Book Review: "Sickened: The True Story of a Lost Childhood"

I'm going to throw a disclaimer out there right here and now: if you're easily triggered by child abuse, TURN BACK NOW. DO NOT READ THIS REVIEW NOR THE BOOK. This is not a happy-go-lucky read (who would've assumed that anyway, given the title?) -- no, no. This is a horribly harrowing tale -- a heartbreakingly true story -- that will make you sick that a human being could actually inflict this -- ON PURPOSE -- on an innocent child. And not just on one -- MULTIPLE CHILDREN.

This book is about a little known mental disorder called munchausen by proxy, and a mother who took it out on so many innocent children.

Munchausen, in and of itself, is a mental illness that manifests as an individual who will chronically -- pathologically -- feign illness in the pursuit of sympathy and attention. There's a wide spectrum of severity a person might go to the lengths of in this endeavor, but more serious cases will drive an individual to actually seek out medical help for their mystery ailments -- but, unlike a hypochondriac, who doesn't actually have anything wrong with them, the munchausen patient will go to great lengths to manifest specific physical symptoms in order to obtain unnecessary tests, medications, surgery, you name it. Because they find ways to provoke actual symptoms, they're not dismissed in the way hypochondriacs are; rather, they fly under the radar as a doctor will fall for test after test to try and diagnose these mystery illnesses. And as soon as one doctor may hit a brick wall and give up, the patient will just pick up anew with a different doctor and start the process all over. You would not believe the lengths people would go to as a result of this psychiatric disorder.

Now, in munchausen by proxy, this is a disorder that affects a caretaker -- typically, a mother. The difference is that this patient doesn't make themself out to be the ill one -- no, no. This is where hte "by proxy" part of the name comes in. Generally they'll start with a child, usually a very young one who doesn't know any better, and will start to shape them into the sick child they want them to be. They may intentionally injure the child; they might poison them; they might do any number of atrocious things, all to provoke symptoms in what would otherwise be a normal child, but for whatever sick reason, the parent wants to make their child out to be ill and abnormal for their own emotional gain. Some children end up so badly abused in this manner that they end up dying as a result... and it just looks like a medical mystery. The parent starts again on another child. Until a trained professional who knows what to look for spots specific patterns happening over and over with multiple children of a specific parent, the person may easily get away with it unnoticed by the medical profession and never end up so much as persecuted for what they've done, despite all the world of hurt they've so needlessly caused.

The author of this book, Julie Gregory, was one such victim.

The book follows the story of Julie from as far back as she can remember, and even at such a tender age, you start to witness various forms of abuse unfolding and this poor little girl not having so much as a clue as to what's being done to her, or even that any of it's wrong. One of the earliest clues that something is very off with this family: on a very early remembered car trip, her mother offers her a mini sucker from inside her matchbook. Julie comments on her excitement at seeing the double row of suckers lined up in there, but it isn't until she starts describing the consumption of this 'treat' that you realize that, with no uncertainty, this poor child literally IS eating matches and doesn't have a clue that they're not some kind of candy. (And thus we see probably one of the earliest examples of how her mother managed to coerce symptoms out of an otherwise fine child....) As horrifying as that example is? It's only the very tip of the iceburg of what lies between the covers of this book. That was actually a tame example. Without giving too much away in the way of details for those of you who do wish to read the book, the mother DOES go so far as putting her child electively through unnecessary surgery, amongst so many other things. And that's just the MBP end of things -- this isn't counting the other numerous abuses that Julie is forced to endure at home.

So much of my subconscious desperately wanted to believe that this book were a work of fiction, a horror novel, but not real....and every time I had to remind myself that this did, in fact, happen to a real, live, living and breathing human being..... I couldn't help but lose a little more faith in humanity that someone out there could be as horrible as that to another person. And the knowledge that this is just one girl's story -- there's probably hundreds, if not thousands of others out there who've suffered silently at the hands of such torment as well. It boggles the mind to even try to grasp how a person could even live with themself after inflicting such a thing on another human, and yet, the fact that there's a name for this condition goes to show just how many people there must be in the world who're guilty of doing such things. With no pun intended on the title, one can't help but feel a little sick thinking about these things.

This story is terribly unsettling, but eye-opening for sure that there's a problem like this existing in our world that very few people are able to see if it happens in front of them. One can only hope that by telling her story, that Julie's bravery will help others come forward and share their stories as well in hopes that MBP will become a more widely-recognized form of abuse that will not be tolerated if detected, and hopefully many lives can be saved and spared. As jarring of a story as this is, I have to rate it a 5 out of 5 stars, because it's SO well-told to where it puts you right in Julie's shoes, and your heart aches for everything she's gone through.

Book Review: "Me and Earl and the Dying Girl"

Similar in style to The Fault In Our Stars, Me and Earl and the Dying Girl is another teen/YA story dealing with the topic of teenage cancer. The difference in this case being, it's told in a bit of an off-color style, without any huge lesson to be learned, or teary-eyed love story to be had, or any of the stuff that made up TFIOS.

This is the story of Greg Gaines; amateur film-maker, and his desire in life to remain politically neutral when it comes to the delicate ecosystem known as high school. His partner-in-crime (or rather, partner-in-film-making) Earl, despite being from entirely different worlds, gets dragged along for the ride. Greg is basically your typical all American overweight dorky teen boy, whose exploits with girls are quickly made known -- as well as all the ways he's managed to fail with all of them.

That is, until one of them later down the road ends up developing cancer and his mother forces him to go rekindle a friendship.

It's an awkward, bumpy ride. Greg isn't exactly thrilled with this plan; nor is Rachel, the girl in question. Yet they manage to forge a sort of friendship, especially when she gets made privvy to the top-secret library of films that Greg and Earl have made over the years that have never been seen by another set of human eyes aside from their own. She becomes their biggest fan -- and as her illness progresses, her best friend rallies for them to make a special movie, just for her.

Cue many failed attempts at making this film. They try it in a variety of different styles, none of which pan out into turning into much of anything worthwhile. The harder they try, the worse the attempts become, until Earl's sudden realization hit that they haven't been truly trying to make a film about this girl... they'd revolved it around themselves the whole time without meaning to, while never truly getting to know the girl known as Rachel, and before they know it, it's too late.

There's no sappy love story here. Not even a proper coming of age story. And yet, there's a certain truth that rings through in this novel that makes it feel authentic, as if this were a true story that really happened to someone. There's something to be said for that.... and for that, I rate this book a 4 out of 5 rating. I'd say it's well worth giving this one a read.

Book Review: "Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang"

Chelsea is back and better (badder?) than ever! I loved the other book of hers I read, which I previously reviewed on this blog, Are You There, Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea so I had high hopes for this one... I was not disappointed! I think I liked this one even more, in fact.  C'mon, the book starts off with its first chapter being about her childhood addiction to compulsive masturbation. What's not to love? ;) You can probably take a good guess at the type of topics the rest of the book contains just from there. I love raunchy humor, so this is right up my alley. If you're not into that, steer very clear of this book or you'll likely get offended. Otherwise, kick back, get yourself a drink, and enjoy! 5 stars!

Book Review: "Seriously...I'm Kidding"

I'll admit; after the last Ellen book I read (which has the prior review on this blog), I was more than a little hesitant to read this one. But I plowed on, and I'm happy that I did, as this book was much more well-written than its predecessor. It's still written as a collection of short stories -- some seemingly stream of consciousness -- but unlike the last book, it doesn't feel so A.D.D. that it almost seems like you're reading the ramblings of a cocaine addict. (I mean no disrespect whatsoever to Miss Ellen.) This has a much smoother pace, and for it, I was able to appreciate the humor much more and just all around enjoyed the book a lot more, and for that, it wins a 4 star rating!

Book Review: "The Funny Thing Is..."

I love Ellen. I really, really do. So it was my assumption that I would also adore anything she wrote. Well..... her humor doesn't really carry over to the written word quite as well, let me tell you, unless you prime yourself for it. If you base this on writing style alone, it's very A.D.D. and jumps all over the place. Now, if you sit and imagine it in her voice, it regains some of the funny and some of her style, but just on its own, it seemed a bit lackluster to me. Which was a disappointment, as I've been waiting for over two years (!!!) for my local library to finally have this book on its shelf. It's ALWAYS checked out, so I'd falsely assumed it must be one of the greatest books ever written. (Or something.) And while indeed, it's not terrible, it just... I don't know, it feels like it's missing something. I can't put my finger on exactly what that something is, though.

I'm rating this book 3 out of 5 stars.

Book Review: "A Life In Stitches - Knitting My Way Through Love, Loss, and Laughter"

For any of those of you who may not know me personally, I'm going to let you in on a little secret: I love to knit. No no, I mean really love to knit. And I'm blessed that I'm in a position where I can earn money doing what I love. Now, that said - finding this book was an absolute act of serendipity, as it was beside another, completely unrelated book on the shelf that I was actively seeking out, but the second I saw this one, I knew I had to grab it too. And what a sweet surprise I was in for!

First off, the author is from Oakland, California. Read as...less than 20 minutes away from me. O_O That was new for me; usually the closest a local author to me comes is about San Francisco! This was immediately followed by the crazy thought of omg, how come I don't know this person? We should totally be friends! Well, while I'm not crazy enough to go out of my way to seek her out or anything, the more I read about the stories of her life, the more and more I realized they closely mirror my own, and it almost felt like reading about a slightly older version of myself. It was the strangest feeling, but a really good one, needless to say. It was almost like feeling validated in my hobbies of choice; seeing that yes, there truly ARE others out there who not only partake in them, but succeed very much with them!

So enough about me. Back to the book. This is totally a feel-good book, and while it definitely helps to also be a knitter, I'm sure you could probably still get a lot out of it even if you don't personally know a thing about the craft. These are stories all throughout different stages of the author's life, from childhood onward. And this isn't your grandma's story: this is about a modern woman, living with her domestic partner, making her way in the world through not-so-traditional means, while at the same time, when you think about it.... what could possibly be more traditional than knitting and writing in the big scheme of things? There are tons of parallels of old and new throughout all the stories in the book.

Maybe I'm just a nerd, but I thoroughly enjoyed the hell out of this book. :) 5 stars for you, Rachael Herron!

Book Review: "The Four Dorothys (Drama!, #1)"

With a title like The Four Dorothys, my initial assumption was the book was likely about drag queens. (No really...for those not in the know, Judy Garland is more or less the patron saint of the LGBT world. The rainbow flags are even a nod to her.) Well, this book isn't about that (although I wouldn't have been opposed if it were -- quick, somebody write one! ;)). No, this story is about an ill-fated high school production of The Wizard of Oz that was doomed from the moment it left the gates, and ended up in complete and total utter sabotage. Without giving too much away, this story quickly becomes that of a whodunnit? nature. It's well-done though, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I also give props to all the chapter titles being named after different Broadway shows. (I literally squealed when I saw one was named after The Boy From Oz.) Even if you're not a Broadway geek like me, you'll probably still enjoy it even if some of the more subtle references sail over your head; the story itself is still phenomental. Big 5 stars for this one!

Book Review: "dancergirl"

dancergirl by Carol M. Tanzman is somewhat of a tale of warning of the perils of becoming a viral internet star. Just how easy it is for things to spiral out of control, for people to become obsessed, deranged, and a dangerous stalker...

It is also a mystery and suspense novel, as our heroine/victim Ali tries to figure out who's doing this to her, all whilst the acts becoming increasingly worse and far more disturbing with every step, perpetually ruining Ali's life. In our modern digital age, this is something that can, and does, happen quite frequently and is almost enough to be classified as a horror story for anyone who has ever uploaded a video of themself to the internet. For all the good that our modern age brings us, it brings along with it very real dangers lurking in the dark corners, and this book is very much a reminder of that.

That said, this story is exquisitely told and I couldn't put it down. 5 stars!

Book Review: "Let It Snow - Three Holiday Romances"

I'm sure you guys all remember my Lauren Myracle phase, where I barrelled through just about every book she wrote in a few months' time. ...Except this one, because our library's copy was ALWAYS checked out. Well, I finally got a hold of it (a couple of years later), and while I was anticipating it to be your typical, run of the mill collection of short stories, it does fit that bill...but more.

You see, these aren't just any holiday-themed short stories. You don't realize it going into it on the first one, but every detail is important, as all three of these stories are intertwined and connected (and pulled together especially at the end of the third story). It's done VERY expertly and really cutely, in my opinion. I found myself starting to fangirl every time the stories started to crossover on each other and link together, and it happens with increasing intensity the further it goes on, until you just feel like you know this close-knit small community in full. A nice quality to embody in a Christmas-themed story, if you ask me. Ranking this one 4 stars!

Book Review: "Trust Me, I'm Dr. Ozzy"

When you think of Ozzy Osbourne, chances are the first images brought to mind are those of Black Sabbath and the Prince of Darkness........ not of a raging hypochondriac who was given his own weekly advice column, am I right? However, crazy as it sounds, it happens -- and the questions, his answers, and his own running commentary (along with charts and quizzes at the end of the chapters) fill the pages of this book in a wonderfully hilarious (if irreverent) way. Just about everything under the sun is touched upon at some point or another, but one that shows up over and over is the topic of drug use -- and Ozzy's insistence that everybody ought to try and quit drugs and alcohol (which was surprising to me that Ozzy of all people is so gung ho about this! Good on you, mate!) is peppered along with anecdotes and self deprecation. And... as it turns out, Ozzy is a huge hypochondriac and it's likely part of why the man's still alive all the crazy shenanigans he's pulled over the years. Good to know. ;) If you need a good laugh, this book has you covered -- even if you're not a fan of Ozzy's music, you can appreciate his sense of humor! 5 star review for Dr. Ozzy!

Book Review: "Diva (The Flappers, #3)"

I know I should have read this series in sequence, but I just couldn't help myself -- I was so in love with the cover of this one that I read it first. ;) (I'm going to backtrack and read the other two though.) Anyhow, Diva, the third book in Jillian Larkin's The Flapper series, is a perfectly marvelous romance/drama/mystery about the 1920's, right in the height of the same era as The Great Gatsby. The author certainly did her homework in terms of fashion, slang, popular locations, you name it... I was absolutely thrilled to see this. The book is really about three miniature stories all in one book, all intertwined and running parallel to each other. Each chapter is labeled with which woman it involves, so once you realize that, the book is far easier to follow. I don't know how much I can truly say here about the plot without giving it all away, so I'm going to just leave that part a mystery for you to find out if you should choose to read it. ;) Anyway, I absolutely adored this book and I'm rating it 5 stars!

Book Review: "Dean & Me (A Love Story)"

There've been few comedy partnerships like that of Dean Martin & Jerry Lewis in the 20th century, and even fewer of them that were as genuine as this duo. Take a stroll down memory lane through the good times (and the bad times) with Jerry as he remembers his partner with the loving adoration that still lives on in his heart half a century later. The book details everything up from the beginning of when the two met all the way straight through to Dean's death, and everything in between for this star-studded ride. There's so much in here that Jerry shares with us about what life with Dean was really like; a side of him that the public never got to see until now. I took my time reading this to really savor everything Jerry had to say and truly enjoyed every minute of it. Rating this one a huge 5 stars! :)

Book Review: "Go The Fuck To Sleep"

Most kids enjoy a good bedtime story (or ten) to fall asleep to. Ah, those were the days... Well, when was the last time you saw a bedtime story aimed for grownups? Parents, specifically? Oh yes....that's where Go The Fuck To Sleep comes in. Beautifully illustrated, this book is just as much eye candy for the reader as it is filled with clever prose illustrating the frustrations of being a parent. You needn't actually have children to understand the humor; anyone who's so much as had to babysit a child even once will be able to appreciate this book. You needn't even head to the library to hear this fun little tale; just head on over to Youtube, where there's multiple celebrity readings of it. ;) Seriously though, this has got to be one of my new favorite things. Big five stars!

Book Review: "The Lolita Effect"

The Lolita Effect is basically a psychology/sociology book outlining the social fallacies surrounding the sexualization of girls today at younger and younger ages, fueled by the media perception, and yet all its implications seem to be lost on most people. This book outlines just how damaging this mindset is, as well as suggestions on how to help counter it. While by no means is it the end all cure for this problem, it's a good start. That said, most of the information in this book would have better fit as a website than a full book on the topic, where open discussions about the subject could be held. Nevertheless, it's sort of an interesting read if it's a hot-button topic with you. Rating this one 3 out of 5 stars.

Book Review: "Real Live Boyfriends (Yes, Boyfriends, Plural. If My Life Weren't Complicated--I Wouldn't Be Ruby Oliver)"

The fourth (and what I assume to be, final) book of the Ruby Oliver series, and I now retract my earlier statement -- this is my favorite book in the series. All is not well in paradise for Ruby with Noel, or so she thinks. He goes away during the summer to NYC to visit his brother, Claude, and comes back acting distant and weird towards Ruby. Naturally, her anxiety leads her to think the worst. The reality: far worse than she could have ever imagined.

There's much drama filling the covers of this book, and well-written drama at that. I really enjoyed it though, and I sailed through the entire book in two and a half days -- I just couldn't put it down, I had to know where all the twists and turns were leading to! I highly recommend this book if you've been reading the series, and am rating it a high 5 stars :)

Book Review: "The Treasure Map Of Boys (Noel, Jackson, Fin,, Hutch, Gideon -- and me, Ruby Oliver)"

Having just finished reading the fourth book in the Ruby Oliver series, I have to admit, I think I like this one the best so far. It perfectly captures the complexities of high school relationships with friends, enemies, boys in general, adults, employers....you name it, it has it. It conveys exactly what it feels like to be caught in the middle of so many strongly conflicting emotions with different people and not knowing ideally how to handle any of it, even when your heart is in the right place and you're trying to do the right thing. All of this sounds very vague, but take my word for it. There's a lot to be said for this little book; so much so that I'm giving it a 5 star rating!

Book Review: "The Boy Book (A Study of Habits and Behaviors, Plus Techniques For Taming Them)"

The Boy Book (A Study of Behaviors, Plus Techniques For Taming Them) by E. Lockhart is the second book of the Ruby Oliver series. The girls are a little older in this story, but the drama still hasn't stopped -- or even really died down since the last school year. (Then again, does high school drama ever?) But now our Ruby isn't just pining away after one boy, oh no. Now there's about three. As you can imagine, her reputation can hardly handle such a thing at this point. And then there's the matter of still being a social leper carrying over from the previous year...

Far-fetched though some of the drama may sound, a lot of it seems to be spot on for being exactly how I remember high school drama working. It sounds ridiculous as soon as you're old enough to be past it, but while it's going on, it seems like your world is going to end because of these things happening. (Obviously, it doesn't really happen.) I think a lot of girls could relate to the sort of feelings that get deal with in this story, and with some of the tough decisions that have to be made here. Have to say, I'm already looking forward to seeing how the story future unfolds in the next book! :) Rating this one 4 out of 5 star.

Book Review: "The Boyfriend List: (15 Guys, 11 Shrink Appointments, 4 Ceramic Frogs and Me, Ruby Oliver)"

The Boyfriend List: 15 Guys, 11 Shrink Appointments, 4 Cermanic Frogs and Me, Ruby Oliver by E. Lockhart reads as though it were the much-convoluted dating diary of one Ruby Oliver, average teenager. Or not so average...

When Ruby begins to suddenly have panic attacks, her mothers signs her up to start seeing a therapist. Her first assignment is to make a list of every boy she's ever had any sort of romantic connection to whatsoever, and well...that's what starts the ball rolling for all the chaos that ensues.

The teenage tales of woe told here are not only relatable, but extremely humorous at the same time. It pokes fun at the drama of high school life without painting it as a charicature. My only complaint is that it's hard to keep track of who all's who in this story, but then again, isn't that how high school works as well? Rating this one 4 out of 5 stars.

Book Review: "Accidents of Nature"

When you hear mention of a book with a premise of severely handicapped teenagers going to summer camp, you must assume that the book is going to treat these individuals as some sort of freak show, and that the story will be a very depressing one.

Except, of course, when the author is one of them.

This story takes place in 1970, when handicapped individuals were more or less cast out of society as though they were lepers. But these kids converge year after year at Camp Courage; a state-funded summer camp for disabled teens. Some of them have severe handicaps -- cerebral palsy, mental retardation, autism, muscular dystrophy, amputees, parapalegics, quadrapaledgics, etc... Some, the 'walkie-talkies', appear normal outwardly, but suffer from things like asthma, diabetes, epilepsy, mental illness, etc. All are welcomed as equals to the camp. and nobody feels out of place, as everyone is here for similar reasons.

More astoundingly though is just how vividly colorful the personalities of each of these characters is. People often dismiss the disabled as not being all there and not really having feelings, lives, hopes, aspirations, dreams, life goals, crushes, you name it...but this story touches on all of that and portrays them as the real people that they are. The real live, breathing, flesh and blood people. And it's with this, and seeing that they're not a bunch of sad individuals but rather, teenagers like anybody else who o the best they can with the hand they've been dealt, that serves as somewhat of a jolting wake-up call.

I personally was very sucked in by this story on many levels and really enjoyed it. I'm rating it a 5 out of 5 stars. :)

Book Review: "Queer Kids: The Challenges and Promise for Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Youth"

Queer Kids: The Challenges and Promise for Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Youth by Robert E. Owens Jr., PhD is a comprehensive handbook/guidebook for teenagers and families of teens who are discovering their own sexuality among the LGBT spectrum. It covers important issues such as the coming out process, homophobia, the AIDS epidemic, etc. As it's more of a textbook than anything, it's written very dryly, but for anyone looking for informative purposes in discovering themselves, this is a good place to start. The back section of the book is loaded chock full of further LGBT resources to turn to as well. It'd be a useful tool to have in your arsenal, so if you're among the LGBT spectrum and a teenager, I'd highly recommend picking up a copy of this. 3 out of 5 stars.