In some ways, every Holocaust story is like every other: the horrors endured, the unbelievable cruelty, watching family members die, and having to make unimaginable decisions to survive. But in other ways, every Holocaust story is unique, as is this one. Born in 1927 in Tarnograd, Poland, Mala had a happy childhood until 1939, when…
Category: memoir
Review: The Puma Years by Laura Coleman
I loved this memoir about Coleman’s time working in a wildlife sanctuary in Bolivia. It was completely different from anything I’ve read before, and I enjoy reading about people who do things that I’ll never have the courage to do. In her early twenties, Coleman quit her job in England and backpacked around Bolivia. Wanting to do…
Review: Garlic and Sapphires, the Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise by Ruth Reichl
I’m reading Reichl’s life backwards. Last year I read the excellent Save Me the Plums, so this year I decided to go back to her previous book, about her work as the restaurant critic for the New York Times. And while I enjoyed this one a bit less, Reichl is still an engaging and thoughtful…
Review: Sorry I’m Late, I Didn’t Want to Come by Jessica Pan
This book is Pan’s memoir of a year when she decided to challenge herself to live like an extrovert. She explains that there’s nothing wrong with being an introvert, only she’s an excessively shy one (a “shintrovert” as she calls herself), which means she’s probably missing out on friendships and career opportunities by not engaging…
Review: Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner
I picked up this book partly because I saw Zauner interviewed on the Daily Show, and partly because it was recommended in Modern Mrs. Darcy’s Summer Reading Guide. I was intrigued by the title and the subject — it’s a book about family and loss, about being biracial and the daughter of an immigrant, and…
Reading about Mental Health Issues
In the last month or two, I seem to have gravitated towards books about mental health issues, both fiction and nonfiction. This seems fitting, since May is Mental Health Awareness Month. In nonfiction, I read David Chang’s memoir Eat a Peach, Jenny Lawson’s fantastic Broken (In the Best Possible Way), and I’m currently reading Bessel…
Review: When Time Stopped by Ariana Neumann
The first time I heard about this book, I was struck by how much it sounded like my own family. Neumann grew up in Venezuela, but her father was born in Czechoslovakia. He survived the Holocaust but never talked about it, and she grew up not knowing any of his family, except for her father’s…
November Wrap-Up and Mini-Reviews
I spent a lot of time this month participating in Nonfiction November, so I thought instead of the usual monthly wrap-up I’d post some mini-reviews instead. These three books address issues related to science, religion, and the intersection of the two. I recommend all three. The Story of More by Hope Jahren (audio by the author):…
Review: Know My Name by Chanel Miller
This is a book I think most of us should read, though it’s definitely not an easy read. In 2015, Chanel Miller went to a party at Stanford. Two guys found her unconscious on the ground near a dumpster, with a guy on top of her. When they yelled the guy ran, so they tackled…
Review: Popular by Maya Van Wagenen
I’ve been recommending this book a lot lately, especially to my friends with daughters. There aren’t that many books out there that feel fresh and original, and this one did. First, a major disclaimer: I am NOT the target audience for this book. It’s a bit hard to fairly review a book written by a…
Review: They Called Us Enemy by George Takei
Regardless of whether you like Star Trek, whether you’re Japanese, or whether you read graphic novels, you should pick up this book. George Takei never fails to impress me with his humor, his knowledge, and his passion for telling a story. He brings all of those things to this graphic depiction of his childhood experiences…
Review: Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb
It seems fitting to discuss a book about therapy the day after Thanksgiving, a holiday that raises so many complicated family issues — though hopefully yours was lovely! This book has plenty of buzz already without my review, but I loved it. It’s unlike most books I’ve read, in that it’s an inside look at…
The Book Stop 