Review: The Secrets of My Life- Caitlyn Jenner

Rate:

4/5

Goodreads Description:

The book will cover Caitlyn Jenner's childhood as Bruce Jenner and rise to fame as a gold-medal-winning Olympic decathlete; her marriages and her relationships with her children; her transition; and her experience as the world's most famous transgender woman.

Review:

The book was recommended to me by my library and it had SO many holds on it, it took like 3 months for me to get to it xD

I honestly don't know what to think about it. We all supported Caitlyn when she became her true self but then she has said some controversial things, which she does address in some parts of her book, not all of them though, which has caused her to lose support from both the LGBTQ+ community and non community members. Within the book itself I feel like she contradicted herself in more than one occasion but at least she erased herself from the medias conception that she is the head of the LGBTQ community, admitting that hey, I havent been a part of it for long at all, and even if I was, im not the right person for anyone to call me that. 

Now, there are problems in the book that while I am not the proper person to be calling her out on it, stood out to me somewhat. I feel like her title is misleading. What  I mean by that is that in her audiobook intro and the title she talks about letting readers into her personal life, but we dont get anything that wasnt already covered by the media, even in her previous to fame life. I shoulda counted the amount of times she says the phrase, I had gender identity issues. Like.. Thats all we get. No deep dark secrets and not too much on how that made her feel and honest to god affected her not to be able to be her true self and having to hide behind Bruce. As soon as Caitlyn starts to really say how she was seeking help or that some people would find out and have any sort of reaction, she would move on. Like her ex wives, family members, therapist, anything really. Which is like, for a non transgender person, not really making me really feel like I understand even a smidge. Maybe im not meant to understand, which I get that. But the way it was written was like okay, the guy that wrote this book was simply not given enough information about some people.

Back to how she is portrayed. She addresses that she shouldnt be put in an altar and she goes on to be say things like, I dont honestly know what women have to go through in the work place, in a marriage or in any institution, they have struggled more than I have. Along other things that she has been called out for in the media yet in the book I feel like she addresses them in the most minimal way. As in, shes only like PARTIALLY apologizing for the things said about her but just so she looks nice about them, not really meaning it.

Recommend it?

No idea to be honest. From my perspective, sure, it was a light read. From the LGBTQ+ perspective, I cant speak.

Review: Dragon Teeth Michael Crichton

Rate:

3/5

Goodreads Description:

Michael Crichton's recently discovered novel—an adventure set in the Wild West during the golden age of fossil hunting.

The year is 1876. Warring Indian tribes still populate America’s western territories even as lawless gold-rush towns begin to mark the landscape. In much of the country it is still illegal to espouse evolution. Against this backdrop two monomaniacal paleontologists pillage the Wild West, hunting for dinosaur fossils, while surveilling, deceiving and sabotaging each other in a rivalry that will come to be known as the Bone Wars.

Into this treacherous territory plunges the arrogant and entitled William Johnson, a Yale student with more privilege than sense. Determined to survive a summer in the west to win a bet against his arch-rival, William has joined world-renowned paleontologist Othniel Charles Marsh on his latest expedition.  But when the paranoid and secretive Marsh becomes convinced that William is spying for his nemesis, Edwin Drinker Cope, he abandons him in Cheyenne, Wyoming, a locus of crime and vice. William is forced to join forces with Cope and soon stumbles upon a discovery of historic proportions.  With this extraordinary treasure, however, comes exceptional danger, and William’s newfound resilience will be tested in his struggle to protect his cache, which pits him against some of the West’s most notorious characters.

Review:

This book went by unbearably slow.

The plot s a promising one and I was very excited about it but when it actually came down to it the lengthy descriptions that the characters gave just grinded my gears.

There never seemed to be a thrilling moment as there was in his other stories and it overall failed to impress me because of it. The whole thing almost felt political and focuses a little too much over men fighting over a dinosaur bone and hardly at all over having an adventure which is what I was expecting out of this book.

Recommend it?

You can skip this one.

Review: I see London, I see France by Sarah Mlynowski

Rate:

3/5

Goodreads Description:

I see London, I see France, I see Sydney’s underpants.

Nineteen-year-old Sydney has the perfect summer mapped out. She’s spending the next four and half weeks traveling through Europe with her childhood best friend, Leela. Their plans include Eiffel-Tower selfies, eating cocco gelato, and making out with très hot strangers. Her plans do not include Leela’s cheating ex-boyfriend showing up on the flight to London, falling for the cheating ex-boyfriend’s très hot friend, monitoring her mother’s spiraling mental health via texts, or feeling like the rope in a friendship tug-of-war.

As Sydney zigzags through Amsterdam, Switzerland, Italy, and France, she must learn when to hold on, when to keep moving, and when to jump into the Riviera…wearing only her polka-dot underpants. 

Review:

The cover made me read it and holy shit what did I read.

I found myself asking, wait, this is a Young Adult book more times than I could count. Sure. It is shit that young adults would do, at least the wild ones and non hermits like me. But I was simply shocked at the things that were going on in this book. It had it all. The book was funny but I honestly couldn't get over some parts. I felt like Aunt Patty in Gone with the Wind, I needed my smelling salts as Scarlett danced with Rhett after becoming a widow. Damn I have to watch that movie again. Anyways, my poor little heart couldn't take it. That also doesn't mean that the book was bad. Travel book have always been fun for me, I enjoy seeing authors describe over seas places that I have never visited in the own way which is the main thing that made me somewhat enjoy this book. 

Recommend i?

No clue, maybe call that shot based on reviews?

Review: The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee

Rate:

4/5

Goodreads Description:

Henry “Monty” Montague was born and bred to be a gentleman, but he was never one to be tamed. The finest boarding schools in England and the constant disapproval of his father haven’t been able to curb any of his roguish passions—not for gambling halls, late nights spent with a bottle of spirits, or waking up in the arms of women or men.

But as Monty embarks on his Grand Tour of Europe, his quest for a life filled with pleasure and vice is in danger of coming to an end. Not only does his father expect him to take over the family’s estate upon his return, but Monty is also nursing an impossible crush on his best friend and traveling companion, Percy.

Still it isn’t in Monty’s nature to give up. Even with his younger sister, Felicity, in tow, he vows to make this yearlong escapade one last hedonistic hurrah and flirt with Percy from Paris to Rome. But when one of Monty’s reckless decisions turns their trip abroad into a harrowing manhunt that spans across Europe, it calls into question everything he knows, including his relationship with the boy he adores.

Review: 

If you are in the book universe you know that this was a highly anticipated read for which I had so many high hopes. Now the book didn't disappoint buuuuut it also wasn't the world's best book like everyone was dishing. The ending really made the book the best part for me. It was incredibly fucking cute and gave me all sorts of feels, making me forget any sort of complaint that I had over this book. Now there are things that some might cringe at, myself included but to be honest I think that the author handled the way that people were back in the day without being OVERLY offensive and created a love story that didn't seemed forced but rather flowed naturally. And I say forced because I will come out and say it. To me I have read some LGBTQ+ stories out there that are written by authors almost in a way that seemed like they forced themselves to write a love aspect to their characters. Like

if you aint feeling it, neither will you characters or readers.

Lee on the other hand is as in love with the characters as they are with each other and therefore. I ship them.

Recommend it?

Yup

Topic Tuesday: First impressions

Episode 24: Bookish first impressions

So the first couple of chapters of a book are very important it can make or break a book but sometimes it might seem like the book wont be up your alley but then suddenly it is! 

One example for me is totally Cinder by Marissa Meyer and most recently, Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard.

Okay so with Cinder I started reading it about a year and 9 months ago and it had a lot of people talking during that time (the release of Cress was coming up) and so I decided to get it from the library and read it.... Yeah no, read the first 2 chapters and thought it was so boring >.> Hated it. Then months passed and the bookoutlet had the first 2 books really cheap and I decided to get them. I dont know why, if I felt strongly against the books already.

I guess its because its a Cinderella-like retelling. Anyways, I got the books and about a month later I start reading the first one again and freaking loved it! 

Finished the book hella fast , ordered Cress, started reading Scarlett and checked out Fairest from the library. and it was all I could talk about to anyone in real life. Its still the series I recommend the most to be honest.

Most recently I decided to finally start reading Red Queen ( I got it as a christmas present from my best friend - I had asked for it xD) Anyways, I started reading it and it felt really slow for me and I was scared I wasnt going to like it but I was not willing to put it down. I wanted to at least get half way through it before I dropped it. 

Im so glad I set that goal for myself !

It picked up soon after, like the book just gets better and better and I cant stopppp! I am starting to slow down on it because Im scared for it to end. I dont want it to end D:

Okay so those are 2 first impressions and then how I moved forward and loved them

Now, let me talk about another first impression that I didnt exactly love but I didnt give up on and I ask myself "were you on drugs?" every time I think of me reading it.

Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L James

I knew about Fifty shades as it was still on Twilight Fanfiction. I would read fanfiction and everyone would be talking about Master of the Universe or whatever it was called. I had even gotten the copy of it sent to me before she fully deleted it. 

I had never read it before I got the copy and I didnt go into reading it until way later. When I realized that I HAD fifty shades of grey before it WAS Fifty shades of Grey.

How fucking hipster is that?!

Anyways, I had seen the trailer for the movie and loved it. I honestly like the trailer and I suspect its mainly because of the music, but I wanted to read the book. And lord jesus christ. I prayed for my soul every night. 

I stared to read the book and it was just awful. It was like reading badly written fanfiction... Which it had been ! I dont know why I expected anything different.

It took me a full freaking month of reading a page a day to finally tell myself to grow a pair, I was 18 and I could read it if I set my mind to it! And so I did... All of them... And gooooshhh it just didnt get better... WHY VALE WHY?! Why did you read them!

Whats worst, I recently read Grey.. Correction, I recently attempted and DROPPED Grey. 

Grey made Fifty Shades seem brilliant.....

Okay CHILL Vale CHILL!!!

What was I even talking about??

Right first impressions.. Thats.... That was that....

I have no idea what to say anymore after that outburst....

Another book that has managed to surprise me or rather might surprise others is the effect that some real life things that have evolved into books, and for this I am talking about the Hate You Give.

This book took the summer by storm and people grew increasingly excited as it got announced that it would be made into a movie. The book talks about Black Lives Matter and for some that was a good thing and others not so much. I HAD to pick it up as soon as I could and as soon as I did. I became addicted to it. I lived by this book! It honestly shook me to the core. My first impression of this was that I was going to be unable to relate but as I read it I found that I could, as a Latina and a minority, I really could in some way relate. And for it I love it.

HAVE A NICE WEEK AND SEE YALL NEXT TOPIC TUESDAY!!! Or rather Review Thursday