BOOK REVIEW | The Double Helix by James Watson

James Watson and Francis Crick made arguably the greatest discovery of the 20th century: proving that DNA is the building block of life and providing a solid structure for it. This short autobiographical account written by Watson provides an in depth - and biased - look into the discovery and also reveals the world of science, where fair play isn't always adhered to. 

I remember my mother talking about Crick and Watson when I was a kid learning about DNA in school and telling me how these two men stole a woman named Rosalind Franklin's idea and research and then got all the credit for it, including a Nobel Prize. Well, my ten year old (or so) self was appalled by this. She did all the work and they got all the credit? The injustice! Reading this was eye-opening for me, because yes, Franklin did not get nearly as much credit as she deserved during the time of their discovery (this was later remedied as best as it could be), but I would not necessarily say that they stole anything from her. Although, I suppose when it comes to her X-Ray of the B Form, that's pretty debatable.

Because this was written by Watson, this is simply his perception of how things went during this time of his life. I think that he didn't aim for objectivity in portraying the people around him, but rather tried to give his opinion and point of view. I do not think his portrait of Maurice Wilkins or Linus Pauling were particularly appealing, but they were his greatest rivals in the world of DNA, so he had to villainize them to make himself the hero. As my professor said, he turned Pauling into Goliath so that he and Crick could become the Davids.

It is extremely readable, but I am not its target audience. I have to admit that had I not read this for class, I may have never picked it up. Although my career is in the science field, it is in the world of computers, not biology and genetics. I greatly appreciate the work that Crick and Watson did, as well as Pauling, Franklin, Bragg, Wilkins, Perutz, Kendrew, etc. but I did not truly understand all of the science in this. On the surface level, it is understandable and I don't think any readers will ever feel lost. That's not what I mean. But on a deeper level, understanding the impact that each scientist had on each other, the impact of each step forward, each failed experiment and each successful experiment: I think someone who has a background in this type of science will really appreciate those aspects.

Overall, I'm quite happy to have read this. It provided a detailed account of one of the most monumental moments of modern history. Recommended.

BOOK REVIEW | If I Stay by Gayle Forman

I think that there's a lot in a reader's life that affects the rating of a book. When they read it, the mood they were in, how their day had been, what they had been reading previously, what they plan on reading next, etc. In this case, the stars aligned for my reading experience of Gayle Forman's "If I Stay," because I found it to be a nearly perfect book.

I did listen to this, rather than read it, so that my have affected my experience of it, but I honestly feel as if this is the perfect book to listen to. The reader was phenomenal, and the narration is just meant to be read aloud. The short, poetic sentences that Ms. Forman has woven together flow into each other beautifully. There were never any awkward wordings or sentence flaws that threw me out of the story.

I loved all of the characters in this story, especially the parents. When you're listening to a book instead of reading it, different things become important for you to enjoy your experience. For me, the things that became important were the character dynamics, their relationships and their dialogue. All three were excellent. Mia is a conservative teenage girl who loves her alternative family, her alternative boyfriend and her cello. Being able to hear the story from her point of view, considering she was "strangest" of them all, was really interesting. What it was like to grow up with such liberal parents and off road ways of thinking, what it is like having become someone so very different from her parents, but then falling in love with someone so very like them.

What it's like losing your parents and younger brother in one moment.

This book got to me. I did okay throughout the most of it, but the ending, where she's choosing to stay or go... I couldn't handle it. The tears were streaming down my face. I wouldn't say I was sobbing but there was a continuous trail of tears. The author wanted a reaction and she got one. Kudos to her for being able to weave a story so heartbreaking and full of hope at the same time.

ANNOUNCEMENT: Blogging Return & Upcoming Series!

Well, hello everyone! 

It's no secret that I've been gone from this blog for quite some time.  I even need to relink my social media accounts so that I can stop seeing those strange smiley faces!  I wanted to re-evaluate the way I wrote reviews; how much subjectivity do I want to place in a review?  How do I feel about the star system? (Spoiler: I don't like it and therefore do not give star ratings anymore unless it's a 5* because it just resonated with me.)  How do I want my reviews to be formatted?  Who am I trying to reach? 

All of these have been on my mind as I've toyed with the idea of coming back to book blogging and book reviewing.  Literature has, and always will be, my first love.  And I'm so grateful that I've been able to translate that love into others through my profession.

I've been having a great time living life and settling into my role as a teacher.  I've been teaching for 8 years now but I've been a middle school teacher for the past 4.  I'm currently finishing my MA and working part-time as an English and History teacher at an Orthodox Jewish school.  (They have their Judaic studies in the morning and their General studies in the afternoon.)  Teaching middle school has really opened my eyes to what students are reading and how much I want to encourage parents to let their students read and read voraciously.  Trust me, middle schoolers know so much more than you think and being exposed to new concepts is only going to help them become better adjusted adults. 

Thus my new series that I'll be starting on here is going to be called FOR THE  PARENTS.  These are going to be reviews of middle school/YA books where I will tell you what I liked about the book while also being open and honest about the content so that you can decide if your child is ready for it.  I do really recommend that parents think long and hard.  Literature is a good thing.  Reading is a good thing.  I hope that these reviews will help parents encourage their children rather than restricting them.

I've also been doing so much traveling, as you can see from some of the pictures I've been placing in this post. (I do have a travel blog here, by the way, if you're curious!)  Traveling and reading are my true passions, my true hobbies.  I've been lucky enough to travel to over 20 countries and teach in 4 of them.  And soon that will be 5!  I am currently in the midst of accepting a job in Kuwait for the upcoming 2020-2021 school year as an English teacher at an American Academy.

So what does this mean for my reading preferences?  On top of the FOR THE PARENTS series, I'd like to also start a BECOMING CULTURED series, where I read works by people of other cultures and about other cultures, whether it be historical or current.  This can include fiction and nonfiction, too.  I have been adoring traveling to new places, learning about events and seeing things for myself - as well as meeting absolutely lovely people - and now I'd like to take my mind there, too, when I'm unable to travel due to work. 

So, that's basically my long winded way of saying I'm back to book blogging & book reviewing and I hope to connect with the community again.  Let's get reading!

SEPTEMBER WRAP UP

I cannot believe that October, my favorite month, is finally here!  I had an okay reading month. I think I didn't realize how much time school would suck out of me, haha.  So, my OCTOBER TBR will be a little more modest. ;)

 


Lilus Kikus and Other Stories by Elena Poniatowska.  Loved this so so so so crazy much.  I have a review HERE if you'd like to read more about it.






 

In the End by Demitria Lunetta.  Not as impressed by this one as I was by the first. There were a lot of parts that just didn't really make sense... I didn't post a review here, but I have a mini-review on Goodreads that you can check out HERE.





 


Rumble by Ellen Hopkins.  This book and I did not get along.  This was my only one-star read this month... and for a very long time, actually.  Find out why I didn't like this book HERE.

 


Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass.  Perfect.  A book that absolutely everyone should read.  I'm working on a review of this one and should hopefully have it up by the weekend.







Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel.  A very weird and magical book.  When I finished it I wasn't sure if I loved it or hated it. Turns out, I kind of loved it.  But I'm warning you that things get a little strange.  It's called magical realism for a reason.

 


Running a Thousand Miles for Freedom by William and Ellen Craft.  This was my favorite book I read this month.  Only around 50 pages, full of information about the complexity of using race as a reason for slavery as well as a compelling and amazing story of how to people became free.  Really, really, really recommended. 



 


Woman Hollering Creek by Sandra Cisneros.  This was a collection of short stories written by Cisneros, who has a very declarative, staccato style.  But she also can weave a sentence so beautiful it's like watching someone paint.  Put those two contrasting styles together and you have the very interesting work of Sandra Cisneros.  Her Eyes of Zapata story was my favorite. 

What did you read this month?

If you'd like to follow what I read more closely, check me out on Goodreads.

If you'd like to see pretty pictures of what I'm reading, and books in general, you can find me on Instagram.

BOOK REVIEW | The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

 5 creepy and magical stars.

The Graveyard Book is a deliciously creepy tale of a young boy who is raised in a graveyard by the dead. Nobody Owens ran to the graveyard when he was a baby after his parents and older sibling had been murdered. When the ghosts of the Owens family - a nice family who had always wanted children - saw him, they decided to keep him immediately. And thus, the graveyard became the baby's home, and Nobody became his name.

I've only ever read Stardust by Neil Gaiman before, but I think I'm starting to understand his style: a little bit of creepy, a little bit of action and a whole lot of magic. There are ghosts and ghouls abound in this book, as well as secret orders, and ancient tomb, a spirit animal - or what I think is a spirit animal, anyway - and a man who is both dead and alive. Nobody can "fade" himself and haunt a person and uses these tricks to his advantage to get out of some sticky situations, as well as for dealing justice at his school when needed.

I listened to the audiobook version of this, which was narrated by Neil Gaiman himself, and wow... I really recommend it. I'm in the car for three hours a day because of my job and my transit to school and this really added a nice little kick to my day. Even the kids I watch liked it and kept asking questions about it! Gaiman has a very versatile voice and can do heaps of different character voices, which always made me laugh. He also has a very soothing voice, so be careful lest he lull you to sleep like he did to me once.

This book is magic. Gaiman himself is probably magic. Highly recommended in whatever format you choose

What Kind of Reader are You?

I've been noticing a lot of reader shame in the book world lately, and I predict there will be many posts to come about book/reader pretentiousness and what not.  But for now, I want to help you establish what kind of a reader you are.

In the broadest sense, I believe there are two types of readers: The Thinker and The Feeler.

You may be a Thinker reader if you:

• Are constantly analyzing books.
• Need a logical occurrence of events to satisfy you.
• Cannot suspend your disbelief.
• Are a fan of deconstruction.
• Prefer to read for the enlightenment of it rather than the enjoyment of it.
• Do no relate to fiction characters/don't need to relate to the characters.
• Base a book on its writing style and organization.

(Image credit here.)

You may be a Feeler reader if you:

• Read books solely for the enjoyment of it.
• Prefer to be entertained than educated.
• Find yourself getting way too involved in a character's life.
• Need to actually like the protagonist to enjoy the novel.
• Prefer plot and character over good writing.

In general, Thinker readers read more: classical literature, literary fiction, and sci-fi.

In general, Feeler readers read more: YA, fantasy, romance and children's/middle school lit.

Here's a point I want to make: both types of readers are equally valid and equally important.  They both add something new and different to the reading community and how boring would it be if we were all Thinkers/Feelers?

I am getting quite sick of Thinker readers looking down on Feelers for being too "vapid" or for "not reading proper books."  I'm also quite sick of Feeler readers looking down on Thinker readers and finding them to be too "pretentious" or that they "think too much."  Just because you only read classics does not make you better than the person who only reads YA.

In my opinion, only reading any one type of book is dangerous.  I don't care if you've read every single YA or classic novel ever written, but have you ever read a book by a hispanic woman, or a gay man, or a book by an African about his experiences? Have you read any romance?  Have you branched out to epic fantasy?  Have you read any Slave Narratives? (Because I've been reading a lot lately, and they are well worth the read.) What about literary fiction?  Magical realism?  Why are you limiting yourself to one thing?   If you only read the same type of novel, you will only think the same type of thoughts and there will be no room to grow.

That being said, I do think it's important that we start respecting each other's reading decisions.  While I don't think all books are created equal, I do believe that each type of reader should have the freedom to choose what they want to read without fear of being judged for it.

Personally, I think I'm a Thinker reader with very high Feeler tendencies.  But what about you?

What kind of reader are you?

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