Home Feed
Home
Search
Search
Add Review, Blurb, Quote
Add
Activity
Activity
Profile
Profile
ravenlee

ravenlee

Joined March 2018

Homeschool mom trying desperately to read grown-up stuff (at least occasionally)
review
ravenlee
Pickpick

This book is what I wanted Angela Garbes‘ work to be: personal yet with research and numbers to back up the claim that modern motherhood is unsustainable. While a lot of the information is familiar, and there are no quick fixes offered here, Grose‘s work gives a solid foundation to the general unease and overwhelm so many of us feel. If you‘re interested in the economic value of caretakers, this one‘s a good piece.

review
ravenlee
Dating and Dragons | Kristy Boyce
post image
Pickpick

I didn‘t finish it in one day, but I did wrap it up this morning over tea. Just as good as the first, there‘s no connection between them (except a blink-and-you‘ll-miss-it cameo by an unnamed Riley). Quinn has baggage to deal with when she joins Logan‘s D&D group at her new school, and their brewing attraction could scuttle the whole game. Green flags abound in these stories! Just the pick-me-up I needed when the world is terrible.

31 likes2 stack adds
review
ravenlee
Dungeons and Drama | Kristy Boyce
post image
Pickpick

I read this entire book in one day. It was fun, low stakes but engaging, I loved the characters, and there was just enough teen angst to make it feel real. I‘m glad to have the next one ready to go. And I‘ve already talked it up to a friend who caught me reading it while kiddo danced.

40 likes1 stack add
quote
ravenlee
Dungeons and Drama | Kristy Boyce
post image

🥰 My first paying gig as a musician was with the Columbus Junior Theater, performing A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, the summer between sophomore and junior years of high school. The next year, CJT became Columbus Children‘s Theater, and that summer I played for their production of The Mystery of Edwin Drood. I LOVED playing for CJT/CCT!

review
ravenlee
Panpan

I finished this a week or two ago, and I‘ve already forgotten most of it. The first section was promising, but other writers have trod the same territory and done it better. I don‘t remember most of part two, and the self-help part three was boring and useless (yes, we should all learn to focus on breathing, that‘s revolutionary, thanks). I‘m sorry I wasted money, time, and shelf space on this one.

review
ravenlee
Pickpick

A very good essay collection, with a combination of travel stories, behind-the-scenes of the Rick Steves machine, memoir, cultural studies, and humor. It‘s not a travel guide, but more of a travel guide‘s raison d‘être. If you like the writing style of the Rick Steves guidebooks, you‘ll probably enjoy Hewitt‘s writing here. Recommended. And honestly, I liked this MUCH more than the RS travel writing book from a few years ago.

review
ravenlee
post image
Pickpick

Low pick. The story is important and worth telling, though I agree with other reviews that the way it‘s told could be better. It‘s repetitive in many places, and I feel like I wouldn‘t necessarily like Jones if I knew her in person. She makes some leaps of logic, and has expectations of people that sometimes exceed reality (and is then disappointed in them). But, what she‘s been through and how she fought back are worth sharing. 👇🏻

ravenlee Her appeal was denied by the first appellate court, but in December 2024 the Louisiana Supreme Court approved her appeal of that decision and sent it back to the appellate court for reconsideration. The suit is still active, and I‘ll keep an eye on it. Overall, the big-picture parts of this book are worth reading, but the personal parts maybe less so. 1w
31 likes1 comment
review
ravenlee
Bailedbailed

I couldn‘t connect with this on audio. I think because multiple essays/authors share readers, and it messed with my mind. I may try again in print sometime, but for now it‘s a DNF.

21 likes1 comment
review
ravenlee
post image
Pickpick

I love this series! I sat down last night and read the entire thing. Some serious revelations in this one! Now I have to wait for October when the final volume comes out, but then I can reread the entire series.

blurb
ravenlee
Dungeons and Drama | Kristy Boyce
post image

And hubby picked up my library #bookhaul today, too 🤷🏻‍♀️ I think I have a problem (actually, I have two: not enough time to read and not enough bookshelves)

blurb
ravenlee
Untitled | Unknown
post image

Did I need to order 20 new books from Book Outlet? Well, no, not really. Did I cross my fingers that this would arrive while hubby is at work so I don‘t have to explain why I‘ve received something like six book deliveries in the past week or so? Well, yes, of course. And then I tried to find places for them so they‘re accessible but not OBVIOUSLY new. Don‘t mind me being a little crazy over here. #bookmail is the best mail.

TheBookHippie 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 1w
catiewithac I see you and support you! 🤓 1w
Birdsong28 Totally understand this. I do it myself 😂📚📖 1w
Reggie Lol 1w
dabbe 🎯🩵🎯 1w
35 likes5 comments
quote
ravenlee
post image

“…it is about dumbing down society for a more easily les population, and it is about using libraries for political gain.”

This, all of this.

kspenmoll 🎯 2w
24 likes1 comment
blurb
ravenlee
post image

#bookmail is the best mail!

kspenmoll I just ordered Solnit‘s new book too! 2w
29 likes1 comment
blurb
ravenlee
post image

Today‘s #bookmail from BN (bottom left) and Bookshop.org for the rest. I may have had to sneak the boxes into the house so hubby didn‘t see them, as this may have been the third and fourth book packages this week… The bottom two are for kiddo, and the top two (the skinny ones) are mine.

I may also have several preorders filtering in over the rest of the year. And a sizable order from Book Outlet shipping soon. I really shouldn‘t be unsupervised.

Kenyazero looks like an excellent selection! 🤩 3w
35 likes1 comment
blurb
ravenlee
post image

Continuing my political/current events self-education with a slight pivot. Starting this one while hubby and kiddo battle it out on the chess board.

review
ravenlee
Pickpick

This book was amazing! You have to read it. Ressa is a Philippine American dual citizen, journalist, and Nobel Peace Prize winner. Her story is incredible. She describes her work to preserve the integrity of journalism and democracy in the Philippines, the global south, and the world. What she‘s been through under Duterte and his successor, her fight against Facebook/social media misinformation…it‘s all so relevant. Just take my word and read it.

TheBookHippie Will do! 3w
28 likes3 stack adds1 comment
review
ravenlee
Antidemocracy in America: Truth, Power, and the Republic at Risk | Eric Klinenberg, Sharon Marcus, Caitlin Zaloom
Mehso-so

Like many compilations, this is a mixed bag. It suffers from being already outdated, although many of the contributors‘ predictions were spot-on for this disastrous second term. I found a lot to be rambling and unhelpful. The highlight was the penultimate essay, “The Right Type of Citizenship” by Jefferson Cowie. It focuses on the Left needing a solid action plan and vision to combat the Right‘s American exceptionalism and 👇🏻

ravenlee white nationalistic bluster. Overall, I give this collection about a C. Helpful if you‘ve got the time and energy, but easily skippable in favor of more up-to-date work. 3w
24 likes1 comment
blurb
ravenlee
What the Hex | Alexis Daria
post image

Recent #bookmail - two kinda different vibes here…

blurb
ravenlee
Math Without Numbers | Milo Beckman
post image

Starting this while kiddo has her violin lesson. This is Mr. Weasley, who tolerates my presence in his home once a week.

dabbe 🖤🐾🖤 3w
Ruthiella 😻😻😻 3w
32 likes2 comments
quote
ravenlee
post image

Gardening metaphor? Carpentry? Yes, these both work. I can get behind this imagery for treating cancer. They‘re both much better than the kitchen metaphor.

BUT, these are about treatment. Earlier she discussed RESEARCH, and I stand by the “front lines” idea for that. Treatment and research are different aspects and deserve different approaches.

quote
ravenlee
post image

So Lesser lost her younger sister to cancer, but she still has some…views…on cancer that don‘t make sense to me. Apparently it was the sister‘s fault?

BarkingMadRead I have uterine cancer and I can‘t tell you how many times I‘ve seen posts saying that you get it from being overweight 🙄 I can‘t ever imagine blaming anyone for getting cancer! 4w
ravenlee @BarkingMadRead that‘s insane! I‘m sorry you‘re having to deal with all of that. People can be the worst. I‘m just horrified by this author even hinting that her sister brought it on herself by not standing up for herself enough. 😤 4w
Ruthiella I don‘t understand that concept either. Children get cancer. Animals get cancer. What attitude could they have that caused it!?!?! 🙁 4w
See All 6 Comments
kspenmoll Insanely ridiculous! 4w
nanuska_153 And that she says it about her sister is even worse. People have the craziest less empathetic comments about strangers situations, and you wonder how would they feel when they see it happening to someone in their inner circle. Apparently this person wouldn't find empathy even in that case 4w
Clare-Dragonfly Uh. WTF. 4w
32 likes6 comments
quote
ravenlee
post image

The kitchen of cancer research? I guess I‘m just not seeing how this is better than “front lines.”

Maybe it‘s my perspective. I‘m a military brat. My paternal grandparents, father, at least three uncles, cousin, brother, and sister-in-law all served. I served. My husband still serves. To me, military service is a legacy, and while it has areas of concern, it‘s not shameful. Maybe that‘s why I‘m not getting Lesser‘s point here.

Ruthiella I think it‘s less the military metaphor and than the black/white juxtaposition of winning vs losing. Some people feel like when they hear “she lost her battle with cancer”, it implies if she‘d only tried a little harder or strategized better, she might have “won” and survived. 4w
DHill IMO this passage reads like it‘s written by someone who‘s never had cancer. It is a battle, and as someone who‘s had cancer, I‘m reassured by the thought that doctors are on the “front lines” of research. 4w
shortsarahrose I don‘t think she‘s necessarily saying “kitchen” is better than front lines. Without other context and just speaking personally, kitchen speaks to care (for me that‘s my grandma making pie or my dad cooking for our family), where front lines speaks to war and destruction. What would cancer research look like if it was centered on an ethic of care (for patients and their families) rather than just destruction of disease? (1/2) 4w
See All 8 Comments
shortsarahrose Thinking of my uncle who passed from stage 4 colon cancer and the kindness his doctor showed him when he decided to stop treatment, in particular. (2/2) (edited) 4w
ravenlee @Ruthiella she‘s arguing against the usage of military/violent language in general, and this is the example she chooses. It just doesn‘t work for me in this sense. Also, later on she does discuss her sister dying or cancer in just those terms, like she could have done better. 🤷🏻‍♀️ 4w
ravenlee @dhill agreed. I haven‘t gone through it myself, but my mom has been through multiple bouts/kinds and it feels very much like battle. There‘s a very combative element to a lot of it, and the researchers are absolutely in a fight to save lives. 4w
ravenlee @shortsarahrose there‘s definitely an element of care needed, and a focus on quality of life for patients rather than just bare survival, but I want researchers looking for cures, not just palliative care. I really just feel that, in Lesser‘s argument against using military/violent metaphors in general, this was not a convincing example. 4w
shortsarahrose Yeah, I don‘t think it was the best example (again, not having any additional context). If she had use the idea of a “moonshot” as an alternative metaphor (as has been used elsewhere to describe the attempt to cure cancer), it would‘ve made her point better. A moonshot being a coordinated effort at reaching a lofty, seemingly impossible goal. Or maybe summiting Everest? 4w
25 likes8 comments
blurb
ravenlee
post image

Today‘s #bookmail courtesy of Haymarket Books: two of the last Solnit books I didn‘t already have (and part of her “Haymarket rainbow”), plus this book on AI that looks very interesting but wasn‘t released as an ebook (ironic, I think).

blurb
ravenlee
post image

Starting this one while #DannyBoy whaps me with his tail.

Leftcoastzen 😄😻 1mo
41 likes1 stack add1 comment
blurb
ravenlee
post image

For the next two days (I think, it may just be today and tomorrow), Barnes & Noble members can use PREORDER25 to get 25% off preorders. It‘s not valid on signed copies, though. But Rebecca Solnit, Joyce Vance, Ali Hazelwood (one just announced today as well as the companion to Bride), Frederik Backman, and so many others have new books coming out. I may have indulged a little…a lot…

ravenlee Oh! And premium members also get the 10% member discount on print books. But the 25% is good on ebook and audiobook preorders, too. 1mo
TheBookHippie Oooooo 1mo
Bookwormjillk Nice- I‘ve been eyeing the new Stephen King 1mo
36 likes3 comments
quote
ravenlee
post image

Who, but the French, would look at snails oozing across a rain-dampened path and think, “I‘ll bet if I sautéed those in garlic butter, they‘d be delicious”?

Ruthiella I‘ve had them. The garlicky butter is delicious. The snails not so much….🐌🤢 1mo
RamsFan1963 I tried escargot once, against my better judgement, and it was okay. I didn't object to the taste so much as the texture. 1mo
bookishbitch The butter is what saves the dish for sure. 1mo
25 likes3 comments
blurb
ravenlee
Untitled | Unknown
post image

#DannyBoy missed me while I was working today. And now he must wash my face because he‘s a much better and cleaner cat than I am.

Ruthiella 😻😻😻 1mo
TheSpineView Awww... 1mo
LeahBergen 😆😆 Good boy! 1mo
Leftcoastzen 😄😻👏 1mo
dabbe 🖤🐾🖤 1mo
35 likes5 comments
quote
ravenlee
post image

“Just to be entirely clear on this point: The Sound of Music fans were so rowdy, they were bothering Austrian drunks chugging one-liter mugs of beer.”

I don‘t know why, but this is cracking me up, and I could use a good laugh.

Bette 🤣 Thanks, I could use a laugh too! 1mo
julieclair Love Rick Steves and Cameron Hewitt! Stacked! 1mo
ravenlee @julieclair so far it‘s a really good read! 1mo
32 likes2 stack adds3 comments
review
ravenlee
Panpan

Meh, I wanted this to be better. Mack has a few decent observations from growing up in Hitler‘s Germany, but it‘s all very slapdash. It feels too casual and anecdotal and I wanted so badly for there to be some depth of understanding. I think he had good intentions, seeing where we were heading, but it didn‘t come together well enough. And after reading Ruth Ben-Ghiat‘s Strongmen, this just doesn‘t get it done.

blurb
ravenlee
Flirting Lessons | Jasmine Guillory
post image

My recent #bookmail has a visual theme, even if one is very, very different from the others! Thanks to The Ripped Bodice for the signed Jasmine Guillory books, and to Haymarket Books for a club that exposes me to books I would probably never otherwise encounter.

review
ravenlee
post image
Pickpick

Despite #DannyBoy‘s best efforts, and the weight of the real-world insanity, I finally finished this amazing book. Highly recommend for anyone wanting to understand what is happening and how we got here, although be cautioned that Russell Vought and Co seem to be using this as a how-to guide.

blurb
ravenlee
Untitled | Unknown
post image

#DannyBoy has opinions about me reading, even when he chooses not to be on my lap. Apparently I‘m not getting this book back anytime soon.
#catsofLitsy

TheBookHippie 😂😬 2mo
Ruthiella An excellent pillow! 😹😻 2mo
ImperfectCJ He takes curling up with a good book literally. 2mo
See All 7 Comments
dabbe 🤣🖤🐾🖤🤣 2mo
ravenlee @TheBookHippie @Ruthiella @ImperfectCJ @dabbe y‘all, he slept on it for an hour! Shifting, but never letting it go. I finally gave up and stood up, and then he stretched, gave me a LOOK, and went on his merry way. I still haven‘t opened that book today. 🤷🏻‍♀️ 2mo
TheBookHippie @ravenlee 😂😂😂😂😂😂 goals. 2mo
43 likes7 comments
review
ravenlee
Pickpick

Another low pick, this continues Gigi and Pike‘s story. One plot thread gets resolved annoyingly quickly, and I kept expecting more from it, but it gets abandoned for the more dangerous one. This felt even less plausible than the first, and I feel like I‘d need to read some of the first-gen Gallo stories to understand the full dynamic here. Still, it‘s a pleasant-enough read when I‘m preoccupied with the state of the world.

review
ravenlee
Pickpick

Low pick. MMC is a biker with a past, FMC is a good girl from a close-knit family. They‘re both tattoo artists, but when Pike walks into his first day at Inked he‘s surprised to find his spring-break fling is the boss‘s daughter AND his new colleague. Danger appears from Pike‘s past, and he and Gigi turn to his MC for protection.

Turns out Bliss has a massive set of connected series and I‘ve fallen right into the middle. Ends on a cliffhanger.

review
ravenlee
Finding Mr. Write | Kelley Armstrong
post image
Pickpick

KA‘s first rom-com, and it‘s great! Daphne‘s a rugged outdoorswoman trying to get her novel published, and Chris becomes the face of her pseudonym. What could go wrong? I loved it.

blurb
ravenlee
Untitled | Unknown
post image

I‘ve only gotten into audiobooks in the last two years or so, but the past few months they‘ve been big for me. I‘m surprised by this perfect balance, though.

Ruthiella Wow! 🤯 2mo
Sarahreadstoomuch I am terrible about indicating the correct format on there…. I should be better about it! 2mo
JamieArc That balance is impressive! (edited) 2mo
48 likes3 comments
review
ravenlee
Bad Feminist | Roxane Gay
Pickpick

As with any collection, some of these essays are better than others. A few of them didn‘t age particularly well, but most are spot on. I did the audio version, narrated by Banhi Turpin, and it was mostly well done but with a handful of words she mispronounced so wildly that I lost the whole sentence trying to parse it. I‘m glad I finally read it, and I‘ll probably read more of Gay‘s work at some point, but I‘m not racing to do so.

review
ravenlee
Broken Sparrow | Chelle Bliss
Pickpick

Another “dark romance,” this one features a motorcycle club theme. Morris stumbles across a woman on the run, and takes both her and her child under his wing. They‘re stalked by her abusive husband, but with a band of unlikely friends Alice starts to have hope for the future. Another one I‘m glad is on Hoopla, but it was pretty good.

review
ravenlee
Pickpick

I needed a change of pace and a distraction from reality. I think this is “dark romance” and my first foray into mob stories. This is Chicago Bratva, or Russian mafia, and the start of a 9-book series. Adbuction/seduction, but the MCs have already had one encounter that resulted in a pregnancy, which she concealed. Glad it was on Hoopla, but an enjoyable enough read.

review
ravenlee
Deep End | Ali Hazelwood
Pickpick

From one of my least favorites to one of my fave favorites. Lukas may be my top hero, and I liked that the conflict seemed more natural than some. Also the stuff between Scarlett and Pen worked out in a believable way. Scarlett‘s running away was a tad extreme, but sure. I was surprised I liked this as much, given the MCs were college-age, but this worked for me in a way that Check & Mate didn‘t.

review
ravenlee
Pickpick

This book was very good, if a bit beyond my depth, and also felt like an intro rather than a deep dive. It‘s largely about how the few can co-opt the direction of organizations, deliberately or not, and why that doesn‘t often serve the greater good. Dovetails nicely with Angela Y. Davis‘ book I read around the same time. Recommended.

review
ravenlee
Check & Mate | Ali Hazelwood
Mehso-so

The first AH book I haven‘t loved, but I did like it. It feels more New Adult than Young Adult, I think, which wasn‘t my favorite. Mallory felt VERY young, which I guess makes sense, as she‘s a young woman forced very early into an adult role, and throughout the book she deals with the consequences of that. It was fine, but one of the few I don‘t see myself rereading. It was fun to read this while kiddo and hubby played endless rounds of chess.

review
ravenlee
Pickpick

I struggled some with this collection, partly (I think) because it‘s an ebook and a little harder to keep track of sections. There were some fantastic parts, and others that were less so. Davis, as always, does a great job finding connections between struggles: class/race/sex; domestic/international; and so on. Definitely a worthwhile read, but maybe in pieces.

TheBookHippie I read this in parts for a monthly Bookclub plus discussion. It worked really well. 2mo
30 likes1 comment
review
ravenlee
Pickpick

While good, there are definitely some caveats. As said before, Arendt had her share of both brilliance and prejudice, and as she‘s a mixed bag so is her biography. I‘m intrigued enough to read some of her work (my first attempt was a spectacular failure, but I‘ll try again), but I‘ll keep my expectations moderate in many ways.

TheBookHippie Simone De Beauvoir and she are my problematic people I learned so much from and think their words on things are so accurate and necessary history. Sigh. 2mo
25 likes1 comment
review
ravenlee
Pickpick

A lot of this seems overly simplistic, even reductionist. However, there are some truly great insights into what makes someone join a mass movement. It helps make sense of why people fall/fell for MAGA BS and similar. Highly recommend.

review
ravenlee
Pickpick

I read this back when there seemed to be hope, and now it seems wasted. The big takeaway that ISN‘T wasted: the GOP has been united for decades, working toward their fascistic goals, while Dems have been trying to compromise and play the bipartisan game. That time is long gone, and we need a new generation of liberal leaders who can leave the old playbook behind. Fight the battle we‘re in, not the one you studied in history.

TheBookHippie All of this. I‘ve been literally screaming since 1983. 2mo
Suet624 Yes. 2mo
29 likes2 comments
review
ravenlee
Silent Spring | Rachel Carson
Pickpick

For being dated, this book is still absolutely on point. All the arguments are as valid as ever. Definitely worth reading if you haven‘t. It was hard going, reading about so many dead animals and sick people, but we need to keep books like this in regular rotation.

TheBookHippie I‘ve read this three times. I do enjoy her other works as well. 2mo
29 likes1 comment
blurb
ravenlee
Apologies | Plato, Xenophon
post image

Warning: review dump coming! I‘ve been mired in the chaos recently, and struggling to find the space to keep sane. I did take a quick trip with a friend to see the Gin Blossoms in concert (I‘ve wanted to see them for 30 years!), so that helped. Here‘s #DannyBoy for tax.

TheBookHippie Sweetness. 2mo
Ruthiella 😻😻😻 2mo
Suet624 💕💕💕 it‘s a tough time. 2mo
dabbe 🖤🐾🖤 2mo
Darklunarose ❤️❤️😻 2mo
35 likes5 comments
review
ravenlee
Pickpick

This was a slightly spicy romance with surprising depth. Kat has severe anxiety and frequent panic attacks, Silas has PTSD from combat in the Marines/post-service trauma from a comrade‘s suicide. Twelve years after their disastrous first encounter leaves them bitter enemies, Kat and Silas end up in a fake romance to piss off her ex-fiancé (whom they both detest). I loved the hidden complexity of both characters and the way they came together.

review
ravenlee
post image
Mehso-so

Thanks to kiddo‘s extra (waste of time) ballet rehearsal, I finished this. I agree with other reviews that there‘s a lot of name-dropping that doesn‘t tell me much. At least, not much good. I‘m not impressed that AA used to hang with Laura Ingraham, for instance. This wasn‘t what I expected or wanted, but there are some useful observations scattered around, and it‘s fairly short. Maybe Autocracy, Inc. is better?