directions. For the next eleven years I was locked away in hell. That’s the part of my story you may already know. There’s a whole lot more that you don’t.” —from Finding Me

Michelle Knight, the first of three women abducted by notorious Cleveland kidnapper Ariel Castro, recounts the full story of her years in captivity, her escape, and the powerful inner strength and capacity for hope that has helped her rebuild her life.

Michelle was a young single mother fighting for custody of her young son when she was kidnapped on August 21, 2002, by a local school bus driver named Ariel Castro. For more than a decade afterward, she endured unimaginable torture at the hands of her abductor. In 2003 Amanda Berry joined her in captivity, followed by Gina DeJesus in 2004. Their escape on May 6, 2013, made headlines around the world.

In Finding Me, Michelle reveals the heartbreaking details of her story, including the thoughts and prayers that helped her find courage to endure unimaginable circumstances and now build a life worth living. By sharing both her past and her efforts to create a future, Michelle becomes a voice for the voiceless and a powerful symbol of hope for the thousands of children and young adults who go missing every year.

My Thoughts
To me. this isn't a book to review. I don't want to judge Michelle' experience or the way her story was told. That being said, this book was incredibly gripping. I had heard a little bit about Michelle and the Cleveland Kidnappings when it was on a the news but I had no idea the depth of the situation. Michelle had to live through so many terrible and tragic events. Not just when she was being held captive but also in her life before that. It's crazy to believe that someone could hold 3 girls practically in plain site and get away with it, for over a decade! I couldn't believe what I was reading at points. I know it's all very true but it's scary that something like this could have happened to anyone.

This wasn't the most well written book that I ever read but it is a very important read. I haven't read anything like this in my life and I am always going to think back to Michelle's story. It's a tragic and scary book, but I think it's something that's important to be read. I recommend if you are looking for an emotional non-fiction.

Review: Mini Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella

Genre: Contemporary
Publication: September 21 2010 by Dial Press
Series: Shopaholic #6
Pages: 418
Format: Overdrive Audiobook
Rating: 2 out of 5 Stars
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Goodreads Summary
Becky Brandon thought motherhood would be a breeze and that having a daughter was a dream come true: a shopping friend for life! But it's trickier than she thought. Two-year-old Minnie has a quite different approach to shopping.

Minnie creates havoc everywhere she goes, from Harrods to her own christening. Her favorite word is "Mine!" and she's even trying to get into eBay! On top of everything else, Becky and Luke are still living with her parents (the deal on house #4 has fallen through), when suddenly there's a huge financial crisis.
With people having to "cut back," Becky decides to throw a surprise party for Luke to cheer everyone up. But when costs start to spiral out of control, she must decide whether to accept help from an unexpected source--and therefore run the risk of hurting the person she loves.


Will Becky be able to pull off the celebration of the year? Will she and Luke ever find a home of their own? Will Minnie ever learn to behave? And . . . most important . . . will Becky's secret wishes ever come true?

My Thoughts
This series. If you've read this series you know what I mean. It's one of the most infuriating stories I have ever read but I seem to keep going back. It took me forever to listen to this book on audiobook, and I was cringing the entire time. Becky never seems to learn from her mistakes and has no character development. She's incredibly selfish and it's starting to rub me the wrong way.

This has mostly been a guilty pleasure series for me but now it's hard for it to be that. There were parts that I enjoyed and I felt the fun that was in this series in the first few books is mostly gone now. It's hard to keep reading when Becky just makes worse and worse mistakes. Anybody with common sense would know better, but somehow Becky gets herself into these same situations over and over again.

I don't know if I will continue with this series. There are 2 more books after this, with no indication of it finishing. I don't know if I can cringe anymore at Becky's antics. I think there are better things out there for me at this moment in time.

Review: The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan

Genre: YA Fantasy
Series: Hero's of Olympus #1
Publication: 10/12/2010 by Disney Hyperion
Pages: 557 Pages
Source: Overdrive
Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars
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Goodreads Summary
Jason has a problem.
He doesn’t remember anything before waking up in a bus full of kids on a field trip. Apparently he has a girlfriend named Piper, and a best friend named Leo. They’re all students at a boarding school for “bad kids.” What did Jason do to end up here? And where is here, exactly?

Piper has a secret.
Her father has been missing for three days, ever since she had that terrifying nightmare about his being in trouble. Piper doesn’t understand her dream, or why her boyfriend suddenly doesn’t recognize her. When a freak storm hits during the school trip, unleashing strange creatures and whisking her, Jason, and Leo away to someplace called Camp Half-Blood, she has a feeling she’s going to find out.

Leo has a way with tools.
When he sees his cabin at Camp Half-Blood, filled with power tools and machine parts, he feels right at home. But there’s weird stuff, too—like the curse everyone keeps talking about, and some camper who;s gone missing. Weirdest of all, his bunkmates insist that each of them—including Leo—is related to a god. Does this have anything to do with Jason's amnesia, or the fact that Leo keeps seeing ghosts?


My Thoughts: 
Rick Riordan is always super fun to read but I have never been blown away by any of his books. Does this mean I am getting old? The Lost Hero is another series in the Percy Jackson universe and just like Percy Jackson it's packed full of adventure. That's what I like most about Riordan's books is that there is always something new going on. They're full on adventure books and I wish I had read these when I was younger. 

Since I am older now, I find these books to be very formulaic. They're is always a quest, followed by madness and adventure. But I always gravitate to these books when I need something fun and easy to read. I have never had a bad time with Riordan and he's always a safe bet for a fun book and an interesting story. I know I would have enjoyed this more when I was younger, and I highly recommend this to young teens everywhere. But if you're like me and not a young teenager this is still a fun book but it's not going to be ground breaking. 

Review: Still Foolin' Em by Billy Crystal

Genre: Memoir, Humour
Publication: 10/09/10 by Henry Holt and Co.
Pages: 288 pages
Source: Library Audiobook
Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars
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Goodreads Summary:
Billy Crystal is turning 65, and he's not happy about it. With his trademark wit and heart, he outlines the absurdities and challenges that come with growing old, from insomnia to memory loss to leaving dinners with half your meal on your shirt. In humorous chapters like "Buying the Plot" and "Nodding Off," Crystal not only catalogues his physical gripes, but offers a road map to his 77 million fellow baby boomers who are arriving at this milestone age with him. He also looks back at the most powerful and memorable moments of his long and storied life, from entertaining his relatives as a kid in Long Beach, Long Island, his years doing stand-up in the Village, up through his legendary stint at "Saturday Night Live," "When Harry Met Sally," and his long run as host of the Academy Awards. Readers get a front-row seat to his one-day career with the New York Yankees (he was the first player to ever "test positive for Maalox"), his love affair with Sophia Loren, and his enduring friendships with several of his idols, including Mickey Mantle and Muhammad Ali. He lends a light touch to more serious topics like religion ("the aging friends I know have turned to the Holy Trinity: Advil, bourbon, and Prozac"), grandparenting, and, of course, dentistry. As wise and poignant as they are funny, Crystal's reflections are an unforgettable look at an extraordinary life well lived.

My Thoughts: 
I love Billy Crystal. When Harry Met Sally is my all time favourite movie ever so I had to pick up him memoir. I listened to this one on audiobook, which is awesome because Billy Crystal narrates the story which is my absolute favourite way to listen to memoirs. I love hearing the author actually read their story, I feel like you get a fuller picture. 

This book is set up in essay format like a lot of memoirs. Billy talks about different life experiences and gives you some of his life insights. This books was hilarious when it wanted to be and it was endearing when it wanted to be as well. I even teared up a little during certain spots. The only thing about this book that didn't entertain me as much was the parts about Billy being old. Don't get me wrong, they were still funny parts but I'm 22 and at this point in my life I can't really relate. 

My favourite parts of this memoir was the behind the scene stories about The Princess Bride and When Harry Met Sally. The book pretty much started off with a Princess Bride quote so I was so excited. I love hearing about how these got made and how things came together behind the scenes which is awesome for any serious movie fan.

 Conclusions: If you love Billy Crystal, check this out. Billy is funny and this is an interesting memoir. If you have the opportunity, pick up the audiobook. Have fun storming the castle!

Review: Keep Sweet by Michele Dominguez Greene

Genre: YA, Realistic Fiction, Religion, Cults
Publication: 03/09/10 by Simon Pulse
Pages: 215 Pages
Source: Library Hardback
Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars
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Goodreads Summary

Alva Jane has never questioned her parents, never questioned her faith, never questioned her future. She is content with the strict rules that define her life in Pineridge, the walled community where she lives with her father, his seven wives, and her twenty-eight siblings. This is the only world Alva has ever known, and she has never thought to challenge it. 

But everything changes when Alva is caught giving her long-time crush an innocent first kiss. Beaten, scorned, and now facing a forced marriage to a violent, fifty-year old man, Alva suddenly realizes how much she has to lose--and how impossible it will be to escape. 

 My Thoughts
This book follows a girl named Alva Jane who is apart of the FLDS which is a Fundamentalist Branch of the Mormon Church. This community practices polygamy. I have been interested in this topic for awhile but it was still tough to read from the voice of someone in the community. This is a fictional story but as far as I can tell it's realistic to events that really happen in the community. 

This story itself was pretty good, but it wasn't exceptional. I learned a lot about the FLDS community and the situations that a lot of the girls are put in. The plot is realistic, as far as I can tell. The sequence of events that Alva is forced to go through really would drive the decisions she made if this happened in real life. Alva is a strong character, she shows a great deal of character development. In the beginning, she was blindly following the faith but after a series of events she starts to think more critically about the religion and community she is trapped in. 

This is a very short book, only just over 200 pages but I think that it was a perfect length to tell the story that was needed to be told. The story was fast paced and didn't drag. I had a few issues with this book, first the book was written in Alva's point of view so in the beginning she was still very brain washed. This was good to show character development but I found I was kind of being preached at. I also found it hard to read from the view of a girl who thought she was a possession for a man. I was prepared for that when I started reading but the feminist in me just couldn't take it. 

In Conclusion: Keep Sweet was a decent book. I enjoyed it but I wasn't blow away by any means. If you are interested in the FLDS or cults then I would check out this book. It does tell what could be a realistic story from someone in the community. Very quick and interesting read.

The Scorch Trials - James Dashner

 

     The Scorch Trials is the squeal to the Maze Runner, therefore I am not going to say too much about the plot. Since it is a sequel, it takes place after the events in The Maze Runner and the Gladers have a new phase of challenges to face from "Wicked".

   

    I liked The Maze Runner, but I didn't love it. I feel the way same about The Scorch Trials. It was okay, but I didn't like it as much as I wanted to. I felt like the action in this book was slow and I had a hard time getting into the story. My biggest gripe with this book was that I had a really hard time envisioning the descriptions that Dashner was giving us. Especially during the final action sequences, I had a very hard time picturing and even understanding what was even going on. It took me a lot longer than it should have to read just on these gripes alone. I am going to continue with the series, just because this book still leaves you with so many unanswered questions it will drive me nuts if I don't read The Death Cure. (and maybe even The Kill Order).

    Conclusions: I can see this series going downhill quickly. I am very worried about the amount of unanswered questions I'll have at the end. The Scorch Trials were suppose to be exciting and I just couldn't get into it. It will be unlikely that I recommend this series to anyone.

   Rating: 2.75/5 Stars (Do I even like this series?)