Alli's CBR-III Review #30 - Bossypants

So so so so funny. That is all I have to say about Tina Fey's book "Bossypants". Ok fine I will elaborate. I had to wait quite a long time to get this book from the library but it was definitely worth the wait. I read it up in just over a day and laughed like a crazy person. My boyfriend even picked it up and started reading it after reading the back cover.

So basically this book is a collection of tales from Tina Fey's life. I wouldn't go as far as to call it an autobiography although it is pretty close. The timeline jumps around a bit and it is not a complete tale of her history, although it comes pretty close. There are also sarcastic helpful hints and replies to "fan mail". She addresses the challenges of being a women boss and a women in comedy and the lack of respect that they receive. Near the beginning she mentions being asked how she manages to be the boss of all of these people and she states that Donald Trump would never be asked those types of questions and it is pretty apt.

I have never understood the theory that women are not funny. We can be very funny and Tina Fey is living proof of that. Make sure that you take the time to read this book, you won't regret it!

Alli's CBR-III Review #29 - The Perfect Age

I finished reading "The Perfect Age" by Heather Skyler a week or so ago but I haven't gotten around to writing it up yet. Things have been hectic, and I also don't have a heck of a lot to say about it. I read it in the pool, as seen above, and for a summer read it wasn't too bad, but it wasn't that great either.

One thing that bugs me a bit is that this book takes place over three summers so the title is kind of a misnomer. I guess what it might be trying to say is that any age is the perfect age to fall in love, but that is not really what the book is about. It centers around teenager Helen and her Mother Kathy. It also tells parts of the story from the point of view of Helen's boyfriend and Helen's father.

Alli's CBR-III Review #28 - Dead in the Family

I am pretty excited that my laptop is fixed, my Dad is a wizard sometimes, but there have been times that even he cannot make things come back to life. This now means that I don't have to write my reviews on my breaks at work, so I can put a bit more attention into them. The thing is though, at home I might be under the influence of something or other so it is a crap shoot on whether or not the quality will actually be any better if I am writing here at home.

I finished reading "Dead in the Family" this morning, I was a bit sad because I thought I had 20 pages left and so I found the ending to be abrupt. There is a preview of the next book in the series in those remaining 20 pages, but I have a few library books that I have to read before I can move on to "Dead Reckoning" anyhow. The good news is that I have nothing but time to read since my son is away with his Dad this weekend, and the weather is beautiful and I am ready for some more time in the sun. One thing that might distract me from my reading is that my boyfriend and I just started watching "Breaking Bad" and we just picked up season 2 on DVD today. But the sunshine is calling my name so I will be able to get some reading in today for sure. The problem is choosing which book I want to read!

Alli's CBR-III Review #27 - Dead and Gone

As you may have noticed from the pictures, I did some reading at the beach recently. I was happy to have been able to do a bunch of reading on my trip to the Okanagan. Although I did end up getting sand in the dust jacket, but that is how it goes on the beach.

So I am now getting deep into the Sookie Stackhouse novels (or as they are technically called “The Southern Vampire Mysteries”). I have waivered back and forth on my opinion of these books versus my opinion of the TV show. It is pretty difficult to separate the two in your mind, I am finding it sometimes hard as well to remember what happened in each book as they all seem to blend in to one in my head. I am already well into the next edition and I thought that I might just lump them in together as one review. But that is cheating a bit, I am going to try and come up with something different to say about each one. I am on the second to last book that is available in the series, although I hope that there will be more to come in the future.

Alli's CBR-III Review #26 - I'm Sorry You Feel That Way

I just finished reading “I'm Sorry You Feel That Way: The Astonishing but True Story of a Daughter, Sister, Slut, Wife, Mother, and Friend to Man and Dog” by Diana Joseph. It came highly recommended on the book cover and jacket so I thought I would check it out. It is a collection of essays or vignettes about different people and experiences in her life.

Even though I don’t generally enjoy short stories, I did enjoy this collection. Diana has a voice that I related to quite easily. Starting off with a tale about her father, I immediately “got it” and her tales about her teen aged son prepared me for what may be to come once my 10 year old hits that barrier. She tells of her ex husband, friends and colleagues. I didn’t notice until I peeked at her blog that all the tales are about the men in her life.

I appreciated the window into her world, the last tale (about her common law husband Al) to be the most moving. I see now on her blog that she has another little boy. I hope that all is going well for her and I would be glad to read more of her work in the future.