3.5 stars

I loved the premise of this book, the fact that it spans 4 generations and 3 countries and deals with some heavy topics. However, I felt very disconnected with the characters and story. For much of the book, I felt as if I was on the outside looking in, instead of being right in the middle of the story. The writing felt flat at times, and it was hard to connect with the characters. The descriptions of locations were lacking and there wasn’t a lot of explanation on the current events. While I have a pretty good knowledge of WWII and what went on, I don’t know as much about Cuba’s history beyond the basics. I think if people don’t have prior knowledge to some historical events, they are going to be lost in what is going on. The author assumes everyone knows exactly what happened during Fidel Castro’s takeover of Cuba and the different shifts in government and what brought about his revolution in the first place. It is also assumed that people understand about the trials of Nazis after the war and what it took to bring some of them to justice, as well as what brought about the splitting of Germany and the Berlin Wall. This was a major event in history, but it is barely glossed over in the book. It was also difficult picturing the locations where the story took place as there’s not a lot of description of the locations. At one point Nadine lives in New York, but you’d never know it as there is very little said about the city. And though parts of the story take place in multiple cities in Germany, very little is said about these places either. Having been to Germany it made it a little easier for me to picture the cities and places that were described, but other readers are going to be at a disadvantage.

While the characters are all faced with life changing events and difficult situations, it’s hard to connect with any of them or feel much towards their situations. It’s as if everything is being explained through a third party who’s missing a lot of the original story. There’s a huge emotional disconnect for most of the story, with the exceptions being the first few chapters with Ally and the last couple with Nadine. Though the story is also supposed to focus on 4 generations, Luna figures very little into the story, only briefly popping in to encourage Nadine to explore the past. She’s more of a vehicle to move the story to its conclusion than being an integral part of it. The parts of the story that include Luna are still more focused on Nadine and her quest for answers. And though there are plenty of supporting characters as well, you learn very little about them and forget them pretty easily, with one or two exceptions. They are more there to offer a few pieces of information or help move the story. If there’s a disconnect with the main characters, there’s absolutely no connecting at all with the supporting characters. The writing is very monotone, which makes it hard to care about what’s going on. The characters themselves give very little emotional response as well. It’s as if every single one of them was so disconnected from reality that they couldn’t be bothered to show any emotion at all. It’s a very odd feeling to be reading about these events and have all the characters act like they’re watching it from afar with no connection themselves to what’s happening.

The story does leave a lot of unanswered questions as well, though I can understand why some of then aren’t answered. With a story that involves WWII and other conflicts, there are simply many situations that are unknown and have no answers. Just be prepared for this to be the case, as there will be still be unanswered questions.

This really isn’t a bad book; it’s just weighed down by the writing.

4 stars

Do I think that Jeff Bezos is an excellent business man who has shaped the way we shop? Yes. Do I think he knows how to communicate to get people to listen to him and follow him? Yes. Do I think he’s a good person? Hell no. Do I support him by using Amazon? Also no.

It is obvious throughout the book that Bezos has become a great communicator, with a laser sharp focus and ideas to continue achieving his dreams. I think a lot of the ideas in this book are excellent and can help others who struggle with communication. In fact, I would have loved to show my recent history professor the part about PowerPoint being useless and how presentations make it seem like the audience is listening and that the presenter is giving an actual talk, but they degrade quality of communication. Last semester I took a public speaking class that I was dreading. I hate public speaking, like many people do. I got through it pretty well, but I know there’s things I could have improved. Some of what was in this book could have helped through that class. I can’t go back to it now, but I can use the information for my current job and any others I may have in the future. This can be a very useful book for someone looking to improve communication in business dealings or school settings and everything in between.

I admire Bezos for being such an effective communicator. I just wish he actually cared as much about his employees and other mattes as he does about his profit.

5 stars

I love Sarah Addison Allen’s books. I just know that when I start one I’m going to enjoy it. Her writing has this dreamy quality of being able to pull you in and keep you engaged throughout the whole story, and her use of magical realism is perfect. It’s so engrained in her books and it feels like it could actually be true.

This is the perfect book on dealing with grief. Everyone deals with it in their own way. There’s no right or wrong way, no time frame, and no way of knowing how it’s going to go. Even though we all deal with grief, it’s different for everyone. But not only that, it’s different each time we experience it. Each of the characters in this book are dealing with grief for a different person or situation in a different way. I loved how time was spent with each person, and how all their stories slowly unraveled to reveal more of what each was going through. I also loved the aspect of them all being so far apart from each even though they all lived in the same complex, and slowly coming together as a new found family. Sometimes we need to find our own family, even if we have one, as sharing our grief with others can help us all overcome whatever it is we’re facing. I have a lot of first hand experience with this. It took me a long time to get to the point where I could share it with others, but as a result, I have found a new family of people I know will always be there for me.

5 stars

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I expected it to be about a few people in the death industry and their basic jobs, but it turned out to be so much more. There were the jobs that usually come to mind when you think of the industry, such as embalmer and funeral director, but then there were jobs I either didn’t know about or never would have thought of, such as the death mask maker and bereavement midwife. There is so much more that goes into dying that people don’t realize, and so many people that work in that field that you never hear about. Many of these people never get thanks for their jobs or recognition for what they do, but they are still a vital and important part of the death process. I was hoping for a chapter about mummification, as I live right by the only modern mummification center outside of Egypt, but it wasn’t to be. I was also quite touched by the author’s reaction to part of what she saw. She went it totally prepared to not have any emotional reaction to one thing, only to be deeply affected by something else. It just shows that even though we think we are prepared for any inevitability, we’re not.

It’s funny; I actually finished this on the day I drove to Idaho for my uncle’s funeral. While death is sad and impacts us in different ways, I still think it’s important to talk about. We like to pretend that it will never happen, that it’s some dirty secret that can’t be spoken of. But death is the most natural thing in the world. We’ll all die someday. Talking about it helps us come to terms with that fact, and being prepared for it helps us and those we’ll leave behind.

4 stars

As a big fan of space exploration and the like, I knew most of the stories in here already. Even though, I found the book interesting and informative, with the right mix of humorous and serious stories. Reading about the different pranks and practical astronauts have played on each other was a good contrast to reading about the animals sent into space, some of whom never made it back home. I also enjoyed reading about the struggles of the women trying to become the first astronauts. It’s crazy to know that some of them were more qualified than their male counterparts, but weren’t allowed to become astronauts simply because of their gender. I am glad we have moved beyond that. The story about sex in space seemed like an odd inclusion at first, until the point is brought up about colonizing Mars or other planets, or being stuck on spaceships for extended periods of time. If we ever get to the point where humans need to leave Earth, reproduction is the only way for the species to continue, so eventually we are going to have to think about some of those hurdles.

For anyone who enjoys books about space or is interested in space exploration and its history, this is a good collection of stories to read.

4 stars

When I first started reading this, I was wondering if it was going to end up like the Eugenics Wars in Star Trek, with Logan being similar to Khan (just with less gold fishnet). It didn’t end up like that, though I couldn’t get rid of the feeling that I’d read something like this before.

The premise is pretty interesting. A member of an agency that tries to stop genetic manipulation is genetically manipulated in a raid gone wrong. The first part of the book is fast-paced and keeps you wondering what’s going to happen. However, once the book gets to part two, it starts to lag. There isn’t nearly as much going on, and the little bit of action that does occur is over and done with pretty quickly. The last part of the book with the showdown between Logan and his enemies was exciting; however, I felt that things were wrapped up a little too neatly. I expected more dealing with the upgrade they were trying to release. The fact that over all this time nothing had really been done with it seemed a little odd, and Logan stopping everything and there being no consequences at all was just slightly unbelievable. Overall all I did really enjoy this and reading about the upgrades was really interesting, even if it did go over my head at times. This makes a good read for anyone who enjoys smart sci-fi.

4 stars

This is a hard book to review, as it’s very detailed, but at the same time hard to explain without giving away too much of the story.

This wasn’t what I was expecting, but that’s okay because it turned out to be a great read. I had never heard the term epigenetics before reading this, though I had heard about generational trauma, and those traumas being passed down through our DNA. The way it is weaved throughout the book is compelling, with each woman experiencing the echoes of trauma of those who came before her, even if she doesn’t realize it.

I had worried a bit about keeping track of each woman, since the book isn’t told in chronological order, but this didn’t end up being an issue as each chapter is told by a different woman, and they are all decent length with a lot of depth and characterization. I had a lot of feelings while reading this; I could feel each woman’s trauma, and I had a lot of sadness when that trauma was revealed and the chapter ended. Each story kept me intrigued and engrossed in the book; I finished it very quickly once I got into it. The ending was also not what I expected, but I was very happy with it. It gave me a sense of hope – that even though we may experience trauma and sadness in our lives, that things can still turn around for the better.