Our Short History

Our Short History

by Lauren Grodstein             Audio Book:10 hours, 30 mins     Paperback Book:  368 pages                           

A good story about a love affair troubled by people wanting different things (isn’t that the way) in life.    What started out with lots of potential ended badly but the bonus was the little boy born of that once great love.   Hurt feelings go a long way in this story all the way to the last page.    Cancer is ugly and painful and Lauren Grodstein captures and expresses the horrific and intense feelings attached to being a single mother of a young child dealing with all that life throws at her in raising her son alone (but with strong family ties to her sister and her brood) while trying to deal with the tumor that threatens to tear their lives apart.   Life plays this woman in so many ways and all will keep you wondering how she will deal with them and bring questions to the reader’s mind as to how they might deal with it all if in the lead character’s position.     Thought provoking.   It would make an excellent choice for a reading group there are so many factors involved, people from many walks of life and personalities, career, client relationships to explore, interpersonal relationships to explore, ethical questions to address and resolve.    A good read, even if there are times you would love to give the child and the mother time outs.

Operating Instructions: A Journal of My Son's First Year

Operating Instructions: A Journal of My Son’s First Year by Anne Lamott        272 pages

I’m not a parent. I’ve been a step-parent twice over. Still no matter whether it’s biological or vis marriage, nothing, and I mean nothing, can prepare you for parenthood.

Such was the harsh reality novelist Anne Lamott. She found herself pregnant and alone (ie: without a husband or reliable partner). However, Anne is not alone. She has a bevy of friends and neighbors with a speckling of strangers thrown to help her.

Anne was absolutely sure that she would have a girl. If she was going to do this, God would give her a girl, another female in the house. She was a girl; she could raise a girl. But when she learned that the blossoming bud inside was a boy, well, she could hardly comprehend it. She never fully accepted her fate until her son, Sam, was born. This is not the journey of pregnancy; it’s the journal of that first year, in all its glory and its horror.

Some of the journal entries are short, some a bit longer, and some last almost two pages. It’s isn’t a day-by-day account. Who has time for that when there is a colicky baby screaming at the top of his lungs?

The entries are equally poignant and humorous. I laughed so hard at times that I woke hubby, who was asleep in another room. Anne’s entries also have a cadence to them. From I love him so much, he’s the best baby ever to he’s trying to kill, I hate him, I laughed and cried.

My favorite account occurs not to long after Sam and Anne are home. She has to take his temperature. When she learns that anal, not oral, is how this is done on babies, it’s laugh at loud hilarious, especially when she describes how his tiny rear-end erupted like a full-scale volcano, spewing feces everywhere.

I recommend Operating Instructions to everyone. It’s short and easy to read and leaves the reader, or at least this one, with a new-found respect for new mothers. Therefore, Operating Instructions receives 5 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

When All Is Said and Prayed

When All Is Said and Prayed by E.N. Joy Book 304 pages


When All Is Said and Prayed is about Paige and her life of many ups and downs. Paige has had 2 husbands, and is now desiring a third. She has had much drama in her life which can be found in previous series written by the author. This book was fine, that's the word for it. The characters, the plot, the development, all of it was just fine. The problem I had with this book was the author's shameful agenda pushing. This book does fall into the religious category, but the religion isn't the problem. I won't go into detail about which agenda was present, just the seeming lack of author integrity. The agenda was a problem because it felt like a break from the story, which I didn't want. All I wanted was to be told what happened. Reading what was an obvious attempt to have me adopt a certain belief made me feel cheated as a reader. It felt like the author stopped the story in order to tell me what to believe about a certain topic. This experience makes me wary to try another of this author's books, but we'll see.

One Plus One

One Plus One by JoJo Moyes
368 Pages


Let me begin with a confession... I like chick lit.  I don't know if we are still calling it that but I liked the Bridget Jones and Sex In the City books as well as movies like Pretty Woman.  While critics say it is about covers with shoes, I think it is more about women, and sometimes men, coming to a realization or growth that leaves their lives better.  In short, books with happy endings.

One plus One falls squarely in this description.  A single mom, 2 kids, a farting dog and a stranger all come together for a road trip that leaves all their lives changed.  The characters are engaging and the story fun to read.  Literature? No, but all books don't have to be literature, some just have to entertain.