I was in the woods with this book most of the way through it--I did not know where it was going to go. I read it in less than two days because I needed to know what happened to the main character, Detective Ryan, in 1984. Due to some lingering, unresolved nonsense, I'm completely vexed and must now read THE LIKENESS.
I cannot compete with Ron Charles's review of Danielle Evans’s BEFORE YOU SUFFOCATE YOUR OWN FOOL SELF; he work a bacon hat. However, I will add that it is a perfect collection of short stories for the high school English teacher looking to engage some reluctant readers. Despite the seriousness of the subject matter, the stories contain a lightness it is hard to label. Though I no longer teach in a “brick and mortar” classroom and the virtual school which employs me provides me with materials and curriculum, I still consider how everything I read, see, and hear may be used in education. I get phantom pains of a sort.
The pains get a little worse when I hear a student tell me he does not like to read or write. In my capacity as a virtual English teacher, I must make welcome calls to all my students. One with whom I spoke this week informed me he did not like to read. I said, “As an English teacher, a writer, and a bookseller, you’re killing me.” We laughed, but really? He nearly killed me.
I’m not at death’s door, though, because this particular student does not like to read. No, the risk is that I will now exhaust myself by spending countless hours trying to figure out what books he might like, how I can reach him, hoping one of the non-fiction selections embedded in the course will suck him into the vortex. It’s a puzzle with a similar theme I have solved in the past.
The age old debate about altruism vs. self-interest plays out here. Over the years I have show more ransacked bookshelves, twisted myself into comic staged reading knots, and as of late, tweeted to hunt down books and/or inspire the spark of reading passion in my charges. Of course, I want my students to love reading, to learn to pick books that suit them, to go outside their safety (?) net of zombie-filled tales. I would not be allowed to wear my English teacher beanie if these things were not true.
Let me clear, though. I run the risk of “suffocating my own fool self” if I cannot find something a student loves or even begrudgingly likes. It is a matter of life and death . . . for me. show less
The pains get a little worse when I hear a student tell me he does not like to read or write. In my capacity as a virtual English teacher, I must make welcome calls to all my students. One with whom I spoke this week informed me he did not like to read. I said, “As an English teacher, a writer, and a bookseller, you’re killing me.” We laughed, but really? He nearly killed me.
I’m not at death’s door, though, because this particular student does not like to read. No, the risk is that I will now exhaust myself by spending countless hours trying to figure out what books he might like, how I can reach him, hoping one of the non-fiction selections embedded in the course will suck him into the vortex. It’s a puzzle with a similar theme I have solved in the past.
The age old debate about altruism vs. self-interest plays out here. Over the years I have show more ransacked bookshelves, twisted myself into comic staged reading knots, and as of late, tweeted to hunt down books and/or inspire the spark of reading passion in my charges. Of course, I want my students to love reading, to learn to pick books that suit them, to go outside their safety (?) net of zombie-filled tales. I would not be allowed to wear my English teacher beanie if these things were not true.
Let me clear, though. I run the risk of “suffocating my own fool self” if I cannot find something a student loves or even begrudgingly likes. It is a matter of life and death . . . for me. show less
This review was written for LibraryThing Early Reviewers.
This is the one book I have picked up lately someone did not recommend, and I was not disappointed. The world of P.T. Barnum depicted here enveloped me. I saw the circus world through fresh eyes, and though I did not get attached to the protagonist, I marveled at his transformation.
I picked this up on the recommendation of multiple social networking recommendations, and while it held my interest, it did not blow me away as I had anticipated. The theme and plot reminded me a great deal of that of EVERYTHING MATTERS, which is a favorite of mine.
ENDER'S GAME ranks in the top ten of my all-time favorite books. It transcends the science fiction genre. Ender (Andrew) is a superior human specimen and the military wants him to be the ultimate weapon, but what Ender discovers is far more powerful than any tangible piece of destruction.
I've read quite a few of King's books, and this has to be one of his best. The story is tightly woven (the way I like my books) unlike some of King's others, where one is left wanting more of a resolution or explanation. King dips into the unexplored recesses of the mind over and over again, but he does it here flawlessly.
Without a doubt this is a powerful memoir, and it has been said that it is, in fact, the mother of the recent spate of memoirs. Mary Karr can turn a phrase like no one's business, but I don't know if I received the full impact of her story because of the tell-all age in which we now live. I appreciated LIT more, and this may be a product of my current life stage.
The narrative style of this book dragged me right in--I was fascinated by Frenchy and his underworld dealings. It reads exactly like someone sitting in a cafe somewhere recounting his glory days.
Although I was invested in discovering the identity of the killer, I was not invested in the main character or any of the peripheral characters. A good chunk of the book is somewhat muddy and repetitive; the author has a penchant for tautology. The plot of the book has great potential, and I was torn about giving it 2.5 stars.