Book Review: Getting Good With Money

 Hey... raise your hand if adulting really sucks! Ha! If you are like us, dealing with your financial situation is such a daunting, and stressful, experience and you never really feel like you have any kind idea of what is going on. If you set a goal of being in a better financial position in 2022, this book is for you. 

Getting Good With Money - Jessi Fearon

Certified financial coach and mom Jessi Fearon leads the way for overwhelmed readers struggling to get a handle on their finances and lays out the doable steps her family underwent to pay off all their debts--even their mortgage!--and pursue their dreams, all on a $47,000-a-year salary.

Jessi Fearon vividly remembers the day she broke down, knowing that her family could not pay the bills with a second baby on the way. Like many Americans, they were overwhelmed by debt and living paycheck to paycheck, wondering if it was possible to ever get ahead, or even catch up. But on that day, something changed, and she and her husband decided to make a drastic lifestyle change that would put them back on the path toward their dreams. Their decision not only allowed her to stay home with their children, but in two years, they were able to pay off their consumer debt and, in six years, they paid off their home mortgage--all on their $47,000-a-year income. And now she shares what she's learned with others who are struggling just like she once did.

Getting Good with Moneyis written for the busy, overwhelmed reader who wants to manage the money she does have while still giving her family a good life, even if she doesn't have a finance degree or a six-figure income. With been-there wisdom and step-by-step help, Jessi shows readers how to take control of their finances with practical first steps to budgeting and understanding debt; identify the four different ways people struggle with money and how each one affects the way they manage--or mismanage--their money; replace the lies they've believed about money with the five Money Truths to overcome barriers and better understand how to make their version of the American Dream a reality; and discover various money-saving apps, financial tips, and ideas for generating additional income to pay off debt more quickly.

Getting Good with Money will inspire, encourage, and equip readers to achieve the real-life changes they need. More than just a "how to budget" book, this is a comprehensive roadmap to financial freedom from an average family making things work on a middle-class salary.

The great thing about this book is it came at the absolute perfect time for us. About four months ago Matt and I bit the bullet and decided to switch over to a cash envelope system, which I'm not going to lie, is tough for awhile. Now that we've done it for a little bit, it is not only getting easier, but we're seeing it make a big difference. 

I love that the author talked about how, despite blogging and sharing about their budgeting and financial journey, everyone assumed they had some kind of secret that they were hiding from others. Not just that, but she compares racking up debt to gaining weight, it just happens because it's easy and you're not really thinking about it until oh hey.... the bill comes (or you step on the scale) and you think, oh crap. The rule we still struggle with from time to time? Not using any form of debt. I find that things come up, like Olivia's car needs a repair and we really need to get that fixed, I want to just swipe a credit card and get it done, move onto the next crisis, you know? I know I am that kind of person that I can't have things sitting on a to-do list, just waiting to be done, it makes my anxiety go through the roof. 

I absolutely loved this book so much, it was so easy, it felt like a good friend who knows what she's doing sitting with you at your table and telling you what you're going to do. Do you know how some budgeting and financial books almost sound.... condescending? I don't think they mean to be, but it is what it is. Getting Good With Money is the absolute opposite. Not only is it full of practical information throughout, it has questions that every person is thinking in their head and the answers we need to hear. If you think you don't have what it takes to budget, and slow your roll at Target, I promise that you absolutely do. 

Thank you so much to FSB Associates and Thomas Nelson Books for having me on this tour and sending me a copy for review. I keep referencing this one because it's so easy and concise, we could all use this one. 

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Book Review: Nailing It

Happy Monday, lambs! Do you have plans for this week? I have to entertain the kids today and tomorrow because no school, I've got doctor appointments, and I plan to do crafty stuff... more on that later. 

Nailing It - Robert L. Dilenschneider

This inspiring and encouraging book from respected consultant Robert L. Dilenschneider provides 25 fascinating and diverse profiles of iconic men and women that show where they were at or near age 25—and how they built their legacies across a range of careers, including the arts, business, science, and government.

With a foreword from U.S. Ambassador Donald Blinken.

Do you think Albert Einstein had his act together by his mid-20s? Think again. Would you assume style icon and humanitarian Audrey Hepburn’s life was always as beautiful as she was? Far from it. At the other end of the spectrum is the revolutionary Steve Jobs, who was at the top of his game by age 25. But Jobs’s beginnings were marked by his adoption, displacement, bullying, and then a rocky personal life. This absorbing book examines the trajectories of 25 iconic figures—from Toni Morrison to Albert Einstein and Golda Meir to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart—to reveal where they were in their lives in their mid-twenties and the choices that enabled them to make their historic marks. For those who are coming of age now, and for those who care about them and their futures, these captivating profiles provide inspiration, instruction, and encouragement. The profiles in Path to Greatness will be real-life examples of the fact that the turning points that lead to success and happiness come at different times and as a result of different conditions. Some people create their own turning points, other people build on what happens to them.

Many people who seemed to "have their act together" at age 25, had already weathered difficult beginnings to their lives; their turning points came early. And other people who didn't even have an act at age 25, went on to make profound contributions to the world; their turning points came with maturity.

This book will remind readers that it is never too late to make an impact.

I think I found the graduation gift I'm getting both high school and college graduates this year, it's going to be Nailing It. I think all of us felt a lot of pressure to get our future figured out as we were leaving high school and as an adult with a teenager approaching this age, it is so stressful. On one hand, the grown up in me knows that finding a career, buckling down, and investing immediately will be such a stress reducer as they get older. Of course, on the other hand, the twenty-something I used to be is screaming, "let her live her life" and man... it is REAL hard to watch your child make mistakes and know that you have to let them do that. 

Parenting is hard, y'all. 

The great part about this book is that it will be a relief to the kids and twenty-somethings who read this, it reinforces that it's OK to not have an idea about what you want to do. It's totally OK to try things, to fail, and keep moving forward. It's validate the concerns parents will have, but also give them the reassurance that things are going to work out, even if they fail miraculously, they could still end up being fabulously successful in their own way. There isn't a timeline to get things done, you might be flipping burgers at 25 but an in-demand engineer at age 50, who knows? I also like that this book reinforced that success is different to everyone and there is no cookie cutter determination on whether someone is successful. 

I also loved the historical tidbits because it features 25 famous men and women and talks about what they were doing around age 25. It's 246 pages of gentle encouragement for us all, no matter which end of the journey you're on. 

Thank you to TLC Book Tours for having me on this tour and providing a copy for review. 

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Book Review: Where Do You Hang Your Hammock

It's Wednesday, and school ends for my kids on Friday and I am equal parts thrilled and annoyed. I am not ready for everyone home all day, every day but I also love knowing I don't have to get up at the crack of dawn and put pants on if I don't want to. I mean, that's a win. 

Where Do You Hang Your Hammock? - Bella Mahaya Carter

In Where Do You Hang Your Hammock? seasoned coach and author Bella Mahaya Carter shows writers how to use their present circumstances as stepping-stones to a successful and meaningful writing life, navigated from the inside out. It encourages writers and authors to rethink their ambitions (which may be fueled by the tyrannical demands of the ego) and trust in their heartfelt purpose and values in the journey to becoming, or continuing on, as authors.

Many writers believe their self-sabotaging thoughts are trustworthy and true. They take rejection personally. They surmise that if they don’t achieve their goals they have failed, and lose sight of who they are and what matters most.

This book is for writers looking for inspiration and for authors daunted by the publishing process, who might lack the requisite author platform to get published the way they dreamed, or whose careers may not be unfolding as expected. It aims to be the friend and trusted expert writers turn to when hijacked by their own thinking. Ultimately, it reminds authors that they are infinite creators.

If you know me at all, you know I have been working on writing a memoir about the birth of Lucy, my amniotic fluid embolism, dying, then not dying, then the aftermath in which we are all flying by the seat of our pants, and how that is really hard on a family in general, the unseen side of surviving death, if you will. 

I mean, I'm not done, but I feel like I have a solid outline and the basics in there, I just need all of the stories connecting things to make it a book. I feel like the advice of "just write, it'll come out!" is probably the worst advice ever but also the first block in the wall that is writer's block because... where do you start? I feel like, for me at least, if you give me an assignment with actual steps, that is easier to process versus something vague like just do it. 

That's where this book comes in. When I say this has kicked my rear into gear? I am 100% genuine. I have referenced this book so many times when I go back to review what I've already done, made some changes and it feels more like me. I love the author's way with words, she writes with common sense so it doesn't feel like you're reading the most boring textbook of all time. The book has so many chunks to really get into, and it feels like it is a step by step process (as writing and publishing is) and you aren't going to read this cover to cover, you read the chunk you're in. 

I loved, loved, loved the information about publishing, and the information about promoting. The great thing is how relevant this book is even if you aren't specifically writing a book. Maybe you're just writing essays to get published, or maybe you're trying to become an influencer and just need some guidance- the promotion chunk in this book is full of really great information, most of which I had no idea so I highlighted a bunch of things that I felt might be best for me. 

Also a favorite- throughout the book there are journaling prompts and that has some significant question to really get you back to basics. The very first one was the one that stumped me the most and actually a question I get asked in therapy all of the time and struggle with, who are you? Seriously think about that and strip away all of the things: your job, your family, your hobbies, your likes/dislikes, the way you look, etc- when you take literally everything away.... who are you? Part two of that is also a stumper, in what way(s) might I filter my primary experience through the roles that I play? 

Do you see what I mean? These questions are HARD. I mean, I don't think they are meant to be but I really struggle with this kind of stuff and I think about it a lot. 

I really enjoyed this book and it has really inspired me to work on my own book some more. The short chapters are nice because you can get through the book quickly, but if you take your time and actually do the journaling prompts, you will get so much more out of this and also get a better idea of what kind of writer you already are. I feel like it also helps put other parts of your life in focus as well, so if you don't consider yourself a writer, it might really help you get a better idea of where you need to put your attention to in your life in general. 

A huge thank you to Bella Mahaya Carter, She Writes Press, and FSB Associates for having me on this tour and providing a copy for review. If you're really just stuck, or need a little pick me up in your writing, I highly suggest giving this one a try. 

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Book Review: Tears of Amber

I am behind in life right now because I've been sick. First it was allergies and then it was the cold Jackson had this weekend. A cold for you and everyone else is just a cold. A cold for me is like standing on Death's door asking if it's my time to come in. I felt like I was really going to die yesterday and I only vaguely remember coming upstairs to pee, but even that is kind of assumption because my bed isn't wet, so I assume I came upstairs. I feel only mildly better today so I'm trying to get what I can done while I'm lucid. I need to be better for this weekend because we have games and recitals, so back to bed it is for me this afternoon.  

I do want to tell you about this book though because it has stuck with me long after finishing it and frankly, those are the best books. 

Tears of Amber - Sofia Segovia

From the bestselling author of The Murmur of Bees comes a transportive novel of two families uprooted by war and united by the bonds of love and courage.

With war looming dangerously close, Ilse’s school days soon turn to lessons of survival. In the harshness of winter, her family must join the largest exodus in human history to survive. As battle lines are drawn and East Prussia’s borders vanish beneath them, they leave their farm and all they know behind for an uncertain future.

But Ilse also has Janusz, her family’s young Polish laborer, by her side. As they flee from the Soviet army, his enchanting folktales keep her mind off the cold, the hunger, and the horrors unfolding around them. He tells her of a besieged kingdom in the Baltic Sea from which spill the amber tears of a heartbroken queen.

Neither of them realizes his stories will prove crucial and prophetic.

Not far away, trying and failing to flee from a vengeful army, Arno and his mother hide in the ruins of a Königsberg mansion, hoping that once the war ends they can reunite their dispersed family. But their stay in the walled city proves untenable when they find themselves dodging bombs and scavenging in the rubble. Soon they’ll become pawns caught between two powerful enemies, on a journey with an unknown destination.

Hope carries these children caught in the crosshairs of war on an extraordinary pilgrimage in which the gift of an amber teardrop is at once a valuable form of currency and a symbol of resilience, one that draws them together against insurmountable odds.

First things first, this is a translated book, and I know some of you see that and think, "ugh... there's going to be some 'missed in translation' stuff in here" and I'm telling you I didn't experience any of that. What I did experience was a book that is absolutely beautifully written. It was so much and everything all at once. You know I'm not one to read a whole ton of literary fiction and that's insanity because the ones I do read are always so wonderfully done, like this one. The character development? On point. 

When I see news reports about other countries in war, being terrorized with bombs and fighting, one of the first things I think is that I can't imagine that. Our country experiences one set of buildings going down and our entire country is mesmerized- what would it be like for this to be so common place that you don't even stop to watch the news? For it to not even be news anymore, instead just every day life? That's something I kept thinking about while I read this, and to be honest, there were several chunks that I went back to re-read because it hit differently once I got to the end and knew how things ended up. 

What would it be like to have invaders come into your home and force you out, with nothing, and there wasn't anything you could do about it? They were claiming your house and land and that was that? All of safe-holds you had in place to hopefully prevent that were useless? It makes me think of the pro-gun people in America, who think that their stockpiles would hold out an army determined to take them and their land? I mean, if the army wants it, they will take it, and take it they will. I will tell you that there are some seriously harrowing things throughout this book and it will take an emotional toll on you but it was so beautifully written you can't stop. 

You know what it reminded me of? That movie Schindler's List, kind of. Every character has an ending and the book mentions that "every story has an ending" and ugh. Gut punch. 

Even more? It's based on true events. 

I won't even lie and tell you I didn't cry because I absolutely did. I went into this not remembering that it was based on true events, and then I saw that in my notes and you guys- I was a wreck. It just hits you different. There are a million WWII based books out there, especially the last two years or so, and they are all variations of the same thing. I promise you, this is different. This one is really special and I am so grateful I was able to read this one. It is going to be with me for a long, long time. 

Thank you to the author, but also Amazon Crossing and FSB Associates for having me on this review tour. If you are looking for some historical fiction about WWII in an alternate point of view, I so highly recommend this one. I do believe this will be in my top 10 for the year. 

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Book Review: Primal Calling

It really feels like Friday, you guys. I can't say I'm on the struggle bus because I really do feel like I've gotten a lot done this week and I still feel really on top of life and like my new organized system is working so I really hope I can keep this up all year. 

Primal Calling - Barry Eisenberg

While rummaging through the attic, high school senior, Jack Davies, is surprised to find his never-before-seen birth certificate, revealing a startling bit of information that changes his life. The story his mother told about his birth, he discovers, is revealed to be a lie, shattering long-held beliefs and the trust he had for her. Jack becomes obsessed with discovering the truth, leading him down a dangerous path. Faced with unanswered questions and confounding obstacles at every turn, Jack finds himself deeply enmeshed in an intricate world of national security and international intrigue. Relationships are tested as his every move is tracked by a group of mysterious people. Who are they? Whose side are they on? Who can he trust? And, most importantly, who will he ultimately become?

What a cool book. This book had a little bit of everything, a little bit of coming-of-age for Jack, a little lost love kind of thing, a little thriller, a little secret national security operations, it was just a whole lot of stuff, easily packed into one book. I easily finished this one in a day because each chapter is fairly short but written in a way that you keep telling yourself you're going to just read one more. 

In this book we have Jack, a high school student who inadvertently discovers that his mother has kept the identity of his father a secret his whole life. With that newly discovered information, Jack goes on a fairly improbable search for his father. I say improbable because there is next to no chance you could do this search yourself and yield anywhere near the amount of information Jack was able to get, but I had to keep reminding myself this is all make believe so we need to let that go. The path Jack is then set on has him in precarious situations, meeting a whole slew of characters (at one point it felt like the author was juggling a few too many but it worked out in the end), and learning about the pretty bizarre life of his father. I mean, from the first incident early on in the book you knew this was going to be quite a ride. 

I felt like the buildup to the end was the strongest part of the book and the ending felt a little flat for me. I'm not really sure what I needed from the ending it just felt like this wasn't the right one for this book. It also had a whole lot of politics and the inner workings of the oil industry and I kind of don't care about that so it started to lose me there but if you gloss over that, it becomes manageable. 

I really liked Jack and I appreciated his determination in the search for his father, even when things were getting far beyond his control. His simple search unraveled a huge ball of yarn that affected a whole lot more than his interested in getting to know dad. I really liked how the author was able to take this easy task and turn it into an actual mountain. Overall I'd give this one 3 stars, I liked it. I thought it was a great first novel for this author and I'd be interested in seeing what he does next. 

Thank you to FSB Associates and Vanguard Press for sending me a complimentary copy and including me on this tour. 

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Book Review: Family in Six Tones

It's FRIDAY!!! Thank goodness too because I'm over this week. I've really been in a weird funk/fog the whole week and I really don't know why that is. I started a book for the weekend, the kids are going to see their grandparents so it will be just Matt and I. I'm hoping to basically do nothing but read and sleep. It's kind of hilarious that those are my goals at this point in my life. 

Family in Six Tones  

Lan Cao & Harlan Margaret Van Cao

After more than forty years in the United States, Lan Cao still feels tentative about her place in her adoptive country, one which she came to as a thirteen-year old refugee. And after sixteen years of being a mother, she still ventures through motherhood as if it is a foreign landscape. In this lyrical memoir, Lan explores these two defining experiences of her life with the help of her fierce, independently-minded daughter, Harlan Margaret Van Cao.

In chapters that both reflect and refract her mother's narrative, Harlan describes the rites of passage of childhood and adolescence, as they are filtered through the aftereffects of her family's history of war, tragedy, and migration. Lan responds in turn, trying to understand her American daughter through the lens of her own battles with culture clash and bullying. In this unique format of alternating storytelling, their complicated mother-daughter relationship begins to crystallize. Lan's struggles with the traumatic aftermath of war--punctuated by emotional, detailed flashbacks to her childhood--become operatic and fantastical interludes as told by her daughter. Harlan's struggle to make friends in high school challenges her mother to step back and let her daughter find her own way.

If you are looking for a timely non-fiction, this is what you need to pick up. I am always interested in books centered around immigrants simply because I can't speak to it at all and I think the value of listening to someone else's story is that we can learn...and hopefully do better as humans. I was really immersed in this one and I think you'll find this fascinating. 

In Family in Six Tones we have two very different stories of the same experience, which is what makes this book magical. We have alternating chapters as we move through the story and I love that because you can almost hear the differences in their voices as you go, it makes you feel you're sitting in their living room hearing this. 

Interestingly, there was a part where Lan talks about the challenges she faced in school and not fitting in because the culture was just such an immense challenge. She came to America in the Vietnam War era, so tensions are already high so she's facing extreme racism and bullying, and now she's just trying to get lunch. Nowhere near the level of her situation, but I remember being around 9 or 10 and we had moved from Florida to Minnesota. You wouldn't think that would be an issue but kids made fun of my accent or make me say words so they could laugh, and take away my things until I said them. I had no idea what hot lunch or cold lunch meant so for days I had no lunch because I didn't know what to do. The milk used to come in these bags and I had no idea what to do and nobody would show me. Children are particularly cruel and I know some parents laugh and say "kids will be kids" but they forget how even those type of things stick with a person their whole life. So Lan has that kind of thing in addition to the horrors and trauma she endured in her birth country. 

She goes on to be successful and have a child, Harlan. It is HARD to parent a child when you have trauma and PTSD that you haven't dealt with. It's hard to do it while you're in the middle of dealing with it. It isn't like you can hit a pause button on being a mom, so we make mistakes and just hope they weren't bit ones. Harlan struggles between wanting to be a normal American teenager and her mom, and all of her experiences that get in the way of their relationship. Lan's childhood and memories of that have made her...  kind of paranoid, worrying of every scenario possible. The likelihood of those experiences having in suburbia America is slim to none, but Lan is so worried and it affects Harlan. 

I won't go into anymore of this but I found myself understanding Lan as a mom but I also understand Harlan because I have a teenager and between hormones and adjusting to teenager life and I'm having to loosen the reigns a bit. It's hard under the best circumstances, I can't imagine what it was like for these two. I absolutely loved this, I feel like we could all get so much for this. Even if all you get is a sneak peek at the process of coming to America, I'll take it. I hope you walk away with seeing the racial and cultural disparities immigrants and even American citizens face when they aren't cookie-cutter white. It's heartbreaking and it shows how far we have to go. I also think this would make an interesting read for upper high school or even college students as part of a curriculum, so many great conversations could be centered around this. 

I have to say thank you to FSB Associates for having me on this tour and sending me a complimentary copy for review. 

Book Review: Everyone Dies Famous

I'm in a depressive slump and I feel like I'm dropping the ball all over the place. I was supposed to share this with you on Friday, but here we are. I'm trying to get it together. 

Everyone Dies Famous - Len Joy

As a tornado threatens their town, a stubborn old man who has lost his son teams up with a troubled young soldier to deliver a jukebox to the wealthy developer having an affair with the soldier's wife.

It's July 2003 and the small town of Maple Springs, Missouri is suffering through a month-long drought. Dancer Stonemason, a long-forgotten hometown hero still grieving over the death of his oldest son, is moving into town to live with his more dependable younger son. He hires Wayne Mesirow, an Iraq war veteran, to help him liquidate his late son's business.

The heat wave breaks and the skies darken. Dancer tries to settle an old score while Wayne discovers the true cost of his wife's indifference and turns his thoughts to revenge. When the tornado hits Maple Springs, only one of the men will make it out alive.

Are you a fan of Humans of New York? Currently there is a 32 part story about an elderly woman that had a really tragic, but completely compelling story, and I can't stop checking for updates. 

This book kind of reminded me of that. 

I wasn't really sure what to expect with this, and the cover doesn't necessarily pull me in. The description is accurate but.. it felt lacking something. When I read the book, I could NOT put this down. The story, the narrative never relented, I didn't feel like it slowed down, I really couldn't stop reading this. (That's really saying something too, because in a depressive slump like I'm in now, I have a hard time sticking with things, but I was with this the entire time.) I loved the ending of this, though my heart broke a little because anytime you read a story like this, you just connect with characters. We know from the description only one makes it but STILL. Plus having this entire story happening with the threat of this tornado lurking just adds another layer that makes you want people to get a move on, and each delay or change makes you feel just like the characters do and I appreciated that a lot. Also, if you are a sucker for a story featuring veterans, or even one about redemption, you will like this. 

Overall? I'm giving this one a 4.5 stars, I just wanted.. a little bit more, maybe even just an epilogue would have made this a 5 for me. I really wanted to know where the characters were a year later, or even six months down the road. By the end of this book I felt invested into everyone and all of the stories of each person, so I think you'll get hooked, too. 

A huge thank you to FSB Associates and Len Joy for having me on this tour and providing a copy of the book for review. I don't know this is one I would have picked up at a bookstore, but I'm really glad I read it.

 

Book Review: Gaijin

Happy hump day!! Honestly, this week is dragging and I'm just trying to get to the weekend, and I hate that every week feels like that. 

Today I have a rather interesting book for you and it's.... it's a mix of genres and it doesn't really fit into any specific one and I think that's why I wanted to read it. 

Gaijin - Sarah Z. Sleeper

The Japanese word gaijin means "unwelcome foreigner." It's not profanity, but is sometimes a slur directed at non-Japanese people in Japan. My novel is called Gaijin...

Lucy is a budding journalist at Northwestern University and she's obsessed with an exotic new student, Owen Ota, who becomes her lover and her sensei. When he disappears without explanation, she's devastated and sets out to find him. On her three-month quest across Japan she finds only snippets of the elegant culture Owen had described. Instead she faces anti-U.S. protests, menacing street thugs and sexist treatment, and she winds up at the base of Mt. Fuji, in the terrifying Suicide Forest. Will she ever find Owen? Will she be driven back to the U.S.? Gaijin is a coming-of-age story about a woman who solves a heartbreaking mystery that alters the trajectory of her life.

A few things about this one missed the mark for me, the biggest one being the "relationship" between Lucy and Owen. I went into this thinking they were engaged or on the bring of that, or even a new but passionate love affair with promise of budding into something more. Basically, I thought there must be some kind of deep emotional connection to warrant a  young woman to basically drop her life, move across the world to Japan to look for this man. Instead, she really just had a crush on him and they kissed once but barely? I mean, if some guy just suddenly stopped talking to me at that point I'd think maybe I was a bad kisser and that's that. 

Nope. Not Lucy. So Lucy ups and moves. She embarks on this journey of sorts and though the book is kind of set up like this journey for love, it quickly became clear the intent of the book is maybe something different entirely. A lot of focus was put into the anti-US protests, about Okinawa, the US military presence there but also the inevitable tensions that could be because of all of that. Once I got my mind shifted out of the romance lane and into the mystery but also modern day history lesson, I felt like I was really liking this book. 

Except... I felt like it didn't hit the mark quite like it could have. For example, its almost toward the end of the book where one of the characters we meet, Hisashi, makes a statement about Okinawa being largely forgotten and exploited because of the US military being there and Japan as a whole largely ignoring the Japanese people there, and THAT felt like it could have been a key piece of the book. I'm a little on the fence about the piece about the Suicide Forest because on one hand, as a person I am deeply intrigued by this. I know that this place exists, I know why people make this pilgrimage and I once saw a show that did a short piece on the forest and I can't remember anything other than the fact people that go in often line their shoes up at the beginning, sometimes with a note. One image was an entire family's shoes and some of them were so little. So as I'm reading this book, I'm thinking of that image in my head and I don't know, it almost feels wrong to go in to look for someone... or something. It feels like such an intensely personal decision to go in knowing your intent is to not come out, and knowing people would just go traipsing in there looking for you. 

Now, even with all of this, I'm still giving this a solid 4 stars because I could really relate to the feeling of things not turning out the way you planned. A lot of us have experienced plans being changed or life bottoming out on us and suddenly we're midstream having to turn it around, but at the same time figure out a bigger game plan. I could really understand Lucy's struggle to navigate Japan as it is, but doing it in the middle of this crisis, finding out that what you're looking for might not end well, and then wondering what next? What do you do with the answer you find at the end? 

I loved the writing of this. Though there were a few slow slumps for me, it just read nicely and for the most part I got through this one quickly. I think if you're interested in Japanese culture in general or investigating things on your own, this would be a great book for you. If you are looking for light and fluffy, maybe not the best pick right now. 

A huge thank you to Running Wild Press for sending me a copy for review! The author, Sarah Z. Sleeper, was also featured on Authors Answer recently and if you're interested in checking that out, you can find it HERE. 

Book Review: Winter of the Wolf

It probably isn't good that I feel like it is the end of the day Friday when it is only.... Tuesday, right? Yikes. I feel like I have so much to do this week and I really, truly do not. We were thinking about maybe driving to a zoo we haven't been to before but with more Covid positive cases Matt and I changed our minds so our weekend is free at this point. Well, we have a plan B that (hopefully) involves interacting with zero people, so we'll see. But if you're like me and basically reading the entire the summer away, do I have a book for you! 

Winter of the Wolf - Martha Hunt Handler

An exploration in grief, suicide, spiritualism, and Inuit culture, Winter of the Wolf follows Bean, an empathic and spiritually evolved fifteen-year-old, who is determined to unravel the mystery of her brother Sam’s death. Though all evidence points to a suicide, her heart and intuition compel her to dig deeper. With help from her friend Julie, they retrace Sam’s steps, delve into his Inuit beliefs, and reconnect with their spiritual beliefs to uncover clues beyond material understanding. 

Both tragic and heartwarming, this twisting novel draws you into Bean's world as she struggles with grief, navigates high school dramas, and learns to open her heart in order to see the true nature of the people around her. Winter of the Wolf is about seeking the truth—no matter how painful—in order to see the full picture.

In this novel, environmentalist and award-winning author, Martha Handler, brings together two important pieces of her life—the death of her best friend’s son and her work as president of the Wolf Conservation Center—to tell an empathetic and powerful story with undeniable messages.

I am always on the hunt for something different, something I haven't read a thousand times before. I like different settings and time periods, different religions and beliefs, anything different. When I saw that this was a debut author I was intrigued and then when I saw that the description involves the Inuit culture? I was all in because I haven't ever read a book centered around that. Throw in the fact that it is a mystery/thriller around what everyone thought was a suicide? I'm all in. I could not be more in and I am so glad that I was. 

First off, the book is only 236 pages long but beyond that there is a really great author Q&A which covered a couple of the things that I wondered, particularly what made her write a book with this specific topic, and that was covered. I so badly want to tell you the topic, and the manner of death in this book, but I can't because it is a MAJOR piece of the mystery and you need to read the book for it. I will tell you that I have never, never in all of my 38 years, read a book that involved that topic. If you're around these parts I have read everything from child abuse to dinosaur erotica (its a for real thing.. lol) so the fact she surprised me? I love it. 

I have to also mention the book, obviously, deals with death quite a bit and I really loved the author's take on it. As someone who technically died, I definitely feel a lot differently about death than I did before. She offers a really interesting list of books and reading to expand the thoughts and maybe feelings you'll be left with once you finish this book and I really appreciate that because a few of them were already on my list to read so seeing her reference them is making me purchase them sooner. I also had a lot of question about the Inuit culture and there are a few resources for that as well. 

I also have to say, I really loved Bean. Bean is smart and strong, but she also knows when she's right and I loved her perseverance throughout the book.The book shows the turmoil, and guilt, that each family member feels in the wake of Sam's death and it is just a good exploration of all of the feelings and then a teenager making her own way through them. There is a passage on page 118 that I really loved and I feel like every one of us can identify with it, whether it is with death or even world events right now: 

"You think I'm crazy, don't you?" I ask. 

He finally turns to face me. "It's not important whether or now I believe you. What's important is what you believe. You know I've had a lot of time to think about all this -- about Sam and his Inuit beliefs and his certainty that everything had a deeper meaning. What I've come to understand is that you and Sam, and your mother, see things much differently than I do. I always thought my way was right, and you were all a bit off, but I suppose I was being arrogant and, well, maybe even a bit ignorant. The truth is that we each view the world through our own unique lenses. I have a hard time seeing out of your lenses, and you probably have an equally difficult time seeing out of mine, but can choose to accept our differences." 

By the time I finished this book, my heart broke a little more for Sam, and I was happy that Bean was able to get some kind of closure over her brother's death, I felt terrible for Skip, and it left me feeling like I actually knew these people. Such a great book and it covers a lot of issues teens could learn about. They sometimes exhibit risky behaviors because they think its safe, or they'll be OK and a lot of times that's just not the case. Highly recommend. 

A huge thank you to the author and FSB Associates for having me on this book tour and sending me a copy for review!