My Index of Slightly Horrifying Knowledge

By: Paul Guest
Genre: Poetry
Stars: 5 out of 5
A serious and hilarious collection of poems, Paul Guest writes about the cold that winter brings and the power of a lover. From airplane noise and traveling, to letters home, to a passionate crush, Guest mixes serious language about his disability with hilarious metaphors about traveling and having a bad mood. So what does a blend of these polar opposite narratives provide? A collection of poems that is intriguing to read.

I love reading poetry and I noticed that I had not read a collection in a while. So I was browsing NPR at work and came upon Paul Guest’s anthology of poems. I must say that Guest’s language is a lot of fun to read. Here’s an example: “It is our hope that this guide/will be a valuable resource/during this long stretch of boredom and dread/and that it may be of some help,/however small, to cope with your new life/and the gradual, bittersweet loss/of every God damned thing you ever loved” (page 9). My favorite poem is “My Crush” because I feel like everyone feels the same way as the author describes when it comes to experiencing a crush and his metaphors and descriptions of never seeing more “unsunned skin than/the bus driver or the chainsaw salesman” is amazing to me. I highly recommend this collection of poems to anyone not just lovers of poetry. I am sure you will get as much of a kick as well as an impact as me – at least that is my hope.

Summer at Tiffany

By: Marjorie Hart
Genre: Nonfiction/Memoir
Stars: 4 out of 5
Marjorie Hart and her best friend Marty from the University of Iowa are going to New York City for the summer of 1945. Their sisters of Kappa Kappa Gamma expressed that it would be easy for them to get a job at Lord & Taylor – a designer department store – easily and so the pair pack up and head for the big city. After being rejected by one department store after another, Marjorie and Marty finally land a job as the first female pages at the infamous Tiffany & Co. During the summer, they see celebrities like Judy Garland come into the store, go out to the hottest clubs, meet midshipmen and join in the celebration of VJ Day in Times Square. At the end of the summer Marjorie must make some decisions that will affect the rest of her life.

This memoir was certainly a charming one. For one, Tiffany’s is my absolute favorite store and so any book that involves the legendary jewelry show room will interest me. I love the details about the Fifth Avenue store and the celebrities that glide in and out. It also gives a different perspective on life in New York City during the summer of 1945 when the United States dropped the atom bombs and Japan surrendered to us. This is most definitely a fun, light summer read and so I would recommend this memoir if you’re looking for delightful book about a brilliant store and woman’s experience with it.

The Old Man and the Sea

By: Ernest Hemingway
Genre: Short Story/Fiction
Stars: 2 out of 5
It has been eighty-four days since the old man caught a fish. After a morning with a boy, the old man sets out to find a perfect fish. Venturing to far from shore, the old man snags a fish that is bigger than his skiff. The marlin begins dragging the old man and his skiff further and further into the sea. Bound and determined to bring this catch home, the old man never gives up being towed and harpoons the marlin. On the way home sharks begin attacking the carcass because of the scent it has left behind. After trying with desperation to fend off the sharks, the old man returns to shore with nothing but a skeleton left.

The Old Man and the Sea is another classic I have never read, as well as any Hemingway for that matter. I must admit that I did not particularly care for Hemingway’s style of narration. It was too repetitive and so made the story boring. I can understand why people fell in love with his writing style but honestly it did nothing for me. I am just thankful I never had to read this when I was younger because I am positive I would have never had the patience to finish it. Maybe I need to read another one of Hemingway’s novels to appreciate him and his works.

To Kill a Mockingbird

By: Harper Lee
Genre: Fiction
Stars: 3 out of 5
In a quiet Southern town during the 1930s, a child learns about the adult mentality of the time and how it can rock an entire population. Jean Louise Finch – Scout – and her brother Jeremy Finch – Jem – are the children of Maycomb County’s lawyer Atticus Finch. They live like any normal child of the town, running around chatting with the neighbors, terrorizing the mysterious Boo Radley, and hanging out with their summer friend Dill. It’s not until their father takes on a case that their world gets rocked upside down. All of a sudden adults and children are calling their father a “Negro-lover” and disapprove of their hanging around the black folks. It isn’t until the trail of Tom Robinson, a black man who is falsely accused of attacking a white woman, that Scout and Jem truly understand the nature of their world.

Normally a classic read in middle school or high school, I never had to partake in the reading of this novel. This summer I decided it was time to start reading classics that I never had to read in school and so I began with Harper Lee’s infamous piece of literature. Honestly, I am glad I never read it when I was younger because I do not think I would have had the patience to finish it. You have to read until the very end to truly understand the premise of the story and so it was boring up to a certain point. Although the writing style and language is excellent and done extremely well, I just did not find this book that timeless for me. So kids that have to read this, I am so sorry. If I could barely get through it being 23, I can’t even image how it is for you.

Sliding Into Home

By: Kendra Wilkinson
Genre: Entertainment Biography
Stars: 3 out of 5
Kendra Wilkinson is best known as being the “sporty one” on E!’s hit TV show The Girls Next Door. Being one of Hugh Hefner’s girlfriends was only the beginning for the reality star; however it wasn’t the beginning of her tough life. After her father walked out of her life at infancy, Kendra began to explore the world of sex and drugs at a young age. From dropping out of school to older boyfriends to a mental hospital, Kendra didn’t finally come to terms with her coke use until a potentiality fatal overdose. After becoming sober she went back to school and got a job as a dental assistant but soon became bored and decided to start stripping and eventually modeling. This led to Kendra being discovered by Playboy and thus her journey at the Playboy Mansion and being Hef’s girlfriend began. She gives us insights about some Playboy practices that only ever seemed to be rumors and the real “reality” of the reality TV show The Girls Next Door. After finally meeting and wedding Hank Baskett, Kendra begins a new chapter in her life with her new husband and baby Hank Jr.

As a closet fan of the TV show The Girls Next Door, I decided to read this book as soon as I found out there was one. I am not one to choose favorites but Kendra was Hugh’s girlfriend that intrigued me the most so I was definitely interested to read her story. Although Kendra’s story is enticing at times, I was not impressed with the writing and every now and then it got a little boring. There were times though during the teenage years of her life that I just wanted to yell, “Kendra what are you doing?” and so it really showed me a side of who this woman was. But all and all, despite it being popular at work and selling out in its first week, Kendra’s book was just alright for me.

Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life

By: Bryan Lee O’Malley
Genre: Graphic Novel
Stars: 4 out 5
Scott Pilgrim has a pretty awesome life. He is 23 years old, has an adorable high school girlfriend and is in a rock band. Everything seems perfect until a mind-blowing Amazon.ca delivery girl on rollerblades shows up in his dreams. Totally infatuated and obsessed with her, Scott Pilgrim embarks on asking Ramona Flowers – the girl of his dreams – out. Little does he know the road to love isn’t that easy. He has to face and defeat all seven of Ramona’s evil ex-boyfriends. Will Scott Pilgrim win the battle and the girl’s heart?
I am totally excited for the movie Scott Pilgrim vs. The World to come out in September and when I heard it is actually based upon a series, I just had to read them. The first volume is hilarious. It sets up the characters of Scott and his friends and what his life is like. Living with his gay roommate and sharing the same bed while dating a seventeen year old school girl that he met on the bus is only the beginning of Scott’s precious little life. Never did he imagine that it would be turned upside down by an American emo chick and he has to defeat all of her ex-boyfriends in a video game style before they can truly date. If you ask me, this storyline is pretty awesome. I cannot wait to read the next installments as well as watch the movie when it comes out!

Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide

By: Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn
Genre: Current Affairs/Women’s Studies
Stars: 4 out of 5
In this eye-opening book about the different oppressions women have to face in their lifetime, the first Pulitzer Prize winning couple Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn shows a passionate vocation to help women around the world. Everyday women – or girls – are either sold into sex trafficking and prostitution, subjected to rape, suffer from honor killings, endure the humiliation of fistulas, undergo genital cutting and much more. Kristof and WuDunn expand and explain their research and stories about each topic of women oppression and then provide examples of what is being done to help within each situation. They show that the best way to prevent most of the coercion of women is through education. Over and over they show examples of how schools in third world countries and sending girls to them can help with their future. So we see that with the oppression of women comes the opportunity to help them and make the world a better place.
I enjoyed reading this work even though sometimes it was a little difficult to swallow. I knew these problems were happening in our world today but I never realized the full extent of what unfortunate women have to fear every day. I feel so lucky for the opportunities – especially 16 years of being able to attend school – that are given to me even if I am a woman. This piece of nonfiction makes all the oppression more real because of all the personal stories that Kristof and WuDunn share with the readers. Knowing that these women had to suffer some sort of cruelty because of the mere fact that they are female but have been given the opportunity to have something better makes me want to give a chance to another woman out there. And so with one of the suggestion websites in the appendix of the book, I am researching to see what sort of help I can provide because with my help, even if it may seem insignificant, women can continue to hold up half the sky.