Lacy

Dumplin was such a relatable character!

Revisado: 07-31-19

I love this book! I’ve been reading books that I grew up reading throughout the Summer and my mind has been stuck in little kid-style horror novels. I think I forgot what it’s like to actually read a book that touches your soul where you easily get lost in the story.

I can relate to Willowdean aka “Dumplin’” because I was the chubby girl growing up. All 3 of my best friends were thin with cute frames and one of them looked like she could have modeled. I was constantly throwing confidence as a coping mechanism for the insecurity I felt about my body. I knew I would never compare to them and it affected the way I approached dating. I was constantly running my thoughts through the insecurity mill just as Willowdean did. Although, I would have jumped on the chance of dating Beau- no hesitation! I was a bit more boy crazy lol. When you have a body like that, you do constantly compare and hate on yourself especially as a teenager. Even now, I struggle at times being big boned at 32 years old.

I think the character was raw and super relatable. Julie Murphy did an amazing job of creating such a real and realistic character! I think that’s what is so empowering is that she is so human. It makes things normal! I cannot wait to see what happens for Willowdean in the second book!

Now, I will say the book was definitely different from the movie in many ways but I equally liked both of them.

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Libba Bray is a genius!

Revisado: 06-12-18

Libba Bray is a talented, genius author! The Diviners series is my absolute favorite!! She is amazing at transporting the reader to the 1920s. She writes her characters in a way that makes you fall in love with them! You feel like you know Evie, Memphis, Sam, Theta, Ling, Isaiah, Mabel, Jericho, and Henry. I was super shocked to realize there will be another book coming!! So excited!

This book focused more on the government and how they went about finding Diviners to experiment on them. A lot of the puzzle pieces get put together in this book because we learn about:
-why our fave Diviners are Diviners
-what happened to Evie’s brother, James
-Uncle Will and Ms. Walker’s work
-an up close and personal look at the man in the stovepipe hat
-more about Theta’s past with Roy
-a deeper look into Henry’s, Memphis’s, and Sam’s mother
-Blind Bill’s story finally comes forth
-we get to see the Diviners powers more in action
-we get to see Mabel in a different light
-we get introduced to new characters like Connor Flynn and Arthur Brown
-Evie finally makes a decision in her love triangle between Jericho and Sam
-we get to know Jake Marlowe even more

Usually in each book, the Diviners are fighting a ghost. In this book, they are fighting several!!!!!! I can tell the next book will probably be a battle royale with the “King of Crows.” Can’t wait!!

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So different from the movie

Revisado: 05-20-18

I recently sat down and finally watched all of “The Shining.” I had only seen parts of the movie (mainly the iconic scenes). My husband had watched a YouTube video about how Stephen King hated the movie adaptation and it was comparing the movie to the book. They have similarities but the movie was done so differently from the book. The video piqued my interest so I decided that I would go ahead and read the book.

I have to say, I’m not a fan of the lengthy, detailed way in which Stephen King writes. I think there are places where that is needed but I do think there were parts of the book that could have been cut out because they were excessive or unnecessary.

The story is one that I find to be very original and I like the main plot of the story. I can see where Bentley Little might have been inspired by Stephen King’s work. Some of his books remind me of this one.

Basically, The Overlook Hotel is possessed by this evil entity in a sense. Bad things have occurred there throughout the years of it being built and people in bad businesses have tried to own The Overlook and make it successful. Finally, under the management of Halloran, The Overlook is starting to see some success.

Jack Torrence has been a man that has experienced bad luck. He was abused by his alcoholic father. He becomes alcoholic in college and breaks his son’s arm. He works hard to become sober after the incident while working as a teacher in a high school. One of his students on the debate team gets upset with him for kicking him off due to his stuttering problem. He retaliates against Jack and Jack catches him in the act which in turn puts the two into a physical altercation which = Jack losing his job.

One of Jack’s drinking buddies that was in the war with him happens to be on the school board and owns The Overlook Hotel helps him get a job as the caretaker for The Overlook. He brings his meek wife, Wendy, and telepathic son, Danny, along on the job. They are to take care of the hotel from October to March when the snow cuts the hotel off from the world. Jack has no idea what he has just signed his family up for but he’ll find out soon enough.....

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John C. Reilly did a phenomenal job portraying the characters

Revisado: 05-10-18

I did think this was a good story but not one I could read again. I’ve always been curious about this book because it’s always featured as a classic story. A good friend of mine really enjoyed it so I thought I would finally take the plunge.

My interest was definitely peaked when I read in the summary that it was about life in an asylum. I’ve always been drawn to asylum-style stories because mental health fascinates me. I noticed that Jack Nicholson played in the movie adaptation and after his crazy performance in “The Shining” I thought I was in for a treat.

I love being in characters heads and seeing the world through their eyes. I thought it was genius of Kensey to put the story through Chief Bromden- a selective mute Native American’s eyes. I will say being in the “fog” was definitely disorienting even for me. I had a hard time following what Bromden was experiencing or seeing.

I understood the reference the chief placed to people being like robots in a societal machine but I wondered how he came to that and if he actually saw all the wires and hoses he so vividly described. I think the book captured how mentally ill people must really feel being cast off as society’s rejects. We never know what is going on in the minds of people. Looking through Bromden’s eyes we saw so many disempowered men- all they wanted was freedom and a normal chance at life.

Some people felt Kensey was sexist in his portrayal of women but I disagree. I feel Nurse Ratched orchestrated the whole game played in the psych ward. The men knew they had to be cunning to survive or they would catch her wrath. She was the sick and twisted one because she manipulated everyone around her in order to bend them to her will, including the doctors and staff. She abused her power and I think she fed off of playing mind games. I feel she was responsible for at least 2 deaths in that ward.

I think McMurphy was written in a way where you couldn’t help but love him despite his flaws. He had done atrocious things but a part of me wondered if they were actually true. If so, I think he had some serious childhood trauma- could have possibly been raped as a child? It would have explained his behavior-especially the 10 year-old story. Part of me wondered if he was a pathological liar though. He had heart behind all that “tough guy” talk. He was searching for a true family and I think he finally found his place. He came into the ward, shook things up, knocked Ratched off her power trip, and helped the guys grow to become men. They needed McMurphy as much as he needed them.

The ending was tough but I could sense something major was going to happen. It was inevitable.

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What an experience to hear the actress read the book

Revisado: 05-01-18

“Carrie” is a movie I have seen several times but I’ve never read the book. The movie was definitely different from the book in many ways. In the book, there is this whole investigation into what happened surrounding the prom whereas the movie was more focused on the linear storyline. What was a neat experience, was being able to listen to the actress, Sissy Spacek, who played the role of Carrie, read the book!

Carrie White is known as a poor, pitiful girl who many take advantage of or humiliate because she is weak. Her mother is a fanatical Christian that takes her transgressions out on Carrie and believes her to be the spawn of Satan. She makes her pray for 6 hours straight in a tiny closet with creepy things on the wall and everything becomes a sin.

She starts her period and ,of course, her mother forgets to mention that eventually she will experience this. She finds out through a traumatic experience in the locker room showers where girls are chanting and throwing tampons on her. These girls get their punishment but the paths they choose will both lead to destruction. Through guilt, Sue asks her b/f, Tommy, to take Carrie to the senior prom. Chris, on the other hand, is resentful and decides to have her revenge on Carrie through the bloody mess of pigs’ blood.

They have no idea what Carrie is capable of and how far she will go to take down everyone she feels has wronged her and more.

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Who murdered Mr. Ratchet???

Revisado: 04-27-18

My interest piqued for this book through the recent release of the movie with such a star-studded cast! Murder mystery is one of my favorite genres so I was excited to see how this one would be! My rule of thumb before I watch a movie is to read its book. I will say I was somewhat disappointed because I had a difficult time getting into the story in the beginning. The style of how it was written did not capture my attention and I felt too bogged-down in details.

I was surprised by the ending for sure but it was a pretty good story. Very quick read! A man is murdered on the Orient Express and Detective Poirot must figure out who murdered the man, Mr. Ratchet.

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Cure for sexism...

Revisado: 04-23-18

Cat Winters has done it again! I seriously LOVE her books!!!! She totally gets me and how to rope me into her stories. I feel like I’m the fly on the wall watching all of this go down. You fall in love with her characters and want to know what happens to them after the story ends!

This story is set in 1900-once again in Portland, Oregon. Olivia Mead is celebrating her 17th birthday (which happens to be on Halloween) watching the famous French hypnotist, Henri Reverie. She is called on stage to be hypnotized in front of everyone. It does catch the eye of her crush, Percy.

Olivia’s father, Dr. Mead, is a crazy dentist who is super strict on Olivia. Her mother ran off to NYC when she was 4 year-old to be a broadway star probably because her father is so overbearing and sexist! Many men were during that time. This was during the suffragette period of time where women were fighting to be equal enough to vote!

Dr. Mead gets a crazy idea! He wants to cure Olivia’s dreams of voting, going to college, and working by being hypnotized. Little does he know, Henri gives her something better- a gift to see the world as it truly is. She begins to see vampires and ghosts of people everywhere she looks. She even sees Percy for who he truly is- definitely not what she thought!

Dr. Mead decides to cure her for good by having Henri hypnotize her once more by making her ill when she hears certain words. The joke will soon be on him because Henri and Olivia have cooked up a plan that will have the whole town talking.

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What a twist!!!

Revisado: 02-11-18

I absolutely LOVED this book! Cat Winters is becoming one of my favorite authors! She is good at mixing a historical time period, ghosts, and a love story to make such a phenomenal story.

This one takes place during World War I in Buchanan, Illinois. It’s 1918 and the flu has been taking many lives! It was kind of ironic to read this because we’re going through the flu right now. Ivy must wrestle with the thought of her brother, Peter, and father killing an innocent German man and losing her other brother, Billy, to the war. She is in the process of trying to recover from flu and she leaves home to find herself.

She encounters the German man, Wilhelm, whose brother was slain by her brother and father. She constantly feels pulled to him and begins to kindle affection for him. She finds a place to stay in town with a woman named May, who is a widow of one of Ivy’s classmates. She stumbles upon a Red Cross ambulance stuck on the tracks. She helps and befriends two girls, Addy & Nellie, by driving the ambulance at night to pick up flu victims.

Little does she know, her world will totally be turned upside down once more and she will never be the same!

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Fascinating stories of seeing behind the veil...

Revisado: 01-18-18

I loved this book! The way this book was written was how I thought “Evidence of the Afterlife” would have been written-with more case studies as examples. It gave me a deeper understanding of the book and filled me with hope. The stories were so fascinating and gave so much deep insight.

My nana recently passed away in May and that’s what got me started on this path toward this book. I’ve always been fascinated by NDEs and nana had actually had one in 82’ or 83’- not long after she married Papa. She went into anaphylaxis when she took medicine that had never caused an allergic reaction before. She left her body and could hear Papa begging her to stay with him. She ended up on a fence. One side felt amazing but she was drawn to the other side which led to being back in her body here on Earth.

I feel a lot more at peace and hope knowing she’s up there in Heaven and I’ll see her one day! I’ve always had strong faith in Christ so I wasn’t surprised to know He’s very much alive and real. The book just confirmed it further.

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I knew it was going to be an awesome book!

Revisado: 10-10-17

I've always been interested in this topic! Ed and Lorraine Warren are highly respected in the paranormal community and they have many fascinating cases. I remember seeing this in The Conjuring 1 & 2 so it's neat to be able to have the back story of what actually happened to the possessed farmer. It's a sad story...I felt so bad for Maurice (the farmer) when I heard his childhood and how horrible his father was to him! I didn't blame him when he took off and made a life of his own. I just wondered what actually happened in the barn that was considered an "evil act," I never caught what his dad actually did.

We learn about the failed marriages of Maurice and the odd behavior he displays through the years like bleeding from the eyes. Finally, he finds someone that stays with him and gets him the help he needs. Of course, he has a big media circus taken out on him in the papers when Ed & Lorraine Warren get involved. So happy he gets the help he needs!

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