blogher book review: the fault in our stars

This is a review for the BlogHer book club. I am being compensated and received a complimentary copy of the book...but the opinions, as always, are all my own. :)

I really love to read, and so these book reviews have been a fun way for me to take some time out of my busy days and nights to read books. All of the books I've read so far have been at least mildly entertaining, but this one was one that kept me the most engaged.

The Fault in Our Stars, by John Green, is a story about Hazel, a teenager who has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. At a support group meeting for kids with cancer, Hazel meets Augustus, and their love story begins. They are both witty and smart, and they share a love for reading. Hazel introduces Augustus to her favorite book, which leads them on an adventure to find the author. Throughout the story, there are tender moments, but there are also really hard, disappointing moments.

I really loved this novel because, unlike other kids with cancer books I've read (aka Six Months to Live, which I read in elementary school and felt so so so sad), Green didn't write the book to make you pity Hazel and Augustus. Sure, there are very sad moments, but overall, he portrayed them as typical teens, with typical teenage emotions and supernatural peace about how life goes on despite the hard things. If anything, it made me want to live as they were -- taking advantage of each day, as if it were their last.

Thanks for letting me share this book with you!

bhbc review: the lake of dreams

Well, I'm doing it again -- participating in the BlogHer Book Club, that is -- and today, the book club is launching a discussion about The Lake of Dreams, Kim Edwards' (author of The Memory Keeper's Daughter) newest novel.


Photo credit: Amazon

The Lake of Dreams is the story of Lucy Jarrett, a 20-something year old woman, who, after her father died suddenly the summer before she left for college, had traveled the world, leaving her home, The Lake of Dreams, behind. Lucy is an unemployed hydrologist, living with her boyfriend, Yoshi, in Japan. From the beginning of the novel, she appears to be haunted by her past, and when she receives word from home that her mother has been in a minor accident, she decides, at Yoshi's urging, decides to visit home.

Lucy returns home, surprised by the many changes in her family's lives and the town, and reconnects with her childhood sweetheart, Keenan. She accidently uncovers hidden almost century-old documents in the house, and, intrigued begins researching a long-forgotten relative. Throughout the novel, she struggles with her relationship with her family and her feelings about Keenan and Yoshi, even as she becomes engrossed in her search to find out about her mysterious relative. 

I was really excited to read this novel, because I really enjoyed Kim Edwards' previous bestseller, "The Memory Keeper's Daughter." For the most part, the mystery, the family relationship and the romance kept me interested in the novel. However, I will say that there were times where I felt like Edwards included too much detail that slowed the pace of the plot. Nonetheless, I liked the overall story and...on a scale of 5, I'd give it a 3.5 stars. :)

Note: I was compensated for this review as a part of the BlogHer Book Club program, however, the opinions are entirely my own.
 

how to be an american housewife

I recently joined the BlogHer Book Club and my first review is of a book called How to be an American Housewife by Margaret Dilloway. :)

In How to be an American Housewife, Shoko, a Japanese woman who married an American man, Charlie, after WWII, recounts her life story from the time she was a young girl in WWII Japan. Throughout her life, Shoko struggles with balancing her true desires and the world's expectations, especially with respect to her relationship with her brother, Taro, and her daughter, Sue. Because of a heart condition that is causing Shoko's health to deterioriate quickly, she feels the urgency to reconnect and find forgiveness from her long-estranged brother. She also finds herself wishing she and Sue had a better relationship. But because her health will not allow her to go to Japan, she enlists the help of her reluctant daughter to find and deliver a letter to Taro.

The story then turns to Sue, a 30-something single mother, who feels like she could never make her mom proud of her. She feels aimless in her career and in her life in general. But, as she travels to Japan, she begins to understand a whole new side of not only her mother, but of herself as well.

Obviously, I can relate to Sue as a woman who has lived torn between two cultures -- my Asian heritage and parents versus the American society I grew up in. In many ways, I felt like I could never please my parents enough, no matter what I did. And yet, as I grew older, I began to see that their way of being "proud" and loving me was so very different from how "Americans" show the same affections. It wasn't until I was older that I learned more about my Korean heritage and started appreciating it fully.

The book is a quick and easy read. However, I did find Shoko's "outward voice" difficult to read. I can appreciate the author's desire to remain true to Shoko's broken English, but I have to admit that I felt like it was a caricature of a non-native speaker. I guess my expectation might be a little different because my parents' English, while not perfect, is much better than that of Shoko. I think it bothered me even more because of its constant juxtaposition to her first-person narrative, which was in perfect English. Regardless, I think the story was a beautiful one about identity, relationships, and forgiveness.

I was compensated for this BlogHer Book Club review, but all opinions expressed are my own.