OPINION PIECE:
Is the LoveLoud festival family friendly?
This opinion/information is being posted to help families make a decision about whether future LoveLoud festivals would be a good choice for your family.
Disclosure: I didn't even think about if it was a family friendly event when I purchased tickets... I knew that I had bought tickets for a musical festival that was raising money and providing support for LGBTQ+ youth. That sounded awesome to me so we signed up.
A few days before, my sister sent me a picture of one of her favorite drag queens and asked me to keep an eye out for her. She also asked me if we knew exactly what we were getting into.... and then I started wondering... what exactly AM I getting into? I started to have flashbacks of news articles covering Pride Parades full of flamboyant over-the-top marchers and vitriolic protesters. Would it be safe? Would it be comfortable? A bit worried, I checked online and found the event was advertised as "Family Friendly" so we decided to give it a go.
I wrote this blog post in case next year someone else is wondering about the experience and if it will be a good choice for their family.
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First of all, what is Family Friendly? Per Wikipedia:
A family-friendly product or service is one that is considered to be suitable for all members of an average family.
Well that doesn't help much. What is an average family? What age do you consider children old enough to handle depictions of nudity, sex, horror, profanity, racial slurs, innuendo, drug use, blasphemy, and racism? My own experience with my kids has taught me that each CHILD is different as to their sensitivity to such things so of course every family is going to be wildly different.
Since some kind of starting point is needed, I am writing this report from the viewpoint of someone who is super-conservative... in other words ... what would my mother think?? 😊
My review is of the crowd in general, the dance, musical, and spoken acts that were performed during the festival, and the visual elements showing on the screens.
CROWD:
The attendees were of all ages, from babies to grandparents.
We saw a few couples of the same sex holding hands but there was very little physical contact between ANY type of couple. We saw a few transgender men with great clothes and boots and hats (anyone that can look that good in 101 degree heat totally gets credit in my book). Their outfits were flamboyant but not revealing or inappropriate.
From my experience, the crowds at RSL games are MUCH more edgy and physically demonstrative.
The crowd was just a normal crowd that you would see in any type of public setting in Utah. It was surprisingly "vanilla".
It was fun to look at all the different shirts people were wearing. Most had some type of rainbow or equality statement and EVERYTHING I saw was supportive, loving, and accepting. There was absolutely nothing that any reasonable person could consider offensive or demeaning. There were several people wearing BYU hats and T-shirts and I remember thinking that they were kinda brave... but no one said a thing that I saw.
I personally felt the crowd was EXTRA nice - I mean this festival is about support and kindness and the crowd really stepped up to the bar. One funny moment was when I was walking behind a young couple (16? 17?) who were talking about how surprised they were that there were no protesters at the event (they actually sounded REALLY disappointed hahaha).
BOOTHS: There were official vendors selling merchandise for the festival itself plus some of the individual performers, some great photo booth opportunities, and several small booths for different civic groups (Ogden Pride, Provo Pride, Mormons Building Bridges, Affirmation, Encircle, etc). They had activities you could do to earn pins, temporary tattoos, etc. There were also booths selling food, drinks, snowies, and other treats.
Okay now for CONTENT:
NUDITY: None. Dan Reynolds from Imagine Dragons showed off his new fit physique by just wearing basketball shorts during his performance. It was 100+ degrees and he moved A LOT... so to me it just made sense. I think the drummer may have been shirtless as well. There was also a dance routine between two men where they just wore capri type stretch pants.
SEX: None. Granted... I didn't see all of the acts and I couldn't understand all the words of every song either - but out of what I heard there was nothing shocking.
There was as a modern dance routine between two male dancers that represented a person looking at themselves in the mirror and accepting what they saw. There was a lot of physical touching and at the end, the men passionately kissed. My husband had left the stands to go fill some water bottles and my kids all said they were super glad Dad hadn't seen that part.
HORROR: None
PROFANITY: We heard the "F" word about 8 times ... and 7 of them were by Mike Shinoda (previously of Linkin Park). He was rapping and I sometimes wasn't even sure if I had heard it correctly. I sometimes didn't hear it AT ALL but my teenager would notice and subtly peek at me wondering if I had noticed it hahaha.
There may have also been a few hells and damns, but nothing else really stood out besides the monologue mentioned below under the "Blasphemy" situation.
RACIAL SLURS: None heard or noticed
HORROR: None
DRUG USE: None heard or noticed. I am super naive about these things and may not have caught onto any innuendos
BLASPHEMY:
One performer told a story of how she joined an Episcopalian church because of a crush she had another girl in the congregation (she then added, "Jokes on you, God eh?"). She also said "Someone asked me 'how can you consider yourself a Christian when you're gay' and I said to her 'how can you be a B**tch and consider yourself a Christian?' " (I mean she TOTALLY has a point but it was kinda against the theme for the night).
Dan Reynolds, the front-man for Imagine Dragons, introduced himself as a Mormon man that is passionate about loving everyone. He made the point several times that he is religious himself, he does not hate religion, and is just passionate that we love and accept EVERYONE.
RACISM: Nothing I heard or saw
OVERALL:
Musically, every person that bought a ticket totally got their money's worth. Imagine Dragons was seriously fantastic. I also really enjoyed Zedd. The stadium was just rocking.
The messages shared were overall wonderful. I didn't really enjoy the Westminster Slam Poetry group as it was a little screamy but that was at the far end of the spectrum.
Elissa loved when Tim Cook (the CEO of Apple) took the stage to Panic at the Disco's "High Hopes". He shared an inspiring message of living your truth and embracing who you are.
“I stand before you tonight as an uncle, a sports nut, a CEO, a lover of the beautiful Utah outdoors, and a proud, gay American. I come to deliver a simple message that I want every LGBT person to hear and to believe.
You are a gift to the world. A unique and special gift, just the way you are. Your life matters. … My heart breaks when I see kids struggling to conform to a society or a family that doesn’t accept them. Struggling to be what someone else thinks is normal. Find your truth, speak your truth, live your truth.
Let me tell you, ‘normal’ just might be the worst word ever created. We are not all supposed to be the same, feel the same, or think the same. And there is nothing wrong with you.
I know that life can be dark and heavy, and sometimes might seem unreasonable and unbearable, but just as night turns to day, know that darkness is always followed by light. You will feel more comfortable in our own skin, attitudes will change. Life will get better and you will thrive.”
Over and over again Dan Reynolds begged the youth in attendance to remember they are important. They are needed. And that the suicide problem with our youth in Utah HAS GOT TO STOP.
“I wish you could see how much we care about you, how much we love you, how much we support you, how much we stand with you,” Reynolds said. “I hope that you know you are needed. We need you. I don’t want to hear any more stories of youth taking their lives in Utah. We must change our culture. We must change the way we see each other.”
He thanked the crowd for coming and said “I know there are people here tonight on all sides. That’s the beauty of it. " And he was right. We got in the car and from SLC to Nephi we talked about subjects such as gay rights - the idea that God loves his children - that (THANKFULLY) it is never our job to judge but only to love love love love love. We talked about how stinking HARD it would be to be LDS and gay and what we could do. We talked about the beliefs of our church and what that means to us as members who support those teachings but also live in a world where our lack of support of gay marriage is seen as hateful (this is ROUGH for me people... it took YEARS for me to come to a good place about this). We talked about how we feel mankind is inherently good.
It was seriously BEAUTIFUL. And HOPEFUL. And GOOD. And considering that igniting such conversations is the MISSION of LoveLoud, I think the experience was totally of value to our family.
2016 READING GOAL THAT HAS EXTENDED INTO 2017 AND NOW 2018
Only 1.5 left...... I can do this......!
I just need to read the other half of "The Brothers Karamazov" and "Catch 22"
Click HERE to read about my reading goal.
.
# 16 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - February 2016
# 18 Memoirs of a Geisha
# 32 The Picture of Dorian Gray - January 2016
# 33 Crime and Punishment
# 41 Dracula - January 2016
# 49 The Lovely Bones - February 2016
# 59 Anna Karenina - January 2016
# 61 Lolita - April 2018 consciously objected :)
# 62 Slaughterhouse-Five - June 2016
# 64 Catch-22
# 66 Dune - April 2018
# 68 Watership Down - June 2017
# 70 The Stand -- July 2018
# 72 Frankenstein - June 2016
# 73 Great Expectations - January 2017
# 75 The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - May 2018
# 76 Angela's Ashes - April 2018
# 77 One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest - July 2016
# 80 The Bell Jar - April 2018
# 83 The Color Purple - March 2018
# 86 The Brothers Karamazov
# 91 Siddhartha - January 2017
# 92 Don Quixote - March 2018
# 94 A Prayer for Owen Meany - May 2016
# 95 Vampire Academy - January 2017
#96 The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo - January 2016
#98 Moby Dick - April 2017
# 104 Interview with the Vampire - January 2017
# 105 Middlesex - April 2018
Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood / A / **** / Kindle
* Read for the Rory Gilmore challenge
I have read "The Handmaid's Tale" several times and enjoyed it, but have never read anything else by Margaret Atwood. She is a masterful writer and in this book she tells the story of two friends, Jimmy (Snowman) and Glenn (Crake).
Crake is a genius with a compelling vision for the future. Tired of the corruption, pollution, and hopelessness of their current world, he decides to push the reset button. He creates the "perfect" humans in his genetics lab, then destroys the rest of the human population - except his buddy Jimmy. Jimmy is there to take care of the "Children of Crake" in the rubble of our old civilization.
This fascinating story flashes back to the past as you learn about Jimmy and and the woman he and Crake both love (Oryx), what lead to the fall of humanity, and the future as Jimmy is left to survive in a world where he may be the last human.
I love this book as to me it is a cautionary tale. What are we doing to the earth and when is it going to catch up with us?
Sanctuary by William Faulkner / A / ** / Hardback
* Read for the Rory Gilmore Challenge
I got too confident after reading/understanding "As I Lay Dying" so I picked this one up. I really struggled to get through this one. It was depressing. Violent. Brutal. It felt very hopeless and depressing.
Britt-Marie was Here by Fredrik Backman / **** / A / Hardback
I really enjoyed this one. Elissa read it first and asked me to read it, too.
She said the woman kinda reminded her of me, and I can see why. Britt-Marie feels a sense of control by cleaning things. She says things that she considers instructive but come across as offensive. She likes things to be JUST SO.
Things in Britt-Marie's life are currently NO "just-so". Britt-Marie is experiencing an un-asked for mid-life crisis. She has just left her belittling cheating husband and is determined to make it on her own. She moves to a small community in England to work a temporary job. She is taken in by a motley crew of people that are so damaged and so imperfect - but are exactly what Britt-Marie needs in order to find herself and her dreams again.
I loved the soccer references.... especially as it is World Cup time. I loved the feeling of hope in this book. And while I didn't love the WRITING of the ending (it got a little convoluted) I loved the ending itself. Good job, Backman. Another excellent, character-driven book.
Sing, Unburied, Sing: A Novel by Jesmyn Ward / A / **** / Kindle
I waited a LONG time for this book on Pioneer. I devoured it and ended up mixed emotions.
It was absolutely well-written, full of distinct and well-developed characters.
At the center of the book is JoJo - a thirteen year old boy living with his little sister and Grandparents in the deep south. JoJo is trying to become a man, protect his sister, love his family, and figure out why his mother can't get it together. The product of a black mother and a white father, JoJo is also trying to figure out his place in the deep south where his white grandparents want nothing to do with him.
JoJo's mother who has every opportunity to be a good mother but can't seem to get it together due to her addictions. Even when she is physically present she is not emotionally there. The author does a good job of helping you care for her and hate her all at the same time.
JoJo's grandpa - who has his own past that he is trying to overcome.
JoJo's grandma - a gifted native healer who can't heal herself or her family and is now dying of cancer.
The majority of the book takes place in the car as JoJo's mother drives to Parchman to pick up JoJo's father from prison. The ride is intense - think three drug addicts and two young children on a hot and sticky ride full of neglect (and vomit). It was of course a train-wreck (which made for mesmerizing reading as you KNOW how real this story is for too many children).
What undid me is the inclusion of the ghosts. Grandma sees them. Mom sees them. The children see them. I didn't mind that part..... in fact it added a delicious element of terror as one of them hitches a ride back from Parchman in order to find JoJo's grandpa. What killed it for me was the end and how the ghost situation was resolved. It was just weird to me and didn't seem to fit.
That being said - there is a reason why this book is being talked about so much. It is sad, raw, and hopeful all at the same time.
We are Okay by Nina LaCour / YA / ** / Kindle
Didn't love this one, either. It is a PRINTZ winner, and I never seem to have great luck with these.
Marin lived with her grandfather after the accidental death of her mother. She had a happy life full of friends and family.
After her grandfather unexpectedly died, Marin ran way to college, breaking all contact with her former life. During Christmastime her best friend seeks her out. The story flashes back and forth through time to explain Marin's struggles and depression.
It was a just okay with me - I think it was good that the book talks about sadness and that it is okay to be sad and that you can eventually function again despite the sadness. That being said, it was a little slow for me and a little odd at times.
The Stand by Stephen King / *** / A / Kindle
*Part of the Goodreads Challenge and also a substitute for the Rory Gilmore reading challenge
I only had 2.5 books left for the Goodreads challenge, "The Stand" being one of them. The fact they are left tells you how uninterested I am in reading them.
I started "The Stand" and all of a sudden I was elated! It was my kind of book! There is a virus! Everyone is dying! The world is imploding! I was thrilled. I love stories where people have to use their ingenuity to utilize the resources left.
This story, however, ended up not being that type of story. Not to be gross but if you were in New York in July and 99% of the population died from this super-flu, the smell would be STAGGERING. It was briefly mentioned in the book. The survivors all are drawn to Nebraska by strange dreams. Most take motorcycles so they can get through the congested freeways.... but no where does it disuss HOW THEY GOT GAS WHEN THERE IS NO POWER.
These are just two examples of how Stephen King knows horror but NOT true horror.
Anyway, considering this is my first Stephen King book I was expecting to be scared. I was never scared. There were lots of characters. Many of them died. I didn't find myself caring. I was just slugging through this one to get to the end.
Still Me by JoJo Moyes / A / **** / Kindle
This was my reward for slogging through "The Stand". I am also going to use it for the Richfield Library Book Challenge.
Oh Jo Jo I love you. Thank you for giving me such great characters. Thank you for giving me the idea of bumble-bee tights. I love Louisa. I love Sam. This story was more engaging than the second book and was so beautiful to see our Louisa realize she could love and care for others while still taking care of herself. I like emotional growth in characters and this trilogy was the best.
Here is my dismal list for June. I was kinda busy this month but the real reason I didn't read much is because I was binge-watching "Call the Midwife" on Netflix. Like six or seven seasons (sigh)....
But here is what I do remember reading:
The Inquisitor's Tale: Or, the Three Magical Children and their Holy Dog by Adam Gidwitz
I picked this one out as it received a Newbery Honor Medal. Here is the goodreads intro:
On a dark night, travelers from across France cross paths at an inn and begin to tell stories of three children. Their adventures take them on a chase through France: they are taken captive by knights, sit alongside a king, and save the land from a farting dragon. On the run to escape prejudice and persecution and save precious and holy texts from being burned, their quest drives them forward to a final showdown at Mont Saint-Michel, where all will come to question if these children can perform the miracles of saints.
This one was just okay with me... some parts were funny; some parts just odd, pointless, and overly violent for the age group this book is intended for.
The story was told from the perspectives of different people at the inn but their "voices" were all the same to me. I just didn't "feel" anything from this book besides a few moments of short-lived hilarity.
As I Lay Dying - by William Faulkner
* Read for the Rory Gilmore Challenge
I finally finished a Faulkner story. I have tried reading him before - and given up. I did finally figure out a secret that helps.
I would read a passage - think to myself WHAT IN THE HECK? And complain to Darren about it. I would tell him, "Listen to this passage and tell me how in the world I am supposed to get anything out of it".... and then when I would read it OUT LOUD it made total sense. So basically I had to read this selection out loud to get through it. And guess what? I could see why he is an acclaimed author.
And this people is why I do reading challenges. It forces me to read things I wouldn't normally.
Snows of Kilimanjaro by Ernest Hemingway
*Read for the Rory Gilmore Challenge
Oh man I love me some Hemingway. I enjoyed this one - it was so typical Hemingway.
Hold me closer, Necromancer by Lisah McBride
I picked this one up from the Library the last time I was in. It tells the story of Sam, who has magical powers from birth that were magically bound by well-meaning family members. The binding is starting to break and some weird stuff is starting to happen.
Sam and his buddies must figure out the mystery, kick the a** of some bad guys, and save a hot new friend that has powers of her own.
It was a cute story - didn't love it but didn't loathe it, either. I enjoyed the characters and it had a cool vibe. However for some reason I'm not really interested in the sequel.
SAVVY by Ingrid Law / YA / *** / Kindle
The Beaumont family has magic... not wizardly wave your wand magic but in their blood down-home Appalachian-feeling magic. This magic or "savvy" appears in force when a member of the family turns 13, sometimes with catastrophic results.
Mississippi is about to turn 13. Her family is anxious wondering what her savvy will be. Will she be able to move earth like Grandpa, create storms like Fish or generate electricity like Rocket?
Right before her birthday, Mississippi's father is in a terrible car accident. While Mom is at the hospital the kids are left with a nosy but well-meaning neighbor who has no idea what catastrophe could be awaiting the neighborhood kids at an impromptu birthday party thrown on Mississippi's behalf.
What results is an unplanned stow-away on the bus of a salesman pedaling Bibles... a journey across the mid-west, and an adventure to find their way back home.
Did I love this one? Not as much as I thought I would. The actions of the adults were just too implausible to me. However, I did enjoy the characters, the back-story, the verbal imagery, and the importance of family shared in the story.
The Complete Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle / A / **** / Hardback
I read this book as part of the Goodreads Challenge. I put it off until the end as I am not really a mystery reader. The idea of 900+ pages of mystery sounded like torture. But like so many of the Goodreads books I ended up reading, I LOVED this one. The collection I read had several longer stories (about 100 pages each) and then TONS of shorter stories that were about 10-20 pages each. I enjoyed the shorter stories much more. I can just see myself back in the 1890's avidly waiting for the next story to be published in "The Strand".
Ghost by Jason Reynolds / YA/ ***1/2 / Hardback
This is the story of an inner-city boy with some inborn talent but a lack of discipline, a running coach that works hard to not just make runners but good human beings, and friends who help you realize that while you can't outrun your past, you can come to peace with it. I liked this one.
Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds / YA / **** / Hardback
This is one of those books that I read it and went WHAT??? Then I made Emily read it. And she went WHAT??? And then Nathan read it. And then Elissa read it. And then we argued about it over the dinner table.
Seriously people - this is happiness to me.
The story itself is about gun violence. Will's brother Shawn has just been gunned down on the street of their neighborhood. According to the code of the streets, it is Will's job to exact revenge. This book tells a completely intriguing story of what happens to Will on his way down to the street.
This book won a Newbery Honor medal in 2018.
Emily the Strange: Stranger and Stranger by Rob Reger / YA / ***1/2 / Audio
I picked up this book as part of the Rory Gilmore challenge. It wasn't until later that I realized I had the wrong book... this is actually book 2... but I am counting it anyway.
It is the story of a super smart but super strange girl named Emily. This books tells of her adventures in a new town as she meets new people, finds new trouble, and plans the ultimate prank. I got a kick out of this book.
Penny from Heaven by Jennifer Holm / YA / ***1/2 / Audio
This Newbery Honor award had a lot of feel-good classic charm. It tells the story of Penny - who lives with her widowed mother and her maternal grandparents in post WWII New Jersey. She is also lucky enough to live by her deceasedfather's family ... which is very large, very close, and very Italian.
It is just a sweet story of family and becoming and growing.
After Tupac and D. Foster by Jacqueline Woodson / YA / *** 1/2 / Kindle
This is another Newbery Honor winner. It tells the story of three black pre-teens living in Queens in 1996 - the year that Tupac Shakur was killed in a drive-by shooting. The story follows the three friends as they start to grow up, explore their independence, and figure out their place in the world. Woodson is a great writer of both race relations and inner-city life in that she reveals the hardships, the idiosyncrasies, the joys, and the hardships all through the eyes and lives of her characters. This book has a very nostalgic feel that I enjoyed.
Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lei / YA / **** / Kindle
After reading a few chapters of this book I realized that I have read this book before. It tells of a family fleeing Vietnam after the fall of Saigon. They are eventually resettled in the mid-west where they must figure out a new life in a new country. The story is sweet but real, and always hopeful. This is an excellent book.
2016 READING GOAL THAT HAS EXTENDED INTO 2017 AND NOW 2018
After only reading six books from the list in all of 2017 I have already read 7 so far in 2018.
I listened to about half of Lolita and was so sicked out I didn't finish. So I guess I will never officially finish this list. But reading this book made my spirit sick. Literally. So I'm dropping this one from the list.
Based on this, I have THREE books left. Actually 2 and a 1/2 as I have read half of the Brothers Karamazov already. WOOT!
Click HERE to read about my reading goal.
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# 16 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - February 2016
# 18 Memoirs of a Geisha
# 32 The Picture of Dorian Gray - January 2016
# 33 Crime and Punishment
# 41 Dracula - January 2016
# 49 The Lovely Bones - February 2016
# 59 Anna Karenina - January 2016
# 61 Lolita - April 2018 consciously objected :)
# 62 Slaughterhouse-Five - June 2016
# 64 Catch-22
# 66 Dune - April 2018
# 68 Watership Down - June 2017
# 70 The Stand
# 72 Frankenstein - June 2016
# 73 Great Expectations - January 2017
# 75 The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - May 2018
# 76 Angela's Ashes - April 2018
# 77 One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest - July 2016
# 80 The Bell Jar - April 2018
# 83 The Color Purple - March 2018
# 86 The Brothers Karamazov
# 91 Siddhartha - January 2017
# 92 Don Quixote - March 2018
# 94 A Prayer for Owen Meany - May 2016
# 95 Vampire Academy - January 2017
#96 The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo - January 2016
#98 Moby Dick - April 2017
# 104 Interview with the Vampire - January 2017
# 105 Middlesex - April 2018
ENDURANCE: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage by Alfred Lansing / A / *** / Audiobook
I listened to this one during my Manti travels. It was FASCINATING. I can't imagine living through an artic winter in a tent. It really is a miracle they all lived (sorry for the spoiler there).
ANGELA'S ASHES by Frank McCourt / A / **** / Hardcopy
* This book was part of the Goodreads Challenge AND the Rory Gilmore Challenge
Wowza. This book told the story of a young boy growing up poor in New York and then Ireland. He was poor because he had a mother that let life happen to her instead of making things happen and a father that drank away every penny he got. This book made me sick and most of all angry. The father was never remorseful that his children were literally malnourished because he couldn't keep a job and when he had a job he drank away the money. I was just angry most of the book.
SILVER IN THE BLOOD by Jessica Day George / YA / ** / Kindle
Dumb dumb dumb. Why do I read this crap? This is a story of two young cousins that are part of a magical family that helps keep the Dracula family in power. They come into their powers and help save the day in between worrying about their clothes, hair, social standing, and beau's. Garbage.
MIDDLESEX by Jeffery Eugenides / A / ***** / Hardcopy
* This book was part of the Goodreads Challenge
AND the Rory Gilmore Challenge
This is the story of a girl who really was a boy. Based on years of village/family inbreeding, Cal/Calliope was born with undecended testicles. She was raised as a girl, while her body eventually won out and revealed she was a boy (which explained a LOT to Calliope). It is an odd sounding story - what was interesting to me was the stories of the three generations of her family and what happened to them as they lived in Greece, made a new life in America, and added Cal/Calliope to the family. It was fantastic writing - although it was overly sexual for me.
ALMOST SISTERS by Joshilyn Jackson / A / **** / Kindle
While this one was not my favorite of Joshilyn Jackson's books, it was still great. Jackson is great at writing family relationships (both those by birth and those we make ourselves). She is also great at writing characters. I will never forget cute little Birchie and Wattie stealing the car. The main traumatic event of the story was a little unbelievable to me, but I enjoyed the book just the same.
MOSTLY VOID PARTIALLY STARS:Welcome to Night Vale Episodes Volume 1: by Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor / A / *** / Kindle
My daughter Elizabeth loves loves loves these podcasts. I couldn't find the podcasts easily so I just read the book - which I'm sure was no where near the same. These podcasts are based on a fictional town where the normal is horrifying the the supernatural is normal. It was worth reading this book in order to be able to write Elizabeth an email on her mission that was "Nightvale-esque". She said this was the best email she had ever received in her entire life. Mission accomplished.
Snow & Rose by Emily Winfield Martin / JF / *** / Kindle
This was a juvenile fiction book that fleshes out the story of Snow and Rose. It was just okay - to me you shouldn't retell a story unless you are going to add to it or enhance it in some way.
Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie / A / **** /Audio
* This book was part of the Rory Gilmore Challenge
LOVED this one. Loved the narrator as well. He had the perfect voice for the story.
It tells the story of two friends that are placed in the rural areas of China to be "re-educated" under the new Communist regime. These educated boys work in the fields, care for animals, and labor in the communal mines in order to learn what it is like to be peasants.
Their friend in another village has smuggled some forbidden books with him. Most of the book is about the crazy things these boys do in order to have access to the books.
They befriend a seamstress in another village. She loves hearing the stories they tell from the books.
The end has a delightful twist.
Loved this book!
Flat Broke with Two Goats by Jennifer McGaha / ** / Audio
This book was chosen by Pioneer.utah.gov as the selection for a statewide book read. I don't know why. It was the most boring, awful story. I hated the narrator.
It tells the story of a family that lost their home due to stupid financial decisions. They move into a cabin in the woods to save money. I just had no respect for the narrator. She continually complained that her friend (whom they bought their house from in a sale-by-owner deal) no longer spoke to her after they stopped paying their payments. She didn't understand that this friend that they had traveled with the Disneyland and Spain and whose kids attended the same expensive private school would TREAT her like this. (Gee what a news flash - by living the life you lived you SCREWED OVER YOUR FRIEND. And then, after they stopped paying, they refused to leave the home until it was actually foreclosed on. And then left a bunch of trash and debris. It was ridiculous.) The wife (who narrates the story) refused to get work as nothing met her standards. Instead they spent outrageous amounts as she bought goats to save money on milk and cheese ( although the amounts spent far outweighed any monetary savings after the cost of the goats, the feed, the vet bills, etc). This book was a train wreck. Maybe that is why it was selected?
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath / A / **** / Audio
* This book was part of the Goodreads Challenge AND the Rory Gilmore Challenge
This one was weird to me. I have true empathy for those with depression and mental illness. I'm sure one of the stereotypes that true sufferers face is people not believing that anything is really wrong with them. I experienced this with this book as I just wanted her to "snap out of it". It made no sense. It was interesting but I didn't love this one.
Dune by Frank Herbert / A / *** / Hardback
* This book was part of the Goodreads Challenge
I like science fiction but this one was hard to read. It is a story of power and intrigue. Of supernatural abilities and the price they extract.
Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman / YA / **** / Hard Copy
This book is the sequel to "SCYTHE"... which tells the story of a Utopian world where no one dies... unless they are gleaned by a properly trained Scythe. This is only done to property maintain the population.
The world is governed by "The Thunderhead" - a non-sentient computer program that divides resources, makes laws, and provides stability and security.
In this book it has been a year since the end of Scythe. Citra is a full-time Scythe and is working to professionally and humanely complete her duties. Rowan has gone rogue, and has started removing Scythes that are not living up to their mandate.
The scythes are the only group that the Thunderhead cannot interfere with .. and now the Scythes are at war with each other. Citra and Rowan have to make decisions that will affect not only themselves but the entire planet. The Thunderhead also has to decide how much to act.
I have really enjoyed this series. I have to admit this one wasn't as engaging as the first one but it was still thrilling and exciting. It brings to light ethical questions about who we are as humans, what we believe, and what a utopian society would really mean.
Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon / YA / ***1/2 / Kindle
This is the story of Madeline, a "bubble girl" that is perpetually confined to the inside her own home as she is allergic to the world. The story arc is that she falls in love with the neighbor boy and decides the life she is living is not worth the price. She wants more.
The end has a twist that I'm not sure I like but anyway it was an interesting read.
Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes / A / **** / Kindle and Audio
It took me over a year to get this book read. I remember starting to listen to it as I was driving to the temple in Manti for a Ward Conference visit. And I finished it a year later when I was driving to the temple in Manti for a Ward Conference visit. I ended up reading a good chunk of it... what was interesting was that at first it took me FOREVER to read a section. I had to really think about the language. By the time I got to the second volume of the book, it either was written more simply or I was now used to the language. It seriously took me about 11 months to read about 50% of the book and then another month to read the last half.
Anyway - I am super proud of myself for reading this one. I can see why it is a classic. There are so many little cultural things that came from this book. I loved the clever irony and really grew to love and even admire the Man of La Mancha and his faith.
* This book was read as part of the Goodreads challenge AND the Rory Gilmore reading challenge
Empire Falls by Richard Russo / A / **** / Kindle
This novel tells the story of several citizens of the town of Empire Falls, an American industrial town where most of the businesses have closed and the only people left are those with no where else to go. This Pulitzer Prize winning novel is the perfect example of how to write characters. Not much happens in this novel until the last few chapters but the entire thing is engaging and at times laugh out loud funny. I enjoyed this one.
* This book is part of the Rory Gilmore reading challenge
The Girl that Wrote in Silk by Kelli Estes / A / **** / Kindle
This was our book group book for March. It is a fictional story that switches back and forth in time between the present and 1800's when Chinese immigrants were being driven from the Pacific Northwest. It tells the story of Mei Lin, a young Chinese woman driven from her home in Seattle. It also tells the story of Inara, a modern day young woman who is remodeling her family home and finds a piece of Chinese embroidery hidden under the stairs. Inara works to find out the story of the piece... which is the story of Mei Lin. The first 3/4 of the book were so exceptional that I couldn't put it down.
The Color Purple by Alice Walker / A / ****1/2 / Kindle
This novel was painful to read. It focuses on the lives of several African American women in George around the time of the depression. The women basically have zero status not only in their community but also in their families. The main character, Celie, is beaten, raped, starved, and neglected. She still maintains a fairly hopeful and positive outlook in life despite her life of backbreaking work and abuse. Her sister Nellie comes into the picture, as well as Celie's husband's mistress, Shug. Surprisingly, Shug ends up being the one that helps Celie the most.
This one was hard to read but so worth the effort.
* This book is part of the Goodreads challenge I am ALMOST DONE WITH WOOT WOOT.
Odd Child Out by Gilly Macmillan / A / *** / Kindle
This was a detective novel.... a young boy is found floating in a canal and his Somali friend won't tell what happened.
In full disclosure when I borrowed the book I thought the author of this was Gillian Flynn... the author of Gone Girl and Dark Places and Sharp Objects.... so the whole time I was reading this I was expecting something large and disturbing and twisty to happen as that is what Gillian Flynn does. It was an interesting story and well written.
Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach / A / *** 1/2 / Audiobook
I listened to this book on my drives back and forth to Manti. It was totally fascinating and so well written but I admit some of the chapters made me totally queasy. One good thing is that I totally have changed the way I want to be processed after I die.... I want to be freeze dried and turned into fertilizer for a tree. I am not kidding about this... I've even talked to Darren about it.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-new-burial-technique-turns-a-corpse-into-a-tiny-pile-of-freeze-dried-fertilizer-1788824/
* This book is part of the Rory Gilmore reading challenge
Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy / A / **** / Audiobook
Elissa is on a total English literature kick. She read Jane Eyre and then we watched the BBC movie. She read Pride and Prejudice then she watched that movie about four times. She has a little tender romantic heart and loves Mr. Rochester and Mr. Darcy. I felt it my maternal duty to introduce her to another great English film, "Far from the Madding Crowd". She loved it as well. We discussed the title, as nowhere in the film does it explain it. I decided to follow in my awesome 17 year old's footsteps and read the book so I could figure it out for myself. I assumed it was a place name. It isn't... in fact the book didn't explain it to me, either. I had to google it in order to find the word madding is an english adjective we don't use anymore that means "frenzied" or "crazed". The title itself comes from a Thomas Grey poem written in the 1800's. Anyway - the book tells the story of the orphan Bathsheba Everdeen who is wild and free and ahead of her time. She inherits a farm and proceeds to work as it's manager and overseer. The book is a beautiful story of country life and country people. Bathsheba has the opportunity to decide between three remarkably different suitors and her choices affect more than just herself. It was a great book and I was impressed how well the movie follows the actual text.
2016 READING GOAL THAT HAS EXTENDED INTO 2017 AND NOW 2018
Still plugging away at this....I only read SIX books from the list in 2017.
I am bound and determined to finish this in 2018!! I had 11 left at the start of the year, now I have 9 as I finished Don Quixote and The Color Purple. Woot!
Click HERE to read about my reading goal.
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# 16 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - February 2016
# 18 Memoirs of a Geisha
# 32 The Picture of Dorian Gray - January 2016
# 33 Crime and Punishment
# 41 Dracula - January 2016
# 49 The Lovely Bones - February 2016
# 59 Anna Karenina - January 2016
# 61 Lolita
# 62 Slaughterhouse-Five - June 2016
# 64 Catch-22
# 66 Dune
# 68 Watership Down - June 2017
# 70 The Stand
# 72 Frankenstein - June 2016
# 73 Great Expectations - January 2017
# 75 The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
# 76 Angela's Ashes
# 77 One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest - July 2016
# 80 The Bell Jar
# 83 The Color Purple - March 2018
# 86 The Brothers Karamazov
# 91 Siddhartha - January 2017
# 92 Don Quixote - March 2018
# 94 A Prayer for Owen Meany - May 2016
# 95 Vampire Academy - January 2017
#96 The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo - January 2016
#98 Moby Dick - April 2017
# 104 Interview with the Vampire - January 2017
# 105 Middlesex
American Street by Ibi Zoboi / YA / ***** / Kindle
This was my first book for the month and I think it may end up being one of the best I will read all year.
It was rich, complex, heart-felt. It was so gritty and so real.
Most of the story is told from the point of view of Fabiola - an American born teen that has lived the majority of her life in Haiti. As she and her mother are returning to Detroit, the mother is detained by immigration. Only Fabiola is released to her Aunt and cousins.
Every so often the author included a short chapter from the point of view of the other characters including Fabiola's Aunt, each of her cousins, Fabiola's boyfriend, and even the home they live in. This provided so many different perspectives that really made this book character driven.
This book was so fascinating to me as it touched on the immigration experience, the inner-city experience, the black poverty in America experience. It tells the story of a girl trying to fit into an America that may not be all she thought it would be. A girl that fights for her family, no matter what.
I can't say enough good things about this book.
90 Days of Different by Eric Walters / YA / *** /Hardback
Sophie is solid. Responsible. Predictable. As she graduates High School her best friend, her now ex-boyfriend, and even her father are telling Sophie that these traits, while admirable, have made her a little bit boring. Her best friend, Ellie, decides to expose her to a summer where she does something "different" every day.
The book doesn't tell the activity of every single day, thank goodness. Most of the activities selected, while different, were not unrealistic for two teenage girls to engage in.
The book was cute and fluffy with some moments of emotional introspection. It didn't, however, have a lot of literary tension.
There were two things that made me not like this book:
1) Ellie was mean. Sophie is apparently pretty, which causes Ellie insecurity. Her friend would put Sophie in situations where Sophie looked bad or ended up feeling bad about herself so that Ellie could say, "Now you know what I feel like". Ummmm what friend does that? Maybe if this situation had been built into the narrative where Sophie dumps the friend I would have been okay with it. Which leads me to the second dislike:
2) Why doe Sophie need to be different? So she isn't on social media. She doesn't drink. She doesn't go to wild parties. How is this bad? What kind of message is this sending?
Summerlost by Ally Condie / Kindle
This was written by the author of the "Matched" series. It tells the story of a 12 year old girl, Cedar, who has just moved to a new town (based on Cedar City, Utah) after the death of her father and brother.
This was a cute coming of age story as Cedar makes a friend, gets a job (at the Summerlost festival - based on the Shakespeare festival) tries to solve a mystery, and works to come to grips with the changes in her life and family.
The characters in this book were the strong point for me. The dialogue was really good and sometimes quite humorous. I also enjoyed how appropriate of a summer feel it had to it... it brought me back to my own summers where the days were long and hot and sometimes boring. It did have some really sweet, poignant moments - This book was good but what was frustrating is that it really had the promise of being GREAT. I wish Ally would have held onto this one a little longer to fine tune it.
Deenie by Judy Blume / JF / ** / Kindle
My friend Kerrie is an avid reader. We have both found that we are more engaged and well-rounded readers when we participate in book challenges. This year we committed to each reading 50 books from the Rory Gilmore book list. This is a list of 300 books either mentioned or spotted or discussed in the show "Gilmore Girls". I had previously read about 90 of them.
Kerrie is an over-achiever. She has already read like freaking half of her 50 books from the list even though it is only freaking February. But I love her anyway. But I can't keep up. Not even close.
I didn't read any from the list in January. I figured I need to get my literary self in gear so I went through the list and tried to find books that were on pioneer.gov AND actually available AND sounded like something I would actually want to read. My first book was DEENIE by Judy Blume. This book is about a girl with scoliosis that masturbates. That pretty much covers it. I was thinking maybe I'd read this book before or maybe read another one by Judy Blume about a girl that masturbates? Do all of Judy Blume's characters masturbate? I started to google books about masturbation before I had a moment of lucidity that maybe this is not such a good idea. Especially at work. But anyway I didn't love this one. It was too paint by number story of a physically attractive girl that mocks others for their looks and then ends up having to wear a large brace for her treatments. There is some personal growth which is good but overall the book was just a little odd to me. As Kerrie said, "Rory Gilmore read some stupid damn books".
Othello by William Shakespeare / A / **** / Kindle
I needed some quick wins for the Rory list... and I had never read Othello... so there you go.
Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng / A / **** / Audio
I liked this one. On the surface it is the story of a family whose daughter died. In reality it is a character study of a family. It switches around to different perspectives and history of each family member both before the event and after. Besides the death of the daughter, not much big happens in the book... but it still is this fantastic look at the dynamic of a family. It is a series of small stories that all combine into this really intriguing look at how we can love someone so much and still cause harm. This was great writing.
Turtles All the Way Down by John Green / YA / **** / Kindle
Oh I loved this one. I loved so much about it. I've said before that John Green really does seem to have his finger on the pulse of teenagers. The dialogue is right. The emotions are right. The choices they make are right. This novel is no exception. It is the story of a high school girl with an awesome mom and a comfortable home and a best friend that she is having a crazy adventure with as they work to solve a mystery. It is also the story of a girl that has invasive thoughts that increasingly lead her to self-harming behaviors.
John Green doesn't pull back the punches. It is very real and sometimes very painful to read. The best part of this is that John Green doesn't suddenly make her better. You want her get better. But that is the point... she can't. But despite this you love her and know she is wonderful. And that is a great lesson in and of itself.
This book was fantastic.
Everlost by Neal Shusterman / YA / ***1/2 / Hardback
The Librarian sent this one home with Lizzy when I sent her looking for the second Scythe book - which is by the same author. It is the story of children that get stuck between our world and the after life. The gray world they live in mimics the world they came from in some ways, but is very different in others.
It took me a while to get into this one, but then it got really interesting with some great characters and a narrative arc that really made you think. I will read the sequels if I can get my hands on them.
