I went against my personal “no thank you” rule regarding James Patterson (actually twice – whoops – because I just listened to the Epstein book he hasI went against my personal “no thank you” rule regarding James Patterson (actually twice – whoops – because I just listened to the Epstein book he has his name attached to as well) due to the fact that . . . .
I’m always looking for something to occupy my brain while I’m walking and when I saw that this was a full cast audio (LOVELOVELOVE full cast audio productions) with Dolly herself narrating one of the characters, I was in.
My 2-Star rating is generous and based solely on enjoying listening to our national treasure talk to me a little bit. The story itself????
Yeah, not great Bob. Set your expectations REAL low for a typical, formulaic, Patterson grift with 100 three-page each chapters, a thimble’s worth of plot with hundreds of pages of filler that all gets tied up in a neat little bow right at the end. Also, I don’t know if one man did a lot of the male voices (and I am not expending the energy to look it up), but either they cast a bunch of dudes who all sounded exactly the same or this one guy didn’t bother changing his voice whatsoever even when it was multiple male characters having a conversation with each other. And why bother casting an actual country music singer as a country music singer, releasing an album containing the songs in the book and then have that person SPEAK the lyrics on the audiobook (over and over and over again) rather than sing them???
I’m looking at you “is it easy? no it ain't, can I fix it? no I cain't.” ...more
Before I even put a little blippy bit of nothing out about this one, let’s start with a pointer. If you, like me, find yourself literally 200+ people Before I even put a little blippy bit of nothing out about this one, let’s start with a pointer. If you, like me, find yourself literally 200+ people down on the waiting list for this new release that you already know you have zero chance of actually liking, don’t forget to check out Hoopla if that’s an option because it will provide you instant gratification before all the superfans over on the TikTok spoil things for you.
Okay, so a little bit of nothing about The Boyfriend. Good news is – I didn’t rage listen to this one. I mean, don’t get me wrong, it was still turrrrrible but I literally walked EIGHT AND A HALF MILES while blasting right through it. It also took me nearly up until the reveal to figure out the whodunit because there were plenty of red herring characters thrown in and Freida don’t give no effs about anything making any sense so you never know what the big ending might be. Speaking of – the additional “twist” or reveal at the very endy-end was quite satisfactory.
Now with some bad. The plot here is about the thirstiest girl in Manhattan who is so desperate for a boo thang that she hooks up with a doctor named Tom right after her friend gets murdered and she had been dating a doctor named Tom. So awful storyline is still awful. Way to keep on brand, Freida! Next, the male narrator sounded like he was 11, but he was supposed to be a horny 17 year old and that just made me feel like WUUUUUT????? If this is dude’s real voice, he should not be paid to read books for a living and if that is what he thinks high schoolers sound like, then maybe there’s a Dateline episode with his name written all over it. Which brings us to how terrible the quality of writing always is in these books. I’ve always called it “Wattpad caliber”, but my pal @sweet_tea_and_a_book nailed it by naming it the Shein of publication. I mean they are all baaaaaaaad, but we’re talking at some point Thirsty McThirsterson goes on a date, talks about dipping her fries in ketchup and then complains about being expected to go halfsies when she only had a salad. I mean ZERO quality control. And yet the lemmings lap it up. I truly don’t get it, but I also won’t stop listening either so I’m part of the problem and not the solution. ...more
As an oldster, I don’t get down with hour-long standup specials so I was only familiar with Ali Wong because she was on Fat Housewife (I’m fat, so donAs an oldster, I don’t get down with hour-long standup specials so I was only familiar with Ali Wong because she was on Fat Housewife (I’m fat, so don’t come at me – I am also so happy Katy Mixon has been on my television both as a bombshell and remained employable as a plus-size gal because I think she’s a real gem). This book informed me that Ali was also a writer on Fresh Off the Boat which was another sitcom I enjoyed watching before all things Housewives, 1000 lb people and 90 Day become the entire repertoire of my television experience. And after listening I now know she is totally raunchy and absolutely hilarious. Presented as sort of a how-to (or how-to-not, as the case may be) to her young daughters, this one will definitely have some declaring . . .
To which I say, just move on to the next. Not everything is for everyone. Personally I never knew I would find butthole, overgrown bush and camel toe jokes so funny, but there I was laughing out loud like a complete lunatic on my daily walks....more
I’m always looking for some easy listening for my walks, so last week when I saw the rumor mill was generating talk about Stassi Schroeder returning tI’m always looking for some easy listening for my walks, so last week when I saw the rumor mill was generating talk about Stassi Schroeder returning to reality TV via a stint on Lisa Vanderpump’s new(ish) Hulu show about her Villa and then perhaps getting a spinoff of her own my first thought was . . . .
Followed by “didn’t Stassi write a book????” Turns out she wrote two. I picked up this second one rather than the first to see exactly how Stassi had made a comeback after being “canceled.” Well, it turns out that this book appears to be her first attempt to regain what was lost and most likely was optioned since it was Covid and everyone and their dog was releasing books while we were all bored in the house and in the house bored.
The book I was actually looking for probably should have been written a couple of years from now if Stassi actually returns to the reality circuit A-list. Love her or hate her, I appreciate her embracing of her own main character energy and the fact that she was so willing to lean into being the villain. Maybe her Basic Bitch expounds on that stuff, but I’m just assuming that one was an attempt to prove “her brand” and that she has “so much more” than Stassi Schroeder to offer. After being canceled, I think she’s pretty aware that’s not the case and that “Stassi” actually IS the entire brand. Again, good for her! And also, how much money do you make from trademarking OOTD? Is it a lot? I don’t want to be a parasocial fan, but how did you (and your soon-to-be husband) have zero jobs and afford a mortgage????
This gets meh marks because it was pretty much just a Covid book. Talking about being isolated and missing out on her dream Italian wedding and being pregnant while in lockdown. Snore! Honestly, I only willingly to listen to my very best of friends talk about any of those topics and that’s just because I’m close enough to those people to tell them to shut the fuck up when I’ve had enough. She’s also mid-30s now and still using terms like “obvs” and “totes” and “cringe” . . . .
And god help you if you make every mention of “A F” a drinking game because you will die. She also was REALLY trying her best to make herself out to be the modern day Marie Antoinette (thank heavens she eventually stopped with that nonsense).
All in all this got me to lug my big ol’ dumper around for a few miles during my lunch break the past several days, but I was definitely ready for it to be over and move on to something else....more
This was making the rounds on The ‘Gram and I assumed it was an actual true-crime novel (I mean, how else do you excuse that fug cover? I a
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This was making the rounds on The ‘Gram and I assumed it was an actual true-crime novel (I mean, how else do you excuse that fug cover? I assumed Nina was a real person whose story I just hadn’t come across on Dateline or 20/20 yet) so I requested the audio version from the library for my #walkntalkwednesday
Upon starting I discovered it was fictional and oh be still my formerly Nancy Grace addicted heart. I also found out it was going to be delivered via full cast audio!!!!!
Oh but do I love a full cast audio. And oh did I love listening to this. It was just like all the Murder Shows I am so addicted to. You know the ones – you KNOW who did it, really EVERYONE knows who did it, but the laying out of exactly how the whodunit was done still keeps you glued to the TV. This was FAN.TAS.TIC. to listen to.
So my MIL’s book club keeps picking B.A. Paris books (worst book club ever, right???) and this was this month’s selection. I remembered I had an ARC gSo my MIL’s book club keeps picking B.A. Paris books (worst book club ever, right???) and this was this month’s selection. I remembered I had an ARC gathering dust somewhere so I figured what the hey – I ignored this long enough - why not check out the audio version from the library and give a listen whilst doing the weekend trudge? And now after having read two of this author’s awful stories, I can firmly say my opinion of her stuff is . . .
The premise here is a weak one. Leo gets a real steal of a deal on a house in a gated estate that would allow his long-distance gal pal Alice to not only move in with him, but also the financial freedom to retain her own cottage. Then she finds out the previous owner was murdered and not only is totally not okay with living there, but also becomes SUPER nutso about “solving” the murder – despite the husband being believed to be the one whodunit and who is also now dead.
Eeesh.
Not only was this one a real stretch when it came to Alice feeling the need to Scooby Doo the dead chick, but also alllllllllllllllllllllllllllll the drama surrounding Leo not disclosing he bought a murder house . . . while Alice insisted on continuing to stay there and making HIM leave WHEN HE WAS THE EFFING OWNER! So stupid. Not to mention becoming besties with the entire circle immediately and being the most Edna Kravitz-y new neighbor ever and thinking everyone a suspect aside from the obvious suspect AND what a lackluster ending.
(And on a personal note, there is a house that I am fanatically in love with that is for sale currently at about three times what we could ever purchase. I add about a half mile to my walk just to pass it every day and would be willing to Little Green Clean Machine the blood out of the carpets myself and repaint the splattered walls were it a murder house and meant I could afford to move in there so this plot REALLY didn’t work for me.)
This book had actually been on my TBR for ages, but it wasn't until the NYT 100 Best Books of the 21st Century list came out that I actually decided tThis book had actually been on my TBR for ages, but it wasn't until the NYT 100 Best Books of the 21st Century list came out that I actually decided to download it from the library for my #walkntalkwednesdays.
If you are like me and prefer your sociological studies books to be heaped in immersion techniques rather than a bunch of statistics and mumbo jumbo, I wouldn’t hesitate to add Nickel and Dimed to your TBR. While there are certainly gripes to gripe about (mainly in the form of the author conducting an experiment that she can easily remove herself from (and does) when the going gets rough), it is astounding that over 20 years after its original publication date how little salaries have changed while the cost of EVERYTHING has increased so dramatically.
I listened to this one and was fully invested throughout the duration of my daily walks. Highly recommend both Evicted as well as Nomadland if this topic interests you, as well as the film Motel Kids of Orange County for a heartbreaking look at families just trying to get by with little to no chance of ever really getting ahead. ...more
I spend a lot of time on my #walkntalkwednesdays bemoaning the fact that I can’t seem to find more humorists who deliver the quality of essays as My DI spend a lot of time on my #walkntalkwednesdays bemoaning the fact that I can’t seem to find more humorists who deliver the quality of essays as My Darling David. And then the library recommendation feature finally conjured this one up for me . . .
Due to the combination of the weather breaking, my reluctance to stop listening to this one and it being so short, I ended up starting and finishing it on one monstrous trudge. Ephron was the driving force behind no romance ever being as satisfying in real life as her movie versions were during my coming-of-age and now that I’m in the hellscape which is perimenopause she was here to guide me once again while I “come of age” . . . old age, that is LOL.
Coincidentally, I ended up following this one up with Sandwich - a book also about menopause that even gave a shout out to Ephron’s “Neck.” Highly recommended both! I will 100% be checking out Nora Ephron’s other non-fiction books and plan on giving Heartburn a re-watch as soon as I can find where it is streaming....more
Seriously. I do not get it. I’m really not trying to yuck your yum, because these are super easy for my squirrel brain to listen to while I’m getting my walk on, but why does she have such a following? These are not great books. The characters are all idiots, the plots are sort of nonexistent, the “twists” are either entirely predictable or are so lackluster that I could really give an eff by the time they come around. Whatever deal she made in order to get such a hype train behind her stuff was a brilliant business decision.
1.5 Stars. My advice if you haven't yet succumbed to the McFadden rabbit hole and this title is calling to you is to pick up the one by Ruth Ware with the same name and leave this behind....more
When this came out it really made its rounds all over Goodreads and The ‘Gram, but as someone who remains perpetually shocked that so many non-famous When this came out it really made its rounds all over Goodreads and The ‘Gram, but as someone who remains perpetually shocked that so many non-famous people get book deals to write their memoir I avoided it. But now I listen to audiobooks while walking every day and since I’m still more successful at nonfiction over fiction I decided to give it a go.
I had no idea this was considered a YA release – I just thought it was an autobiography and a quick Google said the author is an LGBTQ+ advocate. And while portions of this story might be exactly what some young adults need to read in order to come out/speak up/feel seen/etc. – this was sort of a struggle for me.
To start, Johnson’s middle-class upbringing and completely open and accepting family is one that often is not the norm for so many kids who fear coming out. Then there was the pretty clear-cut case of a Grover Gill schoolyard bully (who is probably serving time as an adult unless he got some serious help, because who the eff kicks the baby teeth out of a dang five year old???) that got morphed into some sort of gay bashing hate crime upon reflection. As a grown female, I really didn’t appreciate labeling football, basketball, baseball and even track “boy sports” – and I’m sure young women actively participating in them would take even more exception with that term. Also, Johnson did NOT invent the term “honeychild.” Nor did they write an original rap for the entire class that went a little something like “listen y’all and you will hear of the midnight ride of Paul Revere” unless Johnson's real name is Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Which leads to the most offensive bits of the book. The entire “name trauma” situation???? If you were anywhere near as bright as you claimed to be throughout this entire book HOW IN THE HELL DID YOU NOT KNOW YOUR FAMILY CALLED YOU BY YOUR MIDDLE NAME UNTIL YOU WERE EIGHT YEARS OLD?!?!?!? Ummm, every first day of school your teacher would have taken roll – calling out “George Johnson?” to which you would have responded “Here – but I go by my middle name Matthew.” And how is it TRAUMATIC to have a first name/middle name???? Equating that to a trans person’s dead name? Not cool. Even worse is calling out the dead name of a family member while telling the story of their transition – because apparently it is okay to do so when that person is no longer alive? Or maybe Johnson simply thinks it’s okay as there was also a selection about joining a fraternity (dear youngsters, they aren’t all as accepting as this one apparently was, so be careful if that is the path you choose) and eagerly swapping info that outed others without their consent. That is never okay.
Obviously this was not for me. But I will fight to my last breath for it not to be banned. Fuck those people....more
Like probably everyone else in the universe I picked this up for my “walk ‘n talk” because I wanted alllllllll the deets from Paris herself
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Like probably everyone else in the universe I picked this up for my “walk ‘n talk” because I wanted alllllllll the deets from Paris herself regarding the “school” her parents sent her to (after literally having her kidnapped in the middle of the night). She definitely delivered and massive kudos to her for continuing to use her fame and voice all the way to Capitol Hill to speak out in regards to the abuse that occurs at these places. Also mad props for being a part of the slippery slope which is my addiction to reality television and for the upcoming reboot of the wildly entertaining The Simple Life. I. CANNOT. WAIT.
This memoir proved that despite being born into privilege, Paris does have quite the mind for making money and was smart enough to make HERSELF the “brand.” (And yay for trademarking shit like “that’s hot” or “sliving” so others couldn’t capitalize on her quirk.) That being said, this book also made it clear that Paris is Paris’ #1 fan and most certainly drinks her own Kool Aid thinking she’s some sort of epic DJ who can demand $1,000,000 per outing due to her talent rather than her name and reputation for being a party girl. I mean, get your bag, but also let’s be serious. You ain’t Marshmello – you’re just pushing a button on a laptop.
And as a Housewives (of every city) addict, man did this prove that Kathy holds allllll the keys to the kingdom and no one in the family is willing to say anything against her. Fascinating.
I downloaded this audiobook to accompany me on my “Walk ‘n Talks” thinking I was a huge David Chang fan. Turns out? I’m exactly the type of fan he proI downloaded this audiobook to accompany me on my “Walk ‘n Talks” thinking I was a huge David Chang fan. Turns out? I’m exactly the type of fan he probably hates the most – the one who knows him from his “celebrity chef” status. My husband and I discovered this funny, authentic foodie during the pandemic when the only other more pressing issue of the day (aside from remaining healthy, which should really go without saying at this point) was the combo of “what’s for dinner” and “what are we going to watch while eating it?” Well, turns out we watched a lot of cooking/eating shows and since I was able to work from home/get groceries delivered with the press of a button I was willing to cook a lot more than chicken nuggs.
The husband and I quickly agreed that David Chang was one of our favorites – making quick work of Ugly Delicious and The Next Thing You Eat. We were thrilled to have him back on screen with Dave and Chrissy Dine Out (keep your opinions about his co-host to yourself, please, this is just a book review) and currently we watch Dinner Time Live while stuffing our faces.
All that being said, I am obviously a David Chang TELEVISION fan. I appreciate his passion for his art and the amount of namedropping he was willing to do, but other than Anthony Bourdain or Tom Colicchio I rarely had a clue who he was talking about since they were all from the food world. (Batali’s name got brought up, but thankfully only in the form of problematic kitchens. Chang did provide a book title to add to the TBR - Heat by Bill Buford when he worked under Batali – but of course that’s the one book my library system doesn’t have LOL). And other than him morphing ramen for white people twenty years ago from the packets you buy in bulk when you’re broke as a joke into everything from destination dining to a fast-food type of staple at the corner noodle shop, most of his ingredients and dishes went over my head (at least in part because I was listening and not looking at a print version). But more than anything this was waaaaaay too long. Nine hours is a real investment when the whole “plot” is somebody pretty much just talking about their rise to success developing/opening various restaurants and it was hard not to compare it to the brilliance of the backstory and charm of delivery which is Bourdain’s Kitchen Confidential. I did appreciate Chang’s openness about his bipolar/depression struggles, but at a risk of offending everyone, a chef with mental health issues also wasn’t a real shocker.
If you enjoy David Chang, you won’t like him any less from reading this . . . but I don’t know that you’ll really get to feel like you know him for anything more than his food either.
Yeah, I’m the wrongreader here. I felt absolutely zero connection to Clover and this story. It read like a Ted Talk on how to navigate the grieving process. I was hoping things would pick up in some sort of cutesie “Letters from Juliet” spin when the blast from the past romance angle was brought into the story, but even that fell flat. Glad it worked for so many, but it most definitely was not for me. ...more
And let me tell you, the Irish authors have it fucking down when it comes to delivering my desired melancholy. The story here is about – you guessed it, Juno and Legs. It’s the 1980s and these two impoverished outsiders growing up in estate housing befriend each other and we follow along until they are adults. It is bleak. There are no happy endings. It was just what I wanted. Even the face cover which I usually can't stand is an exception to the rule here. And the audio? Brilliant. ...more
But seriously though. This thing was making its rounds on The ‘Gram so of course I got big FOMO and requested it immediately from the library. At some point I have to learn there are lots of people who (a) are much kinder than I am, (b) obtain advanced copies and feel obligated to push them to the front and center on/near pub date, and/or (c) are not addicted to all things trash T.V. like myself. This is the story of three ladies who all get taken by “Ethan” – their online boyfriend – back in 2011. While I understand the intertubes and at-home sleuthing weren’t quite what they are today, that actually worked against me feeling for these women. Call me a victim blamer, but JFC at some point even if Ethan weren’t a total fabrication, it was REAL apparent . . . .
Releasing this book THIRTEEN YEARS after the fact certainly did it no favors either. Ethan was a little minnow in comparison to some of the Catfish stories that have been on my boob tube for almost the same amount of time....more
I’m always looking for something to listen to on my walks and while I’m attempting to dabble into books with more “plot” (term used as loosely as possI’m always looking for something to listen to on my walks and while I’m attempting to dabble into books with more “plot” (term used as loosely as possible), my go-to of choice remains the humorous essay. This popped up on the library’s recommendation feature and the title was truly a “you had me at hello” moment. But while I thought said title was going to be a little funny ha-ha regarding the awkwardness of coming into one’s own, unfortunately it was a pretty good descriptor for how I felt while listening.
I knew nothing about this author before checking this out (see above regarding what an easy mark I am when it comes to titles/covers). Had I known she was “Twitter famous” I may have steered clear. And while I did get a few chuckles here and there – I mean I truly thought this was going to be a gem when it opened with . . .
And then telling people that they better have Google handy if they don’t understand pop culture references – sadly those moments were few and far between.
Mainly because I am a Boomer who doesn’t feel someone’s personal reflections on growing up need to be over explained as to not offend. (And sometimes, there is no differential to begin with. Dear 18 year olds, you are bad at sex things. Universally. Zero gender, race, sexuality qualifiers are necessary.) The fact that this book had ALLLLLLLLL the monikers used in every sentence – while being presented by a cis, white, straight, privileged upbringing woman came off very much like the well-intentioned social justice warriors who really end up hurting rather than helping any particular cause. And the ending saying this isn’t an advice book, accompanied with some self-deprecation “oh could you imagine? #cringecringe” – while also pretty much advertising she writes an advice column left me shaking my head.
This one is for the people who think Hannah from Summer House is a real knee slapper instead of insufferable. ...more
Apparently Laurie Notaro is a fairly well-known name in the humorous essay game, but this was my first go ‘round with her stuff to accompany me on my Apparently Laurie Notaro is a fairly well-known name in the humorous essay game, but this was my first go ‘round with her stuff to accompany me on my walks. Now that I’ve read her?????
While no one will ever be able to hold a candle to my Darling David, my fascination with all things hoardy definitely made her my cup of tea : ) ...more
I was searching for a new, funny memoir to listen to and when this popped up as a recommendation on the Reddit I snagged it from the library real quick. I assumed the title was just a little funny ha-ha and that it wouldn’t really be her philosophizing, but it wasn’t so I’m a wrongreader (or wronglistener, as the case may be here). I’m just not a religious (or even spiritual) person so this wasn’t for me. Also, it appears it was intended to be some sort of almost devotional sort of workbook with various prompts, so other than the bonus of listening to her delightful delivery, it was really intended to be on paper rather than audio. ...more
Of course I never read it because why would I ever read things I own???? However, I am a big fan of humorous essays and my ride-or-die here is a true Southern belle so when I was perusing the Hoopla looking for an audiobook to check out I snatched it right up.
I had no idea of the original publication date having only purchased this a couple of years ago, but unfortunately it has aged like milk in the 20 years since it originally came out. Rivenbark was apparently one of a handful of original “mommy bloggers” who contributed to the local newspaper (insert youngsters asking what are those?!?!?!) back in the day. Had I known this collection would feature not only outdated material, but a heaping helping of “aint’ she sweet” tales of child-rearing I would have steered clear. I am more than happy to admit I only enjoy my own children . . . . and I made sure to NOT be one of those people who overshared every unremarkable thing both little Billy and Bobby did whilst marking their milestones.
Also, Neil Diamond is a natural treasure so anyone who dares besmirch his name can kindly kiss my grits. And also 2.0, every woman I know who is roughly my age wants to bang the bearded middle-aged Marshall Mathers (and some of us even named one of our cats after him) so take that, Boomer . . . .
(Oh and since this was on audio: I don’t know if it was because I am old and need to crank things up to eleventy to hear or the recording or the reader, but OH MY GOD THE MOUTH NOISES! Y’all know what I’m talking about, right? Like a smacky sort of noise while she opened her mouth before speaking? Barf!)...more
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