Show Us Your Books: December 2016

Thanks to a free month of Scribd and lots of searching for free audiobooks online, I kind of beasted Nonfiction November. But I did not read what I had originally planned to read (see the TBR here).

Along with nonfiction and audiobooks, this month I soaked up a bunch of women writers.

It was both incredibly inspirational in the face of the election...and that much more disappointing. I love so many of these scrappy, bold women and I'm so fucking tired in my soul that the rest of my country apparently does not see the greatness that I do...and instead glorifies someone who basically goes against almost everything I believe in.

But I digress. I'd recommend all these books- I didn't agree with all of them but I was interested and very much wanted to cheer during a good portion of most of them.

Nonfiction November Picks:

Scrappy Little Nobody by Anna Kendrick

I was very excited about this book, because Anna Kendrick is hilarious and the millennial queen of snark. It didn't disappoint. An interesting look at Hollywood and acting and being a young woman.

The Life-Changing Magic of Not Giving a F*ck: How to Stop Spending Time You Don't Have with People You Don't Like Doing Things You Don't Want to Do by Sarah Knight

I needed this book. I don't know that I can put it into action, but it was so nice to hear that you don't have to care about everything, since I have a stereotypical small town Southern family that kind of tells me the opposite.

How to Be a Woman by Caitlin Moran

This was hailed as feminist iconography. It was good, but not great in my opinion. There were some pieces I highly agreed with, and some I did not. For some reason, I expected her to be American and a little younger (not that she's old, but older than me and older than I thought she was). Not being British, I can't attest to everything she said but I enjoyed it. Especially the Lady Gaga part ("We do this for us") and the idea that yellow shoes are neutral- think about it. Totally true.

Adulting: How to Become a Grown-up in 468 Easy(ish) Steps by Kelly Williams Brown

This was good- I kind of wish I had the physical copy because there are several lists given that are super helpful. Of course I didn't agree with everything, but there is a ton of good advice here and it's perfect for a young adult who is moving out on their on for the first time.

Fiction Picks:

The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman

I briefly mentioned this in my Monthly Recommendations post. It was heart-wrenching and really examined what makes a family and how we are bound to what we love, as well as having very well-done examinations of the trouble that "patriotism" and identity can cause when it causes people to see someone else as "other" and therefor lesser. But...I did not love the ending. It was rushed, it was unfair, it just killed a wonderful book. I will give it a 3-3.5 but it could easily have been a 5 star book if the resolution had been handled with more care.

Love & Gelato by Jenna Evans Welch

This was a completely random read, that I got from a "neighborhood library" while visiting family and centers on a teenage girl visiting Italy due to some family upheaval. It was cute, and interesting- in some ways a pretty fluffy YA but it also had some deep moments about family and identity. Plus the main character is kind of re-tracing her mother's young adulthood with a diary and that was a cool plot device that I really enjoyed.  

Beauty Queens by Libba Bray

This one happened to be one of the monthly credits on Scribd, so I could read it without using a "credit" so to speak. It has been praised by Kirstie from Melbourne on My Mind so I figured "Why not?" It involves a group of beauty pagent contestants who get stranded on an island...that turns out not to be as remote as they thought. It was very campy, and satirical, but hit SO MANY IMPORTANT POINTS. It gets major diversity points (an African American & Indian contestants, bisexual and lesbian contestants, a deaf contestant, a transgender contestant). Also examines marketing and politics and points out the fucked-up-ness of it all. Highly recommend- 4/4.5 stars (just because it took me a while to get on board with the half realistic/half hyperbole style). But definitely hits some important points.

Lauren's Saints of Dirty Faith (Dirty Girls #3) 

by Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez

I almost don't even feel like I can review this properly. It's technically the third in a series (Dirty Girls Club) but has a very different feel. While the other two are kinda chic lit-y and follow a group, this one focuses on three friends in particular and has a very different vibe since it's more of a thriller. The author's note explained a lot of this (she felt constrained previously, like she had to fit into a specific box kind of, and wanted to branch out and acknowledge that today's world is very different than when the original book came out). I completely understand, but as someone who was in the mood for the previous vibe it was a little disconcerting. Also, I kind of really liked the idea of chick lit that was diverse. I've linked to the Goodreads description, and if it sounds interesting don't worry that you have to read the first two in the series. It's really not necessary IMO.

What have you been reading this month?

And don't forget that the yearly wrap-up- Show Us Your Books of 2016- will be December 27th!