Book Review: Wasted: A Memoir of Anorexia and Bulimia

Women's History Month

Wasted is the memoir of Marya Hornbacher who at a very young age became bulimic. Her memoir is very gritty and raw and it doesn't seem like she sugarcoats (no pun intended) anything. No one (including the author) can really determine what caused her to start throwing up her food one day and then eventually starving herself to somewhere around 60-something pounds and the Horbacher doesn't really make excuses. 

Her anorexia and bulimia seemed to be some sort of control issue, but still what was she trying to control? It seemed like her life was pretty good compared to some, but I'm not going to say one type of person is more entitled to eating disorders than another. I just couldn't determine what actually was "wrong" with her life. The best I could determine was she was upset about going through puberty and developing a butt, boobs, and hips. It seemed to all spiral out of control from there.

I can't say the author was very likable (though she never tried to be) and I never felt sorry for her (though once again that never seemed to be the point of her memoir). It was hard to grasp that someone as intelligent and ambitious as the author put herself through all of this. I am giving Wasted: A Memoir of Anorexia and Bulimia 3 out of 5 stars.

Book Review: Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?

Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? Is the memoir of Jeanette Winterson who grew up in a strict Pentecostal household with a her super-religious adoptive mother and passive adoptive father. The memoir is about Jeanette's life growing up adopted and growing gay in such a religious household. 

Jeanette is both hilarious and raw and the reader gets the feeling she is being brutally honest about her life. This memoir is the story behind Winterson's hit novel Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit which was adapted into a BBC drama in 1990. I have not read Oranges, but from what I understand this does follow that story pretty-closely and the author herself does say that the book is semi-autobiographical. Since finishing this book, I have ordered Oranges from Amazon and look forward to reading it. 

I am giving this humorous and enjoyable memoir 4 out of 5 stars. I recommend it to the feminist reader and/or fans of memoirists such as David Sedaris. 

Book Review: Bossypants

Women's History Month

Bossypants has been really popular since it was first released in 2011. I just now read it (via audiobook, actually) and I certainly enjoyed it. I really don't have much to say about it, just it was a light, humorous memoir. We first meet Fey as an awkward theater geek and as the book progresses she goes from improv to SNL to an Emmy award-winning sitcom. 

I really enjoyed Fey's feminist perspective and I felt she had many valid insights. She also seems to have an incredible work ethic. I also appreciated her views of being a working mother. The only two things that bothered me were:

1.) she wouldn't give details about how she got her scar. Of course, it's personal. But, it feels a little cheap to write a memoir and not actually talk about the kind of stuff memoirs are made of. 

2.) Her views of blondes which she refers to as "yellow hair". I guess as brunette the emphasis on blondes in the media may get annoying, but I don't feel that's really something to hold against the natural blondes of the world.

Either way, Bossypants was a fun and entertaining memoir and I'm giving it 4 out of 5 stars.

Book Review: I Am Malala

Women's History Month

Ugh... why did I not like this book? I feel like a horrible person. Everyone likes this book. But, it really did nothing for me. 

Don't get me wrong, Malala is an inspirational person. I just felt like the memoir was a bit superficial and lacked emotion. It basically just recounted Pakistani history and current events. I felt like I was reading newspaper articles. It was interesting reading a first-hand account of Taliban rule, but I still felt like it was lacking. It just didn't have heart or emotion. Malala rarely talked about her personal feelings or how she felt. It was just "this is what happened on this day and time". I couldn't help but wonder if this was because the co-author wrote the book based on Malala's account and therefore didn't know Malala's personal feelings and insights.

I also felt when Malala talked about herself she came off as a bit braggy. Okay, a lot braggy. If she said something about herself it was about how smart she is. It's great that she's intelligent, but really the few times she'd really talk about her personal life she was usually talking about exams and how well she did over her fellow classmates. 

The best part of the book was probably when she got shot in the head, because then she opened up about herself and experience a bit more. Reading about her hospitlization and recovery in a foreign country was a little more interesting to me. 

I am giving I Am Malala 3 out of 5 stars.

Book Review: Hyperbole and a Half

Women's History Month

For Women's History Month The Book Babe will be focusing on memoirs written by women, biographies of women throughout history, and books that highlight women's issues or have a feminist focus.

Hyperbole and a Half is a hilarious graphic memoir by blogger Allie Brosh. Prior to this reading book, I never visited Allie's blog. Now that I have, I will definitely keep going back for more. I'm ready for a sequel to this book, I didn't want it to end!

I loved Allie's brutal honesty about herself... and her pets. As I was reading I kept feeling happier and more proud of myself for not owning pets. I'm sure that's not what Allie wanted people to feel, since she obviously loves her pets. My favorite chapter was the goose story. My grandmother had two geese, which were vicious horrible creatures. I hated them, they were brutal and would attack me and chase cars and bite the tires. So, I could imagine the horror of actually having one in your home... attacking your unsuspecting boyfriend. 

Pretty hilarious, actually.

So yeah, I totally enjoyed this book and it was my first ever graphic memoir! Pat on the back to me. I am giving Hyperbole and a Half 5 out of 5 stars. I also highly recommend checking out Allie's blog in case you haven't already.

Book Review: My Story

Women's History Month

For Women's History Month The Book Babe will be focusing on memoirs written by women, biographies of women throughout history, and books that highlight women's issues or have a feminist focus.

This is the powerful memoir of kidnapping victim Elizabeth Smart. Elizabeth was held captive by a religious zealot and his wife for nine months, mostly spent hiding in the mountains of Utah. She was only 14-years-old when she was taken from her bed in the middle of the night. 

It's obvious that Elizabeth is an incredible, strong, and amazing woman. What she overcame is simply breathtaking. She says in her memoir she has not even undergone therapy after her return home, instead she has relied on the love of her family, faith, and horseback riding. I found the fact that she relies on her horses as a form of therapy very interesting. In her memoir, A Stolen Life, fellow kidnapping victim Jaycee Dugard said she also relied on horses as a form of therapy.

Hearing Elizabeth narrate the audiobook herself was very moving. You could hear the anger in her voice still as she tells the story of her captivity. She did a great job recounting her tale and her narrative pulled me right in. I would actually find myself a bit agitated, anxious, and stressed while listening to it. She really brings the reader/listener right into her story. I was drawn in so much that it actually affected my mood, but I look at that as a sign that the writing in a book is really good. There were also times where I was almost brought to tears and overcome with joy after she was returned to her family. 

Elizabeth also makes it very, very clear several times during her memoir that she never once felt sorry for her captors or suffered from Stockholm Syndrome. This is a point she is constantly stressing.

I felt how she has moved on with her life to be very inspiring. She went on to attend school at BYU and serve her Mission in Paris, France. She later married a fellow missionary and was married at the Mormon Temple in Hawaii. 

I really enjoyed this memoir and I'm giving My Story 4 out of 5 stars.

Book Review: Coming Clean

Women's History Month

For Women's History Month The Book Babe will be focusing on memoirs written by women, biographies of women throughout history, and books that highlight women's issues or have a feminist focus.

"As a little girl, I used to lie in bed, thinking maybe if I endure all my pain now, I could be happy when I am older."

Coming Clean is the memoir of blogger Kimberly Rae Miller. Kim's parents are hoarders and she grew up in utter filth and deplorable living conditions. Imagine living in a home so messy that your family doesn't even realize there's a person living in their attic because they just blow off the sounds coming from the attic as that of rats. Imagine that you live in a home with no running water and that your home is virtually flooded due to broken pipes. Think of only being able to take a shower once a week during your families weekly visit to the gym, which they joined for the purpose of being able to shower. Imagine stacks and stacks of papers piled all around your home, so much there's only enough room on the couch for one person to sit on it at a time.

This book made me feel queasy at times. It was also inspiring. Kim lives with the shame and embarrassment of her childhood even as an adult, which is something that I can relate to. I didn't have the same childhood experience as Kim, but equally crappy in it's own way. 

Coming Clean is not only the story of an emotionally scarring childhood, but also a story of family, love, and forgiveness. Kim pulls herself out of the ashes, sometimes almost literally. I can relate to her need to make something of myself to prove that I am more than my childhood. 

This book kept me turning the pages. Not so much out of the horror of hoarding, but because it was such an intriguing memoir and I really liked Kim from the first page. She didn't come across as whiny or "woe is me". The reader can almost sense that she's trying to work out her emotions and childhood and her parent's mental illness as she is writing the book, yet the writing comes across as neat and clean much like Kim's adult life. 

I am giving Coming Clean 4 out of 5 stars.