I don't know - maybe she forgot her phone, or her spell book, or something.

More book reviews. The last post only got me caught up to September!



A Good Scent from a Strange Mountain by Robert Olen Butler

The Story:
This is a collection of short stories about people from Vietnam and those who immigrated from Vietnam to the United States shortly after the Vietnam war. Each story is narrated by a different Vietnamese character and share a wide variety of experiences even as most of the immigrants settle in the same area.

The Review:
The first story in the collection was the best. It had a good perspective and had an interesting twist at the end. The other stories were also interesting as they told different lives and incorporated folktales and traditions.

I had a hard time getting into this and feeling connected to it. So it was an interesting story, but not great.

***

The Tale of the Dueling Neurosurgeons by Sam Kean

The Format:

Audiobook

The Story:

This is a non-fiction account of how neuroscience developed and made discoveries. Kean's fundamental idea is that all the information we know about the brain has been learned over time because of people's injuries, diseases, and congenital defects. He tells the stories of these patients, and how they influenced what we know about the brain. 

The Review:

This was a really interesting book. Kean is an engaging storyteller who captures the stories of people's lives in a really good way. The stories are mind-boggling. It is amazing that people suffered these extreme injuries and were often still able to survive them. Each personal story adds another piece to what we know about the brain and how the brain works. 

It was interesting to follow the science forward in time and learn what the original thoughts were about how the brain worked, and how that progressed to what we know now. 

It was a fascinating account. I definitely recommend it. 

***

A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson

The Format:

Audiobook

The Story:

Bill Bryson writes a memoir about hiking the Appalachian Trail. He tells about his preparations for the hike, gives a lot of history about the trail, and then tells about his actual hiking. 

The Review:

My friends have been telling me about Bill Bryson's books for a long time now, and I have to admit, even through all I have heard this was my first time reading one of his books. 

And I loved it. It was great. Bryson has a great, humorous style and even as he brings in a ton of different topics, he still writes very clearly and engagingly. He tells a lot about the history of the Appalachian Trail, bear attacks, the people who have hiked it. He also is funny as he relates his own adventures on the trail. 

I definitely recommend it, and will be reading other things by Bill Bryson. 

***

The Silver Star by Jeannette Walls

The Story:

Jeannette Walls, the author of The Glass Castle, writes a fictional story about two sisters. Their mom is the creative type and takes off, leaving them alone. They travel across the country to their uncle's house. 

The Review:

This was a great book. It was charming and easy to connect to the girls. The story feels a lot like The Glass Castle with parents who are basically crazy and who reject their family. The children band together to take care of each other and protect themselves against the parents and larger society. 

This is one of the books that was recommended as a happy book. I would not have actually classified it as particularly happy, but it was a charming book, and I do recommend it.