Mosquitoland

Book 15 of my 2020 Reading Challenge

read from January 31 - February 28

Mosquitoland

by David Arnold

Summary (via Goodreads)

published 2015

After the sudden collapse of her family, Mim Malone is dragged from her home in northern Ohio to the "wastelands" of Mississippi, where she lives in a medicated milieu with her dad and new stepmom. Before the dust has a chance to settle, she learns her mother is sick back in Cleveland.

So she ditches her new life and hops aboard a northbound Greyhound bus to her real home and her real mother, meeting a quirky cast of fellow travelers along the way. But when her thousand-mile journey takes a few turns she could never see coming, Mim must confront her own demons, redefining her notions of love, loyalty, and what it means to be sane.

Told in an unforgettable, kaleidoscopic voice, Mosquitoland is a modern American odyssey, as hilarious as it is heartbreaking.

My Opinion

2 stars

Even though I first started this book on January 31 I basically started it over on February 20 after a long break.  

I'm a little torn because I liked the writing and was going to rate it neutrally as a "it's not you, it's me" kind of thing because of what's going on in my life at the moment.  But then I really thought about it and there was just too much going on in this book regarding plot points and I can't overlook it.  I can't list things because of spoilers but there were way too many situations and way too many characters for things to come together the way they did.

I would probably read the author again but this one wasn't for me.

Quote from the Book

"(Every great character, Iz, be it on page or screen, is multidimensional. The good guys aren't all good, the bad guys aren't all bad, and any character wholly one or the other shouldn't exist at all. Remember this when I describe the antics that follow, for though I am not a villain, I am not immune to villainy.)"

Shade

Book 14 of my 2020 Reading Challenge

read on February 27

Shade: A Tale of Two Presidents

by Pete Souza

Summary (via Goodreads)

published 2018

As Chief Official White House Photographer, Pete Souza spent more time alongside President Barack Obama than almost anyone else. His years photographing the President gave him an intimate behind-the-scenes view of the unique gravity of the Office of the Presidency—and the tremendous responsibility that comes with it.

Now, as a concerned citizen observing the Trump administration, he is standing up and speaking out.

Shade is a portrait in Presidential contrasts, telling the tale of the Obama and Trump administrations through a series of visual juxtapositions. Here, more than one hundred of Souza's unforgettable images of President Obama deliver new power and meaning when framed by the tweets, news headlines, and quotes that defined the first 500 days of the Trump White House.

What began with Souza's Instagram posts soon after President Trump's inauguration in January 2017 has become a potent commentary on the state of the Presidency, and our country. Some call this "throwing shade." Souza calls it telling the truth.

In Shade, Souza's photographs are more than a rejoinder to the chaos, abuses of power, and destructive policies that now define our nation's highest office. They are a reminder of a President we could believe in, and a courageous defense of American values.

My Opinion

3 stars

I enjoy the content but think his Instagram page is more appropriate for it since it's timely and given in small doses.  Rating the book neutrally because I didn't mind it but I'm glad I got it from the library and didn't pay for it since it was stuff I'd already seen before.

I Hate Myselfie

Book 13 of my 2020 Reading Challenge

read from February 23 - 26

I Hate Myselfie

by Shane Dawson

Summary (via Goodreads)
published 2015

From his first vlog back in 2008 to his full-length film directorial debut Not Cool, Shane Dawson has been an open book when it comes to documenting his life. But behind the music video spoofs, TMI love life details, and outrageous commentary on everything the celebrity and Internet world has the nerve to dish out is a guy who grew up in a financially challenged but loving home in Long Beach, California, and who suffered all the teasing and social limitations that arise when you’re a morbidly obese kid with a pretty face, your mom is your best friend, and you can't get a date to save your life.

In I Hate Myselfie, Shane steps away from his larger-than-life Internet persona and takes us deep into the experiences of an eccentric and introverted kid, who by observing the strange world around him developed a talent that would inspire millions of fans. Intelligent, hilarious, heartbreaking, and raw, I Hate Myselfie is a collection of eighteen personal essays about how messy life can get when you’re growing up and how rewarding it can feel when the clean-up is (pretty much) done.

My Opinion

4 stars

I'm not brand new to Shane Dawson but I haven't been following him for long.  Although the material isn't dated since it's his life it is worth noting that he hadn't come out yet (I'm reading this in 2020 and the book was published in 2015).  I knew he dated women so that in and of itself wasn't a surprise to read about but it was sad to read his jokes about people thinking he's gay and not understanding why...his humor is still self-deprecating but I'm glad he also appears to have moved into a healthier headspace as he's grown as a person and a YouTuber.

The Spellman Files

Book 12 of my 2020 Reading Challenge

read from February 10 - 20

The Spellman Files

by Lisa Lutz

Book 1 of The Spellmans series

Summary (via the book jacket)

published 2007

Meet Isabel "Izzy" Spellman, private investigator.  This twenty-eight-year-old may have a checkered past littered with romantic mistakes, excessive drinking, and creative vandalism; she may be addicted to Get Smart reruns and prefer entering homes through windows rather than doors - but the upshot is she's good at her job as a licensed private investigator with her family's firm, Spellman Investigations. Invading people's privacy comes naturally to Izzy. In fact, it comes naturally to all the Spellmans. If only they could leave their work at the office. To be a Spellman is to snoop on a Spellman; tail a Spellman; dig up dirt on, blackmail, and wiretap a Spellman.

Part Nancy Drew, part Dirty Harry, Izzy walks an indistinguishable line between Spellman family member and Spellman employee. Duties include: completing assignments from the bosses, aka Mom and Dad (preferably without scrutiny); appeasing her chronically perfect lawyer brother (often under duress); setting an example for her fourteen-year-old sister, Rae (who's become addicted to "recreational surveillance"); and tracking down her uncle (who randomly disappears on benders dubbed "Lost Weekends"). But when Izzy's parents hire Rae to follow her (for the purpose of ascertaining the identity of Izzy's new boyfriend), Izzy snaps and decides that the only way she will ever be normal is if she gets out of the family business. But there's a hitch: she must take one last job before they'll let her go - a fifteen-year-old, ice-cold missing persons case. She accepts, only to experience a disappearance far closer to home, which becomes the most important case of her life.

My Opinion

4 stars

I pretty much never re-read books no matter how much I enjoy them but I grabbed this book again for my daughter's surgery/hospital stay (pretty intense but not life-threatening hip surgeries) as something entertaining when I ran out of magazines and tired of logic puzzles.  It definitely served its purpose - entertaining but not taxing - and I'll continue the series throughout her recovery.

This series is my go-to recommendation when I don't know the person very well and am faced with the anxiety of, "you like to read...what should I read?" question because it's not polarizing in any way and has a little something for everyone.  It's light and funny but not saccharine, it has mystery but isn't gory, and it's a series if you want to continue with the characters but it stands alone if you don't.

Quote from the Book

"I cannot pinpoint the precise moment when it all began, but I can say for sure that the beginning didn't happen three days ago, one week, one month, or even one year ago. To truly understand what happened to my family, I have to start at the beginning and that happened a very long time ago."

Do You Mind if I Cancel?

Book 11 of my 2020 Reading Challenge

read on January 31

Do You Mind if I Cancel?

by Gary Janetti

Summary (via Goodreads)

published 2019

Gary Janetti, the writer and producer for some of the most popular television comedies of all time, and creator of one of the most wickedly funny Instagram accounts there is, now turns his skills to the page in a hilarious, and poignant book chronicling the pains and indignities of everyday life.

Gary spends his twenties in New York, dreaming of starring on soap operas while in reality working at a hotel where he lusts after an unattainable colleague and battles a bellman who despises it when people actually use a bell to call him. He chronicles the torture of finding a job before the internet when you had to talk on the phone all the time, and fantasizes, as we all do, about who to tell off when he finally wins an Oscar. As Gary himself says, "These are essays from my childhood and young adulthood about things that still annoy me."

Original, brazen, and laugh out loud funny, Do You Mind if I Cancel? is something not to be missed.

My Opinion

3 stars

I didn't know I was going to read this in one sitting but I picked this up as a light way to pass the time while waiting for my daughter to get home and committed to finishing it once I realized I only had 30 pages left.  

Sidenote: she came in the house 30 minutes past her 11 pm curfew but says she made it because they were in our driveway at 11 (they sat and talked outside for the rest of the time)...does the curfew clock stop when you get on the property or when you get in the house?  I think it also makes a difference that she didn't tell us she was home and sitting outside (we weren't worried though because we knew she was there since my chair sits by the window).  Discuss amongst yourselves...

Anyway, the book made me laugh out loud a few times, especially when he talked about the struggles of anxiety pre-Internet when a) people weren't "allowed" to have social anxiety yet and b) so much of interaction had to be done face-to-face.  I also loved the line, "I estimate I can survive on my savings for two days, three if I just sit in a corner", when talking about quitting one job before having another one lined up.