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Review: Rich People Problems by Kevin Kwan

Mar31
Rich People Problems Book Cover Rich People Problems
Crazy Rich Asians #3
Kevin Kwan
Contemporary | Drama
Doubleday
May 23, 2017
Audiobook
398
March 10 - 28, 2023

Kevin Kwan, bestselling author of Crazy Rich Asians and China Rich Girlfriend, is back with an uproarious new novel featuring a family driven by fortune, an ex-wife driven psychotic with jealousy, a battle royal fought through couture-gown sabotage, and the heir to one of Asia's greatest fortunes locked out of his inheritance.

When Nicholas Young hears that his grandmother, Su Yi, is on her deathbed, he rushes to be by her bedside—but he's not alone. The entire Shang-Young clan has convened from all corners of the globe to stake claim to their matriarch's massive fortune. With each family member vying to inherit Tyersall Park—a trophy estate on sixty-four prime acres in the heart of Singapore—Nicholas' childhood home turns into a hotbed of backbiting and intrigue. As Su Yi's relatives fight over heirlooms, Astrid Leong is at the center of her own storm, desperately in love with her old sweetheart Charlie Wu but tormented by her ex-husband—a man hell-bent on destroying Astrid's reputation and relationship. Meanwhile, Kitty Pong, married to China's second richest man, Jack Bing, still feels upstaged by her new stepdaughter, famous fashionista Colette Bing.

In this sweeping tale that takes us from the elegantly appointed mansions of Manila to the secluded private islands in the Sulu Sea, from a kidnapping at Hong Kong's most elite private school to a surprise marriage proposal at an Indian palace that is caught on camera by the telephoto lenses of paparazzi, Kevin Kwan hilariously reveals the long-buried secrets of Asia's most privileged families and their rich people problems.

Review

I listened to the audiobook of Crazy Rich Asians back in 2019, shortly after I took my long hiatus from blogging my reviews. I was convinced I listened to the sequel, China Rich Girlfriend shortly after, however upon reading the blurb for CRG right now…. I’m fairly certain I did not! WHOOPS!

So, this review must be taken with a grain of salt, as a review from someone who missed the middle book in the series, and therefor, was slightly confused most of the time. 

In book 1, we follow Rachel Chu and Nicholas Young, as Nick prepares to introduce Rachel to his ridiculously rich family back in Singapore and ask her to marry him. Nick’s family is not just rich, they’re crazy rich. 

Fast forward, it’s a few years down the line, and Nick’s grandmother, Su Yi, has fallen ill and isn’t expected to live long. Nick, who was always the presumed heir to her grand estate, Tyersall Park, has fallen out of favor due to his marriage to Rachel. He immediately rushes home to apologize and make amends, and is soon amidst all of his crazy rich family drama.

Let’s first talk about Eddie, Nick’s cousin who is the absolute worst. I feel so bad for his poor wife and children. He’s convinced he’s sucked up enough by staying at Su Yi’s bedside that she’s changed the will to give him the estate. He probably made the biggest impression on me in this book. Simply because everything about him is so dramatic.

Astrid, Nick’s stunningly gorgeous cousin is going through a bitter divorce and becomes embroiled in her own drama thanks to her soon-to-be ex-husband making trouble for her and her boyfriend, Charlie. 

There’s also Kitty Pong, who we met in the first book as a social climbing piece of work who has since moved on to her second husband, Jack Bing, and is now stepmother to fashionista turned duchess Colette Bing. Kitty is forever trying to one-up her step-daughter. 

We won’t even get into all of Su Li’s extended relatives who crawl out of the woodwork to be with her at the end! 

There is literally so much going on in this book that I could barely keep up. That said, I enjoyed every second of the ride, even when I wasn’t entirely sure who I was reading about. I really think that, had I read China Rich Girlfriend, as I thought I had (D’OH!), I would’ve been able to keep up just a little better. I plan to get that audiobook from the library soon! (Maybe after I listen to all of the book holds I keep delaying because I’m listening to something else… whoops!) 

Also, the epilogue was fantastic. Really wrapped everything up nicely!

In short, if you love drama and reading about the filthy rich, this is the book series for you. Absolutely read them in order. Don’t be like me. 🤦‍♀️ 

Review: Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood

Mar29
Love on the Brain Book Cover Love on the Brain
Ali Hazelwood
Contemporary Romance
Berkley / Sphere
August 23, 2023
Audiobook
368
Public Library
February 27 - March 9, 2023

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Love Hypothesis comes a new STEMinist rom-com in which a scientist is forced to work on a project with her nemesis—with explosive results.

Bee Königswasser lives by a simple code: What would Marie Curie do? If NASA offered her the lead on a neuroengineering project - a literal dream come true - Marie would accept without hesitation. Duh. But the mother of modern physics never had to co-lead with Levi Ward.

Sure, Levi is attractive in a tall, dark, and piercing-eyes kind of way. But Levi made his feelings toward Bee very clear in grad school - archenemies work best employed in their own galaxies far, far away.

But when her equipment starts to go missing and the staff ignore her, Bee could swear she sees Levi softening into an ally, backing her plays, seconding her ideas... devouring her with those eyes. The possibilities have all her neurons firing.

But when it comes time to actually make a move and put her heart on the line, there's only one question that matters: What will Bee Königswasser do?

Review

I absolutely adored “The Love Hypothesis” by Ali Hazelwood. It was utterly enchanting and I had a hard time putting it down. I put a library hold on her second book, “Love on the Brain” almost immediately after I began reading the TLH. 

So, how did this one stand up? While I really enjoyed both books, I think I liked TLH just a little more than LotB. But maybe not! Both books take place in academia, LotB takes place at NASA, with an NIH neuroscientist, Bee, teaming up with a NASA engineer AKA her arch-enemy from grad school, Levi. 

Bee is so excited for the opportunity to work with NASA astronauts but when she finds out who she’ll be working with she’s also annoyed. Levi was so rude to her in grad school, it was obvious he absolutely despised her!

Once Bee actually arrives at NASA, everything starts going wrong, and all signs point to Levi being the source of the problems! Bee is not surprised in the slightest.

Meanwhile, Bee, who is obsessed to an almost annoying degree with Marie Curie, has a Twitter account as Curie and other users tag her and she’ll re-tweet to bring exposure to their questions/complaints—mostly about how hard it is to be a woman in STEM. She uses her account to try to bring awareness to inequality and causes she believes in. It’s there she met a fellow STEM user with whom she became good friends. He is her confidant, the person she complains to about Levi and all her work problems. I love their relationship.

Bee has plenty of quirks (including fainting constantly) and Levi has his own little secrets Bee slowly learns as they’re forced to work together. 

The side characters are also enjoyable to read about, especially Bee’s goth assistant. (In my head, she’s Aubrey Plaza.) 

This book ends with a bang. When everything really goes wrong for Bee, it’s literally everything. I can’t say much more without spoilers.

If you enjoyed TLH, you will like LotB. 

And there’s a cat. (Or is there? 😏)

REVIEW: Mr. & Mrs. Witch by Gwenda Bond

Mar10
Mr. & Mrs. Witch Book Cover Mr. & Mrs. Witch
Gwenda Bond
Paranormal Romance
St. Martin's Griffin
March 7, 2023
352
NetGalley
February 18 - March 10, 2023

In Mr. & Mrs. Witch, the next novel from bestselling author Gwenda Bond, a couple discovers at the altar the surprising secret identities they’ve kept from each other.

Savannah Wilde is a witch, a very powerful one—an identity that only her fellow witches know. Following a whirlwind romance that surprised herself and her family, Savvy is all set to marry the love of her life. But she isn’t the only one with a secret that needs to be kept, even from her soon-to-be husband.

Griffin Carter is a top agent for a clandestine organization that, well, used to primarily hunt witches, but now mainly tries to shut down supernatural threats their own way. He can’t wait to lay his eyes on the woman he’s about to spend the rest of his life with.

As Savvy walks down the aisle to Griffin, the wedding quickly goes from blessed day to shit show when their true identities are revealed. To say there’s bad blood between their factions is putting it mildly. Savvy and Griffin are tasked to take the other out, but when they discover a secret that could take down both of their agencies, they realize the only way to survive is to team up. With assassins hot on their trail, will Savvy and Griffin make it out alive to try again at ‘I do’?

To be honest, I struggled with this book in the beginning. The third person present tense was, throughout the entire reading, at times jarring. I’m usually fine with first person present, but third person present was just…. a lot.

As you can see, I still gave this book 4 stars, because the story was lovely. The title is what drew me to requesting an ARC of this book from NetGalley, assuming it was an intentional play on the Angelina Jolie/Brad Pitt movie, Mr. and Mrs. Smith. And it totally was.

Savvy is a witch and a member of C.R.O.N.E., an organization that uses their powers to help the ordinary, non-magical populace from the supernatural. Meanwhile, Griffon is a member of H.U.N.T.E.R, an organization of mortals who use technology to combat those same supernatural threats. Throughout time, C.R.O.N.E. and H.U.N.T.E.R. have been enemies, but the last 300 or so years have been spent in a tentative truce, each side waiting for the other to do something to bring on full war once more.

So, needless to say, when Savvy and Griffin fall in love, they keep their secret identities to themselves. Members of secret organizations aren’t known for blabbing about what they do. 

And then the wedding day comes. And who should attend but the very leaders of each organization, sending what should be a blissful day into utter chaos. 

The book is told alternating between Savvy and Griffon’s POVs, as well as both present day and the timeline leading from the day they meet up ’til the doomed nuptials. 

This was a fun book. I really loved reading both Savvy and Griff’s POVs of their love story from the beginning, as well as the aftermath of the wedding-interrupted. I really didn’t know where the story was going, but I loved where we ended up. I can’t imagine any other ending for this tale.

My only question for the author is… will we get to read a follow up with certain other side characters? 

February 2023 Round Up

Mar3
February 2023 Monthly Round Up
February 2023 Monthly Round Up

February is a short month, but I still managed to cram 4 and a half books into the month! (Sorry, I don’t count comic strip/graphic novels as a full book because it takes significantly less time to read!)

5 ⭐️

Book Lovers by Emily Henry (AUDIOBOOK)
The Last Beekeeper by Julie Carrick Dalton (NetGalley E-ARC)

4 ⭐️

Pusheen the Cat’s Guide to Everything by Claire Belton (NetGalley E-ARC)


3 ⭐️

Shelter Mountain (Virgin River #2) by Robyn Carr (AUDIOBOOK)
Spare by Prince Harry (AUDIOBOOK)

February was a very good book month for me. Both my Five Stars were absolutely amazing. The Last Beekeeper especially blew me away, which was awesome because I requested that book from NetGalley on a whim, not having any preconceived opinions of it. Despite being nothing alike, aside from romance novels, Book Lovers gave me similar feels to The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood.

Even my 3 star reads weren’t a total disappointment, I got some enjoyment or new food for thought from each of them, even if they didn’t hold my attention as well as I’d hoped.

I’m really looking forward to March now! February is going to be a tough month to follow, but I supposed it’ll all depend upon which audiobooks come in from my library holds!

At the time of writing this I am reading:
– Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood (AUDIOBOOK) Can she do it again? The Love Hypothesis is going to be a tough act to follow!
– Mastering The Art of French Murder by Colleen Cambridge (Print Book ARC)
– Mr. & Mrs. Witch by Gwenda Bond (E-ARC)

REVIEW: Book Lovers by Emily Henry

Mar2
Book Lovers Book Cover Book Lovers
Emily Henry
Contemporary Romance, Women's Fiction
Berkley
May 3, 2022
Audiobook
377
Public Library
February 23-27, 2023

“One of my favorite authors.”—Colleen Hoover

An insightful, delightful, instant #1 New York Times bestseller from the author of Beach Read and People We Meet on Vacation.

Named a Most Anticipated Book of 2022 by Oprah Daily ∙ Today ∙ Parade ∙ Marie Claire ∙ Bustle ∙ PopSugar ∙ Katie Couric Media ∙ Book Bub ∙ SheReads ∙ Medium ∙ The Washington Post ∙ and more!

One summer. Two rivals. A plot twist they didn't see coming...

Nora Stephens' life is books—she’s read them all—and she is not that type of heroine. Not the plucky one, not the laidback dream girl, and especially not the sweetheart. In fact, the only people Nora is a heroine for are her clients, for whom she lands enormous deals as a cutthroat literary agent, and her beloved little sister Libby.

Which is why she agrees to go to Sunshine Falls, North Carolina for the month of August when Libby begs her for a sisters’ trip away—with visions of a small town transformation for Nora, who she’s convinced needs to become the heroine in her own story. But instead of picnics in meadows, or run-ins with a handsome country doctor or bulging-forearmed bartender, Nora keeps bumping into Charlie Lastra, a bookish brooding editor from back in the city. It would be a meet-cute if not for the fact that they’ve met many times and it’s never been cute.

If Nora knows she’s not an ideal heroine, Charlie knows he’s nobody’s hero, but as they are thrown together again and again—in a series of coincidences no editor worth their salt would allow—what they discover might just unravel the carefully crafted stories they’ve written about themselves.

Review

You know the woman in all the small town, Hallmark-style romance novels? The one who meets the big city man and convinces him to stay in her small town and break things off for his uptight girlfriend/fiancée back home? This isn’t her book. 

This is the story of Nora, a New York City literary agent who has been dumped multiple times by boyfriends who went to the small town and fell for the aforementioned girl, leaving Nora unlucky in love. When her little sister, Libby, convinces Nora to leave the Big City in lieu of spending a month in the small town of Sunshine Falls, Libby has big plans to help Nora loosen up and follow her heart, not just her career dreams. 

Shortly after arriving in the small town, who does Nora run in to? Her mortal enemy. Charlie Lastra, the book editor who trashed her favorite clients last book, refusing to even consider working on her book.

Obviously they’re meant to fall in love, this is a romance novel after all! But it’s not a straight shot to love. Nora has a lot of baggage, and so does Charlie. Together they wind up editing a novel together while in the small town of Sunshine Falls and each faces their baggage. 

This book is smart and funny (oh so funny). It’s not just a romance, it’s about sisters and loss and self-sacrifice. About learning to let go and accept who you are, and having someone accept you as you are.

This book is beautiful and I can NOT wait to read my next Emily Henry novel!

REVIEW: The Last Beekeeper by Julie Carrick Dalton

Mar1
The Last Beekeeper Book Cover The Last Beekeeper
Julie Carrick Dalton
Women's Fiction
Forge Books
March 7, 2023
E-Book
384
NetGalley
January 31 - February 18, 2023

Julie Carrick Dalton's The Last Beekeeper is a celebration of found family, an exploration of truth versus power, and the triumph of hope in the face of despair.

"Fans of Delia Owens will swoon to find their new favorite author.” (Hank Phillippi Ryan)

It’s been more than a decade since the world has come undone, and Sasha Severn has returned to her childhood home with one goal in mind—find the mythic research her father, the infamous Last Beekeeper, hid before he was incarcerated. There, Sasha is confronted with a group of squatters who have claimed the quiet, idyllic farm as their own. While she initially feels threatened, the group soon becomes her newfound family, offering what she hasn't felt since her father was imprisoned: security and hope. Maybe it's time to forget the family secrets buried on the farm and focus on her future.

But just as she settles into her new life, Sasha witnesses the impossible. She sees a honey bee, presumed extinct. People who claim to see bees are ridiculed and silenced for reasons Sasha doesn't understand, but she can't shake the feeling that this impossible bee is connected to her father's missing research. Fighting to uncover the truth could shatter Sasha's fragile security and threaten the lives of her newfound family—or it could save them all.

Julie Carrick Dalton's The Last Beekeeper is a celebration of found family, an exploration of truth versus power, and the triumph of hope in the face of despair. It is a meditation on forgiveness and redemption and a reminder to cherish the beauty that still exists in this fragile world.

Review

This book stole my heart. 

The Last Beekepeeris the story of Sasha, the daughter of the world’s last known beekeeper. The story takes place in the future, after we terrible humans have killed all of the pollinators with the use of pesticides and GMOs. The story takes place a decade or so after the last of the bees, the last of all of the pollinators, have died. Without pollinators, the food system collapsed. People starved; died.

Sasha’s father was keeping bees illegally, and due to an extremely unfortunate event, was discovered and put on trial and sent to prison, leaving 11-year old Sasha to live first with her uncle, and then in a group home. Fast forward, Sasha has aged out of the system and has returned home to the farmhouse her grandparents built, which had been seized by the government upon her fathers imprisonment and has been empty and neglected all the years she’s been gone. 

It’s at her old home that Sasha finds a group of squatters who reluctantly let her stay for a week, which turns into a month, and so on. All the while, Sasha keeps her true identity a secret. She’s only gone home to find the research she knowsher father has hidden somewhere on the property. If her new found-family finds out who she is, she fears they’ll turn on her and kick her out. She’s spent her whole life being hated for being the daughter of the Last Beekeeper. 

This book gave me a whole range of feels from sadness to optimism to anger to joy. Overall though, this book gave me a sense of peace and calm. The world Sasha lives in is depressing and difficult, but at the same time, she’s living the simple life. She’s tending her garden to feed her and her friends, she’s riding a bike to get around. It just sounds… peaceful. Plus, Sasha’s connection to the bees throughout her childhood is beautiful. I’m terrified of bees, but this book has made me respect them just a little more.

Chapters alternate between Sasha as a 20-something, and Sasha as a child. Slowly we learn what led to her fathers imprisonment. And the other secrets he’s harboring. 

This is a beautiful book. I would absolutely read this again and will recommend it to everyone.

The Last Beekeeper is on it’s way to being my top read of 2023, and the year has barely started! 

REVIEW: Spare by Prince Harry

Feb28
Spare Book Cover Spare
Prince Harry, The Duke of Sussex
Memoir
Random House
January 10, 2023
Audiobook
410
Public Library
February 2-22, 2023

It was one of the most searing images of the twentieth century: two young boys, two princes, walking behind their mother’s coffin as the world watched in sorrow—and horror. As Princess Diana was laid to rest, billions wondered what Prince William and Prince Harry must be thinking and feeling—and how their lives would play out from that point on. For Harry, this is that story at last. Before losing his mother, twelve-year-old Prince Harry was known as the carefree one, the happy-go-lucky Spare to the more serious Heir. Grief changed everything. He struggled at school, struggled with anger, with loneliness—and, because he blamed the press for his mother’s death, he struggled to accept life in the spotlight. At twenty-one, he joined the British Army. The discipline gave him structure, and two combat tours made him a hero at home. But he soon felt more lost than ever, suffering from post-traumatic stress and prone to crippling panic attacks. Above all, he couldn’t find true love. Then he met Meghan. The world was swept away by the couple’s cinematic romance and rejoiced in their fairy-tale wedding. But from the beginning, Harry and Meghan were preyed upon by the press, subjected to waves of abuse, racism, and lies. Watching his wife suffer, their safety and mental health at risk, Harry saw no other way to prevent the tragedy of history repeating itself but to flee his mother country. Over the centuries, leaving the Royal Family was an act few had dared. The last to try, in fact, had been his mother. . . . For the first time, Prince Harry tells his own story, chronicling his journey with raw, unflinching honesty. A landmark publication, Spare is full of insight, revelation, self-examination, and hard-won wisdom about the eternal power of love over grief.

Review

I was so excited to read Prince Harry’s book, Spare. And better yet, to listen to him narrate it. (Memoir’s are always so much better when read by the author!) But I’ve got to be honest… this book was excessively long and much of that was snooze-worthy.

I absolutely felt for Harry. He’s certainly the black sheep of his family and I realize there are two sides to every story, but he certainly made me feel for him.

Harry is a man still haunted by the death of his mother. Haunted by a family legacy of never displaying emotion. Haunted by the press.

Unless you’ve been living alone on a deserted island the past few years, there’s no doubt you’ve seen the headlines about Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle, but his battle with the press goes so much further back. He’s never liked them, but after the role they played in his mothers death, he will never forgive them. 

Reading his story really did make me realize how awful the press treat those who are famous. Unlike actors and musicians though, Harry never chose that life. He was born into it. He can’t escape it. And while some may find that he spends the whole book “whining” about his lot in life, I disagree. Harry hates the system and wants to change it, and I respect that. 

What really slowed the book down for me though was his talk about life in the military. I get it, that was a big part of his life. It’s where he felt most himself and accepted. But I hate war and fighting and the fact that militaries have to exist, so that section really dragged for me. 

If you’ve seen the Netflix special or any of the interviews with Harry and Meghan, that section of the book will hold no surprises for you. It was very repetitive of has already been said by the couple time and time again.

I suppose I would recommend this book to anyone who is a die-hard fan of the royal family or…. no, that’s probably it. It’s not a bad book, it was just… a lot. And didn’t hold my interest as I anticipated it would. And was a reminder that some people are fortunate to be able to drop everything and spend months at a time in Africa doing charitable work, or hop on a plane and cross the globe without a worry about the financial hit that plane ticket will cost. 

I suppose what I’m saying is, I just couldn’t relate to Prince Harry. And why should I, he’s a prince and I’m just a random woman from America.

REVIEW: Shelter Mountain by Robyn Carr

Feb22
Shelter Mountain Book Cover Shelter Mountain
Virgin River
Robyn Carr
Romance
Mira Books
April 24, 2007
Audiobook
400
Public Library
January 30 - February 7, 2023

For the second time in a year a woman arrives in the small town of Virgin River trying to escape the past.

John “Preacher” Middleton is about to close the bar when a young woman and her three-year-old son come in out of a wet October night. A marine who has seen his share of pain, Preacher knows a crisis when he sees one—the woman is covered in bruises. He wants to protect them, and he wants to punish whoever did this to her, but he knows immediately that this inclination to protect is something much more. Paige Lassiter has stirred up emotions in this gentle giant of a man—emotions that he has never allowed himself to feel.

But when Paige’s ex-husband turns up in Virgin River, Preacher knows his own future hangs in the balance. And if there’s one thing in the marines’ motto of Semper Fidelis—always faithful—has taught him, it’s that some things are worth fighting for.

My Review

I started reading these books because of the Netflix series. I adore the Netflix series! Unfortunately, I do not adore this book series and I think this will be the last one I read. 

Shelter Mountain is the second book in the Virgin River series, which the Netflix series is based on. 

Shelter Mountain is the story of John (whom we know from book 1 as Preacher) and Paige. When Paige shows up at the bar Preacher runs with his pal Jack searching for an inn with a room for the night for her and her young son, she completely shakes Preacher’s world.

I like Preacher. And I think that’s in large part because of how he’s portrayed on the TV series. He looks like a tough guy, but he’s a softie at heart. His immediate connection with Paige’s son (I think they aged him up in the TV show, he seems much younger in the book, though I don’t recall them specifying his age) is absolutely heartwarming.

Paige meanwhile acts as I would expect a woman running from an abusive ex would act. She has her defenses up, but over time we see her realize how good a man Preacher is, and it was nice to watch that relationship grow at her pace. It was weird to me how Paige really seemed to have no clue how computers and the Internet work. A quick Google search tells me the book was published in 2007 and the Internet was definitely around long enough that even if Paige’s husband banned her from using it, she would’ve had experience before she met him. It was just odd to me.

As for the setting, the book mostly takes place at the bar where Paige stays. It’s a small town in the middle of nowhere, and as a city-suburbs girl, I do enjoy the quiet, slower pace of life portrayed in the Virgin River series and others like it.

So, why the 3 star rating? Honestly… I was kind of bored. There were no surprises. There were also too many parallels to book 1. I did like this book better than the first in the series, mostly because of the characters, but the book wasn’t unputdownable for me. I know that there are plenty of readers who adore this book, and I’m glad it exists for you. As for me, I’ll be moving onto books that are more to my liking.

REVIEW: The Cottage in the Woods by Katherine Coville

Feb18
The Cottage in the Woods Book Cover The Cottage in the Woods
Katherine Coville
Middle Grade, Fairy Tale
Yearling
February 10, 2015
Paperback
400
11 Year Old Daughter's Bookshelf
December 2, 2022 - January 28, 2023

For fans of Shannon Hale, Adam Gidwitz, and Michael Buckley comes a luminous new twist on a tale readers only thought they knew. . .

Once upon a time, there was a girl with golden locks. But that’s just the beginning of this tale. The real story begins with a bear.

Ursula is a young she-bear who has come to work as a governess at the Vaughn estate. Although she is eager to instruct her young charge, Teddy, she is also frightened, especially when inexplicable things happen in the huge house after dark. Ursula is sure she has heard footsteps in the hallways at night, and that something is following her during her walks in the Enchanted Forest. Then there is Mr. Bentley, a young bear also employed by Mr. Vaughn, whose superior disposition is enough to drive Ursula to tears . . . and yet why does he also make her heart race? As Ursula works to unravel the mysteries of the Vaughn manor, she will have to be very, very careful. After all, true love, justice, and a girl with golden locks are at stake. And in the Enchanted Forest, not every fairy tale is destined for a happily ever after.

My Review

Personal rating: 2 Stars
Given rating: 3 stars (read on to find out why!)

Adorable cover. Adorable concept. Great start! And then…. it dragged. But the ending was good!

Before I go on, I have to preface this review with the following: I am not the target demographic. My daughter loved this book, I struggled. This is not a BAD book, it just wasn’t for me personally.

Back to our regularly scheduled programming… 

My 11-year old daughter picked this book out at the bookstore, brought it home, and devoured it. I had read the back cover and asked if I could read it next, and she of course said, “Yes!” 

So I started reading it. And it took almost 2 months to get through it.

Like I said above, the beginning of this book was great. The introduction of “baby bear” (Teddy’s) new governess, Ms. Brown, was a unique take on the Goldilocks and the Three Bears tale. But then it got depressing. Nobody was nice to Ms. Brown! Nurse was down right MEAN, right up until the bitter end! Papa Bear jumped to conclusions and never let Ms. Brown defend herself! But I kept reading, and thinking to myself, how did my daughter get joy from these miserable characters? 

The middle of the book dragged. For me, it was one of those books that I’d think about quitting but push on, then something interesting/redeeming happened, only to drag again. And repeat. 

The story is told in a very old writing style, and it was at times reminiscent of when I struggled through reading Pride & Prejudice and swore off books written before my own youth.

There are plenty of good things about this book.
1. It’s a unique spin on the classic tale. This wasn’t a tiny, rickety, old cottage, it was more of a grand manor belonging to very well-off bears in the Enchanted Forest.
2. There’s a strong message for tolerance and againstracism/prejudice. The parallels between our world and this fictional one are obvious, but done in a way for children to truly understand and be interested in.
3. Even the worst character was allowed some redemption, the author was able to develop them enough so that I still hated them, but I was able to understand where they were coming from.
4. The book is very well written!

Ultimately, this was not a book for me. It is however, a great book for the target audience (young readers) and truly does belong in elementary school libraries.

REVIEW: Fiber Fueled by Will Bulsiewicz, MD, MSCI

Feb11
Fiber Fueled: The Plant-Based Gut Health Program for Losing Weight, Restoring Your Health, and Optimizing Your Microbiome Book Cover Fiber Fueled: The Plant-Based Gut Health Program for Losing Weight, Restoring Your Health, and Optimizing Your Microbiome
Review: Fiber Fueled by Will Bulsiewicz, MD, MSCI
Non-Fiction, Health & Nutrition
Avery Publishing Group
May 12, 2020
Audiobook
400
Public Library
January 22 - 24, 2023

The instant New York Times, USA Today, and Publisher's Weekly bestseller

A bold new plant-based plan that challenges popular keto and paleo diets, from an award-winning gastroenterologist.

The benefits of restrictive diets like paleo and keto have been touted for more than a decade, but as renowned gastroenterologist Dr. Will Bulsiewicz, or "Dr. B," illuminates in this groundbreaking book, the explosion of studies on the microbiome makes it abundantly clear that elimination diets are in fact hazardous to our health. What studies clearly now show--and what Dr. B preaches with his patients--is that gut health is the key to boosting our metabolism, balancing our hormones, and taming the inflammation that causes a host of diseases. And the scientifically proven way to fuel our guts is with dietary fiber from an abundant variety of colorful plants.

Forget about the fiber your grandmother used to take--the cutting-edge science on fiber is incredibly exciting. As Dr. B explains, fiber energizes our gut microbes to create powerhouse postbiotics called short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) that are essential to our health. SCFAs are scientifically proven to promote weight loss, repair leaky gut, strengthen the microbiome, optimize the immune system, reduce food sensitivities, lower cholesterol, reverse type 2 diabetes, improve brain function, and even prevent cancer. Restrictive fad diets starve the gut of the critical fiber we need, weaken the microbes, and make our system vulnerable.

As a former junk-food junkie, Dr. B knows firsthand the power of fiber to dramatically transform our health. The good news is that our guts can be trained. Fiber-rich, real foods--with fruits, vegetables, whole grains, seeds, nuts, and legumes--start working quickly and maintain your long-term health, promote weight loss, and allow you to thrive and feel great from the inside out.

With a 28-day jumpstart program with menus and more than 65 recipes, along with essential advice on food sensitivities, Fiber Fueled offers the blueprint to start turbocharging your gut for lifelong health today.

My Review

Some years ago I watched a news segment or something about a fecal transplant. Sounds gross, right? Well, for whatever reason this woman had this transplant done and after having lived her entire life at a healthy weight, and making no other lifestyle changes apart from the transplant, suddenly she put on weight. And more weight. And she didn’t know why and she was frustrated. Which led doctors to wonder, could the bacteria in her donor’s fecal matter have changed their patient in more ways than expected? Ever since then, fecal transplants and the microbiome have been in the back of my mind. 

Now, if you’ve followed me or my blog at all in the last few years, you’ll know that I’ve been really interested in health, nutrition, and fitness, which led me to this book: Fiber Fueled: The Plant-Based Gut Health Program for Losing Weight, Restoring Your Health, and Optimizing Your Microbiome. 

That’s a big title packed with promises, so does it deliver? I can’t say. But what I do know is, the basis of his claim just makes sense. While the author, Dr. Bulsiewicz, appears to be a firm advocate for veganism, he isn’t preachy about it. He uses his own anecdotal evidence from his own life in this book, how he went from a college grad student living on energy drinks and fast food, to being a young doctor working long hours and drinking endless coffee and enjoying steak dinners whenever and wherever possible, to finally meeting the woman he would eventually marry and seeing her living a plant based lifestyle and being healthier and having more energy, to starting to emulate her and feeling so much better. 

The main take away from what he preaches is this: eat plants, lots of them, and often. (Which is a throw back to a book I read last summer, In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto by Michael Pollan.) What Dr. Bulsiewicz adds to the argument that Pollan makes, is that the wider the variety of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains you eat, the healthier and more diverse your gut microbiome will be. 

My own anecdotal evidence for eating healthier foods and cutting out (most) of the processed junk we all favor, is this: In 2019 I started taking my health seriously. I cut back on the breakfast cereal, take out food, processed foods from the freezer and cans, and started living mostly on chicken breasts, eggs, brown rice, fruits and veggies. (I already only drink water, so I didn’t have the easy fix of cutting out soda or juice!) and I felt so much better! I didn’t eat a wide variety though.

This book has recipes in the back. I did not try those recipes because I do not have a good relationship with food, in that I’m an extremely picky eater and afraid to try new things. That said, I have come a long way in the last 15 years, and every day is a new chance. For me though, I’m better off finding a recipe on the internet and using my best judgment about how nutritious it is.

Whew! That was a lot of word vomit. In conclusion: This is a great, easy to read book about the importance of having a healthy gut biome. If my library has more books on the topic, I will absolutely check them out in the hopes of gleaning more information. 

OH! Fun fact I just remembered: Apparently you can sprinkle mustard on cooked broccoli to activate an important enzyme that fights cancer causing cells or something. Google it. Or just read this book!