Title: A Bollywood Affair

Author: Sonali Dev

Published: 2014

Read in: May 2016

Remember how I said I expect kind of the same formula in romance novels I pick up? It’s like going to Starbucks. No matter where you are, or how foreign or out of place you feel, you pretty much know what you’re going to get and you’re going to enjoy it. If you’re lucky you might learn something knew. This novel is the perfect example.

Two sentence summary: Hotshot Bollywood director is forced to go to America to inform the woman who thinks she’s married to director’s brother, actually isn’t. Just imagine what comes next in this book that won last year’s RITA award for “Best First Book.”

I picked this up mainly because a) it won a RITA and b) I was heading on a short road trip to my first Hindu wedding and wanted something to read that sort of mirrored the mood.

The protagonist, despite growing up in a traditional rural village, somehow manages to educate herself and make her way to America (Ypsilanti, Michigan!) for further education. Her potential suitor, a bastard child with an abusive young childhood somehow manages to defy the odds and becomes a successful Bollywood film director and, what a surprise that the two meet in the most unforeseen circumstances. There’s mistaken identity, hidden identity, quirky/insane best friend, road trip, mysteries of a lost mother revealed, pretty much all of the ingredients that makes a successful romance.

That the two people who fall in love are Indian, speak a different language and observe different cultures but all the more makes you realize that romance is romance, and crosses cultural divides quite easily (at least when it comes to romance fiction, it does).

If you’re always reading about white people falling in love with other white people, definitely give this one a chance. You’ll be surprised at how not surprised you are.

Title: Alias Omnibus (i.e. Jessica Jones Volumes 1-4)
Author: Brian Michael Bendis, MIchael Gaydos
Published: Not sure. Early 2000’s
Read in: May 2016

I put this on hold at the library shortly after Netflix released their  “Jessica Jones” series and I’m so glad I did. It took several months for me to finally get it and it was such a fun read. I am by no means a Marvel expert, nor a graphic novel aficionado and I’m guessing this isn’t typical Marvel stuff, with the cursing and the “mature content.” It was still an incredible world to imagine, not unlike Fables, which I read a few years back, where fantasy meets reality in the oddest settings.

The anti-hero/outsider view of Jessica Jones is wonderful and seeing her interact with superheroes is also fun. Also, she dates Ant-Man! Did you know that? Are they going to add that into the Netflix series? Is Paul Rudd avaiable?

Graphic Novel vs Netflix (just imagine Krysten Ritter saying those very words as this guy is hanging over her door)

Rather than go in depth with this graphic novel, I’d like to take a few moments to compare it to the Netflix series, which I enjoyed equally as much. I’d already heard that there were a few setups in the series that mirrored the novel (see above), which I thought was clever. I was very fascinated with Kilgrave because, well, hello, Davd Tennant. In the GN he doesn’t show up until Vol. 4 which was cool to me as he was such a key character is the series. There are other cases to cover but none that are as compelling as Purple Man (Does Kilgrave show up in other Marvel series? There is so much I don’t know).

I am also intrigued with what becomes of Luke Cage. I believe in later issues of the novel (titled The Pulse, yes I’m waiting for it from the library)  Jessica and Luke get married and have a kid, which is so opposite how the Netflix series ended. I actually ache with how Netflix chose to end season one due to the storyline between the two (spoiler, in Netflix, there is conflict as Jessica finally reveals to Luke that while she was under the influence of Kilgrave she killed Luke’s wife. On the other hand, that was the final act that allowed her to fall out of his spell. Wait, does that also happen in  The Pulse and I just haven’t gotten there yet? So much going on!). 

So anyway, I can’t review this very well. Just I liked it. The adult nature of the comic book, the non superhero hero, the cracks a jokes about S.H.I.E.L.D., Avengers and others. I’d like to find more types of graphic novels like this. I’ve already asked the one GN nerd I know to recommend something and he has suggested Queen and Country. Anyone have other suggestions?

This won’t count towards my Goodreads challenge of 60 books in 2016, but I wanted to write a quick ditty about it anyway. About a year ago I read most of the Mercy Watson series to the first-grader. She liked them so-so. I liked them more, probably. But you know what I really like? Kate DiCamillo (a hero in children’s literature, seriously) has written a spin-off to Mercy Watson.

Francine Poulet Meets the Ghost Raccoon is an incredibly fun book with a great message about being knocked down, meeting adversity and conquering fears. Life lessons disguised in a funny, silly story (What. I’m a Mom. I’m all over that shit). Oh yes, and at the end you meet the pig who loves to eat buttered toast. I found it randomly when the kid and I field-tripped it down to the big library in DT Seattle. I read it quickly while she was reading other stuff. And convinced her we should check it out to take home.

Even though she sometimes says she “hates reading” (and then I gasp and say, “how DARE you!”) it’s lovely that books I had to read to her last year she’s now reading by herself. She finished it finally tonight and we discussed our favorite parts (you already read it?? she asked in amazement) She enjoyed the book very much and told me her favorite part (when Stella gives Francine some candy). I shared with her mine (when Francine gains the confidence to meet the ghost raccoon a second time). Then she begged to play a video game. So it goes.

Recommended to: First-grade girls who like reading about animals, fairies and magic tree houses.

Title: Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand In the Sun and Be Your Own Person

Author: Shonda Rhimes

Published in: 2015

Read in: March 2016

I regret not keeping up with this plan of writing something about every book I read when I actually read it. We’re getting back into the books I read in March and now I have to dig into my brain a little deeper.

Let’s start with this … I took over the as editor of MSN TV in the fall of 2013. During that time a few things happened. I started watching more TV. I started reading a lot more about showrunners, producers and television actors. I got hooked on “Scandal.” And I noticed Shonda Rhimes was in the news a lot. Actually, no, I didn’t notice. She just was, and because I started focusing on TV in 2014, it didn’t occur to me that there was a time when she wasn’t in the news a lot.

Well, I stand corrected. I know now how much she had to overcome to begin showing up for interviews. Speaking at panels. Accepting invitations to things. Saying Yes.

3 other things I learned about Shonda:

• All of the words she couldn’t say herself because of these fears and insecurities, she gave to the character Cristina Yang on Grey’s Anatomy, which makes Sandra Oh leaving the series all that much more bittersweet.
• She acts like me at PTA meetings, if I went to PTA meetings, which I don’t. Who the heck has time to make brownies from scratch? Shonda doesn’t, and neither do I (unless I want to, which I do, for my family). That’s why I always volunteer to bring bottled water.
• She can write a commencement speech in like 15 minutes.
• Bonus, she does a Wonder Woman stance to make her feel more confident. I tried this. It kinda works.

Recommended for: TGIT Fans

Title: Station Eleven

Author: Emily St. John Mandel

Published: 2014

Read: April 2016

It’s been a very slow spring for reading. My usual reading time, aka, the commute, has been cut short because I find myself doing more laptop typing than Kindle reading. My nighttime reading time has been replaced with TV watching and other such sundries (like recipe searching!). Also, quite simply I haven’t found many good books that I’m dying to start. Even though the ones I’ve been reading this year have been pretty great. I’m still gonna try to do this review every book I read thing, though, starting with this one I couldn’t put down by Emily St. John Mandel.

Let’s get one thing straight. Should some apocalyptic event occur during my lifetime, based on the novels I’ve read over the years, I’ve pretty much accepted that I’m going to be one of the first to go. I just don’t have the survival skills needed to be good at tough-living. I don’t know how to shoot a gun. My knife skills are sub-par. I can’t drive stick. Crossfit has gotten me a little bit stronger, but I’m not sure that the ability to do a lot of burpees is going to help save my hide when the poop hits the fan. Sorry, dear family, you are on your own.

So why am I fascinated by post-apocalyptic stories? I wish I knew. Station Eleven starts slow with a variety of separate storylines. The book starts prior to a sudden flu pandemic that wipes out the majority of the human race. A famous actor, Arthur Leander, suffers a heart attack while on stage just hours before Toronto is hit with a flu pandemic that wipes out the majority of the human race. Years later you also meet Kristen, who once worked with Arthur (on the same production, his last production). You meet the man who tried to save Arthur’s life, Arthur’s ex-wives, all the while wondering how these storylines relate to one another. Continue reading, connect the dots and be rewarded with a suspenseful confrontation and aftermath that makes you wish you had one more chapter to read.

Also, memo to self: Make sure the kid knows how to drive a manual transmission. Maybe give her some cross-bow training. You never know.

Title: You’re Never Weird on the Internet (almost)

Author: Felicia Day

Published: 2015

Ready: January 2015

So the back story. I like Felicia Day, like was really into her Web stuff. When I went to Comic Con a few years ago I got myself on the Geek & Sundry PR list so I could get into their party and spy on her and her cool friends. I was the total nerd in the corner, but, I mean, I was a nerd in a room full of nerds. That is actually cool. I also went to just one panel at Emerald City Comic Con another few years ago, and of course it was hers.

I mean, this song:

And, the husband didn’t know he was a Felicia Day fan, but watched Eureka and still watches Supernatural (ha! just outed you, honey) and didn’t make the connection that this cool girl I kept talking about was actually the same cool girl that was in these shows that he watched.

So when her memoir came out, he watched some interview about her and then was relaying back to me facts and stuff about her life and I’m like, yeah! I know she was home-schooled. Cool, right. I didn’t know she was a violin prodigy, and graduated from college early with a double degree in music and math. Cool again!

Two personal chapters, around her harrowing work schedule that caused extreme anxiety (or was it the other way around?), and Internet negativity and her experience with #GamerGate. It has always astounded me the negativity people can be when sitting behind a monitor. I mean, Felicia Day, people. How much sweeter, cuter, nerd-friendlier can you be? And when she describes the horrific things she went through (getting Doxx’d, getting restraining orders against stalkers) … gah! Mean people suck.

With the exception of the chapters I just mentioned, this book was a lighthearted look into all that she’s done for people who love nerdy stuff. Personally, because the husband and I am also a fan of her non-Web stuff, I would have taken a glimpse into her non-Web life. You kind of want to hear a few fun anecdotes about Hollywood. Like, how she met Joss Whedon. Some background on “Dr. Horrible.” She is such a non-name dropper, it’s a bit of a letdown. (Your “friend” from “How I Met Your Mother,” the one who got you access to the stage so you could borrow a plant for “The Guild”? That was Allyson Hannigan, right? Because, you know, Buffy, right? AMIRIGHT?)

Recommended for: Fans of Felicia, Buffy, Supernatural and Geekdom.

Book review number 6, the final book I read in January.

Title: Marcelo in the Real World

Author: Francisco X. Stork

Published: 2011

Read: January 2016

Here’s the quick back story on this one … my friend Kate (Kate who first recommended The Hunger Games to me and I am forever in her debt for that), recommended a long long time ago. How do I know? I wrote it down in OneNote in a file I titled “Books from Kate.” Late last year she recommended it to me again and so I finally added it to my library list.

Not gonna lie. I put it down a few times within the first 25% of the book or so. Marcelo is a 17 year old entering the summer before his final year in school. He shows characteristics of Asperger’s, with a knack for reading and memorizing scripture and internal soundtrack playing in his mind. Rather than spend the summer at his special school doing something he loves (working with horses), he finds himself working in the mailroom of the law firm that his father co-owns.

I kept putting it down because of the people that Marcelo meets. People are mean! But the interesting part is that the author adds in additional elements: a legal case, a smart and talented girl in the mailroom. Interesting discussions on faith and God via a Rabbi who acts as a teacher and therapist. What won me over is how Marcelo’s innocence plays into recognizing right and wrong in a topsy-turvy world.

Nice and smooth prose. Easy to read (it is a young adult book). While the antagonistic characters were fairly formulaic, Stork provided enough back story to make it interesting. And the good guys (Jasmine and Rabbi Heschel come to mind) were full of thoughtful dialogue that added to the richness of Marcelo’s character.

Recommended to: Young Adult fans

Title: The Scam

Authors: Janet Evanovich & Lee Goldberg

Published: September 2015

Read: January 2015

Here is the premise of this series. Kate O’Hare is a by-the-book, bad-ass FBI agent tracking down a con artist Nicolas Fox, who’s life revolves around elaborate heists and scams. She catches him, and then in a series of events that unfold in the first book, the pair end up working together clandestinely to take down bad guys using the same con-artist/illegal tactics that special agents are not supposed to do.

Anyway, this is the fourth in the series that is dependable for its comic writing, elaborate hoaxes, excellent chemistry between Fox & O’Hare (you get it, right, FOX and o’HARE), and even though I suspect things will work out in the end it’s still a little bit (not a lot) suspenseful. Kate is my kind of protaganist. No nonsense, ass-kicking, junk-food eating who holds her own against, well, everyone. Also love the great side characters (notably, Kate’s father, Jake, former Special Forces).

So, it’s quick reading. Easily finish a book in a day. I recommend starting from the top (The Heist) to get the full experience. Warning on Book #4: Cliffhanger, which is a bummer because I’ve caught up to the publishing of the series and will have to wait to find out what happens. Boo.

Recommended for easy beach (or bus) reading

Title: So That Happened

Author: Jon Cryer

Published: 2015

Read: January 2015

I read an excerpt of this in “The Hollywood Reporter” last year (a funny story about Charlie Sheen) and knew this would have to go on my list of to-reads. While “Pretty in Pink” is probably my third favorite John Hughes YA films (after TBC and SC of course), Duckie has always been one of my favorite characters. And what a treat this memoir is because Jon Cryer dedicates TWO chapters to his time playing him.

This is a very fun read, particularly because, while Cryer is recently known as the Emmy-winning Alan Harper from the now defunct “Two and a Half Men”, prior to that he found success on Broadway and, as I’ve learned, a lot less success (but at least he found work) in film and TV.

Now let’s take a break from this review for a little personal anecdote. I told the husband what I was reading and he sorta rolled his eyes. We used to watch “Men” together back when it was good (which, reading the memoir, I’ve determined that “it was good” back when Charlie Sheen was sober). But we did get tired of it and moved on.  But the husband was like, Jon Cryer, whatever. And then when I mentioned to him that blip about how when Ashton Kutcher joined the “Men” cast there was an awkward moment Jon was trying to avoid on account of Jon having dated Kutcher’s then wife back in the 80s (yes! these are the types of fun stories included in the memoir!), the husband was like, “oh yeah they were in a movie together. He played a photographer.” and i was like A-HA! You DID see Jon Cryer movies! And finally he readily admitted to having seen a few. I don’t know why I felt vindicated. Maybe he shouldn’t have rolled his eyes in the first place.

Anyway, good stories from Cryer. My particular favorite is his recalling of a stage performance of Sondheim’s “Company” at Lincoln Center, which he performed along with Stephen Colbert, Martha Plimpton, Neil Patrick Harris and Patti LuPone, among others. I love this story because the talented NPH ALSO brings up this experience in HIS memoir, which I read last year and it was enjoyable to read both actor’s perspectives. Mainly, Cryer thought he was woefully unprepared and everyone else was great. NPH believed HE was woefully unprepared compared to the other cast. All can agree that Patti LuPone was amazing.

I also appreciated Cryer’s take on his character Duckie. It would be an easy out to speculate this crazily dressed, animated, somewhat effeminate and just plain different high school student is gay (which, according to the memoir, Molly Ringwald alludes to many years later). It would be more accurate to follow Cryer’s beliefs, that he’s just who he is, and there are young men (and women) at that age of high school who are dealing with a mix of what society expects of them, what they truly want to be, and Duckie expressed himself as an individual (and perhaps on a subconscious level, was playing himself in some ways). Not everyone will be the typical boy. I think it was smart of Cryer to recognize that. I guess that’s why they pay him the big bucks.

Recommend to 80s teen movie fans, or TV fans.

Title: Why Not Me? 

Author: Mindy Kaling

Quick Summary: Follow up to her first book, Kaling, now the creator, writer and star of her own sitcom, shares funny experiences with her family and friends and navigating Hollywood as only she can.

Very quick, no surprises. She covers all the stuff I expected she would: work, love life, family and a few funny Hollywood stories in between. All of her favorite friends are here! Her Mentor! Her soup snake, B.J. Novak.  She’s honest, too, sharing her thoughts around announcing the Emmy nominations and coming to the realization she wouldn’t be on that list. It was an honest moment that she could have blown off as “whatever” but she shares the panic, sadness that comes with not getting what you didn’t realize you wanted.

This was a lot of fun to read. What needs to be recognized in awesome chicks like Mindy is the hard work they do to get to where they are (actually the hard work memoir is her first one) vs the idiot celebrities who are famous for no good reason.

In the book Kaling quotes Holden Caulfield. Cheesy, yes, but this is feeling I often have with favorite authors.

Just one coffee date. One happy hour, it’s all I ask. Mindy is definitey in this category. BTW, this section, Soup Snakes, is about B.J. They are soup snakes, and I suppose if you were a fan of “The Office” you would get the reference.

Respect the women who have worked their butts off to get where they are and have what they have. This girl’s work schedule is insane. She told me so in this book.

4 stars. Recommend? Yes to Mindy Project or Office fans, to women of immigrant parents, to fans of funny women and funny memoirs. People who have read and enjoyed Bossypants, Yes Please or others like that.

This is review #3. How am I doing? Harder than I thought it would be to do. Maybe I should read less.