bookaboutafamily

When Women Were Dragons | Kelly Barnhill

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This was a beautiful book. It was sweet and loving and the characters felt real, but it was written as a memoir so there were parts that were unresolved. I picked it up initially to review it for our Winter Read for next year, and I‘m so glad that I did. When Women Were Dragons will stick with me. #pop23 #bookaboutafamily (pictured are ducks from the hardware store for cute tax)

KarenUK, Cortg, OriginalCyn620, Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick, BookBelle84, jenniferw88, AshleyHoss820, Laughterhp, squirrelbrain, BarbaraBB, jlhammar, Ruthiella, IndoorDame, RaeLovesToRead

Ruthiella Adorable! 🦆❤️ 2y

Clwojick Just a big ol‘ pile of ducklings 😍😱 2y

squirrelbrain Cute! ❤️ 2y

OriginalCyn620 So cute!! 💛 2y

20 likes4 comments

alisiakae

Hey, Kiddo (National Book Award Finalist) | Jarrett J Krosoczka

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💧💧⬅️ That‘s me, turning into a puddle on the floor after reading this book. It is moving, real, and inspirational. We need books like this, for the kids out there who see themselves in Jarrett‘s story.

I grew up with 2 parents who loved and cared for me, but I always wondered about the ones whose blood I share. The pic above is when I met my birth father for the first time. My birth mother was a heroin addict, and died before I could meet her.

Cinfhen, BarbaraTheBibliophage

alisiakae Fills the prompt for #Booked2019 #comicorgraphicnovel but i also recommend it for anyone looking for a book for the #addiction prompt. It is definitely the best book I have read so far this year. 6y

alisiakae This also works for #pop19 #bookaboutafamily and #nonfiction2019 #somethingpersonal (edited) 6y

TrishB Great review 👍🏻 6y

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Cinfhen I‘m moved in so many ways by this post. Thank you for sharing 😘 6y

JennyM ❤️ 6y

Blaire Thanks for sharing a bit of your story. I think there are many kids who could use this book. 6y

Reggie Yeah, I totally cried on this one. Especially the panel right after his grandparents tell him what they tell him after they come back from Disney Land. Great review! 6y

alisiakae @TrishB Thanks! @Cinfhen 💖💖💖 Aww, thanks! 6y

alisiakae @Blaire I‘m always very open about my story, although it is a bit hard to talk about with such a small character limit! 😂 From what I hear from my grandparents and those who knew her, my birth mother was a lot like Leslie in the book: an intelligent, good person who made some bad decisions, & struggled with the consequences for the rest of her life. My BM got clean, but then injured her back, and became dependent on opiates. That is how she OD‘d. 6y

alisiakae @Reggie That was a hard one! That, and some of the panels when you could tell Leslie was using again after a period of being clean. And the Author‘s Note at the end should definitely not be skipped! 6y

Blaire @4thhouseontheleft I live in West Virginia now and I think your story and this book would be familiar to anyone living here. It seems people are no more than a degree removed from the impact of addiction. I appreciate your openness. Going to recommend to several friends who have adopted or are fostering kids who have similar backgrounds. 6y

111 likes2 stack adds11 comments

ferskner

Educated: A Memoir | Tara Westover

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I'm so behind on reviews!

This was definitely worth the hype! What struck me the most through was a constant feeling of "there but for the grace of God go I", since so much of her history is similar to mine (more in the comments)...

#ReadingWomenChallenge #bookfromthe2018readingwomenawardshortlist @thereadingwomen #pop19 #bookaboutafamily #mmdchallenge #bookyouvebeenmeaningtoread #litsyatoz @BookishMarginalia

ferskner ... I'm also the descendant of Mormon pioneers who settled the intermountain West. My parents were both raised in rural areas and small towns that I identified so much with the area Tara Westover is from. I have crazy conservative conspiracy theory relatives on both sides. I couldn't stop thinking "What if my grandmother hadn't been staunchly liberal? What if my parents hadn't gone to college?... 6y

ferskner ... What if they'd insisted on staying in their hometowns? What if what if what if..." Obviously, most people who do have those backgrounds don't end up like the Westover family, but if you've read the book you know that the majority of her extended family also saw her parents as radical fundamentalists, so I was constantly aware that a few choices by one person could have a devastating effect on generations... 6y

ferskner ...and the foundations of her life felt so similar to my own that it was impossible to not identify with a lot of it, and ruminate on how she ended up in such awful circumstances. Aside from those personal thoughts, I echo everyone else's praise for her writing and her ability to tell her story almost without emotion, which makes it all the more harrowing. 6y

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Kalalalatja Great review! I can only imagine how it must have been to read this with a similar family history 6y

Chrissyreadit Wow! You must have had some significant insight into her emotions and responses. 6y

ferskner @Kalalalatja @Chrissyreadit Thank you! After reading this over again today, I want to be clear that my crazy extended family isn't like hers. :) The vast majority of people in small conservative Western towns aren't like the Westovers. Her story is as shocking to me as to everyone else, but I could see how our family stories were the same until a certain point and how a parent's small decisions can change literally everything for their children. 6y

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