New Release | Today’s Moment of Happiness Despite the News by Kathie Giorgio

 

Today’s Moment of Happiness Despite the News by Kathie Giorgio

Published: October 4, 2018

Publisher: Black Rose Writing

Pages: 529

Genres: essay, non fiction

Rating: 5 stars

Recommend to fans of: unique quirky books, reminders to appreciate the good in life

Foodie Vibes: Starbucks coffee

 

Synopsis:

It wasn’t a typical response to depression. Reaching a new low in her life, Kathie Giorgio, a natural skeptic, decides to fight her sadness by publically posting one moment of happiness every day on Facebook.

The response is overwhelming. People flock to her page to see each day’s new post. Soon, Kathie launches Today’s Moment Of Happiness Despite The News as her blog. She vows to continue this daily Today’s Moment for a year.

And what a year! Her husband loses his job not once, but twice. Her autistic daughter is so bullied on social media, she is moved to a new school. And Kathie herself is diagnosed with Stage 2 breast cancer.

In a year of Down, Kathie finds Up. Today’s Moment Of Happiness Despite The News is a powerhouse movement, a force that goes beyond positive thinking. One year. One woman. And many, many lives touched and changed.

 

Review:

Thank you to NetGalley, Black Rose Writing and Kathie Giorgio for an ARC ebook copy to review. As always, an honest review from me.

The book is the author’s collection of blog posts from her journey to find a moment of happiness, despite the news and current political climate, for a year. The concept is not brand new. Daily gratitudes, blessings, happiness, joy, what are you thankful for, and many other forms of the same concept are prevalent online. As they should be. We need all the positivity we can find. The author adds her own unique touch to her writing. It’s quirky, fun, heartfelt, honest and completely engaging. Despite the difficult times in life, the book radiated pure joy. The author had some tough times in 2017, but her writing made me so happy. Experiencing her learn to find happiness in incredibly unhappy situations is beautiful, inspiring, and educating to me, on my own journey of life.

The book also gave me my new favorite word of this week, asshat! Of course referring to the orange man in the White House. So many thanks for the glorious word!

There weren’t any cons in the book for me. Even a few days after finishing, the memories from reading it wrap me up in a big blanket of warmth, happiness and a positive practical perspective on life.

So overall, an absolute joy to read. The highlight of my week. I highly recommend Today’s Moment of Happiness Despite the News!

 

In keeping with the author’s theme, what’s your moment of happiness today? 

Please share in the comments. I love hearing about everyone’s happy moments! 

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ARC Book Review | Firsts: Coming of Age Stories by People with Disabilities by Belo Miguel Cipriani

 

Firsts: Coming of Age Stories by People With Disabilities by Belo Miguel Ciprani

Published: October 1, 2018

Publisher: Oleb Books

Pages: 228 

Genres: non fiction, essays, LGBTQIA+, chronic illness, mental health, disabilities 

Rating: 4.5 stars

Recommend to fans of: authentic stories told by real people, books about living with disability, representation in literature

Foodie Vibes: whatever you like, because each person is different

 

Synopsis:

Take a step back in time with some of the best writers with disabilities as they recount their first adventure, their first heartbreak, and the first time the unexpected treaded into their life. From body transformations to societal setbacks, to love affairs and family trauma, Firsts collects the most thought-provoking and exciting stories of our time by people with disabilities. Contributors include Nigel David Kelly, Kimberly Gerry-Tucker, Caitlin Hernandez, Andrew Gurza, and David-Elijah Nahmod.

 

Review: 

I won this book for free through Goodreads Giveaways. Thank you to Goodreads, Oleb Books and Belo Miguel Ciprani for an ARC ebook copy. As always, an honest review from me.

Firsts is a collection of essays written by different people with disabilities, so that people with disabilities could accurately see themselves represented in the media. I don’t have a disability myself, so my thoughts on the book come from an able bodies point of view.

Each essay has a different author and therefore a different voice. Certain essays captivated me more than others, but I enjoyed and learned from each person’s experiences. Overall the writing is wonderful. I love that the book is a compilation of authentic life experiences written by and for people with disabilities. After reading certain essays, I wanted to seek out additional written work by the authors. 

ARC Book Review | Nobody Cares by Anne T. Donahue

 

Nobody Cares by Anne T. Donahue

Published: September 18, 2018 

Publisher: ECW Press

Pages: 240 

Genres: non fiction, memoir, essays

Rating: 3.5 stars

Recommend to fans of: relatable tell it like it is memoirs, people in their 20s and 30s who don’t have it all together but feel like they should 

Foodie Vibes: wine, noodles with butter because it’s cheap and helps numb out life

 

Synopsis:

From the author of the popular newsletter That’s What She Said, Nobody Cares is a frank, funny personal essay collection about work, failure, feminism, and the messy business of being alive in your twenties and thirties.

As she shares her hard-won insights from screwing up, growing up, and trying to find her own path, Anne T. Donahue’s debut book offers all the honesty, laughs, and reassurance of a late-night phone call with your best friend. Whether she’s giving a signature pep talk, railing against summer, or describing her own mental health struggles, Anne reminds us that failure is normal, saying to no to things is liberating, and that we’re all a bunch of beautiful disasters — and she wouldn’t have it any other way.

 

Review:

Thank you to NetGalley, ECW Press and Anne T. Donahue for an ARC ebook copy for review. As always, an honest review from me.

My rating is actually 3.5 stars, but since there aren’t half stars I always round up.

Nobody Cares is funny, poignant, relatable and ridiculous in all the best ways. Through the author’s essays we experience her highs and lows, struggles and life lessons learned. She’s like the older sister/friend with the cautionary life tales to help you feel less alone and avoid her mistakes. Number 1 being figure out your stuff, be vulnerable and don’t be afraid to seek therapy. It will save you a lot of difficulty and heartache along the years.

I really liked her honesty. She says the things that people often sugar coat, without going out of her way to be edgy and dramatic. Her story is so dang (damn? I still feel bad about swearing in reviews, like I’m going to get in trouble for doing so) relatable. The life lessons that she passes on to the reader are validating.

However, some of the stories bounce around a bit so there’s an adjustment when reading. Also, it became redundant reading about her making the same mistakes multiple times. While it’s authentic to her and life in general, I felt frustrated after awhile.

Overall, an incredibly relatable and funny memoir of essays. I think the tone of the book is best summer up by this quote.

“In our small section of the galaxy, many of us are dealing with things that aren’t ours enough to talk about, but are still ours enough that we have to deal with them.” Bam! That’s so it.

 

What advice would you give your 20 something year old self?

New Release | Rage Becomes Her: The Power of Women’s Anger by Soraya Chemaly

 

Rage Becomes Her: The Power of Women’s Anger by Soraya Chemaly 

Published: September 11, 2018

Publisher: Atria Books

Pages: 416

Genres: non fiction, feminism, sociology, self help, politics, mental health, essays

Recommend to fans of: books that explain so many experiences as a women, educating yourself, feminism

Foodie Vibes: whatever food that you want, because you don’t need to justify your food choices

 

Synopsis:

Women are angry, and it isn’t hard to figure out why.

We are underpaid and overworked. Too sensitive, or not sensitive enough. Too dowdy or too made-up. Too big or too thin. Sluts or prudes. We are harassed, told we are asking for it, and asked if it would kill us to smile. Yes, yes it would.

Contrary to the rhetoric of popular “self-help” and an entire lifetime of being told otherwise, our rage is one of the most important resources we have, our sharpest tool against both personal and political oppression. We’ve been told for so long to bottle up our anger, letting it corrode our bodies and minds in ways we don’t even realize. Yet our anger is a vital instrument, our radar for injustice and a catalyst for change. On the flip side, the societal and cultural belittlement of our anger is a cunning way of limiting and controlling our power.

We are so often told to resist our rage or punished for justifiably expressing it, yet how many remarkable achievements in this world would never have gotten off the ground without the kernel of anger that fueled them? Rage Becomes Her makes the case that anger is not what gets in our way, it is our way, sparking a new understanding of one of our core emotions that will give women a liberating sense of why their anger matters and connect them to an entire universe of women no longer interested in making nice at all costs.

Following in the footsteps of classic feminist manifestos like The Feminine Mystique and Our Bodies, Ourselves, Rage Becomes Her is an eye-opening book for the twenty-first century woman: an engaging, accessible credo offering us the tools to re-understand our anger and harness its power to create lasting positive change.

 

Review:

I won this book for free from Goodreads Giveaways. Thank you to Goodreads, Atria Books, and Soraya Chemaly. As always, an honest review from me.

Rage Becomes Her might be my book of the year. It’s incredibly powerful, poignant and validating for women. I want to share the book with every single woman I know. Actually I need every single person on the planet to read it. No arguments, just reading and learning.

With that being said, here are all the reasons why Rage Becomes Her is a must read book:

– The author made me realize that I actually am very angry. Not annoyed, frustrated, sad, but angry. So many women have to put up with so much hatred, injustice and ridicule. And it’s ridiculous.
– I can relate to almost everything that she’s writing.
– I learned so much and so will you.
– Highlights the value of women as caregivers and the lack of value society places on us.
– Gives words to feelings and experiences that I’ve had before. Incredibly validating!
-Books this powerful set my soul on fire
-Teaches women how to make positive change using all that justifiable anger

There is nothing negative that I can say about the book.

Here are a few quotes that help to demonstrate the power of this novel:

“Angry women burn brighter than the sun.”

“How much is a little girl worth?” -Rachael Denhollander

“Little girls don’t stay little forever. They grow into strong women that return to destroy your world.” -Kyle Stephens

“The unfairness that we intuit and experience but cannot “prove” as we are asked to do so often, are more likely to become internalized anger rather than externalized action.”

I literally had chills and tears while reading, from the power of the author’s words.

Please, if you only read one book that I recommend this year, make it this one.