Book Blog #294: The Answer Is... by Alex Trebek

 

Title: The Answer Is...

Author: Alex Trebek

# of Pages: 4 hours, 35 minutes (audiobook)

Genre: Nonfiction, Autobiography

Rating: ★★★☆☆

Synopsis: The book combines illuminating personal anecdotes with Trebek’s thoughts on a range of topics, including marriage, parenthood, education, success, spirituality, and philanthropy. Trebek also addresses the questions he gets asked most often by Jeopardy! fans, such as what prompted him to shave his signature mustache, his insights on legendary players like Ken Jennings and James Holzhauer, and his opinion of Will Ferrell’s Saturday Night Live impersonation. The book uses a novel structure inspired by Jeopardy!, with each chapter title in the form of a question, and features dozens of never-before-seen photos that candidly capture Trebek over the years.

Review: Trebek acknowledges from the start that this book isn't meant to be a complete recap of his life. He only goes over the highlights, especially the ones that directly relate to his time as the host of Jeopardy. 

I only know of Jeopardy through pop culture and was never particularly interested in trivia-related shows but was happy to watch a show here and there). If I was a Jeopardy fan, I think I would have found this book to be very interesting since Trebek goes behind the scenes on his hosting experience. However, I would have liked to hear more about him outside of Jeopardy, but this is out of scope of his aims for his book. The audiobook was fun to listen to as Ken and Alex tossed the narration back and forth; Trebek's kind and positive personality really showed through, and he will definitely be missed. 

Would recommend this book to Jeopardy! fans.

Book Blog #293: The Rosie Effect by Graeme Simsion

 

Title: The Rosie Effect

Author: Graeme Simsion

# of Pages: 344 (hardback)

Genre: Romance, Contemporary, Humor

Rating: ★★★★☆

Synopsis: Don Tillman and Rosie Jarman are back. The Wife Project is complete, and Don and Rosie are happily married and living in New York. But they’re about to face a new challenge because— surprise!—Rosie is pregnant. Don sets about learning the protocols of becoming a father, but his unusual research style gets him into trouble with the law. Fortunately his best friend Gene is on hand to offer advice: he’s left Claudia and moved in with Don and Rosie. As Don tries to schedule time for pregnancy research, getting Gene and Claudia to reconcile, servicing the industrial refrigeration unit that occupies half his apartment, helping Dave the Baseball Fan save his business, and staying on the right side of Lydia the social worker, he almost misses the biggest problem of all: he might lose Rosie when she needs him the most.

Review: I almost always like sequels significantly less than its predecessor. However, I found this book to be equally, if not more, emotionally engaging than the first book.

Since Don is not your average guy, Rosie and Don experience some unique challenges during the period of their impending parenthood. It is STRESSFUL. I was griped to this story because I was worried about Don and Rosie and wishing that Don could just UNDERSTAND what the issues were but could only read helplessly as he dealt with each problem the only way he knew how.

Definitely not as funny to me as the first book since I was stressed almost the whole time, but since it affected me emotionally, I decided to give it the same rating as the first book.

If you enjoyed the first book, I would also recommend the sequel. In case you didn't get the notion from what I've said previously, it's a bit stressful. 

Book Blog #292: How to Avoid a Climate Disaster by Bill Gates

 

Title: How to Avoid a Climate Disaster

Author: Bill Gates

# of Pages: 7 hours, 11 minutes (audiobook)

Genre: Nonfiction

Rating: ★★★★☆

Synopsis: Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft, shares what he has learnt in over a decade of studying climate change and investing in innovations to address climate problems. He explains how the world can work to build the tools it needs to get to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions - investing in research, inventing new technologies and deploying them quickly at a large scale. Gates is optimistic that the world can prevent the worst impacts of the climate crisis. This is a visionary and inspiring book by one of the world's most celebrated public figures.

Review: For one, Bill Gates acknowledges his wealth and knows this will affect the credibility behind his opinion:

“I own big houses and fly in big planes...I cannot deny being a rich guy with an opinion. I do believe, though, that it is an informed opinion, and I am always trying to learn more.”

I tend to agree with him; we should consider his opinion first and decide if what he is saying has any useful information or would be a valid piece of advice. Then take his background as a top 1%-er and see if it invalidates any of this advice. He does take at least some steps to help reduce his carbon footprint; whether he is doing enough is up for debate, but this isn't a case where he is completely not "practicing what he preaches." 

I listened to the audiobook pretty closely in the first half. Gates does a great job of explaining the issues contributing to climate change; I didn't know a lot of the science behind it until I read Gates's simple and easy to understand explanation.

When he talks about emissions from cows, he addresses the common vegan route where some might suggest giving meat up all together. Thankfully he dismisses this as a realistic possibility and instead discusses the future of artificial meats, food waste, and how to reduce emissions from cows.

This is been the heart of what I enjoyed about this book; Gates is looking for solutions. It’s great to talk about theory or the best case, but Gates is considering BOTH the end goal and the realistic steps the world can take to reduce our carbon emissions.

That being said, nonfiction tends to not hold my attention. I ended up skim listening to some of the latter sections book, which makes me believe that this book actually sits between 3 or 4 stars. The reason why I ultimately gave it four is because I couldn't find anything wrong with it other than it's just not my type of book, and I happened to be exhausted over this topic (just completed a mini-research project relating the zero-emissions). 

I would recommend this book to those who are interested in learning more about climate change/how to reduce your emissions. He provides advice for multiple levels (e.g. individuals, corporations). Even if you are skeptical of Gates's credibility to talk about this topic, I think it's still worth hearing what he has to say.  

Book Blog #291: Know My Name by Chanel Miller

 

Title: Know My Name

Author: Chanel Miller

# of Pages: 15 hours, 20 minutes (audiobook)

Genre: Nonfiction, Autobiography

Rating: ★★★★★

Synopsis: She was known to the world as Emily Doe when she stunned millions with a letter. Brock Turner had been sentenced to just six months in county jail after he was found sexually assaulting her on Stanford’s campus. Her victim impact statement was posted on BuzzFeed, where it instantly went viral–viewed by eleven million people within four days, it was translated globally and read on the floor of Congress; it inspired changes in California law and the recall of the judge in the case. Thousands wrote to say that she had given them the courage to share their own experiences of assault for the first time. Now she reclaims her identity to tell her story of trauma, transcendence, and the power of words. It was the perfect case, in many ways–there were eyewitnesses, Turner ran away, physical evidence was immediately secured. But her struggles with isolation and shame during the aftermath and the trial reveal the oppression victims face in even the best-case scenarios. Her story illuminates a culture biased to protect perpetrators, indicts a criminal justice system designed to fail the most vulnerable, and, ultimately, shines with the courage required to move through suffering and live a full and beautiful life.

Review: Oh jeez, this hits hard. 

Going into this, I imagined that I would give this book 4 stars. I played with this idea until about halfway through the book, when I realized I HAD to give it 5 stars. It's been a long time since I've been moved to tears (SEVERAL times) just from listening to a story. 

I remember when this happened, the articles covering the sexual assault came flooding out, when Chanel Miller was still Emily Doe. I was shocked and upset by the short term of Brock's sentences like many others, and while my heart went out to Emily Doe, I did not cry over the mysterious victim in this viral case. 

After hearing Miller''s perspective through this book, I was able to feel and better understand the pain and struggles that she (and undoubtably many other sexual assault victims) endured and continue to endure today. It is so easy to be detached from these types of things if they do not happen to you, to overlook injustices that occur in a system too big to be changed by one person. It is important for EVERYONE to read this book, even if you believe you already understand what she went through, even if you don't think it is relevant to you. 

Miller was even "lucky" to have such a high profile case; although Brock didn't get the sentencing he deserved, the public's support of Miller at least partially helps right the wrongs done to her in the handling and result of the court case. I can't even begin to think of how many other sexual assault/rape victims suffer from possibly even greater injustices.

I had my apprehension about reading this book. Sometimes autobiographies have agendas that I don't want to be involved in (many politicians try to push their political agendas in their autobiographies rather than focusing on their experiences). While Miller does use her voice to highlight important failures in the system (e.g. determining Brock's sentence, Stanford failing to follow through with what they agreed to do in the aftermath of the sexual assault), the story stays on track by revealing these failures through her eyes, her experiences, feelings, and thoughts. 

Miller has done a great job with telling her story. Although this is a tough topic to hear about, I would still recommend this book to everyone. I would HIGHLY recommend listening to the audiobook, since it is read by Chanel Miller herself; her narrative is much more raw and real by listening to her story than how I would imagine it would be if I had read her book instead.

Book Blog #290: The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion

 

Title: The Rosie Project

Author: Graeme Simsion

# of Pages: 292 (paperback)

Genre: Contemporary, Romance, Humor

Rating: ★★★★☆

Synopsis: Don Tillman, professor of genetics, has never been on a second date. He is a man who can count all his friends on the fingers of one hand, whose lifelong difficulty with social rituals has convinced him that he is simply not wired for romance. So when an acquaintance informs him that he would make a “wonderful” husband, his first reaction is shock. Yet he must concede to the statistical probability that there is someone for everyone, and he embarks upon The Wife Project. In the orderly, evidence-based manner with which he approaches all things, Don sets out to find the perfect partner. She will be punctual and logical—most definitely not a barmaid, a smoker, a drinker, or a late-arriver. Yet Rosie Jarman is all these things. She is also beguiling, fiery, intelligent—and on a quest of her own. She is looking for her biological father, a search that a certain DNA expert might be able to help her with. Don's Wife Project takes a back burner to the Father Project and an unlikely relationship blooms, forcing the scientifically minded geneticist to confront the spontaneous whirlwind that is Rosie—and the realization that love is not always what looks good on paper.

Review: I would never have expected this book to be recommended by Bill Gates. It's even classified (and sometimes reads like) a chick-lit! 

Don is one of the characters that seems totally unrealistic; he is able to do anything he puts his mind to in a very short amount of time, smart, even good looking (subjective??) but has the one major challenge of following social conventions. One major "flaw" but otherwise a perfect/amazing guy? This is classic chick-lit stuff.

That being said, this book was hilarious. The main difference between this book and most other chick-lit books is that I didn't feel annoyed with this book. Yes, Don is an unrealistic character, but following him and Rosie through their journey was entertaining and funny. If you are not super logical like Don, I will surely be able to connect to him through his complicated journey in navigating his emotions. Both Don and Rosie are incredibly likable, which really helped with my impression of the book as well. 

Overall a great and enjoyable read. I would recommend!

Book Blog #289: The Testament by Margaret Atwood

 

Title: The Testament

Author: Margaret Atwood

# of Pages: 13 hours and 18 minutes (audiobook)

Genre: Adult, Science Fiction, Dystopia

Rating: ★★☆☆☆

Synopsis: When the van door slammed on Offred’s future at the end of The Handmaid’s Tale, readers had no way of telling what lay ahead for her – freedom, prison or death. With The Testaments, the wait is over. Margaret Atwood’s sequel picks up the story 15 years after Offred stepped into the unknown, with the explosive testaments of three female narrators from Gilead.

Review: This is the sequel no one ACTUALLY asked for. 

The ambiguous ending of The Handmaid's Tale was GREAT. Just because it leaves readers wondering doesn't mean the author should actually "give the readers what they want." In fact, it's usually better to leave things up to interpretation. But what can you do? Giving people what they want sells (take the Star Wars movies by Disney for example). 

Honestly, I didn't listen too closely to this book. Once I realized there were three different POV, I became incredibly exasperated. There are two perspectives (Agnes and Daisy) who sound very similar (the only difference is one lives in Gilead and the other lives in Canada) at least in the audiobook. 

The plot was not interesting, the organization of the three POVs was poor. I would not recommend this book. 

Book Blog #288: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

 

Title: Gone Girl

Author: Gillian Flynn

# of Pages: 19 hours 11 minutes (audiobook)

Genre: Adult, Mystery, Thriller

Rating: ★★★☆☆

Synopsis: It is Nick and Amy Dunne's fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick's clever and beautiful wife disappears from their rented McMansion on the Mississippi River. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn't doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media - as well as Amy's fiercely doting parents - the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he's definitely bitter - but is he really a killer?

Review: Gone Girl is somewhere in between 3 and 4 stars. 

I think I am sometimes too lenient with audiobooks. Gone Girl "read" well as an audiobook; the two perspectives were not too confusing, and the mystery aspect of the plot is gripping. But after finishing this book and considered giving it four stars, I began reflecting on why I felt a tinge of annoyance toward this book. 

I attributed it mainly to, of course, the POV switching. This is something that I think I notice less when listening, but it has the same issues. Since Nick and Amy each have some non-overlapping information, it drove me insane knowing more than one of the main characters. I enjoy the mystery, but I don't enjoy one of the main characters being mystified by something that is not a mystery to me.

Overall, still a good story. Really invokes the feeling of helplessness. The ending was unsatisfying me, but I would still recommend this book.