Released 4/3/18
Read from: Dec 21, 2018- Jan 19, 2019
Format: CD Audiobook
Rating: 1 out of 5 stars
NOTE: There are some slight spoilers mentioned in this review. It won't completely take away from this story if you do still desire to read it after this review, but will give you a bit of an insight into
I'll start out saying that I read the synopsis of this book many times before I decided I'd give it a chance. It didn't sound like the type of book I'd like. The main premise is feminism and I'm a woman but I'm not as extreme as I thought some of these characters were going to be (and I was right). I kept seeing it mentioned in book blogs because it was a new release in 2018. Give every book a chance right? Maybe I'll go back to being a little selective after this one. Being a CD audiobook, I only listened to it in my car on my short drive to and from work so it did take a lot longer than it would've otherwise. BUT, I will say the length of time it took for me to finish it does still reflect on my thoughts of this book.
I wanted to like it. There were times that I did feel like I cared about the characters. Mainly when they focused on Cory I'll be honest. I just did not care about the others. For a novel that is basically 0% plot driven, you'd expect to have highly developed and dynamic characters, and that did not happen. I felt ok about it at first but as it went on my rating just kept going down.
I didn't like how the book started out as if it was going to be about a character named Greer Kadetsky and her relationship with her boyfriend Cory as they made their way through college and into their adult life. More than half of the book WAS just about them. And then all of a sudden the story switched to be primarily about her best friend Zee after college, and a little but about her back story. Then near the 70% mark it switches to focus solely on Faith Frank, the feminist activist that Zee first introduces Greer to in college, whom she goes on to work for after college. We learn about Faith's early life and growth into adulthood. It shows Faith's investment in Greer as an employee once she started working for her new foundation called Loci, which to be honest, I could not tell you what it even did. They talked constantly about "summits" they'd host, but they told you nothing about them. I kept thinking "What the F**K is a summit???" They talked so much about them existing but literally never explained a single thing that they did at them. Faith also seemed to really be invested in Greer and they never really showed why. Faith would give her more and more opportunities, but literally nothing in the story happened that made you think she did anything to deserve them. I was so annoyed by the book at this point that I would get mad at nit picky things like the fact that the author almost constantly referred to Greer by her full name, but every one else was referred to only by their first names. I always hated the name Greer, and the way the narrator pronounced Kadetsky really irked me, so throwing them together CONSTANTLY really just made me hate the book further.
After spending more than half of the book focusing on Greer and sometimes Cory, and then spending another 25% focusing on only 2 other people and barely even mentioning Cory and Greer, I was wondering if they'd ever tie back into the story again. How are all these characters stories going to connect in the end and why will I care? Will I even remember anything about the first two characters when 75% through the book they basically aren't mentioned again? Terrible organization if you ask me. To add on to my thoughts of terrible organization, this books theme is supposed to be feminism, They sure love to talk about how women are so great and equal to men, but men are misogynists and suck (so why do we want to be equivalent to men again?) but they never once discussed any people that they came across that were great feminists. They are supposed to be working with famous feminists and other women but they NEVER mention any of them. So again, what in the hell does this Loci organization do again?
Another thing this author loves to do is spend an intense amount of time in one short time period and then all of a sudden jump forward 5 or 10 years without giving you any idea of what may have brought them to the current point that they're at. If those years were so unimportant they must've been REALLY boring, being that all the times they did choose to discuss were already boring AF.
They painted Faith in this almost godlike light. Her employees worshipped her. Greer, a vegetarian, literally ate meat she cooked repetitively because she was too afraid to reiterate that she didn't eat meat. And then when Greer quits Loci, they paint Faith in an extremely vindictive light. Like a reality show character. Or a middle schooler. What true professional would ever act the way Faith did when you're the founder of a company. I have no idea. What was going on in your head Meg Wolitzer? I can't imagine what the drafts of this book were like if this version was considered publishable. But anyway, I digress. At this point of the book I couldn't stand Greer anymore and really enjoyed seeing her decline. But to continue the nonsensical organization of this book, we skip forward again 5 years and all of a sudden Greer and Cory are together again, they have a daughter, Greer has a best selling book, and they're apparently receiving enough of an income from it to be able to give money to their parents. Cory seems to not really be doing much more than he was 5 years ago, so not really sure how that makes any sense. The ending is sort of just like, really? I hated you, and now Wolitzer is trying to make you give a crap about where Greer is now. It also ends there, and for all the nonsense we have to delve through to get to the end, they never even give you an idea of how Greer apparently becomes famous in the feminist world one day down the road. They loved to mention that early on when she was in college, but then they sort of stop, and you're left thinking you're gonna see how she gets there but you don't.
This review feels like a lot of jumbled, negative thoughts, and that's basically how I felt listening this book, so there's a little insight into what it'll be like if you do still decide to give this book a chance. To be honest, I really wouldn't recommend this book to anyone. If you have the attitude that all men are bad, then maybe you'll like this book. But I don't even think the self proclaimed feminists and activists would love this. Never mind what it's about, but as a novel in general it's a huge flop. Nothing of any purpose happens. We hear a lot of complaining. A lot of repetition, and a whole lot of boring. I thought maybe I'd learn something about a group of people I don't know much about, but I was wrong about that as well. To be honest, the only good thing about this book was that something of meaning actually happens to Cory. And he's not even really that important of a character. I didn't despise listening to his sections of the book. I bet if you erased everything else about the book and just included the other characters as mentions in Cory's personal story, we could've had a book here. But instead, we waste our time for 80% of the book with the other characters stories.
Wondering how I felt about the books I was reading while I wrote my last blog entry? Well here are some VERY quick blurbs!
Star of Shadowbrook Farm by Joanna Campbell
Released 1/1/92
Read from: Dec 31, 2018- Jan 12, 2019
Format: Print (library)
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
This was, believe it or not, my first read from a book series that I owned many books from as a
The book takes place in Litchfield County, CT and mentions many places that I'm familiar with, which was awesome because I live here. A great light, easy, quick read for middle grade to young teenage readers and adults alike.
The Total Package by Stephanie Evanovich
Released 3/15/16
Read from: Dec 28 2018- Jan 4, 2019
Format: Overdrive Audiobook
Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
I didn't enjoy listening to this book, but I didn't hate it. So it got itself 2 stars. I gave Goodreads a
My biggest problems with this book was the lack of character development (I didn't care about any of the characters), and nothing really of that much feeling every happened. Things DO happen to the characters, but you just won't care. There is no feeling behind the things of importance that do happen to the characters. The book just sort of ended all of a sudden while I was sitting there listening, waiting for something to happen! LOL
The story is about a character named Dani, who is in love with someone she went to college with. A football star who makes it to the NFL after battling addictions. They cross paths again in the future because they are both professionals in the football world.. Dani has a big secret that Tyson needs to know, and she holds it from him for most of the story. In a way I wanted to root for them, but again, the characters were not developed enough for me to care. The story is supposed to be a romance, but again, it just fell flat. I don't really recommend you spend time on this one. Sorry, Evanovich.
The rest of my 2019 reads so far:
Check out my Goodreads profile for reviews!
The Journal of Jasper Jonathan Pierce: A Pilgrim Boy by Ann Rinaldi
Released 7/1/00
Read from: Jan 2, 2019- Jan 5, 2019
Format: Print (library)
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Goodreads Review here.
A Map of Days (Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children, #4) by Ransom Riggs
Released 10/2/18
Read from: Jan 4, 2019- Jan 12, 2019
Format: Scribd Audiobook
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Goodreads Review here.
Tales of the Peculiar (Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children 0.5) by Ransom Riggs
Released 9/3/16
Read from: Jan 12, 2019- Jan 17, 2019
Format: Scribd Audiobook
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Goodreads Review here.
An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen
Released 1/8/19
Read from: Jan 6, 2019- Jan 17, 2019
Format: Print (BOTM)
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Goodreads Review here.
P.S. I HIGHLY recommend the Scribd app if you like audiobooks and ebooks over ANY other app I've tried, and I've tried a few. Overdrive is amazing but you need a library card to use it. Scribd has improved greatly over the last 2 years. For $8.99 a month you can get unlimited audiobooks and ebooks every month now, as opposed to apps like the kindle and audible apps where you need to pay for each individual download, or spend $15+ for a monthly membership. There are SO many new releases on there now, my wish list is now HUGE. Click my link above to sign up for a free 30 day trial! You won't regret it! ;)
What I'm Reading Now
1) My Sister, the Serial Killer (Scribd audiobook) by Oyinkan Braithwaite
Released 11/20/18
Started listening: Jan 17, 2019
1) My Sister, the Serial Killer (Scribd audiobook) by Oyinkan Braithwaite
Released 11/20/18
Started listening: Jan 17, 2019
They call this book a "satire meets slasher." I was intrigued when my favorite blog author read it
But then Ayoola sets her sights on Korede's secret crush. Where will this story go? I guess we'll find out!
1) The Forgotten Filly by Karle Dickerson (Print: library)
Released 6/3/98
Started reading: Jan 18, 2019
I will probably finish this book today, and I don't think it will get more than a 3 star rating, but
