The Black Box by Michael Connolly

I have been meaning to post my review on the whole Lincoln Lawyer series by this author. In the mean time I'm going to talk about one of his other books focusing on Detective Harry Bosch, the other main character who appears in most of the other writings by Michael Connolly.

As a fan on Robert B. Parker I am no stranger to the hard luck detective type who is rough and gruff and out there to help the distressed. I dig it. But.... I am a little tired of the always-in-trouble-can't-handle-authority-everyone-is-out-to-get-me cop thing. Sadly, Harry is the poster boy for that whole literary plot line/device. 

This book was okay. It picked up by the end actually, and I really liked how the mystery turned out. My biggest problem was with the beginning and a good chunk of the middle. It felt like it was a lot of worrying and dragging your feet kind of thing happening that didn't really keep my attention.

I do enjoy this author and I do enjoy his writing style, it's just hard sometimes to connect to his characters. They just feel so stereotypical sometimes! 

This story was about a woman who was murdered years ago, but the case wasn't solved. New clues resurface and Harry gets a chance to make things right and solve the murder. There's a lot of covering up, some military secrets, some undercover investigation, all the good stuff of an American cop mystery. Wasn't half bad.

Recommendation: If you enjoy American cop stories about the "bad boys" of the law who solve the tough mysteries, then I think you'll like this. 

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

This book is insane. I don't often read memoirs but this one is pretty darn amazing. I picked it up used a couple years ago because I had heard it was a must read, and they were not kidding about that. This book is a total must read.

It's about the life that Jeannette Walls had growing up. It details in the realest ways her past and it's not pretty. It really brings into perspective the truth that you don't really know what someone else's life is like and you shouldn't ever judge, or compare, because no one's life is like yours.

Her writing is mesmerizing and beautiful. So many times my heart broke for her and the things she experienced. If this book isn't the book that highlights how to deal with family and how to persevere then I don't know what is.

I'm pretty sure I told my fiancee literally everything in the book right after I read it because I needed to talk about it with someone. It's like I knew it was real but I couldn't deal with that because how could it have happened that way?

I don't want to go into details about it really, you can find some more insight on Goodreads because I don't want to explain everything as I think you just need to read it. Like for real. Please read this.

The reason I picked it up off my shelf to read it now was because I heard it was being made into a movie, and boy, I cannot wait for that movie.

This book was so good, but yet, so terrible that it's true, but again, so good!

Recommendation: If you want to be amazed and horrified and amazed all at once, read this. Scratch that, just read this!

My Part Time Paris Life: How Running Away Brought Me Home by Lisa Anselmo

This memoir caught my eye at Chapters while I was roaming around near the travel section. The cover is beautiful and the idea of someone actually running away, following their dreams, and doing the crazy unthinkable sounded like the perfect book.

I wasn't sure exactly what her story was before picking up the book, but I was on board for the ride because it had to do with living in Paris. This isn't just about a woman who through caution to the wind and bought property in another country, but about a woman who loses her mother and seeks to find herself now that the centre of her life isn't there anymore.

The book follows Lisa from the death of her mother, to that first crazy thought of moving to Paris, to her actually buying a home and moving there for more than a couple weeks. There are ups and downs along the way, and we get to read about how the experiences changed her and helped her grow.

It's like the books Eat, Pray, Love and Wild in that it deals with a loss and the need to reinvent or even simply to find yourself again, be who you are, and be happy. I appreciate these memoirs so much because they are so honest and real and about every day people.

It was a fairly quick read, simple but enjoyable. It made me smile, it made me tear up, and it was so well written that I felt like I was there too. I highly recommend this book, especially if you are someone who loves reading about the people who take life into their hands and do awesome things in pursuit of themselves.

Recommendation: For the love of memoirs about thought women who take back their lives and just go for it.

Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen

I've seen this movie a bunch of times but I never had the opportunity to read the book that inspired it.

The book is the true account of what Susannah experienced when she went into treatment with a mental illness. I have always found books and stories like this to be interesting. We all live different lives and being able to look into the lives of others can be enlightening and moving experience. 

Now, the movie is a little more dramatic and embellished than the book (the real story) was. Part of me is so happy that is the case. If you've ever seen the movie, it's got some parts that really kind of grab you and shake you up. Thankfully, those parts weren't experienced by the author in quite the same way. I could explain but I won't go into more detail because I am so against spoilers of any kind.

This was a super easy and quick read for me, and I was totally wrapped up in it when I was reading it. It's really an open window into the lives of those who experience mental illness. 

There are copies of records from the institution from during her stay inserted into the book that I thought were pretty darn cool to see. I do like how much the movie told the story of these characters and did them so much justice though, and I recommend both the movie and the book. 

Recommendation: for those who are interested in the lives and experiences of those touched with mental illness, this is something to read!

And Then There Were Nuns by Jane Christmas

If you've seen any of my Instagram stories, I spend a lot of time in the library on my days off writing and drinking coffee. On one such trip the table I was sitting near happened to be next to the stacks of religious books and the title of this one caught my eye (Agatha Christie fans, you know why).

This is a memoir about a woman who thinks she needs to follow this yearning she has to become a nun. She finally decides she needs to go and visit some convents and truly look into this path right around the same time her boyfriend proposes to her. I found this hilarious and totally engrossing right from the start. She visits four different places over the course of her journey and she details the real feelings and experiences she felt during this period in her life. 

While still in the library I started reading this book and by the time we left I was at chapter two and totally committed in following the path of this book. 

It's funny, it's serious, and it's the kind of memoir that totally draws you in, gives you a cup of tea, and settles you down for the ride. 

I'm not a religious person and I like how she gave information about some of the things she was writing about in such a way that you didn't feel silly for not knowing them. I was able to keep up and feel like I was experiencing what she experienced. 

I read this pretty fast over the span of two days. I love her writing style and I do believe she's written other books which I will be very happy to check out. I've always been curious about the lives of those who spend their time in religious orders and I enjoyed this look into that world.

Recommendation: If you are curious and are looking for a really good memoir about a life different then you're own, a life searching for something, or even a really good read, this is the book you should read.

Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

I picked this book up used years ago because everyone was talking about it and I figured some day I would give it a try even though it wasn't really my type of read. I am a mystery lover to the core but I've been branching out a lot lately and I am enjoying myself.

I did not quite know what to expect with this book. I didn't watch the movie at all so all I knew was what was written on the back. Right off the bad, I was surprised but delighted at how the book was set up. I love that it was in sections and it was set up in little stories of her memories.

I liked the way she just told us her story and let it all out there. Of course, she is a great writer and I have been picking up some of her other works when I find them (like Big Magic which everyone needs to read. Read my thoughts about it here) and I think she's such an interesting person.

This book was really great. I loved the rawness about it. It left me wanting more and I found it to be really inspiring in unexpected ways. I didn't want to put it down either. There's so much about the lives of others that really moves us and I really do enjoy true stories like this.

She does touch on her beliefs quite a bit but I even enjoyed that part too. Differences between our lives and the lives of others are just as great as the similarities. I have definitely not experienced the same things that she has, but I could still identify with her story.

This is going to be a book that I will be rereading for sure in the future. I would like to see the movie too at some point.

Recommendation: Give this a try. It's good, it'll make you feel things, and .you'll like it.

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me by Mindy Kaling

I have been a big fan of Mindy Kaling since The Office and I had been meaning to get my hands on her book for quite a while. Now that her new one has come out, I was behind and grabbed this one as soon as I could.

This book was a memoir of sorts, written in essays about her life, her work, and everything else she felt like sharing. She is funny and interesting, and I loved it. It was a very easy read, but it felt like she was sitting across from you and just having a chat. It read exactly like I thought she would sound. It was perfect in my opinion. I loved the insights into how she found success and the background details she gave about The Office.  It was great.

I will be reading her new one as well when I can. This did not disappoint one bit! I did read in a couple places that others thought it was good but that she just tried to fill pages by the end, but really, she is still young. She has so much more time to live and to create. Of course her memoir of sorts won't be as full and a juicy as some may wish. This is why I am excited for her new one. I really do look forward to reading it.

Recommendation: For fans of Mindy Kaling, for those who wonder about her life, and who are just interested in the real girl behind the success.

Wild by Cheryl Strayed

This book is a must read. Period.

I don't know if I can really do it justice by reviewing it but I will do my best and try.

This book first came on my radar before I made my own bookstagram account on Instagram. It was through random people I follow on my personal Instagram that I heard about it. They all said it was special and important to read. At first, I wasn't really interested because I am a mystery lover at heart and this a true story. For a little while I went through a faze of wanting to read books that are inspirational and life changing so I ended up picking this up.

Right from the start this book had me in tears. There were moments at the beginning I had to put it down and walk away for a while. It wasn't because I didn't like it, but just that it was emotional and made you feel things.

This is the story about a woman who decides to hike the Pacific Crest Trail. She has nothing to lose and gives up everything, changing her life entirely, to hike more than 1000 miles. She has a lot of personal tragedy in her past and she decides that she needs to do this crazy thing. She sells her stuff, bought supplies, arranged for packages to reach her on the trail, with the goal being to just do it.


I know I'm not summarizing it and doing it any kind of justice, but honestly, you need to read this. It's a story about a journey that leaves the reader changed from its reading.

This book broke me and put my back together again, a little bit better than I had been before. It was moving and inspiring in all the best ways.

I haven't had the pleasure of watching the movie yet, but while reading it I kept picturing Reese Witherspoon anyway. I think doing that gave me even more perspective on the story that I might not have had otherwise.

This book really touched me in ways I didn't think it would. I am so much better for having read this. I hope for the courage to do something daring like this in my life one day.

Recommendation: Read this. You will need some tissues. You will hurt, but you will come out on the other side better, believe me.

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

My first knowledge of Sylvia Plath was on a teen show quite a few years ago. The guy was making fun of a girl for being emotional and broody and he referred to The Bell Jar. It's still the first thing I think of when this book comes to mind. This show (possibly the same episode) was also when I learned of Jane Austen and her works.

Since then I have learned that Sylvia Plath was a brilliant writer and poet. I am familiar with her life story, and although it's not the happiest, it's still very important.

The Bell Jar is a classic. Sylvia Plath wrote a tale of a woman's life dealing with depression and mental illness. Some of the events in this book actually mirror her own life and it is said it was semi-autobiographical. She originally published this book under a pseudonym.

This is a haunting tale, but it's an important read. It gives you a look inside the mind of someone dealing with depression. It's really hard to describe this book. It's powerful and emotional and will leave you with mixed feelings.

I would say that I am happy to have read it. I can understand Sylvia Plath and our draw to her like a moth to a flame. She was a beautiful writer, and a beautiful person. Her work was very important and it deserves to be appreciated.

Recommendation: Go look up this author and her work. If you can handle it, then please, read it. It is a classic and deserves to be read. Take it for what it is. I consider it a gem in my collection.

On Writing by Stephen King

This book is exactly what the title leads you to believe. It's Stephen Kings thoughts on writing. It's part memoir and part master class on the art of writing. 

I devoured this book in a day and took lots of notes. My love of reading has long since evolved into a love of writing and I tend to snap up really inspiring and helpful books related to the art of writing. I do play about here and their with stories and things, I've even written quite a stack of terrible poetry. Perhaps I will evolve some more into an author myself. Who knows? What I do know is this book will be the first review of possibly many related to books on the art of writing. 

In this book Stephen King talks about his life, his hardships, what it was like starting out writing and going through his life. It was eye opening, personal, and truly inspiring. 

I greatly respect him as both a writer and a person. This book really gives a behind the scenes look at his life and his work. I always feel more connected to an author after learning more about them. Makes them more human and the writing of a book more attainable. 

There is even a whole section where he shares an unedited piece of work and goes over how he would edit it which is super helpful. I am happy to have this book close at hand for future reference. 

Recommendation: For any writer, this book is a must. Even if you don't love his work, you have to acknowledge his mastery when it comes to writing. (Of course this book is even better if you do love his work!)

Yes Please by Amy Poehler

In case you didn't know Amy Poehler is a writer, actress, producer, and director. She is also super funny. This book a collection of awesomeness in a kind of memoir format. It's pretty darn cool.

I do love a good comedy movie and television show so I have seen her work a few times, but I didn't really get a feel for the woman behind the humour. It wasn't until I saw the show Parks and Recreation that everything changed for me.

Honestly, a woman who can act out and bring so much life and love to a character like Leslie Knope on Parks and Recreation deserves a whole lot more of our attention. I could go on and extol
the love I have for that show but we would be here for a looooong time. (Please go watch it if you haven't seen it. It's worth it I promise!)

Now, if you are at all interested in this book please PLEASE go to the store and simply open it and flip through it. I will not elaborate, but you will immediately understand why you need this book in your life. Seriously.

She is hilarious and brilliant and funny and smart and wise and perfect and awesome all wrapped up into this special great person that just makes her one of a kind. I loved her writing. It felt like she was sitting there talking instead of writing. I really enjoyed it.

There were quite a few different quotes I've written down and since I read this over a period of a couple weeks (I needed to leave some for later, didn't want to finish it too soon) I found myself bringing up bits and pieces, even reading some out loud to my guy.

Recommendation: Read it. You will laugh, you will enjoy it, you will come to know so much more about this woman, the world of comedy, improv, and life.


Thank you for reading!


Pamela