Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder

Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Takes place in the semi-wilderness of 1870s in Wisconsin, US. Takes us through a year in the life of a middle sister age 4 (celebrates her 5th birthday during the book). There are at least 4 stories just about bears in this book.

I think I like this book even better as an adult. It's like a survival guide for the zombie apocalypse or a pandemic.

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Beezus and Ramona by Beverly Cleary

Beezus and Ramona by Beverly Cleary
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I remember liking this a lot as a kid but it doesn't really survive well into adulthood. Beatrice (Beezuz) is the older sister, 9 years old, and Ramona is about 4. Ramona drives Beezus and everyone else crazy. At the time of my reread, I know kids that are 4, so I can relate to a lot of the bad behavior and frustrations, but Ramona is really a next level awful toddler.

Another thing that stands out so many years later is how much freedom the two girls have to wander the town. Beezus is in 5th grade and Ramona is a completely untrustworthy preschooler. They go to the library and playground on their own. Even when the police have to find Ramona (not a spoiler, it happens as a flashback from before the book), the police don't mind or arrest the parents. What a fun time to be a parent. Now we're required to hover constantly, buried under Common Core, and then judgmentally accused of being helicopter parents.

A few random notes about the book: The chapters aren't really that related but function more like short stories. I also learned that the Ramona Quimby series is originally a Henry Huggins spin-off though I've never actually heard of that series before. Henry makes a very brief appearance in this book, and he didn't make as much of an impression as his dog did.

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A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan

A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I love the first chapter, and I probably would have been happy to read a novel about just the first character. Still, I liked how the novel moved around a group of friends and acquaintances and their different perspectives on each other, music, and life as time passed. And since the first character was my favorite, I was glad to see how she'd changed with age in a subsequent chapter. Her transformation was totally believable.

As many other people have commented, this is pretty much a short story collection with overlapping characters and themes, but I love short story collections, so that definitely wasn't a problem for me.

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The Denial of Death by Ernest Becker

The Denial of Death by Ernest Becker
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I'm not a psychology student so perhaps some portion of this is correct? Seems like a lot of it is wrong though. And it definitely doesn't help me with anything.

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Yoga for Physical and Mental Fitness by Sachindra K. Majundar

Introduction to Yoga by Sachindra K. Majundar
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Actually, my copy is called Yoga for Physical and Mental Fitness, but I think it’s the same book. It has photographs of yoga poses and explanations of how it ties in with meditation.

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3:16 by Max Lucado

3:16: The Numbers of Hope by Max Lucado
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book is helpful if you don't know the basic premise of Evangelical Christianity. If you're already an Evangelical, you will probably enjoy this book like a warm hug or comfort food. If you don't fit either of those categories this book probably won't enlighten or persuade you (even if you're looking to be persuaded) as there isn't much substance to it.

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Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett

Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Even if this is deep, and I'm not actually totally sure that it is, it wasn't particularly enjoyable to me. I know this sounds like "I like Byron. I give him a 42, but I can't dance to it." - Dead Poets Society. Nonetheless, I'll stick with my view for now.

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How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie

How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I avoided this book for a while despite numerous recommendations because I have friends and I wasn't particularly interested in manipulating people. However, I read a particularly good recommendation recently (possibly in the Bill Bryson book Home?) and I decided to bite the bullet and read it.

Rather than being morally dubious as I suspected, I think the book gave a lot of good advice on how best to be a kind, considerate, thoughtful human being. Yes, it also gave advice on how to convince other people of your point, but I think mostly by following some of the same advice regarding showing other people respect.

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Catch-22 by Joseph Heller

Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I'm really torn about this one. There are many great sentences that highlight the absurdities of life. But I just didn't care about any of the characters or anything they cared about. The story itself fell flat for me too. And the very anti-war theme was a bit unsettling in a World War II setting.

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A Gate at the Stairs by Lorrie Moore

A Gate at the Stairs by Lorrie Moore
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I like Lorrie Moore's short stories so I really wanted to like this novel, but no. The bones of the book is good. Her relationship with her employer is very realistic and the dynamics between the two of them and the baby are very realistic and interesting. The husband is an interesting villain but completely without any nuance. Her brother seems a little outside the story, but okay, whatever. But the worst part in the story is the boyfriend. He would have been so much better without the (sort of a spoiler alert) dramatic twist. Totally over the top and not realistic at all. Finally, the ending where she addresses the reader directly is not sassy or cute, it's awful.

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