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Tag Archives: female friendship

Play Review: Wicked: The Musical

28 Jan

I got my daughter tickets to see Wicked: The Musical for Christmas while it was on tour here in Florida.

For those who don’t know, Wicked is based on the book of the same name by Gregory Maguire. I read it many years ago when it first came out and here’s what I remember:

  • The book tells how Elphaba became known as the Wicked Witch of the West.
  • Maguire explains how she gets around the whole bathing thing since water destroys her in the end.
  • Glinda’s (the Good Witch of the North) name is actually Galinda.
  • Dorothy is a very peripheral, non-entity of a character until she, of course, liquidates the witch.
  • It’s sad. And long. Good, though!

Yeah, so the play is nothing like that. I mean, yes, we still find out how Elphaba becomes the Wicked Witch of the West, and Glinda is Galinda. But the play focuses more on the friendship between the two women and is way, way, way more upbeat and funny.

There is nothing (nothing!) I didn’t like about the play, so some of the things my daughter and I enjoyed:

  • Seeing the people turn into the iconic creatures: Tin Man, Scarecrow, etc.
  • Galinda. She is so shallow and funny. I want her to teach me to be popular. *tosses hair*
  • The song “Loathing”
  • Actually, getting context for all the songs was fantastic. We had listened to the soundtrack before but didn’t follow the plot through that. Much like, Dreamgirls, hearing the songs sung in context gives them more power and meaning.
  • “Defying Gravity” is an absolute showstopper.
  • The set was amazing.
  • Media manipulation is real. Poor Elphaba is just a victim of bad press.

Basically, the show is awesome. If you’re a fan of female friendship, fairy tale retellings, musicals, showmanship, strong female characters, fun wordplay, and exceeding cleverness definitely check out Wicked when it tours near you.

 
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Posted by on January 28, 2012 in Uncategorized

 

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Book Review: Getting Over Garrett Delaney

24 Jan

I can’t keep doing this to myself: getting my hopes up so high, only to have them come crashing down. I can’t keep waiting for him to come to his senses, having my whole emotional state rest on what he decides. What if never wakes up to how perfect we’d be together? What if I spend another year pining for him–or longer even?

In Getting Over Garrett Delaney by Abby McDonald, Sadie is in love with her best friend Garrett. When he goes away to camp for the summer and falls in love with yet another girl who isn’t Sadie, Sadie realizes it’s time for her to move on.

What I Liked

- I love, love, love, LOVE that the women Sadie works with band together to help her get over Garrett. In that way, the story becomes all about female friendship. To which I say YES PLEASE.

- Sadie reconnects with her old female bestie, Kayla.

- Awesome female characters. Between Sadie (who is, of course, kind of annoying in the beginning because she is so wrapped up in Garrett), Kayla, LouAnn, Dominique, and Sadie’s mom, fantastic women abound.

- Sadie does not get over Garrett by getting a new boyfriend!!!!!! YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSS. Nor does she need a boy to show her the way to enlightenment. It’s all about her, her female posse, and her mom.

- The format is ace. Once Sadie gets for real about getting over Garrett, there are little self-help type chapters between the main action to preview what Sadie is working on, and the progress she’s making.

- The emphasis on discovering your own interests and figuring out what you like and who you are outside of your friends–male or otherwise.

- Dominique, the black character has an Afro. Yay for natural hair.

- Literary references abound in this book. So much so that I started keeping a list of authors/books mentioned throughout. The books/authors (that I caught):

  • Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day
  • Atlas Shrugged
  • Crime and Punishment
  • Where the Wild Things Are
  • Lolita
  • Collected poems of Rainer Maria Rilke
  • Elaine Dundy
  • Lorrie Moore
  • Emma Forrest
  • Matilda
  • Henry David Thoreau
  • John Donne
  • Ernest Hemingway
  • D. H. Lawrence
  • Anaïs Nin

- Because navigating relationships always involves compromises, there are no easy answers or black and white situations. McDonald addresses that through the characters without being preachy or condescending and by letting them work through the answers themselves. The key is, according to the book, to know yourself and then you can know your boundaries.

What I Didn’t Like

- I thought the ending was a little abrupt. It’s not a bad ending or anything; I just wanted a little bit more. Which is also a good thing because it meant I wanted to spend more time with the characters.

- Dominique, the only black female character, is bitchy. She’s also French, so her bitchiness may have more to do with that than anything. At least she wasn’t sassy, I guess.

In conclusion: Very solid contemporary YA. Realistic and believable characters with a good, non-preachy message.

Source: NetGalley

 
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Posted by on January 24, 2012 in Young Adult Lit

 

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Book Review: The Romantic Obsessions & Humiliations of Annie Sehlmeier by Louise Plummer

16 Jan

I don’t like being an immigrant. I think of coarse-faced peasants in burlap pants carrying a couple of chickens in  a basket and leading a goat down a gangplank when I hear “immigrant.”

I picked up The Romantic Obsessions & Romantic Humiliations of Annie Sehlmeier by Louise Plummer at the library book sale because I really enjoyed The Unlikely Romance of Kate Bjorkman, which I picked up on a whim. So! Why not spend ten cents on an author I enjoyed before?

This book is about a girl whose family immigrates to the US (specifically, Utah) from Holland and what happens to her during their first year in the US.

There’s nothing about the book I didn’t like, so some highlights:

- I realized that I really want to read more realistic fiction that deals with slice of life stories. By which I mean, no heightened craziness, no wacky stuff, just…life. So I really appreciated this story for that.

- I loved the look at what it’s like to live with a senile grandparent and how difficult it is–especially dealing with the feelings of loss, anger, resentment, and sadness.

- Bras are for old women!

- The romances and obsessions of Annie and her sister, Henny, are fantastic. I loved that Annie could really like one boy and enjoy his company, but also be completely infatuated by the complete pretty and charm of another boy.

- Great exploration of sisterly relationships and, again, more resentment, but also forgiveness and love. Annie is the favorite, which causes, understandably, lots of issues.

- Awesome female friendship stuff here.

- Plummer also covers concerns of immigrants. Annie and Henny speak English, but their parents and grandmother don’t. They also had more money in Holland than they do in the US. The way the homes are laid out is different, the streets, the schools. Also, the pain of translation when doing homework is addressed. Annie has to translate all of the directions before she can do her work, so her math homework especially winds up taking her hours and hours even though she can do the work and understands the concepts. Oh, and the bra thing of course. Annie is pissed she has to wear a bra.

- I really love every single thing involving Oma, heartbreaking as they may be.

- Annie and Martha read The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCollough and suh-woon over the steaminess of it all.

- The cover fits the story perfectly. Perfectly.

Off the Shelf: 2/30

 
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Posted by on January 16, 2012 in Off the Shelf, Young Adult Lit

 

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Book Review: My Life Undecided

30 Dec

Because when you’re being handcuffed and lowered into the backseat of a squad car, you kind of have to start reconsidering the way you live your life.

In My Life Undecided by Jessica Brody, main character Brooklyn constantly makes horrible choices that end with her getting arrested or on the news. Inspired by Choose Your Own Adventure books, she creates a blog so the readers can make life choices for her. Wacky hijinks ensue.

What I Liked

- I love the premise of the book. Love, love, love.

- Brooklyn, while annoyingly self-absorbed, is funny and has a good sense of self.

- While this book has elements of a mean girl narrative, it’s really not one. Brooklyn’s best friend is manipulative and cold, yes, but instead of Brooklyn trying to be like Shayne or kiss up to Shayne, Brooklyn’s really trying to deal with what it means that she lost her best friend.

- The plot moves quickly.

- Most important, the book is FUN.

What I Didn’t Like

- Aside from Brooklyn and Brian (love interest), the characters are pretty flat.

- The relationship with the sister needs way more development. It’s like her sister is only there to prove a point, but beyond that point (trying to avoid spoilers), she has no impact on the story or on Brooklyn. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if Brooklyn never saw her or talked to her sister again. You know, if the world of the book were real. That’s how little development their relationship gets.

- I actually wish the blog were used more throughout the story, though I like that it doesn’t take over the narrative.

In conclusion: A fun book, perfect for the beach or pool. Or as a distraction from all the grading. (SO MUCH GRADING.)

Support Your Local LIbrary: 42; YA Reading Challenge: 37

 
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Posted by on December 30, 2011 in Support Your Local Library, YA Reading Challenge (2011)

 

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Book Review: How to Save a Life

29 Dec

If you don’t grow up to be a wife or a mother, what are you? A person alone, always wanting to be on thing or the other or both? My mother was never a wife, and that’s what she wanted more than anything. She didn’t want to be a mother, and she wasn’t one. Where does that leave her? A husband makes you a wife, and a child makes you a mother…What if there isn’t anyone to make you something?

In How to Save a Life by Sara Zarr, Mandy is searching for a new life for herself and her baby, and Jill is still recovering from the loss of her father. Their two paths cross when Jill’s mom offers to adopt Mandy’s baby, and Mandy comes to live with Jill and her mom.

There isn’t anything I didn’t like about this book, so some highlights of things I enjoyed:

- Sara Zarr is so great. SO GREAT. Here, she takes these two (three, really, if you count the mom) characters suffering from loss and grieving in their own ways and creates this quiet, yet powerful story about love, forgiveness, and family.

- I love the discussion about motherhood and worth highlighted in the quote above. The whole story isn’t devoted to that, but, wow, that moment hit me. What do we teach girls and women about their choices?

- The love interests are used well here. The relationships are important, but not so much that they take over the book. Basically, this book doesn’t become about the boys but stays about the girls and their own development and growth.

- I can understand the way both girls see the world. I can understand why Mandy makes people uncomfortable, but also why she latches onto them the way she does. I can see why Jill is so angry and brokenhearted and treats people cruelly but also with kindness. The characters are nuanced and flawed and real. Love.

- I like that the story ended exactly the way I thought it should, but I wasn’t sure how Zarr would get me to that ending. I also like that I didn’t expect the story to end the way I thought it should, but it did anyway. If that makes any sense.

This was just a great story. I really enjoyed it.

Support Your Local Library: 41; YA Reading Challenge: 36

 
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Posted by on December 29, 2011 in Support Your Local Library, YA Reading Challenge (2011), Young Adult Lit

 

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Mini book reviews: November and December

21 Dec

I am currently eight (!) books behind on reviews, so it’s time for some mini-reviews, yes? Yes.

The Daily Show’s Five Questions from Comedy Central: Back when Craig Kilborn hosted TDS, he had a segment in which he asked the celeb guests five questions. This book chronicles his favorites or the most memorable, I guess. I have no real opinion of this book. I read it in the bathroom, and that’s about all I have to say about it. That, and the book was worth the ten cents I spent on it at the library book sale.

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling: I really, really, really want to hang out with Mindy Kaling. I think she’d be a lot of fun, and not just because we’re the same age. I liked the longer, more personal essays in this book, but the short vignettes were cute, too. I think I’d have liked this better if it were more of the longer essays or if it leaned more specifically to either personal or comedic essays. Either way, reading the book made me feel like I was sitting down and swapping stories with a good friend. A friend who I could talk about *NSYNC with.

Support Your Local LIbrary: 39; POC Reading Challenge: 23

Astronaut Academy: Zero Gravity by Dave Roman: There is a lot going on in this little comic book–a lot. Tons of characters are introduced as well as scores of conflict. In the end, though, more world building than anything went on. I felt like this book was really to get me ready for the next book in the series since the major plotline wasn’t really resolved. Great characters, though. GREAT characters.

POC Reading Challenge: 24; Graphic Novels: 9/10; Off the Shelf: 12

How Al-Anon Works for Families and Friends of Alcoholics by Al-Anon Family Groups: The first half is an outline of the program; the second half is packed full of personal stories about various experiences with Al-Anon. A great primer if you’re interested in the program. The book really told me a lot about my life as well as showing me that exploring Al-Anon is something I need to do right now.

Off the Shelf: 13

I Hate Being Gifted by Patricia Hermes: As someone identified as gifted in elementary school, I was interested to see what, exactly, the main character hated about being gifted. Turns out she was upset because the gifted class took her away from her friends and then they made new friends. HOW COULD THEY? I couldn’t really connect to or relate to the book because the focus was on friendship and cliques and sixth grade mean girls. Also, the main character was kind of whiny. It’s not like I was the most mature 12-year-old or anything, but I guess I just didn’t see what the big deal was.

Off the Shelf: 14

 

Best Friends Tell the Best Lies by Carol Dines: Let me just say that the cover art on my copy of the book (another library book sale find) is totally misleading. It shows three people smiling and having a snowball fight, and that did not happen at all! There was no smiling in the snow, only heartache and crying and yelling. I mean, yes, I knew this book was about lying best friends so I didn’t expect all roses and sunshine, but it was really sad. My favorite thing about the book is probably that the ending is really kind of bleak. The characters are well drawn, the conflict is solid, and the plot is realistically messy.

Off the Shelf: 15; YA Challenge: 38; YA of the ’80s and ’90s: 8

 
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Posted by on December 21, 2011 in Adult Lit, Graphic Novels, Graphic Novels Challenge, Middle Grade Lit, Nonfiction, Off the Shelf, POC Reading Challenge (2011), Support Your Local Library, YA of the '80s and '90s, YA Reading Challenge (2011)

 

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Book Review: Shine, Coconut Moon

27 Oct

It dawns on me, clear as a summer sky, how wrapping a turban, speaking the language of your parents’ parents’ parents, and celebrating the same holidays that everyone before you celebrated are all like little thank-yous to those who survived. Those seemingly small things are a long-held memory whispered from the lips of the past into the ear of the future.

I really liked Shine, Coconut Moon by Neesha Meminger. It’s the story of Samar, a girl who has to confront her Indian heritage five days after the September 11th attacks when her turbaned, Sikh uncle shows up on her doorstep.

What I Liked

- I loved how complicated the relationships are in this book–especially the relationships Samar’s mom has with her brother and parents. The level of depth reminded me a lot of Gilmore Girls and how Rory relates to her grandparents, but then Lorelai has this whole other level of complex views on the way she was raised and how she communicates with her parents. That is some good stuff right there.

- The boy stuff was handled well. I am so glad this story did not become about the boy, but that the boy is part of Samar’s life and is another relationship she’s trying to navigate. (Have I mentioned how much I hate when stories of this sort become about the boy? UGH. Pet peeve. Anyway, this book does not fall into that trap, so let’s move on.)

- Samar’s relationship with Molly is also really well-handled. Their brief falling out felt true to life as did their subsequent making up. I love how much Samar is a part of Molly’s family, and the ease and familiarity they have with one another.

- Uncle Sandeep = fantastic.

- I love how well the title relates to the story.

What I Didn’t Like

- My only complaint, really, is that there wasn’t enough of that daughter-parent-grandparent conflict. I just wanted so much more of that, but I guess that’s why there are Gilmore Girls repeats/DVDs.

- I felt this book could have been longer. Doing so may have fleshed out some of the other characters. At the same time, I think Meminger did everything she needed to do with this story, so maybe I just wanted more to read.

In conclusion: I really liked this book. Meminger does a great job exploring issues of identity and family and what happens when you don’t know your family, but would like to get to know them. She also touches on the idea that there are no perfect families, which is great since Samar idealizes the extended family. Good stuff.

Support Your Local Library: 35; YA Reading Challenge: 31; POC Reading Challenge: 20

 
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Posted by on October 27, 2011 in POC Reading Challenge (2011), Support Your Local Library, YA Reading Challenge (2011), Young Adult Lit

 

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Book Review: Love, Inc.

15 Oct

The only reason any of us got out of bed today was to plot revenge. It’s quite a resuscitator.

Love, Inc. by Yvonne Collins & Sandy Rideout is the story of three girls who become friends and business partners after meeting in group therapy. Their business starts out focusing on revenge, but then they expand into matchmaking, mediation, and surveillance.

What I Liked

- I love the premise. Not just the revenge business, but that the three girls are also dealing with their parents’ divorces and trying to navigate their own relationships.

- Zahra is the narrator, and I like her a lot. In fact, I like all three of the girls. They have distinct personalities, clear motivations, and good growth. Also, their interests are really varied. Zahra’s wants to be a chef, Syd is a fantastic artist, and Kali is…I’m not sure what she’s into besides flirting. Computer programming, I think? (I remember now. Music.)

- The relationships are well-developed, and the characters are likable–except for the characters we’re not supposed to like, so that’s great.

- Zahra is first-generation American on her mother’s side, and a definite clash of cultures occur between her and her maternal grandparents. What I especially like about the authors’ take on it is that Zahra’s not navigating how to be American; she’s navigating taking sides in her parents’ separation. I mean, yes, questions of identity, but I like that the framework is a little different than what I’m used to in YA lit.

- I kind of love the cover. It just hits on all of the elements from the book, and I especially like that it looks like Zahra could be leaning out of a food truck.

- Although who Zahra ends up with is totally predictable (totally), I do like the way they get there.

- “Framily.”

What I Didn’t Like

- The book is a little long. I’m not sure how it could be shorter or why it would be, but it felt long. Also, I went on a day trip and left the book at home, and, when I got home and saw it, I was surprised I was still reading it. I was just like, “Oh yeah. I didn’t finish that book yet.”

In conclusion: I was looking for a fun and light-hearted book to read, and this one delivered. Great characters, great premise. It would make a great pool/beach read.

POC Challenge: 19; YA Reading Challenge: 30; Support Your Local Library: 34

 
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Posted by on October 15, 2011 in POC Reading Challenge (2011), Support Your Local Library, YA Reading Challenge (2011), Young Adult Lit

 

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Book Review: Bossypants

06 Oct

By the second week, I realized what made this experience so fun and different. For the first time ever, I was performing in front of an audience that wanted to see me.

Unpopular opinion time: I did not like Bossypants by Tina Fey all that much.

I don’t know if it was a case of high expectations, or I was just in a mood. All I know is this book was just okay for me. I didn’t like it; I didn’t hate it. It’s just, you know, okay.

There are elements that I like. I love that she clearly loves and respects Amy Poehler. I liked her mother’s prayer for a daughter. I liked the stories of her as a kid growing up in the Pennsylvania theater (those sections actually reminded me of Meg Cabot’s novels/heroines). I also LOVED the pictures of her growing up. (My daughter: “Is that a boy?”)

I think, what didn’t work for me, is that the book is uneven and at times Fey tries too hard. I can see her trying to be funny, so it doesn’t feel very organic. It feels like she thought she needed to be funny instead of just telling her story. Maybe that’s the way she talks. I have no idea. It just didn’t work for me on the page.

I know the book has a lot of awesome reviews, and people who really love it and Tina. I have no real opinion on Fey besides loving Mean Girls, so I don’t know if being a fan of hers increases the appreciation of the story or the style. All I know is that I found the book, you know, okay.

Support Your Local Library: 33

 
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Posted by on October 6, 2011 in Adult Lit, Nonfiction, Support Your Local Library

 

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Mini Reviews: September

02 Oct

September was not a great month for books for me. I read quite a few, but none made that big of an impression, so it was hard to get motivated to blog about them, especially when I had so many other things to do. Like grade. The grading never ends.

               

Page by Paige by Laura Lee Gulledge: I won this graphic novel from Vasilly, host of the Graphic Novels Challenge. It was, by far, my favorite of this batch. Not only does the book win for having a protagonist named Paige Turner (her parents love books!), but I loved the illustrations and the storyline. Paige moves with her family from Charlottesville, VA to Brooklyn, NY and has to learn how to navigate the big city and make new friends. There’s a great mix of styles, the characters are ace, and Paige, of course, comes of age with aplomb.

YA Reading Challenge: 28; Graphic Novels Challenge: 8/10

Fixing Delilah by Sarah Ockler: I won this a book in a contest hosted by Sara Zarr. I was going to say that she sent it to me because we’re besties, but, unfortunately, that’s a lie. She has commented directly to me on her blog, though. I’ll take what I can get.

But I digress. The point is not my fictional friendship with Sara Zarr. The point is this book! Which I thought was just okay. I liked the exploration of family and family secrets, but I found all of the characters pretty flat and didn’t feel like I even know/understood the main character that much and hers is a first-person narrative. I was also disappointed in the way the relationship with the mother was handled. Elements of the book are great; I just wish they had been executed better.

YA Reading Challenge: 29; Off the Shelf: 10

I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman by Nora Ephron: A collection of essays about aging that I picked up at the library book sale because I saw it mentioned on a few blogs. This one was strictly a bathroom book. Though, I did love the essay about purses. And this quote:

Every so often I look up from the book and see a roomful of people waiting for me to make a decision…and I can’t believe they don’t understand that what I’m doing is Much More Important. I’m reading the most wonderful book.

Off the Shelf: 11

Workin’ It! RuPaul’s Guide to Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Style by RuPaul: This book is worth it for the pictures alone. Seriously.

I wanted to like it more than I did. Ru focuses on how to look and feel good. He also tells his beauty secrets and! I learned how to tuck. Which I don’t need to know, but, you know, for those who wonder. The big issue I have with the book is that it’s kind of all over the place. Is it how to be the best drag queen? How to have confidence out of drag? The secret of Ru’s success? All of those things but in no real cohesive style or order.

Fun fact: Ru refuses to dress up for Halloween on principle. Because why is it not okay every other day of the year? Love.

Like I said, the pictures are fantastic. Get it, Ru!

Support Your Local Library: 32; POC Reading Challenge: 18

 
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Posted by on October 2, 2011 in Adult Lit, Graphic Novels, Graphic Novels Challenge, Nonfiction, Off the Shelf, POC Reading Challenge (2011), Support Your Local Library, YA Reading Challenge (2011), Young Adult Lit

 

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