Good and Mad

Good and Mad: The Revolutionary Power of Women's Anger by Rebecca Traister     320 pages

From Goodreads

From Rebecca Traister, the New York Times bestselling author of All the Single Ladies comes a vital, incisive exploration into the transformative power of female anger and its ability to transcend into a political movement. 

Review:

This is an exceptional look at gender inequality in the US, with focus on breaking down the politics of gender inequality, women of color, and other disadvantages faced by women. Traister leaves no stone unturned, covering several woman's rights movements, including the #metoo movement, and especially focuses on woman's rights/activism in the wake of the 2016 presidential election.

The main message is this: women, it is okay to be mad, in fact, it's good to be mad because a) no one should tell you what to feel, especially if it's justified, b) anger can be a tool that leads to change, and c) anger keeps us (women) from complacency and settling for less than equal rights.

I loved the coverage of this book, I loved Traister's inclusiveness, and I loved reading something that spoke to the anger I have felt and still feel after the 45 became president. This is a very important read and I would recommend it to all women, every woman, and then all men.

The Breadwinner

The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis, 152 pages

“Young Parvana lives with her family in one room of a bombed-out apartment building in Kabul, Afghanistan. Because Parvana's father has a foreign education, he is arrested by the Taliban. Women cannot appear in public unless covered head to toe, go to school, or work outside the home, so the family becomes increasingly desperate until Parvana conceives a plan.” A good story about a terrible time in Afghanistan.  This is a good choice for kids who like realistic fiction about other countries.

The Word

The Word by Hubert Crouch             391 pages

The Word is a second novel in the Jace Forman series. I haven’t read the first one; I didn’t find it necessary to have read it to enjoy this book.

The story opens with Ezekiel Shaw and his band of followers from the Brimstone Bible Church (BBC) are picketing the funeral of Second Lieutenant Lauren Hanson, who was killed by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan. The BBC believes in literal interpretation of God’s word. They can be compared to the Westboro Baptist Church. Other than the need to tighten the sentences (too many prepositional phrases), the scenes are vivid and distributing. It’s not surprising that her parents, after hiring Forman’s firm, to sue the BBC, reacted the way they did.

In a secondary plot, cub reporter Leah Rosen is doing her best to dig up the dirty truth about Cal Connors, one of Texas’ most prominent men. It has the same problem the major plot line does. However, Crouch intersperses the chapters well enough so that the high tension of the major plot  allows the readers to take a breath.

There is also a third plot line that pits Connors, his daughter, and his most reliable pharmaceutical witness against the system. Again, the same sentence structure problems. This part was rather buried and did little to enhance the major and secondary plot lines…and it’s the one that’s not resolved, which irritated me somewhat.

It was difficult to keep all the characters straight in the beginning once I was passed reading about the BBC and Jace.

Not surprisingly, as Crouch is an attorney, the courtroom drama is excellent. I even learned something about juries for federal cases: they don’t have to have twelve jurors, only eight.

All-in-all, The Word is a great read; I had trouble putting it down. 

I give The Word four out of five stars.

Malala Yousafzai And The Girls Of Pakistan

Malala Yousafzai And The Girls Of Pakistan by David Aretha, 64 pages

This is a nonfiction book for young readers about the efforts of Malala Yousafzai to bring education to girls in Pakistan and all over the world.  She has won a Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts, the youngest person ever to do so at seventeen.  This is very simply told but covers all of the basics: her early life and desire to go to school, speaking out for girls’ rights to education, being shot by the Taliban and her subsequent recovery, and her continuing efforts since.  Although simply told, it will help younger readers understand something about the dangers people face and their struggles and give them a basic knowledge of Malala’s life and goals.  A simple solid effort that will benefit and be of interest to younger readers.