Book Review: How to Be Yourself-Life-Changing Advice From a Reckless Contrarian by Simon Doonan
Simon Doonan is my fairy godfather. I’ve read and reviewed his books Wacky Chicks and Asylum. Now the ever entertaining Mr. Doonan is back with his latest book How to Be Yourself: Advice from a Reckless Contrarian.
How to Be Yourself is chockful of wisdom on a slew of topics. These include style, people, love, werk(work), decor, and family.
After a brief introduction, Doonan gives his sage advice in his usual witty manner.
We get encouragement on how to express ourselves in how we dress and how we decorate our homes.
Doonan gives us tips on how we should conduct ourselves in the ever-evolving workplace and on navigating our love lives.
He also shares ideas on how to deal with our families and other people.
Throughout How to Be Yourself, there are quotes by the likes of Coco Chanel, John Waters, Winston Churchill, and Iris Apfel. Doonan also provides a glossary in the back to familiarize yourself with some of the language he uses.
Much of the advice Doonan doles out is probably advice you’ve read elsewhere. But Doonan’s way with words and “you can do it” spirit makes up for it.
Off the Books
Book Review: Blood and Silver by Vali Benson
Meet 12 year old Carissa Beaumont of Vali Benson’s historical novel Blood and Silver. She’s not exactly living a carefree childhood. After the death of her father and brother, Carissa’s mother, Lisette, can only support her baby girl by working as a lady of ill-repute at a brothel. And not only that, she’s addicted to the drug laudanum.
As Blood and Silver begins, Carissa and her mother have moved to Tombstone, Arizona. It’s 1880, and Tombstone is booming. Silver has been discovered. People are coming to town to earn their fortunes. Miss Lucille, Lisette’s madam, brings her girls to a brothel in Tombstone knowing they’ll bring in the local men and make her lots of money.
Miss Lucille is evil and conniving. And she’s responsible for getting Lisette hooked on laudanum.
Carissa, no fool, recognizes Miss Lucille is up to no good. So she makes sure she finds a doctor to help her mother in her recovery.
The doctor informs Carissa she can help her mother by meeting China Mary, an immigrant from China, who lives in Hoptown.
At first Carissa is intimidated by China Mary, but soon she finds the woman a powerful ally.
Through China Mary makes friends with the other Chinese immigrants, including a young girl named Mai Lin. Carissa also managesges to get a job at the fancy Grand Hotel. She proves to be a worthy employee.
Carissa is brave and smart. And she goes to great lengths to improve her and her mother’s lives. And when she faces disaster, she shows her mettle. Nothing will stop her.
I found Blood and Silver to be a compelling tale. The characters are richly drawn and Ms Benson definitely did her research because the details of that time ring true.
But what really struck me about Blood and Silver is how bad ass Carissa is. She’s a young girl of depth and fortitude. And I hope there is another book about her in the future.
Book Review: Karma-A Yogi’s Guide to Crafting Your Destiny by Sadhguru
Karma. It’s a word we’re familiar with but what does it mean? To me, karma has to do with our actions and how they affect our lives, either good or bad.
According to Sadhguru, yogi, mystic, and founder of the Isha Institute, karma is a bit more complex. And he tries to explain this in his book Karma: A Yogi’s Guide to Crafting Your Destiny.
In Karma, Sadhguru describes destiny as “action or imprint of action, which remains within us.”
For over 250 exhausting pages, Sadhguru goes more in depth about various aspects of karma and how we get wrapped up in it. Karma, apparently, affects us in ways that goes beyond the simple concepts of reward and punishment.
Knowing about karma is supposed to empower us to reach a desired destination. The concepts are supposed to be easily understood. But are they?
Though karma is praised by the likes of Tom Brady, Deepak Chopra, and Rosanna Arquette, I could not get into this book. I found Karma to be repetitive and arrogant. It may have been more feasible if it was a magazine article. And maybe I couldn’t get into it because I’m not Hindu.
However, the “crafting” in the title reminded me I need to get back into crafting.
Book Review: One Evening in Paris by Nicolas Barreau
It’s nearly summer. Just the right time to read a light and fluffy romance. When I picked up Nicolas Barreau’s novel One Evening in Paris at my local Goodwill, I knew I had to read it.
Meet Alain Bonnard. After working a high-paying yet dreary corporate job in Lyon, he moves back to Paris to take over his late uncle’s movie theater Cinema Paradis. Alain was pretty much raised at Cinema Paradis. It’s a part of his DNA.
Cinema Paradis is not like your neighborhood multiplex. It doesn’t show Hollywood blockbusters and it doesn’t serve massive servings of popcorn.
Despite not offering those amenities, Cinema Paradis does have its share of devotees, including a lovely young women in a red coat who comes every Wednesday and sits in row 17.
Alain is smitten by this mystery lady. And it isn’t long before he gets the courage to ask her out. He and Melanie (that’s her name) spend one magical evening together. Alas, Melanie is about to go on holiday to visit her aunt. But, yes the lovebirds will reunite once Melanie comes back to Paris.
Alain has other things in his life other than l’amour. American film director Allen Wood wants to film some scenes at the Cinema Paradis for a movie, a movie that will star the French Cinematic sensation Solene Avril.
Alan’s life is upended as he gets caught up in the craziness of Hollywood and the paparazzi. But will this excitement put a damper on Alain’s relationship with Melanie just as it’s beginning?
I really wanted to like One Evening in Paris. But sadly, it was a disappointment.
Of the characters, only Alain was somewhat multifaceted. Melanie, his alleged soulmate, was a bit lacking. In fact, I thought Solene had more potential to be a much more interesting character.
But what really offended me was the barely veiled racism. Black people, Asians, and the Romani are portrayed in very negative and stereotypical manner.
Do I want to spend one evening in Paris? Yes, but not in this book.
Book Review: Wow, No Thank You by Samantha Irby
I thoroughly enjoyed Samantha Irby’s books Meaty and We’re Never Meeting in real life. So I was pretty excited to read her latest collection of essays Wow, No Thank You.
Did this latest release excite me and delight me as much as Ms. Irby’s previous two books?
Well, read on.
Things have changed for Irby since we last visited her. She’s now married and she and her wife live in domestic bliss in Michigan.
And professionally, Irby is smoking hot. Her first book was optioned by Abbi Jacobson of the tv show Broad City ( though it never got picked up). And Lindy West from Hulu’s Shrill, brought Irby on to write for the show.
In Wow, Irby opens up about influencers and their expensive eye cream. She opines on “young people”-she just turned forty- are always on their phones. She tells us the long journey it took to get her first book, Meaty, published. And she also gives a glimpse of what it’s like to be in Hollywood, at the writers’ table penning scripts for Shrill.
Irby also covers familiar territory, her health issues and less than ideal childhood.
And shook my head every time Irby mentioned getting mistaken for Roxane Gay. Hmm, two black women, both excellent writers, but completely different people!
Though i found some of the essays to be funny and entertaining, I had a feeling that this book wasn’t quite what I wanted to read. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. Then it hit me. Irby’s self-deprecating shtick was a bit tiresome. MS. Irby you are a successful writer and happily married. Own it!
Hmm…perhaps that will be the next book.
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